Glossary

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

This Glossary is available online or in PDF format.

A

a la carte services

A la carte services from NRTC are individual services that may be ordered from NRTC by themselves. Each item on the a la carte “menu” of services has a separate price and stands alone.

address

There are three types of addresses in common use on the Internet: email addresses, IP addresses, and Uniform Resource Locators.

Examples:

email address: shassell@nrtc.coop

IP address: 111.22.3.444

Uniform Resource Locator (URL): http://www.nrtc.net

American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ACSII)

Common format for computer and Internet text files. In an ASCII file, each of 128 possible alphabetic, numeric, or special characters is represented with a seven- digit binary number (a string of seven 0s or 1s).

amplifier

Device used to increase an electronic signal level.

application service provider (ASP)

Company that offers individuals or enterprises access over the Internet to applications and related services that would otherwise have to be located in their own personal or enterprise computers.

asymmetric digital subscriber line (ADSL)

Form of digital subscriber line service commonly deployed for commercial and residential users, designed mainly for World Wide Web use. Downstream data rates are significantly faster than upstream rates.

asynchronous

· Having a variable time interval between successive bits, characters, or events. Each character is individually arranged, usually by using start and stop bits.

· Description of the transmission method, or the terminal equipment employed, which is self clocking.

asynchronous transfer mode (ATM)

Dedicated-connection switching technology that organizes digital data into 53 -byte cell units and transmits them over a physical medium using digital signal technology. Individually, a cell is processed asynchronously relative to other related cells and is queued before being multiplexed over the transmission path.

attenuation

Decrease in the magnitude of a signal, which may be expressed as a ratio, or in decibels. The opposite of amplification.

AUP

acceptable use policy

authentication

An electronic process of identifying an individual, usually done with a username and password. In security systems, authentication is distinct from authorization, which is the process of giving individuals access to system objects based on their identity.

For example, NRTC uses an authorization protocol called RADIUS. See RADIUS in this glossary.

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B

backbone

The Internet’s high speed data highways that serve as major access points to which other networks connect.

Part of the communications network that carries the heaviest Internet traffic. The backbone is also that part of the network that joins LANs together either inside the building or across a city, region, or larger geographic area.

band

Portion of the frequency spectrum covering a specified range of frequency.

bandwidth

The amount of data that can be sent through a connection. Usually measured in bits-per-second (bps). In data transmission, the greater the bandwidth, the greater the capacity to transmit data bits.

baud

Number of times a state change occurs on a communications channel per second. A 1,200-baud modem (an IRD's modem is 1,200-baud) changes its signals 1,200 times a second.

binary

Number system based on 2. The place columns of the number are based on powers of 2: 2,4,8,16,32,64,128,256, and so on. The binary to decimal conversions make up the IP addresses used on any TCP/IP network, such as 199.232.255.113.

bit error rate (BER)

In a digital system, corruption of the digital information is known as bit error. When the BER reaches a certain level, reception of the digital transmission will fail completely.

bit map

Representation of a graphic image translated to pixels or dots on a screen.

bits per second (BPS)

Measure of the communications capacity of a transmission line represented by the total number of bits sent in a second of time. A kilobit represents transmission of 1,000 bits in a second. A megabit represents the transmission of one million bits in a second, or MBPS.

bridge

Device that connects two networks as a seamless single network using the same networking protocol. DSL LAN modems are typically bridges. Bridges operate at the hardware layer and do not include IP routing capabilities.

broadband

Term used to describe wide bandwidth equipment or systems that can carry a large proportion of the electromagnetic spectrum. A broadband communications system can deliver multiple channels and other services.

browser

Client program used to search, retrieve, and present information from the World Wide Web. Examples: Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer.

byte

Group of normally eight bits that are treated as a unit to represent a character in some systems. In an eight-bit byte, the value of the bits can be varied to form 256 permutations. One byte of memory can represent an integer from 0 to 255, or from -127 to +128.

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C

CSU/DSU

A CSU/DSU (Channel Service Unit/Data Service Unit) is a hardware device about the size of an external modem that converts digital data frames from the communications technology used on a local area network (LAN) into frames appropriate to a wide-area network (WAN) and vice versa.

