Account
Just
like at a bank, computers used by more than one person use accounts to
keep
track of (and bill) who's doing what on their system. When you sign up
with an
Internet service provider, you're given an account name that allows you
access.
Address
Secret
code by which the Internet identifies you so that people can send you
mail. It
usually looks like username@hostname, where username is your username,
login
name, or account number, and hostname is the Internet's name for the
computer or
Internet provider you use. The hostname can be a few words strung
together with
periods. The official Mars Media address, for example, is
info@marsmedia.com
because its username is info and it's on a computer named marsmedia.com.
Alt
Type
of newsgroup that discusses alternative-type topics. The alt groups are
not
official newsgroups, but lots of people read them anyway. We
particularly like
alt.folklore.urban and alt.folklore.suburban.
America Online
(AOL)
A public Internet provider. If you have an account on AOL, your
Internet address
is username@aol.com, where username is your account name.
Anonymous
FTP
A method of using the FTP program to log on to another computer to copy
files,
even though you don't have an account on the other computer. When you
log on,
you enter anonymous as the username and your address as the password,
and you
get access to publicly available files.
Archie
A
system that helps you find files located anywhere on the Internet.
After Archie
helps you find the file, you use FTP to get it. Archie is both a
program and a
system of servers (computers that contain indexes of files).
Archive
A
file that contains a group of files which have been compressed and
glommed
together for efficient storage. You have to use an archive program to
get the
original files back out. Commonly used programs include compress, tar,
cpio, and
zip (on UNIX systems) and PKZIP (on DOS systems).
ARPANET
A
computer network started in 1969 (the original ancestor of the
Internet) and
funded by the U.S. Department of Defense; it was dismantled several
years ago.
Article
A
posting to a newsgroup. That is, a message someone sends to the
newsgroup to be
readable by everyone who reads the newsgroup.
ASCII
American
Standard Code for Information Interchange. Basically, the code
computers use to
represent letters, numbers, and special characters.
AUP
Acceptable
use policy; a set of rules describing which sorts of activities are
permitted on
a network. The most restrictive AUP was the one on the NSFNET that
prohibited
most commercial and nonacademic use. The NSFNET AUP is no longer in
force
anywhere, although many people erroneously believe that it is.
Bang path address
An
old-fashioned method of writing network addresses. UUCP, an old, cruddy
mail
system used to use addresses that contained bangs (exclamation points
to string
together the parts of the address. Forget about them.
Baud
The
number of symbols per second that a modem sends down a phone line. Baud
is often
incorrectly confused with bps (bits per second). A 14,400 bps modem
transmits at
2,400 baud, because each of the modem symbols represents 6 bits.
BBS Bulletin-board system;
a
system that lets people read each other's messages and post new ones.
The Usenet
system of newsgroups is in effect the world's largest distributed BBS.
BFN
Bye
for now. An inanity adopted by the acronym lovers.
Binary file
A
file that contains information which does not consist only of text. For
example,
a binary file might contain an archives a picture, sounds, a
spreadsheet, or a
word-processing document (which includes formatting codes in addition
to
characters).
Bit
The
smallest unit of measure for computer data. Bits can be turned on or
off and are
used in various combinations to represent different kinds of
information. Many
bits form a byte. Bytes form words. Do you care? Also, a type of
newsgroup that
is a BITNET mailing list in disguise.
BITFTP
The
most widely available FTP-by-mail server. See also FTP-by-mail.
Bitmap
Lots
of teeny, tiny, little dots put together to make a picture. Screens
(and paper)
are divided into thousands of little, tiny bits, each of which can be
turned on
or off. These little bits are combined to create graphical
representations. GIF
and JPG files are the most popular kinds of bitmap files on the Net.
BITNET
A
network of mostly IBM mainframes that connects to the Internet. If you
have an
account on machine xyzvm3 on the BITNET and your username on the
machine is abc,
your Internet mail address is abc@xyzvm3.bitnet; or if your system
isn't
well-informed about BITNET, abc%xyzvm3.bitnet@cunyvm.cuny.edu.
Biz
A
type of Usenet newsgroup that discusses business and commercial topics.
Most
other types of newsgroups are supposed to stay away from commercial
messages.
Bps
Bits
per second, a measurement used to describe how fast data is
transmitted. Usually
used to describe modem speed (not quite the same as baud).
Bridge
Something
that connects two networks so that they appear to be a single larger
network.
Broadbandnetwork
A
network that can handle many separate signals at the same time.
Broadband
networks use different channels to transfer different forms of
information, such
as data, voice, and video.
Browser
A
super-duper, all-singing, all dancing program that lets you read
information on
the World Wide Web. Netscape Navigator is the best known.
BTW By the way.
E-mail
and newsgroups foster their own silly acronyms.
Bulletin-board system
An
electronic message system that enables you to read and post messages.
