ICANN
Internet Corporation
for Assigned Names and Numbers
ICANN Information
What is ICANN?
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is an
internationally organized, non-profit corporation that has responsibility
for Internet Protocol (IP) address space allocation, protocol identifier
assignment, generic (gTLD) and country code (ccTLD) Top-Level Domain
name system management, and root server system management functions.
These services were originally performed under U.S. Government contract
by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) and other entities.
ICANN now performs the IANA function.
As a private-public partnership, ICANN is dedicated to preserving the
operational stability of the Internet; to promoting competition; to
achieving broad representation of global Internet communities; and to
developing policy appropriate to its mission through bottom-up, consensus-based
processes.
What is the Domain Name System?
The Domain Name System (DNS) helps users find their way around the Internet.
Every computer on the Internet has a unique address called its "IP
address" (Internet Protocol address). Because IP addresses (which
are strings of numbers) are hard to remember, the DNS allows a familiar
string of letters (the "domain name") to be used instead.
So rather than typing "192.0.34.163," you can type "www.icann.org."
What is ICANN's Role?
ICANN is responsible for coordinating the management of the technical
elements of the DNS to ensure universal resolvability so that all users
of the Internet can find all valid addresses. It does this by overseeing
the distribution of unique technical identifiers used in the Internet's
operations, and delegation of Top-Level Domain names (such as .com,
.info, etc.).
Other issues of concern to Internet users, such as the rules for financial
transactions, Internet content control, unsolicited commercial email
(spam), and data protection are outside the range of ICANN's mission
of technical coordination.
Ensuring predictable results from any place on the Internet is called
"universal resolvability." It is a critical design feature
of the Domain Name System, one that makes the Internet the helpful,
global resource that it is today. Without it, the same domain name might
map to different Internet locations under different circumstances, which
would only cause confusion.
How does ICANN work?
Within ICANN's structure, governments and international treaty organizations
work in partnership with businesses, organizations, and skilled individuals
involved in building and sustaining the global Internet. Innovation
and continuing growth of the Internet bring forth new challenges for
maintaining stability. Working collectively, ICANN's participants address
those issues that directly concern ICANN's mission of technical coordination.
Consistent with the principle of maximum self-regulation in the high-tech
economy, ICANN is perhaps the foremost example of collaboration by the
various constituents of the Internet community.
ICANN is governed by an internationally diverse Board of Directors overseeing
the policy development process. ICANN's President directs an international
staff, working from three continents, who ensure that ICANN meets its
operational commitment to the Internet community.
Designed to respond to the demands of rapidly changing technologies
and economies, the flexible, readily implemented policy development
process originates in the three Supporting Organizations. Advisory Committees
from individual user organizations, and technical communities work with
the Supporting Organizations to create appropriate and effective policies.
Over eighty governments closely advise the Board of Directors via the
Governmental Advisory Committee.
ICANN's Board has included citizens of Australia, Brazil, Bulgaria,
Canada, China, France, Germany, Ghana, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Mexico,
the Netherlands, Portugal, Senegal, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the
United States.
InterNIC—Public Information Regarding Internet Domain Name Registration
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visit is where a person views a page.
A hit is when they request something from the server.
Page visits
are a good measure of traffic, whereas page hits measure the number
of times your server has to send out data - but that could be an image,
or style sheet, or html doc, or favicon, or robots.txt file, or whatever
else. Page hits are a poor measure of traffic, unless you are viewing
the page hits for a specific page
Web
Terminology
A glossary of World Wide Web Terminology
This glossary was compiled (in 1994) with the assistance of
• The Windows Internet Tour Guide by Michael Fraase (Ventana Press,
1994)
• Mosaic Quick Tour for Windows by Gareth Branwyn (Ventana Press,
1994)
• Cybermarketing by Len Keeler (Amacom Books, to be released 1995)
• Agent
Agents are search tools that automatically seek out relevant online
information based on your specifications. Agent A.K.A.s include: intelligent
agent, personal agents, knowbots or droids.
• Anchor
Synonymous with hyperlinks, anchor refers to non-linear links among
documents. Or more simply put, it's the word or phrase that can be clicked
to connect to another page or resource.
• Anchor Color
You guessed it, the color on screen that represents the anchors. The
reason so many are blue is that is the default color. This color can
be changed to any combination of red, blue or green.
• Annotations
Personal notes you can attach to the documents you have saved in Mosaic.
