Footprint

Updated: 07/06/2021 by Computer Hope
Human footprint on aqua background.

In computer science, a footprint describes how much space is occupied by an object. For example, if a computer (or another piece of external hardware) has a small footprint, it takes up smaller amount of desk space. A good example is a flat-panel display with a smaller footprint than a CRT (cathode ray tube) monitor.

Software may also have a "footprint." For example, a program's "memory footprint" refers to how much memory (measured in bytes, for instance) is required to execute the program.

Computer slang, Foot, Hardware terms, Measurements