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Internet & Email

Address In the context of the Internet, an address is the information a web browser needs to locate a particular website. Microsoft's website address, for instance, is www. Microsoft. com.
ADSL Stands for Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line. A technology that converts an ordinary household telephone line into an extremely fast Internet connection -- around ten times faster than a regular 56K modem.
Bandwidth In computing terms, a measure of the maximum amount of data that can be transferred over a connection at any one time. For example, if you connect to the Internet using a modem, then the bandwidth is likely to be up to 56Kbps (or 56,000 bits of data per second).
Bookmark A way of flagging favourite websites in your web browser for later reference, much like marking a page in a book.
Broadband Refers to high-bandwidth Internet connections, such as ADSL.
Browse Using a web browser application to look at websites on the net.
Browser The short name for a web browser ? an application that lets you view pages on the Internet. Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator are the two most popular browsers.
Cookies Text files generated by websites you visit and stored on your computer's hard disk. Cookies contain preferences and other information about your use of the sites, and are not harmful.
DHTML (Dynamic HTML) This is an extended version of the language used to describe web pages, which allows a page to change instantly when certain things happen, for instance the mouse moving over a specified area.
Domain Name The name used to identify a site on the Internet, such as computeractive. co. uk or Microsoft. com
Email Short for electronic mail, a system of sending notes and memos between computers via Internet.
Favourites Your personal address book of places on the Internet that you visit periodically. Bookmark a site and it will be stored in your Favourites/Bookmarks list for future visits.
Flash An application used to create high-quality animations on websites.
Form A document formatted in a certain way for entering data, much like the paper version. Forms are typically used by databases.
Frames (Web Pages) In the context of web pages, these are used to segment content. One frame might contain a menu of the website while the other displays the information that you're interested in. The frame borders might be visible but are often hidden.
Homepage The first or main page of a website, usually containing links to more detailed sections or content.
HTML (HyperText Mark-up Language) The language used to create pages for a website. HTML code is written as text that is converted to a web page by a web browser.
Hyperlink A clickable link on a web page or in a document that takes you to elsewhere, like to another website or a later page.
Instant Messaging Real-time text-based communication over a network (usually the Internet), using a program such as AOL Instant Messenger.
Internet An global network that links millions of computers, using phone and cable links. Users connect to server computers, which act rather like a local phone exchange. A modem connects your PC to the server from home, allowing you to become part of the Internet.
Internet Explorer Microsoft's Internet browser ? a program that allows you to 'browse' web pages, manage your favourite web sites, and so on.
IP Address (Internet Protocol) An identifying number of a computer attached to a network. A computer's IP address is similar to a phone number in function. Every computer must have a unique IP address ? either a permanent address or one that is dynamically assigned to them each time they connect to the net. IP addresses are written as four sets of numbers separated by full stops; for example, 204. 171. 64. 2.
IRC (Internet Relay Chat) A vast, largely un-regulated global network allowing users to type messages in real time ? much like a real conversation. Divided into separate rooms, or 'channels'.
ISP (Internet Service Provider) A company which provides you with an Internet connection, either for fixed monthly fee or for the cost of local call charges. Examples of popular ISPs include BT Internet, AOL and Freeserve.
Java A special language used to create advanced effects on websites, such as animated sequences and interactive buttons and menus.
Keyword A word of particular importance on a web page that can be used by search engines to identify it.
Link An object on a web page that, when clicked, takes you to another web page. Both text and graphics can be links.
Mail Server The computers at your ISP that handle email coming into your account as well as all the email you send out.
Mailbox The folder in your email application that stores your incoming messages.
Mailing List A service provided by special interest groups that sends regular email updates to its (usually free) subscribers.
Message Board An Internet-based equivalent of an actual message board, where people can post and reply to messages 'posted' by other people.
MIME Stands for Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions, which is a standard for sending files and other data that is not plain text in mail messages over the Internet.
Mirror Site A duplicate of a website, usually in a different location, intended to share the load in times of heavy use. Shareware download sites use mirror sites for this very purpose.
Moderator User who controls who can speak in a moderated chat room.
Net Short for Internet, which is a global network of computers you can hook up to through an ordinary phone line.
Newsgroups Discussion areas on the Internet, where you can post a message and read replies from other people, like an office noticeboard.
Offline Working with Internet software, like an email program, without being connected to the Internet, potentially running up telephone charges.
Online Being connected to the Internet or the time you spend connected to or via the Internet.
Packet Information sent over the Internet or other computer networks is split up into packets of data. Each of these includes the destination IP address, so they can travel separately and be rebuilt into the complete message on arrival.
