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Anchor - Synonymous with hyperlinks, anchor refers to non-linear
links among documents. Or more simply put, it's the word or phrase
that can be selected to connect to another page or resource.
Anchor Color - You guessed it--the color on screen that represents
the anchors. The reason so many are blue is that is often the default
color. This color can be changed to any combination of red, green
and blue.
Agent - Agents are search tools that automatically seek out
relevant online information based on your specifications. Agents
are also called intelligent agents, personal agents, knowbots or
droids.
Annotations - Personal notes you can attach to the documents
you have saved in your Web browser. The notes are available to you
whenever the document is viewed.
Archie - Derived from the word archive, Archie is a Net-based
service that allows you to locate files that can be downloaded via
FTP.
ASCII - (pronounced "Ask-ee") An acronym for American
Standard Code for Information Exchange, ASCII is an international
standard in which numbers, letters, punctuation marks, symbols and
control codes are assigned numbers from 0 to 127. Easily transferred
over networks, ASCII is a plain, unadorned text without style or
font specifications.
Asychronous Connection - The type of connection a modem makes
over a phone line, this connection is not synchronized by a mutual
timing signal or clock.
AU Sounds - This is an audio format developed for Sun workstations
and often used to distribute sound clips via the Web.
Authoring Software - This term refers to software that enables
the creation of multimedia or hypertext documents and presentations.
Avatar - This term refers to an interactive representation
of a human in a virtual reality environment; term was popularized
by Neal Stephenson's novel "Snow Crash."
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Bandwidth - The range of transmission frequencies a network
can use. The greater the bandwidth the more information that can
be transferred over that network at one time. The term bandwidth
also broadly includes throughput, meaning the amount of data sent.
Baseband - A transmission method in which a network uses
its entire transmission range to send a single signal.
Baud - A unit of speed in data transmission, or the maximum
speed at which data can be sent down a channel. Baud is often equivalent
to bits per second. Named after J. M. E. Baudot (died 1903).
BBS - This is an acronym for Bulletin Board System, a computer
equipped with software and telecommunications links that allow it
to act as an information host for remote computer systems.
BinHex - A file conversion format that converts binary files
to ASCII text files.
Bit - A contraction of binary digit, a bit is the smallest
unit of information that a computer can hold. Eight bits is equivalent
to a byte. The speed at which bits are transmitted or bit rate is
usually expressed as bits per second or bps.
Broadband - A transmission method in which the networks range
of transmission frequencies is divided into separate channels and
each channel is used to send a different signal. Broadband is often
used to send different types of signals simultaneously.
Browser - A type of software that allows you to navigate
information databases; examples are Netscape Navigator and NCSA
Mosaic.
Byte - The number of bits used to represent a character.
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CD-ROM - Compact Disk-Read Only Memory; an optical disk
from which information may be read but not written.
CD-R or Compact Disk-Recordable - Refers to computer peripheral
disk drives that allow the user to record content on to a blank
compact disk.
Client - A computer that has access to services over a computer
network. The computer providing the services is a server. Note:
in an X-11 environment, the meanings of client and server are reversed.
Client-Server Architecture - An information-passing scheme
that works as follows: a client program, such as Mosaic, sends a
request to a server. The server takes the request, disconnects from
the client and processes the request. When the request is processed,
the server reconnects to the client program and the information
is transferred to the client. This architecture differs from traditional
Internet databases where the client connects to the server and runs
the program from the remote site. Note: in an X-11 environment,
the meanings of client and server are reversed.
Configuration - This is a general-purpose computer term that
can refer to the way you have your computer set up. It is also used
to describe the total combination of hardware components that make
up a computer system and the software settings that allow various
hardware components of a computer system to communicate with one
another.
Configure - The act of changing software or hardware actions
by changing the settings.
CyberMall - A term commonly used to describe an electronic
site shared by a number of commercial interests.
Cyberspace - A term coined by William Gibson in his novel
"Neuromancer" to refer to a near-future computer network
where users mentally travel through matrices of data. The term is
now used to describe the Internet and the other computer networks.
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Dial-up Connection - The most popular form of Net connection
for the home user, this is a connection from your computer to a
host computer over standard telephone lines.
Direct Connection - A permanent connection between your computer
system and the Internet. This is sometimes referred to as a leased-line
connection because the line is leased from the telephone company.
DNS - An acronym for Domain Name Server, DNS refers to a
database of Internet names and addresses which translates the names
to the official Internet Protocol numbers and vice versa.
