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Network Chico Computer
terms glossary
Some definitions from the Sharpened Glossary
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C/C++: C is a high-level
programming language that was developed in the mid-1970s. It
was originally used for writing Unix programs but now is used
to write applications for nearly every available platform. Some
nice things about the language are that it is easy to read, it
is flexible (can be used for a wide variety of purposes), and
C programs typically use memory very efficiently. C++, pronounced
"C plus plus," is a programming language that was built
off the C language. The syntax of C++ is nearly identical to
C, but it has object-oriented features, which allow the programmer
to create objects within the code. This makes programming easier,
more efficient, and some would even say, more fun. Because of
the power and flexibility of the language, most programs today
are written in C++.
Cable modem: Though a
cable modem serves the same purpose as a typical analog, or dial-up
modem, a cable modem is different in many ways. The biggest difference
is that a cable modem is much faster. While a 56K modem can receive
data at about 53 Kbps, a cable modem can haul it in at about
1.544 Mbps (Megabits per second). That's about 30 times faster.
The actual Internet bandwidth over a cable line can be as high
as 27 Mbps downstream and 2.5 Mbps upstream. However, most cable
modems connect to the ISP's T1 connection, which maxes out at
1.5 Mpbs, so that will be the maximum transfer rate for the suscriber.
Another important way that a cable modem is different than a
dial-up modem is that it doesn't connect to a phone line. Instead,
the cable modem connects to a local cable TV line, hence the
term "cable modem." This allows computers equipped
with a cable modem to have a continuous connection to the Internet.
Therefore, there is no need to dial up the ISP everytime you
want to check your e-mail. Cable modems, which have a much more
complex design than dial-up modems, are usually external devices,
but there are some models that can be integrated within a computer.
Instead of connecting to a serial port like a dial-up modem,
cable modems attach to a standard Ethernet port so that they
can transfer data at the fastest speed possible.
Cable tester: A network
troubleshooting device that can test for cable defects, monitor
network collisions and monitor network congestion.
Cache: This term is pronounced
like "cash" -- not "catch," and definitely
not "cashé." There are many different types
of caches but they all serve the same purpose. A cache stores
recently-used information in a place where it can be accessed
extremely fast. For example, a web browser like Internet Explorer
uses a cache to store the pages, images, and URLs of recently
visted web sites on your hard drive. With this neat strategy,
when you visit a page you have recently been to, the pages and
images don't have to be downloaded to your computer all over
again. Because accessing your computer's hard disk is much faster
than accessing the Internet, caching web sites can speed up web
browsing significantly. Most web browsers allow you to adjust
the size of the cache in in browser preferenecs. Another common
type of cache is a disk cache. This stores information you have
recently read from your hard disk in the computer's RAM, or memory.
Since accessing RAM is much faster than reading data off the
hard disk, this can help you access common files and folders
on your hard drive much faster. Another type of cache is a processor
cache which stores small amounts of information right next to
the processor. This helps make the processing of common instructions
much more efficient, thereby speeding up computation time.
CAD: "Computer-Aided
Design" Also known by engineers and architects as the best
invention of all time. Today, CAD software is used for nearly
all three-dimensional designing. Designers can turn an object
into an electronic representation more quickly and accurately
than by diagraming it with a pencil and paper. Better yet, objects
created with CAD software can be moved, resized, and rotated
instantly.
Category 1-6: The EIA/TIA
designation for unshielded twisted-pair cable described in terms
of categories, labeled Category 1, Category 2 and so on. Often
these are abbreviated Cat1, Cat2 and so on.
CDPD: "Cellular Digital
Packet Data" A cellular communications technology that sends
packets of digital data over unused cellular voice channels at
a rate of 19.2 Kbps. CDPD is one of an emerging family of mobile
computing technologies.
Cellular packet radio:
A communications technology that sends packets of data over radio
frequencies different from those used for cellular telephones.
A generic term for an emerging family of mobile computing technologies.
Central office: A phone
company's or communications provider's local facility where copper
local telephone cables (sometimes called the subscriber loop
or the "last mile" of cable in the telecommunications
infrastructure) link to long-haul, all-digital, fiber-optic communications
lines.
Centralized administration:
A way of controlling access to network resources and managing
network setup and configuration data from a single point of access
and control. The domain controllers of a Windows NT Server and
Windows 2000/2003 Server provide this capability.
