Web Hosting Terms and Definitions

A

Ad Banner

ad banner a.k.a. banner ad, online ad An online advertisement on a Web page, it links to another Web site or buffer page or landing page.

Alias

Aliases can be used to identify different e-mail accounts and can redirect mail to other POP3 accounts or to another folder within the same address. A catch-all alias can be used to process e-mail from unknown senders, and is often known as a “junk-mail” sorter.

Alt Tag

An HTML tag that provides alternative text when Web pages are displayed without images. This text is helpful for the visually impaired or those who choose not to download images on Web pages in order to increase their surfing speed. With some browsers, this text appears when you put your mouse over an image and leave it there. It is not necessary for Web designers to put any text there, but if they include terms specific to the Web site, some of the search engines may list the site higher in their results.

Auto responder

Auto responders are not true email accounts, but they do have an e-mail address and reply to anyone who sends them an e-mail. This is a handy tool if you want to send out the same information to anyone who asks for it. The pre-formatted e-mail is automatically sent as a reply, guaranteeing that every response is identical.

B

Back End

The portion of a program that accomplishes the processing tasks the program is designed to perform. In a LAN with client/server architecture, the back end app may be stored on the file server while the front end programs handle the user interface on each workstation.

Backwards Compatible

A term used to describe a program’s ability to read a file created in an earlier version of it.

Bandwidth

Bandwidth is a term used to describe the amount of data that can pass through a communications channel (such as an Internet connection) in a given period of time. Bandwidth is often measured monthly

Browser

A browser is a program that allows access to the web visually by allowing requests from special files known as HyperText Markup Language, The language of web sites. There are many web browsers out there to choose from. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer program is one of the most popular.

B2B

Business-to-Business An acronym that describes business-to-business relationships or applications. Many Web sites focus on B2B solutions that cater to a vertical market. These sites are for businesses, and only other businesses can access them or make purchases.

C

CGI

Common Gateway Interface A standard script for running programs on a server from a Web page. CGI programs (also called scripts) can be run independently and were designed to be external so they can run under various (possibly different) servers interchangeably. The most common CGI scripts found on the Web are programs that process the information a user enters on a form.

Client

A client is a computer program that can download files for editing, run applications, or request application based services from a file server. An FTP client is a common software package used for uploading and maintaining web sites.

Client/Server

A relationship in which one computer program (the client) requests information from another computer program (the server), whereby the server responds in fulfilling the request. In terms of “client/server architecture,” it is the design model for applications running on a network. The bulk of the back end processing, such as performing a physical search of a database, takes place on a server. The front end processing, which involves communicating with the user, is handled by smaller programs distributed to client workstations.

CSS

cascading style sheets (CSS) A format used to separate style from structure on Web pages, it is a feature of HTML that gives both Web developers and users more control over how Web pages are displayed. With CSS, designers create style sheets that define how different elements, such as headers and links, will appear. These style sheets can then be applied to any page or all pages on a particular Web site, which makes coding much easier.

D

Dedicated Hosting

Dedicated Hosting is a service that Web hosting companies provide to their customers whose web sites. generate a lot of traffic. Essentially, and entire server is used for a single customer, ensuring that all of the server’s resources are used to that customer’s needs. This is important for companies that do business online, as heavy traffic tends to eat up bandwidth and make sluggish web sites.

DNS

DNS stands for “Domain Name System”, and it is a way for institutions differentiate themselves from each other. The most famous domain is the “dot com” (.com) domain, which denotes a commercial web site. Other domains include the name of the host country (.us, .ca)

Domain Parking

Domain Parking refers to when individuals or companies buy up domain names before they are ready to use them. A simple web page describing the future content or advertising the new owners of the web site. is then “parked” on the address in order to generate interest before the website actually goes online.

Download

Simply put, when you download data or programs you are transferring data from a server or host computer to your own computer.

E

e-commerce

Conducting business online. Selling goods, in the traditional sense, is possible to do electronically because of certain software programs that run the main functions of an e-commerce Web site, including product display, online ordering, and inventory management.