Whatis.com

cable

Video distribution system that uses coaxial cable (or fiber optics) to transmit TV signals to subscribers.

cable modem

Modem designed for use with coaxial cable circuit.

call center

Central location where customer telephone calls are handled by an organization, usually with some amount of computer automation.

central office (CO)

Telephone company facility at the center of the local exchange that contains the equipment required for switching telecommunications traffic.

central processing unit (CPU)

“Brain” that controls the operations of a computer. The CPU is the place where arithmetic and logical operations are conducted. All program instructions to be executed must be held within the central processor, and all data to be processed must first be loaded into this unit.

centralized solution

The NRTC centralized solution involves the member purchasing their own equipment and going through NRTC for items like maintenance and monitoring. This will most likely be the choice of members who are initially going into the business and may view the business as complicated. In this way, the member is not responsible for upgrading, maintenance and monitoring of the equipment.

churn

Turnover. The churn percentage for a particular service is calculated by dividing the number of disconnects by the average number of customers for the period and multiplying by 100. The average number of customers is calculated by adding the accounting period beginning number and the accounting period ending number and dividing by two.

connectivity

Property of a network that allows dissimilar devices to communicate with each other.

customer premises equipment (CPE)

Any equipment located on the customer’s premises. The term refers to terminating equipment supplied by the carrier for use at a customer site i.e. modems, phones, routers.

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D

decentralized solution

The NRTC decentralized solution involves the member purchasing their own equipment and taking responsibility for the ongoing development, and daily operations of the ISP business.

NRTC definition

dedicated connection (sometimes: dedicated line)

A dedicated line is a telecommunications path between two points that is available 24 hours a day for use by a designated user (individual or company). It is not shared in common among multiple users as dial up lines are. A dedicated line can be a physical path owned by the user or rented from a telephone company, in which case it is called a leased line.

Example: A dedicated line could be a T-1, fractional T-1 over frame relay, microwave or point-to-point.

dedicated server

Computer reserved for the use of a single person, company, or organization.

dial-up

A basic type of Internet account that allows the user to dial-up a provider’s computer with a modem.

digital

Digital describes electronic technology that generates, stores, and processes data in terms of two states: positive and non-positive. Positive is expressed or represented by the number 1 and non-positive by the number 0. Thus, data transmitted or stored with digital technology is expressed as a string of 0's and 1's. Each of these state digits is referred to as a binary digit (and a string of bits that a computer can address individually as a group is a byte).

digital subscriber line (DSL)

A series of technologies that transmit packet data via the existing copper phone lines found in most areas. DSL uses sophisticated modulation schemes to pack data onto copper wires. There are several types of DSL – ADSL, SDSL, etc. Data rates vary among the different DSL technologies.

digital subscriber line access multiplexer (DSLAM)

Key device used to enable digital subscriber line services. The device links the DSL customer to the high-speed backbone network, including ATM and frame-relay networks and the Internet.

digital video compression

Conversion of a standard analog signal to the digital format of ones and zeros, followed by removal of redundant signal information, resulting in the ability to put up to ten times more information on a transmission line than with an analog signal.

domain name

Address identifying an Internet site. Domain names consist of at least 2 parts. The part on the left is the name of the company, institution, or other organization. The part on the right identifies the highest subdomain. This can be a country, such as ca for Canada, fr for France, or the type of organization: com for commercial; edu for educational, etc. The IP address is translated into the domain name by the DNS.

For example, http://www.trueband.net

domain name system (DNS)

Database system that translates an IP address into a domain name. For example, a numeric address like 205.206.106.50 is converted into wwli.com.

downstream

Direction of data flow on a data communications link, which occurs from the network down to the user. In the case of Internet access, it is the capacity or speed of data flowing from the Internet to the end user’s PC or LAN.

Dynamically Assigned Internet Protocol (IP) Address

TCP/IP network address assigned to a machine or account for the duration of a single Internet session.

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E

e-business

A business that uses electronic technologies such as e-mil, Web sites, networks, and/or automated supply chains to advance its level of production and attract more customers.

e-commerce

Electronic commerce. Electronic transactions between business and customers via the Internet. These are typically private and secure.

e-procurement

Business-to-business purchase and sale of supplies and services over the Internet. Registered users look for buyers or sellers of goods and services as well as access inventories directly from the manufacturer.

ethernet

A common method of networking computers on a LAN. An Ethernet will handle about 10 million bps and can be used with almost any kind of computer.

