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Hit
As
used in reference to the World Wide Web, 'hit' means a single
request from a web browser for a single item from a web
server; thus in order for a web browser to display a page
that contains 3 graphics, 4 'hits' would occur at the server:
1 for the HTML page, and one for each of the 3 graphics.
'hits' are often used as a very rough measure of load on
a server, e.g. 'Our server has been getting 300,000 hits
per month.' Because each 'hit' can represent anything from
a request for a tiny document (or even a request for a missing
document) all the way to a request that requires some significant
extra processing (such as a complex search request), the
actual load on a machine from 1 hit is almost impossible
to define.
Host
Any computer on a network that is a repository for services
available to other computers on the network. It is quite
common to have one host machine provide several services,
such as WWW and USENET.
Hosting
This term can be used to refer to the housing of a web site,
email or a domain. See Email hosting and Web Site hosting
for more details.
HTML
(HyperText Markup Language)
The coding language used to create Hypertext documents for
use on the World Wide Web. HTML looks a lot like old-fashioned
typesetting code, where you surround a block of text with
codes that indicate how it should appear, additionally,
in HTML you can specify that a block of text, or a word,
is linked to another file on the Internet. HTML files are
meant to be viewed using a World Wide Web Client Program,
such as Netscape or Mosaic.
HTTP
(HyperText Transport Protocol)
The protocol for moving hypertext files across the Internet.
Requires a HTTP client program on one end, and an HTTP server
program on the other end. HTTP is the most important protocol
used in the World Wide Web (WWW).
Hypertext
Generally, any text that contains links to other documents
- words or phrases in the document that can be chosen by
a reader and which cause another document to be retrieved
and displayed.
IMHO
(In My Humble Opinion)
A shorthand appended to a comment written in an online forum,
IMHO indicates that the writer is aware that they are expressing
a debatable view, probably on a subject already under discussion.
One of may such shorthands in common use online, especially
in discussion forums.
Index
Server
Index Server indexes the contents and properties of documents
on an Internet or intranet Web site served by IIS 4.0. Index
Server enables Web clients with any browser to search a
Web site by filling in the fields of an HTML query form.
Internet(Upper
case I)
The vast collection of inter-connected networks that all
use the TCP/IP protocols and that evolved from the ARPANET
of the late 60's and early 70's. The Internet now (July
1995) connects roughly 60,000 independent networks into
a vast global internet.
internet(Lower
case i)
Any time you connect 2 or more networks together, you have
an internet - as in inter-national or inter-state.
InterNIC
InterNIC (now known as Network Solutions) currently holds
an exclusive contract with the U.S. government to assign
domain names for .COM, .NET and .ORG. The contract is scheduled
to expire September 30, 1998. Network Solutions is the company
that runs the InterNIC registry.
Intranet
A private network inside a company or organization that
uses the same kinds of software that you would find on the
public Internet, but that is only for internal use. As the
Internet has become more popular many of the tools used
on the Internet are being used in private networks, for
example, many companies have web servers that are available
only to employees.
IP
Number (Internet Protocol Number)
Sometimes called a dotted quad. A unique number consisting
of 4 parts separated by dots, e.g.165.113.245.2 Every machine
that is on the Internet has a unique IP number - if a machine
does not have an IP number, it is not really on the Internet.
Most machines also have one or more Domain Names that are
easier for people to remember.
IRC
(Internet Relay Chat)
Basically a huge multi-user live chat facility. There
are a number of major IRC servers around the world which
are linked to each other. Anyone can create a channel and
anything that anyone types in a given channel is seen by
all others in the channel. Private channels can (and are)
created for multi-person conference calls.
ISDN
(Integrated Services Digital Network )
Basically a way to move more data over existing regular
phone lines. ISDN is rapidly becoming available to much
of the USA and in most markets it is priced very comparably
to standard analog phone circuits. It can provide speeds
of roughly 128,000 bits-per-second over regular phone lines.
In practice, most people will be limited to 56,000 or 64,000
bits-per-second.
ISP
(Internet Service Provider)
An institution that provides access to the Internet in some
form, usually for money.
