
Glossary

Active Window. Also called the "active browser window". The active window is the browser window you are currently working with. The active window is usually either maximized or overlaps most or all of the other windows, and its title bar is highlighted.
Address, e-mail. A computer mailing address to which electronic mail may be sent. Each computer handles mail and e-mail addressing differently. Local networks generally have simple e-mail addresses, like "PHILIP" or "TSMITH". When mail is sent between separate computer systems, a more complex address is involved (like "jsb@mus1.leipzig.de"). See your network administrator or Internet service provider for information about your own e-mail address.
Address, Internet. Also called IP address. A numeric code that uniquely identifies a particular computer's connection to the Internet. Because numeric Internet addresses (a typical address: 127.0.0.1) can be difficult to remember, Internet software uses the Domain Name System to translate numeric addresses into names, like "whitehouse.gov" or "yale.edu", which are much easier to remember. 
Anchor. Technical term for the inline image or text to which one end of a hypertext link is fixed. When you click on an anchor, Quarterdeck Mosaic follows the link to the file or service to which the link points. By default, Quarterdeck Mosaic displays anchors as magenta or blue, depending upon whether or not you have yet navigated that link.
Annotations. In Quarterdeck Mosaic, notes you leave for yourself regarding a particular document. Annotations can be associated with remote documents, but appear only on your system because they are stored on your local hard drive.
Anonymous FTP. A special use of FTP that provides public access for file transfers to a computer system that would otherwise require special authorization (such as a username and password). Web documents that automatically invoke FTP to transfer files from a remote system to your computer generally use anonymous FTP.
Archie. An Internet service used to locate servers with files that are available to the public via anonymous FTP. 
Archives. A portion of the Quarterdeck Mosaic window that contains the Hotlist page, the Global and Local History Lists, and the Link Tree.
Article. A message downloaded from a newsgroup. Articles can in fact be newspaper articles, but they can also be scholarly papers, general information, someone's response to an earlier article, or a broadcast message to the newsgroup.
ASCII Files. Files consisting only of text in "human readable" format. Also called "DOS text" or "plain text" files. You can view ASCII files with the Windows Notepad or DOS's TYPE or EDIT commands. Files not in human-readable ASCII format are in binary format.
ASCII (Transfer Mode). A QFTP option used for transferring ASCII files.
B
Baud. A measurement of data exchange speed, measured in bits per second. Modems are rated in baud; the higher the baud rate, the faster the modem.
Binary Files. A file not in "human-readable" ASCII file format. Executable program files (.EXE and .COM), image files (such as .GIF) and compressed files (such as .ZIP) are all binary files.
Binary (Transfer Mode). A QFTP option used for transferring binary files.
Browser. Also called a Web browser. A program that displays HTML documents over a network. Quarterdeck Mosaic is an example of a browser. Browsers cannot edit the documents they display.
Browser window. The Quarterdeck Mosaic window that displays text and graphics in remote documents.
Byte. A standard unit of data within a computer. One character (for example, the letter "a") can be stored in one byte of data.
C
cache. An area of RAM Quarterdeck Mosaic uses to improve performance. 
Case-sensitive. Making a distinction between upper- and lower-case letters. A case-sensitive search program or operating system would treat "hello" and "HELLO" as two completely different words; a non-case-sensitive program or operating system would treat them as identical.
Client. A program that requests information from a server. Quarterdeck Mosaic is a client application because it requests HTML documents from Web servers, Gopher documents from Gopher servers, files from FTP servers, and so on.
Compress. A utility which reduces the size of an individual file so it can be sent across the Internet more quickly. See compressed files.
Compressed files. Files that have been changed by a "compression program" into a form that retains the original data, but takes up less disk space. To convert the compressed file back to its original format, you need a "decompression" utility, which can often be obtained for free at various sites around the Internet. 