Document - When used in reference to the World Wide Web,
a document is any file containing text, media or hyperlinks that
can be transferred from an HTTP server to a client program.
Document Window - This is the Web browser's scrollable window
in which HTML documents can be viewed.
Download - To transfer to your computer a copy of a file
that resides on another computer.
DSU - The abbreviation for Digital Services Unit, DSU replaces
the modem in synchronous connections to the Internet.
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EDI - The abbreviation for Electronic Data Interchange, EDI
system allows linked computers to conduct business transactions
such as ordering and invoicing over telecommunications networks.
External Viewer - A program used for presenting graphics,
audio and video files. Programs that allow the viewing of GIF and
JPEG files and the hearing of AU files fall into this category.
FAQ - This is the acronym for Frequently Asked Questions.
A common feature on the Internet, FAQs are files of answers to commonly
asked questions. Read FAQs before wasting electrons asking obvious
questions. Saves you from receiving flames.
Firewall - This term refers to security measures designed
to protect a networked system from unauthorized or unwelcome access.
FTP - File Transfer Protocol is a protocol that allows the
transfer of files from one computer to another. FTP is also the
verb used to describe the act of transferring files from one computer
to another.
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GIF - This acronym stands for Graphic Interchange Format,
a commonly used file compression format developed by CompuServe
for transferring graphics files to and from online services.
Gopher - A menu-oriented tool used to locate online resources
developed at the University of Minnesota.
Gopherspace - A term used to describe the entire gopher network.
Groupware - This term refers to software applications that
facilitate shared work on documents and information.
GUI - An acronym for Graphical User Interface, this term
refers to a software front-end meant to provide an attractive and
easy to use interface between a computer user and application. The
Macintosh operating system has a GUI, DOS does not.
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Home Page - The document displayed when you first open your
Web browser. Home Page can also refer to the first document you
come to at a Web site.
Hotlists - Lists
of frequently used Web locations and URLs (Uniform Resource Locators).
Host - A computer acting as an information or communications
server.
HTML - An acronym for HyperText Markup Language, HTML is
the language used to tag various parts of a Web document so browsing
software willknow how to display that document's links, text, graphics
and attached media.
HTML Document - A document written in HyperText Markup Language.
HTTP - The abbreviation for Hypertext Transfer Protocol,
HTTP is used to link and transfer hypertext documents.
Hypermedia - The hypertext concept extended to include linked
multiple media.
Hypertext - This term describes the system that allows documents
to be cross- linked in such a way that the reader can explore related
documents by clicking on a highlighted word or symbol.
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IAB - The abbreviation for Internet Architecture Board, the
IAB is the council that makes decisions about Internet standards.
IETF - The abbreviation for Internet Engineering Task Force,
IETF refers to a subgroup of the Internet Architecture Board that
focuses on solving technical problems on the Internet.
Inline Images - These are the graphics contained within a
Web document.
IP - The abbreviation for Internet Protocol, IP refers to
the set of communication standards that control communications activity
on the Internet. An IP address is the number assigned to any Internet-connected
computer.
ISDN - The abbreviation for Integrated Services Digital Network,
ISDN is a telecommunications standard that uses digital transmission
technology to support voice, video and data communications applications
over regular telephone lines.
ISOC - This is the abbreviation for Internet Society, an
organization formed to support a worldwide information network.
ISOC is the sponsoring body of the Internet Architecture Board.
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JPEG - The acronym for Joint Photographic Experts Group,
JPEG is an image compression format used to transfer color photographs
and images over computer networks. Along with GIF, it's one of the
most common ways photos are moved over the Web.
Links - These are the hypertext connections between Web pages.
This is a synonym for hotlinks or hyperlinks.
Live - When used in reference to a World Wide Web file, this
term designates an object linked to another layer of information.
Metaverse - From the novel "Snow Crash" by Neal
Stephenson, this term describes a virtual online representation
of reality.
MIME - An acronym for Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions,
MIME is a messaging standard that allows Internet users to exchange
e-mail messagesenhanced with graphics, video and voice. MIME file
types are also used in Mosaic.
Mosaic - This is the common name of a World Wide Web multimedia
browser program developed at the National Center for Supercomputing
Applications in Urbana-Champaign, Ill. The official, copyrighted
name of the program is NCSA Mosaic(tm).
MPEG - The acronym for Moving Pictures Expert Group, MPEG
is an international standard for video compression and desktop movie
presentation. A special viewing application is needed to run MPEG
files on your computer.
