Dictionary of Computing & Internet Terms | Fearn Web Design | Web Design - Hosting - Marketing

Zone File

Accessability

The W3C Web Accessibility Initiative [ WAI ] is an effort to allow people with disabilities to access resources on the World Wide Web.

The W3C was founded in 1994 to advance the World Wide Web. It is responsible for the development of uniform protocols to assure the interoperability of the Web. The WAI [ Web Accessibility Initiative ], part of the W3C, has developed a number of guidelines that can help to make Web sites more accessible, especially from the view of physically disabled people.

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Anti-Virus

A software program designed to identify and remove a known or potential computer virus.

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American Registry for Internet Numbers [ ARIN ]

American Registry is a non-profit organization established for the purpose of the administration and registration of IP addresses in the geography previously managed by Network Solutions.

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Asia-Pacific Network Information Center [ APNIC ]

The Asian-Pacific Network Information Center is a collaborative effort consisting of national Network Information Centers [ NICs ] and Internet Service Providers within the Asian-Pacific region. The APNIC acts as a regional Internet Registry, providing the allocation of Internet Protocol [ IP ] address space to the Asian-Pacific region..

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ASP

Active Server Pages [ ASP ] is Microsoft's server-side technology for dynamically-generated web pages.

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Banner Ads

A graphic image used on Web sites to advertise a product or service. Banner ads come in numerous sizes, but are often rectangles 460 pixels wide by 60 pixels high. Also 460 x 55 and 392 x 72 sizes are commonly used.

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Browser

A program that accesses and displays files and other data available on the Internet and other networks.

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cc TLD

A standard two-letter abbreviation for the name of a country, for example www.ninemsn.com.au.

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CMS

In computing, a content management system (CMS) is a document centric collaborative application for managing documents and other content. A CMS is often a web application and often it is used as a method of managing web sites and web content.

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.com

The top-level domain originally intended for commercial entities. One of the world wide top-level domain any person or organization may register a domain name.

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Computer

A device that computes, especially a programmable electronic machine that performs high-speed mathematical or logical operations or that assembles, stores, correlates, or otherwise processes information.

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Cookies

A small data file created by a Web server that is stored on your computer either temporarily for that session only or permanently on the hard disk [ persistent cookie ] Cookies provide a way for the Web site to identify users and keep track of their preferences

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CSS

CSS is used by both authors and readers of web pages to define colors, fonts, layout, and other aspects of document presentation. It is designed primarily to enable the separation of document structure [ written in HTML or a similar markup language ] from document presentation [ written in CSS ]. This separation provides a number of benefits, including improved content accessibility, greater flexibility and control in the specification of presentational characteristics, and reduced complexity of the structural content. CSS is also capable of controlling the document's style separately in alternative rendering methods, such as on-screen, in print, by voice [ when read out by a speech-based browser or screen reader ] and on braille-based, tactile devices

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Database

A database is an information set with a regular structure.

Any set of information may be called a database. Nevertheless, the term was invented to refer to computerised data, and is used almost exclusively in computing. Sometimes it is used to refer to not yet computerised data, but usually in the process of planning its possible computerisation.

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DMoz

The Open Directory Project (ODP), also known as DMoz (for Directory.Mozilla, the domain name of ODP), is a multilingual open content directory of World Wide Web links owned by Time Warner that is constructed and maintained by a community of volunteer editors

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DNSO Domain Name Supporting Organization

The DNSO structure is based on a General Assembly, Names Council and a set of constituencies. The objectives for DNSO are to develop and recommend substantive policies and procedures regarding TLDs, including operation, assignment and management of the domain name system and other related subjects.

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Domain Name

A name that identifies one or more IP addresses. For example, a domain name can represent about a dozen IP addresses. Domain names are used in URL's to identify particular Web pages.

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Domain Name Registry

In the domain name system on the Internet there is a need for databases to be kept of which domain name maps to which IP address. A registry has two main tasks:

[ 1 ] Giving out domain names under their top level domain to those who ask for them; and
[ 2 ] making the database of domain name registrations available to the world at large.