You can tell what kind of decompression utility is needed to decompress a file by looking at the file's extension. Some of the more common extensions are listed below:
Table 13: Compressed File Extensions 
Extension
Decompression utility
.ZIP
PKUnzip
.LHA or .LZH
LHARC
.cpio
cpio (Unix)
.tar
tar (Unix)
.z
GZIP (PC); 
gunzip or uncompress (Unix)
Occasionally, sites will offer compressed files in an .EXE format; these are called "self-extracting" compressed files. You do not need special software to decompress a self-extracting file; just treat it as a program, and type its name to run the program and extract the files.
D
Data Encryption. See Encryption.
Dedicated. Assigned to a single purpose. For example, a separate phone line just for your modem is a "dedicated modem line."
Default. An assumption a program will make if you do not supply contrary instructions or data. For example, in Quarterdeck Mosaic, the default color for unvisited hypertext links is blue; Quarterdeck Mosaic assumes that you wish it to use that color until you change the preference to some other color.
DNS/Domain Name System. The system of naming Internet sites, which most users prefer over numerical Internet addresses. For example, the computer name "www.whitehouse.gov" is generally easier to remember than "128.102.252.1". A computer's name is made up of domains, which are separated by periods. The right-most domain is the location (if outside the US) or the type of site (gov for government, edu for educational, com for commercial, etc.). The next domain to the left is the name of the location or agency that owns or manages the Internet connection. The next domains (there can be one or several) name individual computers or networks within that agency. DNS can also stand for Domain Name Server, a computer that matches domain names to numeric addresses.
Document Source. HTML documents that contain pictures, links to other documents, and special text effects (like large-type headings and italics) are stored in ordinary ASCII files. These links, pictures, and special text effects are created by HTML commands included within the text file. The Document Source command displays the current document in its ASCII form, including the HTML commands but without the pictures, links, or special effects. Once the text is displayed in the Document Source window, you can copy the text to the Windows Clipboard and paste it into other Windows applications, such as Write, Notepad, or a word processor. 
Download. Transfer a file from a remote system to your local system. Use QFTP to download files over the network to your system. The opposite action, transferring files from the local system to the remote, is called uploading.
Drag and Drop. A mouse technique used to move on-screen objects. To "drag" something, put the mouse cursor on the object; press and hold the left button; move the cursor while still holding down the left button. The mouse will "drag" the object around the screen. To "drop" something, drag the object where you wish to leave it, and release the left mouse button. 
E
E-Mail. Abbreviation for "Electronic mail." A system which allows users to send and receive messages over a network.
E-Mail Address. See Address, e-mail.
Encryption. A mathematical term for methods used to "scramble" data to keep that data secret. The opposite process, decryption, unscrambles encrypted data and returns it to a publicly readable form. 
External Graphic. A graphic (picture) file which must be displayed using an external viewer. JPEG files (with the extension .JPG) are among the most common types of external graphic files.
F
FAQ. Acronym for Frequently Asked Question. Network newsgroups and some mailing lists feature "FAQ" files, to which readers are first referred when they have questions. FAQs handle commonly-asked questions, and free bulletin board space for other discussion. Some news or mailing list services will instruct you to "Read the FAQ before posting"  that is, be sure any questions you are about to ask are not so common that the answers can already be found in the FAQ file. Whether you read network news or not, FAQs are good sources both for information and for references leading to further investigation.
Finger. A command to display information about a user on a remote system. Finger may tell you when the user last logged on, last read his mail, or the project he is currently involved with. You must know the username and the host name of an individual before using Finger, and the host site you are contacting must be set up to handle remote Finger requests (not all sites have this service available).
Firewall. Network administrator's jargon for a computer that protects the security of an internal network by intercepting and processing network requests before passing them between the internal network and the Internet. Firewalls can be used to regulate outgoing as well as incoming network traffic.
Fixed-width Font. A font in which each letter takes up exactly the same amount of space. Typewriter fonts are typically fixed-width fonts. Look at the difference:
This is a Fixed Width Font.
This is not a Fixed Width Font.
Flame. A heated response to a network news article, involving invective or personal attacks directed towards the author of a previous article. Flaming is not held in universally high regard on most newsgroups, and is generally discouraged.
