Descriptionary

window on a computer screen, a superimposed square or rectangle containing commands or other information.

word processing a program that facilitates the typ­ing, editing, and storing of documents.

zap slang term meaning to erase information.

zip to compress a file to facilitate storage.

Chatting Shorthand

ACK acknowledge. afk away from keyboard. ASAP as soon as possible. BAK back at keyboard. BBN bye-bye now. BBS bulletin board system. BCNU be seeing you. B4N bye for now. BG big grin. BRB be right back.

BTw by the way.

BwL bursting with laughter.

CG chuckle and grin.

CNP continued in next post.

CUL see you later.

CYA see ya.

CYAL8R see ya later.

FUBAR fouled up beyond all repair/recognition.

FYEO for your eyes only.

FYI for your information.

GA go ahead.

GG gotta go.

G/S? gay or straight?

ILY I love you.

IM instant message.

IMHO in my humble opinion.

IMO in my opinion.

K kiss.

KIT keep in touch. L8R later.

LOL laughed out loud.

M/F? male or female?

NTMY nice to meet you.

OIC oh I see.

OMG Oh, my God!

PM private message.

PMJI pardon my jumping in.

ROTF rolling on the floor.

ROFL rolling on the floor laughing.

SYS see you soon.

THX thanks.

wUF where are you from?

Zup? What's up?

The Internet

address a string of letters (often spelling out a name), characters, and/or numbers designating the electronic location of a Web site, computer user, orga­nization, etc. Used for e-mail and to download a spe­cific site on the Web.

adware a type of spyware consisting of a program that is secretly piggybacked onto another, albeit legiti­mate program, which a user downloads. The adware then infects the user's PC and causes annoying pop-up ads.

antispyware software that weeds out spyware from a user's PC and prevents other spyware from being downloaded.

archive a repository for the storage of data, soft­ware, etc. Also, a method for combining several files into one.

astroturfing the attempt to create a grassroots buzz about one's product or service by touting it anony­mously in forums, chat rooms, and message boards.

attachment any file attached to and sent with an e-mail.

autobot see bot.

backbone a large network serving to interconnect other networks.

back door program see Trojan horse.

bait and switch a devious marketing ploy in which key words such as sex are used to draw search engines to a Web site.

bandwidth the amount of data, in bits per second, that can be sent over a network connection in a spe­cific time period.

banner ad a Web page advertisement, usually appearing over the top of a page.

banner exchange the trading of advertisements between Web sites.

below the fold referring to the screen portion one must scroll down to see.

bitloss loss of data during a transmission.

BitTorrent a free program that allows simultane­ous uploading and downloading of movie, video game, and other files, allowing users to share pieces of those with others and increase the speed of trad­ing content.

blog short for Web log. A cybermagazine or online forum that may cover everything from politics to sports, with links to communicate with participants. Also, to participate in a Web log.

blogger one who contributes to a blog.

blogosphere slang for the medium of Web logs, and their contributors and readers.

bookmark an electronic bookmark, allowing the user to mark any site on the Web in order to return to it quickly, without searching again. Also known as a favorite.

bot short for robot. Any of several automated soft­ware programs, such as a crawler or spider, especially those involved in Web cataloging.

bounce return of an e-mail to its sender due to a delivery glitch or an incorrect address.

broadband a high-speed, high-capacity transmis­sion channel using fiber-optic or coaxial cable.

browser Internet navigating software employed to find and display Web sites.

buffering temporarily holding data in computer storage that is being transmitted as an aid to compen­sate for different processing rates.

bulletin board an online medium through which users with a common interest may exchange messages or software.

cache a computer's storage repository for recently visited Web sites, used to expedite loading of Web files on future visits.

case sensitive referring to an e-mail address that must be typed in upper- or lower-case letters to be viable, largely a requirement of the past.

chain letter a spam or hoax letter directing the receiver to forward it to others, with negative conse­quences if unheeded, sometimes used in conjunction with fraudulent money-making schemes.

chat to converse online in real time.

chat room an online medium or Web site through which users can have real-time conversations.