RFC 1983
Internet Users' Glossary
Internet Users' Glossary 🦋
Network Working Group, G. Malkin, Editor, Xylogics 💖
RFC 1983, FYI 18, dated August 1996. It's Informational 📚 and it obsoletes RFC 1392. It doesn't list any updates.
Status of this Memo ✨
Bestie, this memo is informational. It gives info to the Internet community, but it does not specify an Internet standard of any kind 🙅♀️. Distribution of this memo is unlimited, so share it with everyone 🌸.
Abstract 💅
There are so many networking glossaries out there, and this one is all about the terms that are specific to the Internet 🌐. Obviously there are entries for some basic terms and acronyms too, because other entries refer to them. Gotta have the foundations 🧱.
Acknowledgements 🫶
This document came from the User Glossary Working Group of the User Services Area of the Internet Engineering Task Force. The author especially wants to thank Ryan Moats/InterNIC for his careful review and his many contributions. Iconic behavior 👑.
Table of Contents 🗂️
non-letter . . 2 I . . . . . . . 26 R . . . . . . . 46
A . . . . . . . 2 J . . . . . . . 33 S . . . . . . . 49
B . . . . . . . 7 K . . . . . . . 33 T . . . . . . . 52
C . . . . . . . 10 L . . . . . . . 33 U . . . . . . . 55
D . . . . . . . 14 M . . . . . . . 35 V . . . . . . . 57
E . . . . . . . 18 N . . . . . . . 39 W . . . . . . . 57
F . . . . . . . 20 O . . . . . . . 42 X . . . . . . . 59
G . . . . . . . 22 P . . . . . . . 43 Y . . . . . . . 60
H . . . . . . . 23 Q . . . . . . . 46 Z . . . . . . . 60
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Security Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Editor's Address . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62Glossary 📖
10Base2 Okay so this is a physical layer spec for 10Mbps baseband data over coaxial cable (Thinnet), and the max cable segment length is 200 meters 🧵.
10Base5 Same vibe as 10Base2, but this one is for coaxial cable (Thicknet) and the max segment length is 500 meters 📏.
10BaseF A physical layer spec for 10Mbps baseband data over fiber-optic cable ✨.
10BaseT A physical layer spec for 10Mbps baseband data over twisted-pair copper wire 🧡.
802.x The set of IEEE standards that define LAN protocols. See also: IEEE.
822 See: RFC 822
:-) Okay, this little guy is one of the ways you can show "mood" in the super flat medium of computers, using "smiley faces" 🙂. It's "metacommunication", and there are literally hundreds of these symbols, from the obvious to the obscure 🤯. This particular one expresses "happiness". Don't see it? Tilt your head to the left 90 degrees 🙃. Smiles are also used to denote sarcasm, so read the room 💀. [Source: ZEN]
abstract syntax A description of a data structure that doesn't depend on machine-oriented structures and encodings 🧠. [Source: RFC1208]
Abstract Syntax Notation One (ASN.1) The language the OSI protocols use to describe abstract syntax 📝. It's also used to encode SNMP packets. ASN.1 is defined in ISO documents 8824.2 and 8825.2. See also: Basic Encoding Rules.
Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) Lots of transit networks have policies that restrict what the network can be used for 🚧. For example, some networks may only be used for non-commercial purposes. Some AUPs limit the type of material that can be made available to the public (e.g., pornographic material 🙈). Enforcement of AUPs varies from network to network. See also: netiquette.
Access Control List (ACL) Most network security systems work by allowing selective use of services 🔐. An Access Control List is the usual way access to services is granted or denied. It's simply a list of the services available, and each service comes with a list of the hosts that are allowed to use it 📋.
ACK See: Acknowledgment
acknowledgment (ACK) A message sent to say that a block of data arrived at its destination without error ✅. See also: Negative Acknowledgement. [Source: NNSC]
ACL See: Access Control List
AD See: Administrative Domain
address Okay, there are four types of addresses that are commonly used on the Internet 🏠. They are: email address; IP, internet or Internet address; hardware or MAC address; and URL. See also: email address, IP address, internet address, MAC address, Uniform Resource Locator.
address mask A bit mask that identifies which bits in an IP address correspond to the network and subnet portions of the address 🎭. It's often called the subnet mask, because the network portion of the address (the network mask) can be figured out from the encoding built into an IP address. See also: Classless Inter-domain Routing.
address resolution Converting a network-layer address (like an IP address) into the matching physical address (like a MAC address) 🔁. See also: IP address, MAC address.
Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) Used to dynamically discover the low-level physical network hardware address that matches the high-level IP address of a given host 🔍. ARP is limited to physical network systems that support broadcast packets that every host on the network can hear 📡. See also: proxy ARP, Reverse Address Resolution Protocol.
Administrative Domain (AD) A collection of hosts and routers, plus the network(s) that connect them, all managed by one administrative authority 🏛️.
Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) A U.S. Department of Defense agency in charge of developing new technology for the military 🎖️. ARPA (formerly known as DARPA, nee ARPA) funded a lot of the development of the Internet we know today, including the Berkeley version of Unix and TCP/IP 🦅. It's literally the reason we have the Internet 🙌. [Source: NNSC]
Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET) A pioneering longhaul network funded by ARPA 🛰️. It's retired now, but it was the basis for early networking research and a central backbone while the Internet was being built 🏗️. The ARPANET was made of individual packet switching computers connected by leased lines. See also: Advanced Research Projects Agency. [Source: FYI4]
agent In the client-server model, this is the part of the system that does information preparation and exchange on behalf of a client or server application 🕵️♀️. [Source: RFC1208]
alias A name that's usually short and easy to remember, and that gets translated into another name that's usually long and hard to remember 💫.
American National Standards Institute (ANSI) This org approves U.S. standards in lots of areas, including computers and communications 🇺🇸. Standards it approves are often called ANSI standards (e.g., ANSI C is the version of the C language that ANSI approved) 📘. ANSI is a member of ISO. See also: International Organization for Standardization. [Source: NNSC]
American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) A standard character-to-number encoding that's widely used across the computer industry 🔢. See also: EBCDIC.
anonymous FTP Anonymous FTP lets you grab documents, files, programs and other archived data from anywhere on the Internet, without needing a userid and password 📂. You just use the special userid "anonymous", and you skip the local security checks to get at the publicly accessible files on the remote system 🕊️. See also: archive site, File Transfer Protocol, World Wide Web.
ANSI See: American National Standards Institute
API See: Application Program Interface
Appletalk A networking protocol Apple Computer developed for communication between Apple products and other computers 🍎. This protocol doesn't depend on the network layer it runs over 🧩. Current implementations exist for Localtalk, a 235Kb/s local area network, and Ethertalk, a 10Mb/s local area network. [Source: NNSC]
application A program that does a function directly for a user 💻. FTP, mail and Telnet clients are examples of network applications.
application layer The top layer of the network protocol stack 🎂. The application layer deals with the semantics of work (like formatting electronic mail messages). How to represent that data and how to reach the foreign node are issues for the lower layers of the network 🛤️. [Source: MALAMUD]
Application Program Interface (API) A set of calling conventions that define how a service is invoked through a software package 📞. [Source: RFC1208]
archie A system that automatically gathers, indexes and serves information on the Internet 🗃️. The first version of archie gave you an indexed directory of filenames from all anonymous FTP archives on the Internet. Later versions provide other collections of information. See also: archive site, Gopher, Prospero, Wide Area Information Servers.
archive site A machine that gives you access to a collection of files across the Internet 🗄️. For example, an anonymous FTP archive site gives access to archived material through the FTP protocol. WWW servers can also be archive sites. See also: anonymous FTP, archie, Gopher, Prospero, Wide Area Information Servers, World Wide Web.
ARP See: Address Resolution Protocol
ARPA See: Advanced Research Projects Agency
ARPANET See: Advanced Research Projects Agency Network
AS See: Autonomous System
ASCII See: American Standard Code for Information Interchange
ASN.1 See: Abstract Syntax Notation One
assigned numbers This is the RFC [STD2] that documents the currently assigned values from several series of numbers used in network protocol implementations 🔖. It gets updated from time to time, and current info can always be found from the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA). If you're developing a protocol or application that needs a link, socket, port, protocol, etc., contact the IANA to get a number assigned 📨. See also: Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, STD. [Source: STD2]
Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) A standard for high-load, high-speed (1.544Mbps through 1.2Gbps), fixed-size packet (cell) switching with dynamic bandwidth allocation ⚡. ATM is also known as "fast packet" 🏎️.
ATM See: Asynchronous Transfer Mode
AUP See: Acceptable Use Policy
authentication Verifying the identity of a person or process 🪪. [Source: MALAMUD]
Autonomous System (AS) A collection of routers under a single administrative authority that use a common Interior Gateway Protocol to route packets 🗺️.
backbone The top level of a hierarchical network 🦴. Stub and transit networks that connect to the same backbone are guaranteed to be interconnected 🔗. See also: stub network, transit network.
