Tuesday’s Technology Tips
Geek Terms A-H
A Guide to Simplifying Geek Speak
(Please remember to not let the computer get the winning hand. Open a technology request
and let us help reduce the frustrations day in and day out with technology.)
Hey everyone, welcome back to another Technology Tips for Tuesday, April 5, 2016. I’ve often
asked for feedback and suggestions and I have one suggestion related to last week’s issue of You
Tube alternatives.
Ms. Megan Driggers at New Brockton High School sent me an email and wanted to share an
additional resource teachers may find quite beneficial in the school system related to videos. She
says it’s called Tube Chop. The program still allows you to play videos but it will also allow you
to chop or edit the videos you do show to students so you can control the content of what your
students view. She also left a URL to read more and explore Tube Chop. It’s located at
https://www.tubechop.com. I haven’t looked at it in great detail but it shows to be a good
resource to edit out video content and display the content you want shown by giving a start and
end time on the video. Check it out when you have time and thank you for suggesting it Ms.
Driggers.
Today I’d like to send out some common geeky type terms that we computer techs like to use
and discuss when we gather around the table eating fat free and sugar free donuts and drinking
low fat low sugar decaffinated coffee.
Here’s a list of common words starting out in the alphabet from letter A to letter H. Future
episodes appearing in your email in box will include letters beyond the letter H to give you a
broad sense of geek speak so to speak. I hope you enjoy them.
Now off to the list:
Access Point
An access point provides wireless access to a network. Devices connected to an access point can
communicate with other devices on the network. They may also connect to the Internet if the
access point is linked to an Internet connection, which is commonly the case.
Adware
Adware is free software that is supported by advertisements. Common adware programs are
toolbars that sit on your desktop or work in conjunction with your Web browser. They include
features like advanced searching of the Web or your hard drive and better organization of your
bookmarks and shortcuts. Adware can also be more advanced programs such as games or
utilities. They are free to use, but require you to watch advertisements as long as the programs
are open. Since the ads often allow you to click to a Web site, adware typically requires an active
Internet connection to run.
Most adware is safe to use, but some can serve as spyware, gathering information about you
from your hard drive, the Web sites you visit, or your keystrokes. Spyware programs can then
send the information over the Internet to another computer. So be careful what adware you install
on your computer. Make sure it is from a reputable company and read the privacy agreement that
comes with it.
Applet
This a Java program that can be embedded in a Web page. The difference between a standard
Java application and a Java applet is that an applet can't access system resources on the local
computer. System files and serial devices (modems, printers, scanners, etc.) cannot be called or
used by the applet. This is for security reasons -- nobody wants their system wiped out by a
malicious applet on some wacko's Web site. Applets have helped make the Web more dynamic
and entertaining and have given a helpful boost to the Java programming language.
Bandwidth
Bandwidth refers to how much data you can send through a network or modem connection. It is
usually measured in bits per second, or "bps." You can think of bandwidth as a highway with
cars travelling on it. The highway is the network connection and the cars are the data. The wider
the highway, the more cars can travel on it at one time. Therefore more cars can get to their
destinations faster. The same principle applies to computer data -- the more bandwidth, the more
information that can be transferred within a given amount of time.
Bcc
In email, BCC stands for "Blind Carbon Copy." When you send an e-mail to only one person,
you type the recipient's address in the "To:" field. When you send a message to more than one
person, you have the option to enter addresses in the "Cc:" and "Bcc:" fields. "Cc" stands for
"Carbon Copy," while "Bcc" stands for "Blind Carbon Copy."
A carbon copy, or "Cc'd" message is an e-mail that is copied to one or more recipients. Both the
main recipient (whose address is in the "To:" field) and the Cc'd recipients can see all the
addresses the message was sent to. When a message is blind carbon copied, neither the main
recipient nor the Bcc'd recipients can see the addresses in the "Bcc:" field.
Blind carbon copying is a useful way to let others see an e-mail you sent without the main
recipient knowing. It is faster than sending the original message and then forwarding the sent
message to the other recipients. It is also a good practice to use Bcc when copying a message to
many people. This prevents the e-mail addresses from being captured by someone in the list who
might use them for spamming purposes. However, if it is important that each recipient knows
who your message was sent to, use carbon copy (Cc) instead. I also advise using BCC sparingly
if you are trying to relay effective and open communication. But like mentioned above a BCC
used the right way is a great way to send messages to all intended recipients.
