INTERNET   GLOSSARY

Applet  -- A small niche application or utility, such as a mortgage calculator program, that performs only one task and is designed for use within larger programs.  Because of their small size, many applets available online as free software.   

Boolean  -- A common system of logic that uses operators such as AND, OR, NOR, and NOT and is used to find information with search engines.  To search for a document that included the words "January" and " March," but not  "February, " the Boolean expression would be "January AND March NOT February."  

Cookie  -- A method used by Web site operators to track visitors.  Cookies are designed to recognize a user's ID or password when she revisits a Web site.  After a particular Web server places the cookie on the computer user's hard drive, each subsequent request to the same server will contain that cookie. 

CPU  -- Central Processing Unit.  Also called the microprocessor.  This chip acts as the "brains" of a computer.  It controls the computer's actions and can find, decode, and carry out instructions plus assign tasks to other resources.  Most IBM-compatible PCs use 386,486, or Pentium-class chips.   

Domain name  -- The unique name of a collection of computers connected to a network such as the Internet.  On the Internet domain names typically end with a suffix denoting the site; i.e., microsoft.com.  The ".com" in this case stands for a for-profit company; ".edu" (educational institution) and ".gov" (government) are other common domain name extensions. 

Download  -- To receive a file sent from another computer via modem. 

E-mail  -- Electronic Mail.  Text messages sent through a network to a specified individual or group.  Received messages are stashed in a inbox, and can be kept, deleted replied to, or forwarded to another recipient, depending upon your E-mail program.  Besides a message, E-mail can carry attached files so you can send word processing files or graphics. 

FTP  -- File Transfer Protocol.  A standardized, text-based method of transferring files over telephone lines from one computer to another.  FTP often refers to a standard way of transferring many types of files over the Internet.  

GIF  -- Graphics Interface Format.  (Pronounced "jiff").  A method used to compress and transfer graphics images into digital information; it is commonly used to transfer graphics files on the Internet because of its excellent display of solid colors on all Web browsers. 

Hit  -- A way of measuring the number of visitors to a Web site.  Although it's sometimes believed a hit equals one visit to a site, it actually refers to the number of files opened at the site.  For example, if you access a page that has six images on it, the site will register seven hits (one for the page and one for each of the image files). 

HTML  -- Hypertext Markup Language.  A language used to create Electronic documents, especially pages on the World Wide Web, that contain connections call hyper links.  Hyperlinks allow users to jump from one document to a related document by clicking an icon or a hypertext phrase.  For instance, you might jump from a company logo or name on a Web page to the company's home page on the Internet. 

HTTP  -- Hypertext Transfer Protocol.  The set of standards that let users of the World Wide Web exchange information found in Web pages.  Web browser software is used to read documents formatted and delivered according to HTTP.   The Beginning of every Web address, "http://", tells the browser that the address' document is HTTP- compatible. 

Hyperlink   -- An icon graphic, or word in a file that, when clicked with the mouse, automatically opens another file for viewing.  World Wide Web pages often include hyperlinks that display other Web pages when selected.  Usually these hyper-linked pages are related in some way to the first page.  Hyperlinks include the address or names of the files to which they point, but typically this code is hidden from the user.   

Internet  -- The global Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) network linking millions of computer for communications purposes.  The Internet originally was developed in 1969 for the U.S. military and gradually grew to include educational and research institutions.  Today, commercial industries, corporations, and home users all communicate over the Internet, sharing software, messages, and information.  The most famous aspect of  the Internet is the World Wide Web, a system of graphical files saved in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) format. 

Inter NIC  -- Internet Network Information Center.  A private agency responsible for registering World Wide Web site domain names. 

IP  -- Internet Protocol.  The address of a computer on a Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) network.  IP addresses are written as four groups of numbers (each group may consist of as many as three numbers) separated by periods.  An example of an IP address is 119.183.115.11. 

IRC   --  Internet Relay Chat.   A type of interactive communication of the Internet in which computer users engage in real-time communication. 

ISDN  -- Integrated Services Digital Network.  A telecommunications network that allows digital voice, video, and data transmissions.  ISDN replaces the slow and inefficient analog telephone system with a fast digital network.  ISDN lines can transmit data at 128 KBPS (kilobits).  Special equipment is required to connect to ISDN lines, which may soon become as affordable as other communications services. 

