Glossary

Ad Server
A computer program or server that stores and displays advertisements to web site visitors as well as tracking the delivery and click through rates. A great example of an open source Ad Server is Openads.

Administrative Contact
The person authorized to interact with the domain name registrar on behalf of the domain name registrant. Administrative contacts can renew domain names, change domain name servers, and edit the contact information.

Anti-Virus
Software that helps to protect your computer from viruses. DomainIt includes antivirus software with all email accounts. It is also recommended that you use an anti-virus program on your own computer, such as AVG, Kapersky or Mcafee.

ASCII
(American Standard Code for Information Interchange) It is an international standard in which numbers, letters, punctuation marks, symbols, and control codes are assigned numbers 0 to 127. ASCII is easily transferred over networks because it is plain, unadorned text without style or font specifications. When uploading HTML files via ftp, it is advisable to upload them as ASCII.

ASP
(Application Service Provider) A website that runs applications on their servers and gives access to users.

Authentication
The process of verifying a user’s identity prior to a transaction, such as a domain name transfer.

Authorization
The process of verifying that a user is authorized to perform an action, such as make changes to a domain name’s contact information.

Avatar
Generally avatars are small pictures, graphics, or photos that are used to represent different individuals within online communities.

Backbone
The major high-speed network connections that power the Internet.

Backup
Web site backup offers protection in the case of a web site, server, or software problem. With web site backup, your web site files are safe from most errors.

Bandwidth
This refers to the amount of data that is transmitted from server to client, and vice versa. In other words, how much stuff you can send through a connection. Usually measured in bits-per-second.

BBS
(Bulletin Board System) It refers to a computer equipped with a bulletin board or message board type of system. In the early days of the Internet, you would dial into individual BBS’s to chat, upload & download files, etc.

Binary
Information consisting of ones and zeros. Also used to refer to files, such as images, that are not simple text. When FTPing files, images should be transferred in binary mode.

BIND
(Berkeley Internet Name Domain) DNS software run on Unix computers.

Bit
(Binary DigIT) A single digit number, either a 1 or a zero. The smallest unit of computerized data.

Blog
(weB LOG) Basically a journal that is available online and is updated by the owner daily via software that maintains the blog with no technical background knowledge needed by the owner. You can get a free blog from Google at Blogger. Most blogging programs allow you to forward your domain name to your blog.

Broadband
A high-speed internet connection.

Broker
A company in the business of buying and selling domain names. Domain name brokers usually act as facilitators between buyers and sellers, often providing services such as escrow, appraisals and trademarks.

Browser
A software program that interprets HTML coding into the words and graphics that you see when viewing a web page. The most common browsers are Mozilla’s Firefox, Safari, Google Chrome and Microsoft Internet Explorer.

Cache
A space on your computer where web pages that you have visited have been stored, allowing quick access when you return to those pages.

Catch All E-Mail
Catch all email accounts work like email forwarding accounts, but all-email@yourdomain.com will be forwarded to “one” email address that you specify. This allows you to use any alias and still be assured that all of your email will end up in one place.

ccTLD
(Country Code Top Level Domain). ccTLD’s are top level domain names that are specific to certain countries. For instance, co.uk is a UK ccTLD and .ca is Canada.

CGI-BIN
The server directory in which CGI/Perl scripts are stored.

CGI Scripts
(Common Gateway Interface) CGI or Perl scripts allow you to add features to your web site such as order forms, guestbooks, hit counters, shopping carts, etc.

Control Panel
A control panel is a web-based account management area where users can set email options, web hosting options, view statistics, change passwords, and more. All features of the account are generally accessible through a control panel.

Cookie
A message from a website that is stored on your computer and used to customize pages that you view.

CSS
(Cascading Style Sheets) A standard for specifying the appearance of elements, such as text, links, spacing, and even layout on a web page.

Custom Error Pages
The ability to customize your error pages, which helps to keep visitors on your web site that would have otherwise left after receiving an error.

Cyberspace
A term used to describe the Internet.

Database
A collection of data in one file.

Deactivation
When a domain name is deactivated, it will no longer have the information needed to translate it into it’s corresponding IP address, meaning that a website will no longer be available and computers will not be able to “find” the name.

Deletion
The process of a domain name being deleted from they domain name database. Users will no longer be able to locate the domain on the Internet and it will be released for sale by other parties.

DHCP
(Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) Allows IP addresses to be pooled and assigned as needed to clients.

