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Welcome to my HTML Glossary. Here you will find commonly used terms in the world of HTML and Web page editing. I hope that this page is of some use to you while you are learning how to create HTML pages.
µ-LAW
Pronounced as myew-lah this is the UNIX standard file format. You will sometimes see these files with the extension .au.
AIFF
Audio Interchange File Format. Standard audio format originally developed for the Macintosh, this is now supported on PCs as well.
Anchor
Also known as a hyperlink or hot spot. The part of a hypertext link that marks the spot which will take the user to another page (the part the viewer clicks on). Also used in reference to links that point to other parts of the same document using the NAME attribute.
Animated GIF
A GIF89a image file that contains multiple frames and a control block for controlling the timing and display of the animation.
Archie
An application that allows you to search for information at anonymous FTP sites on the Internet.
ASCII
These files are comprised of alphanumeric characters. These are sometimes referred to by some FTP programs as text files.
ASP
Active Server Pages; pat of Microsoft's Internet Information Server software that allows server-side scripting for the creation of dynamically generated web pages and database functions. Pages created with ASP usually have the suffix .asp.
AVI
Audio/Video Interleaved; a digital video format developed by Microsoft in which video and audio information are interleaved in every frame which provides smoother playback.
Bandwidth
The maximum volume of data that can be sent over a communications network. The greater the bandwidth the more data that can be transferred across.
Bridge
A device that connects one physical section of a network to another. Often used to combine networks running different types of networks or to subdivide a large network into smaller sub-networks.
Browser
An application that allows you to look through collections of things. For the most part, we are talking about Web browsers that enable you to access the World Wide Web.
Case Sensitive
Case sensitive means that the system recognises differences between upper (eg. A) and lower (eg. a) case. This can make a difference to someone who is writing a web page as the system would see Index.html as being different to index.html. At present, many web servers are running on Unix servers which are case sensitive so if you had a link on one of your pages such as <A HREF="MyPage.html"> and the file was saved on your web server as mypage.html your web server may not find the page as it regards MyPage.html to be a different file to mypage.html.
CGI
CGI stands for Common Gateway Interface. The concept is to provide a standard interface so that developers can use a wide variety of programming tools. CGI is a specification that lets Web servers execute other programs and have the resulting output incorporated into text, graphics, audio etc that is sent to the Web browser. Such things as databases for online shopping, visitor guestbooks and even counters use CGI to carry out the tasks required.
Character Set
Organisation of characters in which each character is assigned a specific language.
Check box
Used within a form, check boxes allow the reader to select one or more available options.
Client
The user of a service. Usually refers to a piece of software that gets information from a server.
Codec
Compression/decompression algorithms applied to media files.
Cookie
A cookie is a piece of information about a client process (eg. your visit to a particular Web site) that CGi server programs can store on the client's computer. Only the server that creates the cookie and the client that stores it have access to the information stored in the cookie. Such things as customised preferences, date a site was last visited etc can be stored in the cookie.
Counter
A program that resides on the server that tells how many people have accessed a particular HTML document. The difficulty is that some people may visit the same page several times and all would be counted as 'hits' due to the fact that the program doesn't (usually) differentiate between visitors. Some counters display the number of accesses on the page while other counters may log the results to a file that the only the owner of the page can see.
CSS
Cascading Style Sheets - an addition to HTML for controlling presentation of a document including colour, alignment of images, text etc.
DHTML
Dynamic HTML - integration of JavaScript, Cascading Style Sheets, and the Document Object Model (DOM). Using DHTML a designer can create content that moves across the screen or respond to user input.
Dialup
A type of connection where you use a modem to connect to another computer or an Internet Service Provider (ISP) via telephone lines.
Document Object Model (DOM)
The browser's internal organisation of the elements in a document. This makes page elements available to be manipulated by scripting or via style sheets. Naturally Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigators implementations vary significantly. Hey guys, how about keeping to agreed standards instead of trying to define your own?
Download
To transfer a file from the server you are browsing to your own computer. When you browse a page, essentially the page is downloaded to your computer and the browser interprets it. Downloading a file is more commonly thought of when you specifically request a file to be copied to your computer.
DPI
Dots Per Inch. In graphics this almost always refers to the measurement of the resolution of a printed image. It is also used to refer to the screen resolution of graphics. In reality web graphics are technically measure in Pixels Per Inch (PPI).
DTD
Document Type Definition. This usually refers to a file asociated with an SGML or XML document that defines how the tagsshould be interpreted and displayed. HTML, being a subset of SGML has it's own DTD.
Dynamic Page
A page that is built at the time that you access it. The basic structure of the page has already been created but the page may be updated with custom features just for you (eg. Search results from a search engine).
E-mail
Short for electronic mail. A message delivered from one computer user to another. You would normally use an electronic mail program that can be a standalone application or part of a browser.