Font. A set of characters (numbers, letters, punctuation symbols) in a certain typeface, style, and size. Quarterdeck Mosaic can be configured to display HTML document text in different colors as well as different fonts.
Font Scheme. A "style sheet" that controls how the browser displays the HTML commands contained within an HTML document. Each font scheme can specify a different configuration of fonts, sizes, and colors for HTML document text.
Form. An HTML device to create areas on-screen into which a user can enter information. On the World Wide Web, forms are frequently used as interfaces to search programs (such as WAIS and Veronica), or as devices to solicit feedback or other information from users. Form processing is a function of the server (rather than the browser, such as Quarterdeck Mosaic) and is beyond the scope of this manual.
FTP. Acronym for File Transfer Program (or Protocol): the generic name for the program or process that transfers files between a remote computer and your local system. Quarterdeck's FTP application is called QFTP. Many Web documents have links that automatically use FTP to transfer files to your local system. Many network sites support anonymous FTP so that anyone may download their files.
G
Gateway. A computer that translates information between two computer systems or application programs. For example, local networks use a gateway to connect a local area network to the Internet, rather than putting each computer system individually on the Internet.
Gif Files. Graphic files in ".GIF" format used in creating inline images. Quarterdeck Mosaic displays .GIF files automatically.
Global History List. A list of all the URLs you have viewed using Quarterdeck Mosaic within the expiration time set by the Global History preferences tab. The Global History list tracks URLs viewed by all browser windows in each Quarterdeck Mosaic session; each browser window also maintains its own individual Local History List.
Gopher. A menu-based system for exploring the Internet, designed to display plain text on any kind of monitor (text or graphic). You can easily use Quarterdeck Mosaic to explore network Gophers. The main difference between Gopher documents and HTML documents is that Gopher documents do not support links between documents, graphics, or special text effects like boldface or italic fonts.
Graphic. A file containing one or more pictures (as in an animation file). An inline graphic is an image that is integrated within a document's text.
H
History List. A list of the files or URLs a browser window has displayed in the current session. Each browser window maintains a Local History List, and that list is erased when the browser window is closed. The Global History list, which tracks the URLs viewed by all browser windows, is preserved from one Quarterdeck Mosaic session to the next.
Home Page. This term has at least two general meanings: technically, the page to which remote browsers are first directed when connecting to a server; or, less formally, the "master page" for an organization or an individual. Home pages provide basic information about a remote site, organization, or person, and contain hypertext links to related pages either at the same site or at other network sites. Individual users at remote sites often have home pages with photographs and information about themselves or their pursuits, as well as lists of favorite links to other sites or services.
Host. Usually, a remote server computer on the Internet. Technically, any computer connected to the Internet with its own IP address could be called a host.
Hotlist. A list of interesting, useful, or important URLs you can compile or maintain. Once you have located a remote resource you wish to return to, you can add it to a hotlist. Later, rather than trying to "re-navigate" your way back through the network to find your desired document, all you have to do is open the hotlist and click on the title of your desired document. In Quarterdeck Mosaic, the Hotlist is stored in the Archives.
HTML. Acronym for HyperText Markup Language: the set of special codes that change ordinary text files into hypertext documents for Web browsers. HTML codes create hypertext links to new documents, display graphic images, or create special text effects (like large-type headings and italics). See HTML file.
HTML File (Document). An ASCII file containing text and HTML codes to create text effects and hypertext links when displayed within a browser (such as Quarterdeck Mosaic). 
Hypermedia. An extension of the hypertext concept that enables readers to jump not just from text to text, but from text to picture and sound.
Hypertext. A system that interconnects documents (or locations in documents) so that a reader can "jump" from one document (or location in a document) to another quickly and easily. Hypertext systems provide pathways readers can follow to find exactly the information they want without requiring them to read entire documents. Windows on-line help is a familiar example of a hypertext system; by clicking on underlined words, the reader can jump quickly to the desired information, much more effectively than skimming pages of printed text.