Centralized computing:
A computing environment in which all processing takes place on
a mainframe or central computer.
CGI: "Common Gateway
Interface" CGI is a set of rules for running scripts or
programs on a web server. When you submit information, like search
terms or your username and password, to a web server, there's
a good chance that the server is using a CGI script to receive
and process the data. However, with new scripting languages such
as PHP, ASP, and JSP attracting many web programmers, CGI scripts
aren't as not as prevalent as they once were.
Channel access method:
The rules used to determine which computer can send data across
the network thereby preventing data loss due to collisions.
Cheapernet: A synonym
for 10Base2, also known as thinnet or thinwire Ethernet.
Chip: A fixed-sized element
of data broadcast over a single frequency using the spread-spectrum
radio networking technology called direct-sequence modulation.
Chip is also commonly used in reference to any solid state silicon
circuitry such as a processor or a clock "chip."
Chipset: This term is
used to describe the architecture of an integrated circuit. For
example, the chipset of a modem card would be much different
than the chipset of a computer's CPU. Processors themselves also
have different chipsets. For example, a Pentium II and Pentium
III have slightly different chipsets, and the PowerPC processors
have other kinds. Though there are many different types of chipsets
that reside in today's computer hardware, the average user does
not need to know much about them.
CIDR: "Classless
Inter-Domain Routing" A more efficient way to assign IP
addresses than using IP address "classes."
CIR: "Committed Information
Rate" A performance measurement of guaranteed throughput
rates.
CISC: "Complex Instruction
Set Computing." This is a type of microprocessor design.
The CISC architecture contains a large set of computer instructions
that range from very simple to very complex and specialized.
Though the design was intended to compute complex instructions
in the most efficient way, it was later found that many small,
short instructions could compute complex instructions more efficiently.
This led to a design called Reduced Instruction Set Computing
(RISC), which is now the other major kind of microprocessor architecture.
Intel Pentium processors are mainly CISC-based, with some RISC
facilities built into them, whereas the PowerPC processors are
completely RISC-based.
Cladding: A nontransparent
layer of plastic or glass material indie fiber-optic cable that
surrounds the inner core of glass or plastic fibers. Cladding
provides rigidity, strength and a manageable outer diameter for
fiber-optic cables.
Client: In the computer
world, servers have clients. The "client-server" architecture
is common in both local and wide area networks. For example,
if an office has a server that stores the company's database
on it the other computers in the office that can access the datbase
are "clients" of the server. On a larger scale, when
you access your e-mail from a mail server on the Internet your
computer acts as the client that connects to the mail server.
Client network software:
The term is used to refer to the software that acts as the interface
between the client computer and the server and enables the use
of network resources.. For example, if you use Microsoft Outlook
to check your e-mail then Outlook is your "e-mail client
software" that allows you to send and receive messages from
the server.
Client-based multivendor solution:
When multiple redirectors are loaded on a client the client can
communicate with servers from different vendors.
Client/server: A model
for computing in which some computers (clients) request services
and others (servers) respond to such requests for services.
Client/server computing:
A computing environment in which the processing is divided between
the client and the server.
Client/server relationship:
Applications may sometimes be divided across the network, so
that a client-side compnent runs on the user's machine and supplies
request and display services, while a server-side component runs
on an application server and handles data processing or other
intensive computation services on the user's behalf.
Clustered server: A network
server which is a member of a group of two or more servers. All
machines in the group employ a combination of special operating
system software and a dedicated high-speed link. This permits
all machines in the group to behave as one super-powered network
server rather than single independent, individual servers.
CMOS: "Complementary
Metal Oxide Semiconductor" This technology is typically
used in making transistors. The "complementary" part
of the term unfortunately does not mean these semiconductors
are free. Instead, it refers to how they produce either a positive
or negative charge. Because CMOS-based transistors only use one
charge at a time, they run efficiently, using up very little
power. This is because the charges can stay in one state for
a long period of time, allowing the transistor to use little
or no power except when needed. Because of their wonderful efficiency
processors that use CMOS-based transistors can run at extremely
high speeds without getting too hot and going up in flames. You
may also find CMOS memory in your computer which holds the date
and time and other basic system settings. The low power consumption
of CMOS allows the memory to be powered by a simple Lithium battery
for many years.
