Glossary

+1 Button

Use the +1 button to publicly show what you like, agree with, and/or recommend on the web. The +1 button can appear in a variety of places, on Google as well as other sites. Your +1's can also improve the content you find in Google search. Once you "+1" something, it will appear in the +1 tab in your profile. Here you can manage your +1's and decide whether you want to publicly display this tab.

Accessibility

In terms of websites relates to the ability of a user using assistive technology for magnification to screen reading or the use of other technology such as captions to best use a website. There are standards set for accessibility by the W3C, an international standards organization for the Internet. There is also Section 508 standards for US government sites and others looking to be most accommodating to users with disabilities.

Algorithm

A computer term used to describe a series of mathematical steps that a computer does to process something. A computer has an algorithm for adding effects to a picture or for how Google ranks a site once its content has been indexed.

Bandwidth

The amount of information that a connection to the Internet can process at any one time. You can think of bandwidth as the size of a pipe. If you have a small pipe, less water can pass through. If you have a larger diameter pipe, than more water gets through. If you have more bandwidth (a faster Internet connection) than more data gets through and the inverse is also true.

DSL and Cable have relatively large pipes where dial-up is a very small pipe. The bandwidth for a large site might be equivalent to a water main.

Blog

A web site designed to share information that is updated often. A blog is often used like a journal to share thoughts and feelings on issues or on happenings in a company or organization. Blogs can be silly and not have much value but they can also be a key advertising and marketing technique.

Chat

Must be enabled before it may be used. Select circles that can see when you're online by clicking the drop-down arrow next to "Chat" and select "Circles." Google+ chat list will automatically show people you've chosen to chat with in other Google services (iGoogle, Gmail, etc.) If someone is not already a contact, you may invite them to chat in the Chat search box. Chat may be disabled by clicking the drop-down arrow next to "Chat" and selecting "Sign Out."

Circles

Allows users to share certain posts, updates, interests, announcements, information, and articles with certain people by grouping friends, family, and co-workers into specific categories. This allows users to easily share relevant information with the right people.

Contact Relationship Management Database

A Contact Relationship Management Database is designed for tracking information and clients and others that organizations interact with. CRM databases are designed to show the relationships between contacts, their organizations and the actions that they take. For example, one might buy widgets and attend trainings on how to use their new widgets. This help you sell more of these things or other projects.

Content Management System (CMS)

A CMS is a website that uses a database to deliver content to viewers. CMSs make it possible to easily to change content on a page without having to make changes to the code of the page. A good CMS will also make it so that you can change the content independently of how that content is displayed.

Content Type

A construct for determining specific attributes about content formatting, fields and other settings. A blog post (node) will have different fields and attributes than a directory listing and will have different content type.

Cyber crime

Crimes committed using the Internet. Cyber crimes usually involve identity theft or malisons use of content on a computer for activates like corporate espionage. Some hackers /cyber criminals use their skills just to stop computers systems from functioning properly.

Development Framework

A development framework is used as a generic starting point for creating software or Internet applications that can accomplish many specific tasks. It is like being able to build a very specific type of factory in a space that was designed for any type of factory.

Drupal

A Content Management System (CMS) and web application framework that provides a powerful platform for managing web based content and creating applications for the Internet. You can find out more about Drupal on the Drupal.org website.

Drupal Core

The modules that ship with Drupal as part of what you download when you first start using Drupal. Drupal core includes modules for nodes, search, comments, themes and others. Drupal Core is also responsible for the overall function of Drupal.

Email Service Provider (ESP)

Services like Constant Contact that help you do mass emailing. These services will help you follow the Can SPAM law, maintain your list, and design emails that will work for your email recipients.

Extended Circles

Extended Circles include the circles that you are in as well as those in circles related to yours. Your extended circles are like your circles' circles.
For example, Heather is in one of your circles, and Mitch is in one of Heather's circles. You are not connected with Mitch and he's not in any of your circles. If Heather chooses to have Mitch visible on her profile, and you choose to share with your extended circles, it is possible for your content to appear in both Heather and Mitch's streams. You can not see a complete list of the people included in your extended circles because of permissions and frequent changes. Google+ uses your extended circles to generate recommendations for connections.

Fields

Fields are added to content types to provide users of the site the ability to enter specific content for each type of content.

In Drupal 6.0 The CCK module is used for fields. In Drupal 7 this is part of Drupal core.

Firewall

A firewall is a security tool to keeps other users and malicious code off of your computer. You can think of it as a gate keeper for your computer - the good data is allowed to come in and the bad data is not.

Google Apps

A suite of services including email, calendar, documents and much more that runs these services on your domain. There are various levels of services ranging from free to paid that offer various benefits.

Google+ Bar

Appears at the top of Google services, your connection to Google+. Allows users to share what's on their mind, view notifications, access their profile, and provides instant access to a variety of other Google products and services. For example, to get to Google+, click +[yourfirstname]. You may also sign into multiple accounts at once and switch between accounts through this bar. Here, you will see your full name or email address and a photo or avatar, allowing your to identify which account(s) you are signed in to.