Boot or Boot Up
When you boot up a computer, you simply turn it on. Kicking your computer really far is not
recommended, though you may be tempted to do so at times. The term "boot" comes from the
word "bootstraps," which people at one time used to get their boots on. Likewise, "booting" a
computer gets it up and running.
In simple terms, to boot a computer is to turn it on. Once the computer's power is turned on, the
"boot process" takes place. This process involves loading the startup instructions from the
computer's ROM, followed by loading the operating system from the current boot disk. The boot
disk is usually an internal hard drive, but can also be an external drive, a CD or DVD-ROM, or
even a floppy disk. Once the operating system software is loaded, the boot process is complete
and the computer is ready to be used.
Buffer
A buffer contains data that is stored for a short amount of time, typically in the computer's
memory (RAM). The purpose of a buffer is to hold data right before it is used. For example,
when you download an audio or video file from the Internet, it may load the first 20% of it into a
buffer and then begin to play. While the clip plays back, the computer continually downloads the
rest of the clip and stores it in the buffer. Because the clip is being played from the buffer, not
directly from the Internet, there is less of a chance that the audio or video will stall or skip when
there is network congestion.
Cache
This term is pronounced like "cash". There are many different types of caches but they all serve
the same purpose. A cache stores recently-used information in a place where it can be accessed
extremely fast. For example, a Web browser like Internet Explorer uses a cache to store the
pages, images, and URLs of recently visited Web sites on your hard drive. With this neat
strategy, when you visit a page you have recently been to, the pages and images don't have to be
downloaded to your computer all over again. Because accessing your computer's hard disk is
much faster than accessing the Internet, caching Web sites can speed up Web browsing
significantly.
Cc
I email, this stands for "Carbon Copy." When you send an e-mail message, you typically type the
recipient's address in the "To:" field. If you want to send the message to one or more other
recipients, you can use the "Cc:" field to add additional addresses. This will send the e-mail to
the address in the "To:" field and to each address listed in the "Cc:" field as well.
The "Cc:" option is often used in business communications when a message is intended for one
person, but is relevant to other people as well.
CD-R
CD-R Stands for "Compact Disc Recordable." CD-R discs are blank CDs that can record data
written by a CD burner. The word "recordable" is used because CD-Rs are often used to record
audio, which can be played back by most CD players. However, many other kinds of data can
also be written to a CD-R, so the discs are also referred to as "writable CDs."
The data burned onto a CD-R disc is permanent, meaning it can not be altered or erased like the
data on a hard drive. Typically, once a CD has been burned, it will not be able to record any
more data. Some CD burning programs can record data as "sessions," allowing a disc to be
written to mulitple times until it is full. Each session creates a new partition on the disc, meaning
a computer will read a disc with multiple sessions as multiple discs.
CD-RW Disk
CD-RW Disk stands for "Compact Disc Re-Writable." A CD-RW is a blank CD that can be
written to by a CD burner. Unlike a CD-R (CD-Recordable), a CD-RW can be written to
multiple times. The data burned on a CD-RW cannot be changed, but it can be erased. Therefore,
you have to completely erase a CD-RW every time you want to change the files or add new data.
While it may be somewhat inconvenient, this capability makes CD-RWs a good choice for
making frequent backups. However, because CD-RWs can be erased, they don't store data
reliably for as long as CD-Rs do. Therefore, you should use regular CD-Rs for long-term
backups.
Clean Install
A clean install is an operating system (OS) installation that overwrites all other content on the
hard disk drive. Unlike a typical OS upgrade, a clean install removes the current operating
system and user files during the installation process. When a clean install finishes, the hard disk.
However, sometimes an OS upgrade is not possible because important files have become lost or
corrupted. In this case, a clean install may be the only option. Some users may also prefer to
perform a clean install so that no lingering problems from the previous OS will affect the newly
installed operating system. Additionally, a clean install may be appropriate when installing an
OS on a new hard drive or when transferring ownership of a computer to another person.
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. This is why if you surf the internet for something like a new
car, you will start to see advertisements for new cars on other websites as you surf along your
day.
While cookies have many benefits, 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. You may also want to delete cookies on a regular basis when surfing the internet.
