Web Glossary

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A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z 0-9

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C
Name of a structured, procedural computer language commonly used for the creation of operating systems and other professional-grade applications.

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C++
Superset of the C language that adds object-oriented concepts. Java, another programming language, is based on C++ but optimized for the Internet.

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Cable Modem
Device connected to your computer that enables you to receive and request information from the Internet over your local cable TV line. The bandwidth of a cable modem far exceeds the bandwidth of the 28.8 Kbps, ISDN or ADSL modems.

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Cache
Area of your computer memory or directory on your hard disk. This is the place where your browser stores viewed Web pages. When you return to a page, the browser gets this page from the cache, saving you time. However, if you return to a page that changes a lot, you need to click the "Reload" button on your browser to get the latest version.

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cc:
Carbon Copy. To send somebody a copy of an email message.

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CD-ROM or Compact Disk-Read Only Memory
An optical disk from which information may be read but not written.

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CD-R or Compact Disk-Recordable
Refers to computer peripheral disk drives that allow the user to record content on to a blank compact disk.

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CERN - Conseil Europeen pour la Recherche Nucleaire
CERN (European Organization for Nuclear Research) is in fact the birth-place of the World Wide Web. One of the researchers of CERN, Dr. Tim Berners-Lee originated the hypertext transport protocol (HTTP) on which the World Wide Web is based.

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CGI - Common Gateway Interface
Interface that allows scripts (programs) to run on a Web server. CGI-scripts are used to put the content of a form into an email message, to perform a database query, to generate HTML pages on-the-fly, etc. The most popular languages for CGI-scripts are Perl and C.

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cgi-bin
The most common name of a directory on a Web server in which CGI-scripts are stored.

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Chat
Online interactive communication on the Web. You can "talk" in real time with other people in the "chat room", but the words are typed instead of spoken.

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Click
In advertising a "click" is used to mean a request for a page that contains an ad. Sometimes, a click is more narrowly defined as "a click on an ad". The click rate is the number of clicks (on an ad) as a percentage of the number of times that the ad was downloaded with a page: a click rate of 2% means that 2% of the people who downloaded the page clicked on the ad.

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Client/Server
A client is a computer system that requests a service of another computer system (a server) on the network.

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Client
A computer that has access to services over a computer network. The computer providing the services is a server.

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Client-Server Architecture
Synonymous with hyperlinks, anchor refers to non-linear links among documents. An information-passing scheme that works as follows: a client program, such as Mosaic, sends a request to a server. The server takes the request, disconnects from the client and processes the request. When the request is processed, the server reconnects to the client program and the information is transferred to the client. This architecture differs from traditional Internet databases where the client connects to the server and runs the program from the remote site.

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Clustering
In a client/server environment clustering means using two or more computers which function together as one single entity. When one computer is failing, the other will take over its task. This procedure will increase reliability and up-time.

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Co-location
When servers from different owners are physically located in the same place and use a common Internet connection, it's called a co-location. If someone wants his machine to be on a high-speed Internet connection, if he doesn't have the possibility to maintain his server, or if he doesn't want security risks, he can choose for co-location in a place with optimum conditions for running a server.

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Commercial online service
Computer network that offers its members access to its own chat rooms, bulletin boards, and other online features on a monthly fee basis. Well-known commercial online services are America Online, CompuServe, The Microsoft Network, and Prodigy. (They also provide access to the Internet)

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Compiler
A compiler translates code written in a computer language into an executable form (machine language).

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Compression
Technology that reduces the size of a file to save bandwidth.

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Configuration
This is a general-purpose computer term that can refer to the way you have your computer set up. It is also used to describe the total combination of hardware components that make up a computer system and the software settings that allow various hardware components of a computer system to communicate with one another.

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Configure
The act of changing software or hardware actions by changing the settings.

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Congestion
A condition in (part of) a network when the data traffic is so heavy that it slows down the response time of the network.

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Cookie
Small piece of information that a Web server sends to your computer hard disk via your browser. Cookies contain information such as login or registration information, online shopping cart information, user preferences, etc. This information can be retrieved by other web pages on the site, so that this site can be customized. For example, when you're shopping online, the cookie contains a list of all the items you have in your shopping cart. When it's time to pay, the server takes the cookie from your browser to see what you have bought and you'll get a nice bill...

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CPU - Central Processing Unit
The brains of your computer. In fact, the main silicon chip that runs the operating system and programs, and controls essential operations.

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Cracker
A malicious person who breaks the security of computer systems or software packages in order to steal or destroy information. See also Hacker.

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CyberMall
A term commonly used to describe an electronic site shared by a number of commercial interests.
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Cyberspace
Term to describe the Internet, coined by author William Gibson in his novel "Neuromancer". Cyberspace is a virtual space, you're in Cyberspace when you are cruising the Web.

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Cybersquatter
Person who buys domain names in the hope to resell them later at a profit.

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