To be continued… 🧚✨
bandwidth 🎀 Okay, so technically it's the gap in Hertz (Hz) between the highest and lowest frequencies of a transmission channel. 💅 But in everyday talk, people mean the amount of data that can be sent through a given communications circuit. ✨
bang path 🦋 A series of machine names used to send electronic mail from one user to another, usually by spelling out an explicit UUCP path for the mail to take. See also: email address, mail path, UNIX-to-UNIX CoPy. 🧚
baseband 🌸 A transmission medium that carries digital signals without any complicated frequency shifting. Generally, only one communication channel is available at any given time. Ethernet is an example of a baseband network. See also: broadband, Ethernet. [Source: NNSC] 💜
Basic Encoding Rules (BER) 🍓 Standard rules for encoding data units described in ASN.1. People sometimes lump these in under the term ASN.1 by mistake, but ASN.1 properly refers only to the abstract syntax description language, not the encoding technique. See also: Abstract Syntax Notation One. [Source: NNSC] 🤓
BBS 🌈 See: Bulletin Board System
BCNU 🙈 Be Seein' You 😭
BCP 👑 The newest subseries of RFCs, written to describe Best Current Practices in the Internet. Rather than specifying a protocol, these documents spell out the best ways to use protocols and the best ways to configure options so that various vendors' products interoperate. BCPs carry the endorsement of the IESG. See also: Request For Comments, Internet Engineering Steering Group. ✨
BER 🌸 See: Basic Encoding Rules
Berkeley Internet Name Daemon (BIND) 🔥 An implementation of a DNS server, developed and distributed by the University of California at Berkeley. Lots of Internet hosts run BIND, and it's the ancestor of many commercial BIND implementations. See also: Domain Name System. 💅
Berkeley Software Distribution (BSD) 🦋 An implementation of the UNIX operating system and its utilities, developed and distributed by the University of California at Berkeley. "BSD" is usually preceded by the version number of the distribution, so "4.3 BSD" is version 4.3 of the Berkeley UNIX distribution. Many Internet hosts run BSD software, and it's the ancestor of many commercial UNIX implementations. [Source: NNSC] 🎀
BGP 🧚 See: Border Gateway Protocol
big-endian 🥚 A format for storing or transmitting binary data in which the most significant bit (or byte) comes first. The term comes from "Gulliver's Travels" by Jonathan Swift. The Lilliputians, being very small, had correspondingly small political problems. The Big-Endian and Little-Endian parties debated over whether soft-boiled eggs should be opened at the big end or the little end. 😭 See also: little-endian. [Source: RFC1208] 💖
binary 🤖 11001001
BIND 🌸 See: Berkeley Internet Name Daemon
Birds Of a Feather (BOF) 🐦 A Birds Of a Feather (flocking together) is an informal discussion group. It's formed, often ad hoc, to consider a specific issue and therefore has a narrow focus. See also: Working Group. 🫶
Bitnet 💌 An academic computer network that provides interactive electronic mail and file transfer services, using a store-and-forward protocol based on IBM Network Job Entry protocols. Bitnet-II encapsulates the Bitnet protocol within IP packets and depends on the Internet to route them. 🌐
BOF 🐦 See: Birds Of a Feather
BOOTP 💻 The Bootstrap Protocol, described in RFC 1542, is used for booting diskless nodes. See also: Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol, Reverse Address Resolution Protocol. ✨
Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) 🌉 The Border Gateway Protocol is an exterior gateway protocol defined in RFC 1771. It's design is based on experience gained with EGP, as defined in RFC 904, and EGP usage in the NSFNET Backbone, as described in RFCs 1092 and 1093. See also: Exterior Gateway Protocol. 💅
bounce 📬 The return of a piece of mail because of an error in its delivery. [Source: ZEN] 💀
bridge 🌉 A device that forwards traffic between network segments based on datalink layer information. These segments would have a common network layer address. See also: gateway, router. 🧸
broadband 📡 A transmission medium that can support a wide range of frequencies. It can carry multiple signals by dividing the total capacity of the medium into multiple independent bandwidth channels, where each channel operates only on a specific range of frequencies. See also: baseband. 🌈
broadcast 📢 A special type of multicast packet that all nodes on the network are always willing to receive. See also: multicast, unicast. 🫶
broadcast storm ⛈️ An incorrect packet broadcast onto a network that causes multiple hosts to respond all at once, typically with equally incorrect packets. That makes the storm grow exponentially in severity. 😱 See also: Ethernet meltdown.
