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Glossary
Ad Rotator is an
ASP
component.
When a visitor requests a page from your site, ad-rotator determines the
appropriate ads and randomly,
or sequentially if you specified, select an ad to show to your site's visitors. All
this happens within approximately 0.05 seconds.
When referring to
email addresses ,
an alias is simply an alternative address for
an email box. For instance, you can set up the mailbox "bobp@domain.com"
and then create "bpalmer@domain.com" to send all its mail to
"bobp@domain.com". That is an alias. Total Computer Solutions does not offer this service.
ASP is a coding language developed by Microsoft. Using either a coding language
or
CGI scripts allows you to make your site interactive by including database
results,
email forms, guestbooks, bulletin boards, chat,
etc (FrontPage also includes some of these capabilities). ASP is one of
the most popular coding languages. Many of our plans include ASP Support,
and some include
ASP components.
While you can use many methods to display database information on the web,
the ASPdb-Free
component gives
you many options for the table layout and is relatively simple to use.
ASPDNS is an ASP
component that
allows you to look up
IP addresses
and host names from a website.
While
you can always add a link to your email address on your website, the ASP
component ASPEmail
allows
you to have a form automatically send an email. The
advantage of using ASPEmail as opposed to some other email
component is
two-fold. First, you can send attachments with ASPEmail. For instance, if
you have an option on your form to get more information about a specific
topic, you can set ASPEmail to send an attachment based on the topic your
visitor chooses. The other advantage to using ASPEmail is that you can
queue the email. Have you ever noticed that sometimes when you fill out a
form, there's a notice that it may take up to "XX" minutes to be
submitted, and to please wait? If your form is sending email and you use
ASPEmail, you can at least eliminate the wait for the email to send.
ASPEmail can send your email
to a queue on the server which will then send out the emails. The ASPEmail
queue is set to check for queued messages every 5 minutes, so there will
be little or no delay in the receipt.
ASPEncrypt is an
ASP component
that allows you to easily
encrypt
data on your website. While most of our plans offer
SSL,
which can be used to securely collect sensitive information such as credit
cards, ASPEncrypt allows you to
encrypt email, information entered into your
database, and more.
The ASPHttp
ASP component allows you
to put the
HTML contents of a specific
URL into an
ASP string.
It supports GET/POST/HEAD documents via the
HTTP
protocol, examining response
headers, transfering requests to a file (including binary transfers)
and password authentication support. It can also be used to create
dynamic
includes.
Using the ASPImage
component, you
can create images directly on your website. For instance, you could have
a customer fill out a simple form, asking them for their name and their
favorite color, and then ASPImage can use that information to create a banner
that welcomes them by name to your site. This is just one example; there
are many other ways this component can be used.
While you can always add a link to your email
address on your website, the ASP
component
ASPMail allows you to have a form automatically send an email.
If you'd like an email
component
with more features, you may want to consider
ASPEmail.
Using the ASPPop3
ASP component, you can
read your email directly from your website. You can use ASPPop3 to create
your own email
interface,
customized to your site.
An
ASP component for tearing web pages off web servers.
The component supports many functions, including retrieval of documents as strings,
immediate saving to disk, extensive SSL support, proxy Server support, page caching,
redirection support and extended cookie functionality.
An auto responder allows you to respond to emails you
have received automatically. For instance, you may set an auto responder
to reply to senders when you are away form the office or on
vacation. Emails containing a custom message will be automatically
sent back to anyone emailing you. Every email address Total Computer Solutions provides can have an auto responder associated
with it.
Just as the name suggests, a backbone is the center of any Internet-related
company. A backbone provides connections from individual computers to the
Internet. At Total Computer Solutions, we have a redundant backbone, which means
that we have two backbones, so if one fails, the other will automatically
take over, and there will be no service interruption.
Companies that provide the unique ability for electronicdata to travel over the optimal
path to reach its destination. Examples: Sprint, MCI, etc.
How much information or "traffic" that can be exchanged between computers.
