Assignment 7
- What is the W3C World Wide Web Consortium.
The W3C World Wide Web Consortium is an internationally well-known organization.
It was created to lead the World Wide Web by developing common protocols that promote its evolution and ensure its interoperability.
- Find and write simple explanations for the following terms.
a. Cyberspace
The impression of space and community formed by computers, computer networks, and their users; the virtual "world" that Internet users inhabit when they are online.
b. download
To download a file is to get it from someone else's computer, over a network, and save it on your own computer or floppy disk.
c. upload
To transfer programs or data over a digital communications link from a smaller or peripheral "client" system to a larger or central "host" one.
d. GIF
Abbreviation for graphical interchange format. A file-name extension indicating a certain digital image file format suitable for efficiently importing image data into computer files or for transmitting or displaying the formatted image on a computer monitor or printing it out.
e. JPG
Joint Photographic Experts Group(JPEG) The original name of the committee that designed the standard image compression algorithm. JPEG is designed for compressing either full-colour or grey-scale digital images of "natural", real-world scenes. It does not work so well on non-realistic images, such as cartoons or line drawings. JPEG does not handle compression of black-and-white (1 bit-per-pixel) images or moving pictures.
f. PNG
Stands for "Portable Network Graphic." This format was designed as an alternative to the GIF format (which has been plagued by copyright issues). Like GIFs, PNG files are lossless, meaning they don't lose any detail when they are compressed. They support up to 48-bit color or 16-bit grayscale and typically compress about 5% to 25% better than GIF files. However, they do not support animations like GIFs do. A format similar to PNG, called MNG, is currently under development, and will support animations.
g. login (as a noun and a verb)
Noun: The term is used to mean the ability to access a service (also called an account)
Verb: To start a session with a system, usually by giving a user name and password as a means of user authentication.
h. mailing lists (listserv and majordomo)
A list of e-mail addresses identified by a single name. When an e-mail message is sent to the mailing list name, it is automatically forwarded to all the addresses in the list.
Most e-mail clients support mailing lists, which enables you to broadcast e-mail messages to groups that you define. In addition, there are mailing list servers that manage centralized mailing lists for groups of users.
- listserv: A listserv, or list server, is a small program that automatically sends messages to multiple e-mail addresses on a mailing list. When someone subscribes to a mailing list, the listserv will automatically add the address and distribute future e-mail messages to that address along with all the others on the list. When someone unsubscribes, the listserv simply removes the address. At least that is the way it supposed to work. Unfortunately, with some SPAM lists, unsubscribing only adds you to more lists.
- majordomo: A free mailing list server that runs under UNIX. When e-mail is addressed to a Majordomo mailing list, it is automatically broadcast to everyone on the list. The result is similar to a newsgroup or forum, except that the messages are transmitted as e-mail and are therefore available only to individuals on the list.
i. newsgroups
The name for discussion groups (forums) on USENET. A newsgroup is a discussion about a particular subject consisting of messages submitted by many users. Newsgroups may be "moderated" by a designated person who decides which postings to allow or delete, but most newsgroups are unmoderated.
1) What is USENET?
UseNet is a facet of the internet which allows public notices to rapidly travel around the world. Anybody with internet access can both read these messages, or post their own message. Certain categories, called newsgroups, exist on virtually every imaginable subject.
2) How is USENET different from our class Discussion Board?
In our discussion Board, we can only write texts, but in USENET we can upload files(image file, data file etc).
Usenet contains lots of topics so it`s much bigger than our discussion board.
j. packet switching
A method of data transmission in which small blocks of data are transmitted rapidly over a channel dedicated to the connection only for the duration of the packet's transmission.
k. router
This is a hardware device that routes data (hence the name) from a local area network (LAN) to another network connection. A router acts like a coin sorting machine, allowing only authorized machines to connect to other computer systems. Most routers also keep log files about the local network activity.
l. cookie
In computer terminology, a cookie is data sent to your computer by a Web server that records your actions on a certain Web site. It's a lot like a preference file for a typical computer program. When you visit the site after being sent the cookie, the site will load certain pages according to the information stored in the cookie.
Some people don't like to have their information recorded by Web sites that they visit. For this reason, most Web browsers have an option to accept or deny cookies.