Table of Contents
Internet Publishing Handbook - Copyright © 1995 by Mike Franks
Administrator The person responsible for a system or server. This person usually has special rights and privileges in order to make system changes and improvements. WWW, Gopher, and WAIS servers all need some sort of administrator. UNIX administrators are known to talk to God.
Anonymous FTP An agreed-upon method of letting anyone on
the Internet download files from an FTP server by using a login
ID of anonymous and a password of the user's
e-mail address. See FTP.
Archie A program that collects and indexes information on the contents of anonymous FTP servers across the Internet.
ASK block Online forms capability of Gopher+; users can fill in blanks on a form on their computer screen and then submit that information for processing by the Gopher+ server.
Authentication The process by which one computer system confirms that the user is exactly who she claims to be, with all the rights to the bank accounts and computer accounts that go with that identification. The authentication process might be a lightweight one, which is susceptible to sophisticated attacks, or a heavyweight one, such as Kerberos. Authentication is seen as one of the main areas necessary for development of commerce on the Internet and Gopher and WWW servers.
Boolean searching Refers to the use of the logic of Boolean algebra for searching, or the ability to search for one item AND another item OR one item AND NOT another, and so on. As you can imagine, without this feature only the most limited types of word searching are possible.
Browser A software program that assists in exploring the Internet by following links between documents on the same or different computers. The most common browsers are for Gopher and WWW. WWW browsers can look at Gopher servers, but Gopher browsers can't read WWW servers yet. NCSA Mosaic is one of the most famous WWW browsers, credited with being the "killer app" of the Internet.
Cache Gopher, WWW, and other types of servers temporarily store frequently accessed files in cache, a place in memory (which is faster than the hard disk), so that the next time those files are requested, they'll be sent out faster.
Cache time The amount of time a Gopher or WWW server will trust that the cached version of a document is current and hasn't been changed. See cache.
CGI (Common Gateway Interface) Allows programming or scripting languages to be used with Gopher and WWW servers to perform such special functions as searches, calculations, and adding user information to a database.
Clickable image A WWW feature that allows users to click (using their mouse) on different locations in an image (such as a map) downloaded to their Web browser. Then the x-y coordinates of that point are sent back to the WWW server, which can then be programmed to respond with specific information depending on the location.
Client Half of the client/server combination, a client solicits information from a server according to some agreed-upon method or protocol. Internet browsing programs such as TurboGopher, NCSA Mosaic, Netscape Navigator, Cello, and Lynx are also called clients.
Client/servers Tools such as Gopher, WWW, and WAIS, used for accessing the Internet through one computer.
Common Gateway Interface See CGI.
Computer Services Office See CSO.
Copyright The legal protection of an author or creator to control the copying of their work. A copyright notice does not need to be given. Contrary to popular opinion most of what is found on the Internet has copyright protection unless explicitly stated otherwise.
CSO (Computer Services Office) Computer-resident telephone book.
Cyberspace An informal term for the online computer world in all its forms, from WWW and Gopher servers to the circuitry inside a computer.
Daemon (pronounced demon) An independent program or process that runs on UNIX machines with the specific goal of accomplishing a certain task. Because UNIX is a multitasking operating system, many daemons can run at the same time. For example, a Gopher server can be run as a separate program, or daemon, giving it responsibility for answering any Gopher requests sent to that machine.
Data librarian The person responsible for the content (or data) on a Gopher, WWW, or WAIS server. This does not have to be the system administrator and in fact often requires different skills, notably an extensive familiarity with the information presented on the server.
Dithering Creating the effect of additional colors in a digital image by mixing dots of existing colors in various patterns and densities. In black and white images different shades of gray are achieved by placing dots in different patterns and densities.
Domain Short for Internet domain, or domain name, a specified set of Internet addresses or computer host names. Domains are used to break the Internet into manageable parts, either in groups of computer hosts or in IP addresses. Your computer doesn't have to know exactly where the other computer is, it just has to get your computer to that domain, where a "domain name server" will know where to go next. Top-level U.S. Internet domains include com (commercial), gov (governmental), edu (educational), mil (military), and org (organizational). Also, other countries use a two-letter country code as a top-level domain: .fr (France), .tw (Taiwan), and .br (Brazil).
E-mail list server A computer program that performs the functions of an electronic mailing list. E-mail messages sent to a listserver address are automatically forwarded to all members of the list. These lists can be open (anyone with an e-mail account on the Internet can submit messages), closed (only the members of the list can submit messages), and moderated (all messages are checked by a moderator before they are sent on to everyone on the list).
External indexer A program from a site on the Internet that collects and indexes Internet information, usually Gopher, WWW, WAIS, and FTP sites. Users can then check with these indexing programs for items of interest by doing word searches.