In general, the more available bandwidth, the more people can be viewing
your site at one time and the faster the site will load for them. At Total Computer Solutions,
we offer each plan a different amount of bandwidth. If you have a graphic-intensive
site that gets thousands of hits a day, you will want a plan with more bandwidth.
If you have a small site, primarily for family and friends, you will need
less.
Just as in normal usage, binding refers to attaching something to something
else. Usually used in reference to attaching
IP Addresses to a server.
On many rulers, a millimeter is the smallest measurable unit. The smallest
unit of information on a computer is called a bit.
A browser is the interface you use to view the Internet. The most popular
browsers include Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator.
BrowserHawk is an
ASP component
that can assist you in customizing your pages based on the capabilities
of a visitor's browser. For instance, you can use BrowserHawk to tell if
a visitors browser supports
Flash
, and if it doesn't, have a
different image display. For more information on BrowserHawk, please click here.
A set of
Bits that represent a single
text character, such as "a" or "g", etc. Usually there are 8
Bits
in a Byte, sometimes more, depending on how the measurement is being made.
MegaBytes (MB) are 1,048,576 bytes. Gigabytes (GB), sometimes called "Gigs",
are 1,024 megabytes.
An email account that will
catch mis-addressed email. For instance, if you had the email address
"bobp@domain.com" and someone had a typo and tried to send an email to
bobr@domain.com, the catchall account would catch the mis-addressed email
instead of bouncing it back with "user unknown". You can configure the
catch-all account as a separate email address, or have it forward to
another mailbox. Total Computer Solutions allows our clients to set up one
catch-all account for their email.
While you can always add a link to your email address on your website, the
ASP component CDO,
sometimes called "CDONTS", allows you to have a form automatically send an email.
A set of rules that describe how a web server communicates with another
piece of software on the same machine, and how the other piece of software
(the "CGI program") talks to the web server.
A common name for a directory on a web server in which CGI programs are
stored. If you are going to be running cgi scripts, please double-check
that your plan comes with cgi-bin access. Most cgi-bin scripts are designed
to run on Unix, and may require modifications to run on a Windows server.
A credit back to a cardholder's account which occurs when a
cardholder informs their credit card issuer that a particular charge was not
authorized or that goods or services were not delivered or provided as promised.
Code is instructions for a computer. The most common code used on the web
is
HTML.
In a co-located hosting package, you actually own the server, but it
is physically located at Total Computer Solutions. Most co-located clients simply
want a safe place to set up their server, as well as the peace of mind that
comes from having experts available 24/7 should a problem arise.
Components are short-cuts used when coding in
ASP.
For instance, you can use
ASPMail
to create a form your users fill out that is automatically emailed
to you, added to a
database, or both.
We offer a wide variety of ASP components.
A Control Panel is a central location you can go to to
perform common tasks. Think of a Control Panel as a TV remote for your
website. If you need to do a simple task, such as change your password,
you would visit the Control Panel.
A piece of information sent by a
server
to a
web browser that the
browser
software is expected to save and to send back to the
server
whenever the
browser makes additional
requests from the
server. This is usually
how a site that you've been to before knows to welcome you and log you in
automatically. Depending on the type of Cookie used, and the settings of
the browser, the browser may accept or not accept the Cookie, and may save
the Cookie for either a short time or a long time. Cookies do not read your
hard drive or compromise security, but they can be used to gather more information
about a user than would be possible without them.
A database is software that assists you in keeping information. Basically,
a database is an online filing cabinet. Let's say that you have a list of
customers that includes their last name, state, how much they've spent with
you, and their favorite color. If you had this information in a filing cabinet,
what order would you put them in? By last name? By state? By favorite color?
With a database, you store the information electronically, so you can change
how they are sorted at any time. So, you could easily pull out customers
in NY, who spent over $400 with you, and whose favorite color is blue, no
matter in what order they were put into the database. That is the benefit
of a database - the ease of searching and pulling out information. Some
of the most popular databases are
Access and
SQL.