E-mail Address
An address used to send e-mail to a user on the Internet. It consists of the user name and host machine (and any other required information such as gateway or country). An Internet e-mail address usually follows the form username@hostname
Encoding
The process of converting an analog source (eg audio signal) into digial format. The application that does the converting is called and encoder.
Encryption
Scrambling a message or data so that it can be read only by someone who knows how to unscramble it. Some browsers support encryption so that if you connect to a site that supports that standard, the information is sent securely by using encryption.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions. In other words, newbies start here. It contains a list of commonly asked questions on a topic. Most UseNet newsgroups have a FAQ to introduce new readers to topics in the newsgroup. It also prevents to some extent, repetition of the same questions over and over again.
Firewall
A device that is placed on a network to prevent unauthorise traffic from entering the network. A firewall can be hardware, software or a combination of both. It is most commonly used to protect corporate networks from unauthorised users from trying to penetrate the network from the outside (eg. from the Internet).
Form
A HTML document that allows the viewer to respond to questions or provide information (eg. surveys, guest books etc). You can construct a form to obtain information from visitors to a page, conduct online shopping and many sites use forms in much the same way that a paper based form would be used. Essentially, these are online data-entry sheets supported by the majority of Web browsers.
Frame Rate
When referring to video, the number of frames displayed per second. Frame rate is used as a measure of video quality.
FTP (File Transfer Protocol)
An Internet communications protocol that allows the user to transfer files between hosts on the Internet. Often an ISP will require you to copy your web pages to the server via an FTP program.
GIF
An image file type that is commonly used for drawings. GIF images work with almost all Web browsers. The most common image type on the Internet. A recent development of this file type has been the ability to include animation.
Gopher
An application that allows you to access publicly available information on Internet hostss that provide the Gopher service.
Hexadecimal
Base 16 numbering system consisting of the characters 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, A, B, C, D, E, F. A through F represents the digits 10 through to 15. It is used most commonly in HTML for specifying RGB colour values.
Home Page
The primary document on a Web site. Usually the first page that the visitor to a site sees. All other web pages on the site are usually linked to that page. Sometimes the links are indirect in that the home page links to a second page which has a link to a third page (you get the picture...)
Horizontal Rule
A line across HTML documents that is created by using the <HR> tag. Most commonly used to separate different parts of a document.
Host
An individual computer connected to the Internet.
Host Address
Also known as the IP address it is a unique number assigned to identify a host on the Internet. This address is usually represented as four number between 1 and 254 and separated by periods (eg. 192.8.203.254).
Host Name
A unique name for a host that corresponds to the host address. This makes it more user friendly than having to type in a series of numbers all the time (it's much easier to remember www.enigma.com than 192.8.203.254).
HTML
HyperText Markup Language is a variant of SGML (Standard Generalise Markup Language). The formatting language that is used to create Web documents.
HTML Editor
A specialised program that is used for adding HTML markup tags to a document. There is now a wide variety of editors from basic text editors to WYSIWYG site management tools.
HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol)
The Internet protocol that allows WWW hypertext documents to be retrieved quickly. It is also the reason why you usually type http: in your browser when accessing a site (so it knows what protocol to use).
Image Map
An image or part of an image that you click on to link to other information. Sometimes referred to as a clickable image.
ISP
Internet Service Provider. Obviously, since you are browsing this page you have Internet access. The provider of this service is referred to as an Internet Service Provider. Your place of work may have provided the access through their connection to the Internet or they have a third party who provides a connection to the Internet
Java
An object oriented programming language developed by Sun Microsystems. It bears some similarities to C++. It was specifically designed to be a development language for the Internet and features good security measures and cross platform compatibility (can run on different systems without having to be redeveloped).
Javascript
A scripting language that has some of it's roots in Java. It is designed to make Web pages more interactive by responding to events such as moving the mouse over a link or image. It is relatively easy for a novice to learn. Unlike CGI programs, the processing in these scripts is performed on the client side (within the browser).
JPG (JPEG)
An image file type that is most commonly used for photographs. This image type works with most Web browsers. JPG files are compressed to make them much smaller that GIF files but loss of detail is a result of this compression.
LAN (Local Area Network)
A network of computer that is (usually) limited to a small physical area (eg. a single building).
Links
The areas (words or images) in an HTML document that cause another document to be loaded when the user clicks on them.
Linux
A version of the UNIX operating system designed to run on PCs.
MIDI
Musical Instrument Digital Interface. This is an audio format that uses mathematical commands to describe the pitch and endurance of notes that a played by available digital instruments sound. While originally designed to allow electronic instruments to interface with other devices it has seen wide adoption on the Web to play background music when you visit a page.
MIME (Multi-Purpose Internet Mail Extensions)
An extension to Internet mail that allows the inclusion of non-text data such as video, audio etc in e-mail.
MPEG
A group of multimedia standards created by the Motion Picture Experts Group, commonly used to refer to audio and video files saved using one of the MPEG compression schemes.
