Internet Basics Terminology

add-on, a software progream that works with another program, enhancing its features.

address book, component of e-mail programs to store names, electronic addresses and other details about specific identities.

animated GIF, web page graphic that combines several GIF graphics in one file and in a sequence. Animated GIF's are widely used on the Internet because they do not require a special player.

anonymous FTP sites, file transfer servers where you do not need a password to log on and access files. Sometimes you need to use the password "anonymous," hence the name.

antivirus program, a utility that searches electonic files for computer viruses and removes any found.

Archie, program that searches FTP servers for any files by filename.

ASCII, American Standard Code for Information Exchange, code that represents English characters as numbers, used to represent text and transfer information between computers.

attachment, an electronic file attached to an e-mail.

bandwidth, the amount of data that can be transmitted in a given amount of time, typically expressed as bits per second (bps).

bit, a binary digit, the smallest unit of information, a one or a zero.

BCC, blind carbon copy, a copy of an e-mail message sent to a second recipient without the address appearing in the original mailing.

bit, the smallest unit of electronic information, a bit an hold either of two variables, 0 or 1.

bookmarks, Netscape Navigator's method of marking and organizing web page addresses as links for later use.

bounce, an e-mail message that is returned, or "bounced" back, due to an unknown or obsolete e-mail address.

browser, a software application used to access the World Wide Web and view web pages

bulletin board, an electronic message center where users post messages for other users to later read and comment on.

byte, a unit of information containg eight bits, capable of representing an alphabetic character.

cable modem, a modem designed to utilize cable television lines and therefore capable of transmitting more information with more bandwidth and faster connection speeds.

cache, electronic folder that temporarily stores most recently downloaded web files, allowing faster display of reaccessed files.

chat, real-time, text-based communication on the Internet.

client, software program that requests files or makes other requests of a server

Collabra, the newsreader software that comes with the Cetscape Communicator suite.

Common Gateway Interface (CGI), script that transfers data between a client and a server, often used in interactive web pages such as forms.

component bar, offers buttons to access the various components of the Communicator suite.

compression, compacts data into a smaller file size by scanning a file and eliminating duplicate areas by replacing them with reference codes.

cookie, electronic file transmitted from a server to a Web browser and sent back to the server when a new file is requested. Cookies are stored on the browser.

cybercast, broadcast over the Internet.

cyberspace, the non-physical space created by computers, such as the Internet.

DHTML, Dynamic HTML, allows page content to change in reaction to user input without communication with the originating server.

dail-up account, internet access account that enables a computer to connect to the Internet via an ISP computer using a modem.

database, a collection of related information that can be searched.

document window, displays the active Web page.

domain name, names used in URL's and corresponding to one or more IP addresses. Domain names always carry a suffix, the top-level domain name such as com or edu. Domain names in a URL are case sensative.

Domain Name Service (DNS), Internet service that translates domain names into their numeric IP numbers

download, to copy electronic data from another computer to your computer over a network.

electonic commerce (e-commerce), business conducted online.

e-mail, electronic messages transmitted over any computer network.

executable, a file that a computer can execute, such as a software program.

external viewer, a program that a browser launches automatically to open files not supported by the browser.

firewall, programming designed to prevent Internet users from accessing parts of an Internet server.

forum, a discussion group where users share information on a particular topic of common interest.

frame, a section of a document window, divided areas of a browser display showing distinct web pages.

freeware, copyrighted software that is provided free for anyone's use.

File Transfer Protocol (FTP), a common protocol that facilitates transferring any type of electronic files over the Web.

gif or GIF, compressed graphics file format supported by all graphics Web browsers, the most common graphics file format used on the Web.

gigabyte (GB), unit of electronic information storage capable of holding 1,073,741,824 bytes.

home page, the Web page that appears when you start Netscape Navigator, the index or default page of a particular Web server, folder, or person's Web site.

history list, a web browser's list of sites visited since launching the browser.

history window, a web browser feature with a list of sites visited, providing searchable data on each site, including title, URL, when first visited, when most recently visited, and how often visited.

home page, the entrance pageto a Web site with multiple pages; a Web page about a person or company; the start page for a browser.

host, a conputer connected to a TCP/IP network, such as the Internet, with a unique IP address; a computer that stores resources or provides a service fopr other computers on a network.

Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), the protocl computers use to transmit Web documents between computers, identified by the prefix "http://" of the URL.

hypertext documents, electronic filess containing links that can be selected to move to another part of the document or to another document altogether.

Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), programming language used to create documents displayed by Web browsers, a logical language to format documents that can be universally understood on different computer platforms and by different Web browsers.

imagemap, a single graphic that serves as more than one hyperlink.

inbox, folder in an e-mail program where incoming messages are stored until moved to another folder or deleted.

inline image, a graphic displayed along with text in a Web page.

Integrated Message Access Protocol (IMAP), e-mail retrieval protocol that allows storage of messages on the remote server instead of downloading them to the client computer.

Internet, a global network of computer networks that use standard protocols to exchange information, the largest network of computer networks.

Internet Service Provider (ISP), companies that sell access to the Internet to other users.