The amount of information sent to and from the hosting computer and visitors
to your website. How much data transfer is used varies depending on how
many visitors your site receives, how interactive your site is (meaning
if visitors can only look at your site or if they can chat there, upload
images, etc.), how many graphics, videos, etc., are on your site, and similar
factors. The amount of data transfer you use is sometimes referred to how
much
bandwidth you have used.
DNS is a complicated system of text files, software and hardware that combine
to read the address in a
browser and
direct the browser to a specific server
and page.
The web version of a phone number. Just as someone who dials your phone
number is directed through thousands of wires and connections to connect
to your phone and make it ring, a domain name directs people across the
Internet to your specific site.
Not be confused with
DNS, a DSN, or Data
Source Name, allows you to create a connection on your website to a
database
using only a few lines of code. This will let you display your database
information, add to your database, delete from your database, etc., all
from your website. Please check our plans pages to see which plans offer
DSNs.
When referring to the Internet, dynamic means something that occurs when
it is requested. For instance, you may purchase a pre-packaged salad at
a supermarket, or create one yourself at the salad bar. The one you created
is "dynamic" - the ingredients were there, but the salad itself did not
exist until you created it. When visiting a Search Engine the pages are
created dynamically, pulling the information you requested from a
database.
Messages, usually text, sent from one person to another via computer. Email
addresses look something like: yourname@xyz.com. At Total Computer Solutions, email
that matches your
domain name is included
with our hosting plans.
An email address is the Internet version of a postal address. Just as mail
is sent directly to you from your friends, the water company, etc., an email
address allows you to receive information electronically.
When something is encrypted, it is translated into a secret code. Only those
who know the code (or have a key to use it) can see the data in its original
form - to everyone else it looks like gibberish.
FAQs are documents that list and answer the most commonly asked questions.
Usually, FAQs are a good place to start if you just have some general questions.
FileSystem Database support allows
you to read, write and search file-based databases on the server. This includes
various types of delimited text files (such as tab or comma-delimited files)
as well as the most popular Unix database file formats.
A combination of
hardware and
software
that protects and secures a network.
A
software package that creates images for use on websites. Not all browsers
are compatible with Flash files.
When referring to email addresses, forwarding
allows you to send email sent to a specific
box to another box. The second box may or may not be hosted with us. For
instance, you could set "bobp@domain.com" to forward to "bobp@aol.com".
Every mailbox Total Computer Solutions provides has this option.
A popular software package created by Microsoft used to create webpages.
Many of our plans offer FrontPage extensions, meaning you can use FrontPage
to create and
upload your site.
A very common method of moving files between two
servers.
Usually, you use an FTP to upload your site from your home computer to the
web server.
FrontPage uses its own,
built-in version of FTP that automatically publishes the extra files FrontPage
needs, so you must use FrontPage to upload your site if you use FrontPage
to design it.
A system that is fully-redundant is set up so if the main system fails, a backup system takes over automatically.
Our data center is fully-redundant. We have two methods of connecting to the Internet, two methods of fire suppression and more
so that our data is continually protected and ininterrupted.
A processing location on a network that serves as an entrance to another
network. For example, in enterprises, the gateway is the computer that routes
the traffic from a workstation to the outside network that is serving the
web pages. In homes, the gateway is the
Internet Service Provider that connects
the user to the Internet.
A common format for image files.
Formula used to measure space for file storage. It is abbreviated as GB.
Computer-related items that you can physically touch, such as the computer
itself, keyboards, monitors, and the parts inside the computer.
A common coding language used to create documents for use on the Internet.
HTML documents have the extension .htm or .html. All of our plans support
HTML pages.
The
protocol for moving
hypertext
files across the Internet. When you
go to a page in a
browser, you generally
type http://domain.com. The HTTP part tells your computer how to access
the page you're visiting.
Any text on a website that contains links to other documents. Sometimes
called "hypertext". Most often, hyperlinks appear underlined so it is
easily recognized as a link.