Plug In A small program that adds extra features such as streaming video to your web browser or to other applications, and is loaded only when it's needed to display information
POP3 Post Office Protocol 3. A protocol for remotely accessing and retrieving email from an ISP. Most email applications and ISPs use POP3
Port Scanning using a computer to search for weak spots in other computers connected to the internet, usually for unlawful purposes.
Portal A website that offers a variety of services, such as news, weather reports, stock information, email and so on. The information on offer may be personalised for your interests if you have registered with the portal. Most search sites are also portals.
Posting To send a message to a newsgroup.
Preview Pane Part of a window in an email application that lets you read a message without having to first double-click it to open it. This has the disadvantage that some malicious emails can contain HTML which will run automatically in the preview pane, potentially importing a virus to your system.
Search Engine A site on the net that indexes the names and addresses of other sites. It enables you to search for sites containing certain keywords, or sometimes even to ask a question in normal language.
Search Query The text given to a search engine which forms your search on the world wide web. It can be one or several keywords, use special codes, or even be a natural question.
Security Certificate A piece of data sent from one computer to another designed to prove the authenticity or security of information on the internet.
Shockwave Technology developed by Macromedia that allows web pages to contain interactive multimedia. Typical uses include animations and games.
Site Short for website. A linked group of one or more web pages, normally dealing with a particular subject or by a single author. Each page or site has its own distinctive URL (universal resource locator) or 'address'. This is usually prefixed by the letters www, standing for world wide web.
SMTP Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. A standard for sending email messages. SMTP is now largely reserved for sending messages rather than receiving them.
Spam Junk email sent to large groups of people offering such things as money-spinning ideas, holidays, and so on. Named after the Monty Python Spam song.
Start Page The page that appears when you first start your web browsing program. Also known as the home page, it is user-selectable.
Streamed When data flows to your PC as needed. Broadcasts over the internet are often streamed so that you don't have to download a whole file before you start listening or watching. However, you cannot generally download streamed files to your hard disk to watch or listen to them later.
Surfing Popular metaphor used for describing someone exploring the world wide web.
Tag Part of the syntax of HTML, the language used to define web pages, tags assign attributes ? such as colour and position ? to each of the elements of a web page.
Time Out Your browser sets a time limit on how long it will try to download a web page before determining that it cannot access the appropriate server. If web access is very slow, you are likely to be 'timed out'.
TLD (or Top Level Domain) The suffix after the final '. ' in a website (or 'domain') name. The most common top level domain is '. com' for 'commercial'. Other examples include '. co. uk' for a UK company and '. org' for a non-profit organisation.
Traffic The amount of information being carried by a communication device (usually the internet) at any one time
Uploading The process of transferring information to another computer, often for publishing on the internet as a web page. The process normally involves using the File Transfer Protocol, or FTP.
URL Uniform Resource Locator. The unique address of a web page you visit, enabling it to be found from any other computer connected to the internet.
Usenet Short for users' network, a collection of public groups of messages ? newsgroups ? which is accessible to a wide variety of computer systems worldwide, both on and off the internet. The act of writing a message that appears on Usenet is called posting. Newsgroups belong to hierarchies, usually divided by geography and interest. For example, news://uk. rec. cycling is a UK-based newsgroup about recreational cycling.
Web Also known as the world wide web or WWW. The web is a collection of online documents housed on server computers around the world, and forms the most visible and easily accessible part of the internet. These are accessed via a web browser. Web pages typically feature text, graphics and photographs, and often video and audio clips. Each page or site has its own distinctive URL or 'address'. This is usually prefixed by the letters www, standing for world wide web.
Web Browser A software program developed for navigating the internet, particularly the world wide web. The two most common browsers are Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator.
Web Pages The online documents stored on internet servers. They link text and images, and often video or audio clips into a coherent whole. Each one can be accessed by typing in its address.
Web Space An area of disk space on an internet server. This may be on your own machine or rented from an Internet Service Provider. This space can then be used to store web pages for display on the internet.
Web-Authoring Programme A piece of software designed to make it easier to create a web page or site. Often with sophisticated functions built in, such programs create the HTML code automatically and allow you to concentrate on the design of the site. Examples include Microsoft FrontPage and Macromedia DreamWeaver.
Webcam A video camera designed to connect to your PC. It can be used to record video clips which you can send by email, or to transmit images directly over the internet for video-conferencing.
Website A linked group of one or more web pages, normally dealing with a particular subject or by a single author. Each page or site has its own distinctive URL or 'address'. This is usually prefixed by the letters www, standing for world wide web.
Wildcard A character that can be substituted for one or more characters in a web search, much like the blank tile in Scrabble.
XML eXtensible Markup Language. A way of tagging documents for display on different types of machine across the internet. It is more flexible than HTML, the most common standard, because it allows developers to define their own specialised tags or formatting codes.