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A B C D E F H I L M N O P Q R S U V W

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ADDRESS: A location of a web site or file on the Internet.

BOOKMARK: A term used with Netscape Browsers. A saved address to a Web site that has been added to a list of saved addresses. Instead of retyping an address again, you can go to your bookmarks and click on the address to return to the site.

BROWSER (WEB BROWSER): A software program that enables you to see, and hear content on the World Wide Web. This includes, text, graphics, sound, and video. Popular browsers are Netscape, and Internet Explorer.

CHARACTER MAP: A string of characters to create a character that is not on your keyboard. For example to create the character © you hold down the Alt key on your keyboard and type 0169 into your number pad, then release the Alt key.

CHAT ROOM: A place where you can talk to another person or group of people in real time. Communication is usually through typing.

COPY AND PASTE: A procedure where you copy text on a page into a temporary holding spot called your clipboard, then paste it into another area on the page or into another application.

DIRECTORY: A directory of links to Internet sites. These directories may be searchable. Links to other sites are gathered and sorted by category. Examples of directory sites are About.com and Yahoo.

DNS (DOMAIN NAME SYSTEM): A system of numbers that are actually used by computers instead of Domain Names to locate a Web Site. When you type in http://familyinternet.about.com the browser looks for a DNS number that matches the address. Computers deal with numbers easier, while humans remember names easier, so computers use the numbers while humans use an address. An example DNS number is 206.132.96.20.

DOWNLOAD: Where you copy a file from another computer to yours. Everytime you access a page, you download the information on the page and temporarily store it on your computer.

EMAIL (Electronic Mail): A means of communication over the Internet.

EMOTICONS: A string of characters that represent and emotion when you type. ie. :) Happy, :( Sad, :o Shocked

FAQ: Abbreviation for Frequently Asked Questions. Many Web sites try to gather questions that are frequently asked and put them in one place.

FAVORITES: A term used with Internet Explorer Browser. A saved address to a Web site that has been added to a list of saved addresses. Instead of retyping an address again, you can go to your bookmarks and click on the address to return to the site.

FTP: Abbreviation for File Transfer Protocol. A special FTP program is used to transfer files from one computer to another. It is often used by Webmasters to upload their files to a Website. It is also used to download files from Websites.

HARDWARE: Term used for the physical components of a computer.

HISTORY: Your browser keeps a record of sites that have been loaded by the browser.

HOME PAGE: A Web page that is about you or a page that you create with your favorite links. Also this term is used for the start page that loads when ever you open your browser.

HYPERTEXT TRANSFER PROTOCOL: A standard used by World Wide Web servers to provide rules for moving text, images, sound, video, and other multimedia files across the Internet.

ICON: A small picture on a Web page that represents the topic or information category of another Web page. Frequently, the icon is a hypertext link to that page.

INTERNET: A worldwide collection of computer networks that allows people to find and use information and communicate with others.

ISP (Internet Service Provider): A generic term for any company that can connect you directly to the Internet.

LINK (HYPERTEXT LINK): A term used on the Internet for a clickable address or word that will send you to another area of the site you are at, or to a different Internet site.

MATHMETIC OPERATIONS: To multiple or divide with your computer, you use "*" to multipy, "/" to divide. For example to multiply 10 by 7, then divide by 2, you would display this as 10*7/2.

MODEM: A device that allows computers to communicate with each other over telephone lines or other delivery systems by changing digital signals to telephone signals for transmission and then back to digital signals. Modems come in different speeds: the higher the speed, the faster the data is transmitted. There are also cable modems where you can connect to the Internet through your cablevision.

NETIQUETTE: Rules or manners for interacting courteously with others online (such as not typing a message in all capital letters, which is equivalent to shouting).

ONLINE SERVICE: A company that provides Internet access with extras, like their own chatrooms and services. Examples are AOL and Earthlink.

PIXEL: A very tiny dot of information that is displayed on a picture or screen. Refer to Resolution.

POST: An act of putting information on the Internet. You usually post to newsgroups or bulletin boards. You can also post a Web page.

QUERY: A query is a computer term for a question.

RESOLUTION: You can adjust your computer's resolution, so you can fit more on the screen. Resolution refers to the number of pixels that fit on the screen. Usual configurations include 640x480, 800x600, 1024x768. With 640x480 it is 640 pixels wide by 480 pixels tall, for a total of 307,200 pixels (640*480) being shown on your screen.

SEARCH ENGINE: A program that performs keyword searches for information on the Internet. The program sends a robot to an Internet site and it gathers keywords and stores them. When you search, it's search results are gathered by relavence to your query. Some of the more popular search engines are Altavista, Go, Thunderstone.

SOFTWARE: A computer program or set of instructions. System software operates on the machine itself and is invisible to you. Application software allows you to carry out certain activities, such as word processing, games, and spreadsheets.

SPAM: An expression for unsolicited email, generally from a company trying to get you to visit their web site or an offer to make money.

URL (Uniform Resource Locator): The World Wide Web address of a site on the Internet. For example, the URL for the White House is http://www.whitehouse.gov.

USENET NEWSGROUPS: A system of thousands of special interest groups to which readers can send or "post" messages; these messages are then distributed to other computers on the network. Usenet registers newsgroups, which are available through Internet Service Providers.

VIRUS: A piece of programming code inserted into other programming to cause some unexpected and usually undesirable event, such as lost or damaged files. Viruses can be transmitted by downloading programming from other sites or can be present on a diskette. The source of the file you're downloading or of a diskette you've received is often unaware of the virus. The virus lies dormant until circumstances cause its code to be executed by the computer.

WALLPAPER: The picture or design that is present on your screen when you don't have any windows open.

WORLD WIDE WEB (Web or WWW): A hypertext-based system that allows you to browse through a variety of linked Internet resources organized by colorful, graphics-oriented home pages.