Hypertext Link. A connection between two documents that enables a reader to jump from the first document to the second by clicking on a highlighted word or sentence within the first document's text. Web documents use HTML to create hypertext links. Within HTML documents, hypertext links can lead the reader from one document to a new document, or to pictures, sounds, animations, or ordinary text files. Links that connect text documents to non-text files are also called hypermedia links.
I
Image Map. A graphic image made "clickable" by imbedding hypertext links.
Inline Graphic/Inline Image. A graphic image displayed as incorporated into the document text, the same way newspaper or magazine pictures are displayed on the same page as their story's text. Inline graphic images must be .GIF or .XBM files.
Internet. A collection of individual computer networks  local, national, and international  that has evolved through the years as a "mega-network" that literally spans the globe. The Internet enables you to send mail, exchange files, and use computing services anywhere in the world from your home or office computer.
Internet Address. See Address, Internet.
IP. Acronym for Internet Protocol, the protocol used to transmit data over the Internet. Also the acronym for Internet Packet: technical term for a discrete unit of data traversing the Internet. See Address, Internet; TCP/IP.
ISP. Acronym for Internet Service Provider. See service provider.
IRC/Internet Relay Chat. A system that allows users to exchange text messages "live" over the Internet (as opposed to e-mail and news, which post messages for later reading). You can think of IRC as the Internet equivalent to a conference call.
J
Jump (hypertext). Another term for hypertext link.
K
K/Kilobyte: 1,024 bytes; a standard unit used to express the amount of space that files occupy on a computer disk.
L
LAN. Acronym for Local Area Network; a small network of at least two computers, usually in the same location, and usually connected by cabling. LANs can be connected to the Internet through gateways or firewalls.
Link. See hypertext link.
Link Tree. A pane in the Archive window which displays the hypertext links in the document in the active browser window in tree format. The Link Tree is useful as a quick summary of all the available links within the currently displayed document.
Local. In this guide, the computer sitting in front of you is the "local" computer. A "remote" computer is another computer, physically removed from your local computer, but connected to it via a network. 
Local History List. A list of the documents you have viewed in the current session of a particular browser window. For a list of all documents you have viewed in all browser windows within the Global History expiration time, see the Global History List.
Location Manager. The Quarterdeck Mosaic companion utility you can use to automate creation of ISP accounts, and to connect to one or more ISPs with a modem. See Service Provider.
M
Megabyte. 1,024 Kilobytes; a standard unit used to measure memory size in computers.
MIME Type. MIME stands for Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions, a standard system for identifying the type of data contained in a file based on its extension. When you define a "MIME type," you instruct Quarterdeck Mosaic to assume that all files with a particular extension contain a particular kind of data using a particular data format, and to use certain applications to display (or, for downloadable files, to retrieve) that file.
Modem. Acronym for "MODulator/DEModulator": a device which allows computers to communicate using telephone lines.
Multimedia. Multimedia applications enhance simple text presentation with graphics or sound. HTML documents can be multimedia documents if they include links to graphic or sound files. For example, a document may encourage a reader to click on an icon to hear someone speak or to hear an example of a rare musical instrument; or, by clicking on text, a reader may view an animation of a new product or a simulation of a space flight. To view (or hear) multimedia presentations, you must have the appropriate software (or, in the case of audio files, appropriate sound cards and speaker systems). Quarterdeck Mosaic comes with software to display the most common kinds of multimedia files; other types are also available from dealers or over the Internet.
N
Network. A group of computers, linked together so they can share information. Networks have a wide range of possible configurations, from a simple three-computer office to a huge national network. The Internet is a "network of networks," where literally anyone from a single individual at a home PC to a large corporate multi-department installation can freely and easily exchange information.
Network Administrator/Network Manager. A person in charge of a network installation, whose responsibilities usually include network operations and maintenance.
NIC. Network Interface Card: a peripheral device which connects your computer to a network. If you use a modem and SLIP or PPP to connect to the Internet via a service provider, you do not need a NIC for Internet services.