brouter 🧩 A device that bridges some packets (that is, forwards based on datalink layer information) and routes other packets (that is, forwards based on network layer information). The bridge/route decision is based on configuration information. See also: bridge, router. 🎯
BSD 🦋 See: Berkeley Software Distribution
BTW 💬 By The Way 🫶
Bulletin Board System (BBS) 🗂️ A computer, and its associated software, that typically provides electronic messaging services, archives of files, and any other services or activities of interest to the bulletin board system's operator. BBSs have traditionally been the domain of hobbyists, but a growing number of them are connected directly to the Internet, and many are currently operated by government, educational, and research institutions. See also: Electronic Mail, Internet, Usenet. [Source: NWNET] 🌸
Campus Wide Information System (CWIS) 🏫 A CWIS makes information and services publicly available on campus via kiosks, and makes interactive computing available via kiosks, interactive computing systems, and campus networks. Services routinely include directory information, calendars, bulletin boards, and databases. 📅
CCIRN 🌍 See: Coordinating Committee for Intercontinental Research Networks
CCITT 📞 See: Comite Consultatif International de Telegraphique et Telephonique
CERT 🚨 See: Computer Emergency Response Team
checksum 🔢 A computed value that depends on the contents of a packet. This value is sent along with the packet when it's transmitted. The receiving system computes a new checksum based on the received data and compares it with the one sent with the packet. If the two values are the same, the receiver has a high degree of confidence that the data was received correctly. See also: Cyclic Redundancy Check. [Source: NNSC] ✅
CIDR 🧁 See: Classless Inter-domain Routing
circuit switching 🔌 A communications paradigm in which a dedicated communication path is established between two hosts, and all packets travel on it. The telephone system is an example of a circuit switched network. See also: connection-oriented, connectionless, packet switching. ☎️
Classless Inter-domain Routing (CIDR) 🗺️ A proposal, set forth in RFC 1519, to allocate IP addresses so that the addresses can be aggregated when advertised as routes. It's based on the elimination of intrinsic IP network addresses, meaning the network address isn't determined from the first few bits of the IP address. See also: IP address, network address, supernet. 🌟
client 🙋 A computer system or process that requests a service of another computer system or process. A workstation requesting the contents of a file from a file server is a client of the file server. See also: client-server model, server. [Source: NNSC] 💁
client-server model 🤝 A common way to describe the paradigm of many network protocols. Examples include the name-server/name-resolver relationship in DNS and the file-server/file-client relationship in NFS. See also: client, server, Domain Name System, Network File System. 💖
CNI 📚 See: Coalition for Networked Information
Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) 🤝 A consortium formed by American Research Libraries, CAUSE, and EDUCOM (no, they are not acronyms) to promote the creation of, and access to, information resources in networked environments, in order to enrich scholarship and enhance intellectual productivity. 🧠
Comite Consultatif International de Telegraphique et Telephonique (CCITT) 🇺🇳 This organization is now part of the International Telecommunications Union and is responsible for making technical recommendations about telephone and data communications systems. Every four years CCITT holds plenary sessions where they adopt new standards; the most recent was in 1992. Recently, the ITU reorganized, and CCITT was renamed the ITU-TSS. See also: International Telecommunications Union - Telecommunications Standards Sector. 🗓️
Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) 🛡️ The CERT was formed by ARPA in November 1988 in response to the needs exhibited during the Internet worm incident. The CERT's charter is to work with the Internet community to facilitate its response to computer security events involving Internet hosts, to take proactive steps to raise the community's awareness of computer security issues, and to conduct research targeted at improving the security of existing systems. CERT products and services include 24-hour technical assistance for responding to computer security incidents, product vulnerability assistance, technical documents, and tutorials. In addition, the team maintains a number of mailing lists (including one for CERT Advisories) and provides an anonymous FTP server, at "cert.org", where security-related documents and tools are archived. The CERT may be reached by email at "cert@cert.org" and by telephone at +1-412-268-7090 (24-hour hotline). See also: Advanced Research Projects Agency, worm. 🚨✨
congestion 🚦 Congestion occurs when the offered load exceeds the capacity of a data communication path. 🌊
connection-oriented 🤝 The data communication method in which communication proceeds through three well-defined phases: connection establishment, data transfer, and connection release. TCP is a connection-oriented protocol. See also: circuit switching, connectionless, packet switching, Transmission Control Protocol. 🎀
connectionless 🕊️ The data communication method in which communication occurs between hosts with no previous setup. Packets between two hosts may take different routes, since each is independent of the other. UDP is a connectionless protocol. See also: circuit switching, connection-oriented, packet switching, User Datagram Protocol. 🦋
Coordinating Committee for Intercontinental Research Networks (CCIRN) 💖 A committee that includes the United States FNC and its counterparts in North America and Europe. It's co-chaired by the executive directors of the FNC and the European Association of Research Networks (RARE), and it gives the principal North American and European research networking bodies a forum for cooperative planning. See also: Federal Networking Council, RARE. [Source: MALAMUD]
core gateway 🌸 Historically, this was one of a set of gateways (routers) run by the Internet Network Operations Center at Bolt, Beranek and Newman (BBN). It was a huge deal for Internet routing, because every group had to advertise paths to its networks from a core gateway. Major main-character energy, ngl. [Source: MALAMUD]
Corporation for Research and Educational Networking (CREN) 🎀 This org was formed in October 1989, when Bitnet and CSNET (Computer + Science NETwork) got merged under one administrative authority. CSNET isn't operational anymore, but CREN still runs Bitnet. See also: Bitnet. [Source: NNSC]
cracker 💀 A cracker is someone who tries to get into computer systems without authorization. These folks are often malicious, unlike hackers, and they have plenty of ways to break into a system. See also: hacker, Computer Emergency Response Team, Trojan Horse, virus, worm.
CRC See: cyclic redundancy check
CREN See: Corporation for Research and Educational Networking
CU-SeeMe 🦋 Pronounced "See you, See me," CU-SeeMe is a publicly available videoconferencing program developed at Cornell University. Anyone with audio/video capabilities and an Internet connection can videoconference with anyone else who has the same capabilities, and it lets multiple people tie into the same videoconference. It's giving group chat, but make it video. 🫶
CWIS See: Campus Wide Information system
Cyberspace 🌈 A term coined by William Gibson in his fantasy novel Neuromancer to describe the "world" of computers, and the society that gathers around them. [Source: ZEN]
Cyclic Redundancy Check (CRC) ✨ This is a number derived from a set of data that's about to be transmitted. The receiving node recalculates the CRC at the remote end and compares it to the value originally transmitted, so it can detect some types of transmission errors. See also: checksum. [Source: MALAMUD]
DANTE 🧚 A non-profit company founded in July 1993 to help the European research community level up their networking facilities. It focuses on building a high-speed computer network infrastructure.