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Domain Name System

Short for Domain Name System [ or Service ], an Internet service that translates domain names into IP addresses. Because domain names are alphabetic, they're easier to remember. The Internet however, is really based on IP addresses. Every time you use a domain name, therefore, a DNS service must translate the name into the corresponding IP address. For example, the domain name www.mydomainname.com might translate to 168.145.282.4.

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DTD

[ Document Type Definition ] A language that describes the contents of an SGML document. The DTD is also used with XML, and the DTD definitions may be embedded within an XML document or in a separate file

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E-commerce

[ Electronic-COMMERCE ] Doing business online, typically via the Web. It is also called "e-business," "e-tailing" and "I-commerce." Although in most cases e-commerce and e-business are synonymous, e-commerce implies that goods and services can be purchased online, whereas e-business might be used as more of an umbrella term for a total presence on the Web, which would naturally include the e-commerce [ shopping ] component.

E-commerce may also refer to electronic data interchange [ EDI ], in which one company's computer queries and transmits purchase orders to another company's computer.

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.edu

The top-level domain designated for four year, degree-granting colleges and universities.

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.eu - [ EURid ] The European Registry of Internet Domain names

.eu is the country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for the European Union. The domain was launched in 2005. Currently .eu.int is the official domain in use.

This domain is open to individual registrations. It is popular with Portuguese-language speakers, since eu means I (1st person pronoun) in Portuguese. Eu also means I in Romanian, so the same is to be expected when Romania joins the EU in 2007

The Domain is managed by EURid

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Favicon

[ FAVorites ICON ] When a Web page is bookmarked, a favicon is the icon used in place of the standard icon next to the name in the Favorites list. The browser obtains the icon by looking for the FAVICON.ICO file on the Web site.

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Firewall

Any of a number of security schemes that prevent unauthorized users from gaining access to a computer network or that monitor transfers of information to and from the network.

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Free Pitching

Free pitching is the practice of clients asking for unpaid design submissions from one or more studios in order to decide which studio to use. To find out more download this Adobe Acrobat PDF.

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FTP File transfer protocol

A file transfer protocol [ FTP ] is an Internet standard for transferring files between computers. Most require you log in to the system supplying the information using an authorized username and password.

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Google Page Rank

The largest search site on the Web noted for its fast retrieval speed, simplicity and lack of banner ads on its home page. The Google index of Web pages points to more than three billion documents.

Google introduced a unique concept of ranking pages based on how many other pages link to it. It then places the pages with the most links higher up in the results list.

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.gov

The top-level domain designated for agencies and branches of the government.

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g TLD

Generic Top Level Domain eg.com, .net, .org, are all considered to be a generic top-level domain. A top-level domain name that is open to registrants around the world in contrast to country code top-level domains that are often restricted to registrants located in a particular country or region.

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Hardwear

The mechanical, magnetic, electronic, and electrical components making up a computer system.

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Hold

A status code for a domain name indicating that it does not presently function as an Internet address. From a technical point of view, it is no longer included in the zone files for that top-level domain. The domain name record, however, remains in the registrar's DNS.

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Host

As applied to the Internet, it is a computer with an Internet address that runs the "server" programs that supply resources and services to the Net. When refering to name servers, the computers that have both the software and the data required to resolve domain names to Internet Protocol [ IP ] numbers.

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Hosting

Placing a customer's Web page or Web site on a commercial Web server. Multi-page, commercial Web sites are hosted at a very wide range of prices, and the customer's registered domain name is used. A single computer can hold dozens to hundreds of small Web sites, while a dedicated computer or multiple computers [ from a handful to thousands ] may be used for one large Web site.

Web hosting organizations can provide full service, including site design and programming as well as all e-commerce facilities.

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HTML

[ HyperText Markup Language ] The document format used on the Web. Web pages are built with HTML tags [ codes ] embedded in the text. HTML defines the page layout, fonts and graphic elements as well as the hypertext links to other documents on the Web. Each link contains the URL, or address, of a Web page residing on the same server or any server worldwide, hence "World Wide Web".

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HTTP

A protocol used to request and transmit files, especially webpages and webpage components, over the Internet or other computer network

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Hypertext

A computer-based text retrieval system that enables a user to access particular locations in webpages or other electronic documents by clicking on links within specific webpages or documents.

