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Defining The Internet January 2000 • Vol.6 Issue 1 |
Basic Terminology Before You Head On To The Web, Brush Up With These Terms | ||
 Whether you're heading on to the Internet for the first time or the thousandth time, it's never too late to become a more savvy surfer. Here are some of the most common Internet terms you'll encounter, defined in plain English. broadband transmission—Communication in which the wire or line can transmit several data streams simultaneously. One example is the coaxial cable used in cable television systems, which carries multiple channels at once. Broadband has come to describe high-speed data transmission, especially over the Internet, sufficient to carry live video. bulletin board system—An online computer system you can access through your modem that acts as a central source of information. Like the BBS's physical counterpart found in supermarkets and community centers, users can read or post messages, but with BBSes they can also trade software. Bulletin board systems usually are geared toward particular interests and can come in all sizes. cache—(Pronounced "cash.") A bank of high-speed memory set aside for frequently accessed data. The term "caching" describes placing data in the cache. Memory caching and disk caching are the two common methods used by PCs. Whenever data is accessed from or committed to main memory, a copy, along with the address, is saved in the cache along with the associated main memory address. chat room—An online forum where users gather to hold real-time, text-based conversations. Most chat rooms have a subject and are monitored, but discussions can wander into unrelated topics. Chat rooms are often filled with incoherent fragments that scarcely resemble speech. A Web browser is the only equipment needed to participate in most chat rooms. cookie—Information from a Web site sent to a browser and stored on a user's hard drive so the Web site can retrieve it later. A Web server using the technology looks for a cookie when a user visits. Cookies generally are used to identify visitors. A cookie can contain information about the user's login name, password, and preferences. For subscription sites, the cookie can make it unnecessary to log in each time. Users have the option to configure their browsers to either accept or reject cookies. Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)— Technology used to transmit digital data on regular copper phone lines. DSL can be used to provide connections to the Internet or local-area networks (LANs) or for videoconferencing. The technology can send analog and digital signals over the phone line. ISDN is digital only and has to convert analog voice phone calls to digital signals. With DSL, the analog voice phone calls and digital signals can coexist on the same wires. This works because analog signals require only a fraction of the capacity of the copper wires that make up a phone line. The limitation of the analog signal carried on those wires has kept phone lines from delivering greater data transfer speeds. Sending digital signals over copper wires breaks that barrier. electronic mail (e-mail)— Text messages sent through a network to a specified individual or group. Received messages are stored in an Inbox and can be kept, deleted, replied to, or forwarded, depending upon the e-mail program. Besides a message, an e-mail may have an attached file or graphic. Users can make sure a message was received by requesting a receipt. E-mail can be delivered within seconds or minutes across thousands of miles. encryption—A security method that converts data into a code that can be read only by authorized individuals. Encryption is commonly used for transmitting e-mail messages or making transactions on the Internet. Encryption is a vital component of the primary Internet security standards, including Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and Secure Electronic Transaction (SET). eXtensible Markup Language (XML)— A Web programming language being designed to replace Hypertext Markup Language. It has several features that add greater functionality to Web documents, including the ability to create customized tags or establish links to multiple objects. file transfer protocol—A standard way to transfer files between computers. The method has built-in error checking. It is frequently used as a way of transferring many types of files over the Internet. Gopher—A menu-driven, search-and-retrieval tool that helps Internet users locate information online through menus, which are itemized according to collections of information and stored databases. The menus also may lead to other menus, files, and search tools. Gopher, which was developed at the University of Minnesota in 1991 and named after the school's mascot, the Golden Gophers, lets users retrieve data over the Internet without using complicated commands and addresses. home page—The introductory page of a Web site. The home page typically contains hyperlinks to the various components of the site. Also known as an index page. hyperlinks—Any icon, graphic, or text in an electronic document that is connected to a specific location within the same document or to a different document. Users must position the on-screen pointer over the hyperlink and press the mouse button to access the target location or document. For example, a document about computer magazines may contain a hyperlink to the Smart Computing Web site. When users click the hyperlink, they are connected to the home page of the Smart Computing Web site. hypertext—Hyperlinked text in a file that, when highlighted by the mouse or otherwise selected, causes the automatic display of a related file. World Wide Web pages are filled with hypertext and other hyperlinks. Hypertext usually has a different color from the surrounding plain text. Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)— A user-friendly programming language used to create interconnected electronic documents, including most of the pages on the World Wide Web. HTML is based on tags, bits of code that are embedded in the document and define the various attributes of the document. To create a hyperlink, for example, the user simply places the hyperlink tags <A HREF> and </A> around the universal resource locator or e-mail address. Documents created with HTML are identified by an .HTM or .HTML file extension. Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP)— The standard that governs the exchange of Web data on the Internet. To access a Web document on the Internet, a user must first enter http:// in the browser's address field to indicate that the document should be formatted and processed as a Web document. ICQ—Pronounced "I Seek You." An online, instant messenger chat service. Users can customize ICQ to alert them when friends or specified users are online so they can send or receive real-time messages from those users. information superhighway— A term used to describe a future, computer-accessible, high-speed, electronic communications network. The information superhighway is more of an idea for what is possible than a current reality, but the term is frequently, if not quite correctly, used as a synonym for today's Internet. instant messaging—Sending messages to another user that immediately appear on that user's computer screen over a network. Instant messaging can work on interoffice local-area networks (LANs) or across the Internet. Instant messages are different from e-mail messages in that they do not sit unread until the user checks his or her e-mail; they appear on-screen as they are received. Instant messaging does, however, require software on both the sender's and recipient's computers. One example of instant messaging software is America Online's (AOL's) Instant Messenger, which can be used by all Internet users, not just AOL subscribers. Instant messaging is handy for urgent communication and short, succinct notes that might not be important enough for e-mail messages. Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN)— A telecommunications standard that supports digital audio, video, and data transmissions at a maximum rate of 128 kilobits per second (Kbps), which is nearly two times faster than the fastest modem transmissions. ISDN is used primarily for Internet access service and is available from most Internet service providers. ISDN service costs more than traditional dial-up Internet access and has failed to gain a substantial number of users. A new generation of ISDN, called broadband-ISDN (B-ISDN), uses fiber-optic technology and supports data transmissions of 1.5 megabits per second (Mbps). B-ISDN is not available in most areas. Internet—The physical infrastructure of interconnected TCP/IP networks. The infrastructure consists of all servers, routers, telephone lines, satellites, and other communications instruments used to convey Internet-based electronic data, including Web sites, e-mail messages, and newsgroups, from one point to another. The Internet, which was developed for the U.S. military in 1969, has reached global prominence during the past five years. Access to the Internet is provided by online services and ISPs. Also referred to as the 'Net. Internet Relay Chat (IRC)— A system that allows real-time text chatting between multiple participants around the world over the Internet. Users log on to any one of many concurrently operative IRC channels dedicated to a variety of topics and talk to one another by typing. Typically a sentence or two is communicated at one time, and users read each other's comments as they scroll by on the screen. Joining IRC discussions requires a connection to the Internet and IRC client software. The IRC client sends and receives messages from whatever IRC server is hosting a particular discussion. There are many IRC server computers worldwide. Internet service provider (ISP)— A company that provides Internet access to paying subscribers. ISPs typically offer three methods of Internet access: dial-up modem connections, whereby the customer connects to the Internet by dialing up the ISP's central computer system; ISDN, whereby the subscriber connects to the Internet via an ISDN line; and leased lines, whereby the subscriber obtains a high-speed, private, and direct connection to the Internet. Most ISPs are local or regional in nature, but there are a significant number of national providers. In addition to Internet access, subscribers often receive a free e-mail account, a free Web browser, and a certain amount of space on the ISP's computers to store a Web site. Java—A complex programming language developed by Sun Microsystems that allows for the creation of embedded applications (called applets) that can be downloaded from the Internet and run immediately within a Web browser on any platform. Java can be used to create applets that have practical purposes, such as an interest calculator, or entertainment purposes, such as animations. To view Java applets, a user must have a browser that supports Java. modem—Acronym for modulator/demodulator. Lets a computer transmit and receive information over telephone lines. Modems convert analog data into digital data that computers can read, and they convert digital data into analog data so it can be transmitted over telephone lines. Modems are the primary way