The notes are available to you whenever the document is viewed.
• ASCII
(pronounced "Ask-ee") An acronym for American Standard Code
for Information Exchange, ASCII is an international standard in which
numbers, letters, punctuation marks, symbols and control codes are assigned
numbers from 0 to 27. Easily transferred over networks, ASCII is a plain,
unadorned text without style or font specifications.
• Authoring Software
This term refers to software that enables the creation of multimedia
or hypertext documents and presentations.
• Avatar
This term refers to an interactive representation of a human in a virtual
reality environment.
• Bandwidth
The range of transmission frequencies a network can use. The greater
the bandwidth the more information that can be transferred over that
network at one time.
• Bit
A contraction of binary digit, a bit is the smallest unit of information
that a computer can hold. The speed at which bits are transmitted or
bit rate is usually expressed as bits per second or bps.
• Broadband
A transmission method in which the networks range of transmission frequencies
is divided into separate channels and each channel is used to send a
different signal. Broadband is often used to send different types of
signals simultaneously.
• Browser
A type of software that allows you to navigate information databases.
• Byte
The number of bits used to represent a character.
• Chat: A method of online communication that allows users to
communicate in "real time." Information is typed on one user's
computer and immediately is displayed on the other user's computer.
• CD-ROM
Compact Disk-Read Only Memory: An optical disk from which information
may be read but not written.
CD-R or Compact Disk-Recordable: Refers to computer peripheral disk
drives that allow the user to record content on to a blank compact disk.
• Client
A computer that has access to services over a computer network. The
computer providing the services is a server.
Client-Server Architecture: An information-passing scheme that works
as follows: a client program, such as Mosaic, sends a request to a server.
The server takes the request, disconnects from the client and processes
the request. When the request is processed, the server reconnects to
the client program and the information is transferred to the client.
This architecture differs from traditional Internet databases where
the client connects to the server and runs the program from the remote
site.
• Configuration
This is a general-purpose computer term that can refer to the way you
have your computer set up. It is also used to describe the total combination
of hardware components that make up a computer system and the software
settings that allow various hardware components of a computer system
to communicate with one another.
• Configure
The act of changing software or hardware actions by changing the settings.
• CyberMall
A term commonly used to describe an electronic site shared by a number
of commercial interests.
• Cyberspace
A term coined by William Gibson, a science fiction writer, to refer
to a near-future computer network where users mentally travel through
matrices of data. The term is now used to describe the Internet and
the other computer networks.
Dial-up Connection: The most popular form of Net connection for the
home user, this is a connection from your computer to a host computer
over standard telephone lines.
• DNS
An acronym for Domain Name Server, DNS refers to a database of Internet
names and addresses which translates the names to the official Internet
Protocol numbers and vice versa.
• Document
When used in reference to the World Wide Web, a document is any file
containing text, media or hyperlinks that can be transferred from an
HTTP server to a client program.
• Document Window
This is the Mosaic program's scrollable window in which HTML documents
can be viewed.
• Download
To transfer to your computer a copy of a file that resides on another
computer.
• External Viewer
This is the program used for presenting graphics, audio and video in
Mosaic. Programs that allow the viewing of GIF and JPEG files and the
hearing of AU files falls into this category.
E-Zine or Ezine
Stands for electronic magazine and is a name for a web site which is
either (a) modeled after a print magazine or (b) a magazine that is
only available online or through email.
•
• FAQ
This is the acronym for Frequently Asked Questions. A common feature
on the Internet, FAQs are files of answers to commonly asked questions.
Read FAQs before wasting electrons asking obvious questions. Saves you
from receiving flames.
• Firewall
This term refers to security measures designed to protect a networked
system from unauthorized or unwelcome access.
• FTP
File Transfer Protocol is a protocol that allows the transfer of files
from one computer to another. FTP is also the verb used to describe
the act of transferring files from one computer to another.
• GIF
Pronounced "jiff" -- as in the peanut butter, this acronym
stands for Graphic Interchange Format, a commonly used file compression
format developed by CompuServe for transferring graphics files to and
from online services.
• Groupware
This term refers to software applications that facilitate shared work
on documents and information.
• Home Page
Home Page refers to the first document you come to at a Web site.
• Host
A computer acting as an information or communications server.
• HTML
An acronym for HyperText Markup Language, HTML is the language used
to tag various parts of a Web document so browsing software will know
how to display that document's links, text, graphics and attached media.
