diskette

n. (Computers) a data-storage medium consisting of a small plastic disk coated with a thin layer of magnetizable material on one or both sides, enclosed in a stiff envelope with a radial slit. It is used in a specially designed disk drive, in which the disk is rotated at high speed, and which stores data on the disk by causing changes in the direction of magnetization of the magnetic layer as the disk spins and as sequential locations on the disk pass under the read-write head of the drive. Reading of the data occurs in the reverse process, by detection of the patterns of magnetization of the disk. Such disks are used to store data or programs for a microcomputer.
Syn. -- floppy, floppy disk. [ WordNet 1.5 +PJC ]