Newsgroup. A collection of articles on a specific topic which are labeled explicitly for that newsgroup when they are posted (sent) to the news server. There are literally thousands of newsgroups, covering an extremely wide range of topics (and tastes)everything from serious discussions about computer operating system minutiae to reviews of late-night talk shows. Most ISPs carry the full range of news groups; some sites may elect to offer only select groups due to the vast disk space required to store the volume of each day's news for each of the thousands of groups. 
NNTP (News) Server. A server running the Network News Transfer Protocol which you use to subscribe to newsgroups and retrieve news articles.
P
POP Server. A server using the Post Office Protocol which holds your incoming e-mail until you read or download it.
Port. An electronic "address" at a site that connects a user to a particular service that site provides. For example, some sites use different ports for Gopher, anonymous FTP and TELNET logins. Usually, document authors provide these port addresses in their hypertext links, so unless you are entering a URL manually, you will never need to be concerned about a particular resource's port number.
PPP. Acronym for Point to Point Protocol: a communications protocol used to connect a computer to the Internet over a telephone line via a modem.
Proportionally-spaced font. A class of fonts in which different characters take different amounts of space. Look at the difference:
This is a proportionally-spaced font.
This is a not a proportionally-spaced font.
Protocol (communications). In diplomacy, protocol determines the order of important events: how greetings are exchanged, when important business is discussed, and the vocabulary each party will use. A computer protocol works much the same way. Protocols determine how two systems will establish communications, what codes will be used to signify things like "I am ready for more data" or "you are not permitted to do that," and so on. SLIP and PPP are two common "communications protocols."
Proxy. Part of a network security system designed to make an internal network safer from unauthorized access by masking the true configuration and nature of an internal network. Network transmissions from the internal network are intercepted by the proxy, which then sends them under its own name to the external network; it then appropriately routesor, if necessary, blocksthe responses sent to the internal network. Most SLIP and PPP users do not use a proxy. Your service provider or network manager will inform you if you need to enter proxy information.
Q
QTerm. Quarterdeck's Telnet application.
Quote. An e-mail convention used to distinguish the text of a previous message, usually with either indenting or brackets, in order to separate it from your own text.
QWinsock. Quarterdeck's Winsock application.
R
Remote. A computer physically removed from the computer you are working on (called the local computer) but connected to it via a network. 
S
Script (for Location Manager). A series of commands in a special script language which assists the Location Manager in connecting to your service provider. For more information about scripts, see the Location Manager's online help.
Server. A remote computer that handles requests for data, electronic mail, file transfer, and other network services. Also called a "host," especially when referring to a server at a remote site. A "Web server" is a computer that makes HTML and other hypermedia documents available over a network. The HTML documents you create must be installed on a server before others can have access to them. 
Service provider. Also called Internet Service Provider or ISP. The remote system to which you connect your personal computer and through which your computer connects to the Internet. Internet service providers that you access with a telephone are often called "dial-up" services.
Service, URL. A URL "service" tells the Web browser how to look up the file described in the URL. Here is a list of the most common services:
Table 14: Url Services
Service
The URL describes
file:
a file on a local computer
http:
HyperText Transfer Protocol: used for HTML documents
ftp:
an FTP server
gopher:
a Gopher server
mailto:
an e-mail address
telnet:
a remote computer available for user login
Signature. Text automatically included at the bottom of outgoing e-mail or news postings. Your Internet signature can include your name, address, telephone number, company information, personal information or any text which you would like to include at the end of messages you compose. Also referred to as ".sig" (pronounced "dot-sig") or ".signature" after the name of the signature file on Unix systems.
SLIP. Acronym for Serial Line Internet Protocol: a communications protocol used to connect a computer to the Internet over a telephone line.
SMTP Server. A server that uses the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol to send outbound messages; a server which routes your mail across the Internet.
Stack. Technical term for the underlying software upon which all network applications depend (similar to the way Windows applications depend on Windows to run). 
