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Internet Glossary |
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Application Service Provider (ASP) -- ASPs are third-party entities that provide and manage software-based services and solutions to customers across a wide area network from a central data center. Companies that wish to outsource some or all of their information technology needs may use an ASP. authentication -- The verification of the identity of a person or process, most commonly done through the use of a login identification and a password.
bandwidth -- The amount of information or data that can be sent over a network connection in a given period of time. Bandwidth is usually stated in bits per second (bps), kilobits per second (kbps), or megabits per second (mps). baud -- The speed of a modem. Specifically, the number of times per second a communications channel changes the carrier signal it sends on the phone line. A 2400-baud modem changes the signal 2400 times a second. beta -- A version of an application that is made available prior to the official release for the purposes of testing. bit – The smallest unit of data in a computer. In most computer systems, there are eight bits in a byte. bookmark -- A routine that allows you to save a reference to a site or page that you have already visited. bps -- Abbreviation for bits per second. A measurement of the number of bits of information that can be sent over a network connection. browser -- An application used to view and navigate the World Wide Web and other Internet resources. byte -- A collection of bits to form a binary number. A byte is the unit most computers use to represent a character such as a letter, number, or typographic symbol.
cache -- A "cache" (pronounced "cash") temporarily stores on your computer the information from web pages you have visited. chat -- A form of interactive online communication that enables typed conversations to occur in real-time. client -- Any computer system that requests a service of another computer system. client-server model – Describes the relationship between two computer programs in which one program, the client, makes a service request from another program, the server, which fulfills the request. cookies -- Small files that are downloaded to your computer when you browse certain web pages. Cookies hold information that can be retrieved by other web pages on the site.
database – A collection of data that is organized so that its contents can easily be accessed, managed, and updated. digital certificate -- An electronic "credit card" that establishes your credentials when doing business or other transactions on the Web, and is issued by a certification authority (CA) such as VeriSign. domain name -- The official name of a computer connected to the Internet. It is that part of the Uniform Resource Locator (URL) that tells a domain name server using the Domain Name System (DNS) whether and where to forward a request for a Web page. Domain Name System (DNS) -- A database system which looks up host IP addresses based upon domain names. For example if you ask for "www.thisismyhost.com" it will return "123.45.67.89". download -- To transfer data from a larger "host" system to a smaller "client" system's hard drive or other local storage device.
e-commerce (electronic commerce) -- Conducting business, such as buying and selling products, online via the Internet. encryption -- A procedure that renders the contents of a message or file unintelligible to anyone not authorized to read it. extranet – A private network that uses the Internet protocol and the public telecommunication system to securely share part of a business' information or operations with suppliers, vendors, partners, customers, or other businesses.
FAQs -- Acronym for Frequently Asked Questions. File Transfer Protocol -- (abbreviation: FTP) An Internet protocol that enables you to transfer files between computers on the Internet. firewall -- A set of security procedures that separates and protects data on a LAN from crackers who might access the LAN from the Internet. font -- A typographic style used to display or print characters. Times Roman, Courier, and Helvetica are three examples. frame -- An HTML feature that allows web designers to segment the window of a web browser into distinct sections. freeware -- Shareware that is openly available to the public without the requirement of user registration fee.
GIF -- Pronounced jiff or giff (hard g) and stands for Graphics Interchange Format. It is a bit-mapped graphics file format widely used by the World Wide Web. GIFs have a data compression quality that makes it especially effective for scanned photos. A transparent GIF refers to a graphic in GIF format that has a colorless background (enabling it to blend into the color scheme of a web site or printed marketing piece). Groupware -- Programs that help people work together collectively while located remotely from each other. Groupware services can include the sharing of calendars, collective writing, e-mail handling, shared database access, electronic meetings with each person able to see and display information to others, and other activities. GUI -- Abbreviation for Graphical User Interface. A set of screen presentations and metaphors that utilize graphic elements such as icons in an attempt to make an operating system easier to use.
hit -- A single user accessing a single file from a web server. homepage -- A web page that is topically the main source of information about a particular person, group, or concept. It is the first page presented when a user selects a particular site on the World Wide Web. hyperlink -- A highlighted word or picture within a hypertext document that when clicked takes you to another place within the document or to another document altogether. hypertext -- Text that includes links or shortcuts to other documents, allowing the reader to easily jump from one text to related texts, and consequentially from one idea to another, in a non-linear fashion. Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) -- The set of markup symbols or codes inserted in a file intended for display on a World Wide Web browser page. The markup tells the Web browser how to display a Web page's words and images for the user. Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) -- The set of rules for exchanging files (text, graphic images, sound, video, and other multimedia files) on the World Wide Web.