See also
BBS.
Byte
A
series of bits of a particular length, usually eight. Computer storage
is
usually measured in bytes.
Chat
To
talk live to other network users from any and all parts of the world.
To do
this, you use Internet Relay Chat (IRC).
Client
A
computer that uses the services of another computer (such as Usenet or
Gopher or
FTP or Archie or the World Wide Web). If your computer is a PC or
Macintosh and
you dial in to another system, your computer becomes a client of the
system you
dial in to.
Client/server model
A
division of labor between computers. Computers that provide a service
other
computers can use are known as servers. Servers provide such services
as FTP or
Archie or the World Wide Web. If you don't have these services on your
very own
machine, you can connect to these machines and use these services and
thereby
become a client.
Com
When
these letters appear in the last part of an address
(ninternet@marsmedia.com,
for example), it indicates that the host computer is run by a company
rather
than by a university or governmental agency. It also means that the
host
computer is probably in the United States.
Communications program
A
program you run on your personal computer that enables you to call up
and
communicate with other computers. It's a rather broad term, but most
people use
it to mean a program that makes your computer pretend to be a terminal
(that's
why they're also known as terminal programs or terminal emulators). The
most
commonly used communications programs on PCs are Windows Terminal
(because it's
free with Windows), Crosstalk, and Procomm, though there are lots of
others.
Compression program
Software
used
to squeeze files together so that they take up less room and are easier
to
transfer from one location to another. Popular compression programs
include ZIP
and Stuffit. The opposite of compression is expansion.
Country code
The
last part of a geographic address, which indicates which country the
host
computer is in. An address that ends in ca is Canadian, for example,
and one
that ends in us is in the United States.
Daemon
A
mysterious little program that runs while you're not looking and takes
care of
things you would rather not know about.
Digest
A
compilation of the messages that have been posted to a mailing list
over the
past few days. Many people find it more convenient to receive one big
message
than a bunch of individual ones.
Directory
A
structure, sort of like a file folder (and called a folder in the
Macintosh
world). A special kind of file used to organize other files.
Directories are
lists of other files and can contain other directories (known as
subdirectories)
that contain still more files. UNIX, DOS, and Windows systems all use
directory
structures. The more stuff you have, the more you need directories in
which to
organize it. Directories enable you to organize files hierarchically.
Domain
The
official Internet-ese name of a computer on the Net. It's the part of
an
Internet address that comes after the Internet For Marsmedia Central is
ninternet@marsmedia.com, for example, and its domain name is
marsmedia.com.
Domain name server
(Or
just name server or abbreviated as DNS.) A computer on the Internet
that
translates between Internet domain names, such as xuxa.iecc.com, and
Internet
numerical addresses, such as 140.186.81.2.
Download
To
bring software from a remote computer "down" to your computer.
Dumb terminal
A
screen and a keyboard and not much else. It sort of resembles a PC
without the
computer. Dumb terminals connect to other computers and use their data
and their
computing. When you use your computer to dial in to another computer
(ignoring
SLIP and PPP connections for the moment), your computer generally acts
like a
dumb terminal and relies on the computer you've dialed in to for
processing the
requests you make.
Dynamic routing
A
method of addressing information on the Internet (not just mail
messages, but
all information) so that if one route is blocked or broken, the
information can
take an alternative route. Pretty darned clever. The U.S. Department of
Defense
built this method into the design of the Internet for the benefit of
the
military, to resist enemy attack. It's also useful when nonmilitary
networks are
attacked by errant backhoes.
E-mail
Electronic
mail (also called e-mail or just mail) messages sent by way of the
Internet to a
particular person.
Edu
When
these letters appear in the last part of an address (for example, in
info@mit.edu
), it indicates that the host computer is run by an educational
institution,
probably a college or university. It also means that the host computer
is
probably in the United States.
Environment
variable
Values that can be set to help get your computer automatically into a
state
ready for you to use. Environment variables are part of your operating
system's
machinations and are specific to the operating system you run.
Ethernet
A
cable that connects pieces of a local area network in a particular
pattern.
Developed by Xerox, it is sometimes called IEEE 802.3, which refers to
the
standard that defines it.
Eudora
A
mail-handling program that runs on the Macintosh and under Windows.
Originally a
shareware program, it is now sold by Qualcomm.
Expansion program
Software
used to expand a file that has been compressed. Popular expansion
programs
include UNZIP and Unstuffit.
FAQ
Frequently
asked questions. This regularly posted Usenet article answers questions
that
come up regularly in a newsgroup. Before you ask a question in a
newsgroup, make
sure that you have read its FAQ because it may well contain the answer.
People
get annoyed if you ask questions that are answered in the newsgroup's
FAQ,
because they probably have already answered the question 150 times.
