McGraw-Hill OnlineMcGraw-Hill Higher EducationLearning Center
Student Center | Instructor Center | Information Center | Home
Non-Chapter Glossary Terms
Non-Chapter Flashcards
Frequently Asked Questions
Student Message Board
Learning Objectives
Chapter Outline
Key Terms
Flashcards
Interactive Activities
Exercises
Multiple Choice Quiz
Feedback
Help Center


Inline Online
Inline/Online: Fundamentals of the Internet and the World Wide Web, 2/e
Raymond Greenlaw, Armstrong Atlantic State University
Ellen Hepp, The University of New Hampshire

Chapter 1 - Fundamentals of Electronic Mail

Chapter 1 Key Terms

This glossary contains a list of important terms used in the text. Both the terms and their meanings are presented. This list is not intended to be exhaustive. For example, many of the HTML concepts are not included, but can easily be traced through the index.
account name  A name that identifies you to a computer; also called a userid.
(See 7, 631)
algorithm  A well-defined set of rules for carrying out a procedure.
(See 15, 60, 631)
alias  An easy-to-remember name associated with an email address. The alias is saved by your email software. Aliases can also be used in some operating systems to rename commands.
(See 13-14, 631)
authenticate  A term meaning to verify that you are who you say you are.
(See 632)
blind carbon copy  A copy of an email message that is sent to another user, but without the address for that user being displayed in the email message’s header.
(See 18, 584, 632)
browser  A software application that provides an interface between users and the Internet. Netscape’s Navigator and Microsoft’s Internet Explorer are two popular browsers. Browsers are also called Web clients.
(See 3, 632)
email address  An address that identifies a specific user’s electronic mailbox, and has the form:
username@hostname.subdomain.domain

(See 8-9, 636)
emoticons  Symbols made up of keyboard characters designed to express emotion; most commonly used in text-only communication, such as email.
(See 22, 125-126, 636)
file transfer  A way of transferring files from one computer to another computer, using a network. (See also FTP.)
(See 4, 100, 243-261, 631, 636)
gopher  A menu-based Internet browsing tool that was very popular in the early 1990s.
(See 4, 55, 105, 637)
graphical user interface (GUI)  A mouse-driven, rather than a key-board-driven, graphically oriented computer interface.
(See 25, 610, 637)
HTML  HyperText Markup Language; the programming language in which most Web pages are written.
(See 41, 610, 638)
mailbox  A file that holds a user’s email messages.
(See 31, 641)
mailer  A program that is used to compose, manipulate, and send email. Synonyms are mail application, mail client, and mail program. See also email; Pine mail program.
(See 2, 13, 19-22, 30-31, 641)
mailing list  A group of users with a shared interest, whose email addresses are kept in an electronic list that can be used to send email to each member on the list.
(See 2, 4, 104, 125, 641)
Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (MIME)  A system that is used by mailers and Web browsers to identify file contents by use of file extensions.
netiquette  Informal rules of network etiquette.
(See 22, 642)
newsgroup  An on-line forum that allows users from all over the world to participate in a discussion about a specific topic.
(See 2, 55, 103, 125, 432-448, 570, 642)
packet  A small piece of a message that is transported over the Internet.
(See 35, 109-111, 112-113, 120, 643)
password  A secret code you provide when you log in that is used to authenticate you to a computer.
(See 8, 643)
plaintext  A message in its original form; that is, not encoded.
(See 40, 415, 643)
protocol  A set of precisely specified rules for carrying out a procedure.
(See 32, 54, 644)
scroll bar  Arrows along the side or bottom of a window that allow the user to display a different part of a document that is larger than the screen size.
(See 20, 646)
signature file  A file that contains an email signature. A person’s signature file is usually appended to all email messages they send.
(See 23-24, 145, 647)
s-mail  See snail mail.
(See 3, 30, 459, 560, 647)
smiley  A happy face, written as :-); an example of an emoticon.
(See 22, 647)
snail mail  Regular postal mail; also referred to as s-mail.
(See 3, 647)
spam  Inappropriate or junk email.
(See 5, 647)
userid  A name that identifies you to a computer; also called a “user name” or “account name.”
(See 7, 649)
vacation program  A program that can be set up to reply automatically to each email message you receive. Such a program is usually installed when you are going to be away for a week or more.
(See 39, 649)
virus  A program that, when run, can replicate and embed itself within another program, usually with the intent of doing damage.
(See 41, 261-264)
Web server  A computer that satisfies requests for Web pages.
(See 13, 61, 62-64, 133, 650)
white pages  A database that serves as an on-line telephone book.
(See 12, 206-207, 650)
Yahoo!  A popular search engine and directory developed by former Stanford graduate students David Filo and Jerry Yang.
(See 12, 105, 127, 188, 191, 192, 194, 199, 206, 651)