Anchor: A hyperlink from one webpage to another.

Applet: A small file or application that is downloaded from a webpage and executed by browser software.

Asynchronous - Events are not occurring in a synchronized manner. Communication methods such as email or web forums are "asynchronous" because participants contribute their messages at a times independent of each other.

Bandwidth: The frequency width of a transmission channel measured in Hertz. Bandwidth is used to describe the volume of data that can be sent through a circuit. The greater the bandwidth the more data can be transmitted at a time.

Bookmark: Feature on Netscape (also referred to as 'favorites' on the Internet Explorer) which marks the URL (or Internet address) of a site for future reference.

Boolean Search: A method of searching for information on databases and search engines that uses terms AND, NOT, OR, and parentheses.

Browser: A WWW client, information retrieval system reads WW files and transmits them to your desktop.

Browsing: When you click on an image or hyperlinked text and follow a link from one Web page to another, this is referred to as browsing. A link may be followed to a different page within the same resource, to a different resource, or to an entirely separate Web site, perhaps on the other side of the world.

Bounce: A returned email message due to an error in the address or delivery.

Cache: Both Netscape and Microsoft Internet Explorer retain copies of your most recently visited websites in the disk memory. Se the home pages of each of these sites for more information on privacy and the Internet.

Chats - Online chats are communications between two or more people that occur in real time. Chat rooms are a "virtual space" where people can gather to exchange views by typing into a chat program screen.

Cookie: A file pu on your system via a webpage that includes information about your usage and facilitates the current interaction. A cookie may include information about your entry into a password area that would allow you to enter the site again without asking for the password again. Cookies may be retained or erased at the end of the browsing session.

Domain Name: Domain name addresses and IP addresses are the two forms of Internet addresses (or URLs). All domain name addresses end with its top level domain. For example: .com, .edu, .gov, org, and .net describe the nature or affiliation of a website. Two-letter country codes also indicate the location of a websit's origin (.au - Australia, .uk - United Kingdo, .nl - Netherlands.)

Download: Refers to transfer of a file from one system to your computer via a modem, telephone or cable lines. A telnet connection may also be utilized through a transfer protocol such as Kermit.

Email: Electronic mail was one of the earliest standards of Internet protocol that permitted commjunication between different computers. An organization's 'server' or ISP acts as a 'mailbox' holding and storing mail until the addressee logs on to collect mail.

FAQ: A file that contains the answers to "Frequently Asked Questions".

Firewall: The security interact/gateway between a closed network (such as that found within an organization) and the outside Internet community. Security is often ensured through the requirement of passwords and software or hardware.

Frames: A design concept used in webpage design to divide the page into windows. Each window is a separate frame and can be used concurrently. One advantage is that one page can be scrolled while the other remains still. Not all browsers or web servers support frames.

History List: A list of URLs most recently visited by your browser. Access your list by clicking on the down arrow found to the right of the currently displayed URL address.

Hit: Search engine terminology to denote a listing returned from the search query.

Home Page: The first document see on a website when accessed by a browser.

HTML: Hypertext Markup Language refers to the rules that govern the content and layout of webpages to ensure that they can be interpreted by a browser. HTML documents are characterized by the file format '.html' or '.htm'.

HTTP: Hypertext Transport Protocol is the protocol used by WWW servers to locate websites. HTTP is required when linking to other websites, all of which begin with 'http://'.

Hyperlink: A link from one Internet document to another. Links are often underlined or highlighted in blue.

Internet: An international computer network connecting governments, academic institutions, organizations, businesses, and individuals through servers.

Intranet: A network of networks that interconnects within a single organization that uses the Internet protocol (IP). They are closed to the outside Internet community and are increasingly used by organizations to share information.

ISP: Internet Service Provider is a 'server' that facilitates communication via the Internet.

Java: A programming language developed by Sun Microsystems based on C++ and used on webpages to create applets (small programs) that run on different platforms.

Link: An active connection with another webpage, often called a hyperlink.

Listservs (or Mailing Lists) - Mailing lists are a method of online communication in which an email message can be sent to the list and is then redistributed to hundreds of subscribers at the same time. You must subscribe to a list to receive the messages. Lists can be used for information and/or discussion on specific topics.

Search Engine: A program that will search an Intranet, the Internet, a site of database to retrieve files or pages based on your search terms. A search engine has three elements: a program that roams the area to be searched, collects data, and links to more data (often known as spiders or crawlers), an index o fdata collected to enable fast access to search findings and a search interface (like a form) to enter your conditions for searching.

Searching: Many Web sites display a search box and invite you to enter keywords and click a button labelled "search" or "find". What happens next differs from site to site, but frequently a set of links is retrieved for you to explore.

Server: A computer that 'serves' (facilitates the transmission of) information and software from individual computers to the Internet.

Spider: A software robot that crawls through webpages collecting data and links for search engines.

Synchronous - Events occurring in a synchronized manner. Live chat is "synchronous" because the participants are communicating with each other in real time. It is contrasted with asynchronous communication.

Trojan Horse: A destructive program that appears harmless.

Upload: Refers to the transfer of a file from your computer system to another system via a modem, telephone or cable line or telnet connection. It may also refer to a direct transfer of information from your local terminal to a server over a LAN or an FTP.

Usenet Newsgroups: A discussion group about a topic that is referred to in the title. There are eight primary series of newsgroups: comp, humanities, misc, news, rec, sci, soc and talk. Newsgroups within these series are created only after formal discussion and voting.

URL: Uniform Resource Locator is the address of a website read by the client/browser. Each URL contains the following information: protocol type, domain name or IP address, directory path and file name.

USENETS (or Newsgroups.) Newsgroups are ongoing discussion groups on a variety of topics and issues. Special software is needed to subscribe and use newsgroups.

Virus: A destructive program that has the ability to reproduce itself to infect other programs or disks. The best defence is running anti-virus software (such as dr. Norton's anti-virus software) to scan any new software, disks and downloads.