(1) Not connected. For example, all
printers have a
switch that allows you to turn them offline. While the printer is offline, you can perform certain
commands like advancing the paper (
form feed), but you cannot print
documents sent from the
computer. The opposite of offline is
online.
(2) Aside from its technical meaning, offline is used frequently in a more general sense to describe events that occur outside of a standard procedure. For example, if somebody at a meeting says "let's continue this discussion offline," it means "let's discuss it informally at another time."
The term is alternatively spelled as off-line.