Java
Java is a network-oriented programming language invented
by Sun Microsystems that is specifically designed for writing
programs that can be safely downloaded to your computer
through the Internet and immediately run without fear of
viruses or other harm to your computer or files. Using small
Java programs (called "Applets"), Web pages can include
functions such as animations, calculators, and other fancy
tricks. We can expect to see a huge variety of features
added to the Web using Java, since you can write a Java
program to do almost anything a regular computer program
can do, and then include that Java program in a Web page.
JDK
(Java Development Kit)
A software development package from Sun Microsystems that
implements the basic set of tools needed to write, test
and debug Java applications and applets Kilobyte A thousand
bytes. Actually, usually 1024 (210) bytes.
LAN
(Local Area Network)
A computer network limited to the immediate area, usually
the same building or floor of a building.
Leased-line
Refers to a phone line that is rented for exclusive 24-hour,
7 -days-a-week use from your location to another location.
The highest speed data connections require a leased line.
Listserv
The most common kind of maillist, Listservs originated on
BITNET but they are now common on the Internet.
Local
Registry Fees
Most TLDs require initial registration fees as well as annual
or bi-annual renewal fees. Prices vary from cost-free to
thousands of dollars per domain depending on the TLD chosen.
For example, .COM domains cost which covers the first two
years. Re newal fees for .COM are annually after the first
two years expire.
Login
Noun or a verb. Noun: The account name used to gain access
to a computer system. Not a secret (contrast with Password).
Verb: The act of entering into a computer system, e.g. Login
to the WELL and then go to the GBN conference.
Maillist
(or Mailing List)
A (usually automated) system that allows people to send
e-mail to one address, whereupon their message is copied
and sent to all of the other subscribers to the maillist.
In this way, people who have many different kinds of e-mail
access can participate in discussions together.
Megabyte
A million bytes.
A thousand kilobytes.
MIDI
Musical Instrument Digital Interface -- A network and accompanying
protocol developed in the 1970's for tranmitting various
information between musical and other devices including
keyboards, samplers, lights, controllers, etc.
MIME
(Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) -- The standard
for attaching non-text files to standard Internet mail messages.
Non-text files include graphics, spreadsheets, formatted
word-processor documents, sound files, etc. An email program
is said to be MIME Compliant if it can both send and receive
files using the MIME standard. When non-text files are sent
using the MIME standard they are converted (encoded) into
text - although the resulting text is not really readable.
Generally speaking the MIME standard is a way of specifying
both the type of file being sent (e.g. a QuicktimeÅ video
file), and the method that should be used to turn it back
into its original form. Besides email software, the MIME
standard is also universally used by Web Servers to identify
the files they are sending to Web Clients, in this way new
file formats can be accommodated simply by updating the
Browsers' list of pairs of MIME-Types and appropriate software
for handling each type.
Mirror
Generally speaking, 'to mirror' is to maintain an exact
copy of something. Probably the most common use of the term
on the Internet refers to 'mirror sites' which are web sites,
or FTP sites that maintain exact copies of material originated
at another location, usually in order to provide more widespread
access to the resource. Another common use of the term 'mirror'
refers to an arrangement where information is written to
more than one hard disk simultaneously, so that if one disk
fails, the computer keeps on working without losing anything.
Modem
(MOdulator, DEModulator) -- A device that you connect to
your computer and to a phone line, that allows the computer
to talk to other computers through the phone system. Basically,
modems do for computers what a telephone does for humans.
Modify
(Domain Name)
The database that the TLD registries maintain need to be
accurate in order for name resolution, billing, renewal
notices and public records to be processed correctly. Typically
modifications are required when nameservers need to change
or the contacts change email or postal address or phone
number. The procedures for modifying records will depend
on the registry.
Mosaic
The first WWW browser that was available for the Macintosh,
Windows, and UNIX all with the same interface. Mosaic really
started the popularity of the Web. The source-code to Mosaic
has been licensed by several companies and there are several
other pieces of software as good or better than Mosaic,
most notably, Netscape.