Hangouts

This is a feature that permits users to video chat with their friends and family. It also allows users to create a video chat with numerous users so that they can collaboratively coordinate plans with multiple people.

Hard Drive

The Hard Drive or Hard Disk Drive is the primary long term storage for most computers. When you start your computer the information needed to open Windows or another operating system is loaded from the hard drive. Software like Word or QuickBooks as well as your files are also saved on the hard drive.

Huddle (Mobile)

Allows users to turn conversations with multiple people into a group chat.

Index

Content added to a database so that it can be easily found when it is searched for. Windows indexes files so that when you search for the file your system can quickly produce the results. Google and other search engines index websites so that web users can rapidly search their databases of websites for the information they are looking for.

Indexing

When files are added to the computer their key contents like their file name, tags , other attributes and in some cases their content are added to an index. It is far quicker to search an index of the information than it is to search each file when you want to find information. Windows Vista was the first Windows operating system to include full indexing of files and that is why searching for information in Vista is so much faster. Google and other search engines work on the same principal but on a broader scale for the Internet. A person adds content to their website and then Google is always looking, using software called bots, and when it finds new content it adds it to its index. Once again it is significantly faster to search an index than to search every word of the file. Imagine if Google did not use indexes and each time you wanted to find something every page on the Internet had to be searched - it would take weeks.

Information Architecture

The combination of organization, labeling, and navigation schemes within a website.

Instant Upload

Tool that allows users to instantly upload photos as soon as they are taken from their mobile devices onto the internet. Photos are uploaded to a private album and have the option of sharing on Google+. This feature is currently only available on Android phones but will likely expand to other mobile devices in the future.

Module

Modules are components in Drupal that are used to accomplish specific tasks. There are Drupal modules for ecommerce, modules for forms, modules for connecting your site to Google Analytics and many others.

Node

A piece of content on a Drupal site. Every node has a unique ID.

Node Status: Promoted

Is a node shown on the default front page for Drupal.

Node Status: Published

Nodes that are published can be seen by any user. A node that is not published can only be seen by users with permission to administer nodes.

Node Status: Sticky

Nodes can be shown on the top of lists regardless of other sorting if they are labeled as sticky. Sticky nodes are often shown with different formatting by some themes.

Open Source

Refers to software that makes it code open to the public. Generally open source projects are free and have many people contributing to them. Some of the popular open source projects are becoming well known. For example OpenOffice.org Linux and Drupal (the platform that this site is created in.)You can also go to the The Open Source Initiative website.

Operating System

An operating system is an application like Windows or Mac OS which allows the user to access the computer's functions. In today's world, operating systems provide graphical user interfaces with icons to computer functions so users do not need learn all of the commands necessary to interface with the computer.

Page

A listing for anything on Google+ that is not a person. For example you could have a page for a company, book, product or service.
Pages can interact with other pages and people (who have already +1'ed them through their profiles.

Pay-Per-Click

Advertising used on the Internet by Google and others wear the advertiser only pays for the numbers of users who click on their ad not the numbers of impressions (times the ad appears on a page).

Phishing

A type of attack when malicious website developers try to emulate a site that they are not. For example Chase uses chase.com but their is a phishing site called chasebank.com. Phishing can also be when a site looks for you to put too much information like your social security number.

Photos

Create a new post from the stream or Google+ bar.
Upload photos from Google+ Photos homepage or from the Photos tab on your Google profile.
Share instantly from mobile device. You may create albums, add captions or name tags, and share with circles.

Privacy Settings

Settings available to users of Facebook to control access to the information they provide on Facebook. Go to the Account button(in the upper right hand corner of the screen) and click Privacy Settings from the drop down option. Read Mark Zuckerberg's Blog on the topic.

Profile

Where users manage information that others see including bio, contact details, links to other sites you are associated with. Your full name and gender are the only information that is required on your profile. You may also edit any information at any time. You can choose visibility settings for specific profile sections, allow people to contact your directly via your profile, display people in your circles on your profile, and choose whether your profile is indexed by search engines. The Posts Tab in your profile organizes all the posts shared by the profile owner.

QR Code

A bar code in the shape of a square that holds more information than the bar codes we see at the grocery store. Using the camera on a phone one can scan the code and be directed to something on the Internet, to call a number, or to find a place on a map using a smart phone.

Another popular use of QR codes is to place them on business cards and link to your business card data.

The QR code on the right is an example and goes to mobile.denverdataman.com

RAM (Random Access Memory)

Short term memory that your computer uses to process the information that you are currently using on your computer. New software needs more RAM then some older applications in order to run well .

Role

A designation given to a user that has a set permission attached to like the permission to create content or change menus.

Router

A device used to share an Internet connection with other computers. Often a router will also have a firewall included in it as well as other tools for managing and securing an Internet connection.

RSS

RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication. RSS is a tool that helps you get current information from a website without having to actually visit the website. Each time the site is updated with a new posting, you will receive notification and details of the new information through your RSS subscriptions, which can be sent via email or sent to a personalized RSS page/reader. For example, without RSS, you would need to visit your favorite blog every few days to check to see if any new blog entries have been posted. With RSS, you will be notified through RSS emails or through your RSS site each time the blog is updated. It’s efficient and convenient.