DHTML
(Dynamic HyperText Markup Language) Refers to web pages that use a combination of HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.

Disk Space
Refers to the amount of space you are assigned on the web server. Contrary to what one might expect, the average Web Site takes up less than 10 megs of space.

Disk Transfer
Refers to the amount of bandwidth your web site uses. Typically, the more bandwidth you use, the more traffic you’re receiving (so that’s a good thing!).

DNS
(Domain Name System) Every computer on the Internet has a unique address – just like a telephone number – which is a rather complicated string of numbers called an IP address. Simply put, DNS makes using the Internet easier by allowing a familiar string of letters (the “Domain Name”) to be used instead of the IP address.

Domain Appraisal
An evaluation carried out to establish the potential market value of a domain name.

Domain Name
A Domain name is a textual mark used as a form of identification on the Internet. When used in conjunction with online services, domain names are easy to remember, easy to type alternatives to the real address of computers on the Internet which consists of a string of numbers (see IP address).

Download
The process of transferring files from a computer on the Internet to your own computer.

Dropped Domain
A previously registered domain name whose registration was allowed to lapse by the original owner, who refused to pay the renewal fee. The domain name returned to the “available” pool of domain names.

Dynamic IP
An IP which changes each time you log onto the Internet.

eCommerce
The conducting of business over the Internet.

Email Address
An E-mail address is like your postal address, only it’s online. By sending text or files to someone’s Email address (e.g. bill@microsoft.com), they will in turn be able to retrieve it from their mail server and read your message. Get your own email address @yourdomain.com.

Email Alias
An email alias is the XXXXX part of XXXXX@yourdomain.com.

Email Auto-Responder
An automated email program that sends a response to acknowledge the receipt of a message.

Email Forwarding
This handy feature will forward emails to your own ISP and/or email address. Your friends, clients, and associates will be emailing to XXXXX@yourdomain.com, the mail will come to you!

Encryption
A very secure method of guarding sensitive data that is traveling across the Internet.

Ethernet
A common method of networking, or connecting, computers together in a LAN (local area network) in order to share an Internet connection or files.

Expired domain
A domain name whose renewal date has passed, but which may or may not have yet been dropped from the domain name system.

Extension
A loose term for the final portion of a domain name beyond the right-most “.” For example in cd-web-design.co.uk, “.co.uk” is the extension.

FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions.

Firefox
An increasingly popular web browser developed by Mozilla.

Firewall
Software that helps protect your computer from viruses and intruders. It creates a “wall” between your computer and the Internet.

FTP
(File Transfer Protocol) The protocol with which you manage files and web pages on our web server. You can download the free FTP client Filezilla to upload files to your website from your PC, or Cyberduck for your Mac.

GIF
(Graphic Interchange Format) A commonly used file compression for images developed by CompuServe for transferring graphic files to and from online services.

Gigabyte
1024 megabytes, commonly rounded down to one billion bytes.

Guestbook
A Guestbook is a script that runs on your website, allowing users to leave messages.

Hit
Refers to a single request from a web browser for a single item from a web server. For instance, when you visit a web page, your browser may “hit” it several times in requesting various images along with the actual text file.

Hit Counter
Also called visitor counter, a hit counter is a simple script used to display the number of visitors for any given web page as either text or an image. The counter will increase by one each time the page is loaded. It can be visible or transparent to the user.

Home Page
The first/main page of a website. Homepage can also be referred to as the page that loads when you first open your web browser.

Host
A computer on a network acting as an information or communications server.

Hostmaster
An organization or company that handles all email related to network administration and domain name registration.

HTML
(Hypertext Markup Language) A computer programming language commonly used to create documents for the World Wide Web. (e.g. http://www.cd-web-design.co.uk/index.html)

HTTP
(HyperText Transfer Protocol) The means by which most documents travel throughout the Internet. The HTTP prefix can be seen at the beginning of URLs (i.e. http://www.cd-web-design.co.uk/)

Hypertext
The system that allows online files to be cross-linked in a way that readers can explore by clicking highlighted words.

IANA
(Internet Assigned Numbers Authority) The function that oversees registration for Internet Protocol parameters, such as port numbers, protocol and enterprise numbers, options, codes, and types.

ICANN
(The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) The non-profit corporation that was formed to assume responsibility for the IP address space allocation, protocol parameter assignment, domain name system management, and root server system management functions previously performed under U.S. Government contract by IANA and other entities.

