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- access counter
- A small program inserted in a Web page that tracks the page's hit count (how
many times it's been accessed).
- access provider
- See service provider.
- anchor
- A word or phrase in a Web page that's used as a target for a link. When the
user selects the link, the browser jumps to the anchor, which may exist in the
same document or in a different document.
- anonymous FTP
- An FTP session where you log in using "anonymous" as your user ID,
and you enter your e-mail address as the password. Most modern Web browsers
support anonymous FTP and will handle the logging in part for you automatically.
99 and 44/100 this of all your FTP sessions will use anonymous FTP.
- applet
- A Java program.
- arachnerd
- A person that spends way too much time either surfing the Web or fussing
with their home page.
- archie
- An Internet service that searches a database of FTP sites for a file. Named
after, but not to be confused with, the comic strip character of the same name.
- bandwidth
- A measure of how much stuff can be stuffed through a transmission medium
such as a phone line or network cable. There's only so much bandwidth to go
around at any given time, so you'll see lots of Net paranoia about "wasting
bandwidth." Bandwidth is measured in baud or bits per second.
- Barney page
- A page whose sole purpose in life is to capitalize on a trendy topic. The
name comes from the spate of pages bashing poor Barney the Dinosaur that were
all the rage a while back. Recent Barney pages have been dedicated to O.J. and
the Pentium chip fiasco.
- baud
- This is a measure of how much bandwidth a transmission medium has. Its
technical definition is "level transitions per second," but nobody
knows what that means. Most people prefer to use bits per second to describe
bandwidth because it's easier to understand.
- bit
- The fundamental unit of computer information (it's a blend of the words
"binary" and "digit"). Computers do all their dirty work by
manipulating a series of high and low electrical currents. A high current is
represented by the digit 1 and a low current by the digit 0. These 1's and
0's-or bits-are used to represent absolutely everything that goes down inside
your machine. Weird, huh?
- bit-spit
- Any form of digital correspondence.
- bits per second (bps)
- Another, more common, measure of bandwidth. Since it takes eight bits to
describe a single character, a transmission medium with a bandwidth of, say, 8
bps would send data at the pathetically slow rate of one character per second.
Bandwidth is more normally measured in kilobits per second (Kbps-thousands of
bits per second). So, for example, a 14.4 Kbps modem can handle 14,400 bits per
second. In the high end, bandwidth is measured in megabits per second
(Mbps-millions of bits per second).
- body
- The section of the Web document where you enter your text and tags. See also
head.
- bookmarks
- In a Web browser, a list of your favorite Web pages, which you can set while
you are surfing. To return to a page, just select it from the list. In the
Internet Assistant HTML editor, bookmark is another name for an anchor.
- bps
- See bits per second.
- browser
- The software you use to display and interact with a Web page. When cobbling
together your own pages, you'll need to bear in mind that there are two kinds of
browsers: those that display only text and those that support graphics and other
fun elements.
- byte
- Eight bits, or a single character.
- byte-bonding
- When computer users discuss things that nearby noncomputer users don't
understand. See also geeking out.
- Century-21 site
- A Web site that has moved to a new location and now contains only a link to
the new address.
- character reference
- Sounds like something you'd put on your r�sum�, but it's really an HTML
code that lets you insert special characters in your Web pages (such as �). See
also entity name.
- clickstream
- The "path" a person takes as they navigate through the World Wide
Web.
- cracker
- A programmer who breaks into computer systems either to trash them or just
for the sheer thrill of doing it (and, of course, to brag about it later). A
hacker who has succumbed to the dark side of The Force.
- cyberspace
- The place you "go to" when you reach out beyond your own computer
(usually via modem) and interact with information or people on other computer
systems.
- cybersurfer
- A person who surfs cyberspace.
- digerati
- The beautiful people of the online world; the Internet intelligentsia. It's
a blend of the phrase "digital literati."
- dirt road
- A frustratingly slow connection to a Web site. "Geez, that GIF still
hasn't loaded yet? The Web server must be on a dirt road." See also JPIG
and spinner.
- domain name
- The part of your e-mail address to the right of the @ sign. The domain name
identifies a particular site on the Internet.
- emoticon
- See smiley.
- entity name
- An HTML code that lets you insert special characters in your Web pages (such
as " and �). Entity names are easier to use
than character references, but they aren't supported by all browsers.
- external image
- A Web page image that the browser can't handle, so it passes the buck to a
graphics program that displays the image in a separate window. See also inline
image.
- FAQ
- The aficionado's short form for a Frequently Asked Question. The correct
pronunciation is fack.
- flooded
- A page rendered unreadable because of a poorly chosen background image.
"I had to bail out of that page because the background was flooded with
some butt-ugly tartan." See also wrackground
image.
