BASIC INTERNET

Adobe Acrobat Reader
A free application distributed by Adobe Systems. It is needed to view a file in PDF format.

Application
A program or group of programs designed for use by end users.

ASP
Application Service Provider — A third-party entity that manages and distributes software-based services and solutions to customers across a wide area network from a central data center. In essence, ASPs are a way for companies to outsource some or almost all aspects of their information technology needs.

Browser
Short for Web browser, a software application used to locate and display Web pages. The two most popular browsers are Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer. Both of these are graphical browsers, which means that they can display graphics as well as text. In addition, most modern browsers can present multimedia information, including sound and video, though they require plug-ins for some formats.

Browser Options
These are also frequently know as Browser Preferences, and must be set correctly for certain types of Web-based content to display properly. Bizfinity (and many others) requires these to be set to allow Java, JavaScript and Cookies.

Cable Modem
You should expect anywhere between 500-1000 kbps when downloading files. Most of the time, this limit is just based on the speed of the Internet overall. Upload speed (the speed at which you are sending data) is usually quite a bit less..

Connection Speed
The speed at which your can connect to the Internet, usually measured in Kbps. Common connections might be a 56Kbps modem, cable modem, DSL, or T1 line.

Database
A collection of information organized in such a way that a computer program can quickly select desired pieces of data (organized into records and fields). You can think of a database as an electronic filing system.

Download
To copy data (usually an entire file) from a main source to a peripheral device. The term is often used to describe the process of copying a file from an online service or Web site to one's own computer. Downloading can also refer to copying a file from a network file server to a computer on the network.

DSL
Digital Subscriber Line — High speed, always on Internet access through specialized phone lines. Availability may be limited to those close to a central telephone office. DSL connection speeds are similar to cable modem speeds.

E-mail
Electronic mail — The transmission of messages over communications networks. These messages can be notes entered from the keyboard or electronic files stored on disk. You send a message to a recipient by specifying the recipient's e-mail address. You can also send the same message to several users at once (through mailing lists). Sent messages are stored in electronic mailboxes until the recipient fetches them. To see if you have any mail, you may have to check your electronic mailbox periodically, although many systems alert you when mail is received. In recent years, the use of e-mail has exploded. By some estimates, there are now 25 million e-mail users sending 15 billion messages per year.

FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions — Pronounced as separate letters or as fak, a FAQ is a document that answers questions about some (usually technical) topic.

Gigabyte (GB)
A unit of data storage. One gigabyte equals one billion bytes., or roughly 700 standard 3 & 1/2 inch floppy diskettes (each disk is 1.44 MB).

Hardware
Refers to objects that you can actually touch, like disks, disk drives, display screens, keyboards, printers, boards, and chips. In contrast, software is untouchable. Software exists as ideas, concepts, and symbols, but it has no substance.

Home Page
The main page of a Web site. Typically, the home page serves as an index or table of contents to other documents stored at the site.

Home page can also refer to the page a user's browser opens to automatically.

Image Formats
A file format designed specifically for representing graphical images. Common ones include *.jpg, *.gif and *.tif.

Image (Thumbnail)
A small image made from a large image. Thumbnails are frequently used to represent the larger image in a list or where space is a concern. Clicking on the thumbnail will usually display the larger image on your screen.

Internet
A global network connecting millions of computers. Unlike online services, which are centrally controlled, the Internet is decentralized by design. Each Internet computer, called a host, is independent. Its operators can choose which Internet services to use and which local services to make available to the global Internet community. Remarkably, this anarchy by design works exceedingly well.

There are a variety of ways to access the Internet. Most online services, such as America Online, offer access to some Internet services. It is also possible to gain access through a commercial Internet Service Provider (ISP).

Internet Connection
How you connect to the Internet. Common connections are 56Kbps or cable modems, and DSL or T1 lines.

Internet Explorer
Microsoft's popular Web browser. Like Netscape Navigator, Internet Explorer enables you to view Web pages. Both browsers support Java and JavaScript. Internet Explorer also supports ActiveX.

ISDN
Integrated Services Digital Network — An older high speed (connection speeds up to 128 kbps) data transmission protocol for phone lines.

ISP
Internet Service Provider — A company providing Internet access. For a monthly fee, the service provider gives you a software package, username, password and access phone number. Equipped with a modem, you can then log on to the Internet and browse the World Wide Web and USENET, and send and receive e-mail.

Kbps
When you are talking about file size on your PC or a download from a server, you refer to it in kilobytes or megabytes. But when you are talking about connection speeds, it is in bits per second, where 8 bits equals 1 byte. Therefore, if you are downloading at 1 megabit per second, it will take you 8 seconds to download a 1-megabyte file.

Link
On the World Wide Web, a link is a reference to another page (document) or to a specific location within a Web page. Such links are sometimes called hot links because they take you to other document when you click on them.

Log In
To make a computer system or network recognize you so that you can begin a computer session. Most personal computers have no log-on procedure — you just turn the machine on and begin working. For larger systems and networks, however, you usually need to enter a username and password before the computer system will allow you access. This is also know as logging in.

Megabyte (MB)
A unit of data storage. One Megabyte equals one million bytes. A standard 3 & 1/2 inch floppy diskette can contain up to 1.44 MB of data.

Microsoft Excel
A spreadsheet application.

Modem (Dialup)
Modem which uses regular phone lines to access the Internet or other computers. Conventional modem speeds top out at 56kbps, but ISDN and cable modems can provide higher speeds because they do not rely on conventional phone lines.