IMAP
IMAP allows you to review message headers, create or delete folders and messages, and search contents remotely without actually downloading your email.

Individual or Role Account
Sometimes on a domain form, you are asked whether you want a contact to be allocated as an Individual or Role account. Role would only apply if the contact represents more than one person (e.g. a department).

Internet
Refers to the tens of thousands of inter-connected networks that connect into one global internet.

Internet Explorer
A standard browser provided by Microsoft within the Windows Operating System.

InterNIC
InterNIC (Internet Network Information Center), is a registered service mark of the U.S. Department of Commerce. InterNIC was previously responsible for registering and maintaining the .com, .net and .org Domain space

Intranet
A private network, generally within companies.

IP Address
The identification number that refers to a specific machine on the Internet. In the format 123.45.678.90, for example. By the magic of DNS, domain names can be used in place of IP addresses.

IRC
(Internet Relay Chat) A chat program designed in the 1980′s that requires an IRC compatible program and a login.

ISP
(Internet Service Provider) An ISP provides a connection for anyone with a phone line (or cable connection), modem, computer, and appropriate software to connect to the Internet. Well known examples are Earthlink and AOL.

IT
(Information Technology) A general term referring to computing and/or technology.

Java
A programming language designed by Sun Microsystems to write programs, also called “applets”, that can be transferred without fear of viruses.

JavaScript
A popular, simple programming language developed by Netscape to enable interactivity on web pages. Learn more about JavaScript.

JPEG
A common format for images, generally preferred for photographic images.

K
“K” stands for kilobyte.

KB
“KB” also stands for kilobyte.

Keyword
A keyword is a word used by a search engine to find relevant information throughout the web. In a database, a keyword is used to identify a database record.

Kilobyte
A kilobyte is made up of 1024 bytes, and is often rounded down to 1000 bytes.

LAN
(Local Area Network) A small computer network within the immediate area, such as your home.

Links
Hypertext connections between websites. Also called hotlinks or hyperlinks.

Linux
An open-source operating system often used on web hosting servers.

Listserv
Discussion groups that allow you to participate via email.

Login
Your account name, used in conjunction with a password, that is needed to gain access to a control panel or website.

Link/Code Checker
An account management tool that will check your web site for errors. It will make sure that all of your links resolve, that all your images display correctly and check your HTML code for any additional errors. A very handy tool for all levels of experience.

Locked Domain
A domain name that is locked can not be transferred to another registrar.

Log Files
Log files are where the server stores information about visits to your site. Log files can be used in conjunction with 3rd party statistics programs in order to investigate your user traffic history.

Mail List
A system that allows people to send an email to one address that will then copy it to all of the subscribers to the mailing list.

Mail Server
A mail server is the machine responsible for handling Email messages

Megabyte
A million bytes.

Meta Tag
Tags that are located at the top of a web page giving information that describes the web page such as a title, description, and keywords.

Mirror
A copy of a web page, generally used to describe ‘mirror’ download sites’ which contain copies of the same files allowing more widespread access.

MPEG
(Moving Pictures Expert Group) An International standard for video compressions.

MySQL
MySQL support allows you to utilize MYSQL databases on your web site. MySQL is an open source database management system that is used for processing data in a database and is available as a free download. Get more information about MySQL.

Name Server
A computer that performs the mapping of Domain Names to IP addresses. Must run specialized software such as BIND in the UNIX operating system. Ideally, they should have a constant and fast connection to the Internet. They also must be registered with a .com .net .org Registry so that their addresses can be logged and they can be found within the DNS system. Domain Names must be hosted on at least 2 unique (different) Name Servers at all times.

Navigation
The process of moving through a website following links.

Netiquette
Etiquette of the Internet.

Netizen
An Internet citizen. :)

Netscape
A browser designed by Netscape, originally based on the Mosaic browser. Download a free copy of Netscape Navigator.

Network
A group of at least 2 connected computers.

Newsgroup
A discussion based group on the Internet.

NIC
(Network Information Center) An organization responsible for supplying information for the networks that comprise the Internet.

NIC Handle
A unique character string, used by some Registries, that maps to a database entry containing contact details for a person, or organization.

Open Source
Free software that allows anyone to modify, read, or build new versions of the software.

Password
Your password, used in conjunction with an account name, that is needed to gain access to a control panel or website.