• HTML Document
A document written in HyperText Markup Language.
• HTTP
The abbreviation for Hypertext Transfer Protocol, HTTP is used to link
and transfer hypertext documents.
Hyperlink
A hyperlink, more commonly called a link, is an electronic connection
between one web page to either (1) other web pages on the same web site,
or (2) web pages located on another web site. More specifically, a hyperlink
is a connection between one page of a hypertext document to another.
Hypertext
Hypertext is any text that can be chosen by a reader and which causes
another document to be retrieved and displayed.
•
• Hypermedia
The hypertext concept extended to include linked multiple media.
• Hypertext
This term describes the system that allows documents to be cross- linked
in such a way that the reader can explore related documents by clicking
on a highlighted word or symbol.
• Inline Images
These are the graphics contained within a Web document.
• Instant Messaging - A way of chatting in real time one-to-one
by typing short messages. Popular Instant Messaging programs are ICQ,
AIM, MSN Messenger and Yahoo! Messenger. Programs have developed over
the years and now allow voice communication and file exchange.
Internet - (upper-case I) The global network that connects millions
of computers in over 100 countries together. Various computer networks
communicate with each other all over the globe in a matter of seconds
using TCP/IP. The Internet can be used to access a variety of different
services such as World Wide Web, E-Mail, FTP, Newsgroups, & IRC
and doesn't just refer to the Web.
Intranet - A private network that uses the same tools and software as
the public Internet, but on a much smaller scale. This structure is
typically used by corporations to relay and present information to its
employees in an efficient and timely manner.
IP Address - This is a unique number which identifies a computer on
the Internet. Every computer that is connected to the Internet, permanently
or temporarily, is assigned an IP or Internet address. IP addresses
are usually four sets of numbers separated by 3 dots e.g. 165.111.20.43.
These addresses usually have a domain name alias so they are easier
to remember. Each set of numbers can be in the range 0 to 255 which
allows over 4.2 billion addresses. With the growth in the number of
computers connecting to the Internet this finite number is going to
run out soon. That's where IPv6 comes in - the next generation Internet!
•
• IP
The abbreviation for Internet Protocol, IP refers to the set of communication
standards that control communications activity on the Internet. An IP
address is the number assigned to any Internet-connected computer.
• JPEG
The acronym for Joint Photographic Experts Group, JPEG is an image compression
format used to transfer color photographs and images over computer networks.
Along with GIF, is the most common way photos are moved over the Web.
• Links
These are the hypertext connections between Web pages. This is a synonym
for hotlinks or hyperlinks.
Meta-tag
Meta-tags are HTML tags that can be used to identify the creator of
a web page, what HTML specifications a web page follows, the keywords
and description of the page, etc. The most common use of a meta-tag
in online marketing is the keyword and description tags, which tell
the search engines that index meta-tags what description to use in their
search query results.
•
• Metaverse
From the book "Snow Crash" by Neal Stephenson, this term describes
a virtual online representation of reality.
Netiquette
Accepted, proper behavior on the Internet. The term especially applies
to email and newsgroup posts.
•
• Newsgroup - A newsgroup is a forum in which users discuss a
particular topic and post articles and questions relating to this subject.
Readers can reply to these queries either in the newsgroup or directly
by e-mail. Some groups are moderated and only articles relating to the
subject are allowed and spamming is discouraged. A great place to find
and trade information.
• MPEG
The acronym for Moving Pictures Expert Group, MPEG is an international
standard for video compression and desktop movie presentation. A special
viewing application is needed to run MPEG files on your computer.
• NIC
The abbreviation for Network Information Center, NIC is an organization
responsible for supplying information for component networks that comprise
the Internet.
• POP
An acronym for Point of Presence, POP is a service provider's location
for connecting to users. Generally, POPs refer to the location where
people can dial into the provider's host computer. Most providers have
several POPs to allow low-cost access via telephone lines.
• Protocol
A set of standards that define how traffic and communications are handled
by a computer or network routers.
• QuickTime
This is a digital video standard developed for Apple Macintosh computers.
Special viewing applications are needed to run QuickTime movies.
• Router
A communications device designed to transmit signals via the most efficient
route possible.
• Search Engine
This term refers to a program that helps users find information in text-oriented
databases.
• Server
A computer system that manages and delivers information for client computers.
• Shareware
This term refers to software that is available on public networks and
BBSs. Users are asked to remit a small amount to the software developer,
but it's on the honor system.