FAQs
are posted regularly, usually once a week or once a month. To read all
the
regularly posted FAQs for all newsgroups, read the newsgroup
news.answers. To
read an entire book of frequently asked questions about the Internet,
get
Margy's Internet FAQs (IDG Books Worldwide, 1995).
FAX modem Modems
(really
should be fax-data modems) that enable you to send and receive faxes in
addition
to ordinary computer-type data. Fax is short for facsimile or exact
copy, and
fax technology uses ordinary phone lines to send copies of printed
material from
place to place. If you stick fax technology on your computer, what you
send may
never touch paper. It can go from your computer to theirs or to their
fax
machine if they don't have a computer.
Gateway
A
computer that connects one network with another when the two networks
use
different protocols. The UUNET computer connects the UUCP network with
the
Internet, for example, providing a way for mail messages to move
between the two
networks. Also an older name for what's now called a router
GIF
A
type of graphics file originally defined by CompuServe and now found
all over
the Net (GIF stands for Graphics Interchange Format).
Global kill file
A
file that tells your Usenet newsreader which articles you always want
to skip.
This file applies to all the newsgroups to which you subscribe.
Gopher
A
system that lets you find information by using menus (lots of menus) To
use
Gopher, you usually teinet to a Gopher server and begin browsing the
menus.
Gopherspace
The
world of Gopher menus As you move from menu to menu in Gopher, you are
said to
be "moving around Gopherspace."
Gov
When
these letters appear in the last part of an address (cu.nih.gov, for
example),
it indicates that the host computer is run by some part of a government
body,
probably the U.S. federal government, rather than by a company or
university.
(Your tax dollars at play!) Most gov sites are in the United States.
Hardware
The
actual, physical computer and all its wires and friends, such as the
printer,
the disk drive, and the modem. Pretty useless without software.
HGopher
A
cool Microsoft Windows program that helps you view Gopher information,
including
seeing graphics right on the screen.
Home page
The
primary Web page for an individual, software application, or
organization. Home
pages link visitors to other pages related to the site.
Host
A
computer on the Internet you may be able to log in to by using teinet,
get files
from by using FTP, or otherwise make use of.
HTML
Hypertext
markup language, used in writing pages for the World Wide Web. It lets
the text
include codes that define fonts, layout, embedded graphics, and
hypertext links.
Don't worry: You don't have to know anything about it to use the World
Wide Web.
HTTP
Hypertext
transfer protocol, which is the way World Wide Web pages are
transferred over
the Net.
Hypermedia
See
hypertext, except think about all kinds of information, such as
pictures and
sound, not just text.
Hypertext
A system of writing and displaying text that enables the text to be
linked in
multiple ways, to be available at several levels of detail, and to
contain links
to related documents. Hypermedia can also contain pictures, sounds,
video - you
name it. The World Wide Web uses hypertext.
ICMP
Internet
control message protocol, an exceedingly uninteresting low-level
protocol that
Internet computers use. Used by ping.
Icon
A
little picture intended to represent something bigger, such as a
program or a
choice of action or object.
IMO, IMHO
In
my opinion; in my humble opinion.
InfoSeek
A
service that searches the World Wide Web for pages that mention a word
or phrase
you specify.
Internet
You
still don't know what it is, and you're way back here in the glossary!
Yikes -
we must have done a terrible job of explaining this stuff. It's an
interconnected bunch of computer networks, including networks in all
parts of
the world.
Internet Explorer
Microsoft's
Web browser. If you have a Microsoft Network account, you
can
download it or you can buy it as part of Microsoft PLUS!
Internet Relay Chat
(IRC)
A system that enables bored undergraduates and, occasionally, other
Internet
folks to talk to each other in real time (rather than after a delay, as
with
e-mail messages).
Internet Society
An
organization dedicated to supporting the growth and evolution of the
Internet.
You can contact it at isoc@isoc.org.
lnterNIC
The
Internet Network Information Center, a repository of information about
the
Internet. It is divided into two parts: Directory Services, run by
AT&T in
New Jersey, and Registration Services, run by Network
To
find out more about it, point your Web browser at
http://rs.internet.net. To FTP
information from InterNIC, try ftp.internic.net.
Interrupt
character
A key or combination of keys you can press to stop whatever is
happening on your
computer. You might find that you have started something and don't want
to wait
for it to finish. Common interrupt characters are Ctrl-C and Ctrl-D.
Telnet's
usual interrupt character is Ctrl-].
IP Internet Protocol
a
scheme that enables information to be routed from one network to
another as
necessary (you had to ask). Don't worry: You don't have to know about
it.
Jughead
A
program that helps you find information in Gopher by searching Gopher
directories for the information you specify; sort of like Veronica
Kl2
A
type of Usenet newsgroup that contains information for elementary
through high
school students and teachers.
Kill file
A
file that tells your newsreader which newsgroup articles you always
want to
skip.