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) file An Internet custom; the answers to common questions about a given subject are collected and stored in a file or files. These FAQ files are then made prominently available on the Internet so that newcomers won't repeatedly flood newsgroups and mailing lists with the same questions.
Fielded searching A type of searching that specifies that the search term can be found in a certain area, or field, of the source material. For example, if you search for a particular title or author in an electronic card catalog, you are doing a fielded search.
File Transfer Protocol See FTP.
Filter A program that lets certain information pass and stops or alters other information. For example, filters could be used to convert all the word-processing codes in a document into HTML codes.
Finger A program that provides simple information (such as a person's full name and last login time) for a user on a UNIX system.
Finger daemon The program that runs independently on a UNIX system to return user information on request.
Firewall A computer that acts as gatekeeper between an internal network's computers and the rest of the Internet. Firewall machines prevent direct connection to the internal computers and instead relay messages and services, thereby providing an extremely high measure of security. For more detail see William R. Cheswick and Steven M. Bellovin, Firewalls and Internet Security: Repelling the Wily Hacker (Addison-Wesley, 1994).
freeWAIS The unsupported free version of WAIS software.
freeWAIS-sf An extension of the freeWAIS software that allows searchable fields. It was developed in Germany at the University of Dortmund.
Frequently Asked Questions file See FAQ.
FTP (File Transfer Protocol) An Internet protocol (or method) for transferring files from one computer system to another, usually with simple put and get commands.
FTP server A program that runs on a computer to allow it to answer FTP requests and transfer files between computers. See File Transfer Protocol.
Full-text indexing Uses every word in a file when creating a searchable index for that file. In that way, those searching for information in that file will not be limited to certain key words but will be able to call up the file by matching any of the words used in the file.
GN A combination Gopher and HTTP (WWW) server that allows you to serve data to both Gopher and WWW browsers from one source.
GNU Stands for "GNU's Not UNIX" and is a free version of UNIX developed by the Free Software Foundation.
Gopher The menu-oriented data transfer protocol invented at the University of Minnesota. It has since spread to more than 7,000 sites worldwide. See Chapter 3.
Gopher data directory The area on a Gopher server that holds the information being stored on that server.
Gopher+ An elaboration of the Gopher protocol that allows for such features as presenting different views of the same file and forms for asking questions and recording the answers on a Gopher server. See Chapter 3.
Gopherspace Term used to denote either the entirety of all Gopher servers in the world or one Gopher server's section of it.
Harvester A program designed to go out and retrieve information or files from Internet servers, usually for indexing in a central database such as Archie, Veronica, or Lycos.
Home page A spot on a WWW server that is specific to a person, business, or subject. It's usually the starting point for more information in that area. An individual's home page might include a photo of that person, a short biography, some favorite quotes, and links to favorite Internet sites.
Host name The name for a computer, or host, on the Internet.
The name is supposed to be easier to remember than that computer's
IP address. The host name is always a member of a large domain,
or collection of hosts. For example, the domain edu stands for
educational hosts (computers) in the United States.
HTML (HyperText Markup Language) The set of codes and structure that defines documents served up on the World-Wide Web. See Chapter 4.
HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) The method used to transfer information between World-Wide Web clients and servers across the Internet. Clients are also called browsers, which are programs such as Mosaic, Netscape, and Lynx.
HTTPD (HyperText Transfer Protocol Daemon) Server software for WWW or Web servers. Technically, WWW servers should be called HTTP servers.
Hyper-G A program from Austria designed to improve on the WWW. See Chapter 6 or <http://hgiicm.tu-graz.ac.at/>.
Hypertext Text that contains links to other text, programs, sound, picture, or movie files. You don't read the text straight through; instead, you read along and follow the links that most interest you.
HyperText Markup Language See HTML.
HyperText Transfer Protocol See HTTP.
HyperText Transfer Protocol Daemon See HTTPD.
IIF (Interactive Image Format) This is a system similar to WWW clickable images, (see clickable images) that gives immediate feedback to the user as they move their mouse across an image. It was originally designed as for Gopher browsers by the Weather Underground project at the University of Michigan. Now it is being adapted for WWW browsers as well. See <http://cirrus.sprl.umich.edu/>.
Inetd (Internet daemon) A special UNIX facility that listens for Internet requests and starts up designated programs in response.
Inline images A feature of WWW servers that allows images to be embedded in text and transferred whenever that document is requested. The embedded images are called inline images.
Interactive Image Format See IIF.
Internet daemon See Inetd.
Kerberos A security system developed at MIT that authenticates or verifies the user's identity. Once the ID is authenticated, it is used throughout the session.
Latency The delay between a request for data and the response, in other words, the waiting time.
Link A link is an address pointing to information on the Internet. Usually, links are in the form of URLs (Uniform Resource Locators), which were created along with WWW as a means of codifying all the pertinent information needed to locate something on the Internet.