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ICANN

Internet Corporation for assigned names and numbers. ICANN is a Non-Profit organization in charge of overseeing domain name disputes and maintaining overall control of the domain name system.

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.info

[ .INFOrmation ] A top-level Internet domain used by companies and individuals that provide general information. The dot-info name was introduced in late 2000.

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ICRA

The Internet Content Rating Association, [ www.icra.org ] An organization created to protect children from potentially harmful online content and to protect free speech on the Internet. ICRA does not rate the sites. It provides the rating system based on the PICS standard, and Web sites rate themselves by filling out an ICRA questionnaire online. Parents adjust the content settings on their children's Web browsers to the level that makes them comfortable.

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Inktomi

A company that specializes in high-performance software for Internet service providers [ ISPs ], carriers and large Web sites. Founded in 1996, its family of products are used for caching Web pages, cataloging and searching the Web as well as providing comparison shopping. In late 2003, Inktomi was acquired by Yahoo!

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Intranet Server

A computer dedicated to providing intranet services to users on the network.

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Internet

An interconnected system of networks that connects computers around the world via the TCP/IP protocol.

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IP Address

[ Internet Protocol address ] The address of a computer attached to an IP network [ TCP/IP network ]. Every client and server station must have a unique IP address. Client workstations have either a permanent address or one that is dynamically assigned to them when booted. IP addresses are written as four sets of numbers separated by periods; for example, 204.171.64.2. This is called "dotted decimal" notation.

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IRC Internet Relay Chat

An international computer network of Internet servers, using its own protocol through which individual users can hold real-time online conversations.

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ISOC

The ISOC is an international organization that was founded in 1992. The ISOC is dedicated to the expansion, development and availability of the Internet and holds an annual meeting, INET, in various locations around the world.

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ISP

A person, organization, or company that provides access to the Internet. In addition to Internet access, many ISPs provide other services such as Web hosting, name service, and other proprietary services.

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JAVA

A trademark used for a programming language designed to develop applications, especially ones for the Internet, that can operate on different systems.

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LAN

(Local Area Network) A communications network that serves users within a confined geographical area. The "clients" are the user's workstations typically running Windows, although Mac and Linux clients are also used. The servers hold programs and data that are shared by the clients. Servers come in a wide range of sizes from Intel-based servers to mainframes. Printers can also be connected to the network and shared

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Linux

A very popular version of the Unix operating system that runs on a variety of hardware platforms including x86, Itanium, PowerPC and IBM's entire product line. Linux is widely used as a server OS and is gaining ground in the desktop market.

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.net

The top-level domain designated for entities and computers that represent part of the Internet's infrastructure. Originally intended for use by Network Information Centers [ NICs ], Network Operations Centers [ NOCs ], administrative computers [ such as a name server ] and network node computers. One of the worldwide top-level domains.

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Network

A system of computers interconnected by telephone wires or other means in order to share information

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.org

The top-level domain designated for miscellaneous entities that do not fit under any of the other top-level domains. Typically used for non-profit organizations. One of the worldwide top-level domains.

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Operating System

Software designed to control the hardware of a specific data-processing system in order to allow users and application programs to make use of it.

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Optimizing

[ 1 ] To make as perfect or effective as possible.
[ 2 ] Computer Science. To increase the computing speed and efficiency of [ a program ], as by rewriting instructions.

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Park

A domain name is said to be on hold when its record is locked in the domain registry. Domain names that are on hold cannot be used to point to a given website. Domain names may be put on hold during dispute between two parties over the rightful ownership of the relevant name, so that neither party can make active use of the name for the duration of the dispute. Another reason may be that the site is not yet ready for public access.

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PICS

[ Platform for Internet Content Selection ] A system for rating the content of Web sites that has been endorsed by the W3C Consortium. PICS is promoted worldwide in order to encourage self regulation and avoid governmental censorship.

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Positioning

In marketing, positioning is the technique by which marketers try to create an image or identity for a product, brand, or organisation. It is the 'place' a product occupies in a given market as perceived by the target market. Positioning is something that is done in the minds of the target market. A product's position is how potential buyers see the product. Positioning is expressed relative to the position of competitors.

