ACM: Audio Compression Manager. Used in Microsoft Windows for runtime audio compression and decompression.
API: Application Programming Interface. A very structured and well-documented interface for extending operating systems and applications.
ASCII: American National Standard Code for Information Interchange. A standard code consisting of 7-bit characters used to represent alphanumeric values.
Atlas: Netscape's code name for Navigator 3.0.
AVI: Audio Video Interleave. A file format used to store full motion video with its associated audio track.
AWT: Alternative Window Toolkit. A Java class library for basic GUI programming.
base class: In C++, a class that is not derived from another class.
browser: An application used to find and display World Wide Web pages or "surf the net."
BSD: Berkeley Software Distribution. Inventors of network sockets, along with many UNIX flavors.
bytecode: In the Java language, this is platform-independent binary data generated by Java compilers, which is interpreted later to run a Java applet or application.
cache: Buffer or file storage that contains frequently accessed data in a faster, but usually smaller, device.
CERN: The European Laboratory for Particle Physics. Invented the World Wide Web.
CGI: Common Gateway Interface. An interface to a Web server that allows browser clients to communicate with specialized server programs.
class: In C++, a collection of data types including both data members and methods.
class library: In C++, a collection of classes that typically inherit from each other to form a hierarchical library.
CODEC: Short for compressor/decompressor. Used to describe runtime compression and decompression code modules typically used for audio and video.
critical section: A term used in multithreaded programming referring to a code section that can only be accessed by a single thread at any given time.
DDE: Dynamic Data Exchange. In Windows, a technique for interprocess communication using window messages.
deadlock: In multithreaded programming, a situation in which a thread attempts to access a resource but access will never be granted. The thread remains frozen for the life of the process.
DLL: Dynamic Link Library. In Windows, a code module that is loaded at runtime by a given process.
EMBED: An HTML tag used to embed a Navigator plug-in within a Web page.
FIFO: First-In-First-Out.
FILO: First-In-Last-Out.
FTP: File Transfer Protocol. A protocol used for transferring files with TCP/IP, typically on the Internet.
GUI: Graphical User Interface.
heap: A large block of process memory typically managed by a runtime library. Application memory requests are satisfied from the heap and its runtime routines.
helper application: Refers to an application used to "help" Web browsers display an unknown media type.
HIDDEN: An HTML tag used to define a hidden type Navigator plug-in.
HTML: HyperText Markup Language. A text-based interpreted language used to define a Web page.
HTTP: HyperText Transmission Protocol. The protocol used for communications between a Web client and server.
IANA: Internet Assigned Numbers Authority. Approves and tracks media types for use in the MIME specification.
IDE: Integrated Development Environment. A development environment that provides access to all tools needed for software development in a single application.
instance: An entity that belongs to a particular class of entities. For example, several copies of the same program are considered instances of that program.
instance data: Private data that is associated with an instance.
Internet: A world-wide network of computers, networks, and gateways that uses the TCP/IP protocol suite to function as a single virtual network.
Intranet: An internal corporate network or LAN, usually using TCP/IP to function as a mini Internet.
IP Address: A 32-bit address assigned to hosts in a TCP/IP network.
IRC: Internet Relay Chat. Provides real-time chatting over the Internet by typing on the keyboard.
ISI: Information Sciences Institute. Part of the University of Southern California that operates IANA among other things.
Java: A new language developed by Sun Microsystems that is geared toward platform independence and especially well suited to the Internet.
Java Applet: Java bytecode that is downloaded and interpreted in a Web browser.
JavaScript: An interpreted text-based scripting language developed by Netscape in conjunction with Sun. This language has a heavy Java influence.
MCI: Media Control Interface. In Windows, a generic
interface to many media types and
devices.
MCIWnd: In Windows, a window class that implements a large number of macros and routines to simplify MCI development.
method: In C++, a term used to refer to a function within a particular class. Also used to refer to a Netscape Navigator Plug-in API.
MFC: Microsoft Foundation Class Library.
MIDI: Musical Instrument Device Interface. Musical information is encoded in a series of bytes that determine such things as note, duration, and attack velocity.
MIME: Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions. An extendible standard defining a large number of media types that exist today.
Mosaic: The name of the first popular Web browser, which was developed by NCSA.
Mozilla: The mascot of Netscape's Navigator. Mozilla is a small, fire-breathing, Godzilla-like creature.
Navigator: The name of Netscape's highly successful Web browser.
NCSA: National Center for Supercomputing Applications. Funded by the University of Illinois, this organization wrote NCSA Mosaic.
NSAPI: Netscape API. A collection of programming interfaces for Netscape's server line of software products.
OLE: Object Linking and Embedding. Developed by Microsoft, this mechanism allows applications to communicate and share code resources.
overrun: In data streaming, this indicates that the data producer has produced more data than the consumer can manage.
OWL: Object Windows Library. A Windows GUI class library written by Borland.
Page: In this book, refers to either a Web page or a 4096-byte memory page.
PCM: Pulse Code Modulation. Refers to a common technique for digitizing audio data.
POP3: A standard for remotely reading e-mail across a network.
PPP: Point-to-Point-Protocol. A serial packet protocol commonly used to connect computers to the Internet through modems.
process: A single application or program that usually has a separate CPU context.
protocol: A set of rules that defines a method of communication across a network.
Resource: In Windows, data that is attached to a code module or program.
RFC: Request For Comment. A document proposing a new Internet standard.
SDK: Software Development Kit.
socket: A simplified, generic connection to a TCP/IP network originated by Berkeley Software Distribution.
software agent: A software program that intelligently performs its duties without human inter-action.
SSL: Secure Sockets Layer. Offered by Netscape to provide better network security.
stream: A continuous data flow from one device to another.
TCP/IP: Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol. The networking standard used on the Internet.
Telnet: A communications protocol for connecting locally to other computers across the Internet.
thread: A separate CPU context that is part of a process.
TWIP: One twentieth of a printer's point. A unit of measurement in Windows.
undderrun: In data streaming, this indicates that the data consumer has consumed all the data that the producer has produced.
URL: Universal Resource Locator. A standardized format to describe the location of a Web resource.
VxD: In Windows, a virtual device driver.
WinCGI: For Windows, a method of writing CGI programs using languages such as Visual Basic.
WinSock: Windows implementation of network sockets.
worker thread: A thread that is created for a task that usually has no user interaction.
World Wide Web: A network of HTTP servers that provide information in a variety of media through the use of the HTML language.