MUD
(Multi-User Dungeon or Dimension) -- A (usually text-based)
multi-user simulation environment. Some are purely for fun
and flirting, others are used for serious software development,
or education purposes and all that lies in between. A significant
feature of most MUDs is that users can create things that
stay after they leave and which other users can interact
with in their absence, thus allowing a world to be built
gradually and collectively.
MUSE
(Multi-User Simulated Environment) -- One kind of MUD -
usually with little or no violence.
MX
Record
Mail Exchange Mail Exchange record is part of the zone file
and is used to designate which mail server machine should
process email for a specific domain.
NT
Windows NT® is Microsoft's® 32-bit operating system developed
from what was originally intended to be OS/2 3.0 before
Microsoft ®and IBM ceased joint development of OS/2. Used
by web hosting companies in the network environment to offer
customers support for Microsoft base products such as MS
Access®, MS SQL® 7.0, and FrontPage® 2000.
Name
Servers
A computer that performs the mapping of easily remembered
domain names to IP addresses. Sometimes referred to as a
host server.
Network
Any time you connect 2 or more computers together so that
they can share resources, you have a computer network. Connect
2 or more networks together and you have an internet.
Newsgroup
The name for discussion groups on USENET.
NIC
(Networked Information Center)
Generally, any office that handles information for a network.
The most famous of these on the Internet is Network Solutions,
which is where new domain names are registered. Another
definition: NIC also refers to Network Interface Card which
plugs into a computer and adapts the network interface to
the appropriate standard. ISA, PCI, and PCMCIA cards are
all examples of NICs.
NNTP
(Network News Transport Protocol)
The protocol used by client and server software to carry
USENET postings back and forth over a TCP/IP network. If
you are using any of the more common software such as Netscape,
Nuntius, Internet Explorer, etc. to participate in newsgroups
then you are benefiting from an NNTP connection.
Node
Any single computer connected to a network.
OC-3
OC-3 Refers to a circuit that transmits 155,000,000 bits
per second. This is the size of the largest Internet backbone
providers networks.
Packet
Switching
The method used to move data around on the Internet. In
packet switching, all the data coming out of a machine is
broken up into chunks, each chunk has the address of where
it came from and where it is going. This enables chunks
of data from many different sources to co-mingle on the
same lines, and be sorted and directed to different routes
by special machines along the way. This way many people
can use the same lines at the same time.
Parking
(Domain Name)
Registries require the use of name servers or hosts for
every domain registered. Parking is the process by which
someone selects a domain name, and "parks" it by registering
the domain name under someone's name servers. Parking can
be done by anyone, to anyone else who has active name servers.
However, parking a domain name alone will result in no service
(webhosting, e-mail) for that particular domain name.
Plug-in
A (usually small) piece of software that adds features to
a larger piece of software. Common examples are plug-ins
for the Netscape® browser and web server. Adobe Photoshop®
also uses plug-ins. The idea behind plug-in's is that a
small piece of software is loaded into memory by the larger
program, adding a new feature, and that users need only
install the few plug-ins that they need, out of a much larger
pool of possibilities. Plug-ins are usually developed by
a third party.
POP
(Point of Presence, also Post Office Protocol)
Two commonly used meanings: Point of Presence and Post Office
Protocol. A Point of Presence usually means a city or location
where a network can be connected to, often with dial up
phone lines. So if an Internet company says they will soon
have a POP in Belgrade, it means that they will soon have
a local phone number in Belgrade and/or a place where leased
lines can connect to their network. A second meaning, Post
Office Protocol refers to the way e-mail software such as
Eudora gets mail from a mail server. When you obtain a SLIP,
PPP, or shell account you almost always get a POP account
with it, and it is this POP account that you tell your e-mail
software to use to get your mail.
Port
3 meanings. First and most generally, a place where information
goes into or out of a computer, or both. E.g. the serial
port on a personal computer is where a modem would be connected.
On the Internet port often refers to a number that is part
of a URL, appearing after a colon (:) right after the domain
name. Every service on an Internet server listens on a particular
port number on that server. Most services have standard
port numbers, e.g. Web servers normally listen on port 80.
