Here's
a simple guide to some of the
technical terms usedin our Web site, many of
which you are likely to come across in the world of Web
hosting services.
Address
A
specific site (www, ftp, gopher)
or "mailbox" (e-mail)
on the Internet, often the
mailbox of a particular user. If
referring to e-mail, an address
will usually contain the
"at" sign: @. An
address is often rendered in
lower case. Example: joebloggs@btinternet.com.
See also Anonymous FTP Archie A
database search method which
points the Internet user to
specific files and FTP sites.
Archie can be used to search by
subject, title, or keyword. Archive An archive is simply a descriptive term for a package of files which appear as one file, often compressed. Article An
article is a message posted to
the subscribers of a Newsgroup. ASCII American Standard Code for Information Interchange. World-wide standard for the codes used by computers to represent letters, numbers, punctuation, etc. back to the top.au format UNIX sound file format. BackboneThe
major pathways used to carry
traffic on the Internet. BandwidthAmount
of data which can be sent
through a connection. Usually
measured in bits per second. BaudA unit of calculation for a modem that measures data transmission in bits per second. A 2400 bits per second modem actually runs at 300 baud, but it moves 4 bits per baud (4 x 300 = 2400 bits per second). See also Bit.BinaryA
numbering system which uses only
the numbers "1" and
"0" e.g. 11001001. BitInformation represented by the number "1" or the number "0" and transmitted as a discrete (discontinuous) step rather than as a wave. Digital information is transmitted as a series of bits, or "1's" and "0's" strung together in various ways. back to the topBrowserSoftware for navigating the World Wide Web. Allows the user to search for information, view pages, download files, etc. See also World Wide Web.BrowsingThe act
of navigating the World Wide
Web. Case sensitivityMany
Internet addresses are case
sensitive. CertificateAlso See Digital CertificateCGIA
Common Gateway Interface (CGI)
is used to run external programs
from a World-Wide Web server.
Usually the CGI will generate
some HTML which will be returned
to the browser. The returned
HTML will frequently be
dependant upon the original
request, ChannelIn
Internet Relay Chat (IRC) a
channel is a virtual arena where
users meet to talk on a
particular topic. IRC programs
such as the BT Internet Chat
client will allow you to call up
a list of all active channels.
back
to the top A UNIX
command to force the root
directory to become something
other than its default for the
duration of the current process.
This may only be executed by
privileged users to provide a
process (usually FTP or HTTP)
with access to a restricted
section of the file system. The
new root accommodates copies of
all the required files and
directories. See also ClientA program that requests data from another computer, called a server. See also Server.CompressionCompression
"squeezes" files to
save space and transmission
time. DecompressionData decompression is used to restore compressed data to its original form. See also Compression.Digital CertificateDigital certificates (also called Secure Server IDs) are like virtual electronic fingerprints. Each one is unique and can be used to positively identify the person or object (e.g. a company's Internet server), who owns the certificate by the information contained within it. That information can be trusted, because it is digitally 'signed' by a trusted Certification Authority who check the authenticity of the information to be included in the certificate before they issue it. Digital Certificates provide the proof of identity and deliver critical elements of security which are vital to establish the trust needed to conduct safe communications and transactions with customers, suppliers, partners and employees. Domain NameA domain name is another way of referring to the Internet address of a computer or group of computers on the Internet. Whereas an Internet address is made up of numbers (e.g. 144.2.45.6) and therefore difficult to remember, a domain name (e.g. btinternet.com) is made up of meaningful words. DownloadTo download a file is to move it from one computer to another, usually from a central host machine to a local machine. See also Upload.Electronic
messages (mail) sent from one
computer to another. The
messages are received at the
user's e-mail address and stored
in their mailbox. FAQFrequently
Asked Questions. Many
newsgroups, mailing lists and
some WWW sites have an FAQ list
which is posted regularly. FAQs
prevent newsgroup members from
having to individually answer
common questions. FlameThe Internet equivalent of verbal abuse. Follow upA
reply to a USENET newsgroup
article (post). FreewareSoftware for which the author makes no charge. Because the author of the software is making no money, freeware is usually unsupported. See also Shareware. FTPFile Transfer Protocol. A widely accepted protocol which allow computers of different types to exchange files. "Anonymous ftp" sites will allow anyone to download files from them without knowing a password. GIFGraphics
Interchange Format. A graphics
file format created by the
CompuServe online information
service. GIFs work across
platforms (Mac, PC and UNIX).
Most Web browsers can display
images saved in the GIF format. GopherA Gopher site has a hierarchically organized collection of documents, usually readable text files. HTMLHyperText Markup Language. HTML is the formatting language in which pages on the World Wide Web are constructed. Browsers interpret HTML and display the pages appropriately. HTML is a subset of SGML (Standard Generali zed Markup Language). See also Browser.http (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol)A
protocol which tells a server
what to send a client, so that
the client can view Web pages,
FTP sites, or other areas on the
Internet. HypertextDocuments which contain embedded links (often underlined or otherwise differentiated from the rest of the text) which allow the user to easily move among different parts of the same document, or between documents. Example: Click here to jump to the top of the page.
back
to the top A
graphic symbol used in a
computer program to represent an
object or process.
A
global network of computers and
computer systems which
communicate using the Internet
protocol.