Link
A
connection. Two computers can be linked together. Also can refer to a
pointer to
a file that exists in another place. Rather than have a copy of a
particular
file reside in many places, for example, some file systems (the ones in
UNIX,
for example) enable a filename to point to another file. Finally, a
link can
refer to a hypertext link in a Web page that connects one page to
another.
Link-level protocol
One
of the seven layers of protocols defined by ISO. Sometimes referred to
as the
data link layer. You really, really don't care.
List server
A
program that automatically manages mailing lists. See also LISTSERV.
LISTSERV
A
family of programs that automatically manage mailing lists,
distributing
messages posted to the list, adding and deleting members, and so on
without the
tedium of someone doing it manually. The names of mailing lists
maintained by
LISTSERV usually end with -l (that's an el, not a one).
Lynx
A
World Wide Web client program that works with plain old terminals,
which means
that it's generally available on shell provider accounts.
MacTCP TCP/IP
for
the Macintosh. Not very interesting except that you can't put your Mac
on the
Internet without it.
Mail
Pieces
of paper stuffed in envelopes with stamps on the outside. This
old-fashioned
type of mail is known among Internauts as snail-mail, casting
aspersions on your
local letter carrier. Other types of mail include voice mail, which you
probably
already know and hate, and e-mail (or electronic mail), which is a
powerful
service the Internet provides.
Mail server
A
computer on the Internet that provides mail services. A mail server
usually
sends mail out for you (using a system called SMTP) and may also enable
you to
download your mail to a PC or Mac by using a protocol called POP.
Mailing
list
A special kind of e-mail address that remails any incoming mail to a
list of
subscribers to the mailing list. Each mailing list has a specific
topic, so you
subscribe to the ones of interest.
Mainframe
A
large computer usually sold complete with all its peripherals and often
a closed
architecture (meaning not friendly to other vendors' products). Often
refers to
large IBM machines.
Message
A
piece of e-mail or a posting to a newsgroup.
Microsoft Network
(MSN)
A commercial on4ine service run by Microsoft and usable only if you
have Windows
95. If your MSN username is BillGates, your Internet e-mail address is
billgates@msn.com.
Mil
When these letters appear in the last part of an address
(wsmr-simte120@army.mil,
for example), it indicates that the host computer is run by some part
of the
U.S. military rather than by a company or university.
MIME
Multipurpose
Internet mail extension used to send anything other than straight text
through
e-mail. Eudora and Pine and other hip e-mail programs support MIME.
Mirror
An
FTP server that provides copies of the same files as another server.
Some FTP
servers are so popular that other servers have been set up to mirror
them and
spread the FTP load on to more than one site.
Misc
A
type of newsgroup that discusses topics which don't fit under any of
the other
newsgroups types, such as misc.forsale,misc.jobs.offered, and misc.kids.
Modem
A
gizmo that lets your computer talk on the phone. A modem can be
internal (a
board that lives inside your computer) or external (a box that connects
to your
computer's serial port). Either way, you need a phone wire to connect
the modem
to your phone jack.
Moderated
mailing
list A mailing list run by a moderator (qv., or for you non-Latin
speakers,
check out the definition of moderator).
Moderator
Someone
who looks first at the messages posted to a mailing list or newsgroup
before
releasing them to the public. The moderator can nix messages that are
stupid (in
his opinion, of course), redundant, or inappropriate for the list or
newsgroup
(wildly off the topic or offensive, for example). Yes, this is
censorship, but
the Internet is getting so big and crowded that nonmoderated
discussions can
generate an amazing number of uninteresting messages. See also
moderated mailing
list and moderated newsgroup.
Monsterboard
A
giant Web resource for job-hunting.
Mosaic
A
super-duper all-singing, all-dancing program that lets you read
information on
the World Wide Web. Comes in Windows, Mac, and UNIX flavors.
Motif
A
graphical user interface for UNIX computers, sort of like Windows for
the PC.
Claimed to be ugly.
MUD
Multi-user
dungeon; a "dungeons and dragons" type of game that many people at a
time can play. These games can get so complex and absorbing that
players can
disappear into their computers for days and weeks at a time. For
information
about how to join a MUD, consult the newsgroup rec. game s. mud.
announce or
send a request to be added to the mailing list to
mudlist@glia.biostr.washington.edu.
Network
Don't
get us started. Lots of things are called networks, but for our
purposes we're
talking about lots of computers that are connected together. Those in
the same
or nearby buildings are called local area networks, those that are
farther away
are called wide area networks, and when you interconnect a large number
of
networks all over the world, you get the Internet!
News
A
type of Usenet newsgroup that contains discussions about news-groups
themselves,
such as news.announce.newusers (announcements of interest to new
users). Also
used to refer to Usenet itself.
