microprocessor

n : an integrated circuit semiconductor chip that performs the

bulk of the processing and controls the parts of a

system; "a microprocessor functions as the central

processing unit of a microcomputer"; "a disk drive

contains a microprocessor to handle the internal

functions of the drive"

preprocessor

A program invoked by various {compiler}s to process code

before compilation. For example, the {C} preprocessor, {cpp},

handles textual {macro} substitution, {conditional

compilation} and inclusion of other files. A preprocessor may

be used to transform a program into a simpler language, e.g. to

transform {C::} into {C}.

(1994-11-09)