IP addressEvery computer connected to the Internet has a unique IP (Internet Protocol) address which is its Internet address. Example: 147.150.30.32 IRC (Internet Relay Chat)The live chat area of the Internet in which real time conversations between two or more people take place in virtual "rooms" or channels. See also Channel.ISPInternet Service Provider. ISPAInternet
Service Provider's Association. IWFInternet Watch Foundation. A charitable organization which seeks to rid the Internet of illegal material such as child pornography. The IWF encourages the Internet community to report the finding of any such material. KbA unit of computer measurement. Kb is an abbreviation for kilobyte (1024 bytes). See also Bit.LinkAn area of a hypertext document which, when selected, will take the user to another document or resource. On the World Wide Web, a link (often underlined) is usually a URL pointing to a file, document, site, image, or another page. See also Hypertext and URL.List See Mailing list.ListservSoftware that automatically manages a mailing list, receiving posts and follow ups and sending groups of them out to all subscribers of the list.See also E-mail, Mailing List, Newsgroup, Post, Follow up. Generic
term for information transported
on the Internet using one of the
various mail protocols. Often
used to distinguish mail from
news. Mailing listA topic-oriented conference like a USENET newsgroup except that the messages are distributed by private e-mail. Typically, the Internet user would subscribe to a list by sending e-mail to the Listserv. Messages in the group arrive in the users' mailbox, and posts and follow ups are sent to the Listserv to be forwarded on to other members of the group.See also Listserv, E-mail, Newsgroup. MegabyteA measure of computer memory equal to 1,048,576 bytes, each of which in turn is equal to eight bits, which is the smallest unit of data in the digital system and is symbolized by the number 1 or the number 0. See also Bit.MIME (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extension)An extension that lets you transmit non-text data (like graphics, audio, video) via e-mail. See also E-mail.NetworkA system of hardware and software that is connected so as to be accessed by individual users who share the same information and resources, and who may be geographically distant from each other. NewsGeneric
term for information transported
on the Internet using the nntp
(Network News Transport
Protocol). Often used to
distinguish news from mail. NewsgroupA USENET newsgroup is a discussion forum where participants read and post comments on an agreed topic. NewsreaderSoftware for reading and posting articles (posts) and follow ups to a USENET newsgroup. See also Newsgroup and Post.NodeAny device connected to a computer network as well as the point at which the devices are connected. See also Network.
back
to the top
POPA POP (Point of Presence) is the modem which the Internet user dials from their computer to gain access to the Internet. PostThe term for an original USENET or mailing list article. Used as a verb, to "post" means to submit an article for publication on USENET in one or more newsgroups or to one or more mailing list. If sent to more than one newsgroup or list the post is said to be "cross-posted". If the newsgroup is moderated, the moderator decides if the post will appear; otherwise the post appears automatically. See also Mailing list, Newsgroup.back to the top back to the top Search engineSoftware
which scans the World Wide Web,
collecting titles and words from
Web pages which are stored in a
database. The user enters key
words to search for; these are
compared against the contents of
the database with the results of
the search (e.g relevant Web
pages containing the key words)
returned to the user. Alta Vista
and Lycos are examples of search
engines. Secure Server IDServerA computer that provides files as shared resources to a computer network. See also Client. SharewareCopyrighted software that is sold on a trust basis. Users are expected to pay the author if they like or use the software. SiteA particular "spot" on the Internet or World Wide Web. Sometimes a single computer, but may be a network of computers. Examples include: Gopher site, WWW site, FTP site. See also Gopher, WWW, ftp. SLIP/PPPTwo protocols for allowing a computer to connect to the Internet through a dial-up connection, using a modem. SSLSSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is an open protocol for securing data communications across networks. Secure Web sites (where you can confidently enter credit card details, personal details, etc.) are indicated by the key at the bottom of your browser (normally broken) being joined together. Also see Digital Certificate Surfing"Jumping" or navigating from site to site on the Internet. See also Browsing. TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol)A set of protocols which make Internet services possible among computers that do not belong to the same network. TELNETTELNET lets Internet users log in to computers around the world that are connected to the Internet, and to use them as if they were their own. ThreadA thread is a collection of articles within a Newsgroup that follow the same subject. See also Newsgroup.
UploadTo move a file from one computer to another, usually from a local machine to a host. See also Download. URLUniform Resource Locator. URLs are links to network resources like files, programs, web sites, web pages, etc. URLs are usually found as links on web pages, but are turning up more often in posts on USENET and in e-mail messages. Upper and lower case are often important in URLs. The URL is usually made up of four parts which specifies the type of the resource (e.g. gopher, http, ftp), the hostname, followed by the path at the host site and the name of the document or other resource. USENETSee Newsgroup.
VeronicaA search engine for searching Gopher sites using keyword searching. VirusA computer virus is a computer program that infects other computer programs and reproduces itself without the knowledge of the PC user. A virus may be destructive, and should never be ignored.
.wav formatWindows sound files. WebSee World Wide Web. Web PageA WWW document designed to be displayed by a browser. Written in a tagging language called HTML, a web page often contains text, pictures, as well as links to other web pages or Internet resources. W3See World Wide Web World Wide WebA subset of the Internet which supports hypertext-based documents. See Web page. WWWSee World Wide Web |
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