DARPA Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. See: Advanced Research Projects Agency
Data Encryption Key (DEK) 🔐 Used for encrypting message text and for computing message integrity checks (signatures). See also: encryption.
Data Encryption Standard (DES) A popular, standard encryption scheme. See also: encryption, Pretty Good Privacy, RSA.
datagram 💜 A self-contained, independent entity of data that carries enough information to be routed from the source computer to the destination computer, without relying on earlier exchanges between that source and destination or the transporting network. It's giving independent little packet energy. See also: frame, packet. [Source: J. Postel]
DCA See: Defense Information Systems Agency
DCE Data Circuit-terminating Equipment
DCE See: Distributed Computing Environment
DDN See: Defense Data Network
DDN NIC See: Defense Data Network Network Information Center
DECnet A proprietary network protocol designed by Digital Equipment Corporation. Each Phase of the implementation, such as Phase IV and Phase V, works differently. Phases, babe. 🙈
default route A routing table entry used to direct packets addressed to networks that aren't explicitly listed in the routing table. [Source: MALAMUD]
Defense Data Network (DDN) A global communications network serving the US Department of Defense. It's made up of MILNET, other portions of the Internet, and classified networks that aren't part of the Internet. The DDN connects military installations and is managed by the Defense Information Systems Agency. See also: Defense Information Systems Agency.
Defense Data Network Network Information Center (DDN NIC) 🌸 Previously called "The NIC", its main job was assigning Internet network addresses and Autonomous System numbers, administering the root domain, and providing information and support services to the Internet for the DDN. Since the creation of the InterNIC, the DDN NIC only does these things for the DDN. See also: Autonomous System, network address, Internet Registry, InterNIC, Network Information Center, Request For Comments.
Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) Formerly called the Defense Communications Agency (DCA), this is the government agency in charge of managing the DDN portion of the Internet, including MILNET. Right now, DISA runs the DDN and supports the user assistance services of the DDN NIC. See also: Defense Data Network.
DEK See: Data Encryption Key
DES See: Data Encryption Standard
dialup A temporary, as opposed to dedicated, connection between machines, set up over a phone line (analog or ISDN). See also: Integrated Services Digital Network.
Directory Access Protocol An X.500 protocol used for communication between a Directory User Agent and a Directory System Agent. [Source: MALAMUD]
Directory System Agent (DSA) The software that provides the X.500 Directory Service for a portion of the directory information base. Generally, each DSA is responsible for the directory information of a single organization or organizational unit. [Source: RFC1208]
Directory User Agent (DUA) The software that accesses the X.500 Directory Service on behalf of the directory user. That user may be a person or another software element. [Source: RFC1208]
DISA See: Defense Information Systems Agency
Distributed Computing Environment (DCE) 👑 An architecture of standard programming interfaces, conventions, and server functionalities (for example naming, distributed file system, remote procedure call) for distributing applications transparently across networks of heterogeneous computers. It's promoted and controlled by the Open Software Foundation (OSF), a consortium led by Digital, IBM and Hewlett Packard. [Source: RFC1208]
distributed database A collection of several different data repositories that looks like a single database to the user. A prime example on the Internet is the Domain Name System.
DIX Ethernet See: Ethernet
DNS See: Domain Name System
domain 🙄 "Domain" is a heavily overused term on the Internet. It can be used in the Administrative Domain context or the Domain Name context. See also: Administrative Domain, Domain Name System.
Domain Name System (DNS) 🍓 The DNS is a general purpose, distributed, replicated, data query service. Its principal use is looking up host IP addresses based on host names. The style of host names now used on the Internet is called "domain name", because it's the style of name used to look up anything in the DNS. Some important domains are .COM (commercial), .EDU (educational), .NET (network operations), .GOV (U.S. government), and .MIL (U.S. military). Most countries also have a domain. Country domain names are based on ISO 3166, for example .US (United States), .UK (United Kingdom), and .AU (Australia). See also: Fully Qualified Domain Name, Mail Exchange Record.
dot address (dotted decimal notation) An IP address written in the common notation A.B.C.D, where each letter stands for one byte of a four byte IP address, shown in decimal. See also: IP address. [Source: FYI4]
DSA See: Directory System Agent
DTE Data Terminal Equipment
DUA See: Directory User Agent
dynamic adaptive routing Automatic rerouting of traffic based on sensing and analysis of current actual network conditions. NOTE: this does not include cases of routing decisions made from predefined information. [Source: J. Postel]
E1 The basic building block for European multi-megabit data rates, with a bandwidth of 2.048Mbps. See also: T1.
E3 A European standard for transmitting data at 57.344Mbps. See also: T3.