News server
A
computer on the Internet that not only gets Usenet newsgroups but also
lets you
read them. Programs such as Free Agent, Trumpet, and Cello use a news
server to
get the articles for the newsgroups you request.
Newsgroup
A
distributed bulletin-board system about a particular topic. The Usenet
news
(also known as Net news) system distributes thousands of newsgroups to
all parts
of the Internet.
Newsgroup kill file
A
file that tells your newsreader which articles you always want to skip.
This
file applies to only a specific newsgroup (see also global kill file).
Newsreader
A
program that lets you read the messages in Usenet newsgroups and
respond if you
are absolutely sure that you have something new and interesting to say.
NIC
Network
Information Center. The address of the one for the U.S. part of the
Internet is
internic.net. An NIC is responsible for coordinating a set of networks
so that
the names, network numbers, and other technical details are consistent
from one
network to another.
NIS
Formerly
known as the Yellow Pages, before some trademark lawyer in the United
Kingdom
complained. The NIS is a facility used on some TCP/IP networks to
administer a
group of computers (usually UNIX workstations and PCs) as through they
were one
big computer. For Internet purposes, who cares? Well, NIS sorts
incoming e-mail
on some UNIX systems and can cause peculiar-looking mail addresses.
Node
A
computer on the Internet, also called a host. Computers that provide a
service,
such as FTP sites or places that run Gopher, are also called servers.
NSFNET
The
National Science Foundation's former network, a part of the Internet
devoted to
research and education and funded by government money. It has gone
away,
replaced by pieces of commercial networks. ANS, which formerly ran the
NSFNET,
now belongs to America Online.
Open
Book Repository
A collection of
on-line text,
including the text of books, journals, and other reference materials,
maintained
by the Online Book Initiative at obi.std.com.
Packet
A chunk of
information sent over a
network. Each packet contains the address it's going to, the address of
who sent
it, and some other information.
Packet Driver
A
small program used on DOS and Windows PCs to connect network software
to a
particular kind of network card. Similar to NDIS or ODI driver.
Page
A
document, or hunk of information, available by way of the World Wide
Web. To
make information available on the World Wide Web, you organize it into
one or
more pages. Each page can contain text, graphics files, sound files -
you name
it. Don't worry: You don't have to create WWW pages - you can just read
them.
Pager
A
feature in Archie (and other programs) that breaks up the data Archie
displays
into chunks that fill up only one screen at a time, enabling you to
read what's
there before it scrolls off the screen.
Parameter
A
value a computer program needs to know in order to behave correctly.
Password
A
secret code used to keep things private. Your account on the system
that
connects you to the Internet is no doubt protected by a password. Be
sure to
pick a code that is not obvious, preferably combining numbers and
letters so as
to thwart any untoward activity.
Password File
The
file in which all the passwords for a system are stored. Most systems
are smart
enough to keep passwords encoded so that even if someone gains access
to this
file, it isn't of much value.
Pine
A
UNIX-based mail program based on elm. (It stands for pine is not elm.)
Pine is
easy to use, at least for a UNIX program.
Ping
A
program that checks to see whether you can communicate with another
computer on
the Internet. It sends a short message to which the other computer
automatically
responds. If you can't "ping" another computer, you probably can't
talk to it any other way either.
Pipeline
An
Internet provider in New York City (pipeline.com is its address) that
works with
a special Windows communications program, also called Pipeline. It uses
its own
protocol to talk to this program, which enables it to display
everything in a
nice Windows-y way. Several other providers around the country use the
Pipeline
program, giving it different names to avoid consistency.
PKZIP
A
file-compression program that runs on PCs. PKZIP creates a ZIP file
that
contains compressed versions of one or more files. To restore them to
their
former size and shape, you use PKUNZIP. PK, by the way, stands for Phil
Katz,
who wrote the program. PKZIP and PKUNZIP are shareware programs
available from
many FTP sites. If you use the programs, you are honor-bound to send
Mr. Katz a
donation (the program will tell you the address).
POP
Post Office Protocol,
a
system by which a mail server on the Internet lets you pick up your
mail and
download it to your PC or Mac.
Port Number
On
a networked computer, an identifying number assigned to each program
that is
chatting on the Internet. The program that handles incoming telnet
sessions uses
port 23, for example, and the program that handles some other service
has
another number. You hardly ever have to know these numbers - the
Internet
programs work this stuff out among themselves.
Posting
An
article in a Usenet newsgroup.
PPP
Point-to-point protocol,
A scheme for
connecting two computers
over a phone line (or a network link that acts like a phone line). Like
SLIP,
only better.
Prodigy
A
large on-line system run by IBM and Sears. If you have a Prodigy
account, your
Internet address is username@prodigy.com (substitute your username for
username).
Protocol
A
system two computers agree on. When you use a file-transfer protocol,
for
example, the two computers involved (the sender and the receiver) agree
on a set
of signals that mean "go ahead," "got it," "didn't get
it, please resend," and "all done."