Search Engine Positioning is the location of your web site relative to other sites within a search engine database for a specific search term.

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Program

A computer program [ often simply called a program ] is an example of computer software that prescribes the actions [ "computations" ] that are to be carried out by a computer. Most programs consist of a loadable set of instructions which determines how the computer will react to user input when that program is running.

Colloquially, the term program is often used interchangeably with software and software application.

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Protocol

Rules governing transmitting and receiving of data .

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p3p

[ Platform for Privacy Preferences ] A protocol for sharing private information over the Internet from the World Wide Web Consortium [ W3C ]. A Web site's privacy policy is defined by the Webmaster answering a standard set of multiple-choice questions, which result in tags embedded in the Web site's home page. Users also define their privacy requirements in their P3P-enabled browsers; for example, whether they allow their names disclosed to third parties. If the Web site policy and user preferences are not the same, the browser alerts the user.

P3P also assists with online sales. It lets users decide what specific data they are willing to divulge automatically to the site, such as shipping address and credit card number. If the site requests more data, the browser alerts the user, who can then decide whether to share it or not. For more information, visit www.w3.org/P3P.

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Registrant

The individual or organization that registers a specific domain name, either with a registrar or a reseller. This individual or organization holds the right to use that specific domain name for a specified period of time, provided certain conditions are met and the registration fees are paid. This person or organization is the "legal entity" bound by the terms of the Domain Name Service Agreement.

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Registration

The process through which individuals and organizations obtain a domain name. Registration of a domain name enables the individual or organization to use that particular domain name for a specified period of time, provided certain conditions are met and payment for services is made. Completing and submitting the Domain Name Registration Agreement accomplish registration of a new domain name.

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Registrar

A registrar is a company or organization that is authorized to provide registration services for the top-level domains such as .com, .org and .net. Registrars have contractual agreements with their customers.

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RIPE NCC [ Reseaux IP Europeans Network Coordination Center ]

A collaborative effort that consists of approximately 400 organizations, such as European Internet service providers. The RIPE NCC acts as a regional Internet Registry, providing the allocation of Internet Protocol [ IP ] numbers to the European region.

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Robots.txt

Some web pages have a 'robots exclusion file', which enables website operators to tell internet search engines to stay away from certain files. Website files usually contain directives, called 'robots.txt', in their uppermost directory, which search engine robots read to determine what the site owner wishes to have indexed. A 'robots exclusion file' does not prevent any person from browsing the website.

A website administrator can indicate which parts of a site should not be visited by a search engine robot, by providing a specially formatted 'robots.txt' file on their site, or indicate if a page may or may not be indexed, or analyzed for links, through the use of a special HTML META tag .

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Root Server

A machine that has the software and data needed to locate name servers that contain authoritative data for the top-level domains [ e.g., root, servers know which name servers contain authoritative data for .com, .net, .fr, .uk. etc. ]. The root servers are, in fact, name server, and contain authoritative data for the very top of the Domain Name System [ DNS ] hierarchy. Currently, technical specifications limit the number of root servers to 13. These machines are located around the globe, in the U.S., the U.K., Sweden, and Japan.

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Routing Addresses

Routing is the technique by which data finds its way from one host computer to another. In the Internet context there are three major aspects of routing
1. Physical Address Determination
2. Selection of inter-network gateways
3. Symbolic and Numeric Addresses

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RSS

[ Really Simple Syndication ] A syndication format that was developed by Netscape in 1999 and became very popular for aggregating updates to blogs and the latest news from Web sites. RSS has also stood for "Rich Site Summary" and "RDF Site Summary."

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Search Engine

[ 1 ] A software program that searches a database and gathers and reports information that contains or is related to specified terms.
[ 2 ] A website whose primary function is providing a search engine for gathering and reporting information available on the Internet or a portion of the Internet.

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Second Level Domain

This name server will be used in addition to and as a backup for the primary name server that is listed on the Domain Name Registration Agreement

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Secure Online Payment System

A system that allows customers to pay for their domain name registration and renewal [ re-registration ] fees 24 hours a day, seven days a week, by entering their credit card information directly via the Web. The system provides a fast and secure method of payment and requires that the customer have a browser that will support Secure Sockets Layer [ SSL ].

