Applet - A Java programming language used in WebPages. Java scripts or Applets can be inserted into a Webpage so that when a person views the web page, they automatically download and run the Java applet.  Java is used mostly to enhance a pages interactivity. Java scripts and Applets  have certain built -in restrictions though, so they can't damage a person's computer or spread virus's.

Access - Term used to describe an available connection to the Internet.

Authentication - When you log-in to your service provider the server checks to see if you are using a valid user name and password. This is the authentication process. If you do not enter your user name and password accurately and in lower case, authentication will fail and you will not be admitted into the system.

B

Bit - A binary  "1" or a "0" The basic symbols that a computer understands.

Byte -  A term to describe 8 bits.  i.e. an 8 bit "word" is a byte.

Board - Usually refers to a card or circuit board inside your computer.

Browser - The program whose purpose it is to allow you to "View" Web Pages on the NET. MS Explorer and Netscape Navigator are both "Browsers.

C

Cache - The temporary storage area on your Hard Drive for files of visited WebPages on your computer. Caches should be cleared occasionally.

Card - See BOARD in the B section.

Certificate - A digital signature presented to your browser when you visit some sites that attest to the authenticity of the site itself. Issued by third party organizations like "Verisign" , certificates are beginning to be used widely around the net.

Computer - An electronic calculating and DATA processing device.

CGI - "Common Gateway Interface" Also known as a "script" allows WebPages to be able to handle forms and other interactive features. Our Classified section is run by a CGI script.

Cookies - Cookies are tiny bits of code that you may be asked to accept to your hard drive, sent from various websites, that hold information about you that can be used to configure a site to your preferences next time you visit. They can also assign you an account number for use on "store" sites to identify your purchases etc. They are very common and for the most part harmless. You can set your browser to NOT accept them if you wish. This can be bothersome though as many sites like Microsoft hand you a whole "box" of cookies when you visit them.

Cyberspace The term "cyberspace" was first coined by a SC-FI writer in the early 1980s. Cyberspace, Internet, WWW, World Wide Web & Information Superhighway, are used interchangeably.

D

Defrag - The act of Defragmenting files stored on your computers Hard Drive. Defrag, short for "Defragmentation" . i.e. Fragmented files.

DATA - The documents and email that you receive when you download from the Net consist of data stored in files. Data are the contents of a file.

E

Encryption The process by which information or data is encoded so that it can safely be transmitted over the Internet without other people being able to read it.

Expert - A stranger with a briefcase. Believed to be a Guru because he/she charges more and is from another city or town. Experts are usually not as knowledgeable as most people think.

F

FAQ Short for: "Frequently Asked Questions". Usually refers to a WebPages that contains a list of frequently asked questions along with answers. FAQ's are created so programmers, ISP's, website owners and other people can post answers to questions asked repeatedly.

Front Page - An Editor program designed to facilitate the design of a Webpage for the Internet. Also sometimes refereed to as the first page of a Website.

Front Page WebBot/Extensions - Executable programs that reside on the server side of a website that makes interactive forms and order taking possible. Sometimes called "Webots" They can only be used if the server administrator has installed "extensions" in the customers website. We use these extensions so that customers using Front Page 97/98 can create interactive forms for their visitors use.

Freeware Occasionally you will come across a program labeled freeware. This means the program is free to download, copy, distribute and use. Freeware is not the same as Shareware

FTP File Transfer Protocol. FTP is the most common method of transferring files over the internet. There are thousands of FTP archives on the internet, where users can download files and programs, usually for free. To FTP, your computer will need FTP client software. See our FTP page for more information.

FTP Client - Software used to transfer files over the Internet

G

Gigabyte - 1 Gigabyte is 1000 megabytes. Usually used to describe the size or storage capacity of a computer's internal hard drive, Zip drive, or floppy drive.

Gopher Gopher is similar to the World Wide Web, and is slightly older. It is losing popularity as HTML is becoming more popular. Gopher is strictly text-based

Guru An expert. Often used with a qualifier, e.g. Unix Guru, Windows 95 Guru.

H

Hardware - Usually refers to the physical components of the Computer and parts inside the computer or a peripheral such as a printer or scanner.

HTML Short for: "Hyper Text Markup Language". The programming language used by web pages. Documents written in HTML are also said to be Hypertext documents. 

Hypertext Document An HTML (Webpage) file that contains "links" to other files. Web pages are examples of hypertext documents.

  I

Information Superhighway -   just another term for Cyberspace, the Internet, and the World Wide Web

Internet A massive network of computers that covers the entire globe. The large network is actually made up of thousands of smaller networks, all connected together by high speed digital lines or satellites. Even though the Internet is just recently gaining widespread popularity, it has actually been around since 1969. 

IRC Internet Relay Chat. IRC allows multiple users to "talk" to each other in real-time over the Internet. To use IRC, you need IRC client software, and you need to choose an IRC server. There are numerous available to everyone. You can talk with anyone who is on the same IRC network as you, even if they are on a different IRC server. IRC is divided into channels. When you join a channel everything you type is visible to other people in the same channel, and everything they type is visible to you. Most channels have a topic, but the conversations on IRC tend to drift far from that topic. More information about IRC is available at http://www.irchelp.org/.

