Web Design Geek Speak

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"What kind of dog is that?"
"It's a cat."
"A cat-dog? I've never heard of that breed."
from a cartoon, probably a Bizarro

Accessibility - Generally refers to accomodating users with disabilities. Example: providing Screen-Reader software with "alt tags" to give information about graphics.

Anomaly - Very popular with Technical Enquiries/Help Desk Personnel this word is used when nobody knows why something is (or isn't) happening as in "it must be an anomaly with your machine."

Blog - A Web Log is an online diary. A wonderful tool to use when you frequently have something to say. Example: your observations while travelling in a foreign country.

Browser - The free software (there's a long story behind that) which enables your computer to use your Internet connection to go online and surf the Web.

Domain Name - Your website name including suffix. Example: dezynetek.com

Dot-Com - The suffix of your Domain Name. ".com" was originally created to denote Commercial USA. There are now a wide variety of suffixes available pending certain conditions such as .ca only for Canadian citizens/businesses. An excellent resource to identify suffixes is Norid of UNINETT.

ECommerce/Etail - Electronic Retail is using your Website as a Store to sell goods online.

EMail - Electronic Mail uses an Internet connection to communicate with other email users.

FAQ, Frequently Asked Questions - A handy webpage that (hopefully) answers the questions you were planning to ask.

GIF - A type of graphic file generally used for flat colour images such as logos, titles.

HTML, HyperText MarkUp Language - A non-scripting language that communicates with web browsers giving instructions such as italicize this bit of text.

Hyperlink - A link cites a reference, takes you to the footnotes, recommends further viewing/study, leads to a larger view of a photo/graphic you might want to download later, gives you an email address, completes a form - it's a method of moving the viewer from the static to the dynamic. Linking is really what the Web is all about.

ISP, Internet Service Provider - The company who provides your dial-up or broadband connection to the Internet for a monthly fee.

JPEG - A type of graphic file generally used for photographs, shaded/dimensional drawings, multi-coloured images.

Phishing - Nasty scams that angle for your personal information in order to steal your identity to commit illegal acts and spend your money. Always be wary and always be alert because these cons are very, very clever.

Protocol - The type of Internet transmission used such as HTTP meaning HyperText Transfer Protocal or RTSP meaning RealTime Streaming Protocol.

SEO, Search Engine Optimization - Techniques, generally occuring behind-the-scenes on the text file of the webpage, to attract classification and listing by Search Engines.

Screen Size/Resolution - The number of pixels your computer monitor uses to correctly fill the physical screen size. Example: a 15" laptop monitor will probably use an 800x600 resolution.

Snail Mail - The regular Postal Service.

Spam - Junk mail that clogs up the Inbox of your Email. It's NOT harmless and many places are now levying fines and even jail time for spammers.

Spiders - Harmless scripts that crawl through the Web reading HTML off webpages in order to classify the page on behalf of search engines.

URL, Uniform Resource Locator - A website address Example: www.dezynetek.com. A complete website address always includes the protocol http://www.dezynetek.com

Website Hosting - Different than an Internet connection hosting service is where a "web server" delivers your website over the Internet when viewers type your URL into a browser.

As new technologies emerge there will always be more definitions to follow. Feel free to submit any words you think should be included here. Thanks!