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Server

A computer that delivers Web pages to browsers and other files to applications via the HTTP protocol. It includes the hardware, operating system, Web server software and site content [ Web pages and other files ]. If the Web server is used internally and not by the public, it may be called an "intranet server."

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SGML

[ Standard Generalized Markup Language ] An ISO standard for defining the format in a text document. Widely used in the publishing industry, an SGML document uses a separate Document Type Definition [ DTD ] file that defines the format codes, or tags, embedded within it. Since SGML describes its own formatting, it is known as a "meta-language." SGML is a very comprehensive language that also includes hypertext links. HTML is an SGML document that uses a fixed set of tags, while XML is a simplified version of SGML

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Skype

Skype is a program that enables broadband users to call other people via their computers or phones, for free worldwide.

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Softwear

See Program

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SRS Shared Registration Service

The SRS developed by the NSI Registry permits multiple registrars to provide Internet Domain Name Registration services within the TLDs administered by the NSI Registry

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SSL

[ Secure Sockets Layer ] The leading security protocol on the Internet. Developed by Netscape, SSL is widely used to do two things: to validate the identity of a Web site and to create an encrypted connection for sending credit card and other personal data. Look for a lock icon at the bottom of your browser when you order merchandise on the Web. If the lock is closed, you are on a secure SSL or TLS connection

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TCP/IP

[ Transmission Control Protocol ] / [ Internet Protocol ]. TCP/IP is a protocol for communication between computers, used as a standard for transmitting data over networks and as the basis for standard Internet protocols.

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TLD

In the Domain Name System, this is the highest level in the hierarchy after the root. In a domain name, that portion of the domain name that appears furthest to the right. For example, the "com" in "www.mydomain.com".

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Unix

A multiuser, multitasking operating system that is widely used as the master control program in workstations and servers

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URL

[ Uniform Resource Locator ] The address that defines the route to a file on a Web server [ HTTP server. ] URLs are typed into the browser to access Web pages and files, and URLs are embedded within the pages themselves as hypertext links

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VPN

(Virtual Private Network) A private network that is configured within a public network (a carrier's network or the Internet) in order to take advantage of the economies of scale and management facilities of large networks. VPNs are widely used by enterprises to create wide area networks (WANs) that span large geographic areas, to provide site-to-site connections to branch offices and to allow mobile users to dial up their company LANs.

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Web Site Design

Web design is the design or designing of a web page, website or web application. The term generally refers to the graphical side of Web development using images, CSS and HTML.

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Whois

An Internet Utility that returns information about a domain name or IP address. For example, if you enter a domain name, WhoIs will return the name and address of the domain name's owner

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W3C & Web Standards

The World Wide Web Consortium [ W3C ] is a consortium that produces standards - "recommendations," as they call them - for the World Wide Web. The Consortium is headed by Tim Berners-Lee, the original creator of URL [ Uniform Resource Locator ], HTTP [ HyperText Transfer Protocol ] and HTML [ HyperText Markup Language ], the principal technologies that form the basis of the Web.

The Consortium leaves it up to manufacturers to follow the Recommendations. Many of its standards define levels of conformance, which are required for the developers to follow. Like any standards of others organizations, W3C recommendations are sometimes implemented partially, however developer conformance has improved recently. The Recommendations are under a royalty-free patent, allowing anyone to implement them.

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World Wide Web

The complete set of documents residing on all Internet servers that use the HTTP protocol, accessible to users via a simple point-and-click system.

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XML

A metalanguage written in SGML that allows one to design a markup language, used to allow for the easy interchange of documents on the World Wide Web.

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Yahoo

The largest and most comprehensive information portal on the Web. Along with Web search, news, sports and weather, Yahoo! offers e-mail, instant messaging, travel, auctions, classified ads, discussion groups, Web hosting and numerous other services.

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Zone

A portion of the total domain name space that is represented by the data stored on a particular name server. The name server has authority over the zone - or the particular portion of the domain name space - described by that data.

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Zone File

A file that contains data describing a portion of the domain name space. Zone files contain the information needed to resolve domain names to IP numbers

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Definitions from answers.com

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