An access provider is the company that provides you with Internet access. Some access providers are large corporations, like America Online, and others are small local companies. Access providers charge for Internet access in different ways - some charge by the hour, while others charge a flat rate per month for unlimited hours.
Irish access providers include Ireland On-Line (IOL), Eircom, and Ocean.

Adobe Acrobat Reader allows you to view Portable Document Format (PDF) files. A PDF file format has all the elements of a printed document as an electronic image that you can view or print.
Acrobat Reader is freely available from the Adobe web site.

ActiveX is a Microsoft programming technology that enables more interactivity between a web page and your computer. For example, an ActiveX control can run an animation, or pass data to and from an online database.
An ActiveX control is the Microsoft equivalent of a Java applet.

Web page images can be aligned in a number of ways, including top, middle, bottom, left, and right.
Your HTML editing software will allow you to align images.

Many web users cannot or do not choose to view images on the web. To ensure that your pages are accessible to such users, you should include an alternate description of every image using the ALT tag.
The ALT text appears when you move your mouse over an image.

An animated GIF is an on-screen image that uses a series of overlapping graphics to create perceived movement. It is likely that the first movement you saw on a web page was an animated GIF.
For animated GIF examples, see http://www.hamsterdance.com.

An aliased image has jagged edges. Antialiasing is the smoothing of these edges.
You can use PaintShop Pro to antialias images.

An applet is a mini-program that can perform simple tasks.
Most applets are created using the Java programming language.

Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANet) became the basis for the Internet. 
ARPANet received funded from U.S. military sources.

Data is carried along transmission lines that interconnect with larger lines known as backbones.  
The lines connect at points known as nodes.

Bandwidth is data speed in bits per second (bps).
A modem that works at 57,600 bps has twice the bandwidth of a modem that works at 28,800 bps.

A bevelled edge is a graduated edge around an image.
Image editing software allows you to create graphics with bevelled edges.

A bit is the smallest unit of data in a computer and has a single binary value, either 0 or 1.
There are eight bits in a byte.

A bitmap specifies an image using an arrangement of dots or pixels.
The sharpness, or resolution, of the image depends on the density of the dots.

A bookmark is a saved link to a web site.
Microsoft Internet Explorer refers to these saved links as Favorites.

A browser is a program that allows you to view web pages.
Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer are the most commonly used browsers.

BTW is an acronym for by the way, often used in casual online communication.
Other such acronyms include ADN (any day now) and AFAIK (as far as I know).

A Cascading Style Sheet (CSS) is a rule-based way of describing how elements of a web page should appear and behave.
Older browser versions may not support cascading style sheets.

Common Gateway Interface (CGI) provides a consistent way of passing data between a web server and an application.
A Microsoft Active Server Page (ASP) script is an alternative to a CGI script.

Internet users can chat to other users by typing messages and reading the responses on-screen.
Most online services offer chat room facilities.

A checkbox is a box on a web page that allows users to register choices.
Your HTML editing software will allow you to create checkboxes.

Not all shades of colour are consistent across browsers or computers.
There are only 216 shades that are consistent across Internet Explorer and Netscape.

Compression is the process of reducing the size of data to save space or to cut transmission time.
The WinZip program compresses and packages files.

A cookie is text that a web site places on your computer so that it can remember something about you next time you visit the site.
For example, a cookie can enable an online store to remember the contents of your shopping basket when you revisit that online store.

Dithering is the process of creating a non-available colour by combining two available shades.
Dithering also takes place when a monitor tries to display more colours than the monitor can handle.

The Domain Name System (DNS) translates Internet domain names into numeric Internet addresses.
www.scoilnet.ie is an Internet domain name; 181.131.11.21 is an Internet Protocol (IP) address.

A domain name is a unique address that identifies a web site on the Internet, for example, www.scoilnet.ie. The 'scoilnet' part of the domain name identifies the organisation and the 'ie' part of the domain name shows the origin or nature of the organisation (Ireland in this case).
.com as part of a domain name denotes a commercial organisation, .edu an educational establishment, .gov a government web site, and so on.

Dynamic HTML is the name given to HTML that is written to take advantage of later browser versions (version 4 and above). Dynamic HTML allows you to create web pages that are more interactive and animated.
Dynamic HTML is not supported by older browser versions.

E-commerce is the process of using the Internet to buy, sell, and transact business.
E-commerce is also known as e-business.

An electronic magazine that is available online or by email.

An editor, or web editor, is software that allows you to create and edit web pages.
Web editors have become increasingly easy to use.

Embed is a HTML tag that allows you to insert an element into a web page.
For example, to add a music file called bgmusic.mid to a web page, use the embed tag as follows: <embed src=bgmusic.mid autostart=true hidden=true loop=1>

Exporting is the process of saving a file or image into a new format.

FAQ stands for Frequently Asked Question. A list of FAQs contains commonly asked questions and their answers.
Including a list of FAQs on a web site can be an effective way of preempting repeated questions.

Macromedia Flash is a product that allows you to create and view high-quality animation on the web.
The ability to view Flash animations is built in to modern browsers, but older browsers require a plug-in to display Flash animations.

A form is just that - an online form to be filled in by a user. A form consists of a set of text entry boxes and checkboxes, with prompts to help the user to complete them.
When the user submits the form, the information is sent to the web site owner.

