Here are some of the words we use, along with their meanings.
If you don't know the meaning of a word and it is not here, click
http://www.techweb.com/encyclopedia/ skip the intro, and then type the word in the box marked "define."
If you want to look at a glossary of computer and Internet words, check the Glossarist website here
Broadband - is always on when your computer is on. It is used to send or look at large amounts of information over the Internet, including live video and audio. Because it is a larger connection, it allows more information to travel in the same way that more lanes on a highway allow more cars to travel on it at the same time. Everything you do on the Internet is about 15 times faster than on dial-up and leaves your telephone line free
Antivirus - a program that removes computer viruses from your computer
Blog - an online journal, also called a web log
Cable modem - sends a data signal through cables used for cable television
Civic address - refers to the number of the building and the name of the street, road, or highway it is on. It is the address you use for emergency services, and is also used by government departments and others that need address information. It allows your building to appear on provincial and federal maps
Dial-up - the computer connects to the Internet over a telephone wire, which is a slower and less reliable connection than high speed
DSL, Digital Subscriber Loop or Line - sends digital data over local telephone wires
Download - how you bring things to your computer. With high-speed, you should be able to download text, photos, videos and the like at a speed of 1.5 Mbps or megabits per second
E-business - more than buying and selling over the Internet. It also includes managing, processing orders, handling customer service, and working in a variety of ways with other businesses
E-commerce - buying and selling goods and services over an electronic system such as the Internet
Facebook - a tool for managing social connections on the Internet. It lets you send messages, pictures, and videos, play games, and more
Fixed wireless - is one way of receiving high-speed Internet. Radio towers send an Internet signal through the air to a receiver box that is attached to a building. A cable brings the signal indoors to the computer or wireless router
High-speed - broadband, refers to how quickly you can get data from the Internet
Home page - usually the main page of a website. Most people go directly to the information they are looking for rather than the home page. The home page may give an introduction and table of contents for the site
Hotlink - same as link, weblink, or hyperlink
IM, Instant Messaging - a conversation that you type back and forth online. Your messages show up instantly
Internet connection - describes how a computer is connected to the Internet, such as dial-up, DSL, cable modem, and wireless
Link - link, hyperlink is what you click on to take you to another URL or website
Live link - another word for link
Online - connected to the Internet
Portal - similar to a home page but for multiple sites. Most people go directly to the information they are looking for rather than the portal
Search engine - a searchable index of websites that are sorted by content. Note: Google is a website that has a search engine
Server - a computer that serves up large quantities of data to a number of users. Many people can connect to a server at the same time
Site - a location on the Internet. It is a collection of web pages
Tool - what you use to complete a task
Twitter - Twitter is a service that allows people to publish short bursts of information about themselves by answering the basic question, "What are you doing?" Updates, or "tweets" as they are called, are limited to 140 characters or less. People can use a computer or cell phone to publish tweets on www.twitter.com. People who "follow" you on Twitter can read your updates and stay in touch online.
Upload - how you send things from your computer. With high-speed, you should be able to upload text, photos, videos and the like at a speed of up to 0.5 Mbps
URL, Uniform Resource Locator - the standard for identifying types of data and their location, usually on the Internet; also known as a web address
Virtual - something that exists only on the Internet. For example, the CSSD Virtual Mall is a site that links to a number of websites where you can buy things