• T-1
High-speed data line connection. T-1 operates at 1.45 Mbps.
• Tags
These are formatting codes used in HTML documents. Tags indicate how
parts of a document will appear when displayed by browsing software.
• TCP-IP
The basic protocols controlling applications on the Internet.
Thread
A series of messages related to the same topic in a discussion group
or newsgroup, such as an original post and related follow-ups.
• TIFF
This is the acronym for Tagged Image File Format, a graphic file format
developed by Aldus and Microsoft. Mosaic supports the viewing of TIFF
images.
• Tilde
A tilde (pronounced TILL-duh) is a short, curvy horizontal line character
that is located on the upper left on most keyboards, usually on the
same key as the backquote.The first use of the tilde as a distinct character
in English may have occurred in the early 1960s. And it appears that
IBM was the first to use it for computer applications. The tilde was
not included in the original version of ASCII (the de facto standard
for the character encoding used by computers and communications equipment
to represent text), which was published in 1963, but it was added in
1965 as part of a revised version (ASCII-1965) along with the angular
circumflex ( ^ ), the underscore ( _ ) and the at ( @ ) characters.
• URL
This is the abbreviation for Uniform Resource Locator, The addressing
system used in the World Wide Web and other Internet resources. The
URL contains information about the method of access, the server to be
accessed and the path of any file to be accessed.
• Web Browser
This is the software that allows a user to access and view HTML documents.
Examples of Web browsers include Mosaic, Cello and Lynx.
• Web Document
An HTML document that is browsable on the Web.
• Webmaster
This term refers to the person in charge of administrating a World Wide
Web site.
• Web Node
This term is synonymous with Web site or Web server.
• Web Page
An HTML document that is accessible on the Web.
• Webspace
This term refers to the space created by the World Wide Web.
World Wide Web: Also known as WWW or W3, the World Wide Web is a hypertext-
based Internet service used for browsing Internet resources.
• Enhancements
WEBster reader Sean Murphy suggests the following enhancements:
The term avatar should be credited to Neal Stephenson's "Snow Crash."
The term bandwidth also broadly includes throughput, meaning the amount
of data sent.
The term baud is a unit of speed in data transmission, as one bit per
second for binary signals. [After J. M. E. Baudot (died 1903).]
Eight bits is equivalent to a byte.
In an X-11 environment, the meanings of client and server are reversed.
The term cyberspace, coined by William Gibson, appeared in Gibson's
book "Neuromancer."
Gopher was first developed at the University of Minnesota.
The URL of this
page is http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Glossary.html
BACK / FORWARD
Buttons in most browsers' Tool Button Bar, upper left. BACK returns
you to the document previously viewed. FORWARD goes to the next document,
after you go BACK.
If it seems like the BACK button does not work, check if you are in
a new browser window; some Web pages are programmed to open a new window
when you click on some links. Each window has its own short-term search
HISTORY. If this does not work, right click on the BACK button to select
the page you want (some Web pages are programmed to disable BACK).
BLOG or WEB LOG
A blog (short for "web log") is a type of web page that serves
as a publicly accessible personal journal (or log) for an individual.
Typically updated daily, blogs often reflect the personality of the
author. Blog software usually has an archive of old blog postings. Many
blogs can be searched for terms in the archive. Blogs have become a
vibrant, fast-growing medium for communication in professional, poltical,
news, trendy, and other specialized web communities. Many blogs provide
RSS feeds, to which one can subscribe and receive alerts to new postings
in selected blogs.
BOOKMARK/FAVORITES
Way in browsers to store in your computer direct links to sites you
wish to return to. Netscape, Mozilla, and Firefox use the term Bookmarks.
The equivalent in Internet Explorer (IE) is called a "Favorite."
To create a bookmark, click on BOOKMARKS or FAVORITES, then ADD. Or
left-click on and drag the little bookmark icon to the place you want
a new bookmark filed. To visit a bookmarked site, click on BOOKMARKS
and select the site from the list.
You can download a bookmark file to diskette and install it on another
computer. In most browsers now, you can do this with an Import... and
Export... set of commands which can be found under FILE or in the Manage
Bookmarks window's FILE.
BROWSE
To follow links in a page, to shop around in a page, exploring what's
there, a bit like window shopping. The opposite of browsing a page is
searching it. When you search a page, you find a search box, enter terms,
and find all occurrences of the terms throughout the site. When you
browse, you have to guess which words on the page pertain to your interests.
