Proper etiquette on the net is just common sense and can be summed up in a sentence any kindergardener could understand. Just be nice to others. Keeping that in mind there are a few things different about the net than in reality. (like duh?) For example, I bet that you do not go around shouting at everybody. Well you should not shout on the internet as well. So remember when you are sending an E-Mail, talking in a Chat Room, or playing a game over the internet, do not use all capitol letters.
THIS MEANS THAT I AM SHOUTING! ......and it is not polite to shout.
Technical Terms Briefly Explained
Active Server Page:
Microsoft technology, created in December 1996. It allows for heavy programs and databases to be incorporated into web pages. The default language is VBScript but you can use Perl, JScript(JavaScript) etc. Active Server Pages is mostly server sided, meaning that the script is run on the webserver, so that the webpage functions regardless of what browser you use. It generates clean HTML, which means that if you looked at the source of the HTML file you would only see straight HTML code. The neat part of ASP is that now when you write the script code no one will be able to see it, even when they look at the source of the document, therefore they can not steal it, but it will function just as if it were there. This is because the script actually runs on the server before it downloads to the browser.
ActiveX:
Microsoft technology that allows browsers to download applets directly to your computer. Similiar to Java, but ActiveX is not a programming language like Java. ActiveX controls can be created by other programming languages such as C/C++.
Applets:
Any program that can be directly downloaded to your browser just by viewing the webpage in which they are contained. Applets can be created by Java or ActiveX.
Bandwidth:
How much information that can be sent through any connection at a given time. This is usually measured in bits per second.
Baud:
How many bits a modem can send or receive per second.
BBS:
Stands for Bulletin Board System This is a computerized meeting and announcement system that can allow people to talk, upload and download files and make announcements without all of the people being connected to the computer at the same time.
Bit:
(Binary digIT) A single digit number that is either a 0 or a 1. This is the smallest unit of computerized data. Bandwidth is measured in bits-per-second.
Browser:
A program that runs from your computer that allows you to view Web pages on the internet. The most common browsers now are Microsoft Internet Explorer, Netscape Communicator, and Sun's HotJava Browser.
Byte:
A collection of bits that represent one character. There are 8 bits to 1 byte.
Chat Room:
Software that allows many people to come together in one place on the Web. Anyone can type a message for all the others to see. Chat rooms are real time, meaning as soon as you type in your message all the other people in the chat room can see it and respond to it. This is a good way to communicate with many people at the same time.
CGI:
(Common Gateway Interface) A set of rules that describes how a Web Server communicates with another piece of software on the same machine, and how the other software (the CGI program) communicates back to the server. Usually the CGI program is small. It takes data from a web page and does something with it. Such as putting the content of a form in to an email message and sent to the author of the web page. Most of the time you will see the "cgi-bin" in the URL. These programs are also known as CGI Scripts.
Cookie:
A mechanism by which Web servers can store and retrieve information from your home PC. Since cookoes are stored on your home PC they are used to "customize" your internet session. An example of this might be if you were to login to a site that you had visited before (like a Gamesite!) and maybe it would prompt you to update to the most rescent version of a program that you had downloaded before. Or it might suggest another program similiar to what you have looked at previously. Cookies are usually temporary and will expire after a week or two.
DHTML
This stands for Dynamic Hyper Text Markup Language. Dynamic HTML is the name given by both Netscape and Microsoft to the enhansing of HTML through Document Object Models, Cascading Style Sheets, and client-side scripting. This makes Web pages more interactive. By using these technologies, developers can make their Web pages change and interact with users.
E-Mail Address:
What other people type in their E-Mail program's TO: field, in order to send you a message. E-Mail addresses are like the following: garyg@midohio.net
F.A.Q.
This stands for frequently asked questions. You will see this on a lot of web pages especially if they deal with new software. Many companies compile these questions and answers in the hope that this information will answer the question that you might have and thereby stop you from calling their technical support or helpdesk thereby saving you and them time.
Flame
A flame is an angry E-Mail message that someone has sent out. This can be concidered hate mail. For instance if someone has a grievance with you they will Flame you. Sometimes people are angry at a company for a defective product or whatever and will flame the company. Just think of it as giving your unbiased opinion without spending the $.32 in postage. Flaming someone is considered VERY rude and they will most often flame you back, resulting in a flaming war, so be careful.
F.T.P.
This stands for File Transfer Protocol. This protocol allows for files to be copied from one computer to another. This means that using FTP you can download files from the internet.
HTML or HTM:
This stands for HyperText Markup Language. This is the format that all web pages need to be in. You can think of this as the rules for designing web pages.
HTTP:
This stands for HyperText Transfer Protocol. This protocol allows browsers to find webpages. You will notice a U.R.L. or a web address begining with http://. Here is an example of a web page. http://geocities.datacellar.net
Internet:
The complete collection of computers that are connected across the entire world. The real power of the internet lies in its ability to allow people to communicate to other people. Whether they are across the street or around the world, it is just as easy to send an E-Mail or have a chat.