EARN European Academic and Research Network. See: Trans-European Research and Education Networking Association.
EBCDIC See: Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code
Ebone A pan-European backbone service. 🌍
EFF See: Electronic Frontier Foundation
EGP See: Exterior Gateway Protocol
Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) ⭐ A foundation established to address the social and legal issues that come up as computers become more and more pervasive as a means of communication and information distribution.
Electronic Mail (email) 💌 A system where a computer user can exchange messages with other computer users (or groups of users) over a communications network. It's one of the most popular uses of the Internet. [Source: NNSC]
email See: Electronic mail
email address The domain-based or UUCP address used to send electronic mail to a specified destination. For example, an editor's address is gmalkin@xylogics.com. See also: bang path, mail path, UNIX-to-UNIX CoPy. [Source: ZEN]
encapsulation 🎁 The technique layered protocols use, where a layer adds header information to the protocol data unit (PDU) it gets from the layer above. For example, in Internet terminology, a packet would contain a header from the physical layer, followed by a header from the datalink layer (e.g. Ethernet), followed by a header from the network layer (IP), followed by a header from the transport layer (e.g. TCP), followed by the application protocol data. [Source: RFC1208]
encryption Encryption is the manipulation of a packet's data so that nobody except the intended recipient can read it. There are many types of data encryption, and they're the basis of network security. See also: Data Encryption Standard.
error checking The examination of received data for transmission errors. See also: checksum, Cyclic Redundancy Check.
Ethernet A 10-Mb/s standard for LANs, initially developed by Xerox and later refined by Digital, Intel and Xerox (DIX). All hosts are connected to a coaxial cable, where they contend for network access using a Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection (CSMA/CD) paradigm. See also: 802.x, Local Area Network, token ring.
Ethernet meltdown 💀 An event that causes saturation, or near saturation, on an Ethernet. It usually results from illegal or misrouted packets, and it typically lasts only a short time. Bestie, it's the network version of everyone talking at once. See also: broadcast storm. [Source: COMER]
Extended Binary Coded Decimal Interchange Code (EBCDIC)
okay so EBCDIC is a character-to-number encoding that's mainly used on IBM computer systems 💻 it's basically ASCII's cousin who went to a different school 🎀 See also: ASCII.
Exterior Gateway Protocol (EGP)
EGP is the protocol that hands out routing information to the routers which connect autonomous systems 🦋 "gateway" is kinda vintage now, "router" is the word everyone uses. ALSO there's a different routing protocol that's also called EGP, defined in RFC 904, so yes, twins 🙈 See also: Autonomous System, Border Gateway Protocol, Interior Gateway Protocol.
eXternal Data Representation (XDR)
XDR is a standard for machine-independent data structures, developed by Sun Microsystems and defined in RFCs 1014 and 1832 ✨ it's giving ASN.1 energy, honestly. See also: Abstract Syntax Notation One. [Source: RFC1208]
FARNET
A non-profit corporation, established in 1987, whose whole mission is to advance the use of computer networks to improve research and education 🌈 very much a good-girl-of-the-internet move 🫶
FAQ
Frequently Asked Question. Literally the most relatable acronym 😭
FDDI
See: Fiber Distributed Data Interface
Federal Information Exchange (FIX)
One of the connection points between the American governmental internets and the Internet 🔌 [Source: SURA]
Federal Networking Council (FNC)
The coordinating group of representatives from the federal agencies that are involved in developing and using federal networking, especially networks that use TCP/IP and the Internet 🏛️ current members include representatives from DOD, DOE, ARPA, NSF, NASA, and HHS. See also: Advanced Research Projects Agency, National Science Foundation.
Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI)
A high-speed (100Mb/s) LAN standard 🚀 the underlying medium is fiber optics, and the topology is a dual-attached, counter-rotating token ring. See also: Local Area Network, token ring. [Source: RFC1208]
file transfer
Copying a file from one computer to another over a computer network 📁 See also: File Transfer Protocol, Kermit, Gopher, World Wide Web.
File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
FTP lets a user on one host access another host over a network, and transfer files to and from it 📤 also, FTP is usually the name of the program the user runs to use the protocol, so it wears two hats 🎩 See also: anonymous FTP.
finger
finger is a protocol, defined in RFC 1288, that lets you retrieve information about a system or a user on a system 🔍 the word also refers to the commonly used program that does the retrieving. You can get info about all logged-in users, as well as info about specific users, from local or remote systems. Some sites think finger is a security risk, so they've either turned it off or swapped it for a simple message 🙅♀️
FIX
See: Federal Information Exchange
flame
A strong opinion and/or criticism of something, usually a frank, inflammatory statement, in an electronic mail message 🔥 it's common to warn people before a flame with an indication of pending fire, like FLAME ON!. Flame wars happen when people start flaming other people for flaming when they shouldn't have. (the drama is unmatched 💀) See also: Electronic Mail, Usenet.
FLEA
See: Four Letter Extended Acronym
FNC
See: Federal Networking Council
Four Letter Extended Acronym (FLEA)
A recognition of the fact that there are far too many TLAs 🙃 See also: Three Letter Acronym.
