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Everlands - Internet terms
Category: Technical and IT > Internet
Date & country: 15/11/2007, UK Words: 143
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ActiveXMicrosoft's object development framework. When embedded into HTML documents, ActiveX components are downloaded and executed on the client. ActiveX is currently Windows-only.
ADSL(Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) -- A variation of Digital Subscriber Line designed for an upstream data flow (client-to-server) which is a fraction of the downstream data flow (server-to-client). Typically the upstream data flow is measured in kilobits per second while the downstream data flow is measured in megabits per second (e.g. 6 megabits per second over standard phone lines).
AnalogA transmission mode in which data is represented by a continuously varying electrical signal.
Anonymous FTP(Anonymous File Transfer Protocol) -- An interactive service provided by many Internet hosts allowing any user to transfer documents, files, programs, and other archived data using File Transfer Protocol.
AppletSmall Java programs that run on Web clients.
ArchieA tool for locating files that are publicly available by anonymous FTP.
ARPANET(Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) -- The precursor to the Internet. Developed in the late 60s and early 70s by the US Department of Defense, it served as the basis for early networking research, as well as a central backbone during the development of the Internet.
ASCII(American Standard Code for Information Interchange) -- A seven-bit character set used to exchange alphanumeric information between computer systems.
ATM(Asynchronous Transfer Mode) -- An international networking standard in which multiple service types (such as voice, video, or data) are conveyed in fixed-length (53-byte) cells.
Authoring ToolAn application that supports document creation; can refer to anything from an HTML helper application to an integrated publishing environment that allows the user to create pages for the World Wide Web.
BackboneA high-speed line or series of connections that forms a major pathway within a network.
BandwidthMeasure of the information capacity of a transmission channel. Strictly speaking, bandwidth is the difference, expressed in hertz (Hz), between the highest and lowest frequencies of the channel. In the world of internet hosting, bandwidth usually refers to the amount of information that can be transferred to or from your site over a specified time period.
BaudIn common usage the baud rate of a modem is how many bits it can send or receive per second. Technically, baud is the number of times per second that the carrier signal shifts value - for example, a 1200 bit-per-second modem actually runs at 300 baud, but it moves 4 bits per baud (4 x 300 = 1200 bits per second).
BBS(Bulletin Board System) -- Computer system used as an information source and message switching system for a particular interest group. A place that allows people to carry on discussions, upload and download files, and make announcements.
Binhex(BINary HEXadecimal) -- A format commonly used in sending large files and images over the Internet.
BiometricsAutomated methods that measure physical characteristics or personal traits, such as hand profiles or voice prints, to verify a person's identity. Uses include security access and fraud prevention.
Bit(Binary DigIT) -- The units -- 0 or 1 -- used in the binary numbering system.
Bps(Bits Per Second) -- A common measurement of the speed at which data is moved from one place to another.
BroadbandA connection to the Internet that works at high speeds because of its greater bandwidth.
BrowserA program that allows a person to read hypertext and view graphical images. Provides a means of viewing the contents of Web pages and navigating from one Web page or Web server to another.
ByteA series of bits of data, usually 8 or 16 bits, that are handled as a unit.
CableThe generic name given to services which use fibre optic cable buried underground to carry telephone, television and broadband to your home.
CachingA small fast memory holding recently-accessed data, designed to speed up subsequent access to the same data. Most often applied to processor-memory access but also used for a local copy of data accessible over a network etc.
CERNEuropean Laboratory for Particle Physics located near Geneva, Switzerland. Birthplace of the World Wide Web.
Certificate AuthorityAn entity that attests to the identity of a person or an organization. A Certificate Authority might be an external company such as VeriSign that offers certificate services or they might be an internal organization such as a corporate MIS department. The Certificate Authority's chief function is to verify the identity of entities and issue digital certificates attesting to that identity.
CGI(Common Gateway Interface) -- A standard for running external programs from a World-Wide Web HTTP server. CGI specifies how to pass arguments to the executing program as part of the HTTP request. It also defines a set of environment variables. Commonly, the program will generate some HTML which will be passed back to the browser, but it can also request URL redirection.
cgi-binThe most common name of a directory on a Web server in which CGI programs are stored.
ClientA software program that is used to contact and obtain data from a server software program on another computer, often across a great distance. Each client program is designed to work with one or more specific kinds of server programs, and each server requires a specific kind of client. A Web browser is a specific kind of client.
Contention RatioContention means that you share your bandwidth with a number of other users. This means that the quality and speed of connection is dependent on the number of users online at any given time. For business ADSL use, the contention ratio is likely to be around 20:1. In other words, up to 19 other users share your bandwidth. For cable modem uses, the contention ratio could be as high as 50:1. In other words, up to 49 other users share your bandwidth.