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F

Federal Communications Commission (FCC)

United States government agency that regulates the communications industry.

fiber

Fiber—also known as fiber optic—consists of threads of pure glass. Lasers attached to the end of each cable transmit digital patterns of light pulses at extremely high speed.

file transfer protocol (FTP)

Protocol used on the Internet for sending files. FTP is a method for accessing and transfer of files to or from an Internet Server or Workstation.

firewall

Secure gateway or virtual wall between two different computer networks that prevents unauthorized use or access. A firewall is a security device (hardware or software) that controls access from the Internet to a local network by using identification information associated with TCP/IP packets to make a decision about whether to allow ore deny access. This decision is based on a set of defined rules that describe which packets or sessions are allowed.

fixed/static Internet Protocol (IP) address

A TCP/IP address permanently assigned to an individual machine or account.

fractional T-1

Data transmission rate between 56 Kbps and 1.54 Mbps (which is the full T-1 rate). Fractional T-1 is simply a digital, dedicated line that is not as fast or expensive as a T-1 line.

frame relay

Frame relay is a telecommunication service designed for cost-efficient data transmission for intermittent traffic between local area networks (LANs) and between end-points in a wide area network (WAN). Frame relay puts data in a variable-size unit called a frame and leaves any necessary error correction (retransmission of data) up to the end-points, which speeds up overall data transmission.

frequency

Property of a periodic-current signal measured in cycles per second or hertz. In general, the higher the frequency of a signal, the more capacity it has to carry information, the smaller an antenna is required, and the more susceptible the signal is to absorption by the atmosphere and physical structures. At microwave frequencies, radio signals take on a line-of-sight characteristic and require highly directional and focused antennas to be received successfully.

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G

Gigabyte

G.Lite

Low-cost consumer variation of ADSL.

Gb

gigabit

Gbps

Gigabits per second. Measurement equal to 1,000,000,000 (one billion) bits per second, a measure of telecommunications speed. One Gigabit is equivalent to one thousand megabits.

GHz

gigahertz (see gigahertz)

GIG

gigabyte

gigahertz

Frequency equal to one billion hertz.

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H

handshaking

In telephone communication, handshaking is the exchange of information between two modems and the resulting agreement about which protocol to use that precedes each telephone connection.

Hertz

The unit of measure for electromagnetic spectrum in modulated cycles per second. The term was coined to honor Heinrich Hertz, the 19^th century German scientist who first demonstrated the existence of electromagnetic waves.

high-speed digital subscriber line (HDSL)

The DSL service widely used for T-1 lines. HDSL uses four wires (two pairs) instead of the standard two wires used for other DSL flavors. HDSL supports symmetrical service at 1.54 Mbps but does not support plain old telephone service.

high-speed Internet (HSI)

Two-way, satellite high-speed Internet service.

host

Computer or any device connected to a TCP/IP network.

hub

Passive network device that repeats all data traffic to all ports. A hub is at the center of a LAN. All networked devices, including computers, printers, and DSL bridges or routers, are connected to the hub through cables.

hyperlink

A highlighted word or picture within a hypertext document that when clicked takes you to another place within the document or to another document altogether.

hypertext

Text that includes links or shortcuts to other documents, allowing the reader to easily jump from one text to related texts, and consequentially from one idea to another, in a non-linear fashion.

hypertext markup language (HTML)

Set of "markup" symbols or codes inserted in a file intended for display on a World Wide Web browser. The markup tells the Web browser how to display a Web page's words and images for the user.

hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP)

Set of rules for exchanging hypertext files (text, graphic images, sound, video, and other multimedia files) on the World Wide Web. This is the most important protocol used in the World Wide Web.

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I

I/O

Input/Output

IEEE

Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers

information technology (IT)

Term encompassing all forms of technology used to create, store, exchange, and use various types of information (business data, voice conversations, still images, motion pictures, multimedia presentations, etc.)

integrated services digital network (ISDN)

A technology offered by telephone carriers that allows for the rapid transfer of voice and data.

Note: Use of ISDN requires an IDSN modem at customer’s premises.

International Standards Organization (ISO)

International body with responsibility for developing worldwide data communications standards, especially the Open Systems Interconnect models, a reference for developers of communications hardware and software.

Internet

The world's largest network of computer users, literally a collection of thousands of separate computer networks located worldwide that exchange information by the TCP/IP suite of networking protocols.

The Internet grew up as the child of the ARPANET, a packet-switching network developed in the early 1970s and funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), a U.S. government agency. Always capitalize.

Internet address

The unique 32-bit numeric address, such as 199.232.255.113, used by a host on a TCP/IP network. The IP address consists of two parts: a network number and a host number.

Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN)

Organization responsible for managing Internet addresses across the globe.

Internet protocol (IP)

Connectionless network layer protocol that forms the networking functions of the TCP/IP suite. IP networking forms the basis of networking over the Internet and allows information to be transmitted across dissimilar networks.

Internet service provider (ISP)

Entity that provides individuals and other companies access to the Internet and other related services, such as Web site building and hosting.

Intranet

Collection of computers and other devices in a given organization.

IP address

Internet protocol address. A 32-bit dotted decimal notation used to represent IP addresses. Each part of the address is a decimal number separated from other parts by a dot (.), such as 199.232.255.113.

IP spoofing

A technique used to gain unauthorized access to computers, whereby the intruder sends messages to a computer with an IP address indicating that the message is coming from a trusted port. To engage in IP spoofing, a hacker must first use a variety of techniques to find an IP address of a trusted port and then modify the packet headers so that it appears that the packets are coming from that port.

IXC

An IXC (interexchange carrier) is a telephone company that provides connections between local exchanges in different geographic areas. IXCs provide interLATA service as described in the Telecommunication ACT of 1996. They're commonly referred to as simply "long-distance carriers." IXCs include AT&T, MCI, Sprint, and others.

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K

kilobits per second (kbps)

Measurement of digital bandwidth where one kbps equals one thousand bits per second. For example, 64 kbps = 64,000 bps. The higher the number, the faster the transmission speed.

kilohertz (kHz)

One thousand Hertz.

ka-band

Roughly, the 18-31 GHz frequency band (for satellite Internet services).

ku-band

In North America, the 11.7-12.2 GHz (gigahertz) frequency band. The Federal Communications Commission has split this band into two segments: The first is the 11.7-12.7 GHz band known as FSS (Fixed Satellite Service). The second is the 12.2-12.7 GHz segment is known as BSS (Broadcasting Satellite Service).

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L

leased line

Refers to a dedicated phone line that is rented for exclusive 24-hour, 7-days-a-week use from your location to another location. The highest speed data connections require a leased line.

link

A highlighted word or picture within a hypertext document that when clicked bring you to another place within the document or to another document altogether.

Net Dictionary

local access and transport area (LATA)

A specific area in the US in which a local telephone company can offer services.

local area network (LAN)

Local computer communications network within a building or office complex.

local loop

Generic term for the connection between the customer’s premises and the telephone company’s serving central office. The local loop is the pair of copper wires that connects the end-user to the central office, which is the gateway to the telecommunications network.

local multipoint distribution system (LMDS)

Fixed terrestrial wireless service in the 28 GHz and 31 GHZ bands. Transmissions must be within the end user’s line of sight.

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M

megabits per second (Mbps)

Measure of transmission rates. One megabit equals 1,000 kilobits, or one million bits per second.

megahertz (MHz)

One million hertz. MHZ is acceptable in all references.

microwave

Line-of-sight, point-to-point transmission of signals at that portion of the electromagnetic spectrum above one GHz in frequency.

modem

Acronym for MOdulator/DEModulator. An electronic device used to modulate or change a computer’s digital output to an analog form for transmission over separate, dedicated phone lines.

multichannel multipoint distribution service (MMDS)

Two separate services in the 2 GHz band ‑ Multipoint Distribution Service (MDS) and Instructional Television Fixed Service (ITFS) ‑ make up the overall 30-channel MMDS service, sometimes called "wireless cable.” In late 1998, the FCC approved use of MDS and ITFS frequencies for two‑way communications, which could enable MMDS operators to provide broadband services including wireless local loop and high‑speed Internet access.

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N

National Rural Telecommunications Cooperative (NRTC)

NRTC represents the telecommunications and information technology interests of more than 1,000 rural electric systems, rural telephone systems, and affiliated companies. Through its members, NRTC provides telecommunications products and services – including Internet access and satellite television – that enhance the lives of rural Americans.

network

Collection of computers and other devices that are connected for sharing resources.

network access point (NAP) (sometimes: network access provider)

In the United States, a network access point is one of several major Internet interconnection points that serve to tie all the Internet access providers together so that, for example, an AT&T user in Portland, Oregon can reach the Web site of a Bell South customer in Miami, Florida.

network interface card (NIC)

Hardware that forms the interface between the computer (or other network device) and not only the data communications network for the LAN but also the IP connection through a DSL bridge or router.

network operations center (NOC)

A place from which a telecommunications network is supervised, monitored, and maintained.

noise

Any unwanted contribution to a signal, which may be natural or caused by interference from other signals.