FQDN
See: Fully Qualified Domain Name
fragment
A piece of a packet 🧩 when a router is forwarding an IP packet to a network whose maximum transmission unit is smaller than the packet size, it's forced to break that packet into multiple fragments. Those fragments get reassembled by the IP layer at the destination host. See also: Maximum Transmission Unit.
fragmentation
The IP process in which a packet is broken into smaller pieces to fit the requirements of a physical network the packet has to pass over ✂️ See also: reassembly.
frame
A frame is a datalink layer "packet" that contains the header and trailer information the physical medium needs 📦 basically, network layer packets get encapsulated to become frames. See also: datagram, encapsulation, packet.
freenet
A community-based bulletin board system with email, information services, interactive communications, and conferencing 🌻 freenets are funded and run by individuals and volunteers, which in one sense makes them like public television 📺 they're part of the National Public Telecomputing Network (NPTN), an organization based in Cleveland, Ohio, that's devoted to making computer telecommunication and networking services as freely available as public libraries. [Source: LAQUEY]
FTP
See: File Transfer Protocol
Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN)
The FQDN is the full name of a system, not just its hostname 🗺️ for example, venera is a hostname and venera.isi.edu is an FQDN. See also: hostname, Domain Name System.
FYI
For Your Information 💌
FYI
A subseries of RFCs that aren't technical standards or protocol descriptions 📚 FYIs share general information about topics related to TCP/IP or the Internet. See also: Request For Comments.
gated
Gatedaemon 🚪 a program that supports multiple routing protocols and protocol families. It can be used for routing, and it makes a super effective platform for routing protocol research 🔬 the software is freely available by anonymous FTP from gated.cornell.edu. Pronounced gate-dee. See also: Exterior Gateway Protocol, Open Shortest-Path First, Routing Information Protocol, routed.
gateway
The term "router" is now used in place of the original definition of "gateway" 🌷 today, a gateway is a communications device or program that passes data between networks with similar functions but dissimilar implementations. Don't mix this up with a protocol converter! By this definition, a router is a layer 3 (network layer) gateway, and a mail gateway is a layer 7 (application layer) gateway. See also: mail gateway, router, protocol converter.
Gopher
A distributed information service, developed at the University of Minnesota, that makes hierarchical collections of information available across the Internet 🐿️ Gopher uses a simple protocol, defined in RFC 1436, that lets a single Gopher client access information from any accessible Gopher server, giving the user one single "Gopher space" of information. Public domain versions of the client and server are available. See also: archie, archive site, Prospero, Wide Area Information Servers.
GOSIP
See: Government OSI Profile
Government OSI Profile (GOSIP)
A subset of OSI standards specific to U.S. Government procurements 🇺🇸 it's designed to maximize interoperability in areas where plain OSI standards are ambiguous or allow too many options.
hacker
A person who delights in having an intimate understanding of the internal workings of a system, computers and computer networks in particular 🧠 the term is often misused in a negative context, where "cracker" would be the correct term. See also: cracker.
header
The portion of a packet, preceding the actual data, that contains source and destination information 🎁 it may also contain error checking and other fields. A header is also the part of an electronic mail message that comes before the body and contains, among other things, the message originator, date, and time. See also: Electronic Mail, packet, error checking.
heterogeneous network
A network running multiple network layer protocols 🌈 See also: DECnet, IP, IPX, XNS, homogeneous network.
hierarchical routing
Routing on large networks is a complex problem, but it can be simplified by reducing the size of the networks 🪜 this is done by breaking a network into a hierarchy of networks, where each level is responsible for its own routing. The Internet has, basically, three levels: the backbones, the mid-levels, and the stub networks. The backbones know how to route between the mid-levels, the mid-levels know how to route between the sites, and each site (being an autonomous system) knows how to route internally. See also: Autonomous System, Exterior Gateway Protocol, Interior Gateway Protocol, stub network, transit network.
High Performance Computing and Communications (HPCC)
High performance computing covers advanced computing, communications, and information technologies 🚀 that includes scientific workstations, supercomputer systems, high speed networks, special purpose and experimental systems, the new generation of large scale parallel systems, and application and systems software, with all the components well integrated and linked over a high speed network. [Source: HPCC]
High Performance Parallel Interface (HIPPI)
An emerging ANSI standard that extends the computer bus over fairly short distances at speeds of 800 and 1600 Mb/s ⚡ HIPPI is often used in a computer room to connect a supercomputer to routers, frame buffers, mass-storage peripherals, and other computers. See also: American National Standards Institute [Source: MALAMUD]
HIPPI
See: High Performance Parallel Interface
HTML
See: Hypertext Markup Language
homogeneous network
A network running a single network layer protocol 🎯 See also: DECnet, IP, IPX, XNS, heterogeneous network.
hop
A term used in routing 🦘 a path to a destination on a network is a series of hops, through routers, away from the origin.