The Internet
involves tons of
different protocols for the many different types of computers on the
Net that
interact.
Pseudoterminal
A
fake terminal. On most systems, telnet uses a pseudoterminal to log you
in and
run your commands.
Public-Service
Provider
A
time-sharing or SLIP service that enables you to use the Internet on a
paying
(by the month or hour) basis.
RCP
Remote copy,
A UNIX command
that lets you copy
files from one computer to another. Like FTP, only different.
REC
A
type of newsgroup that discusses recreational topics, such as
rec.humor.funny
(jokes that are sometimes funny) and rec.gardens (guess).
Regex
Method Search
criteria for the
advanced geek. See regular expression.
Regular
Expression
Not what one
would usually think of
as regular. For UNIX hackers and those who love to encode the ordinary
into
arithmetic representation. Many kinds of conditional searches (meaning,
under
these conditions, "do this") can be represented by using mathematical
expressions. If you haven't studied much math or logic, forget about it.
Router
No,
Not a power tool
used for finish work
on fine cabinetry (that's pronounced "rowter"). This system,
pronounced "rooter" in most countries, connects two or more networks,
including networks that use different types of cables and different
communication speeds. The networks all have to use IP (the Internet
Protocol),
though. If they don't, you need a gateway.
RTFM “Read The ******* Manual”
A
suggestion made by people who feel that you have wasted their time
asking a
question you could have found the answer to another way.
A well-known and
much-used FTP site
named rtfm.mit.edu contains FAQs for all Usenet newsgroups, by the way.
Read
the, uh, friendly FAQ.
SCI
A type of Usenet
newsgroup that
discusses scientific topics.
Search
Engine
Software used to
find stuff,
particularly on WALS and the World Wide Web.
Security
In the computer world,
A means to allow
access to only those
who should have it. Security includes the use of passwords to protect
your
account.
Serial Line
A connection
between computers using
the serial protocol.
Serial
Port
The place on
your computer where you
can plug in a serial line.
Serial
Protocol
The simplest way
to send data over a
wire - one bit at a time.
Server
A computer that
provides a service to
other computers on a network. An Archie server, for example, lets
people on the
Internet use Archie.
Service
Provider
An organization
that provides access
to the Internet. Your service provider might be a commercial on-line
service
such as America Online or CompuServe, a shell provider, or your school
or
workplace.
Shareware
Computer
programs that are easily
available for you to try with the understanding that if you decide to
keep the
program you will pay for it and send the requested amount to the
shareware
provider specified in the program. In this honor system, a great deal
of good
stuff is available, and voluntary compliance makes it viable.
SimTel
A computer that
used to contain an
amazing archive of programs for MS-DOS in addition to Macintosh and
UNIX. Run by
the U.S. Army in New Mexico, it was shut down in 1993. Fortunately, its
files
live on in mirror (duplicate) archives at oak.oakland.edu and
wuarchive.wustl.edu. For more information, see SimTel's Web page at
http://www.coast.net/SimTel.
Slip
Short for Serial Line Internet Protocol,
A software
scheme for connecting a
computer to the Internet over a serial line. For example, if you can
run SLIP on
your personal computer and you call up an Internet provider that does
SLIP, your
computer is on the Internet, it's not just a terminal - it's right on
it. You
can telnet and FTP to other computers; when you get files, they arrive
back on
your PC, not on the Internet provider's computer.
SMTP
Simple Mail Transfer Protocol,
The
optimistically named method by
which Internet mail is delivered from one computer to another.
SOC
A type of
newsgroup that discusses
social topics, covering subjects from soc.men to soc.religion.buddhist
to
soc.culture.canada.
Socket
A logical "port"
a program
uses to connect to another program running on another computer on the
Internet.
You might have an FTP program using sockets for its FTP session, for
example,
while Eudora connects by way of another socket to get your mail.
Software
Computer
programs that make computers
usable as something other than a paperweight. Compare to hardware.
Spam
Originally a
meat-related,
sandwich-filling product. The word now refers to the act of posting
inappropriate commercial messages to a large number of unrelated,
uninterested
Usenet
Spintlink
One of the large
commercial networks
in the Internet, run by Sprint (the telephone company).
SpintMail
An e-mail system
provided by
Sprintnet and formerly named Telemail. Believe it or not, if you have a
SprintMail account, your Internet address is /
G=firstname/S=Iastname/O=company/
C=countrycode/A=TELEMAIL/ @sprint.com. Substitute your first name, last
name,
company name, and country code (us for United States folks).
String
A bunch of
characters strung
together, such as "Internet For Marsmedia." Strings are composed of
any characters available in the character set being used, typically all
letters,
digits, and punctuation.
Stuffit
A compression
program for the Mac.
subdirectory A directory within a directory.
Substring
A piece of a
string; see also string.