ISDN Stands for: "Integrated Services Digital Network". A type of phone line that can be installed in your home or office that can greatly increase you access speeds to the Internet while also providing you other, enhanced services as well. Check out this link ISDN Information Page

J

Java Java is a computer programming language. It has gained a lot of popularity because the same code can be used on many different operating systems  Another reason for Java's popularity is that Java applets can be placed on web pages. When someone views that web page, they automatically receive and run the Java applet.

K

Kilobyte - 1000 bytes

L

LAN - "Local Area Network" Used by many to locally connect multiple machines together so that they may share DATA.

M

Megabyte - 1 million bytes.

META TAGS - Used in HTML or hypertext documents/web pages to hold "hidden from the viewer" information about the page. Uses for meta tags include, Page titles, search keywords, descriptions of the site etc...Spiders read Meta Tags when they Index your Website with Search Engines.

MUD Acronym: Multi-User Dungeon. A multi-player game that can be played over the Internet using telnet. Such games are usually text-based.

N

Newbie A person who is new to the Internet. After a few weeks you may become a Guru/ Expert.

Newsgroup Newsgroups are sort of like discussion groups. There are over 30,000 different newsgroups available now, and each one is on a specific topic. You can read messages written by other people on that topic, or ask / answer questions yourself. Some newsgroups are moderated, meaning someone watches over what is said on the newsgroups and censors it, but most are unmediated, so be careful, you never know what you might see or read.

O

Operating System (OS) An operating system is the very basic "program" which makes your computer start and run. It helps the higher level applications "talk" to the hardware. Common operating systems are MS-DOS, Windows 95, UNIX, MAC System 8, etc. Normally programs written for one operating system will not run on another.

P

PGP "Pretty Good Privacy", an encryption program that is popular on the Internet. PGP helps to prevent other people from reading things such as email messages which you send to a friend.

PPP Point to Point Protocol. PPP is the protocol used if you want to connect to the Internet graphically. Programs like Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer use PPP connections by default.

Q

R

RFC Request For Comments. Documents describing the Internet standards (such as networking protocols) as well as informational documents. Mostly technical in nature. They are available for download at ftp://ds.internic.net/rfc.

S

Search Engines - Free Webservice such as Yahoo, that allows a user to search the internet for WebPages using Key Words.

Shareware is a term to describe software that has been made available by it's author on a Try-Before-You-Buy basis. This  means that you may download and use the program for free, but you may not continue to use it for extended periods of time unless you "register" or purchase it. 

Software - A program usually supplied on Floppy disk or CD.

Smiley are small faces created with ordinary text. :) Smileys can be read by tilting your head to the side. They are often used in email and IRC to describe emotions, since it is sometimes hard to let someone know you are sad, happy or kidding. A smiley dictionary can be found at www.eff.org. But for now, the common Smileys are:

• :) - happy
• :O - bored
• :7 -  wry
• :( - sad
• ;) - winking

Spider A program that gets it's name because it automatically walks the web and visits websites. They are commonly used to automatically visit search engines and directories submission pages and register customer websites for Internet marketing companies. (A tedious job if done manually)  They are also used by search engines and directories to visit websites and index the information found there. Sometimes called agents, indexing agents, robots and bots. They can also be used to gather specific information from WebPages such as any email address's found there. (this is one of the ways that email marketers gather their lists.) or competitors product information. Spiders do no harm and are welcomed on most servers. Spiders can also be restricted by network administrators so that they can not gather info from certain selected domains or websites.

T

Telnet Telnet is used to connect to a remote computer across the Internet This protocol is similar to the old way of dialing up to another computers modem via phone lines, but you use the Internet instead.

U

Unix Unix is an operating system that was originally developed by Bell Laboratories around 1970.

URL Uniform Resource Locator. The URL is basically the Internet Address ( see our help page explaining Internet Addresses ) URL’s usually look something like this:  http://www.caprok.com/

V

Virtual Domain Server space configured to look like a standalone web server. The address of a virtual Domain looks like this: www.anyco.com  Sometime referred to as a : Domain

Virus A virus is a small executable program that attaches itself to other executable programs. Viruses can do many things to damage a computer, but most virus's are relatively harmless. For more information on viruses, see the Virus Page.  Contrary to popular belief, you can not get a virus by viewing a web page or reading email. You can, however get a virus from an executable file ( .exe ) attached to an email message. If there is any doubt where an email message came from that has an attached .exe file with it, the attachment can be deleted without harm to your computer.

Virus Shield / Program   - A program that check all downloaded files for Virus's as you use your computer.

W

Web Page A web page is one single page on a website on the World Wide Web. You are currently viewing a web page now!

Website The storage space set aside on a server that holds your web pages. Also called server space. May or may not be a virtual domain.

Webstore - An E-Commerce Enabled Website.

Windows - Microsoft Windows 3.x, Win 95/98 or NT are operating systems used by the majority of computer systems in the world today. Sometimes called O/S for short.

X

Xcopy - A DOS file copying protocol.

Y

Yahoo - The trade name for the number 1 search engine on the Net.

Z

ZDNET - Ziff Davis Publishing Co.'s Website. A popular software download site.