software handshaking

1 definition found

software handshaking - Free On-line Dictionary of Computing (26 May 2007) :

  software handshaking
  XON/XOFF
  
     <communications> The transmission of extra data on a channel
     in order to control the device sending data in the other
     direction on that channel.  For an EIA-232 connection, this
     means sending Control-S and Control-Q characters to stop
     and start transmission.
  
     Since software handshaking requires the transmission and
     processing of extra data it can be less efficient than
     hardware handshaking.
  
     (1996-10-16)