Searching is usually more efficient, but sometimes you find things by
browsing that you might not find because you might not think of the
"right" term to search by.
BROWSERS
Browsers are software programs that enable you to view WWW documents.
They "translate" HTML-encoded files into the text, images,
sounds, and other features you see. Microsoft Internet Explorer (called
simply IE), Mozilla, Firefox, Safari, and Opera are examples of "graphical"
browsers that enable you to view text and images and many other WWW
features. They are software that must be installed on your computer.
For more information about browsers, consult the introductory pages
of the Teaching Library tutorial.
CACHE
In browsers, "cache" is used to identify a space where web
pages you have visited are stored in your computer. A copy of documents
you retrieve is stored in cache. When you use GO, BACK, or any other
means to revisit a document, the browser first checks to see if it is
in cache and will retrieve it from there because it is much faster than
retrieving it from the server.
CACHED LINK
In search results from Google, Yahoo! Search, and some other search
engines, there is usually a Cached link which allows you to view the
version of a page that the search engine has stored in its database.
The live page on the web might differ from this cached copy, because
the cached copy dates from whenever the search engine's spider last
visited the page and detected modified content. Use the cached link
to see when a page was last crawled and, in Google, where your terms
are and why you got a page when all of your search terms are not in
it.
CASE SENSITIVE
Capital letters (upper case) retrieve only upper case. Most search tools
are not case sensitive or only respond to initial capitals, as in proper
names. It is always safe to key all lower case (no capitals), because
lower case will always retrieve upper case. Which search engines have
this?
COOKIE
A message from a WEB SERVER computer, sent to and stored by your browser
on your computer. When your computer consults the originating server
computer, the cookie is sent back to the server, allowing it to respond
to you according to the cookie's contents. The main use for cookies
is to provide customized Web pages according to a profile of your interests.
When you log onto a "customize" type of invitation on a Web
page and fill in your name and other information, this may result in
a cookie on your computer which that Web page will access to appear
to "know" you and provide what you want. If you fill out these
forms, you may also receive e-mail and other solicitation independent
of cookies.
CRAWLER or WEBCRAWLER
Same as Spider.
DOMAIN, TOP LEVEL DOMAIN (TLD)
Hierarchical scheme for indicating logical and sometimes geographical
venue of a web-page from the network. In the US, common domains are
.edu (education), .gov (government agency), .net (network related),
.com (commercial), .org (nonprofit and research organizations). Outside
the US, domains indicate country: ca (Canada), uk (United Kingdom),
au (Australia), jp (Japan), fr (France), etc. Neither of these lists
is exhaustive. See also DNS entry.
DOMAIN NAME, DOMAIN NAME SERVER (DNS)ENTRY
Any of these terms refers to the initial part of a URL, down to the
first /, where the domain and name of the host or SERVER computer are
listed (most often in reversed order, name first, then domain). The
domain name gives you who "published" a page, made it public
by putting it on the Web.
A domain name is translated in huge tables standardized across the Internet
into a numeric IP address unique the host computer sought. These tables
are maintained on computers called "Domain Name Servers."
Whenever you ask the browser to find a URL, the browser must consult
the table on the domain name server that particular computer is networked
to consult.
"Domain Name Server entry" frequently appears a browser error
message when you try to enter a URL. If this lookup fails for any reason,
the "lacks DNS entry" error occurs. The most common remedy
is simply to try the URL again, when the domain name server is less
busy, and it will find the entry (the corresponding numeric IP address).
For more information, see "All About Domain Names."
DOWNLOAD
To copy something from a primary source to a more peripheral one, as
in saving something found on the Web (currently located on its server)
to diskette or to a file on your local hard drive. More information.
EXTENSION or FILE EXTENSION
In Windows, DOS and some other operating systems, one or several letters
at the end of a filename. Filename extensions usually follow a period
(dot) and indicate the type of file. For example, this.txt denotes a
plain text file, that.htm or that.html denotes an HTML file. Some common
image extensions are picture.jpg or picture.jpeg or picture.bmp or picture.gif
FAVORITES
In the Internet Explorer browser, a means to get back to a URL you like,
similar to Bookmarks.
FIND
Tool in most browsers to search for word(s) keyed in document in screen
only. Useful to locate a term in a long document. Can be invoked by
the keyboard command, Ctrl+F.