CPU
CPU stands for "Central Processing Unit." This is the pretty much the brain of your computer. It
processes everything from basic instructions to complex functions. Any time something needs to
be computed, it gets sent to the CPU. Every day, it's compute this, compute that -- you'd think
the CPU would need a break after a while.
Crop
When you crop an image or photo, you remove part of the image. This may involve cutting some
of the image from the left, right, top, bottom, or any combination thereof. It may also mean just
cutting out a small rectangular of the image.
For example, your friend takes a picture of your family and leaves a good five feet of headroom
above the tallest person. If you are going to use the photo as your Christmas card picture, you
probably don't want half the picture to be filled with sky. Therefore, you can use an imageediting program to crop the top part of the image, leaving only a small area above the tallest
person's head. If the camera was zoomed out too far, you may want to crop some of the sides as
well.
Defragment
Defragmenting your hard disk is a great way to boost the When you delete a bunch of little files
and add a new large file to the computer, the file may get broken up into multiple sections on the
hard disk. The computer will still read the newly added file as a single valid file, but the drive
will have to scan multiple parts of the disk to read it. Because hard disk seek time is one of the
most significant bottlenecks in a computer's performance, this can drag down your computer's
speed quite a bit. If you have a ton of "fragmented" files on your hard disk, you might hear extra
grinding, sputtering, and other weird noises coming from your computer.
You computer does not like having fragmented files any more than you do. This is why
defragmenting your hard disk is such a good idea. When you start to hear extra grinding sounds,
or your computer doesn't open files as quickly as it did before, it's time to defragment. With
Windows, you can use the pre-installed Intel defragment program to defragment your hard disk.
You can also use a commercial software program like Norton Utilities to defragment your hard
disk more efficiently and with more options. If you use your computer daily, defragmenting your
hard drive once a month should keep the fragment-fiends away.
Domain
A domain contains a group of computers that can be accessed and administered with a common
set of rules. An organization that uses computers usually will configure all local computers to be
networked within the same domain so that each computer can be seen from other computers
within the domain or located from a central server location. Setting up a domain may also block
outside traffic from accessing computers within the network, which adds an extra level of
security.
Driver
In the computer world a driver is a small file that helps the computer communicate with a certain
hardware device. It contains information the computer needs to recognize and control the device.
In Windows-based PCs, a driver is often packaged as a dynamic link library, or .dll file. I most
commonly use printer drivers to add printers to laptops and desktops around the school system.
Encryption
Encryption is the coding or scrambling of information so that it can only be decoded and read by
someone who has the correct decoding key. Encryption is used in secure Web sites as well as
other mediums of data transfer. If a third party were to intercept the information you sent via an
encrypted connection, they would not be able to read it. So if you are sending a message over the
office network to your co-worker about how much you hate your job, your boss, and the whole
dang company, it would be a good idea to make sure that you send it over an encrypted line. Or
better yet save those type of messages for face to face so you can have a healthy discussion with
therapeutic co-workers who listen and can understand and offer advice.
Ethernet
Ethernet is the most common type of connection computers use in a local area network (LAN).
An Ethernet port looks much like a regular phone jack, but it is slightly wider. This port can be
used to connect your computer to another computer, a local network, or an external DSL or cable
modem.
Two widely-used forms of Ethernet are 10BaseT and 100BaseT. In a 10BaseT Ethernet
connection, data transfer speeds can reach 10 mbps (megabits per second) through a copper
cable. In a 100BaseT Ethernet connection, transfer speeds can get up to 100 mbps. There is also
a new technology called "Gigabit" Ethernet, where data transfer rates peak at 1000 mbps.
Flash Drive
Flash drives have many names — jump drives, thumb drives, pen drives, and USB keychain
drives. They are all a small data device that allows you to save data with a USB connection.
Flash drives are typically no more than two to three inches in length and less than an inch in
width. Their size and shape may resemble a thumb or a small pen (which is where the names
"thumb drive" and "pen drive" come from). Flash drives are also very thin, often having a depth
of less than a centimeter. Because of their small form factor, they are highly portable and can
easily fit in a pocket or on a keychain (hence the name "keychain drive").