Multimedia
The use of computers to present text, graphics, video, animation, and sound in an integrated way.

Netscape Navigator
Netscape Communication's popular Web browser. Like Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator enables you to view Web pages. Both browsers support Java and JavaScript. There are many versions of Navigator, and it runs on all the major platforms — Windows, Macintoshes, and UNIX.

Network
A group of two or more computer systems linked together in a way which allows data transfer and file sharing.

Online
Turned on and connected. For example, printers are online when they are ready to receive data from the computer. You can also turn a printer offline. While the printer is off-line, you can perform certain tasks such as advancing the paper, but you cannot send data to it. Most printers have an online button you can press to turn the machine on- or off-line.

Users are considered online when they are connected to a computer network through a modem. That is, they are actually on the line.

Online Service
A business that provides its users with a wide variety of data transmitted over telecommunications lines. Online services provide an infrastructure in which subscribers can communicate with one another, either by exchanging e-mail messages or by participating in online newsgroups or conferences (forums). In addition, the service can connect users with an almost unlimited number of third-party information providers.

One online service that defies classification is the Internet. In terms of users, it is the largest service, but it is not centrally controlled by any one organization, nor is it operated for profit.

Operating System (OS)
Basic software required for each computer. The Operating System provides the structure applications need to run.

Plug In
A hardware or software module that adds a specific feature or service to a larger system. For example, there are number of plug-ins for the Netscape Navigator browser that enable it to display different types of audio or video messages.

Processor
Short for microprocessor or CPU. of, and pronounced as separate letters. The CPU (or central processing unit) is the brains of the computer. It is where most calculations take place. In terms of computing power, the CPU is the most important element of a computer system.

RAM
Random Access Memory — The most common type of memory found in computers and other devices, such as printers. RAM is volatile, meaning that it loses it is contents when the power is turned off. It can be accessed randomly; that is, any byte of memory can be accessed without touching the preceding bytes.

Search Engine
A program that searches documents for specified keywords and returns a list of the documents where the keywords were found. Although search engine is really a general class of programs, the term is often used to specifically describe systems like Alta Vista and Excite that enable users to search for documents on the World Wide Web and USENET newsgroups.

Server
A computer on a network that manages network resources. A file server is a computer and storage device dedicated to storing files. Any user on the network can store files on the server. A print server is a computer that manages one or more printers, an e-mail server handles incoming and outgoing e-mail, and an Internet network server is a computer that manages Internet traffic. A database server is a computer system that processes database queries. Servers are often dedicated, meaning that they perform no other tasks besides their server tasks.

Setup Assistant
An application designed to lead you through all the steps critical to getting started in it is parent program.

Sign In
To make a computer system or network recognize you so that you can begin a computer session. Most personal computers have no log in procedure — you just turn the machine on and begin working. For larger systems and networks, however, you usually need to enter a username and password before the computer system will allow you access. This is also know as logging in.

Software
Computer instructions, applications or data. Anything that can be stored electronically is software. The storage and display devices are hardware.

Strong Encryption
128 bit strong encryption is one of the highest levels of protection possible for all your Internet communications, including credit card use and financial transactions

T1 Carrier
A dedicated phone connection supporting data rates of 1.544Mbits (1 Mbit is one million bits as opposed to Kbits) per second. A T1 line actually consists of 24 individual channels, each of which supports 64Kbits per second. Each 64Kbit/second channel can be configured to carry voice or data traffic. Most telephone companies allow you to buy just some of these individual channels, known as fractional T1 access.

T1 lines are a popular leased line option for businesses connecting to the Internet and for Internet Service Providers (ISPs) connecting to the Internet backbone. The Internet backbone itself consists of faster T3 connections.

Traffic
The load on a communications device or system. Heavy traffic on a Web site means that many people are visiting it.

Upload
To transmit data from a computer to a remote computer, Web site, mainframe, or network. For example, if you use a personal computer to log on to a network and you want to send files across the network, you must upload the files from your PC to the network.

User
An individual who uses a computer or specific application. This includes expert programmers as well as novices. An end user is any individual who runs an application program.

Adding additional users allows you to monitor and control how your system is accessed. You can limit the areas an individual user has access to by modifying their access rights. You can also monitor how often a user logs in, and in many cases a program will note which user modified a record last. In the event that an employee stops working for you, you can disallow their log in. This will deny them access to your system without affecting your other users.

Username
The name which identifies a specific user to the network. It must be unique on that network so users will not be confused with each other. The user's name and password usually must be entered to log in to the network.

URL
Universal Resource Locator — The global address of documents and other resources on the World Wide Web. The first part of the address indicates what protocol to use (i.e. HTTP or FTP), and the second part specifies the IP address or the domain name where the resource is located.

Usenet
A worldwide bulletin board system that can be accessed through the Internet or through many online services. The USENET contains more than 14,000 forums, called newsgroups, that cover every imaginable interest group. It is used daily by millions of people around the world.

Web Portal
A Web site or service that offers a broad array of resources and services, such as e-mail, newsgroups, search engines, and online shopping malls.

Web Site
A site (location) on the World Wide Web, (also known as a Web page). Each Web site contains a home page, which is the first document users see when they enter the site. The site might also contain additional documents and files. Each site is owned and managed by an individual, company or organization.

WWW
World Wide Web — A system of Internet servers that support specially formatted pages. The documents are formatted in a language called HTML (HyperText Markup Language) that supports links to other documents, as well as graphics, audio, and video files. This means you can jump from one document to another simply by clicking on hot links. Not all Internet servers are part of the World Wide Web.