CookieA mechanism for storing persistent information on a Web client that can be used by a Web server.
CyberspaceTerm originated by author William Gibson in his novel Neuromancer in the early 1980s. It describes a new world, created by intersecting computer networks.
DatagramA self-contained, independent entity of data carrying sufficient information to be routed from the source to the destination computer without reliance on earlier exchanges between this source and destination computer and the transporting network.
Dial UpA dial-up connection uses a telephone line to connect to the Internet. A modem is used to turn data into audio signals so that it can literally 'dial' the number of your internet service provider (ISP) and communicate with their computers.
DNS(Domain Name Service) -- A service that supports the use of a name such as www.company.com rather than a cryptic IP address such as 204.147.276.50.
Domain NameExclusive name that identifies an Internet site.
DownloadingThe electronic transfer of information from one source to another.
DSL(Digital Subscriber Line) A digital telecommunications protocol for use over existing copper telephone lines, as opposed to optical fiber. Also, High-Speed Digital Subscriber Line (HDSL).
DursleyA small town in Gloucestershire, on the edge of the Cotswolds Also, the name of Harry Potter's adoptive family.
Dynamic HTMLHTML is the language that describes how text and images are displayed on a Web page. Dynamic HTML presents richly formatted pages that lets users interact with the content on those pages without having to download additional content from the server. This means that a page can respond immediately to user actions, such as a mouse click, without having to retrieve an entire new page from the server. Dynamic HTML gives developers precise control over formatting, fonts, and layout, and provides a dramatically enhanced object model for making pages interactive.
EncryptionProcess of converting information into a secure form that cannot be read by others until it is decoded.
EthernetInstitute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) standard data link protocol that specifies how data is placed on and retrieved from a common transmission medium. Forms the underlying transport vehicle used by several upper-level protocols, including TCP/IP and XNS. See CSMA/CD (Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Detect) for a description of Ethernet's media-access method.
ExtranetUse of Internet-oriented standards, technologies, and products between different companies, such as TCP/IP as the transport, HTTP servers for presenting documents, and SMTP and POP servers for mail. Typically used to increase productivity and function as a collaborative processing infrastructure between partner companies. They increase productivity and function as a collaborative processing infrastructure.
FAQ(Frequently Asked Questions) -- Documents that list and answer common questions on a particular subject.
Fast EthernetA 100-Mbps technology based on the 10BASE-T Ethernet CSMA/CD network access method.
FDDI(Fiber Distributed Data Interface) -- LAN technology, defined by American National Standards Institute (ANSI) X3T9.5, that specifies an 100- Mbps token-passing network using fiber-optic cable.
FingerAn Internet software tool for locating people on other Internet sites.
FirewallA router or access server that serves as a buffer between connected networks or interfaces. Uses access lists, protocol filters, and other methods, to safeguard network resources.
FlameAn angry response to an electronic posting, usually in a newsgroup.
Frame RelayA packet-switching wide-area technology for interconnecting LANs at high speeds. Defines the interface between user equipment and a WAN, but does not define internal operation of the network or the interfaces or protocols used within the WAN itself. For this reason, the term 'frame relay cloud' is often used to describe the internal operation of a WAN that has a frame relay interface.
FTP(File Transfer Protocol) -- An Internet application and protocol commonly used to move files between two Internet sites, servers, or workstations.
GatewayDevice that can interconnect networks with different, incompatible communications protocols. The gateway performs a layer-7 protocol-conversion to translate one set of protocols to another (for example, from TCP/IP to SNA or from TCP/IP to X.25). A gateway operates at Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) layers up through the Session Layer.
GIF(Graphics Interchange Format) -- A format developed in the mid-1980s by CompuServe for use in photo-quality graphics images. Now commonly used in online Web pages.
Gigabit1000 megabits [or 1024 megabits depending on who you ask!]
Gigabyte1000 megabytes [see above!]
GIX(Global Internet Exchange) -- The process and equipment by which Internet traffic between backbone providers is concentrated and exchanged. There are several physical GIX locations, the largest being in Washington, D.C. There is also a GIX center in Sweden.
GopherA program on the Internet that organizes information into menus and lets users jump from one point on the 'net' to another.
GroupwareApplications that let network users work collaboratively on common files.
Home PageA visitor's first point of entry to a Web site; typically features a site index.
HostA domain name that has an IP address record associated with it; any computer system connected to the Internet.
Hot LinkA connection to a document or other file on the Internet. Generally appears as a highlighted word or image for selection on the browser interface.
HTML(HyperText Markup Language) -- A computer language for describing a page of information for display on the World Wide Web.
