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Safe & Responsible Computing |
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Safe & Responsible Computing Home |
Alias A made up name that allows a person to chat
online anonymously. A good alias will
not contain any part of the user’s real name or any other identifying
information. An alias may be the same
or different from the user’s screen name. Blog A blog is like an online diary. Blogs can be private – only the user and
post and read information; or they can be public – allowing anyone to read
and post comments. Bookmark An easy way of saving on your computer the
location of a favorite website. Browser A browser is the software that allows you to
surf the Internet more easily.
Internet Explorer is the most commonly known browser software. CD Compact disc: Remember cassette tapes and eight track
tapes? Just another media for storing
information. Chat “Talking” online in a chat room. Chat
Room A chat room is place on a website where
people of similar interests talk get together. Chat rooms can be found for any interest
and age group. When you are in a chat
room, other people in the same room can send you an email or instant
message. Parents can set restrictions
on their browser to limit their children’s access to chat rooms. Cookie Information
deposited on your computer by a website.
Cookies store information about you such as your login and password to
a specific site. You can set up your
browser or firewall software to accept or reject cookies. For example, when
you visit an online store, the cookie may contain information about your
shopping preferences so that on your next visit, similar items will be
presented to you for consideration Cyberspace Another word for
the Internet. Domain Name A domain name is
unique and identifies a specific Internet site. The domain name for Download The process whereby a file is copied from
the internet to your computer. Email Messages sent from
one person to another over the Internet. FAQ An acronym for
Frequently Asked Questions. An FAQ a
list of commonly asked questions and answers that are posted on a web site. File
Sharing As simple as it
sounds. Except that the “sharing” takes
place over the Internet. In the
context of ethical computing, file sharing is a problem because swapping
files has been interpreted as copyright infringement and a violation of
intellectual property laws. Filter Software
that lets you block access to web sites and content. Firewall A firewall is a
combination of hardware and software that protects a computer or network. Freeware Software that can be downloaded for free. FTP An acronym for
File Transfer Protocol. A means of
transferring files between two computers or Internet sites. IM An acronym for
Instant Messaging. When you are online
you can be visible to others on the Internet – whether in a chat room, or
just “surfing.” With a couple of mouse
clicks someone you may not know can “see you” and send you an Instant
Message. Internet A collection of interconnected networks. The largest network
in the world. The Internet was
originally developed for the ISP An acronym for
Internet Service Provider — a service that allows you to connect to the
Internet. Common ISPs you may be familiar with include AOL, Comcast, WOW. JPEG An acronym for
Joint Photographic Experts Group. A
common file format for images. Keyword A word you type into a search field to look
for specific information on the Internet. LAN An acronym for Local Area Network. A small number of computers connected
together for the purpose of sharing resources (software, storage space,
printers.) Link Words on a web site that, when clicked,
allow you to connect to other web pages or web sites. Links are usually underlined or a different
color than other words on the site. Login A user name that
is required to gain access to a computer system. May be used in conjunction with a password.
MP3 An abbreviation for the acronym MPEG Layer 3. MPEG is an acronym for Moving Pictures
Expert Group and is a type of file that compresses music to save space and
speed up downloading. Netiquette The etiquette that
is used on the Internet. For example, proper
netiquette dictates that computer users do not send messages in all capital
letters. This is considered to be
shouting and is bad manners. Netizen A netizen is
someone who strives to be a good Internet citizen. A good netizen respects the rights of
others. Network Two or more
computers connected together for the purpose of sharing resources. A LAN is a type of network. P2P An acronym for
Peer-to-Peer. The term peer-to-peer
has two applications. The original meaning
refers to a type of network in which computers are interconnected to share
resources. Within this site
peer-to-peer refers to a type of file sharing where users can copy files over
the Internet directly from another user’s computer. Password A secret code
often used in conjunction with a user name to access computer files. A good password is referred to as a “strong
password” and will contain alphabetic letters (both upper & lower case)
special characters (like $*&) and numbers. A strong password should never
be any word found in a dictionary and should be changed periodically. PDA An acronym for Personal Digital
Assistant. PDAs are small hand held
devices. Typical software installed on
a PDA include contact management (store names and addresses), calendar and
reminder programs and the ability to play games, send and receive email, surf
the web, take pictures and listen to music files that have been downloaded
from the Internet. There are PDAs that
can serve as a cell phone and cell phones that work as PDAs. PDF An acronym for
Portable Document Format. A file
format designed to enable sharing of files while maintaining the original
format and text. Adobe Acrobat Reader
is the most well known PDF program. Privacy
Policy. A statement on a web site describing what
information is collected by site visitors and how the information is used. [R-T] [top] Screen
name When you log in to your computer you use a
screen name. Search Engine Software that helps you find information on the Internet. Search engines use keywords to help you find the information you need. Common search engines include: Yahoo, AltaVista, Google. Shareware Similar to freeware, shareware can be
downloaded for free. The authors will
most likely request a small fee and the software may expire or become
inactive after a given period of time if the software is not registered (aka
– paid for). Spam Mass mailings of
email used to marketing companies to sell goods or services. Spyware Software that is
installed on a computer without the user’s knowledge. This software may monitor the user’s
activities and send that information over the Internet. An annoying marketing tool. A user may unknowingly install spyware on
his/her machine by clicking on a link, downloading a toolbar or time and
weather information Surfing No actual surf boards involved here. Any online activity such as visiting
websites, chatting in chat rooms, is referred to as surfing. Trojan Horse A computer program
that can be hidden inside another program.
For example, a user may click on a link to a photo or game and instead
unleash a program to cause damage to the computer. URL An acronym for Universal Resource
Locater. This is the address of a
website. The URL for Virus A malicious program that attacks your
computer’s hardware or software. Computer viruses are typically spread
through email files VPN An acronym for Virtual
Private Network. A network where a
user can connect through the Internet from another location. Data that is sent between locations is
encrypted for security. WAN An acronym for
Wide Area Network. A network that
encompasses more than one physical building. WAV
file An acronym Windows Audio Volume. A type of music file that was first
developed in a joint project between Microsoft and IBM. Webcam A webcam is a video camera that is attached
to a computer. This camera takes still
pictures every so often and uploads those pictures for others to see. Some webcams will let you see literally
everything a person does in every room of their house. Website A collection of
web pages with images, sound, and video files, etc.) that are made available
through what appears to users as a single web server. Worm A worm is a type
of virus that can destroy files or programs. WWW An acronym for
World Wide Web. The term frequently
used when referring to the Internet. ZIP
file A file that has been zipped has been
compressed by temporarily removing characters to save space. Once unzipped – the characters are added
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