icon -- A small graphic image that represents a file or application and when clicked upon produces a programmed result. Internet – Sometimes called "The Net," the Internet is a worldwide system of computer networks—a network of networks in which users at any one computer can, if they have permission, get information from any other computer (and sometimes talk directly to users at other computer). Internet Protocol – (abbreviation: IP) The method or protocol by which data is sent from one computer to another on the Internet. Each computer (known as a host) on the Internet has at least one IP address that uniquely identifies it from all other computers on the Internet. Internet Service Provider -- (abbreviation: ISP) A business that delivers access to the Internet, usually for a monthly fee. An example would be America Online. InterNIC -- The InterNIC is the entity that controls the registration of most domain names on the Internet. intranet -- A private network that uses Internet-related technologies (such as HTTP and FTP protocols) to provide services within an organization. IP address -- A string of four numbers separated by periods (such as 204.254.245.138) used to represent a computer, or physical point, on the Internet.
Java -- An object oriented programming language created by Sun Microsystems. JavaScript -- A scripting language that allows lines of Java code to be inserted into HTML scripts. JPEG -- Pronounced "jay-peg" and stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group. JPEG is a lossy compression technique for color images - when a JPEG is compressed, some of the detail is lost. On a web site, JPEG images may take longer to download than GIF images.
Local Area Network -- (abbreviation: LAN) A group of computers at a single location (usually an office or home) that are connected by phone lines or coaxial cable.
meta tag -- A coding statement written in HTML that describes some aspect of the contents of a web page. Information contained in a meta tag is used by search engines (e.g., Yahoo!) to index a page so that someone searching for the type of information on the page will be able to find it. Two important types of meta tags are keywords meta tags and description meta tags. The keywords meta tag lists the words or phrases that best describe the contents of the page. The description meta tag includes a brief one- or two-sentence description of the page. middleware -- Software that allows an application to interoperate with other software without requiring the user to know the underlying necessary code. modem -- A device that enables a computer to send and receive information over a telephone line. Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions -- (abbreviation: MIME) An extension to Internet email which provides the ability to transfer non-textual data, such as graphics, audio and fax.
offline -- As an adjective, not connected to a computer network. online -- Currently connected to a host, opposite of offline. operating system -- The master set of programs responsible for overseeing the basic hardware resources of a computer such as disks, memory, keyboard, screen, and CPU time. UNIX, DOS, Windows, Macintosh System 7, and IBMs VM are examples of operating systems.
refresh -- To clear the screen or part of the screen and redraw it again. replication – The process of synchronizing data. One example is having two replica copies of a Notes database, one each on two different servers, where data is synched on schedule every 10-12 minutes. Rich Text Format -- (abbreviation: RTF) A format for text documents that includes formatting attributes, such as different fonts and typefaces. This format also lets you exchange text files between different word processors in different operating systems. router -- A computer that directs traffic and moves packets, or units of data, between networks.
search engine -- A program or web site that enables users to search for keywords on web pages throughout the World Wide Web. Common examples include yahoo.com and dogpile.com. Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) -- A program layer created by Netscape for managing the security of message transmissions in a network. Netscape's idea is that the programming for keeping your messages confidential ought to be contained in a program layer between an application (such as your Web browser or HTTP) and the Internet's TCP/IP layers. The "sockets" part of the term refers to the sockets method of passing data back and forth between a client and a server program in a network or between program layers in the same computer. SSL uses the public-and-private key encryption system from RSA, which also includes the use of a digital certificate. server – A program that awaits and fulfills requests from client programs in the same or other computers. spam -- To send a message (usually an advertisement) to many discussion groups (bulletin boards, mailing lists, and/or newsgroups), without regard for its topical relevance.
TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) -- A collection of protocols that define the basic workings of the features of the Internet. tweak -- To make many minor adjustments.
Uniform Resource Locator (URL) -- An addressing scheme used by World Wide Web browsers to locate resources on the Internet. An example would be http://www.amarok.com.
virtual -- A commonly used adjective that means having all of the properties of x while not necessarily being x. virus -- An insidious piece of computer code written to damage systems. Viruses can be hidden in executable program files posted online.
webmaster -- The person in charge of administrating a World Wide Web site. Wide Area Network (WAN) -- A private long distance network that uses leased lines to connect computers or LANs. WYSIWIG -- Abbreviation for What You See Is What You Get.
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