- foo, bar, and foobar
- These words are used as placeholders in descriptions and instructions. For
example, someone might say "To change to the /foo directory on a UNIX
system, use the command cd /foo." Here, "foo" acts as a generic
placeholder for a directory name. If two placeholders are needed, then both
"foo" and "bar" are used, like so: "To FTP two files
named foo and bar, use the mget command: mget foo bar." "Foobar"
is often used as a single placeholder. It's derived from the military acronym
FUBAR (sanitized version: Fouled Up Beyond All Recognition).
- form
- A Web document used for gathering information from the reader. Most forms
have at least one text field where you can enter text data (such as your name or
the keywords for a search). More sophisticated forms also include check boxes
(for toggling a value on or off), radio buttons (for selecting one of several
options), and push buttons (for performing an action such as submitting the
form).
- frames
- In Netscape 2.0, rectangular Web page areas that contain separate chunks of
text, graphics, and HTML. In other words, you can use frames to divide a single
Web page into two or more separate pages.
- Frequently Asked Questions list
- A list of questions that, over the history of a newsgroup or Web site, have
come up most often. If you want to send a question to a newsgroup or to a Web
site's administrator, it's proper netiquette to read the group's FAQ list to see
if you can find the answer there first.
- FTP
- File Transfer Protocol. This is the usual method for retrieving a file from
another Internet computer and copying it to your own. Note that it's okay to use
FTP as both a noun (a method for transferring files) and a verb ("Hey bozo,
before posting to this group you should FTP the FAQ file and give it a good
look"). See also anonymous FTP.
- geek
- Someone who knows a lot about computers and very little about anything else.
See also nerd.
- geeking out
- When geeks who are byte-bonding start playing with a computer during a
noncomputer-related social event.
- GIF
- Graphics Interchange Format. The most commonly used graphics format on the
Web.
- Gopher
- A system that displays Internet documents and services as menu options. You
just select a menu choice and the Gopher will either display a document or
transfer you to a different gopher system. Gophers get their name from the
mascot of the University of Minnesota, where the first Gopher system was born.
- greenlink
- To use the Web for monetary gain.
- hacker
- Someone who enjoys exploring the nuts and bolts of computer systems (both
from the hardware side and, more often, from the software side), stretching
these systems to their limits and beyond, and programming for the sheer pleasure
of it. Not to be confused with cracker.
- head
- This is like an introduction to a Web page. Web browsers use the head to
glean various types of information about the page (such as the title). See also body.
- hit
- A single access of a Web page. A hit is recorded for a particular Web page
each time a browser displays the page.
- hit-and-run page
- A Web page that gets a huge number of hits and then disappears a week later.
Most hit-and-run pages contain pornographic material and they get shut down when
the Web site's system administrators figure out why their network has slowed to
a crawl. See also slag.
- hit count
- The number of hits a particular page has had. Many pages have installed
access counters to track (and display) the number of hits they've had.
- home page
- The first Web document displayed when you follow a link to a Web server.
- horizontal rule
- A straight line that runs across a Web page. Useful for separating sections
of the page.
- host
- See Web server.
- hosting provider
- A company that provides you with storage space (usually at a fee) for your
Web pages. The company runs a Web server that enables other Internauts to view
your pages.
- hot potato
- A shortcut pronunciation of http://. See also triple
dub. For example, instead of spelling out http://www.kacmac.com,
you could say "hot potato triple dub dot kacmac dot com."
- hotlist
- A collection of links to cool or interesting sites that you check out
regularly.
- HTML
- HyperText Markup Language. The collection of tags used to specify how you
want your Web page to appear.
- HTML editor
- A program that makes it easier to mark up a document by using menu commands
and toolbar buttons to insert tags.
- hypertext link
- See link.
- Image map
- A "clickable" inline image that takes you to a different link,
depending on which part of the image you click on.
- inline image
- An image that gets displayed within a Web page. See also external
image.
- Internaut
- An Internet traveler; a cyberspace surfer.
- Internet
- A worldwide collection of interconnected networks. A breeding ground for
geeks, nerds, hackers, and crackers.
- jargonaut
- A person who deliberately creates and disseminates Internet jargon; someone
interested in Net jargon.
- Java
- A programming language designed to create software that runs inside a Web
page.
- JPEG
- A common Web graphics format developed by the Joint Photographic Experts
Group. See also GIF.
- JPIG
- A Web page that takes forever to load because it's either jammed to the hilt
with graphics, or because it contains one or two really large images. See also dirt
road and spinner.
- Kbps
- Kilobits per second (thousands of bits per second).
- link
- A word or phrase that, when selected, sends the reader to a different page
or to an anchor.