T
TAR. A utility which combines and compresses two or more files into one compacted file which can be sent across the Internet more conveniently. See Compressed files.
TCP/IP. Acronym for Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol: one of the most common and most reliable network protocols; commonly used on the Internet, it allows a wide range of otherwise incompatible computers to communicate efficiently and reliably. Also frequently used in hardwired LAN or WAN connections (as opposed to SLIP or PPP, which are more commonly used over dialup connections).
TELNET. Generic name for programs used to log in to a remote computer over a network. Quarterdeck's TELNET application is called QTerm. Qterm/TELNET is used only when logging in with a username or password is necessary to receive services from a remote system; many computers, such as Web or Gopher servers, provide remote services without requiring you to log in. Telnet is a text-only application, and cannot transmit multimedia information like Web browsers can.
Text File. See ASCII file.
Time Out. "Timing out" is a feature of some application programs. If a program has waited for a preset time without receiving data from a device or another program, the application will, in effect, "give up," and will display a message saying that it has stopped waiting. When a program stops because too much time has elapsed, it is said to have "timed out." Many Internet service providers will time out your connection if you leave your local computer idle for a certain time (often 10-15 minutes). That way, if you are called away from your computer and leave your system idle for a long time, the connection will be dropped and you will not be charged for hours of unused connect time.
U
UNIX. A multi-user computer operating system. Many Web sites are maintained on UNIX systems. One of the most obvious differences between DOS and UNIX is that UNIX filenames can be much longer than DOS filenames, and are case-sensitive.
Upload. Transfer a file from your local system to a remote system. Use QFTP to upload files over the network. The opposite action, transferring files from the remote system to the local, is called downloading.
URL. Uniform Resource Locator: the address for a resource or site on the World Wide Web, and the convention Web browsers use for locating files and other remote services. See Service, URL.
Usenet. The original collection of newsgroups developed for global distribution on the Internet and still used worldwide. The name of each Usenet newsgroup suggests the topics discussed in that group. Alternative newsgroups (groups whose names begin with "alt."), which are not technically a part of Usenet, may also be available from your news server.
Uudecode. A utility which converts an ASCII file back to a binary file once it is received. See compressed files.
Uuencode. A utility which converts a binary file to an ASCII file for sending via the Internet. See compressed files.
V
Veronica. A network utility you can use to search Gophers. By entering a set of search words, you can display a list of Gopher menus and articles containing the search text. Many Gopher sites have Veronica, or have links to sites with Veronica services.
W
WAIS (pronounced "ways"). Acronym for Wide Area Information Service: a network service that you can use to search for key words or phrases in specially indexed files. Once WAIS finds the files containing your search text, you can view the files or copy them to your local computer.
WAN/Wide Area Network. A network that connects computers over long distances via telephone lines or satellite links (compare to LAN). In a Wide Area Network, the computers are physically far apart.
Web / World Wide Web / WWW / W3. A world-wide collection of text files, images, and other network services interconnected through hypertext documents. The main tool for navigating the Web is a browser, such as Quarterdeck Mosaic.
Web browser. A program you can use to view documents on the Web.
Webmaster. A person in charge of maintaining a Web site. This can include writing HTML files, setting up forms and their related software, and responding to user's concerns or questions. Many sites encourage you to mail questions about the site's Web pages to the e-mail address webmaster.
Web site. The collection of network services, primarily HTML documents, provided to the Web by a particular server. Exploration of a Web site begins with its home page, which may lead you to more information about that site or services that site supports; generally, the home page will also contain links to other sites elsewhere on the Web. A single server computer may support multiple Web sites (service providers frequently provide such services to their clients).
Whois. A network "white pages" service that lists user information such as computer name and electronic mail address. Whois is not a universal listing service (that is, you cannot just "look up" anyone on the Internet); individual remote sites maintain their own whois databases. If someone you want to contact can be found at a site that has a whois service, whois may find them there; otherwise, it will not.
Winsock. A widely-used network stack used to implement network functions within Windows.