Services can also listen on non-standard ports, in which
case the port number must be specified in a URL when accessing
the server, so you might see a URL of the form: gopher://peg.cwis.uci.edu:7000/
shows a gopher server running on a non-standard port (the
standard gopher port is 70). Finally, port also refers to
translating a piece of software to bring it from one type
of computer system to another, e.g. to translate a Windows
program so that is will run on a Macintosh.
Posting
A single message entered into a network communications system.
E.g. A single message posted to a newsgroup or message board.
PPP
(Point to Point Protocol)
Most well known as a protocol that allows a computer to
use a regular telephone line and a modem to make TCP/IP
connections and thus be really and truly on the Internet.
Propagation
The process whereby the nameservers throughout the world
have updated their records for a specific domain. For example,
if you move your domain from one host to another, it will
take around 24 hours or so for the new address to broadcast
everywhere. During that 24 hour period, the traffic is decreasing
at the old location and increasing at the new location.
PSTN
(Public Switched Telephone Network) -- The regular old-fashioned
telephone system.
Register
(Domain Name)
Since every domain is unique, registries have been set up
to assign domains to individuals and organziations. When
a domain is registered with the appropriate registry, that
domain is assigned and becomes no longer available for anyone
else to use. Typically, there are registration and renewal
fees (local registry fees) associated with the right to
use a domain. However, there are some TLDs that are provided
at no charge.
Registrant
(Domain Name)
The entity, organization or individual that will be using
the domain name.
Registrar (Domain Name)
Some registries don't provide the ability for end users
to register domains with them directly. They might require
end users to purchase the domain through an internet provider
that is acting as the registrar.
Registry
(Domain Name)
An organization responsible for assigning domain names for
the TLD that they manage. Furthermore, it is their responsibility
to update the global DNS tables that all nameservers use
to resolve domain names. For example, InterNIC is the registry
for .COM, .NET and .ORG domain names.
Router
A special-purpose computer (or software package) that handles
the connection between 2 or more networks. Routers spend
all their time looking at the destination addresses of the
packets passing through them and deciding which route to
send them on.
Security
Certificate
A chunk of information (often stored as a text file) that
is used by the SSL protocol to establish a secure connection.
Security Certificates contain information about who it belongs
to, who it was issued by, a unique serial number or other
unique identification, valid dates, and an encrypted 'fingerprint'
that can be used to verify the contents of the certificate.
In order for an SSL connection to be created both sides
must have a valid Security Certificate.
Server
A computer, or a software package, that provides a specific
kind of service to client software running on other computers.
The term can refer to a particular piece of software, such
as a WWW server, or to the machine on which the software
is running, e.g.Our mail server is down today, that's why
e-mail isn't getting out. A single server machine could
have several different server software packages running
on it, thus providing many different servers to clients
on the network.
SLIP
(Serial Line Internet Protocol)
A standard for using a regular telephone line (a serial
line) and a modem to connect a computer as a real Internet
site. SLIP is gradually being replaced by PPP.
SMDS
(Switched Multimegabit Data Service)
A new standard for very high-speed data transfer.
SMTP
(Simple Mail Transport Protocol)
The main protocol used to send electronic mail on the Internet.
SMTP consists of a set of rules for how a program sending
mail and a program receiving mail should interact. Almost
all Internet email is sent and received by clients and servers
using SMTP, thus if one wanted to set up an email server
on the Internet one would look for email server software
that supports SMTP.
SNMP
(Simple Network Management Protocol)
A set of standards for communication with devices connected
to a TCP/IP network. Examples of these devices include routers,
hubs, and switches. A device is said to be 'SNMP compatible'
if it can be monitored and/or controlled using SNMP messages.
SNMP messages are known as 'PDU's' - Protocol Data Units.
Devices that are SNMP compatible contain SNMP 'agent' software
to receive, send, and act upon SNMP messages. Software for
managing devices via SNMP are available for every kind of
commonly used computer and are often bundled along with
the device they are designed to manage. Some SNMP software
is designed to handle a wide variety of devices.
