access time

American  

noun

Computers.

1. the elapsed time from the instant that information is called from a storage unit to the instant it is received.

2. the elapsed time from the instant that information is ready for storage to the instant it is stored.

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access time British  

noun

1. computing the time required to retrieve a piece of stored information

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Etymology

Origin of access time

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

The SafeTrack program has allowed more access time, therefore the amount spent now is approaching the amount budgeted.

From Washington Post • Dec. 16, 2016

It’s really a no-brainer and the NIH compromise was generous, allowing publishers to make a profit from research works for a whole year, during the crucial access time for new articles.

From Scientific American • Jan. 16, 2012

“They have an access time of 10 to 25 hours at the most,” Price, 60, said in a telephone interview today.

From BusinessWeek • Mar. 17, 2011

It provides vast storage space and much quicker access time than tape.

From Radio Shack TRS-80 Expansion Interface: Operator's Manual Catalog Numbers: 26-1140, 26-1141, 26-1142 by Anonymous

And these figures assume ideal circumstances, and do not take into consideration other users contending for network bandwidth, disk access time, or the time needed for remote display.

From Library of Congress Workshop on Etexts by Library of Congress