FRESHNESS
How up-to-date a search engine database is, based primarily on how often
its spiders recirculate around the Web and update their copies of the
web pages they hold, and discover new ones. Also determined by how quickly
they integrate new sites that web authors send to them. Two weeks is
about as good as most search engines do, but some update certain selected
web sites more frequently, even daily.
FRAMES
A format for web documents that divides the screen into segments, each
with a scroll bar as if it were as "window" within the window.
Usually, selecting a category of documents in one frame shows the contents
of the category in another frame. To go BACK in a frame, position the
cursor in the frame an press the right mouse button, and select "Back
in frame" (or Forward).
You can adjust frame dimensions by positioning the cursor over the border
between frames and dragging the border up/down or right/left holding
the mouse button down over the border.
FTP
File Transfer Protocol. Ability to transfer rapidly entire files from
one computer to another, intact for viewing or other purposes.
FUZZY AND
In ranking of results, documents with all terms (Boolean AND) are ranked
first, followed by documents containing any terms (Boolean OR) are retrieved.
The farther down, the fewer the terms, although at least one should
always be present.
HEAD or HEADER (of HTML document)
The top portion of the HTML source code behind Web pages, beginning
with <HEAD> and ending with </HEAD>. It contains the Title,
Description, Keywords fields and others that web page authors may use
to describe the page. The title appears in the title bar of most browsers,
but the other fields cannot be seen as part of the body of the page.
To view the <HEAD> portion of web pages in your browser, click
VIEW, Page Source. In Internet Explorer, click VIEW, Source. Some search
engines will retrieve based on text in these fields.
HOST
Computer that provides web-documents to clients or users. See also server.
HTML
Hypertext Markup Language. A standardized language of computer code,
imbedded in "source" documents behind all Web documents, containing
the textual content, images, links to other documents (and possibly
other applications such as sound or motion), and formatting instructions
for display on the screen. When you view a Web page, you are looking
at the product of this code working behind the scenes in conjunction
with your browser. Browsers are programmed to interpret HTML for display.
HTML often imbeds within it other programming languages and applications
such as SGML, XML, Javascript, CGI-script and more. It is possible to
deliver or access and execute virtually any program via the WWW.
You can see HTML by selecting the View pop-down menu tab, then "Document
Source."
HYPERTEXT
On the World Wide Web, the feature, built into HTML, that allows a text
area, image, or other object to become a "link" (as if in
a chain) that retrieves another computer file (another Web page, image,
sound file, or other document) on the Internet. The range of possibilities
is limited by the ability of the computer retrieving the outside file
to view, play, or otherwise open the incoming file. It needs to have
software that can interact with the imported file. Many software capabilities
of this type are built into browsers or can be added as "plug-ins."
INTERNET (Upper case I)
The vast collection of interconnected networks that all use the TCP/IP
protocols and that evolved from the ARPANET of the late 60’s and
early 70’s. An "internet" (lower case i) is any computers
connected to each other (a network), and are not part of the Internet
unless the use TCP/IP protocols. An "intranet" is a private
network inside a company or organization that uses the same kinds of
software that you would find on the public Internet, but that is only
for internal use. An intranet may be on the Internet or may simply be
a network.
IP Address or IP Number
(Internet Protocol number or address). A unique number consisting of
4 parts separated by dots, e.g. 165.113.245.2
Every machine that is on the Internet has a unique IP address. If a
machine does not have an IP number, it is not really on the Internet.
Most machines also have one or more Domain Names that are easier for
people to remember.
ISP or Internet Service Provider
A company that sells Internet connections via modem (examples: aol,
Mindspring - thousands of ISPs to choose from; not easy to evaluate).
Faster, more expensive Internet connectivity is available via cable,
DSL, ISDN, or web-TV. Often these companies also provide Web page hosting
service (free or relatively inexpensive web pages -- the origin of many
personal pages).
JAVA
A network-oriented programming language invented by Sun Microsystems
that is specifically designed for writing programs that can be safely
downloaded to your computer through the Internet and immediately run
without fear of viruses or other harm to our computer or files. Using
small Java programs (called "Applets"), Web pages can include
functions such as animations, calculators, and other fancy tricks. We
can expect to see a huge variety of features added to the Web using
Java, since you can write a Java program to do almost anything a regular
computer program can do, and then include that Java program in a Web
page. For more information search any of these jargon terms in the PC
Webopedia.