Today’s modern day flash drives can store a large amount of data. As with any external storage
it’s always a good idea to back up data to one thumb drive and then use a second drive to be sure
the data is also updated in the second flash drive. Call it OCD or CDO or something else
memorable but I’ve saved myself quite a bit by having two thumb drives with the exact same
information on it to retrieve when one flash drive conveniently stopped working at the most
opportune times available. Remember the power of two thumb drives and sleep restful at night.
Or again better yet, save your files and documents at work to your Google drive or on the
network or if you’re at home using a personal Gmail account, save those files on your home
personal Google drive account. It’s safe, secure and backed up so you can sleep at night knowing
your files are secure.
Frozen
Frozen refers to an unresponsive computer. When a computer does not respond to any user input,
it is said to be frozen. When a computer system freezes, or "locks up," the screen stays the same
and does not change no matter what buttons you press on your mouse or keyboard. You can tell
if your computer has frozen if the cursor will not move when you move the mouse.
A computer typically freezes due to a software malfunction that causes the operating system to
"hang." This may happen because of many possible reasons, including a memory leak, an infinite
calculation, or another reason.
If your computer does freeze, usually you can restart the computer to make it function again.
You can typically force your computer to shut down by holding the power button for several
seconds but you shouldn’t always have to do that. If this starts happening, please open us good
technology folks a ticket so we can help further. And is the case often, when computer freeze or
lock up happens unexpectedly, it is a good idea to save your work frequently to reduce potential
data loss.
Hardware
Computer hardware refers to the physical parts of a computer and related devices. Internal
hardware devices include motherboards, hard drives, and RAM. External hardware devices
include monitors, keyboards, mice, printers, and scanners.
The internal hardware parts of a computer are often referred to as components, while external
hardware devices are usually called peripherals. Together, they all fall under the category of
computer hardware.
HTML
HTML Stands for "Hyper-Text Markup Language." This is the language that Web pages are
written. Web pages must conform to the rules of HTML in order to be displayed correctly in a
Web browser. The HTML syntax is based on a list of tags that describe the page's format and
what is displayed on the Web page.
Fortunately, the HTML language is relatively easy to learn. Even more fortunately (so much for
good grammar), many Web development programs allow you to create Web pages using a
graphical interface. These programs allow you to place objects and text on the page and the
HTML code is written for you.
Hyperlink
A hyperlink is a word, phrase, or image that you can click on to jump to a new document or a
new section within the current document. Hyperlinks are found in nearly all Web pages, allowing
users to click their way from page to page. Text hyperlinks are often blue and underlined. When
you move the cursor over a hyperlink, whether it is text or an image, the arrow should change to
a small hand pointing at the link. When you click it, a new page or place in the current page will
open.
Hyperlinks, often referred to as just "links," are common in Web pages, but can be found in other
hypertext documents. These include certain encyclopedias, glossaries, dictionaries, and other
references that use hyperlinks. The links act the same way as they do on the Web, allowing the
user to jump from page to page.
Well that’s about it for a partial lesson on geeky type terms. Feel free to start using them in the
discussions you have with us fellow geek types. We can coach you with the right time and terms
and get you up to speed so you too can be a member of the card carrying “Geek Speak” club.
Right now there aren’t very many members of the club but we welcome all new members. And
besides if you start speaking geek we can all get together and have those sugar free donuts and
drink that delicious sugar free decaffinated coffee too.
Now that we cleared that part out, I wanted to toss out a mysterious photograph for you to
ponder over. It’s one of our employees out in the school system taken at a very young age. I
wanted to see if you had any idea of who the mystery employee is in our system. The employee
willingly volunteered a photograph so now take a close look and study it and let me know who
you think the employee might be.
(So…good luck with the guessing game. If you have one
you’d like to share with the newsletter, please email me at [email protected].
Here are also some funny quotes provided by Ms. Sonya Shaw at Kinston School. Great shout
out to my collegaues down in the southern part of the county. I thought these were quite funny
but then again I have a strange sense of humor. Or something like that. These came from a
website that hosts lots of these types of images located at http://www.despair.com . Check it out
when you have time and enjoy some of the favorites Ms. Shaw sent to me recently. If you have
any funny jokes or comments or computer humor, please send them my way at
[email protected] or stop me when you see me at your school. Humor is great
and helps get us through a workday. I welcome any feedback on the newsletter too.
Now off to some de-motivators:
And finally…a few computer jokes to end the newsletter: