Computer Terms Glossary: 

A drive — The slot on your computer where you put in a 3 1/2" floppy disk. These drives are somewhat obsolete today as they have been replaced by flash drives.

Active Window — The last program window you clicked on — the one that’s currently highlighted.  Any keys you press affect this window.  (The color of the title bar will change when a window is active).

Address — Like a street address, an email address gets email to one location, an address for a web page takes you to a web location (and is also called a URL)

Adware — A form of spyware that collects information about the user in order to display advertisements in the web browser based on the information it collects from the user's browsing patterns.

Application — A program or a piece of software that runs on your computer to let you perform some task, such as creating a spreadsheet, browsing the Internet, or writing a letter.

Bandwidth — The transmission capacity of an electronic or optical telecommunications pathway. The range of frequencies is expressed in hertz, or transmission channels. The bandwidth determines how much information may be transmitted through a circuit.

Bookmark — Also known as a "favorite."  Using an Internet browser, a bookmark is a saved link to a web page that has been added to a list of saved links.

Broadband —commonly refers to Internet access via cable, DSL, and cellular EVDO, which is considerably faster than analog dial-up. Internet access using a method to move data, voice and video over a multi channel, high-bandwidth transmission line. Broadband always referres to a higher-speed connection, the FCC defines broadband as a minimum upload speed of 200 Kbps.

Browser — Software like Netscape, Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox or Safari that one uses to navigate the World Wide Web.  Also called “web browser” or “Internet browser.”

C drive — The main storage area on a computer, also called a hard drive.

Cache — A place where files are stored temporarily to make things go faster on your computer.  Also called temporary files.

CD — "Compact Disk" A small optical disk on which data such as music, text, or graphic images is digitally encoded.

Click — To push and release a button on the mouse.

Clipart — Ready-made, usually copyright-free, illustrations sold in books, as part of a software package or on the Internet.  They may be cut and pasted or inserted as artwork into a document.

Clipboard — A part of Windows that holds information you’ve cut or copied from a program or file.  It holds that information so you can paste it into other programs or files.

Cookies — A message given to a web browser by a web server that is stored in a text file called cookie.txt.  Cookies are used by the website you’ve visited to figure out which ads you’ve seen before, to call you by name, or in other ways to customize your experience on their web page.

Cursor — The little blinking line that indicates where the next letter will appear when you start typing.

Cut and Paste — To move an object, text, or image from one place to another.  To “cut” is to remove something like cutting it out with a scissors.  To “paste” is to put something in a file similar to pasting or gluing something into place.  Copy and Paste is similar, but leaves the original in place as well as the copy.

Desktop — The area on your screen where you move windows and icons around.

Dialog Box — A box (window) from which you choose command options.

Digital — Related to a device that can read, write, or store information that is represented in numerical form, usually on computers.

Disk — A device used to store programs and files for use by computers.  PCs use internal hard disks to store the bulk of their data.  Floppy disks are used to distribute files to others and to back up hard disk data.  CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs are the next generation of portable storage disks.

Drag — Pressing the mouse button and holding it down as you move the pointer to the desired position, then releasing.

Drop-Down Menu — A menu that drops from the relevant button when a user selects it.

Download — To copy a file from the Internet to your own computer.

DVD — (Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) An optical digital disc for storing movies and data.

FAQ — Stands for “Frequently Asked Questions.”   Many websites will have a set of FAQ’s to handle common questions that users may have about the site or the product the site represents.

Favorite — Also known as a "Bookmark."  Using an Internet browser, a favorite is a saved link to a web page that has been added to a list of saved links.

File — A collection of information in a format designed for computer use (ex: as a Word file, or an Adobe Acrobat file).

Flash Drive — Also known as "Thumbnails or USB Drives" Flash drives are compact and easy-to-use USB devices that are similar in use to your computer hard drive. These drives plug into the USB port.

Filename — All files have a filename.  Filenames can have up to 256 characters.  Filenames include the name you give the file plus a “dot” followed by three characters.  The three characters are called the “file extension” and give you and the computer information about whether the file is a spreadsheet, a word document, or a database.

Folder — An area for storing files to keep them organized.  Folders can contain other folders for further organization.

Font — A type face.  Your computer comes with many fonts.  You can purchase additional fonts, in different styles or languages, and install them on your computer.

FTP — [File Transfer Protocol] - A communications protocol governing the transfer of files between two computers over a network.

Function Keys — Special keys on the keyboard that have different meanings depending on which program is running. Function keys are normally labeled F1 to F12.

Gigahertz — One billion hertz.

Hardware — The parts of the computer that you can touch.  The mouse, keyboard, monitor, and CPU are all hardware.

Help — A feature in most programs that will let you search for information or directions on aspects of that program.

Highlight — To select an item.  Different colors usually appear over a highlighted object to show that it has been selected.

Homepage — The main page of a website.  This page usually tells what the website is for, who created it and what you can do in the website.

HTTP — [Hypertext Transfer Protocol] - A protocol used to request and transmit files, especially webpages and webpage components, over the Internet or other computer network.

Hyperlink — Also known as a "link."  A hyperlink is a selectable connection from one word, picture, or information object to another. On the World Wide Web, the most common form of link is the highlighted word or picture that can be selected by the user (usually by clicking with a mouse), resulting in the immediate delivery and view of another file (e.g. another web page).

Icon — A little picture on the Windows desktop that can launch a program.  The icon picture is supposed to make it easier to figure out that object's function.

IP — [Internet Protocol] - The set of standards responsible for ensuring that data packets transmitted over the Internet are routed to their intended destinations.

Logon/ Logoff — To begin or to end a session on a computer.  Sometimes to Logon you need a username and a password.

Maximize — The act of making a single program's window fill the entire desktop.  You can maximize a window by clicking on the maximize button in the upper right hand corner of the window.

Megahertz — One million hertz.

Menu Bar — The menu bar is located near the top of a window and contains the names of the pull-down menus available, such as File, Edit, View, Options, and Help.

Minimize — The act of shrinking a window to the taskbar to temporarily get it out of the way.  To minimize a window, click on the minimize button in the upper right hand corner of the window.

Monitor — The screen attached to your computer that displays information.

MotsStreet™ — The road to computing harmony.

Mouse-Over — When a pointer (mouse, cursor) is rolled over a certain area of the screen, and something changes.

Network — Two or more computers connected so that they share information and resources.  The Internet is a giant network.

Operating System — The software that runs a computer, before any other programs are opened (ex: Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Macintosh OS10, Linux.)

PcPitCrew™ — Also known as "The Crew." A group of Computer Technicians that repair the computers of the Stars and Professional Athletes.

Phishing — The act of sending an email to a user falsely claiming to be an established legitimate enterprise in an attempt to scam the user into surrendering private information that will be used for identity theft.

Pointer — A small arrow or other symbol on the display screen that moves as you move the mouse.

Program — A specific set of ordered operations, or instructions, for a computer to perform.  Typically, the program is put into a storage area accessible to the computer. Examples are Microsoft Word, Solitaire, and Internet Explorer.

Reboot — To shut down the computer and start it up again.  A hard or cold reboot is when you start the computer from when it is powered off.  A soft or warm reboot is when you use the Ctrl-Alt-Delete key combination to restart a computer after it is stalled in the middle of working.

Scanner — A device that can read text or illustrations printed on paper and translate the information into a form the computer can use.

Screensaver — A small program that takes over your monitor screen if there are no keystrokes or mouse movements for a specified period of time.

Scroll Bar — In Windows, a moveable bar that appears on the right or bottom of a window whenever the window contains more information than it can show at one time.

Server — A computer that manages resources for other computers.  You can have a file server, email server, a print server, a network server, or a database server that all have their own jobs.

Shortcut — A Windows icon that serves as a push button for starting a program, or opening a file or directory.

Spyware — Any software that covertly gathers user information through the user's Internet connection without his or her knowledge.

Start Menu — A menu of options that appears when the Start button (lower left hand corner of your screen) is clicked.  From the start menu you can load programs, load files, change settings, find programs, or shut down your computer.

Status Bar — A horizontal bar at the bottom of the screen that displays information about commands, toolbar buttons, and other options.  For example, in a web browser, the status bar will show you the progress as a page is downloading.

Task Manager — The Task Manager provides information about programs and processes running on your computer.  It can be accessed by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Delete and choosing "Task Manager."

Taskbar — The bar in Windows that lists all currently running programs and open folders.

TCP/IP — [Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol] - The wide-area-networking protocol that makes the Internet work.

Techminutes™ — Minutes of time that are used for pay-as-you-go computer repair services and can be used for any of our online services.

Title Bar — The bar at the top of a program's window that shows the name of the program, the name of the file or website that's open in it, and which has the minimize, maximize, and close buttons in the upper right corner.

Toolbar — A horizontal row of selectable image buttons that give the user a visible reminder of an easy way to do certain tasks in a program.

Upload — Opposite of download.  When you upload a file, you move it from your own computer to a computer on the Internet.

URL — Stands for “Uniform Resource Locator.”  The series of letters and numbers, often beginning with an "http://", that signify a website address.

USB port — Stands for “Universal Serial Bus.”  A plug on the computer's exterior that connects peripheral devices, such as mice, modems, and keyboards.

Virus — A piece of programming code usually disguised as something else that causes some unexpected and usually undesirable event.  Viruses can be transmitted as attachments to an email, as downloads, or be present on a diskette or CD.

VoIP — (Voice Over IP) A telephone service that uses the Internet as a global telephone network, like Vonage, Packet8, Skype, and others.

WWW — Stands for “World Wide Web.”  When the Internet was new, most web addresses started with www.  To save typing, many websites do not use the “www” in their address.

Website — A place on the web, usually devoted to one theme, service, or organization. A website is composed of many web pages.

WiFi — "Wireless Fidelity" A way of networking computers over radio waves rather than wires.

Window — An on-screen box that contains information for you to look at or work with.  Programs run in windows on your screen.  Also called a "Program Window."  Not to be confused with "Windows," which is an operating system.

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