online medical dictionary | definition of 16-bit application

<operating system> Software for MS-DOS or Microsoft Windows which originally ran on the 16-bit Intel 8088 and 80286 microprocessors. These used a segmented address space to extend the range of addresses from what is possible with just a 16-bit address. Programs with more than 64 kilobytes of code or data therefore had to waste time switching between segments. Furthermore, computer programming with segments is more involved than programming in a flat address space, giving rise to warts like memory models in C and C++.

Compare: 32-bit application.

(01 Feb 1996)