HTTP(HyperText Transport Protocol) -- The protocol for exchanging HTML pages over the World Wide Web.
HubA device used to interconnect other LAN devices, usually in a star topology.
HypertextText in one document that is linked electronically to text in another document or another part of the same document.
InternetThe global collection of interconnected networks that all use the TCP/IP protocol.
IntranetUse of Internet-oriented standards, technologies, and products to enhance productivity and to function as a collaborative processing infrastructure within an enterprise.
IP(Internet Protocol) -- The packet-switching protocol for network communications between Internet hosts.
IP SpoofingMethod used by hackers to break into computers over the Internet using the IP address, the computer's Internet ID.
IPSecIPSec is an emerging standard to add security services to the IP protocol. It provides robust security, encompassing user authentication, privacy, and data integrity.
IPv6Formal designation for the next generation Internet Protocol being developed within the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), which will enable continued growth of the Internet. Designed to alleviate anticipated shortages of IP addresses and router overload, as well as provide for autoconfiguration, network layer security and quality of service capabilities unavailable in IPv4. Also known as IPng, where the 'ng' represents 'next generation.'
IRC(Internet Relay Chat) -- The Internet protocol that defines real-time communications between a server and a group of clients over the Internet.
ISDN(Integrated Services Digital Network) -- International digital communications protocol, offered by telephone companies, that permits telephone networks to carry data, voice, and other traffic.
ISO(International Standards Organization) -- Organization responsible for a wide range of standards, including many relevant to networking. Developed the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) reference model, widely used in networking today.
ISP(Internet Service Provider) -- An entity that provides public access to the Internet.
JavaA portable, secure programming environment that allows developers to create applications for HTML pages.
JavaScriptAn easy-to-use, object-oriented scripting language designed for creating dynamic applications that link objects and resources residing on Internet clients and servers.
JPEG(Joint Photographic Experts Group) -- A compressed file format for digital images.
KilobitA thousand [or 1024] bits.
KilobyteA thousand [or 1024] bytes.
LAN(Local Area Network) -- A set of computers connected together to share common resources, such as printers. Computers connected on a LAN have the ability to share applications or files from a local file server and are able to make connections to other LANs or the Internet via routers.
LDAP(Lightweight Directory Access Protocol) -- An open standard for storing and retrieving names, addresses, email, phone numbers, and other information from an online directory. Used to build online directories on enterprise networks, as well as Internet-based online directories.
Leased lineA transmission line reserved by a communications carrier for the private use of a customer.
LoginA sequence of numbers and letters that uniquely identify a user for access to computer resources.
MegabitA million bits.
MegabyteA million bytes. A thousand kilobytes.
MiddlewareSoftware that operates between the application and the control program, providing a single programming interface for an application.
MIME(Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) -- A standard that allows users to send and receive electronic mail messages with multimedia content over the Internet.
MirrorGenerally speaking, 'to mirror' is to maintain an exact copy of something. The most common use of the term on the Internet refers to 'mirror sites' which are Web FTP sites that maintain exact copies of material originated at another location, usually in order to provide more widespread access to the resource. Another common use of the term 'mirror' refers to an arrangement where information is written to more than one hard disk simultaneously, so that if one disk fails, the computer keeps on working without losing data.
Modem(MOdulator, DEModulator) -- A device used to convert serial digital data to a signal for transmission over a telephone network.
MosaicEarly public-domain Web browser, developed at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA).
NavigationThe process of moving from one web site to another using a web browser, usually accomplished by following links embedded in web pages.
NetiquetteInternet etiquette.
NetizenA light-hearted term referring to a citizen of the Internet community.
NetworkA communications system that links two or more computers. May be as simple as a cable strung between two computers a few feet apart, or as complex as hundreds of thousands of computers around the world linked through fiber optic cables, phones lines, and satellites.
NewsgroupAn area where people can discuss common topics by leaving postings, as on a bulletin board, that others can read when they log on. 'Newsgroups' generally refer to discussions on USENET, which most people access via the Internet.
NodeA point of interconnection to a network. Any station, terminal, or communications processor in a computer network.
Packet SwitchingType of data transfer that occupies a communication link only during the time of actual data transmission. Messages are split into packets and reassembled at the receiving end of the communication link.
PasswordA code used to gain access to a secured system.
Perl(Practical Extraction and Report Language) -- An interpreted language that originated with UNIX. On many Web servers, Perl is used as an easy programming language suitable for writing simple CGI scripts; these scripts are called by HTML pages and executed on the server.
PGP(Pretty Good Privacy) -- A high-security cryptographic software application that allows people to exchange messages with both privacy and authentication.