Glossary

ADSL – Asynchronous DSL. ADSL is most commonly used for residential access. It is called asynchronous because it has a much faster download speed than upload speed. In actuality, ADSL is not digital at all but rather analog like dial-up modems, all be it at much faster speeds. ADSL and telephone can share the same twisted pair without interfering with each other. ADSL can sometimes reach download speeds of 16 Mbps.

Adware – A program that is designed to advertise a company or product. They commonly exploit your web browser, changing your home page settings, causing advertising pop-ups, and redirecting your browser to their web site. They may also mine your computer for useful data.

Anti-Virus – A program that is designed to clean and protect your computer from these malicious programs.

Broadband – An analog technology used to provide high speed Internet access at affordable prices. A device called a modem is used to convert the digital signals from the computer into analog from to be transferred and the back to digital form on the other end. Broadband usually has much faster download rates than upload rates because download rates have the greater impact on what the end-user sees.

CAT-5 – A type of cable that is used for telephone lines and computer networks. It contains 4 twisted pairs of copper wires. The twists serve to shield the pairs from interference from other pairs and from other sources.

Client – A computer system that is used to access a server.

Coax – A type of cable that has a center conductor, surrounded by insulation, and then further surrounded by a mesh of braded wire to shield it from interference. Such is the type of cable that is commonly used to connect video components and receive “cable TV.”

Data Mining – This is the act of “mining” (searching) your computer for data that can be used for marketing or other purposes.

Data Rate – The speed at witch information can be transferred from one point to another, usually measured in Mbps or KBps.

DSL – Digital Subscriber Line. A technology used to provide high speed Internet access using existing copper lines. xDSL technologies include ADSL, SDSL, HDSL, and VDSL.

Ethernet – A type of networking technology that is in use by most home and business networks today.

Firewall – A piece of software or hardware that is designed to prevent unauthorized access to and from your computer. All data passing through the firewall is checked for authorization against a list of specified security criteria and blocked if it is not allowed. The use of both a hardware and software firewall is recommended for the best security.

FTP – File Transfer Protocol. A protocol that is used to easily transfer files between remote computers across the Internet. An FTP program is one that uses this protocol for file transfer.

HDSL – High Data Rate DSL. HDSL is much faster than ADSL and requires much shorter cable runs.

IM – Instant Message. A program used for text, video, and audio messaging in real-time. Yahoo Instant Messenger, AOL Instant Messenger, Microsoft Messenger, and IRC are some popular instant messaging programs.

ISP – Internet Service Provider. A company that provides you with access to the Interent.

Junction Box – A central location where all of the telephone, video, and network cables meet. There might be a junction box on the side of the house, in a closet or room in the house, or even in the attic and not really in a box at all.

KBps – Kilobytes Per Second. The amount of information being transferred in thousands of bytes in a second. A byte is equal to one character of data, such as the letter “A.”

LAN – Local Area Network. A network of computers that is contained in close proximaty of each other such as in the same building.

Malware – A program like adware that is generally more severe with bad intents. They commonly disable your computer’s ability to connect to the Internet or try to redirect your connection efforts to a phone dialer that will bill you large amounts of money when your computer dials it.

Mbps – Megabits Per Second. The amount of information being transferred in millions of bits per second. There are 8 bits in a byte, which is the smallest size a piece of data can be. One character takes up one byte of space.

Modem – A device that allows a computer to connect to the Internet and communicate through cable, telephone lines, or other media. It converts digital signals that the computer understands to analog signals that can be sent across a distance, and then back again on the other end.

NAT – Network Address Translation. A method of sharing a public IP address with several computers on your network. A typical home network has many computers, but only one IP is given to you by the ISP. NAT solves this problem.

Operating System – A program that allows computer hardware and programs to function in a way that is useful to the end user. Example: Windows, Linux, UNIX, Mac OS

PBX – Private Branch Exchange. A private phone network used by larger businesses to share a certain number of outside lines with a larger amount of office extensions.

Peer – A computer system that is seen as an equal to all others and acts as both a server and client to all the other computers in a network (peer-to-peer).

Pre-wire – The cabling that is present in the building when it is built. Pre-wire is put in the house while it is still in the framing stage.

Protocol – A format that is used by two devices to be able to communicate in the same “language” and transmit data between them. If two devices are not using the same protocol, they will not understand each other and can not communicate successfully.

Punch-Down – Punch-Down Block, A device that is used to connect cables together. Located in the junction box.

Rack System – A specialized shelf unit to hold several servers, routers, and other components used in computer networks,

Router – A device that allows multiple networks to communicate and ensures that the information gets sent to the proper place. A router is commonly used to allow multiple network devices and computers to share one connection to the Internet.

Satellite Receiver – IRD, Receiver. The electronic device, much like a cable box, used to decode the satellite signals to a format that can be displayed on your television.

SDSL – Synchronous DSL. SDSL is more common in Europe and is a true digital technology. It can not share a line with the telephone. SDSL is called synchronous because the upload and download speeds are the same. SDSL can reach upload and download speeds of about 3 Mbps.

Server – A computer that is used to manage resources and control security for many users. A central store of information that can be accessed by many people.

Spam – Unsolicited emails containing advertisements for products and services.

SPI – Statefull Packet Inspection. A method of inspecting the data packets coming in and deciding what to do with them based on specific criteria.

T-1 – A dedicated line capable of upload and download rates of 1.544 Mbps. It contains 24 channels of 64 kilobits, each of which can carry either data or telephone (but not both at the same time). A fractional T-1 would contain only one or several of these channels but not all of them. For example, a company can get a T-1 and use 12 channels for telephone lines, and the other 12 to give them 768 Kbps data.

TCP/IP – A networking protocol used by the Internet and every system and device connected to it. TCP/IP is actually a collection of protocols, each of which provides a specific service. Together they allow the user to have seamless access to the Internet.

Trojan Horse – A program that is design to look like an useful program or to look like an existing program. These programs may capture your personal information or passwords or allow its creator access to your computer. These programs do not replicate on their own like Viruses and Worms do. Example: A program that is design to look like the Windows logon screen can capture your password. It is very important to have an Anti-Virus program to protect against these malicious programs.

VDSL – Very High Data Rate DSL. VDSL is a very fast technology, reaching download speeds upwards of 23 Mbps. This technology usually requires fiber optic lines to be run to the neighborhood and only short lengths of copper cable from that point. VDSL is commonly used for video, as it requires high data rates.

Virus – A computer program designed to disable computers and networks and destroy data. They can usually replicate themselves onto computers without the user’s knowledge and run their damaging code. A virus replicates by attaching itself to another file. It is very important to have an Anti-Virus program to protect against these malicious programs.

WAN – Wide Area Network. A network of computers that spans a larger area such as across the nation. A WAN often contains two or more LANs.

Web Page – A document (page) of information that is easy to navigate by the user and may be part of a collection of pages.

Web Site – A collection of web pages that contain information pertaining to a particular topic.

Wire Closet – A closet that contains all of the telephone, network, and video cables and equipment for a building or floor of a building.

Worm – Like a virus, a program designed to destroy data. However, a worm does not attach itself to another file but rather replicates itself by its own means. It is very important to have an Anti-Virus program to protect against these malicious programs.