IT Jargon Buster

B
Backbone - A high-speed telecommunications line used to connect local branches of the Internet.
Bandwidth - A measurement of the speed of data transmission. Measured in bits per second (bps).
BIT –Short for binary digit.
Bitmap (BMP) - A file of image format i.e (picture.bmp).
Blog - An online diary.
Bookmark - Used to store the address of a web page in your browser. Often called a favourite this allows you to refer back to that webpage or site at a later time without having to type in the web address.
Bot - An automated software program used to carry out specific tasks.
BPS (bits per second) - A measurement of speed at which data is transferred.
Broadband - A service that enables large amounts of data to be transferred at fast speeds.
Browser - A program that enables you to view websites.
Burn - The recording of data onto a CD or DVD.
Byte - A measurement of computer storage space. There are 1024 bytes in one kilobyte (1KB), 1024 KB in a megabyte (MB) and 1024 MB in a gigabyte (GB).

C
Chat - A conversation over the Internet.
Client - A program that requests information from a server; WWW and ftp are server/client applications.
Cookie - The information sent to your computer from a website that you have viewed which later affects the way that you view the same site.
CPU - Central Processing Unit. This is generally a processor made by Intel or AMD.

D
Database - A store of related data or information, that can be easily retrieved or manipulated.
Dial-up - A connection to the Internet using a telephone line and modem.
Domain – The name of an individual web site i.e. www.edwards-associates.com
Download - Retrieving information from a different location i.e. a PC or a web site.
Downstream - The flow of data from a specific location to your PC.
DSL modem - A piece of hardware required to get a high speed broadband service.

E
Ecommerce - Commerce that is transacted electronically, as over the Internet.
Email – Electronic mail, either on a local network and/or across a wide area network.
Encryption - The process of translating data into a secret code for protection purposes.
Extranet - An intranet that is partially accessible to authorized outsiders.

F
File extension – A three character identifier to identify the file type. Examples are .doc (Word document), .xls (Excel file).
Firewall - Security that protects your computer from unauthorised access by others by blocking ports.
Freeware - Any type of software that is free to own and use.

G
Gateway – The connection between two different networks. Usually hardware and software.
Gigabyte (gb) - A unit of storage capacity. There are 1,024 megabytes in one GB.
GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) – A file extension for a type of graphics file.

H
Hacker - A term used by some to mean "a clever programmer" and by others, especially those in popular media, to mean "someone who tries to break into computer systems".
Hard drive – The physical device where your files are stored and where the operating system is installed
History - A list of previously viewed websites stored in your browser.
Home page – The first web page that appears whenever you first open your browser.
Hub - A device used in local area networks to make a connection between computers. Now superseded by switches.
Hyperlink - This can be a piece of text or an image that takes you to a website or location within a webpage when clicked.

I
Internet Explorer – Microsoft’s website browsing software.
Internet Service Provider (ISP) - A company that provides access to the Internet.
Internet - A network of networks around the world that facilitates data transfer and communication services.
Intranet - An internal, private network used within a company.
IP address - A unique 4-byte number that is used to identify servers or users connected to the Internet i.e. 192.168.0.100

J
JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group) – A file extension for a type of image format commonly used in web pages.

K
Kilobyte (kb) - A unit of storage capacity, there are 1024 bytes in a KB.

L
LAN - Local area Area Network.
Login - Accessing a computer, web site or other protected area by providing a user name and password.

M
Mbps (Megabits per second) - A measurement of speed when referring to data transfer.
Megabyte (mb) - A unit of storage capacity, there are 1024 kilobytes in a MB.
Megabite – what my Doberman gives intruders.
Micro Filter - A device that you plug into a phone socket to allow ADSL to work over standard copper lines. It separates the signal from standard voice calls.
Migration Fee - The fee that you would pay to move from your existing internet provider to a new one.
Modem (Modulator/Demodulator) - A device that allows computers to send and receive data using telephone lines. Examples of use are Fax and dial up Internet.
MP3 – File extension for a type of music file format.
MPEG – File extension for a type of video file format.
Multimedia – Tapplications and technologies that manipulate text, data, images, voice and full motion video objects.

N
Network - This is when two or more computers are connected allowing resources to be shared between them.
Network adaptor (Network card or NIC) - A piece of hardware that allows a PC to connect to a network.

O
Offline - The status of a user when not connected to the Internet.
Online - The status of a user when connected to the internet.
Overclocking- Running your CPU, graphics card or memory at higher settings to increase performance. Can cause unreliability.

P
Pixel - The smallest unit of a picture that can be displayed on a computer monitor. Alternatively a female Pixie.
Plug-in – An additional piece of software to enhance or increase the capabilities of the main application.
POP (Post Office Protocol) – A program which receives and holds mail until the recipient requests it.

R
RAM (random access memory) - Memory which stores data temporarily in your computer, this data is then lost when your computer is switched off.
Rip - Copying of data from a CD or DVD onto a computer hard drive.
ROM (read only memory) - This a type of memory containing data that normally can only be read, not altered as on a CD Rom
Router - An electronic device that connects a local area network (LAN) to a wide area network (WAN)

S
SDSL (Symmetric Digital Subscriber Line) - High speed data transfer over traditional telephone lines. Symmetric means data download and upload speed is the same.
Search engine - A website that allows you to search the Internet.
Server - A host computer on a network that stores information. Servers can control access, receive and distribute mail, host websites and fulfil many other functions.
Shareware – A term for software that you are actively encouraged to share with friends and colleagues. The theory being that if you like it you will pay a nominal fee to continue using it. Some shareware has limitation either in functionality or time built in until paid for.
Spam - Unwanted advertising sent through email.
Spyware - This is software that secretly gathers information about a user while he/she navigates the Internet.
Surfing - Browsing the Internet.

T
Terabyte – 1,099,511,627,776 bytes (or approximately one trillion bytes). A terabyte is equivalent to 1,000 gigabytes.
TCP/IP - Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol - A collection of protocols (rules) that depict how data is transferred across networks between computer systems.
TFT - Thin Film Transistor, a type of LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) used in the screen of laptops/notebooks.

U
Upload - The process of transferring data from your computer hard drive to a remote location.
Upstream - This refers to the flow of data from your PC to the Internet.
URL (Uniform Resource Locator) – The location of a file on the internet. The URL combines the network protocol to use.
USB (Universal Serial Bus) - A socket on your computer that different hardware can be plugged into. Examples printers, modems, memory sticks and cameras.

V
Virus - A man-made program that is designed specifically to cause damage to computer systems.
VNC - virtual network computing, makes it possible to interact with a computer from any computer or mobile device on the Internet. VNC software provides cross-platform support allowing remote control between different types of computers.

W
Webmaster - The person in charge of maintaining a web site.
Web page - A single document on the Internet viewed as a page in browser software.
Web site - A series of web pages all linked to each other by hypertext links to provide a whole.
Web space – Space on a server allocated to storing web sites.
WLAN - wireless local area network
Wi-Fi (wireless fidelity) - This term is used to describe a set of standards for devices that connect to a local area network using wireless technology.
Worm - A program that moves through computer networks replicating itself. It is usually designed to cause damage.

Z
Zip – A file extension for a type of file format that will contain compressed data..