The latest version of Internet Message Access Protocol, a standard format
for retrieving email messages. With IMAP4, you can search through your
email messages for keywords while the messages are still on mail server.
You may then choose which messages you want to download to your machine.
When referring to web sites, includes allow you to use the same piece of
code (HTML,
ASP, ColdFusion, etc.) over and over. For instance, if you wanted
your phone number to appear on the bottom of every page on your website,
you could create an HTML page that had that information. Then you could
include that file in every page on your website. If your phone number changed,
you would only need to modify the include file.
An interface is the item that allows two things to interact. For instance,
a user interface includes the keyboard and mouse - these interfaces allow
you to interact with the computer.
A large network of computers used to share information. Technically, whenever
you are online, you are part of the Internet, not just visiting it.
A unique number consisting of 4 parts separated by dots - it looks something
like this: 255.255.255.255 - that is the "phone number" of a specific server.
Creating the connection between an IP address and a
server
or website is called
"binding".
While just one website can be bound to a single IP, a website does not need
its own IP to work. Any number of websites can be bound to a single IP address.
A single IP address can only be bound to one server,
but a server may have more than one
IP address bound to it.
DNS is the system
that says "send this request to this IP address, and then to this specific
space on the server".
A company, such as AOL, Earthlink or MSN, that provides connections to the
Internet. You must have an ISP to be able to access the Internet, view websites, receive email, etc.
Java Script is a
coding language. Using either a coding language or
cgi scripts
allows you to make your site interactive by including database results,
email forms, guestbooks, bulletin boards,
chat, etc (FrontPage also includes
some of these capabilities). Many of our plans include Java Script Support.
A central location where clients can search by keywords and phrases
to find answers to commonly asked questions.
A statistics package from MediaHouse that allows you to view detailed information
about visitors to your site, including if they used a
search
engine to find your site, how long they were on your site, what pages
they viewed, in easy-to-read, customizable graphs. For more information
and samples, please go
here.
A unit of measure used in calculating space on a server. It is abbreviated MB.
An integrated method for authorizing, processing and settling transactions
that are paid by credit card. Think of a merchant account as a bank account which
enables the credit card networks to route funds to you.
A Microsoft
database designed for use with small-to-medium amounts of data.
As a general rule, if your Access database
is over 20MB, you will need to upgrade to
SQL
for your database to work efficiently.
Many of our plans include the ability to use Access with your website.
A Microsoft
database designed for
use with large amounts of data. If you are going to be storing thousands
of records or storing large chunks of information (such as graphics) in
your
database, you will want to use
SQL 2000. Check our plans pages to see which plans include SQL 2000 support.
MySQL is a
database for the
Unix
platform designed for use with large amounts of data. If you are going to
be storing thousands of records or storing large chunks of information (such
as graphics) in your database, you will want to use MySQL.
Any time you connect two or more computers together so that they can share
resources, you have a network. The Internet is one gigantic network.
A computer must have an operating system to run other programs. Operating
systems perform basic tasks, such as recognizing input from the keyboard,
sending output to the display screen, keeping track of files and directories
on the disk, etc.
Windows and
Unix are two of the most popular operating
systems, and Total Computer Solutions offers support for both. It doesn't matter what the operating system
of your computer is when choosing a hosting plan. Microsoft technology,
such as
FrontPage or
Access, is
specifically designed to be compatible with Windows.
PHP and most
cgi
scripts are designed for use with a Unix operating system. Usually,
the decision ends up being a personal preference.
Pieces of electronic information sent from computer to computer via email, a network or the Internet.
A code used to gain access to a server, website or such. Good passwords
contain letters and non-letters and are not simple combinations. In general,
passwords should be at least 6 characters, be changed every 6 months, and
not be a word found in the dictionary. You may also want to exclude characters
used in coding from your password, such as @, ', ", or *. A good way to
create a unique password is to use the first letters of an easily-remembered
sentence. For example, the sentence "Why can't I remember my password today"
could become "ycirmp2d" or such, using "Y" for "Why" and "2day" for "today".