PDF
(Portable Document Format) Developed by Adobe, it is built into most browsers allowing you to send formatted documents that will stay formatted regardless of what browser users are using. Download Adobe Acrobat Reader, which allows you to read PDF files, for free.

PGP
(Pretty Good Privacy) Based on public key encryption, PGP is a secure way to send sensitive data via email.

Perl
(Practical Extraction and Report Language) A programming language used for both very small and simple tasks and large complex applications. It is generally used for creating CGI programs.

PHP
(originally Personal Home Page tools) An open source, server-side, cross platform, HTML embedded web scripting language allowing you to create dynamic web pages. PHP is used in place of ASP. PHP-enabled web pages are treated just like regular HTML pages and you can create and edit them the same way you normally create regular HTML pages. PHP filename extensions – .php/.php3/.phtml. Get more information about php.

Ping
A command allowing you to check if a server is running.

Plug-in
An add-on to a browser that enables it with additional features.

PNG
(Portable Network Graphics) A graphics format specifically design for use on the web. It enables compression of images without any loss of quality.

Podcasting
A form of audio broadcast on an “iPod”.

POP
(Post Office Protocol) The means by which Email is retrieved from the mail server.

Portal
A website that is usually the first place a user visits online. For instance, Yahoo!, which contains search data, news, weather, and so on would be considered a web portal.

Propagation
Refers to the process whereby name servers across the Internet are updated with new information so that they resolve to the proper location after a DNS update. This process can take from 12-72 hours to complete.

Protocol
A set of standards that define how traffic and communications are handled by a computer or network.

Quicktime
A digital video standard developed by Apple, which is cross-platform compatible. A free Quicktime download is needed to view QuickTime movies.

Registrant
The Registrant is the entity to which a domain name is registered. The Registrant has overriding authority over that domain name.

Registrar
A company in the business of registering domain names. An accredited registrar is permitted to update the domain name database (maintained by the Registry) directly. Other registrars work through partnerships with accredited registrars. Registrars pay a minimum fee per domain name to the Registry for the right to record the ownership of the domain name.

Registry
The organization in charge of maintaining the master database of all domain names, including details of ownership, expiry dates etc.

Registry Key
The password included in your confirmation message following a domain name registration. Keep your Registry Key confidential, in a safe but accessible place because you will need it to make updates.

Renewal
The process of renewing a domain name when it’s registered time frame is up. Domain names can be renewed for 1-10 years.

Root Servers
These 13 servers contain directories that allow for the locating of individual nameservers that hold information regarding top level domains.

RSS
(Rich Site Summary or Real Simply Syndication) A commonly used protocol for syndicating and sharing content such as a blog.

Search Engine
A program or website that helps users find websites and information in text-oriented databases.

Search Engine Submission
The act of submitting your website to the search engines. A search engine submission wizard is a tool that submits your URL to numerous search engines, all in one easy step.

Second Level Domain
The portion of the domain that appears next to the top level domain. For instance, in cd-web-design.co.uk, cd-web-design is the second level domain.

Secure Folders
Secure folders offer extra protection for web site files that contain sensitive data.

Security Certificate
A chunk of information that is used to establish a secure connection.

SEO
(Search Engine Optimization) The act of optimizing a website so that search engine spiders can easily interpret and index the pages throughout your site.

Server
A computer that acts as a host or “serves” information out to the Internet.

SGML
Standard Generalized Markup Language is an international standard for the publication and delivery of electronic information.

Shareware
Software developed for the public domain. It is often free, but sometimes a small fee is charged.

Shopping Cart
A program allows users to “shop” on a website, adding items to a virtual cart and checking out.

SHTML
(Server HyterText Markup Language) A file extensions that identifies pages containing SSI (Server-Side Include) commands. The “S” in front of the HTML signals to the server that the page needs to be processed.

Site Map
A site map is an HTML file that lists links to every web page within your website.

SMTP
(Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) The means by which Email is sent via the mail server

Spam
Refers to the “junk mail” that you receive in your email inbox.

Spiders
Computer robots typically used by search engines to automatically crawl through your website and index pages.

Spyware
Software that is secretly installed without your knowledge that is used to track what you are doing without your consent or is used to gather data from your computer. It is highly recommended that you use spyware software to routinely check and remove spyware that may be on your computer. There are several free programs you can download to protect your computer, including Windows Defender, Spybot, and Ad-Aware.