List server or listserv A program that runs an e-mail mailing list. A message sent to the mailing list is relayed to everyone else on the list, whether they know each other or not. See e-mail listserv.
Meta-information Information about an object, such as its
date, author, or language. The ability to store meta-information
on a Gopher, WWW, or WAIS server might
allow searching for items in a certain language or for items more
recent than a
certain date.
Metaphor Use of some commonly understood object or process to explain the workings or organization of another. For example, Usenet News is often described in terms of a river of information that you fish in to find what you want. The messages will be gone in a few days, replaced by new messages, flowing by as constantly as the water in a river.
MIME (Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions) Extensions that add the capability of sending mixed media (audio, video, and binary files) in Internet mail. Mail systems that can handle these extensions are called MIME enabled.
Mirror Usually used in the sense of duplicating another site's service or archives in order to lessen the load on that server and widen the accessibility of the information.
MOO (Multiple User System, Object Oriented) Designates a space on the Internet where people can come together to create and manipulate an imaginary environment. The objects one person creates can be used and shared by other people.
MUD (Multiple User Dungeon [or Dimension or Dialog]) Artificial worlds often with role-playing games attached; individuals login through the Internet and join in an online game or activity.
Multiple User Dungeon (or Dimension or Dialog) See MUD.
Multiple User System, Object Oriented See MOO.
Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions See MIME.
Natural language query A request for information (or query) that can be written in human languages such as English or French. An example of a natural language query would be, Why is the sky blue? Generally, it is difficult for the computer to understand the full semantic meaning of natural language, but it is the goal of many search systems.
Network Information Center See NIC.
Newsgroup A subject area in the Usenet News system.
NIC (Network Information Center) A site that maintains information about a particular network. This might include host and domain names only, or cabling, service charges, technical and administrative support staff, and other data.
Parser A program that breaks a statement into its syntactical elements. This might be a natural language parser, or a special purpose parser to deal with specific computer languages or instructions.
PDF (Portable Document Format) A formatting language from Adobe Systems, Inc., that allows documents to be displayed identically on completely different types of computers. PDF viewers are available for Windows and Macintosh.
Perl A free programming language often used in UNIX but available for Macintosh and DOS as well. Many Gopher and WWW CGI scripts are written in Perl because it is particularly good at text manipulation.
Port (noun) Ports of call, a feature of the UNIX operating system, that give a machine different access points (ports) that can be designated for specific purposes. The standard ports for Gopher, WWW, and WAIS, for example, are Gopher-port 70, WWW-port 80, and Z39.50 port 210 for WAIS.
Port (verb) To port a program to another operating system or machine means to convert the program so that it will run on a completely different type of machine. Port in this usage descends from transport.
Portable Document Format See PDF.
Private key encryption Refers to a message encoded with a special code number called a private key, which is given to whoever needs to decode the message. It is much faster than public key cryptography but requires absolute security in the transport of the private key to the recipient. Private key encryption is often used with public key encryption to solve this problem.
Process On UNIX systems, a process is a program that once started keeps running until either it is killed or it finishes its job.
Prospero A special type of file system developed at University of Southern California's Institute for Scientific Information. It is the basis for some large Gopher servers, including America Online's.
Protocol A specific language that has been developed to coordinate a certain task between different machines or programs. The language is usually limited and only concerns itself with the task it wants to accomplish. It specifies all the parts of the "conversation" that will take place. For example, a mail transfer protocol might start out with machine A contacting machine B by saying HELLO, I HAVE A MESSAGE FOR YOU. Machine B might then reply either, GO AHEAD AND SEND THE MESSAGE, or COME BACK LATER, I'M BUSY. The protocol would specify exactly how the conversation should go, and programmers would later be responsible for writing programs that comply with the protocol. This permits exchanges between machines of different types.
Proxy server A server that stands in (acts as a proxy) for another server so as to protect it from unwanted intrusion via the Internet. Requests for information by the hidden machine are sent out as if they came from the proxy server.
Public key encryption Refers to a message that has been encoded in such a way that it has both a public and a private key. Messages encrypted with the private key can only be decrypted with the public key, and messages encrypted with the public key can only be decrypted with the private key. The private key is kept hidden by the owner. The public key is distributed widely and registered with certifying authorities. These are used in different combinations as well as with private key encryption to keep messages private and to transmit digital signatures, which identify the sender.
Redirection A method of sending the output from one program to some place other than where it would normally go. It could apply to printer output, which might go to a network printer instead of the printer attached directly to a computer. Some Gopher and WWW servers allow requests for information in one directory or area to be redirected to a different area.
Regular expression A standard UNIX method for specifying a pattern of text. It is a flexible pattern-matching system that is used by many UNIX commands.
