Definition
of technical Terms used on this site
Here we try to explain
some common terms on the Internet. Many of these terms are used on this
site and may be of value to the non techie who wants to know enough to
get by.These definitions may not be complete but offer you the basic
concepts This is by no means comprehensive, but if you would like an Internet
term defined that is not available in this list, please send mail to
support@Buildersplanet.com.
A
B C
D E F
G H
I K
L M
N O
P Q R
S T
U V
W X
Y Z
A
Address
Two types of addresses are common use within the Internet. The email
and IP or Internet addresses.
Application
A program that performs a function directly for a user.
ASCII
American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) .A standard
character-to-number encoding often used in the computer industry.
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B
Backbone
The top level in a hierarchical network. These are large main networks
than other networks connect to to become interconnected.
Bandwidth
Typically refers to the amount of data that can be sent through a
given communications circuit.
Beta
In the preliminary or testing stage of a product. Beware of
these releases of products.
Binary
Base 2 numeral system. The two symbols used are '0' and '1'. Everything
your computer does at its lowest level is based on a 1 or 0. Although
we understand they are working on an inbetween state .
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C
Client
A computer system or process that requests a service of another
computer system or process. A workstation requesting the contents of
a file from a file server is a client of the file server.
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D
Dialup
A temporary connection between machines established with modems over
a standard phone line.
Domain
A group of computers whose hostnames share a common suffix.
Buildersplanet domain name is Buildersplanet.com.
Domain Name System
(DNS)
The DNS is a general purpose distributed, replicated, data query
service. It is used to look up IP addresses for host names. The
host names used on the Internet are called "domain names".
The current top level domains are .COM (commercial), .NET (network),
.EDU (educational), .GOV (government) and .MIL (military). Most countries
also have a domain. For example, .US (United States), and UK (United
Kingdom)
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E
Email
Short for Electronic Mail, this is a system wherby a computer user
can exchange messages with other computer users . Email is one of the
most popular uses of the Internet.
Email Address
The domain-based address that is used to send electronic mail to
its destination.
Encryption
Encryption is the manipulation of data to prevent anyone but the
intended recipient from reading that data. There are numerous methodof
data encryption that can be used to insure network security.
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F
FAQ
Frequently Asked Question. FAQ refers to a collection of answers
to often-asked questions
FTP
File Transfer Protocol. A protocol which allows a user to access
and transfer files to and from another host over a network.
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G
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H
Host
A computer that allows users to communicate with other host computers
on a network. Individual users communicate by using client programs,
such as electronic mail and FTP.
HTML
HyperText Markup Language. The coding that World Wide
Web browsers read to create Web pages.
Hypertext
A link between one document and other documents elsewhere. By clicking
on a word or phrase that has been hightlighted on a computer screen,
a user can skip directly to other related files
. HyperText Transfer
Protocol
The protocol used to transfer World Wide Web data across the Internet.
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I
ISDN
Integrated Services Digital Network. ISDN combines voice and digital
network services in a single medium, making it possible to have digital
data services as well as voice connections through a single "wire".
Internet
A network or collection of networks interconnected with routers.
Generally refers to the largest network of computers in the world
"The Internet".
Internet Address
An IP address that uniquely identifies a node on the Internet
Internet Protocol
(IP)
The network layer for the TCP/IP Protocol Suite. It is the
protocol that allows the internet to work
Internet Relay
Chat (IRC)
A protocol that allows users to converse with others in real time.
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K
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L
listserv
An automated mailing list distribution system
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M
Mail Server
A software program that distributes files or information in
response to requests sent via email.
Moderator
A person, or small group of people, who manage postings, email lists
and discussion groups. They ussually try to weed out offensive
material and members.
Multi-Purpose Internet
Mail Extensions (MIME)
An extension to Internet email which provides the ability to
transfer non-textual data, such as graphcis, audio and video.
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N
Netiquette
A pun on "etiquette", refers to acceptable behavior on
a network.
Network News Transfer
Protocol (NNTP)
A protocol for the distribution, retrieval and posting of Usenet
articles through high-speed links available on the Internet.
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O
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P
Point-to-Point
Protocol (PPP)
The Point-to-Point Protocol provides a method for transmitting packets
over serial point-to-point links.
Post Office Protocol
(POP)
A protocol designed to allow single user hosts to read email
from a server.
Protocol
formal description of message formats and the rules computers must
follow to exchange those messages.
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Q
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R
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S
Server
A computer that provides resources to other computers.
Spam
A term referring to the act of posting , or mass-mailing unsolicited
email messages to several users.
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T
TCP/IP
Transmission Control Protocol over Internet Protocol. This is a common
shorthand which refers to the suite of transport and application protocols
which run over IP.
Telnet
The standard Internet protocol for remote terminal connection service.
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U
Uniform Resource
Locator (URL)
Uniform Resource Locators provide an absolute location for a
given piece of information. Web browsers use URL's to locate information.
Usenet
A collection of thousands of topically named newsgroups, the computers
which run the protocols and the people who read them and submit Usenet
news articles.
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V
Virus
A program which replicates itself on computer systems by incorproating
itself into other programs which are shared among computer systems.
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W
World Wide
Web (WWW )
A hypertext-based, distributed information system created by researchers
at CERN in Switzerland. Users may create, edit or browse hypertext documents.
The clients and servers are freely available.
WYSIWYG
What You See Is What You Get. Often refers to programs that display
a user friendly format yet write specialty code such as HTML markup
language.
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X
Y
Z
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