Coaxial cable: A type
of cable that uses a center conductor, wrapped by an insulating
layer, surrounded by a braided wire mesh and an outer jacket
or sheath, to carry high-bandwidth signals such as network traffic
or broadcast television frequencies.
Codec: The name "codec"
is short for "coder-decoder," which is pretty much
what a codec does. Most audio and video formats use some sort
of compression so that they don't take up a ridiculous amount
of disk space. Audio and video files are compressed with a certain
codec when they are saved and then decompressed by the codec
when they are played back. Common codecs include MPEG and AVI
for video files and WAV and AIFF for audio files. Codecs can
also be used to compress streaming media (live audio and video)
which makes it possible to broadcast a live audio or video clip
over a broadband Internet connection.
Collision: Occurs when
two computers put data on the cable at the same time. This corrupts
the electronic signals in the packet and causes data loss.
Combination network: A
network that incorporates both peer-to-peer and server-based
capabilities.
Communication server:
A specialized network server that provides access to resources
on the network for users not directly attached to the network
or that permits network users to access external resources not
directly attached to the network.
Communications carrier:
A company that provides communications services for other organizations
such as your local phone company and the long distance telephone
carriers. Most mobile computing technologies rely on the services
of a communications carrier to handle the wireless traffic from
mobile units to a centralized wired network of some kind.
Compact Flash: Often abbreviated
as simply "CF," Compact Flash is a type of flash memory.
Compact flash cards are most commonly used for storing pictures
in digital cameras but are also used in devices such as PDAs
and portable music players. There are two types of Compact Flash
cards, creatively named "Type I" and "Type II."
Type I cards are 3.3 mm thick, while Type II are 5 mm thick.
IBM makes a "MicroDrive" card that has the same dimensions
as a Type II CF card, but uses an actual hard drive construction
rather than flash memory. Compact Flash cards originally could
only store a few megabyes of data, but now can store several
gigabytes. The new CF+ standard can store a possible 137 GB of
data.
Computer: Technically,
a computer is a programmable machine. This means it can execute
a programmed list of instructions and respond to new instructions
that it is given. Today, however, the term is most often used
to refer to the desktop and laptop computers that most people
use. When referring to a desktop model the term "computer"
technically only refers to the computer itself and not the monitor,
keyboard, and mouse. Still, it is acceptable to refer to everything
together as the computer. If you want to be really technical,
the box that holds the computer is called the "system unit."
Some of the major parts of a personal computer (PC) include the
motherboard, CPU, memory (RAM), hard drive, and video card. While
personal computers are by far the most common type of computers
today there are several other types of computers. For example,
a "minicomputer" is a powerful computer that can support
many users at once. A "mainframe" is a large, high-powered
computer that can perform billions of calculations from multiple
sources at one time. Finally, a "supercomputer" is
a machine that can process billions of instructions a second
and is used to calculate extremely complex calculations.
Concentrator: Used in
an FDDI network to connect computers at a central point. Most
concentrators connect to both available rings.
Conduit: Plastic or metal
pipe laid specifically to provide a protected enclosure for cabling
of any kind.
Configuration: In the
computing world, when people talk about their computer configuration,
they are referring to the technical specifications, or the "tech
specs" of their computer. These specs typically include
processor speed, the amount of RAM, hard drive space, and the
type of video card in the machine. While there are many other
advanced specifications that you could list if you know the four
mentioned above most computer geeks will grant you acceptance
into their conversation.
Congestion control: A
technique for monitoring network utilization and manipulating
transmission or forwarding rates for data frames to keep traffic
levels from overwhelming the network medium. It gets its name
because it avoids "network traffic jams."
Connection-oriented: A
type of protocol that establishes a formal connection between
two computers, guaranteeing the data will reach its destination.
Connectionless: A type
of protocol that sends the data across the network to its destination
without guaranteeing receipt.
Contention: A channel
access method in which computers vie for time on the network.
Cookie: In computer terminology
a cookie is data sent to your computer by a web server that records
your actions on a certain web site. It's a lot like a preference
file for a typical computer program. When you visit the site
after being sent the cookie the site will load certain pages
according to the information stored in the cookie. For example,
some sites can remember information like your user name and password,
so you don't have to re-enter it each time you visit the site.
