Damm Coyote's

Glossary Of Terms

Daemon
On a UNIX system, a background process that waits to perform tasks. The send mail daemon, continually runs but only becomes active when e-mail is received or sent.

DAT
Digital Audio Tape. A small cassette tape for storing large amounts of digital information, it is sometimes called 4mm tape. One DAT cassette can hold anywhere from 1GB to 8GB of data.

Data
Factual information such as text, numbers, sounds, and images, in a form that can be processed by a computer.

Database
An organization of data into one or more tables of related data that is used to answer questions.

Data encryption key
A popular encryption scheme.

Data file
Any file created within an application: a word processing document, a spreadsheet, a database file, or a chart.

Data traffic
The amount of information traversing a network. On the Internet, it refers to the number of TCP/IP packets moving through the network. When data traffic for a server you are accessing is heavy, both your system and the server's system slow down.

DATEWARE
A form of SHAREWARE that shuts itself down after a fixed number of days unless the user has purchased the software.

Dedicated line
A telephone line dedicated to transferring data, 24 hours a day between computers.

Desktop
The screen background for a application on which icons and dialog boxes appear.

Destination
The location to which you want to copy a file, directory, or drive.

Destination directory
The directory to which you intend to copy or move a Program, application, or files.

Destination document
A document containing a link to an object in a source document.

Device
A component of the systems hardware configuration, such as a modem, printer, mouse, sound card, or disk drive.

Device contention
always occurs when more than one application is trying to use the same device, such as a modem.

Device driver
Software that controls how a computer communicates with a device, such as a modem. The modem driver translates information from the computer into information the modem can understand.

Dial-up
As opposed to a dedicated or leased line a type of computer linkage using regular telephone lines, generally referring to the kind of connection one makes when using a terminal emulator and a regular modem.

Dail-up IP account
The entry level of Internet Protocol accounts. This low-cost type of account lets computer users dial up a service provider's computer using a modem.

Digerati
The beautiful people of the online world; the Internet intelligentsia. It's a blend of the phrase" digital literati".

Digital line
A telecommunications line that transmit data in a digital format, which is the way computers handle data.

Direct connection
A connection to the Internet through a dedicated line, such as ISDN.

Directory
A method of segmenting a disk so that files and programs can be grouped together by type or category.

Directory of servers
A service that describes what is available on servers throughout the world.Information Retrieval via WAIS.

Dirt road
A frustartingly slow connection to a Web site.

Disk
A medium for storing information. Information stored on a disk remains there even when you turn off your computer, unlike information stored in memory (RAM). A floppy disk can be inserted and removed from a floppy disk drive, whereas a hard disk is permanently connected inside your computer.

Disk cache
A portion of memory set aside for temporarily holding information read from a disk.

Disk drive
Hardware that rotates disks to read or write data.
2)
A device used for storing and retrieving information on disks. See also disk, floppy disk, hard drive.

Display adapter
Hardware that converts video memory to video output.

Dithering
The positioning of random dots or patterns in order to merge palette colours to create colours that don't already exist in the palette. the purpose of dithering (also called error diffusion) is to blend disparate colours so that they appear to simulate continuous colour. Dithering increases the size of an image file and typically should be avoided when publishing on the Web.

DNS
Domain Name Server. The text based Internet addressing system that connects a domain name to a specified numeric IP address. A domain name is portable, meaning that it can remain the same but its IP address can change.
2)
A Server on the Net that turns Domain Names (that humans can understand) into IP addresses (that computers can understand).

Doc-ID
In WAIS, an ID that identifies a specific document in a database.

Document
A file containing data that you create using an application.

Document file
A file that is associated with an application.

Domain
Highest subdivision of the Internet; usually by country or type of organization (educational, commercial, and so on).

Domain name
The complete domain name address, including the domain and the unique name of the organization, such as albedo.net.
2)
The part of your e-mail address to the right of the @ sign. The domain name identifies a particular site on the Internet. Domain Names always have 2 or more parts, separated by dots.

Double click
To rapidly press and release a mouse button twice without moving the mouse. Double-clicking carries out an action, such as starting an application.

Download
To receive a file sent from another computer via modem.

DS1
A high-speed line capable of delivering 1.54 Mbps (1,540K) in both directions, and divided into 24 data-bearing channels. Commonly called a T1.

DS1C
A high-speed line capable of delivering 3.15 Mbps (3,150K) in both directions.

DS2
high-speed line capable of delivering 6.31 Mbps (6,310K) in both directions.

DS3
A high-speed line capable of delivering 44.7 Mbps (44,700K) in both directions. Commonly called a T3.

DSVD
Digital Simultaneous Voice and Data.

Dumb Terminal
A terminal that doesn't contain an internal microprocessor. It responds to simple control codes, and usually displays only characters and numerals.

Dynamic IP address
A numeric IP address that changes. The use of a dynamic IP address means that you are assigned a different numeric IP address each time you connect to your service provider.

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