A forum is an online noticeboard or discussion area.
Discussion forums contain comments and responses organised by topic.

Frames are multiple web pages that share the same area on-screen and are controlled independently.
Not all browser versions support frames.

Software that you can use freely, without payment.  

File Transfer Protocol (FTP) allows you to transfer files between computers.
The FTP Explorer program is freeware that allows you to transfer files using FTP.

Graphics Interchange Format (GIF) is a file format for images made up of 256 or fewer colours.
GIF and JPEG are the most common file formats for images on the web.

The term graphics is often used to describe images for web sites.

A hit is a file request to a web server.
Counting hits is a way of measuring how popular a web site is.

Your home page is the page that displays when you click the Home button on your browser.
A home page is also the first page that is displayed when you view a web site.

A hosting service holds and maintains web site files.
Hosting charges vary, but special deals are available for schools.

The HTML tag <HR> draws a horizontal line across a web page.

For example, to create a horizontal line that is 80% of the width of a page, use the HR tag as follows: <hr width=80%>

HyperText Markup Language (HTML) is the language of web pages. HTML is a set of tags, or elements, that define how to assemble and display text, images, and other web page components.
HTML files have a suffix of .html or .htm.

You can click on a hyperlink to jump to another web site or page or to download a file.
A hyperlink is also known as a link or hypertext link.

Hypertext describes sections of text that do not have to be read sequentially. These sections of text are connected by links that allow the reader to choose what to read next.
Hypertext links allowing readers to jump between documents gave rise to the description of the Internet as a 'web'.

An image map is an image with invisible areas. Each individual area links to a different destination.
Image maps take time to update and should not be used on web sites that change frequently.

The Internet connects computers worldwide. The Internet allows users to send email and to transfer files, and to access information using the World Wide Web.
The Internet is not privately owned, but is a public resource.

Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a facility for live chat using the Internet. IRC consists of a set of rules, together with software.
Private or public channels can be used for group chats.

Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) is a system of digital telephone connections.
ISDN technology offers greater bandwidth, which means that data is transmitted more quickly.

Java is a programming language created by Sun Microsystems for use in Internet environments. Java can be used to create large or small applications.
Small Java applications are known as applets.

JavaScript is a scripting language created by Netscape. JavaScript code is embedded in HTML and enables simple interactivity.
You can use JavaScript to put an automatically updating date on a web page.

Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG) is an image format. The JPEG format is useful for photographic images.
JPEG and GIF are the most common file formats for images on the web.

A list is an itemised set of text items. Lists help to clarify, organise, and emphasise information.
Numbered lists are used for instructions; bulleted lists are used for items that do not follow a sequence.

A lurker observes during online discussions or forums, but does not contribute.
Lurking is a positive and acceptable form of participation.

A mailing list is a list of email addresses.
Mailing lists are used to send email to groups of people.

A META tag contains information for search engines.
The web page designer must add tags that describe the content of the page in order to get the best search engine results.

A modem (modulator/demodulator) is a device that translates computer signals to telephone signals.
A modem can be built in to a computer (internal) or connected to the computer (external).

Some combination of text, images, sound, and video.
Interactive multimedia allows user participation through, for example, text entry or touch-screen input.

Etiquette for the Internet: a polite code of conduct for online communication.
Capitals denote SHOUTING.

Connected to the Internet and able to browse web pages or receive emails.

A Portable Document Format (PDF) file has all the elements of a printed document as an electronic image that you can view or print. Adobe Acrobat Reader is the free software that allows you to view PDF files.
Acrobat Reader is freely available from the Adobe web site.

A plug-in is an application that enables visitors to see certain types of web site content.
For example, the Flash plug-in allows users to see animations created using Macromedia Flash software.

A point-of-presence (POP) is the location of an access point to the Internet.
A POP always has a unique Internet address.

A query is a request to a database or to the Internet for a particular piece of information.
A query submitted through a search engine is also known as a search.

A user can click on one of a set of radio buttons to register a choice.

Resolution describes the clarity of an image.

A search engine is a program that searches through files on the Internet to find specific information.
AltaVista, Yahoo, and Infoseek are popular search engines.

A server is a computer that fulfills requests from other computers.
A web server is a computer that hosts web sites.

Shareware is software that you can use freely on a trial basis for a limited period.
Shareware may have limited functionality to encourage users to purchase the fully-functional product.

Streaming media (audio or video) is delivered to a computer in a continuous stream and starts to play as it arrives.
You need a program known as a player, such as RealPlayer from RealNetworks, to access streaming audio or video.

See Cascading Style Sheets  

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) is the language or protocol that computers use to transfer data across the Internet.

A terminal adapter is the hardware required to translate computer signals to ISDN telephone signals.

A Uniform Resource Locator (URL) is the address of a file on the Internet.
A URL uniquely identifies a page or file on the Internet.

A vector graphic is described by a mathematical formula.
You can resize vector graphics without affecting image quality.

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is an international consortium that aims to develop standards for the Internet.
The W3C sets standards for HTML.

A web site is a set of web pages on the World Wide Web.
A web site has a home page through which you can access other pages on the site.

Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a markup language that allows web programmers to create tags.
Not all web browsers support XML.

The information in a zip file is compressed so that it takes up less space than the original. Typically, files are zipped before they are sent over the Internet.
To zip and unzip files, you can use WinZip on a PC or MacZip on a Macintosh.