JAVASCRIPT
A simple programming language developed by Netscape to enable greater
interactivity in Web pages. It shares some characteristics with JAVA
but is independent. It interacts with HTML, enabling dynamic content
and motion.
KEYWORD(S)
A word searched for in a search command. Keywords are searched in any
order. Use spaces to separate keywords in simple keyword searching.
To search keywords exactly as keyed (in the same order), see PHRASE.
LIMITING TO A FIELD
Requiring that a keyword or phrase appear in a specific field of documents
retrieved. Most often used to limit to the "Title" field in
order to find documents primarily about one or more keywords. (Can be
used for other fields. See the table summarizing search tools features.)
LINK
The URL imbedded in another document, so that if you click on the highlighted
text or button referring to the link, you retrieve the outside URL.
If you search the field "link:", you retrieve on text in these
imbedded URLs which you do not see in the documents.
LINK "ROT"
Term used to describe the frustrating and frequent problem caused by
the constant changing in URLs. A Web page or search tool offers a link
and when you click on it, you get an error message (e.g., "not
available") or a page saying the site has moved to a new URL. Search
engine spiders cannot keep up with the changes. URLs change frequently
because the documents are moved to new computers, the file structure
on the computer is reorganized, or sites are discontinued. If there
is no referring link to the new URL, there is little you can do but
try to search for the same or an equivalent site from scratch.
LISTSERVERS
A discussion group mechanism that permits you to subscribe and receive
and participate in discussions via e-mail. Blogs and RSS feeds provide
some of the communication functionality of listservers.
NEWSGROUP
A discussion group operated through the Internet. Not to be confused
with LISTSERVERS which operate through e-mail.
PERSONAL PAGE
A web page created by an individual (as opposed to someone creating
a page for an institution, business, organization, or other entity).
Often personal pages contain valid and useful opinions, links to important
resources, and significant facts. One of the greatest benefits of the
Web is the freedom it as given almost anyone to put his or her ideas
"out there." But frequently personal pages offer highly biased
personal perspectives or ironical/satirical spoofs, which must be evaluated
carefully. The presence in the page's URL of a personal name (such as
"jbarker") and a ~ or % or the word "users" or "people"
or "members" very frequently indicate a site offering personal
pages.
PDF or .pdf or pdf file
Abbreviation for Portable Document Format, a file format developed by
Adobe Systems, that is used to capture almost any kind of document with
the formatting in the original. Viewing a PDF file requires Acrobat
Reader, which is built into most browsers and can be downloaded free
from Adobe.
PLUG-IN
An application built into a browser or added to a browser to enable
it to interact with a special file type (such as a movie, sound file,
Word document, etc.)
POPULARITY RANKING of search results
Some search engines rank the order in which search results appear primarily
by how many other sites link to each page (a kind of popularity vote
based on the assumption that other pages would create a link to the
"best" pages). Google is the best example of this. See also
Subject-Based Ranking.
RELEVANCY RANKING of search results
The most common method for determining the order in which search results
are displayed. Each search tool uses its own unique algorithm. Most
use "fuzzy and" combined with factors such as how often your
terms occur in documents, whether they occur together as a phrase, and
whether they are in title or how near the top of the text. Popularity
is another ranking system.
RSS or RSS feeds
Short for "Really Simple Synication" (a.k.a. Rich Site Summary
or RDF Site Summary), refers ti a group of XML based web-content distribution
and republication (Web syndication) formats primarily used by news sites
and weblogs (blogs). Any website can issue an RSS feed. By subscribing
to an RSS feed, you are alerted to new additions to the feed since you
last read it. In order to read RSS feeds, you must use a "feed
reader," which formats the XML code into an easily readable format
(feed readers are to XML and RSS feeds as web browsers are to HTML and
web pages.
SCRIPT
A script is a type of programming language that can be used to fetch
and display Web pages. There are may kinds and uses of scripts on the
Web. They can be used to create all or part of a page, and communicate
with searchable databases. Forms (boxes) and many interactive links,
which respond differently depending on what you enter, all require some
kind of script language. When you find a question marke (?) in the URL
of a page, some kind of script command was used in generating and/or
delivering that page. Most search engine spiders are instructed not
to crawl pages from scripts, although it is usually technically possible
for them to do so (see Invisible Web for more information).