SURAnet
One of the
regional networks
originally set up to work with the NSFNET; its headquarters are in
Florida.
SurfWatch
A program that
censors your Internet
account. Used by parents who want to control what their kids see on the
Net.
System
7.5
The latest, most
feature-laden,
Macintosh operating system.
Talk
A type of
newsgroup that contains
endless arguments about a wide range of issues, such as talk.gossip and
talk.rumors.
TCP/IP
The system that
networks use to
communicate with each other on the Internet. It stands for Transmission
Control
Protocol/Internet Protocol, if you care.
Telnet
A program that
lets you log in to
other computers on the Net.
Terminal
In the olden
days, a terminal was a
thing that consisted of a screen, a key-board, and a cable that
connected it to
a computer. These days not many people (not many people we know) use
terminals,
because personal computers are so cheap. Why have a brainless screen
and
keyboard when you can have your own computer on your desk?
Of course, there
are still many times
when you want to connect to a big computer somewhere. If you have a
personal
computer, you can run a program that makes it pretend to be a brainless
screen
and keyboard - the program is called a terminal emulator, terminal
program, or
communications program.
Terminal
Emulator
See
communications program and also
terminal.
Terminal
Program
See
communications program and also
terminal.
Text
File
A file that
contains only textual
characters, with no special formatting characters, graphical
information, sound
clips, video, or what-have-you. Most computers other than some IBM
mainframes
store their text by using a system of codes named ASCII, so this type
of file is
also known as an ASCII text file
Third
Party
Sometimes you
buy your computer from
one place and your operating software from somewhere else, but you find
that you
still need other hardware or software pieces to make it all work. The
people
from whom you buy those other pieces are known as third-party vendors.
Thread
An article
posted to a Usenet
newsgroup, together with all the follow-up articles, the follow-ups to
follow-ups, and so on. Organizing articles into threads makes it easier
to
choose which articles in a newsgroup you want to read.
Threaded
Newsreader
A newsreader
that enables you to
choose articles by thread.
TIA
The Internet Adaptor,
Nifty software
that makes your
regular dial-up account look like a SLIP or PPP account. Also thanks in
advance,
for you acronymophiles.
UNIX
An operating
system everyone hates.
No, an operating system everyone ought to love. No, it's both! It's an
operating
system that can be confusing to use, but it sure is powerful. Internet
users are
likely to run into UNIX if they use a shell provider as their Internet
provider
or when they telnet to UNIX computers.
Upload
To put your
stuff on somebody else's
computer.
URL
Uniform Resource Locator,
A way of naming
network resources and
originally for linking pages together in the World Wide Web. Luckily,
you don't
have to know much about them - only the people who write pages really
have to
fool with them.
Usenet
A system of
thousands of distributed
bulletin boards called newsgroups. You read the messages by using a
program
called a newsreader
UUCP
An elderly and
creaky (but cheap)
mail system still used by many UNIX systems. UUCP stands for
UNIX-to-UNIX-copy.
UUCP uses mail addresses that contain exclamation points rather than
periods
between the parts (and they are in reverse order), a method known as
bang path
addressing. Whenever possible, use regular Internet addresses instead.
UUENCODE/UUDECODE
Programs that
encode files to make
them suitable for sending as e-mail. Because e-mail messages must be
text, not
binary information, uuencode can disguise nontext files as text so that
you can
include them in a mail message. When the message is received, the
recipient can
run uudecode to turn it back into the original file. Pretty clever.
UUNET
A formerly
nonprofit organization
which, among other things, runs a large Internet site that links the
UUCP mail
network with the Internet and has a large and useful FTP file archives
You may
encounter it in addresses that contain u u n e t . u u . n e t at the
end. The
organization also runs Alternet, one of the larger commercial network
providers.
V.32
The code word
for a nice, fast modem
(one that talks at a speed of 9600 bits per second). Even faster modems
(that
talk at, 14,400 bits per second) are called V.32bis, which is French
for
V.32-and-another.
V.34
The code word
for really fast modems
that talk at 28,800 bps.
VAX/VMS
Digital
Equipment's major computer
line over the past 15 years was the VAX; its proprietary operating
system is
known as VMS. (Vaxen are now pass6, replaced by DEC's new Alpha line.)
Veronica
A program that
helps find things in
Gopherspace a friend of Archie's.
Version
Creep
A problem that
occurs when lots of
people add features to programs that people are already using. Unless
care is
taken to keep programs compatible, sooner or later the program you're
using
doesn't talk to its "new and improved cousin" until you get the latest
and greatest version that should make everybody happy 'til they add
more
features again.
Viewer
A program used
by Gopher, WAIS, or
World Wide Web client programs to show you files that contain stuff
other than
text. For example, you might want viewers to display graphics files,
play sound
files, or display video files.
