Technical Buzz Words

Looking to impress your friends and co-workers? Not sure the difference between a JPG and a GIF? And is there more to JAVA script than how to make coffee?

Here’s a list of our most popular Web Buzz Words:

Technical Buzz Words 

Bandwidth - The amount of data that can travel through a circuit. This is measured in bits per second. The larger the bandwidth, the more data you can get through in a shorter period of time. Think of this as the difference between a small diameter hose and a larger one. You’ll have the advantage in a water fight with the larger hose.

DNS - Domain Name System. Here’s a goody, so pay close attention. Computers on the Internet are kept separate by the use of names and addresses. These addresses are usually expressed as a sequence of four sets of numbers separated by a decimal (for example 172.18.1.0). Because this would be difficult to remember and also hard to type in without making a mistake, we use the www.address.com style names for us humans. They’re translated into the numbering system.

Dynamic Sites - Through the use of Database programming, this type of web site offers so much more than a static site since it can constantly be updated from any where there’s access to the internet. This type of site is also necessary if e-commerce is to be considered, search functions are require and secure transactions of any type are to be conducted. 

These modifications can be made by anyone the client requests - even themselves! What needs to be updated you ask?
- copy and text can be: modified, changed, added, deleted, etc.
- photos/graphics can be changed any time
- prices for e-commerce sites: suggested retail, sell price, special sale price, etc. can be modified
- newsletters can be changed at will
- ‘Thoughts’ or ‘Tips’ of the day can be set-up days, weeks or even months in advance so the change as often as you wish without further intervention

e-commerce - Add on-line shopping to your web site making it easier for your customers to buy - placing more $$$ in your pocket! Shopping cart functions can be added to a Dynamic Site offering two
basic types of on line services:
#1) Merchant accounts are not set-up via the web so all necessary verifications of charge card accounts are made by hand - but the information sits on the web site keeping it secure (compared to e-mailing that isn’t secure).

#2) Merchant accounts are set-up for web verification and money transfers. This is more expensive due to additional on-line services that your bank will charge you as well as some additional programming necessary to keep the flow seamless.

FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions (We didn’t make this one up - honest!). You’ll find this acronym on many web sites. It helps because many of your questions may have already been asked by someone else. This is where you can look to find the answers.

FTP - File Transfer Protocol. This is the system that allows you to copy files from computers around the world onto your computer. Also see Unlimited FTP.

GIF - Graphics Interface Format. This is a standard format used to save line art such as graphics and logos in a compressed form. GIF’s can be seen in all browsers. It’s limitations are the number of colors that can be used - 256 (8-bit). That’s why it’s best not to use this type of format for color photographs that can be made of millions of colors. 

Some advantages are that you can have these graphics load onto your page in an interlaced style. This means that you don’t have to wait until the entire logo is ready to show on your page. You’ll first see a fuzzy form and then over a short period of time, it becomes clearer and sharper. What’s nice about this is that many people don’t want to wait to see a graphic if it’s going to take a while, but as long as they see something, they’ll hang on. 

Another advantage is that you can have any color in the image transparent. Thus allowing the background to show through. This eliminates that ugly white box that can show up around the image as it appears on the page. One other effect that is made from several GIFs is the Animated GIF. This is the motion you’ll see on an internet page. When you see a dog run across the screen, that’s an Animated GIF. 

HTML - Hypertext Mark Up Language. That’s the programming language that’s universally accepted for internet programming.

HTTP - These are the rules in which a web user’s browser accesses files from a web server.

HTTPS - Same as above, using rules from a secure web server.

ISP - Internet Service Provider. This is the company that gives you access to the World Wide Web via phone, cable or other means.

JPEG - Joint Photographic Experts Group. This type of file is used primarily for color photographs. Because most color pictures have millions of colors, a GIF would not be a good choice. The JPEG can use over 16 million colors (24-bit) and has several levels of compression. Of course there’s always a trade off. The more compressed the file, the faster it will load, but the greater the chance of loosing quality in the final photo.

The disadvantage of the JPEG format is that it’s not transparent and you can’t have it interlace when it loads. If you’re confused about those last two, you skipped the GIF definition. 

Java Applets - Miniature applications that bring your web pages to life! You can add sound, action and interactivity. It’s a shame you can’t use these Java Applets on people!

Java Script - This is an extension of HTML that allows ‘true’ interactivity with your web sight. It’s not as involved as Java Programming.

Key Words - See Meta Tags

Meta Tags - A list of approximately thirty (30) words that are ‘Key’ to helping search engines find your web site. This list should be made in the order of importance as well as common misspellings since it’s a human entering the search words into a search engine. 

For example: Harbor Freight: Harbor, Harbour, Freight, Frieght 

Mouse Over - A cool function that modifies a graphic (button, text, photo, etc.) to change when you place the mouse over it. This can be used to add some animation to the site as well as some functionality.

For example, when you ‘mouse over’ a navigational button, it can ‘light up’, ‘push in’, ‘move over’, etc. to let you know this is the button you’re choosing! Or place the mouse over a section of a graphical montage and words can pop up to help you see other options within the site.

Server - This is where your web site programming actually resides. Think of this as one very, huge hard drive!

Static Sites - Web sites that don’t need constant modifications to text or photos/graphics are usually static based. This is a less expensive alternative to a Dynamic site which uses a database to control the pages and it’s contents. When modifications are necessary, additional costs are based on a time and materials basis.

This does not mean the site sits motionless. Movement can be obtained incorporating animated graphics, mouse over programming and even eyecatching web design using graphics and photographs.

Thumbnail - Not that thing at the end of a finger, this refers to small photos and graphics that download quickly due to there size, but usually can be ‘clicked’ to show a larger image. People are usually willing to wait when they purposely download a larger picture.

Unlimited FTP - FTP is an acronym for File Transfer Protocol. All it means is that you can upload an unlimited # of files to the web at no cost. Uploading via FTP is one way to publish pages to a website. If a site is developed with MS FrontPage, the program has its own built-in publishing mechanism. The unlimited FTP claim is kind of a meaningless statement since it is a given with most webhosts. It is not truly unlimited anyway since you can't upload more files than the amount of web space your site will hold.

URL - Uniform Resource Locator. This is your street address that no one else can have. It’s your www.yourname.com.

Virtual Tour - This option allows the viewer to 'see' a room by rotating a panoramic photo 360 degrees with the click of a mouse. This feature is typically enabled with either java scripting or a Quick Time plug in available in newer Netscape and Explorer browsers.

Web Hosting - This is who has the server where your web site resides.