SSI
(Server-Side Include) An HTML instruction telling a computer to dynamically generate data for a web page.

SSL
(Secure Socket Layer) A commonly used protocol for managing the security of data transmission on the Internet. SSL uses a program layer between the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and Transport Control Protocol (TCP) layers. SSL uses the public-and-private key encryption system from RSA, which also includes the use of a digital certificate.

Static IP
An IP address that stays the same every time you log on to the Internet.

SQL
Structured Query Language is a standard interactive and programming language used for getting information from and updating to a database. Many database products support SQL. Queries take the form of a command language that lets you select, insert, update, find out the location of data, and so forth.

Tags
Formatting codes used within HTML documents. Tags indicate how parts of an HTML document will appear when displayed by a browser.

TCP/IP
(Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) These are the protocol’s that define the Internet. Originally designed for Unix, it is now included with every major operating system. To truly be on the Internet, your computer must have TCP/IP software.

Technical Contact
The person authorized to interact with the domain name registrar on behalf of the domain name registrant. Technical contacts can renew domain names, change domain name servers, and edit the contact information.

Third Level Domains
Also called Subdomains, they are the portion of a domain name that appears to the left of a domain. For instance, in help.cd-web-design.co.uk, help would be the subdomain.

TLD
(Top Level Domain) The highest level of hierarchy in the Domain Name System. There are two types of Top Level Domains: 1) Generic or gTLDs, such as .com .net .org, and 2) Country Code or ccTLD which are assigned to all countries and their dependencies. Every TLD Registry sets its own prices, policies, and procedures to which the Registrants are subject to.

Transfer (DNS)
Changing the (2+) Name Servers on a domain record so that the domain resolves to the new provider.

Transfer (Registrant)
The sale of a domain name is sometimes known as a “domain transfer” since in the case of a sale what really happens is a transfer of rights in the given domain name, which is reflected by a change in the ownership details recorded in the Registry.

Unix
An operating system designed to be used by more than one person at a time. It is the most common operating system for servers on the Internet.

Unlocked Domain
An unlocked domain name can be transferred to another registrar at any time.

Upload
The process of transferring files from your computer to a computer on the Internet.

URL
(Uniform Resource Locator) The “address” or location of a Web site or other Internet service. (e.g. http://www.cd-web-design.co.uk)

URL Forwarding
By using URL forwarding (also called website redirect), any time an Internet user types your domain name into their browser, they will be instantly (and unnoticeably) taken to another web site address of your choice.

Virus
A program, generally malicious, that replicate and cause corruption and data loss on a computer. See anti-virus for information on protecting yourself from viruses.

WebBasedMail
WebBasedMail allows you to send and receive your e-mail from any location with just a browser and an Internet connection.

Web Design
The act of designing a website. Web Design can be done by using software such as Adobe Dreamweaver or CoffeeCup for Windows, an Instant Site Design tool, a professional designer, or a Web Design Template.

Web Design Templates
Full html website templates, flash templates and other ready-to-use web design products that can be used as a basis for a fast and high-quality website.

Web Page
A single document, or page, on the Internet.

Webmaster
A person in charge of administrating a web site.

Website
A collection of web pages.

Website Redirect
By using a web site redirect (also called URL forwarding), any time an Internet user types your domain name into their browser, they will be instantly (and unnoticeably) taken to another web site address of your choice.

Website Statistics
Detailed daily and monthly statistics allow you to get a clear overview of who is visiting your site, how often, which pages are most popular etc.

WHOIS
WHOIS refers to the database of records maintained by each Domain Registry. Although each Registry makes different data public, you can generally find information on domain name availability, registrant, administrative, billing and technical contact information, name servers, plus dates of activity.

World Wide Web
Also known as WWW, it is a hypertext-based Internet service used for browsing Internet resources.

WYSIWYG
(What You See Is What You Get) This term is often used in association with software products such as Microsoft FrontPage, where you design a page and immediately see how it will look on the Internet.

XML
eXtensible Mark-up Language, used especially for web pages. XML allows designers to create their own customized tags to provide functionality not available with HTML. It is especially useful for pages that come from database information and parts of the page are standardized and need to appear the same many times.

Zone
A portion of the domain name space that is represented by the data stored on a name server. The name server has authority over the zone described by that data.

Zone File
A file that contains data describing a portion of the domain name space. Zone files contain the information needed to resolve domain names to Internet Protocol (IP) numbers.