SERVER, WEB SERVER
A computer running that software, assigned an IP address, and connected
to the Internet so that it can provide documents via the World Wide
Web. Also called HOST computer. Web servers are the closest equivalent
to what in the print world is called the "publisher" of a
print document. An important difference is that most print publishers
carefully edit the content and quality of their publications in an effort
to market them and future publications. This convention is not required
in the Web world, where anyone can be a publisher; careful evaluation
of Web pages is therefore mandatory. Also called a "Host."
SITE or WEB-SITE
This term is often used to mean "web page," but there is supposed
to be a difference. A web page is a single entity, one URL, one file
that you might find on the Web. A "site," properly speaking,
is an location or gathering or center for a bunch of related pages linked
to from that site. For example, the site for the present tutorial is
the top-level page "Internet Resources." All of the pages
associated with it branch out from there -- the web searching tutorial
and all its pages, and more. Together they make up a "site."
When we estimate there are 5 billion web pages on the Web, we do not
mean "sites." There would be far fewer sites.
SPONSOR (of a Web page or site)
Many Web pages have organizations, businesses, institutions like universities
or nonprofit foundations, or other interests which "sponsor"
the page. Frequently you can find a link titled "Sponsors"
or an "About us" link explaining who or what (if anyone) is
sponsoring the page. Sometimes the advertisers on the page (banner ads,
links, buttons to sites that sell or promote something) are "sponsors."
WHY is this important? Sponsors and the funding they provide may, or
may not, influence what can be said on the page or site -- can bias
what you find, by excluding some opposing viewpoint or causing some
other imbalanced information. The site is not bad because of sponsors,
but you they should alert you to the need to evaluate a page or site
very carefully.
SUBJECT-BASED POPULARITY RANKING of search results
A variation on popularity ranking in which the links in pages on the
same subject are used to in ranking search results. Used by Teoma.
SUBJECT DIRECTORY
An approach to Web documents by a lexicon of subject terms hierarchically
grouped. May be browsed or searched by keywords. Subject directories
are smaller than other searchable databases, because of the human involvement
required to classify documents by subject.
SUB-SEARCHING
Ability to search only within the results of a previous search. Enables
you to refine search results, in effect making the computer "read"
the search results for you selecting documents with terms you sub-search
on. Can function much like RESULTS RANKING. Which search engines have
this?
TCP/IP
(Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) -- This is the suite
of protocols that defines the Internet. Originally designed for the
UNIX operating system, TCP/IP software is now available for every major
kind of computer operating system. To be truly on the Internet, your
computer must have TCP/IP software. See also IP Address.
TITLE (of a document)
The official title of a document from the "meta" field called
title. The text of this meta title field may or may not also occur in
the visible body of the document. It is what appears in the top bar
of the window when you display the document and it is the title that
appears in search engine results. The "meta" field called
title is not mandatory in HTML coding. Sometimes you retrieve a document
with "No Title" as its supposed title; this is caused when
the meta-title field is left blank.
In Alta Vista and some other search tools, title: search also matches
on the "meta" field, which contains document descriptors not
displayed on the Web. See also LIMITING TO A FIELD.
TRUNCATION
In a search, the ability to enter the first part of a keyword, insert
a symbol (usually *), and accept any variant spellings or word endings,
from the occurrence of the symbol forward. (E.g., femini* retrieves
feminine, feminism, feminism, etc.) Which search engines have this?
URL
Uniform Resource Locator. The unique address of any Web document. May
be keyed in a browser's OPEN or LOCATION / GO TO box to retrieve a document.
Cable Versus DSL
Differences between Cable Internet and DSL
DSL internet Cable internet
Data transmission via phone line Data transmission via coaxial cable
line
Connected through DSL modem Connected through cable modem
Dedicated phone line Shared cable television line
Connection speed not affected by number of users in the neighborhood
Connection speed affected by number of users in your neighborhood
Not all phone lines are equipped for DSL service Not all cable networks
are capable of cable internet service
Available to more homes than cable Availability is limited to certain
areas where two-way cable modem transmission is supported
Connection speed is affected by distance from ISP operation center Connection
speed is not affected by the distance
Maximum connection speed: up to 10 Mbps* Maximum connection speed up
to 30 Mbps*
Bundled with local phone service Bundled with cable television service
*Although cable internet is capable of a higher connection speed, the
actual speed difference between DSL and cable may be small. Most ISPs
have imposed bandwidth / speed caps for residential users, which limit
the maximum connection speed depending on service plans. For cable internet
users, the number of people sharing the same cable line at the same
time also affects the connection speed.
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