Glossary 

We appreciate that Technology and the Internet can be confusing. So to help we have put together a Glossary of common terms and phrases you are likely to come across. If you can think of others that you think we have missed, please let us know

A-F    G-K    L-P    Q-Z

Access provider
Sometimes referred to as an Internet Service Provider (ISP). Organisations that provides companies or individuals with access to the Internet.

Anonymous FTP
FTP (File Transfer Protocol) is a method of transferring files over the internet. Normally used for files that are too large for emailing. For example, downloading new software. Anonymous FTP is a publicly available site from where anyone can download files after signing on with just an email address.

ASP
Active Server Pages - a scripting language created by Microsoft for dynamically created web pages and database functions. Web pages created with ASP usually have an .asp suffix.

Attachment
A file you add to an email for example a Word Document or spreadsheet file

Auto responder
An email message that is sent automatically in response to a message. Normally used for OUT OF OFFICE or HOLIDAY messages.

Backbone
The Central network infrastructure of the Internet is often referred to as the backbone and its allows data to travel from one network to another.

Backup
To make a second copy of a file as a safety measure or backup. The copy may be held on a floppy disk, a zip disk, or on CD-ROM.

Bandwidth
A Term used to describe how much data you can send through a connection to the Net. The transmission capacity of a given medium, in terms of how much data the medium can transmit in a given amount of time. The greater the bandwidth, the faster the rate of data transmission. Information carrying capacity of a communication channel.

Bit
An acronym for Binary digiT. It is the basic unit of information in the computer world. A bit is a digit in binary form and carries one of two values, 0 or 1.

Blog
Online equivalent of a newspaper column that anybody can create as a vehicle to talk about their business, philosophy, and so on. Sometimes used as a corporate marketing tool

Boot
To switch on a computer. If the machine is re-started whilst running, this is called 're-booting'.

Browser
Software that allows users to access and navigate the World Wide Web. Some Web browsers, such as Mosaic and Netscape, are graphical. Lynx is a text-based browser.

Cache
A section of computer memory set aside for storing frequently-used data from a disk drive, speeding up the transfer of information.

Cascading style sheets
An extension to HTML which allows style features (colour, font size, spacing, and page-layering) to be specified for certain elements of a hypertext document. CSSs are especially useful for making a global change to multiple web pages - because the style is specified just once, often in a separate file.

CD-ROM
Compact Disk - Read Only Memory: A record like storage medium that uses digital and optical laser technology to store about 600Mb of text, pictures, and sound on a single disk. With newer versions (CD-ROMXA, CDTV, CD-i) animations and moving pictures can be retrieved from the discs.

CD-R
Compact Disk - Recordable: blank compact disks on which data can be recorded - but once only.

CD-RW
Compact Disc Re-Writable format: these are blank compact disks that can be recorded over and over again, like a floppy disk.

CGI
Common Gateway Interface - an interactive system installed on Web servers to automatically process information entered into Web page forms.

Clipboard
A section of a computer's memory where you can temporarily copy chunks of text, data, graphics, or pictures. Once in the clipboard, the item can be pasted into another part of a document, or transferred to any other application. The clipboard normally holds one object at a time.

Command prompt
The C:\> sign in DOS at which codes are typed. These commands control the computer. For many people, this system has been replaced by the Graphic User Interface [GUI] of Windows.

Compression
A technique to reduce the size of a file in order to make it more manageable and quicker to download. Compressed files have to be extracted using a utility such as PKZip or WinZip. Such files usually have a .zip extension.

Control panel
This is where many of Window’s settings can be viewed. Here you will find icons for most functions including printers, modems and sound.

Cookies
Small text files created by an Internet web site and stored on the user's computer. A cookie contains information that can help speed access on subsequent visits, such as passwords and details of the user's display facilities.

CSS (Cascading Style Sheets)
A way of assigning visual style to the content of Web pages. The style sheet deals with colour, fonts, and the position of text - leaving HTML code to describe the structure of the content.

Database
A computer holding large amounts of information that can be searched by an Internet user. A storehouse of information on the Net. Most sites nowadays include at least one database.

Defragmentation
Over time, the files on a computer's hard disk drive become disorganised. Running a defragmentation program restores order and speeds up the reading and writing of data.

DHTML
Dynamic HTML - an integration of JavaScript, Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), and the Document Object Model. With DHTML, the content of a web page can move across the screen or respond to user inputs.

Domain
The part of the Internet address that specifies your computer's location in the world. The address is written as a series of names separated by full stops. The most common top level domains:

.edu education (US)
.net network resource
.com commercial (US)
.gov public bodies
.co.uk UK companies/sites

DOS
Disk Operating System. This is a standard operating system, created by Microsoft before the dawn of Windows. DOS manages how files are stored on your computer. It is controlled through commands typed at the command prompt. Even Windows 95 and Windows 98 are still fundamentally dependent on DOS.

Download/upload
To download is to transfer a file from another computer to the user's computer. To upload is to send a file to another computer.

DVD
Digital Video Disk: This new medium can store large amounts of data on one disk that looks like a CD, including full length films with high-quality sound and pictures.

E-commerce
Performing business transactions on the Internet - which may include the use of credit cards, 'shopping trolleys', forms, and secure servers.

Email
Allows users to send and receive messages to each other over the Internet - emails.

Email address
A code representing a unique email user on the Internet. Examples might include -

joe-bloggs@sitename.com
g.allthorpe@yahoo.co.uk

Encryption
A process that turns files into gobbledygook so that they cannot be read, other than by programs containing the appropriate password-protected encryption software making them secure.

Executable files
These are programs or self-extracting files with an .exe filename extension. Clicking on an executable file will start the program running.

Extranet
A type of Internet Web site that is a closed community protected by a password and/or firewalls. It is typically provided by businesses for suppliers and key customers.

FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions. Files on the Net which store the answers to common questions. If you are stuck, check the FAQs first, before you ask you own question. The following ftp site holds every FAQ on the Net.
Ftp to: rtfm.mit.edu Go to the sub-directory - pub/usenet/news.answers

FTP
File Transfer Protocol (FTP). An application program that uses TCP/IP protocol to allow you to move files from a distant computer to a local computer using a network like the Internet.

Firewall
A security system, usually for networked computers, which controls access in and out of the network.

Folder/Directory
Two words for the same thing - a space on your hard disk to store related files or documents.

Frames
A device in HTML which allows multiple windows to be viewed simultaneously in one browser screen. Often used by Web designers to assist navigation.

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