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packet
parity
Partner
Board
PGP
Peripheral
Pilot
Program
ping
pixel
plug-in
PPP
POP
port
postmaster |
packet
The smallest unit of information that travels
across a network.. Information to be sent over the
Internet is first broken up into packets, all of
which are sent independently to the remote computer
where they are reassembled. Thankfully, with the
correct formatting, your software spares you the
gory details. Top
parity
Parity is a form of error-checking whereby
two computers -- one sending, another receiving
-- match the data one sent with what the other
received. In your communication software, you
set the parity according to what your carrier
expects: "no parity" or "even parity."
Frequently, a non-data parity bit is attached
to each character sent, and the computers at each
end of the connection must agree over the parity
bit's value, 0 or 1. If the parity bit doesn't
match, they know something didn't make it through
intact.
Top
Partner
Board
A
small group that represents each of our business
partners and task forces related to Learning Community
2000. Their role is to take action and make policies
for our community network. For more information,
visit the Partner
Board homepage.
Peripheral
A
device attached to our computer, such as a mouse,
keyboard, scanner, etc.
PGP
Let's face it: security is not one of the
strengths of the Internet as we know it. Sure,
plenty of measures are in place to protect the
data of the military and the nation's corporations
-- not to mention your credit-card number, should
you dare give it out online. But plenty of hackers
are in place too, panning for gold in the continuous
streams of data. One form of protection is Phil
Zimmerman's Pretty Good Privacy, or PGP, a program
that uses public key encryption (link) to protect
files and e-mail. You can also use it to attach
a digital signature to a document or message so
that people can verify that you were the sender.
Top
Pilot
Program
A
comprehensive 4 year training program developed
by District 108 that trains 40 teachers per year
in basic technology skills, management of student
information, and integration of technology into
the classroom. For more information, visit the
Pilot
Program homepage.
ping
PING is a program that tests communication
to and from a network destination such as a connected
node. When the computer running the program pings
another (usually at timed intervals), it sends
a special echo request, waits for an answer, and
then sends different-sized packets to measure
response time, not to mention watching whether
or not the packets even make the trip. PING stands
for Packet InterNet Groper. Windows 95 has a PING program
- to run it, choose "Run" From the START
button and type in PING.
Top
pixel
A pixel is the smallest discernible part of
your computer's display -- the dots of a monitor's
dot-per-inch rating (as in 800 x 600 dpi), which
is actually measured in pixels. The dubious abbreviation
of "picture element," a pixel in a standard
monitor is each point at which the little beams
fired by the three guns (red, blue and green)
converge.
Top
plug-in
There are things your browser can do by itself,
such as showing graphics and, of course Web pages.
Other things are tougher, and your browser needs
help. Thankfully, you can expand the capability
of your browser by "plugging in" various
tools to let you see (and hear!) certain things,
such as audio or video files. When your browser
needs a plug-in you don't have yet, it will tell
you it's encountered an "unknown file type."
If the Web page designer is kind, they'll tell
you which plug-in you need and where to get it.
Currently, some of the most popular plug-ins are
Shockwave (for audio and video), RealAudio (audio
that broadcasts to your computer like a radio
station), and MPEGplay (more video). Plug-ins
are very similar to another kind of Web tool called
helper apps.
Top
PPP
PPP stands for Point-to-Point Protocol, and
is one of two common protocols your Internet Service
Provider (ISP) may offer as your way of gaining
access to the Internet. (The other is SLIP, for
Serial Line Internet Protocol.) PPP, the newer
protocol, loads on top of other software called
a TCP/IP stack and lets you use your browser instead
of the boring ol' terminal-emulation software
Internet users of a few years ago had to put up
with.
Top
POP
There are two definitions for POP, and we
don't mean Daddy or that sweet, carbonated drink
some of us call soda. It's first meaning is "Point
Of Presence," meant to denote whatever place
an Internet service provider keeps the entanglement
of computers, routers, modems, leased lines, and
other equipment it needs to serve its subscriber
base and maintain its existence as an Internet
site. The second meaning, Post Office Protocol,
governs how quickly to duck when the disgruntled
employee barges in with his 9mm. Just kidding,
it's the protocol used by an ISP's mailserver
to manage e-mail for subscribers. Another word
for an e-mail account is a POP-mail account.
Top
port
Another ambiguous word from the computer industry.
Ports are the plugs on the back of your computer
where you connect peripherals such as printers
or modems. Port is also the verb that means modifying
a piece of software so it will run on another
platform. (Windows software, for instance, might
be ported to the Mac platform or vice-versa.)
An Internet port, however, is a part of a server
that handles certain kinds of requests. If you've
ever seen a number appended to the end of a URL,
followed by a colon, that's the port number. Internet
servers often provide a variety of services, such
as FTP, WWW, or Gopher. Each of those services
"listens" for outside contact on a particular
port number, which is standard for that given
type of service. Web servers, for instance, usually
listen on port 80.
Top
postmaster
This downtrodden soul is the Internet's version
of the person who gets called when a USPS mail
carrier empties his bag in the Dumpster so he
can make the ballgame. The postmaster for a given
site takes care of the server's mail functions,
handles questions and complaints loud and soft,
and likely never makes it to the ballgame. If
you're looking to contact someone, anyone at a
given site, try addressing it to postmaster@wherever.com
(substitute the domain of the site you want to
contact for "wherever.com").
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