Newsgroups
Electronic discussion groups of UseNet. These newsgroups cover a diverse range of topics with some companies using this as a means of providing support for products or determining what features users want or problems that need to be fixed.
Newsreaders
Not the person who reads the news to you on TV. These are applications that let you read and post articles in UseNet newsgroups. Many of these newsreaders feature offline capabilities allowing you to download the messages you want so that you can read them while offline and then reply to the messages at your leisure.
Packet
A unit of data transmission on the Internet. The packet consists of the data being transferred as well as additional information such as the transmitting and receiving destinations.
PDF
Portable Document Format. This is a file format developed by Adobe Systems which is used for capturing formatted page layouts for distribution. The freely distributable Acrobat Reader allows the user to view documents originally created in an application the user may not have installed on their system.
POP (Point of Presence)
Indicates the availability of a local access number to a public data network. Usually used in reference to an Internet Service Provider (ISP) and the coverage they offer. A local POP in your area code would mean that the call placed to the ISP when you log on is a local call.
PPI
Pixels per inch. The measurement of the resolution of a screen image.
PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol)
A driver that allows you to use a communication protocol for networks over a telephone line. Used with TCP/Ip to allow you to dialup an Internet Host.
Protocol
A standard that defines how computers on a network communicate with one another. If two computers were running different protocols, they would not be able to communicate.
Radio Button
A button within a form that allows you only one choice from several (eg. Yes, No).
Relative URL
A URL that points to another file in relation to the location of the current one. Confused? Think of it in regards to directions to a location: If you were told that a location was at 111 Smart Street it is an absolute address, being told that is down the street and to the right is a relative address. Most HTML documents use relative references so that if things change you don't have to redo large parts of the site.
RGB
Red Green Blue. When used in reference to web editing it refers to the colour system that descibes colours based on combinations of red, green and blue.
Router
Equipment that receives an Internet packet and ends it to the next machine in the destination path.
Select List
A list on a form from which you can select one or more items by clicking on the item(s). The way you select a font in a Word Processing application is an example of how a Select List behaves.
Server
Refers to the piece of hardware or software that provides access to information requested from it. Large sites will often have several servers to distribute the load.
Server Side Include (SSI)
A command that directs the server to run a program or include information dynamically (eg. time and date a page was last modified). SSI's increase the overhead on the server and large numbers of these can slow the server down reducing it's response to normal requests.
SGML
Standard Generalised Markup Language. A meta-language that provides a set of syntax rulse for marking up the structure of documents and their contents. HTML is a subset of SGML.
Static Page
A page that is only changed when the author updates it. The majority of Web pages fall in this category however, plans are afoot to change all that. The use of Javascript to make pages more interactive has changed the way people approach page design so that it not such a passive activity.
Tag
A command that is used in HTML to tell the browser to perform an action in HTML. Tags in HTML are enclosed in the < and > brackets. The majority of tags must have a corresponding closing tag so that browser knows when to stop the format that has been applied.
Telnet
A program that allows a remote logon to another computer. For example, when putting your web pages on a server, it is often necessary that you Telnet to your server, logon and copy the files across to the server.
Text Area
A part in a HTML form that allows the user to type longer amounts of information. A normal paper form may include a section where you can write additional detail or comments, the text area part of a HTML form performs a similar function.
UNIX
A multi user, multitasking oepratin system developed by Bell Laboratories. There are now a number of 'flavours' of UNIX such as Berkely, SCO etc.
URL
Uniform Resource Locator. The address of a document on the Internet that is used for specifying addresses for HTML documents. It is used to specify the location and the name of a web document but it can also refer to other services available from browsers such as ftp: mailto: etc. The URL of this document is http://www.ozemail.com.au/~enigman/html/html_gloss.html
UseNet
A collection of computer discussion groups that are read all over the world. Subjects are diverse from fetishes to computer programming.
VBScript
A scripting language that Microsoft has developed in response to Javascript. As it is not supported in browsers other than Microsoft's Internet Explorer it does not have as wide a following as Javascript.
Veronica
An Internet service that allows you to search the directories and files on Gopher servers for information.
VRML
A language that is still being refined that allows you to display 3-D objects in Web documents.
Wave
Waveform Audio File Format. This format was developed for the PC, the files commonly end with the .wav extension.This format is now supported by the Apple Macintosh.
Web
The interconnected maze of HTML documents, all related resources and media and the links among them on the Internet.
Webmaster
The person or persons who maintain a Web site. This does not necessarily have to be a technical person as the maintenance of the servers could be in the hands of a service provider or another person.
World Wide Web (WWW)
See Web.
WYSIWYG
What You See Is What You Get. Essentially, it means that what you see on the screen is the result you get. Some HTML editing programs have this facility so that you essentially draw and type on the screen what you want and the program takes care of the coding for you.
Do you feel that a term has been left out? Is there something that I have missed? Email me at enigman@ozemail.com.au
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