Virus
Software that
infects other software
and causes damage to the system on which the infected software is run.
You
should download software only from reputable servers. Safe software is
everyone's business. Viral infection can be deadly. Don't let it happen
to you.
VT100
The part number
of a terminal made
about 15 years ago by the Digital Equipment Corporation. Why do you
care?
Because many computers on the Internet expect to talk to VT-100-type
terminals,
and many communications programs can pretend to be (emulate) VT-100
terminals.
The VT102 was a cheaper version that for most purposes acted exactly
the same.
WAIS
Wide Area Information Servers (pronounced "ways," not "wace"),
A system which
lets you search for
documents that contain the information you're looking for. It's not
super easy
to use, but it gets there.
Web
The World Wide Web.
"The Web" is a
term of
endearment used by those intimate with the World Wide Web.
Web
Page
The basic
building block of the World
Wide Web. Information displayed on a Web page can include highly
sophisticated
graphics, audio and video, the locus of contemporary creativity Web
pages are
linked together to form the World Wide Web.
Web
Server
An Internet host
computer that stores
Web pages and responds to requests to see them. Web servers talk to Web
browsers
by using a language named HTTP.
Web
Site
A location on
the World Wide Web. It
means the same as a Web page or Web server, depending on whom you ask.
WELL
The WELL (the
Whole Earth Lectronic
Link) is a public Internet provider in Sausalito, California. You can
contact it
at info@well.sf.ca.us.
Whois
A command on
some systems that tells
you the actual name of someone, based on the person's username. See
also finger.
You can use whois by way of the World Wide Web.
Windows
An operating
system for the PC that
includes a graphical user interface; also a religion.
Windows
95
A new instance
of an operating system
for the PC that includes a graphical user interface. Quietly introduced
in the
summer of 1995, it includes built-in support for TCP/IP, the lnternet's
networking scheme. Originally code-named Chicago.
WinGopher
A Windows
program that lets you see
Gopher pages.
WinSock
WinSock (short
for Windows Sockets)
is a standard way for Windows programs to work with TCP/IP. You use it
if you
connect your Windows PC directly to the Internet, either with a
permanent
connection or with a modem by using SLIP or PPP.
WinWAIS
A Windows-based
program that lets you
use WAIS to search for information about the Internet.
WinZip
A Windows-based
program for zipping
and unzipping ZIP files in addition to other standard types of archive
files.
WinZip is shareware, so you can get it from the Net from
http://www.winzip.com.
Workstation
Although this
term gets bandied about
in a bunch of different contexts, we generally mean high-powered
microcomputers
with big screens, somewhat overkill for the average PC user. We mean
such things
as SPARC stations and other typically single-user but very powerful
machines,
generally running UNIX.
World
Wide Web (WWW)
A hypermedia
system that lets you
browse through lots of interesting information. The best-known client
is
Netscape; Mosaic is a close second.
X.25
A protocol that
defines packet
switching. You shouldn't care. The thing that TCP/IP is much better
than.
X.75
The way you
splice together X.25
networks, which shouldn't interest you either.
X
Terminal
A terminal that
uses the X graphical
user interface. This interface enables you to open lots of windows on
your
screen and do all kinds of things at the same time. Popular in the UNIX
world.
Xarchie
A version of
Archie that runs on UNIX
under X Windows. If you use a UNIX workstation and Motif (or another
windowing
system), try typing xarchie to see whether you have a copy.
Xgopher
A version of
Gopher that runs on UNIX
under X Windows. If you use a UNIX workstation and Motif, try running
xgopher.
Xmodem
A file-transfer
protocol developed
ages ago (1981?) by Ward Christiansen to check for errors as files are
transferred. It has since been superseded by Ymodem and Zmodem, but
many
programs (especially Windows Terminal) still use it.
Xwais
A version of
WAIS that runs on UNIX
under X Windows. If you use a UNIX workstation and Motif, try running
xwais.
Yahoo
An index to the
World Wide Web, at
http://www.yahoo.com
YellowPages
See NIS.
Ymodem
A file-transfer
protocol that's
faster than Xmodem but not as powerful (nor as complicated) as Zmodem.
A file that has
been created by using
WinZip, PKZIP, or a compatible program. It contains one or more files
that have
been compressed and glommed together to save space. To get at the files
in a ZIP
file, you usually need WinZip, PKUNZIP, or a compatible program.
Sometimes you
may get a self-extracting file, which is a ZIP file that contains the
unzipping
program right in it. Just run the file (type the name of the file at
the command
line), and it unzips itself.
Zmodem
A fast
file-transfer protocol defined
by Chuck Forsberg, used by many programs. With Zmodem, you can transfer
several
files with one command, and the names of the files are sent along with
them.
Some communications programs (such as ProComm) can detect when a Zmodem
transfer
has begun and automatically begin receiving the files. Nifty.
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