IP address, the numerical identifier for a computer connected to a TCP/IP network, such as the Internet. IP addresses consit of a set of four numbers from 0 - 255 and separated by periods. For example 199.104.230.26.

Java, the programming language developed by Sun Microsystems used for creating applications that can be run over the Web, computer language designed to be run on any computer regardless of the operating system.

JavaScript, language developed by Netscape to add functionality and enhancements to Web pages.

jpg or JPEG, pronounced "jay-peg," a compressed graphics format supported by all graphical web browsers, second of the most common image formats used on the Web. The acronym stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group.

kilobyte, KB, unit of electronic storage capable of holding 1,024 bytes.

link, that portion of a hypertext document that allows for moving to another part of the document or to another document altogether.

list, a secified group of Address Book entries that allows you to send an e-mail message to a goup of people without manually selecting each individual addressee.

local area network, computer network that covers a relatively small area, such as a single building or company, and allows for sharing devices such as printers or services such as Internet connection.

location bar, identifies the address of the Web page displayed in the browser window.

mailer form, a form in a Web page that sends an e-mail message.

mailto link, a link in a Web page that opens the default e-mail program and addresses a message to a specific address. The specified URL begins with "mailto:" followed by the e-mail address.

megabyte (MB), the unit of electronic storage capable of holding 1,048,576 bytes.

menu bar, groups commands by menu name, clicking a menu name opens a menu of commands or submenus.

META tags, HTML tags that provide information about a Web page, such as author, keywords, description, character set and authoring program.

modem, device that enables a computer to connect to other computers via a telephone or other transmission line

navigational guide, a list, index or directory of Web pages organized by themes or subjects.

navigation buttons, tool bar buttons used to move among Web pages, includes, Back, Forward and Home.

Netcsape Communicator, a software suite for using the World Wide Web.

network, two or more computers linked together to exchange data.

newsgroup, a forum on the Usenet network with a specific topic of interest, used by participants to read, post and reply to messeages.

news reader, spacial software used to receive message posted to newsgroups.

news server, a server that manages and stores the messages posted to various newsgroups.

password, a personal code that verifies that you have the right to access a computer, file, server or other electronic area or component.

personal toolbar, customizable toolbar that displays buttons you can click to jump to Web pages.

plug-ins, software programs that extend the capabilities of other programs.

Portable Document Format (PDF), file format that captures formatting informationfrom various publishing programs and enables them to appear exactly as intended on other computers.

post, a message sent to a newsgroup or bulletin board.

posting, the act of sending an e-mail message to a newsgroup or bulletin board.

Post Office Protocol (POP), a protocol used to retrieve e-mail from a server. POP3 clients must download their mail to their local computer to read it.

protocol, procedure or format a computer uses to transmit or exchange files, enabling computers of differnet platform types to communicate in a standardized fashion.

query, a request in question form that directs a search engine to find documents that contain the specified word, phrase or other component.

response time, the amount of time it takes to complete a link.

search engine, database software that retrieves information based upon query parameters.

self-extracting files, compressed files capable of extracting its compressed files without a separate uncompression program.

server, computer that receives and fulfills requests to provide specific services on a network.

shareware, a copyrighted software program distributed on the honor system that you can try before buying.

start page, teh Web page that appears when a Web browser is launched.

status bar, indicates the status of the document you are retrieving from the Web server.

suites, packages of seamless, integrated and specialized software applications. Internet suites might include a browser, an e-mail capability, a web page creation capability and others. Groups of integrated software products.

T-1, a dedicated Internet connection capable of supporting a transfer rate of 1.544 Mbps.

tag, a command inserted into a file specifying how portions of the document are formatted are to be treated by the browser.

target, a new location in the same hypertext document that you are moved to by a link.

Telnet, program that allows a computer to dail another computer and act like a terminal of the remote computer.

text link, a word or phrase in a hypertext document that is typically underlined and colored differently that functions, when selected, to move the browser to a different web page or a different place in the page.

thread, a batch of newsgroup messages that follow a single line of conversation.

thumbnail, a smaller version of a graphic, typically used inline with a link to the larger version to minimize the size of a web page.

title bar, identifies the active Web page in the window.

top level domain, suffix attached to Internet domain names referring to either geographical location or a characteristic of the host organization or company.

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), the standard suite of protocols used to connect computers on the Internet and on intranets.

Uniform Resource Locator (URL), the address of a Web page.

upload, to transfer a file from your computer to another computer.

Usenet, the world-wide network of over 14,000 bulletin boards called newsgroups.

user ID, ia a name that identifies you on a network. The portion of an e-mail address preceeding the @ symbol is a common example.

virus, a destructive program code in an executable file.

Web page, a hypertext document on the World Wide Web.

Web server, a computer connected to the Internet that provides electronic files to other computers.

webring, a collection of Web pages on a single topic that link to each other.

World Wide Web (WWW), the network of HTML files stored on Web servers and interlinked with hyperlinks, thereby creating a "web" of interlinked files.

zip files, a common compression format created by MacZip for Macintosh, WinZip for Windows and PKZIP for DOS.

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