Intranet:
The collection of computers that are connected to each other but are not accessible from the outside and use webpages to transfer files or information. Many times large companies will utilize an intranet to get infomation out to its employees, but will not want the competition to have access to this information. Intranets act and feel the same as the internet, but are protected by security features such as a fire wall.
I.P. Address:
This is an address that corresponds to a certain computer, like a web address. In fact you can type in an IP Address on your location bar or the address bar, depending on which browser you have, just like a web address. The only difference between IP Addresses and Web Addresses is that IP Address are always numbers. For example http://206.31.116.118 would be an IP Address.
I.S.P. :
(Internet Service Provider) Any institution that provides access to the internet in some form, usually for money.
JAVA:
This is a programming language created by Sun Microsystems that can be used to create programs that can be downloaded to your computer. These programs are called applets and can be viewed by most of today's browsers. The interesting thing about Java is that it can be utilized on almost every different kind of computer without being modified. Java is a complete programing language in and of itself and enables programmers to create stand alone programs called applications or apps. The Java that is referred to on the internet are called applets and are slightly different in their structure, but can do essentially the same thing as their application counterpart.
JAVA BEANS:
Java Beans have been created by Sun Microsystems, with input from a number of Java tools vendors. JavaBeans are programing tools for reusable Java-based components. Using JavaBeans, Java developers can take advantage of component software development technology while still benefiting from Java's promise of hardware independence.
JavaScript:
JavaScript is a new scripting language created by Netscape Communications Corp as a simple way for Web authors to create interactive Web pages. People were looking for more than just HTML so JavaScript was a tool created with this in mind. There is a misconception about Java and JavaScript, they are not the same thing. Java is a compiled programming language that can be used for the web, or as stand-alone programs. JavaScript is a scripting language, which means that the code created resides on a HTML page and is interpreted by the web browser. They can be similiar and indeed can support each other nicely on webpages, but they are different. JavaScript is one of the scripting languages used for Active Server Pages.
Link or HyperLink:
Any part of a webpage that allows you to go to another webpage or different part of the same webpage. Links are a very important part of webpages. They can refer you to find out more information on a subject or just give you the option to go to the top of the currect page you are in. Sometimes a picture can be a link or just words could be a link. This is an exaple of a link back to my homepage.
Modem:
(MOdulator DEModulator) A device that allows you to connect your computer to another computer via a phone line. Basically a modem does for computers like a phone does for us humans.
MUD,MUSH,MOO,MUCK:
A text based game that you can play with people from all across the world in real time. MUD stands for Multi-User Dungeons. In order to play you would need to either use a telnet program or download something like Zmud. MUDs are access by using their domain name or IP Address to connect to them. If you would like to have more information about MUDs follow this link. The Mud Connector
Online:
A term meaning that you are connected to the internet at that particular moment in time.
Plug-Ins:
Any program that can be added to your browser to increase its abilities. For example a company called Adobe makes a plug-in that allows you to view Adobe Acrobat files without leaving your browser. This particular plug-in is called Amber. There are many others that do other things such as creating sound or video which can really enhance the webpage. Other examples of pulg-ins are Shockwave and RealAudio.
Protocol:
A protocol can be thought of as the language that the computer uses to communicate with other computers. You can think of it just like people. When two people want to talk to each other they must first know that language that they want to use. (I know this seems silly, but on a computer to computer level, both computers must speak the same language or it will not work.) Some examples of protocols are: FTP and HTTP.
Search Engine:
A certain web page that allows you to lookup phrases and subjects. What a search Engine does is show you links to other parts of the web based on the information that you typed in. Some examples of Search Engines are AltaVista , HotBot, Webcrawler , and Yahoo.
Server:
A computer or piece of software, that provides a service to other computers. The term server can refer to a particular piece of software, such as a WWW Server or to the whole computer that runs the server software. Without servers there would be no World Wide Web or Internet.
Spam:
Any unsolicated mail or message sent to someone or to several people. This can be thought of as junk mail in the real world. Some people think that they can "advertise" on the net by Spamming a lot of people at once, but actually this is considered very rude and all that ends up happening is they get back a lot of flames.
U.R.L.
This stands for Universal Resource Locator. This is just a fancy name for Web Address. Every Web Page on the internet can be accessed by its URL or Web Address. This is similiar to the postman or UPS-man knowing where you live to deliver the package to you. Likewise your web browser knows where the web pages are from their address. So when your browser is looking for a particular address and it comes back unknown URL or something similiar, that means that either the site does not exist, the site is down, the site might have moved, or maybe you just mistyped the address.
VBScript:
VBScript is Microsoft's answer to JavaScript. It is also a scripting language that is used for HTML pages to create interactivity. VBScript code actually resides on the HTML page and can processes through the web browser. VBScript is one of the scripting languages used in Active Server Pages.
W.W.W. :
(World Wide Web) The whole collection of computers that can be accessed and allow access to web pages, file transfers, HTTP, and other things.
Please E-Mail Me with any comments or suggestions.