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NCSA - This is the abbreviation for National Center for Supercomputing
Applications at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.
NFS - The abbreviation for Network File System, NFS is a
protocol suite developed and licensed by Sun Microsystems that allows
different makes of computers running different operating systems
to share files and disk storage.
NIC - The abbreviation for Network Information Center, NIC
is an organization responsible for supplying information for component
networks that comprise the Internet.
NOC - The abbreviation for Network Operations Center, NOC
is the organization responsible for the day-to-day operations of
the Internet's component networks.
Node - A device attached to a network. A node uses the network
as a means of communication and has an address on the network.
NREN - The abbreviation for National Research and Education
Network, NREN is an effort to combine the networks operated by the
U.S. government into a single high-speed network.
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OSI Model - The Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) reference
model for describing network protocols was devised by the Internet
Standards Organization. It divides protocols in to seven layers
to standardize and simplify definitions.
POP - An acronym for Point of Presence, POP is a service
provider's location for connecting to users. Generally, POPs refer
to the location where people can dial into the provider's host computer.
Most providers have several POPs to allow low-cost access via telephone
lines.
POTS - This is an acronym for Plain Old Telephone Service.
PPP - The abbreviation for Point-to-Point Protocol, PPP is
an Internet connection where phone lines and a modem can be used
to connect a computer to the Internet.
Protocol - A set of standards that define how traffic and
communications are handled by a computer or network routers.
QuickTime - This is a digital video standard developed for
Apple Macintosh computers. Special viewing applications are needed
to run QuickTime movies.
Router - A communications device designed to transmit signals
via the most efficient route possible.
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Search Engine - This term refers to a program that helps
users find information in text-oriented databases.
Server - A computer system that manages and delivers information
for client computers. Note: in an X-11 environment, the meanings
of client and server are reversed.
SGML - The abbreviation for Standard Generalized Markup Language,
SGML is an international standard for the publication and delivery
of electronic information.
Shareware - This term refers to software that is available
on public networks and BBSs. Users are asked to remit a small amount
to the software developer, but it's on the honor system.
SLIP - The acronym for Serial Line Internet Protocol, SLIP
refers to a method of Internet connection that enables computers
to use phone lines and a modem to connect to the Internet without
having to connect to a host.
Socket - This is a communication mechanism originally implemented
on the BSD version of the UNIX operating system. Sockets are used
as endpoints for sending and receiving data between computers.
Synchronous Connection - An analog to analog or digital to
digital connection that is able to perform two or more processes
at the same time by means of a mutual timing signal or clock.
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T-1 - High-speed data line connection. T-1 operates at 1.45
Mbps.
Tags - These are formatting codes used in HTML documents.
Tags indicate how parts of a document will appear when displayed
by browsing software.
TCP-IP - The basic protocols controlling applications on
the Intn the Internet; it stands for "transmission control
protocol/Internet protocol."
TIFF - This is the acronym for Tagged Image File Format,
a graphic file format developed by Aldus and Microsoft. Mosaic supports
the viewing of TIFF images.
Trumpet Winsock - A popular, cheerier TCP/IP protocol stack.
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URL - This is the abbreviation for Uniform Resource Locator,
the addressing system used in the World Wide Web and other Internet
resources. The URL contains information about the method of access,
the server to be accessed and the path of any file to be accessed.
Veronica - This is a search utility that helps find information
on gopher servers. Veronica allows users to enter keywords to locate
the gopher site holding the desired information. The name is an
acronym for "very easy rodent oriented net-wide index of computerized
archives." Honest!
WAIS - The abbreviation for Wide Area Information Service,
WAIS is a Net-wide system for looking up specific information in
Internet databases.
WAIS gateway - This term refers to a computer that is used
to translate WAIS data so it can be made available to an otherwise
incompatible network or application. Mosaic must use a WAIS gateway.
Web Browser - This is the software that allows a user to
access and view HTML documents. Examples of Web browsers include
Netscape, Mosaic, Cello and
Lynx.
Web Document - An HTML document that is browsable on the
Web.
Webmaster - This term refers to the person in charge of administrating
a World Wide Web site.
Web Node - This term is synonymous with Web site or Web server.
Web Page - An HTML document that is accessible on the Web.
Webspace - This term refers to the space created by the World
Wide Web.
World Wide Web - Also known as WWW or W3, the World Wide
Web is a hypertext- based Internet service used for browsing Internet
resources.
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