Relevance feedback A term used in WAIS searching to describe using the first batch of information it returns to refine your search.
Request for Comment See RFC.
RFC (Request for Comment) An agreed-upon method of formalizing new protocols, programs, or services (or ideas for same) on the Internet. The information is put in a plain-text document that is made available across the Internet. Interested parties then provide feedback or test out the concepts in the RFC. Software programs are designed to conform to the protocols as expressed in particular RFCs. In this way computer programs from different companies can work interchangeably because they all conform to the same RFC standard.
Scale (as in "doesn't scale well") A term that refers to numbers of users and how well a computer tool performs as more and more people use it. Something that works for 100 users may not work as well if expanded (or scaled up) to 1,000 or 1 million users. Scalability is a common concern, given the extremely rapid growth of the Internet.
Script A collection of commands saved in a file for later execution.
Server Half of the client-server combination, a server provides information on request from client programs or computers. Setting up Internet servers is what Internet publishing is all about.
SGML (Standard Generalized Markup Language) A text markup system for both print and online publication. HTML is an application of SGML for the special purpose of hypertext publishing on the World-Wide Web.
Shell scripts A series of UNIX commands saved into a file. Executing the file is the same as running each command in order. UNIX shell scripts are similar to DOS batch files but much more powerful.
Simple Mail Transfer Protocol See SMTP.
Site A computer offering a Gopher, WWW, WAIS, or some other Internet service.
SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) is a method of exchanging e-mail on the Internet.
SQL (Structured Query Language) database Database designed so that requests for information from the database can be made in a common language.
Standalone A program that runs on its own once it has been started. On UNIX systems WWW, Gopher, and WAIS servers run in standalone mode always there and waiting for requests to come in.
Standard Generalized Markup Language See SGML.
Stemming Shortening of every word in a search or query to its stem. For example, the stem airplane would retrieve both airplane and airplanes, and socio would find both sociology and sociologist.
Structured field Containers for certain types of information, such as title, author, date, and other data.
Structured field searching See fielded searching.
Structured Query Language database See SQL database.
System administrator See administrator.
Tagged Image File Format See TIFF.
Tar a UNIX program that combines files and subdirectories in one file for easy transport. The encoding .tar is added to the filename.
TCP/IP (Transport Control Protocol and Internet Protocol) Two protocols that form the basis or building blocks for Internet communication as we know it. There are other low-level protocols, but TCP/IP is considered a reliable transport protocol because it guarantees that all the packets (parts) in a message will get through.
TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) A method for storing images in digital form. It's widely used but not supported for inline images by WWW browsers. Add-on viewer programs are usually used in combination to view TIFF files.
Time zone A geographic area that measures its time as a certain number of hours behind or ahead of Greenwich Mean Time, the time in Greenwich, England.
Transport Control Protocol and Internet Protocol See TCP/IP.
Uniform Resource Locator See URL.
UNIX An operating system originally developed by AT&T and then released to the academic community for use in the public domain. Student programmers then added many options and tools, creating an extremely flexible, powerful, and cryptic operating system. Among other features, UNIX is multitasking many programs can be run at the same time, even by the same user. UNIX is the preferred operating system for development of Gopher, WWW, and WAIS server software.
URL (Uniform Resource Locator) A system for identifying where a particular resource (document, data, image, sound) is located on the Internet. URLs specify the host computer as well as the type of protocol and the directory and file name to be retrieved.
Usenet News An Internet system or protocol for exchanging messages on particular subjects. It is similar to e-mail except that the messages do not pile up in your mailbox.
Veronica A program designed at the University of Nevada at Reno to collect and index the menus and contents of Gopher servers all across the Internet. Users searching Veronica servers will receive a Gopher menu made up of links to the pertinent Gopher servers and files that match the request.
Virtual An adjective used in the computer world to refer to something simulated. For example, virtual memory uses a hard drive to simulate RAM or regular memory.
W3O (World-Wide Web Organization) A joint effort of MIT in Boston and CERN in Switzerland that addresses the editing of standards and the writing of reference code. It will define conformance levels for WWW-related protocols.
WAIS (Wide Area Information Server) An indexing and search and retrieval protocol that has both commercial and freeware versions. It is commonly used as the "back end," or indexing engine, for Gopher and WWW servers.
Wide Area Information Server See WAIS.
World-Wide Web See WWW.
World-Wide Web Organization See W3O.
WWW (World-Wide Web) Also known as W3 and the Web and originally created by Tim Berners-Lee at CERN in Switzerland as a hypertext method for physicists to share research documents. See Chapter 4.
Z39.50 An international protocol for information retrieval. In other words, it describes methods for exchanging information between separate computers. See Chapter 5.
ZDist A free program developed to query Z39.50 databases. See Chapter 5.