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O

open architecture

Computer industry term for a system design that allows computer programs to run and data to travel across a wide variety of transports and to be delivered to a wide variety of platforms.

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P

packet

The unit of data that is routed between an origin and a destination on the Internet or any other packet-switched network.

When any file (e-mail message, HTML file, GIF file, URL request, etc.) is sent from one place to another on the Internet, the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP layer of TCP/IP divides the file into packets—“chunks" of an efficient size for routing. Each of these packets is numbered and includes the Internet address of the destination.

The individual packets for a given file may travel different routes through the Internet. When they have all arrived, they are reassembled into the original file (by the TCP layer at the receiving end).

packet Internet groper (PING)

Utility for determining whether a specific IP address is accessible. It works by sending a self-returning packet to a host and times how long it takes to return. PING is used primarily to troubleshoot Internet connections.

packet switching

Packet switching is used to describe protocols that divide messages into packets before they are sent. Each packet is then transmitted individually to its destination. Once all the packets forming a message arrive at the destination, they are recompiled into the original message. Most Wide Area Network (WAN) protocols are based on packet-switching technologies.

passed by cable

Areas in which the residents have cable available for purchasing (the cable lines pass through).

Personal Communications Services (PCS)

Term most commonly used to refer to FCC's "Broadband PCS" designation. Broadband PCS operates with 120 MHz in the 1900 MHz band. Air link technologies use cellular configuration to provide personal mobile phone service, similar to analog cellular service in the 800 MHz band. However, Broadband PCS services are almost exclusively digital. PCS spectrum is expected to be a major component of future third generation (3G) mobile voice/data services. The FCC also has designated an "Unlicensed PCS" service in the 1910-1930 MHz band to support high-speed local area networks and wireless PBXs. The "Narrowband PCS" service in the 900 MHz band is used to offer advanced packet-based paging services, including voice and text messages.

plain old telephone service (POTS)

Conventional local telephony routed through the public switched telephone network.

Point of Presence (PoP)

An access point to the Internet with a unique Internet protocol address. A PoP usually includes routers, digital/analog call aggregators, servers, and frequently frame relay or ATM switches. The number of PoPs that an ISP or OSP has is sometimes used as a measure of its size or growth rate.

point-to-point protocol (PPP)

Protocol used by TCP/IP routers and PCs to send packets over dial-up and leased-line connections.

Post Office Protocol (POP)

Method by which e-mail clients pick up e-mail from a mail server. POP3, a widely deployed mail access protocol, refers to Version Three of the post office protocol.

protocol

A series of rules and conventions that allow different kinds of computers and applications to communicate over a network.

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Q

Quality of Service (QoS)

Idea that transmission rates, error rates, and other characteristics can be measured, improved, and, to some extent, guaranteed in advance.

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R

regional business manager (RBM)

Direct link between NRTC and its members.

Remote Authentication Dial-In User Service (RADIUS)

Client/server protocol and software that enables remote access servers to communicate with a central server to authenticate dial-in users and authorize their access to the requested system or service. RADIUS allows a company to maintain user profiles in a central database that all remote servers can share.

remote access and remote access server (RAS)

Remote access is the ability to get access to a computer or a network from a remote distance. Dial-up connection through desktop, notebook, or handheld computer modems over regular telephone lines is a common method of remote access.

response time

A measurement of the time between a request for information over a network and the network's fulfillment of that request. "Overall response time" is an aggregate or average measurement of various response times over a particular network or through a particular host.

router

Device that routes data between networks through IP addressing information contained in the header of the IP packet. A router forwards packets to other routers until the packets reach their destinations. Routers form the basis of IP networking.

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S

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)

Program layer created by Netscape for managing the security of message transmissions in a network. The "sockets" part of the term refers to the sockets method of passing data back and forth between a client and a server program in a network or between program layers in the same computer.

server

Computer or device on a network that manages network resources. For example, a Web server relays information to Web browser clients.

simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP)

SMTP is a protocol for sending e-mail messages between servers. Most e-mail systems that send mail over the Internet use SMTP to send messages from one server to another; the messages can then be retrieved with an e-mail client using either POP or IMAP. In addition, SMTP is generally used to send messages from a mail client to a mail server.

small office/home office (SOHO)

Term for the small office or home office environment and business culture.

