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ActiveX

A type of COM component that can self-register, also known as an "ActiveX control". All COM objects implement the "IUnknown" interface but an ActiveX control usually also implements some of the standard interfaces for embedding, user interface, methods, properties, events, and persistence.

ActiveX controls were originally called "OLE Controls", and were required to provide all of these interfaces but that requirement was dropped, and the name changed, to make ActiveX controls lean enough to be downloaded as part of a web page.

Because ActiveX components can support the OLE embedding interfaces, they can be included in web pages. Because they are COM objects, they can be used from languages such as Visual Basic, Visual C++, Java, VBScript.

Source: Dictionary.com

ADSL (Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line)

A form of Digital Subscriber Line in which the bandwidth available for downstream connection is significantly larger than for upstream. Although designed to minimise the effect of crosstalk between the upstream and downstream channels this setup is well suited for web browsing and client-server applications as well as for some emerging applications such as video on demand.

The data-rate of ADSL strongly depends on the length and quality of the line connecting the end-user to the telephone company. Typically the upstream data flow is between 16 and 640 kilobits per second while the downstream data flow is between 1.5 and 9 megabits per second. ADSL also provides a voice channel.

ADSL can carry digital data, analog voice, and broadcast MPEG2 video in a variety of implementations to meet customer needs.

Source: Dictionary.com

Alt Text (ALTernate text)

On a Web page, a text description that can be added to the HTML tag that displays an image. The ALT text is displayed by the browser when the cursor is moved over the picture. If pictures are turned off in the browser, the ALT text is automatically displayed instead.

Source: TechWeb.com

Anonymous FTP

An interactive service provided by many Internet hosts allowing any user to transfer documents, files, programs, and other archived data using File Transfer Protocol. The user logs in using the special user name "ftp" or "anonymous" and his e-mail address as password. He then has access to a special directory hierarchy containing the publically accessible files, typically in a subdirectory called "pub". This is usually a separate area from files used by local users.

A reference like: ftp: euagate.eua.ericsson.se /pub/eua/erlang/info means that files are available by anonymous FTP from the host called euagate.eua.ericsson.se in the directory (or file) /pub/eua/erlang/info. Sometimes the hostname will be followed by an Internet address in parentheses. The directory will usually be given as a path relative to the anonymous FTP login directory. A reference to a file available by FTP may also be in the form of a URL starting "ftp:".

Source: Dictionary.com

Apache

A open source HTTP server for Unix, Windows NT, and other platforms. Apache was developed in early 1995, based on code and ideas found in the most popular HTTP server of the time, NCSA httpd 1.3. It has since evolved to rival (and probably surpass) almost any other Unix based HTTP server in terms of functionality, and speed. Since April 1996 Apache has been the most popular HTTP server on the Internet.

It features highly configurable error messages, DBM-based authentication databases, and content negotiation.

Source: Dictionary.com

Applet

A Java program which can be distributed as an attachment in a World Wide Web document and executed by a Java-enabled web browser such as Sun's HotJava, Netscape Navigator version 2.0, or Internet Explorer.

Navigator severely restricts the applet's file system and network access in order to prevent accidental or deliberate security violations. Full Java applications, which run outside of the browser, do not have these restrictions.

Web browsers can also be extended with plug-ins though these differ from applets in that they usually require manual installation and are platform-specific. Various other languages can now be embedded within HTML documents, the most common being JavaScript.

Despite Java's aim to be a "write once, run anywhere" language, the difficulty of accommodating the variety of browsers in use on the Internet has led many to abandon client-side processing in favour of server-side Java programs for which the term servlet was coined.

Merriam Webster "Collegiate Edition" gives a 1990 definition: a short application program especially for performing a simple specific task.

Source: Dictionary.com

Application Program

A complete, self-contained program that performs a specific function directly for the user. This is in contrast to system software such as the operating system kernel, server processes and libraries which exists to support application programs.

Editors for various kinds of documents, spreadsheets, and text formatters are common examples of applications. Network applications include clients such as those for FTP, electronic mail, telnet and WWW.

The term is used fairly loosely, for instance, some might say that a client and server together form a distributed application, others might argue that editors and compilers were not applications but tools for building applications.

One distinction between an application program and the operating system is that applications always run in "user mode" (or "non-privileged mode"), while operating systems and related utilities may run in "supervisor mode" (or "privileged mode").

The term may also be used to distinguish programs which communicate via a graphical user interface from those which are executed from the command line.

Source: Dictionary.com

ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange)

A code for information exchange between computers made by different companies; a string of 7 binary digits represents each character; used in most microcomputers.

Source: Dictionary.com

Authoring Tool

An "authoring tool" is any software that is used to produce content for publishing on the Web.

Authoring tools include:

Editing tools specifically designed to produce Web content (e.g., WYSIWYG HTML and XML editors);

Tools that offer the option of saving material in a Web format (e.g., word processors or desktop publishing packages);

Tools that transform documents into Web formats (e.g., filters to transform desktop publishing formats to HTML);

Tools that produce multimedia, especially where it is intended for use on the Web (e.g., video production and editing suites, SMIL authoring packages);

Tools for site management or site publication, including tools that automatically generate Web sites dynamically from a database, on-the-fly conversion and Web site publishing tools; Tools for management of layout (e.g., CSS formatting tools).

Source: W3.org

Autoresponder

A mail utility that automatically sends a reply to an e-mail message. Autoresponders are used to send back boilerplate information on a topic without having the requester do anything more than e-mail a particular address. They are also used to send a confirmation that the message has been received.

Source: TechWeb.com

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