RSS consists of a few components. The first is the feed which is created by the website owner. Website owners add feeds to their site and then advertise them with subscribe links or this icon.

The person gathering or aggregating the feed needs a reader or aggregator to collect the feeds. I like Google Reader and the RSS Reader in Outlook 2007/2010. You can watch this great Common Craft video to see RSS illustrated.

RSS Reader

A tool for gathering RSS content from providers on the Internet. Also known as an aggregator.

Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Optimization, often called SEO is the steps necessary to optimize your site so that it will be found on the Internet. Because search results are determined by patterns, SEO is about guessing, predicting, and building websites that match the patterns.

Social Bookmarking

Services that provide a way to share the links that you think are worth bookmarking for your readers. Social bookmarking sites also help you keep track of the sites that you like because they provide access to bookmarks away from your home or office computer. This video from the Commoncraft Show that explains the use of social bookmarking using a popular tool called Del.icio.us.

Social Networking

Websites that connect people online based on existing friendships/relationships, similar interests, creative communities or for businesses networking. Examples include Facebook, LinkedIn, You Tube, and countless others. Social networks encourage open interaction about any topic including reviews of companies, sharing pictures and videos, answering questions (on any topic) and keeping lines of communication. Social networks expose the connections that others have to the people they are connected to. This You Tube video explains much of social networking very well.

SPAM

Unsolicited and unwanted e-mail, often of a commercial nature, sent indiscriminately to multiple mailing lists, individuals, or newsgroups; junk e-mail. SPAM is often to sell explicit products or for refinancing scams. The Federal Trade Commission provides lots of valuable information.

Sparks

A list of a user's interests that they have been searched and added which appears under a profile picture in Google+. Each interest is a link that connects to relevant articles.

Spyware

Software that covertly gathers information about a user and their Internet usage while he/she navigates the Internet. There is also spyware that harms the users computer by jamming up Internet performance, running applications, sending SPAM, sending large amounts of data over the Internet, and many other negative tasks. Spyware is like a virus but not all anti-virus software can find and remove/protect you from spyware.

Stream

Where users may have meaningful conversations with others. Centralizes all the content that people have shared with you AND people who are trying to share with you but are not yet in your circles. Text posts, videos, pictures, links, and location markers appear in this feed. Likewise, when you share with others, your content will appear in their stream.

Streaming

Technology used to efficiently send videos or other large files over the Internet.

Tag

Tags have different meanings in different applications or websites. Tags mark data by attaching different terms or labels to content. In a Contact Relationship Management Database you might tag contacts as large donors or other key attributes. Websites may be tagged with words that describe their content and articles in the newspaper could have tags about international, local, sports, elections and many other articles. Blogs and photo sharing sites do the same thing to help label content.

Theme

The presentation elements of your website. The theme includes the graphics, styles for text, and navigation for the website.

Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)

When you buy a technology item at the store there is a price. This price does not take into account any accessories, installation costs, service costs, the power to run the device, the supplies it will consume (for example paper and ink for a printer) or any number of other costs that are not seen in the original purchase. TCO refers to identifying and quantifying these other costs.

Unique Visitor

USB Thumb Drives

USB thumb drives often called USB keys have many different names but they all allow you to store data on a small device that plugs into the USB port on a computer. These device are good for taking data from one computer from another. Some offer security features to make sure that data can not be used if the device is lost of stolen. USB Keys have become very cost effective. You can get them at any office store, electronics store or even Costco.

User

A person using a Drupal site. Users can be registered or anonymous. Users are assigned roles in order to allow specific users to participate with a site in different ways.

User Experience (UX)

The experience that a user has when using software or a website.

User Interface (UI)

The elements of a software application or website that are interacted with by users such as links, icons, and menus. The UI also relates to the overall design of a website and the ability of users to navigate the site.

Viral Marketing

Marketing efforts that promote users to pass content to many users. This is often done with online games, videos, blog posts and other promotions. If 5 people send to 10 prople and they send to another 10 your content will spread like a viurs. Content producers add tools like the ability to easily post content to scoial networks and share on social bookmarking sites to help encourage users to send the content to others.

Virus

A virus is a malicious program that gets installed on a computer and attempts to cause damage to the system or individual files.

VOIP

VOIP stands for Voice Over Internet Protocol or IP. It is a phone service that users the Internet rather than standard telephone systems to transfer the signal for your call. You can do VOIP for free with Skype and other providers when you want just talk to other people also using a computer to connect. If you want to call a land line or cell phone you have to pay a fee (generally less then standard phone rates) for these calls. IP5280 is a leading IP telephone company in the Denver metro area.

Webinar

A seminar given over the Internet. Often times companies use Webinars to demo a product or share exciting news and updates without the cost of bringing people together. Educational programs are also being done using webinars.

WiFi

The standard for wireless Internet access. The common use for WiFi is to describe any wirless Internet access as being WiFi. The WiFi logo is often posted in coffee shops, meeting rooms, and hotels when they have available WiFi access.

Worms

A computer virus that passes its way through e-mails. Often times worms are capable of forcing your e-mail client to send e-mails without your knowledge.