Internet Jargon

The internet is based on information technology, and information technology is full of technical terms. It's unfortunate, but unavoidable. Some terms you've probably heard but that you may not yet understand:

  • html - Hypertext Markup Language - the language in which web pages are specified.
  • browser - software that can read an HTML file and display it on your computer screen.
  • IP address - Internet Protocol address. The address of a computer on the internet.
  • hosting - a web host is a computer that stores web pages.
  • server - a computer that performs a service (such as sending a web page or checking an account balance) when requested by a client.
  • client - a computer program that requests a service from a server. For example, a browser such as Internet Explorer is a client that requests web pages from a server.
  • client-server architecture - a way of dividing tasks between computers.
  • bandwidth - the amount of data that can be transmitted per second.
  • protocol - a set of rules followed by computers that want to communicate. Examples include HTTP, FTP, SMTP, PPP and more
  • Real time - as it happens.

Some more technical terms:

  • SOAP
  • XML
  • Javascript
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