Synchronous Optical Network (SONET)

U.S. standard for fiber optic transmission designed to interface with conventional telco infrastructure as well as various international standards. ATM commonly is run as a layer on top of SONET. SONET data rates can reach as much as 20 Gbps.

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T

3G

Third generation cellular transmission. Analog cellular technologies introduced in 1984 represent the first generation, and digital cellular /Personal Communications Services introduced in the 1990s represent the second generation. The next generation of digital technologies will support mobile voice service, as well as Internet access at data rates from 150 kbps (at highway speeds) to 2 Mbps or higher (fixed service). By comparison, current second generation technologies achieve maximum speeds of only 14.4 kbps. Some wireless companies are deploying interim "2.5G" technologies that offer Internet access at speeds up to about 100 kbps.

T-1

Dedicated high bandwidth Internet connection with 1.54 MB—equivalent to 24 phone lines. A T-1 line has the capacity for 24 voice and data channels at 64 kbps each. The benchmark in leased, digital line service from ILECs.

T-3

High speed, high-bandwidth connection to the Internet. T-3 connections deliver information at 44.746 mbps.

teleworker

Person who works from home or some place distant from his or her company’s office.

telnet

Application program used to reach the login prompt of any computer not behind a firewall on the Internet. Telnet is a common way to remotely control Web servers.

traffic

The load of packets carried by a network or portion of a network. Heavy traffic slows down the response time of the individual packets.

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)

The suite of protocols that define the basis of the Internet. TCP/IP is an open communication protocol that allows computers with different operating systems to communicate with each other on the Internet.

transport

Type of content delivery medium, such as terrestrial, cable, or satellite.

TrueBand HSI

Name for NRTC’s two-way, high-speed Internet service.

TrueBand Internet Services

Name for NRTC’s Internet service provision business.

twisted pair

Cable of two 18 to 24 gauge solid copper strands twisted around each other. The twisting helps protect against electromagnetism and Radio Frequency Interference (RFI).

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U

uninterruptible power supply (UPS)

Device that allows a computer to keep running for at least a short time when the primary power source is lost. It also provides protection from power surges.

Universal Resource Locator (URL)

An address by which a browser finds a particular Internet resource. For example, the URL for the WorldWide Language Institute is http://wwli.com.

upstream

Direction of information flow on a data communications link. The faster the upstream speed, the faster data can move from your local network or PC to the Internet. If you run a Web server or any type of TCP/IP server, it will affect your upstream capacity.

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V

V.92

A standard, approved by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) for transmitting data downstream to modems as 56 Kbps. The V.92 modem standards includes features such as “modem on hold,” “quick connect,” and enables faster upstream speeds.

V.90

A standard, approved by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), for transmitting data downstream to modems at 56 Kbps.

V/D

voice/data

video on demand (VOD)

Entertainment and information service that allows customers to order programs from a library of material at any time. Initially, VOD services are expected to focus on delivery of movies and other video entertainment, though other information-based services, such as multimedia databases, are expected to be available as well. Other interactive services such as video games and transactional services, such a home shopping and banking, also are expected to be offered on an on-demand basis.

virtual private network (VPN)

Private network constructed using public wires, such as the Internet, for users of a single company. These networks use encryption and other security mechanisms to ensure that only authorized users can access the network and data.

Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)

Method by which voice transmission is permitted via the Internet.

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W

W3

World Wide Web

Web

Short for “World Wide Web,” software that enables digital data "marked up" with HTML to be put into hypertext databases in which data in one database can be linked to data in another. By clicking on the marked text, the Web user automatically logs into the new Web server and finds the linked data.

Web browser

Software that allows a computer user to “surf” the World Wide Web. It allows the user to select, retrieve, and interact with resources on the Web and move from one Web site to another.

webmaster

The person responsible for administering a web site.

wide area network (WAN)

Refers to the integrated parts of a computer communications network that may be very distantly located.

Wi-Fi

The generic name for the IEEE 802.11b standard for wireless Ethernet signals on the unlicensed 2.4 GHz band. Wi-Fi networks can operate at speeds up to 11 Mbps over short distances (approximately 300 feet) in a local area network. Users with laptop computers and Wi-Fi PC Card modems can log on to the Internet when they come within range of a Wi-Fi access point. Some laptop computers come with built-in Wi-Fi modems.

wireless application protocol (WAP)

Protocol designed to translate World Wide Web information and packet data for display on cellular telephones and other handheld devices.

WWW

World Wide Web

WYSIWYG

What you see is what you get.

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