Using this system makes it easier to create a password you can recall but
one that would be difficult to guess.
Perl is a
coding language. Using either a coding language or
cgi
scripts allows you to make your site interactive by including
database
results, email forms, guestbooks,
bulletin boards, chat, etc. Most Perl scripts are designed to run on
Unix,
and may require modifications to run on a
Windows server. Both our Unix
and Windows plans come with Perl support.
PHP is a popular
coding language. Coding languages
or
cgi scripts allow you to make
your site interactive by including
database
results,
email forms, guestbooks, bulletin
boards, chat, etc.
A method for opening email
using Outlook, Netscape or any other POP-compatible email
software.
Every email address Total Computer Solutions provides is POP-enabled.
A standard way for one computer to talk to another. This allows different
computers that may be configured differently or may be using different
operating
systems to operate together. For instance, you may have one type of computer
at home, while your website is on a different computer. Using standard protocols, you can see
your website from your computer. There are different protocols that do different things,
such as
FTP,
SMTP and
HTTP.
A raw data log is a file containing information about visitors to your site,
such as when they visited your site, how long they stayed, etc. All of our
plans include access to the raw data logs, which you can download and view
with your preferred statistics software. Many of our plans also include
Live Stats, a
statistics package
that will create easy-to-use reports about visitors to your site. Please
check our plans page to see which plans offer this extended statistics
software.
A special-purpose computer (or
software
package) that handles the connection between two or more
networks. Routers
spend all their time looking at the destination addresses of the
packets
passing through them and deciding which route to send them on.
In some cases, you may want the ability for visitors to your site to
upload
graphics or files. While you can accomplish this by giving them your
FTP
(FrontPage) username and
password,
this would mean they could also delete and modify files. The
ASP component
SAFile-Up allows visitors to your site to upload files directly from your
website, without sharing your username
and password.
Anytime
code is written that performs a specific task, that is called a
script. Scripts can range from a simple
ASP page that sends email to a
script that creates and configures mailboxes.
Imagine going to the library and looking for books on a specific topic.
Now imagine that the library didn't sort the books in any manner. How long
would it take you to find something, even if you knew exactly what you were
looking for? The Internet is very much like a library with no organization.
How do you find what you are looking for? A Search Engine. While each Search
Engine works in a slightly different manner, they all allow you to search
the Internet for what you need or want. While most Search Engines automatically
look for new websites, due to the sheer number of websites being created
each day, you may need to add your site to the Search Engines, not wait
for them to find you. For information on Search Engine submission,
please
go here.
A chunk of information on a
server
that is used to establish a secure connection between that server and another
server. Secure Certificates contain
information about who the certificate belongs to, who it was issued by, a unique serial
number or other unique identification, valid dates, and an
encrypted
"fingerprint" that can be used to verify the contents of the certificate.
A program that allows you to log into another
Unix computer over a network, to
execute commands in a remote machine, and to move files from one machine
to another. It provides strong authentication and secure communications
over unsecure channels.
The simplest definition of a
server
is a computer that allows other computers to access its information.
The Server Objects
Component Bundle
includes
ASPMail,
ASPHttp,
ASPPop3 and
ASPImage.
SharePoint™ Team Services from Microsoft is a team website solution that
is designed to significantly improve the way your team manages information
and activities. Now you can easily create a website
that serves as the central repository of all project information—documents,
contacts, tasks, discussions, and much more.
Shell access is a
Unix feature that allows you to connect to your website
securely to change permissions, edit scripts live, etc.
Server Side Includes (SSI) allow a web page to ‘include’ content from another source before sending the
page to the browser to be displayed. SSI pages are identified by the file extension .shtml. SSI are useful to
display content from one source on multiple pages within your website. This means that you only need to
update one file in your website instead of multiple files if you wish to make a change. The most common use
for SSI pages is for including content that will be the same on every page of your site such as page headers or
navigation bars.