Spam
(or Spamming)
An inappropriate attempt to use a mailing list, or USENET
or other networked communications facility as if it was
a broadcast medium (which it is not) by sending the same
message to a large number of people who didn't ask for it.
The term probably comes from a famous Monty Python skit
which featured the word spam repeated over and over. The
term may also have come from someone's low opinion of the
food product with the same name, which is generally perceived
as a generic content-free waste of resources. (Spam is a
registered trademark of Hormel Corporation, for its processed
meat product.) E.g. Mary spammed 50 USENET groups by posting
the same message to each.
SQL
(Structured Query Language)
A specialized programming language for sending queries to
databases. Most industrial-strength and many smaller database
applications can be addressed using SQL. Each specific application
will have its own version of SQL implementing features unique
to that application, but all SQL-capable databases support
a common subset of SQL.
SSL
(Secure Sockets Layer)
A protocol designed by Netscape Communications to enable
encrypted, authenticated communications across the Internet.
SSL used mostly (but not exclusively) in communications
between web browsers and web servers. URL's that begin with
'https' indicate that an SSL connection will be used. SSL
provides 3 important things: Privacy, Authentication, and
Message Integrity. In an SSL connection each side of the
connection must have a Security Certificate, which each
side's software sends to the other. Each side then encrypts
what it sends using information from both its own and the
other side's Certificate, ensuring that only the intended
recipient can de-crypt it, and that the other side can be
sure the data came from the place it claims to have come
from, and that the message has not been tampered with.
Telnet
The command and program used to login from one Internet
site to another. The telnet command/program gets you to
the login: prompt of another host.
Top
Level Domain
A Top Level Domain (TLD) is the uppermost in the hierarchy
of domain names. For example, communitech.net is our domain
name. The "net" is considered the TLD and the "communitech.net"
is considered the second level domain. Together they form
a domain name which is unique. There are two types of TLDs.
The most common type is the Generic or Global TLDs which
include .COM, .NET, .ORG, .MIL, .INT and .EDU. There is
a possibility that new gTLDs will be introduced in the near
future. National or ccTLDs are two letter country code domains
that are managed by a registry designated and controlled
by each specific country. Each registry might have differing
prices, residency requirements and structure.
Transfer
(Domain Name)
On occasion, domains are sold to another organization or
sometimes the name of a company might change. Most registries
require a letter of permission from the old owner to hand
over control to the new owner. The procedures for Transfer
of ownership will depend on the registry.
UNIX
A computer operating system (the basic software running
on a computer, underneath things like word processors and
spreadsheets). UNIX is designed to be used by many people
at the same time (it is multi-user) and has TCP/IP built-in.
It is the most common operating system for servers on the
Internet.
URL
(Uniform Resource Locator)
The standard way to give the address of any resource on
the Internet that is part of the World Wide Web (WWW). A
URL looks like this: http://www.communitech.net/glossary/
or telnet://anywhere.you.want or news:new.newusers.questions
etc. The most common way to use a URL is to enter into a
WWW browser program, such as Netscape, or Lynx. USENET A
world-wide system of discussion groups, with comments passed
among hundreds of thousands of machines. Not all USENET
machines are on the Internet, maybe half.
USENET
USENET is completely decentralized, with over 10,000
discussion areas, called newsgroups.
UUENCODE
(Unix to Unix Encoding)
A method for converting files from Binary to ASCII (text)
so that they can be sent across the Internet via e-mail.
WAIS
(Wide Area Information Servers)
A commercial software package that allows the indexing of
huge quantities of information, and then making those indices
searchable across networks such as the Internet. A prominent
feature of WAIS is that the search results are ranked (scored)
according to how relevant the hits are, and that subsequent
searches can find more stuff like that last batch and thus
refine the search process.
WAN
(Wide Area Network)
Any internet or network that covers an area larger than
a single building or campus.
Whois
Most registries maintain a database of domain names
and their associated contact information. Users can query
these databases through a program called Whois.
Zone
file
The group of files that reside on the domain host or nameserver.
The zone file designates a domain, its subdomains and mail
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