home computer users connect to outside networks such as the Internet and commercial online services. Different modems are able to transmit data at different speeds, but faster modems are still able to communicate with slower modems at the highest shared speed. The slowest modems transmit information at a rate of only 300bps; the current standard found on most new computers is 56Kbps. Two alternatives to a standard modem are an Integrated Services Digital Network adapter or a broadband connection. newsgroup—A text-based online forum where users gather to share information about a variety of subjects. Each newsgroup has a dedicated subject, and newsgroup members post their messages to a central newsgroup server,where the messages may be accessed by other members of the newsgroup. To view and transmit newsgroup messages, the user must have a newsreader. Newsreader applications are built in to most Web browsers and operating systems and also are available as separate products. plug-in—An application that provides a complementary feature to another application. The term most often is used to describe the plethora of applications that can be downloaded from the Web to supplement the capabilities of a Web browser. Among the most common plug-ins are those that provide support for audio and video playback. Point-To-Point Protocol (PPP)— A communications protocol that lets users connect their PCs to the Internet through a phone line or other full-duplex link, such as ISDN. With dial-up PPP software and a modem, a computer can call in to an Internet service provider and establish a connection to the Internet that allows e-mail, Web browsing, and other capabilities. Portable Document Format (PDF)— A file format developed by Adobe that facilitates the conversion of graphics-heavy documents into a form that requires the free Acrobat Reader to read. Creating a PDF file, however, requires the full Acrobat program. PDF is useful for mass distributing documents, such as online brochures or software documentation. PDF documents retain their original layouts, so users see them as they were created. PDF files offer some benefits over converting brochures and other documents to Hypertext Markup Language; namely, it's easier to preserve the look of the document because users have more control over placement of graphics and can include copies of fonts in the document so that the file will look and print as intended. search engine—A program that lets users locate specified information from a database or mass of data. Search engine sites are extremely popular on the World Wide Web because they let users quickly sift through millions of documents on the Internet. AltaVista (http://www.altavista.com) is one example. server—Any computer containing data or applications that can be accessed by remote computers. A server can be dedicated, meaning its sole purpose is to be a server, or it can be non-dedicated, meaning it also can be used for basic computing tasks. Various types of servers are connected to the Internet. A Web server contains information that is accessible on the World Wide Web. A mail server processes and stores an individual's incoming and outgoing e-mail messages. A newsgroup server controls access to and retains messages posted to a newsgroup. A Domain Name Server (DNS) directs the flow of data on the Internet by translating domain names such as www.mydomain.com into Internet Protocol (IP) addresses such as 111.22.333.44. set-top box—A device used with a television, typically placed on top of the television, that adds some computing function. Presently, set-top boxes provide Internet services, such as WebTV. The boxes are computers with minimal amounts of memory and processing power and frequently have no hard drive. They perform tasks that don't require much computing power at a fraction of the cost of a full computer. Transmission Control Protocol/ Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)— Standards developed by the Department of Defense that govern communication among the various computers that make up a network. The TCP standard governs the integrity of data transmissions. The IP standard governs the way data is transmitted across the network. The Internet is the best example of a TCP/IP network, but many smaller networks also use the protocols. universal resource locator (URL)— An Internet address. Every electronic document that is accessible via the Internet has a unique URL. Each URL consists of several components that provide information about the location of the corresponding document. For example, the URL http://www.mysite.com/mybusiness/mybiography.html reveals that the Mybiography.html Web document is on the MYBUSINESS subdirectory of the Mysite domain. Web browser—The application that lets a user access Web data on the Internet. The typical Web browser supports graphics and contains an address field, where the Web address for a Web site is entered; a viewing field, where the Web page can be viewed; and a number of toolbar buttons that span the top of the browser. The two most popular browsers are Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator. 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 offerings at the site. World Wide Web—The conglomeration of interconnected data accessible on the Internet. The World Wide Web, which was developed in Switzerland in 1991 by the English-born physicist Tim Berners-Lee, features two main characteristics: hyperlinks and support for multimedia data, including graphics, motion video, and audio. It has more than 100 million users worldwide and has rightfully been credited for popularizing the Internet. Also called the Web. by Jeff Dodd |
