Access

The act of connecting to server computers or sites. When we access a server computer, we need a login name and a password. After connecting to the computer, we might access for example, an FTP site.

Account

Similar to a bank account, we use an account when we connect to the net. When we have an account at an Internet Service Provider or at school, we can then access to the Internet. An account needs a login name and a password. A login name is like an account number at a bank, and the password is like the personal ID number of your bank card.

Anonymous FTP server

A FTP server that is open to public. You can login to an anonymous FTP server by using "anonymous" as the login name and your email address as the password. Usually used for downloading free/share ware.

Archie

A program that searches for information stored in an Anonymous FTP server.

ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange)

A standard form of computer coding for information exchange. There are 128 ASCII codes that can be described by a binary number from 0000000 to 1111111.

Backbone

A base network that connects to a major node, and that conveys information to leaf-like nodes. The word Backbone is a relative term and is not related to data transferring speed.

Binhex (BINary HEXadecimal)

A method that converts non-ASCII files to ASCII files. The Internet uses ASCII, and therefore this conversion is necessary for non-ASCII files such as image files created by Macintosh computers.

CGI (Common Gateway Interface)

A set of rules that connects a web server and the CGI program on the same server. A CGI program is an application that uses these rules. It receives information from a web server and processes it. For example, it can convert an HTML form generated message to an email message. A CGI program is usually stored in a directory called cgi-bin.

Client

People that use networks and programs that allow us to do so; opposite to the word, server. A browser is an example of a client programs.

Domain name

A name that identifies a server on the Internet. A domain name is separated by periods. The following domain names can be located on the same machine, but they have independent names because of their different purposes.

• www.servername.com WWWsite
• ftp.servername.com FTPsite

A domain name refers to a specific IP address. Domain names are used because they are easier to remember than IP addresses. Domain name registration is required in order prevent the occurrence of domain names that are exactly the same.

DNS (Domain Name Service)

A service that converts an IP number to a domain name. For example, changing "205.198.164.1" to servername.com, etc.

Email (Electronic mail)

A system that sends and receives messages similar to postal mail. An email message is sent to an individual account on a server computer. An email address is formed by a login name, @, and a domain name.

Ether

A widely used system for constructing a LAN. A network that uses this system is called an "Ether network", and the protocol is Ethernet.

Extensions

Suffixes that shows characteristics of files. This is necessary for files on the net. For GIF files, the extension is .gif (or .GIF). Major extensions are: .html, .jpg, .au, .aiff, .mid, .dcr, etc.

FTP (File Transfer Protocol)

A protocol that is used for transferring files.

GIF (Graphic Interchange Format)

A form of picture formatting. widely used in WWW home pages. Developed by CompuServe, it uses 256 colors and saves the picture quality, but with little data compression. (from 1/2 to max. 1/3)

Gopher

A protocol that searches for information using a menu style.

Host

A computer that supplies network services.

Homepage

The first page of a WWW site. Uses HTML as an editing language.

HTML (Hypertext Markup Language)

A language that creates text files (HTML files) to construct World Wide Web sites.

HTTP (Hypertext Transmission Protocol)

The protocol for the World Wide Web. Created by CERN in 1990.

Hypertext

Linked text. Users can browse through information by following hypertext.

Image

A customary term for graphics used in the WWW. Image files are formatted as GIF or JPG. PNG is now being discussed for the future use.

Internet

The world's largest network that uses the TCP/IP protocol.

ISP (Internet Service Provider)

A company or organization that offers connections to the Internet. An ISP is equipped with server computers, lines, routers, and all necessary hard/software for connecting to the Internet. It usually supplies email accounts, USENET service, disk space for home pages, and many other services.

Intranet

A closed networking system in a company or organization that uses Internet technologies (protocols, software products, etc. ) for cost performance and stability. An Intranet does not have to connect to the Internet.

IP number

Also called IP address. An IP number shows a host on the Internet. It uses a Protocol number, with each host having a unique number. Usually separated by three periods (as in 204.164.196.2). DNS converts this IP number to a domain name for our convenience.

ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network)

A network connection that transfers files at 64 Kbps (KiloBits Per Second) or 128 Kbps and uses a TCP/IP and PPP connection. Special hardware is required for ISDN.

JPG (Joint Photographic Experts Group)

An image file format for color graphics. Provides a method of compression and is an international standard. The quality of a graphic will be lost to some extent, but the compression rate is high. (from 1/5 to max. 1/30)

LAN (Local Area Network)

A computer network that uses cables in a specific closed area such as; a room, a building or a group of buildings.

Login

The act of accessing computers.

Login name

The name of a user for accessing a computer system(s).

NNTP (Network News Transmission Protocol)

The protocol for browsing and transferring information in USENET news.

Node

A base place or infrastructure connecting a network.

POP (Post Office Protocol)

The protocol for Email.

Password

A word for logging in as a user to a network or server. A password should be kept secret as it is similar to the personal number of a bank card. A password should be changed from time to time to ensure safety.

PNG (Portable Network Graphics)

An image file format that is being discussed at W3C. PNG has both characteristics of GIF and JPG.

PPP (Point to Point Protocol)

The protocol for connecting a user and a server. For internet access, either PPP or SLIP is commonly used.

Protocol

A set of rules for networks and networking applications to "speak" each other.

Server

A computer that offers networking service, equipped with server software.

Site

A place that stores information. A site is not a computer but it is a unit differentiated by its URL. FTP site, WWW site, etc.

SLIP (Serial Line Internet Protocol)

A protocol that is functionally similar to PPP, but used previously.

T-1 Line

A line that transfers data at 1,544,000 bps.

T-3 Line

A line that transfers data at 45,000,000 bps. This is a main backbone for ISP's in the US.

TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol)

The most important and basic network protocol in the Internet.

TELNET

A name of a protocol and also a name of a program that does remote work on the Internet. Uses UNIX commands.

Top Level Domain

The last word in domain name. com, net, org, gov, etc. Most countries (except the U.S.) usually have the top domain name as part of their country name. Canada=ca, Japan=jp, Brazil= br, France= fr, etc.

USENET News

Discussions by users (= news) distributed by a host. One can read or send opinions. A countless number of newsgroups are available in the Internet.

URL (Uniform Resource Locator)

An address on the Internet. protocol + domain. The most basic URL on the WWW is:
http://www.server.top_domain
Sometimes directory names and a file name are included:
http://www.server.top_domain/directory/file.html

WAIS (Wide Area Information Servers)

A protocol for database search.

W3C (World Wide Web Consortium)

The organization that decides the standards of the Internet, such as; protocols, formats, or levels of HTML. Consists of many researchers, governmental groups, and companies world-wide. W3C headquarters is located at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
URL: http://www.w3.org/

WWW (World Wide Web)

Information on the Internet that is accessed using the HTTP protocol. The information includes Hypertext, image files, sound files, and animation/movie files.