ISP  -- Internet Service Provider.   An organization that lets users dial into its computers to connect to its Internet link for a fee ISPs generally provide only an Internet connection, an E-mail address, and maybe World Wide Web browsing software.  You can use an ISP based in your town that offers an access number in your local calling area or a national ISP that provides local-access numbers across the country.  You also can connect to the Internet through a commercial online service, such as America Online or CompuServe.  With this kind of connection, you get Internet access and the proprietary features offered by the online service such chat rooms and searchable databases.   

JPEG  -- Joint Photographic Experts Group.  (Pronounced "jay-peg").  A color image in a graphics compression format in which a glossy compression method is used and some data is sacrificed to achieve greater compression.

Modem  -- Acronym for modulator/demodulator.  The device that lets a computer transmit and receive information over telephone lines by converting digital data from computers into analog data that can be transmitted over phone lines.  The opposite process takes place on the receiving end.  Modems are the primary way computer users connect to outside networks, such as the Internet.  

'Netiquette  -- Slang for the unwritten rules of Internet courtesy. 

Newsgroup --  A group of messages about a single topic.  On the Internet, newsgroups bring together people around the world for discussion of shared interests. 

Plug-ins  -- Software that expands the features of main programs and adds multimedia capabilities to Web browsers.  A plug-in is a small program that "plugs into" a large application and runs as a part of that application.

PPP  -- Point-To-Point Protocol.  A communications language that lets users  connect their PCs directly to the Internet through their telephone lines.  Considered more advanced than the Serial Line Internet Protocol (SLIP) connection it is quickly replacing, PPP offers more error-checking capabilities as well as several forms of password protection. 

Search engine  -- Software that searches through a database (a large cache of information) located on your computer.  At web-based search engines, users type a keyword query (descriptor words), and the search engine responds with a list of all sites in its database fitting the query description.   

Shareware  -- copyrighted software distributed on a free-will donation basis either via the Internet or by being passed along by satisfied customers. 

SLL  -- Secure Socket Layer.  A method of securing the transmission of confidential data through the Internet. 

SLIP  -- Serial Line Internet Protocol. An Internet protocol that lets users gain 'Net access with a modem and a phone line.  SLIP lets users link directly to the 'Net through and Internet service provider (ISP).  It is slowly being replaced with its successor, Point-To-Point Protocol (PPP).  

T1  -- A type of data connection able to transmit a digital signal at 1.544 megabits per second.  T1 lines often are used to link large computer networks together, such as those that make up the Internet.

TCP/IP  -- TRANSMISSION CONTROL PROTOCOL/INTERNET PROTOCOL.  A protocol governing communications among all computers on the Internet.  It dictates how packets of information are sent over networks and ensures the reliability of data transmissions across Internet-connected networks. 

Telephony  -- Technology that lets users use a PC to make and receive telephone calls.  Telephony software often includes features such as voice mail, fax, auto dialing, and on-screen messaging. 

URL  -- Universal Resource Locator.  In short, and Internet address.  In detail a standardized naming or addressing system for documents and media accessible over the Internet.  For example, http://www.internetguideandmore.com includes the type of document (a Hypertext Transfer Protocol [HTTP]  document), and the address of the computer on which it can be found (www.internetguideandmore.com ). 

Upload  -- To send or transmit a file from one computer to another via modem. 

Web server  -- A computer where Web pages reside.  A server may be dedicated meaning its sole purpose is to be the server, or non-dedicated, meaning it can be used for basic computing in addition to acting as the server. 

Web browser  -- Software that gives access to and navigation of the World Wide Web.  Using a graphical interface that lets users click buttons, icons, and menu options to access commands, browsers show Web pages as graphical or text-based documents.  Browsers allow users to download pages at different sites either by clicking hyperlinks (graphics or text presented in a different color than the rest of a document, which contains a programming code that connects to another page), or by entering a Web page's address, called a universal resource locator (URL). 

Web page  -- A document written in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) that can be accessed on the Internet.  Web pages are found by addresses called universal resource locators (URLs).  Web pages can contain information graphics, and Hyperlinks to other Web pages and files.  

Web site  -- A location managed by a single entity that provides information such as text, graphics, and audio files to users as well as connections (called hypertext links, hyperlinks, or links) to other Web sites on the Internet.  Every Web site has a home page, the initial document seen by users, which acts as a table of contents to other available Web pages and offerings at the site. 

World Wide Web -- A graphical interface for the Internet that is composed of Internet servers that provide access to documents, which in turn provide hyperlinks to other documents, multimedia files, and sites.  These links are graphics or different-colored text that contain programming code which provides the actual connections to another site.