The main
protocol used to send email
on the Internet. All of our
servers
that require SMTP have it installed.
Computer-related items that you cannot touch, such as programs, files, etc.
Software is usually stored on
hardware, such as CDs.
Junk email. Sometimes called "UCE" for
unsolicited commercial email. While
there is no way to eliminate SPAM entirely, there are a few steps you can
take to prevent your email address from
being harvested by a SPAMMER, and some ways of limiting the SPAM you receive.
We have taken steps to prevent SPAM from being sent FROM our clients,
such as requiring
SMTP
authentication and limiting the number of emails
sent at one time, but we cannot do anything about SPAM sent from other hosting
companies, ISPs, etc.
A
protocol that enables
encrypted,
authenticated communications across the Internet.
In an SSL connection, each side of the
connection must have a
security certificate, which each side's software
sends to the other. Each side then encrypts
what it sends using information from both its own and the other side's certificate,
ensuring that only the intended recipient can de-crypt it, and that the
other side can be sure the data came from the place it claims to have come
from, and that the message has not been tampered with. Many of our plans
come with shared
SSL, which means that
you can access every page of your website
via a secure link. Many plans also allow you to purchase
your own SSL.
View the details here.
Statistics let you know information about who has been visiting your website,
such as when they visited, how long they visited, what specific pages were
viewed, etc. All of our plans include
raw data logs,
which you can analyze yourself. Many of our plans also include
Live Stats,
an easy-to-use statistics package that gives you information in graphical format.
A means of connecting a computer to a
Unix
server to change file permissions and perform other tasks on the Unix server.
A large telecommunications provider that has large, direct links to the Internet. Small telecoms lease their
Internet connections through these large companies. We deal directly with Tier 1 carriers.
A popular
operating system.
To move files electronically from one computer to another.
A URL, or Uniform Resource Locator, is the web address of a specific page
on the Internet.
A computer virus
is a program that performs a malicious act, such as deleting necessary files,
or duplicating files until your hard drive is full, etc. A virus always
hides in another application. An infected document will look normal and
may even perform normally. This means that it is hard for an ordinary user
to tell if a system is or is not infected. Special software is needed to
examine the system and detect a virus infection.
Read more!
Visual Interdev is a Microsoft product designed to allow rapid creation
of
ASP pages and
websites.
WAP is short for the Wireless Application Protocol, a secure specification
that allows users with WAP-enabled wireless devices such as cellular phones
and pagers to send and receive email via these wireless devices. Wireless
email is perfect for those who are always on the go, and it makes doing
business outside the office easier. Not all email services are WAP enabled.
Total Computer Solutions's email solution is WAP enabled.
WebConsole is a Web-based, enterprise network management solution. It allows
network administrators to securely access servers, manage a heterogeneous
LAN/WAN, configure, troubleshoot, monitor, and generate security reports.
In addition, when using WebConsole, help desk personnel may administer passwords,
set time restrictions, create incident reports, add and delete users, reset
user accounts, and give printer access. All that is required is a Web browser,
access rights and a connection to the Internet or intranet.
A website is a group of documents and images on a computer that are specially
formatted to be accessible on the Internet.
A popular
operating system.
A utility within an application that helps you use the application to perform a particular task. For example, a wizard might
walk you through the setup of an account or help you create a new webpage.
A worm is very similar to a
virus in that it is also replicating software.
The difference between a virus and a worm is that a worm replicates itself
independent of a carrier object. It does not need to attach itself to a
file or a document to spread or execute. In other words, if you have a worm
on a disk, as soon as you put the disk in your computer, the worm begins.
A virus would only start when you opened the infected file on the disk.
XML, or Extensible Markup Language, is an advanced
coding language that
allows creation of custom
HTML tags.
A data compression format. Zip programs compress files in order to reduce file size. Files that have been compressed with the zip format are referred to as zip files.
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