- luser
- A blend of "loser" and "user." Someone who doesn't have
the faintest idea what they're doing and, more importantly, this individual
refuses to do anything about it.
- Mbps
- Megabits per second (millions of bits per second).
- mouse potato
- The computer equivalent of a couch potato.
- multimediocrities
- CD-ROM discs that are jam-packed with second-rate pictures, sounds, and
programs. Also applies to some lame Web sites.
- nerd
- An idiot totally lacking in personal hygiene and social skills.
- Net
- The hip, short term for the Internet.
- netiquette
- An informal set of rules and guidelines designed to smooth Internet
interactions. Netiquette breaches often result in the offender being flamed
(sent a nasty e-mail message).
- network
- A collection of two or more computers (usually dozens or hundreds) connected
via special cables so they can share resources such as files and printers. The
Internet is, in its most prosaic guise, a worldwide collection of networks.
- newbie
- A person who is (or acts like they are) new to the Internet. Since this term
is almost always used insultingly, most Net neophytes try to behave as
non-newbie-like as possible. The best way to avoid this label is to bone up on
netiquette.
- notwork
- A downed network.
- nymrod
- A person who insists on converting every multiword computer term into an
acronym.
- one-link wonder
- A Web page that contains only a single useful link.
- plug-in
- A program that attaches itself to a Web browser. The functionality of the
program then becomes an integral part of the browser. An example is WebFX, a
VRML plug-in for Netscape.
- publish
- To make a Web page available to the World Wide Web community at large.
- roadblock
- A Web page that serves no other purpose other than to let you know that
there is nothing available at this URL, but that something will be coming soon.
- Serial Line Interface Protocol
- A method of Internet access that enables your computer to dial up a service
provider and exchange info reliably.
- server
- A computer that sends out stuff. Check out Web server for an example.
- service provider
- A business that sells Internet connections to individuals and small
companies. Also called an access provider.
- slag
- To bring a network to its knees because of extremely high traffic.
"That Babe of the Week page has totally slagged the network." See also
notwork.
- SLIP
- See Serial Line Interface
Protocol.
- smiley
- A combination of symbols designed to indicate the true intent or emotional
state of the author. The classic smiley is the sideways happy face :-). Smileys
are fine in moderation, but overusing them not only indicates that your writing
isn't as clear as it could be, but it also brands you as a newbie.
- spinner
- An extremely slow link. The name comes from Mosaic's globe icon, which spins
while the program tries to access a site. If the site is particularly slow, the
only sign you have that anything is actually happening is the spinning globe.
See also dirt road and JPIG.
- sundowner
- A person who changes his or her daily sleep schedule to coincide with being
awake when Web traffic is lowest (i.e., late at night).
- surf
- To leap giddily from one Web page to another by furiously clicking on any
link in sight; to travel through cyberspace.
- tags
- The HTML commands, in the form of letter combinations or words surrounded by
angle brackets (<>). They tell a browser how to display a Web page.
- target
- See anchor.
- Telnet
- A program that lets you log onto another computer on the Internet and use
its resources as though they existed on your machine. The most common use for
Telnet is to use software (such as an e-mail program) on another computer.
- title
- A short description of a Web page that appears at the top of the screen.
- triple dub
- A shortcut pronunciation of WWW. See also hot
potato.
- ubiquilink
- A link found on almost everyone's hotlist.
- Uniform Resource Locator
- See URL.
- URL
- A Web addressing scheme that spells out the exact location of a Net
resource. For example, KacMac's URL is http://www.kacmac.com/.
- Usenet
- A system that distributes a collection of newsgroups throughout the
Internet.
- vanity plate
- An annoyingly large Web page graphic that serves no useful purpose. See also
JPIG.
- vaporlink
- A link that points to a nonexistent Web page.
- VRML
- Virtual Reality Modeling Language. Used to create Web sites that are 3-D
"worlds" that you "enter" using a VRML-enhanced browser. You
can then use your mouse to "move" around this world in any direction.
- Web
- See World Wide Web.
- Web browser
- See browser.
- Web host
- See Web server.
- Web server
- A computer that stores your Web pages and hands them out to anyone with a
browser that comes calling. Also known as a Web host.
- World Wide Web
- A system of documents containing text, graphics, and other multimedia
goodies. Each Web document serves two purposes: It contains information that is
useful in and of itself, and it contains specially marked words or phrases that
serve as "links" to other Web documents. If you select the link, the
Web loads the other document automatically.
- wrackground image
- A background image that ruins a page by making the text unreadable. See also
flooded.
- WWW
- See World Wide Web and triple
dub.
- YOYOW
- You own your own words. This refers to the copyright you have on the text in
your Web pages.
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