NAS Network Attached Storage is a file server with an operating system that supports the popular file sharing protocols, such as CIFS (Windows) and NFS (Unix). It is accessed as a client on a network such as Ethernet. This is relatively low cost and easy to set up but it is limited by the constraints of the network. If the network is very busy, then access to the NAS will be slower. An alternative form of shared storage can be set up with a SAN that creates its own separate network. See also: SAN Website: www.techweb.com/encyclopedia
NCS Newsroom Computer System. The name sprang up when the only computer in a TV news area was used for storing and editing the textual information available from news services. It also created the running order for the bulletin and was interfaced to many other devices around the production studio. See also: MOS
Negative Film that shows the shot scene as negative images. Various types of negative material are used in several stages of the traditional film production chain that culminates in release prints. See also: Camera negative, Internegative 133
Network layer (1) In TCP/IP, the network layer is responsible for accepting IP (Internet Protocol) datagrams and transmitting them over a specific network. (2) The third layer of the OSI reference model of data communications.
NFS Network File System. Developed by Sun Microsystems, NFS allows sets of computers to access each other's files as if they were locally stored. NFS has been implemented on many platforms and is considered an industry standard. See also: IP
Nibble 8 binary bits = 1 Byte 4 binary bits = 1 Nibble; techy humour!
NLE See Nonlinear (editing)
Noise (random) Irregular level fluctuations of a low order of magnitude. All analog video signals contain random noise. Ideally for digital sampling, the noise level should not occupy more than one LSB of the digital dynamic range. Pure digitally generated signals however do not contain any noise - a fact that can be a problem under certain conditions. With digital compression, noise has a new importance. Noise, which can originate from analog sources, can be hard to distinguish from real wanted high frequency information. This means compression coders can waste valuable output bandwidth describing the noise to the cost of the real pictures. See also: Dynamic Rounding
Non-additive mix A mix of two pictures which is controlled by their luminance levels relative to each other, as well as a mix value K (between 0 and 1): e.g. the position of a switcher lever arm. A and B sources are scaled by factors K and 1-K but the output signal is switched to that which has the greatest instantaneous product of the scaling and the luminance values. The output of any pixel is either signal A or B but not a mix of each. So if K = 0.5, in areas where picture A is brighter than B then only A will be seen. Thus two clips of single subjects shot against a black background can be placed in one picture. The term has also come to encompass some of the more exotic types of picture mixing available today: for example to describe a mix that could add smoke to a foreground picture - perhaps better termed an additive mix. See also: Digital mixing
Non drop-frame timecode Timecode that does not use drop-frame and always identifies 30 frames per second. This way the timecode running time will not exactly match normal time unless it is an exact 30f/s. The mismatch amounts to 1:1000, an 18-frame overrun every 10 minutes. This applies where 59.94, 29,97 or 23.976 picture rates are used in 525/60 systems as well as DTV. See also: 1000/1001, Drop-frame timecode
Nonlinear (editing) Nonlinear means not linear - that the recording medium is not tape and editing can be performed in a non-linear sequence - not necessarily the sequence of the program. It describes editing with quick access to source clips and recording space - usually using computer disks to store footage. This removes the spooling and pre-rolls of VTR operations so greatly increasing the speed of work. Yet greater speed and flexibility are possible with realtime random access to any frame (true random access). See also: FrameMagic, Linear (editing), On-line (editing), True random access
NTFS New Technology File System - the standard file system of Windows NT and its descendants Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003 and Windows Vista. It replaced Microsoft's FAT file system used in MS-DOS and earlier Windows versions. Advantages include improved metadata support, advanced data structures, reliability, disk space use and extensions such as security access control lists (who can access), permitted operations and file system journaling that logs file changes. Full details are a Microsoft trade secret.
NTSC The National Television Systems Committee. A U.S. broadcast engineering advisory group.
NTSC (television standard) The analog color television system used in the USA, Canada, Mexico, Japan and more, where NTSC M is the broadcast standard (M defining the 525/60 line and field format). It was defined by the NTSC in 1953. NTSC is rapidly becoming part of history, with analog switch-off scheduled to happen in April 2009 in the USA. Note that 'NTSC' is often incorrectly used to describe the 525-line format even when it is in component or digital form.
NVOD Near Video On Demand - rapid access to program material on demand often achieved by providing the same program on a number of channels with staggered start times. Many of the hundreds of TV channels now on offer will be made up of NVOD services. These are delivered by transmission servers.
Nyquist (frequency) The minimum frequency that will faithfully sample an analog signal so it can be accurately reconstructed from the digital result. This is always twice the maximum frequency of the signal to be sampled. See also: 13.5 MHz