Cookies are what allow you to have personalized web sites like
"My Excite" or "My Yahoo," where you can
customize what is displayed on the page. While cookies have many
benefits some people don't like to have their information recorded
by web sites that they visit. For this reason most web browsers
have an option to accept or deny cookies.
Cooperative multitasking:
A form of multitasking in which each individual process controls
the length of time it maintains exclusive control over the CPU.
Copy backup: Copies of
all selected files without resetting the archive bit.
Counters: A certain part
of an object. For example, the Processor object has counters
such as % Processor Time and % Interrupt Time per second.
CPU: "Central Processing
Unit" This is the pretty much the brain of your computer.
It processes everything from basic instructions to complex functions.
Any time something needs to be computed it gets sent to the CPU.
The CPU can also be referred to simply as the "processor."
CRC: "Cyclical Redundancy
Check" A mathematical recipe that generates a specific value,
called a checksum, based on the contents of a data frame. The
CRC is calculated before transmission of a data frame and then
included with the frame. Upon receipt the CRC is recalculated
and compared to the sent value. If the two agree that data frame
is assumed to have been delivered intact. If the two disagree
then the data frame must be retransmitted.
CRM: "Customer Relationship
Management" This is a business term that started somewhere
in the deep abyss of the IT (Information Technology) world. CRM
refers to solutions and strategies for managing businesses' relationships
with customers. With the advent of web retailing companies have
found it hard to develop relationships with customers since the
e-commerce interface is so impersonal. After all, don't you miss
the firm handshake and sparkling smile of the salesperson who
just sold you the most expensive computer system in the store?
Well, whether or not you miss the personal experience of the
retail store, the goal of CRM is to give you that feeling when
you buy products over the Internet. When it comes to CRM customer
service is the number one priority. Yes, all companies seem to
make that claim, but when online businesses create CRM models,
it really is the case.
Crosstalk: A phenomenon
that occurs when two wires lay against each other in parallel.
Signals traveling down one wire can interfere with signals traveling
down the other and vice versa.
CSMA/CA: "Carrier
Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance" A contention-based
channel access method in which computers avoid collisions by
broadcasting their intent to send data.
CSMA/CD: "Carrier
Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection" A contention-based
channel access method in which computers avoid collisions by
listening to the network before sending data. If a computer senses
data on the network it waits a random amount of time and tries
to send its data later.
CSU/DSU: "Channel
Service Unit/Data Service Unit" A device that links a computer
or network to a DDS communications link.
Crossplatform: Software
that can run on multiple types of computer systems is said to
be crossplatform. For example the graphics program Adobe Photoshop
runs both on Windows and Macintosh computers. Therefore Photoshop
is considered a crossplatform application.
Cursor: The cursor on
your screen can indicate two things: 1) where your mouse pointer
is, or 2) where the next character typed will be entered in a
line of text. The mouse cursor is most often an arrow that you
can use to point to different objects on your screen. When the
cursor is over an object you can click or double-click the mouse
button to perform an action on that object (such as opening a
program). The mouse cursor can change into other images, such
as a small hand (when you roll over a link in a web page), or
an hourglass (when Windows is "thinking" so hard, it
won't let you click on anything). The text cursor is typically
a straight vertical line or I-shaped object that flashes in a
line of text. Typically, when you are typing a paper, the cursor
will be at the end of the line, because you are adding new text
to the uncharted white area of the page. However, if you want
to insert a word or phrase somewhere else in a line of text,
you can use the mouse cursor to click the position where you
would like to insert the text. In most word processing programs,
once you start typing, the text cursor continues to flash, but
the mouse pointer disappears until you move the mouse again.
This is to avoid "cursor confusion," since most people
can't type and click on things at the same time.
Cyberspace: Unlike most
computer terms, "cyberspace" does not have a standard,
objective definition. Instead, it is generally used to describe
the virtual world of computers. For example, an object in cyberspace
is a block of data floating around on some computer system or
network. With the advent of the Internet cyberspace is now also
used to refer to the global network of computers. So, after sending
an e-mail to your friend, you could say you sent the message
to her through cyberspace. However use this term sparingly as
it is a popular newbie term and is already well overused.
Network Chico Computer
terms glossary
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