host
A computer that lets users communicate with other host computers on a network 💻 individual users do this by using application programs, such as electronic mail, Telnet, and FTP. [Source: NNSC]
host address
See: internet address
hostname
The name given to a machine 🏷️ See also: Fully Qualified Domain Name. [Source: ZEN]
host number
See: host address
HPCC
See: High Performance Computing and Communications
HTTP
See: Hypertext Transfer Protocol
hub
A device connected to several other devices 🛞 in ARCnet, a hub is used to connect several computers together. In a message handling service, a hub is used to transfer messages across the network. [Source: MALAMUD]
hyperlink
A pointer within a hypertext document that points (links) to another document, which may or may not also be a hypertext document 🔗 See also: hypertext.
hypertext
A document, written in HTML, that contains hyperlinks to other documents, which may or may not also be hypertext documents 📖 hypertext documents are usually retrieved using WWW. See also: hyperlink, Hypertext Markup Language, World Wide Web.
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
The language used to create hypertext documents ✍️ it's a subset of SGML and includes the mechanisms to establish hyperlinks to other documents. See also: hypertext, hyperlink, Standardized General Markup Language.
Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP)
The protocol used by WWW to transfer HTML files 🌐 a formal standard is still under development in the IETF. See also: hyperlink, hypertext, Hypertext Markup Language, World Wide Web. 💖
I-D 💌 See: Internet-Draft
IAB 🏛️ See: Internet Architecture Board
IANA 🗂️ See: Internet Assigned Numbers Authority
ICMP 📨 See: Internet Control Message Protocol
IEEE ⚡ Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
IEEE 802 🧵 See: 802.x
IEN 📜 See: Internet Experiment Note
IEPG 🗺️ See: Internet Engineering Planning Group
IESG 👑 See: Internet Engineering Steering Group
IETF 🌸 See: Internet Engineering Task Force
IINREN 🌐 See: Interagency Interim National Research and Education Network
IGP 🧭 See: Interior Gateway Protocol
IMHO 💀 In My Humble Opinion. Iconic, and a total classic 🙈
IMR 📅 See: Internet Monthly Report
Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) 📞 Okay so ISDN is an emerging tech that the telephone carriers of the world are starting to offer. It squishes voice and digital network services together into one medium, so you can get digital data services AND voice connections through a single "wire" 🧵. The standards that define ISDN are specified by CCITT. See also: CCITT. [Source: RFC1208]
Interagency Interim National Research and Education Network (IINREN) 🌈 An evolving operating network system. Near term (1992-1996) research and development activities will help it smoothly evolve into the future gigabit NREN ⭐. [Source: HPCC]
Interior Gateway Protocol (IGP) 🧭 A protocol that distributes routing information to the routers within an autonomous system. Fun fact: "gateway" is the historical word, and "router" is the preferred term now 🧚. See also: Autonomous System, Exterior Gateway Protocol, Open Shortest-Path First, Routing Information Protocol.
Intermediate System (IS) 🔀 An OSI system that does network layer forwarding. It's basically the OSI version of an IP router 💅. See also: Open Systems Interconnection, router.
Intermediate System-Intermediate System (IS-IS) 🛣️ The OSI IGP. See also: Open Systems Interconnection, Interior Gateway Protocol.
International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 🌍 A voluntary, nontreaty organization founded in 1946 that creates international standards in lots of areas, including computers and communications. Its members are the national standards organizations of the 89 member countries, including ANSI for the U.S. See also: American National Standards Institute, Open Systems Interconnection. [Source: TAN]
International Telecommunications Union (ITU) 📡 A UN agency that coordinates the different national telecommunications standards so that people in one country can communicate with people in another country. Bridging the gap, bestie 🫶
International Telecommunications Union - Telecommunications Standards Sector (ITU-TSS) 🔄 The new name for CCITT since the ITU reorganization. The function is the same. Only the name changed 💖
internet 🕸️ While an internet is a network, people usually use the term "internet" to mean a collection of networks linked together with routers. See also: network.
Internet 🌎 (note the capital "I") The Internet is the largest internet in the world, no cap 👑. It's a three level hierarchy made of backbone networks (e.g. Ultranet), mid-level networks (e.g., NEARnet), and stub networks. The Internet is a multiprotocol internet. See also: backbone, mid-level network, stub network, transit network, Internet Protocol.
internet address 🏠 An IP address that uniquely identifies a node on an internet. An Internet address (capital "I") uniquely identifies a node on the Internet. See also: internet, Internet, IP address.
Internet Architecture Board (IAB) 🎭
The IAB has been a lot of things over the years. It was originally the Internet Activities Board, and it was responsible for developing the protocols that make up the Internet. Later it changed its name and charter to become the group most responsible for the architecture of the Internet, leaving the protocol details to the IESG. In June of 1992, it was chartered as a component of the Internet Society, and that's the charter it holds today 🌟. The IAB is responsible for approving nominations to the IESG, architectural oversight for Internet Standard Protocols, IETF standards process oversight and appeals, IANA and RFC activities, and liaison to peer standards groups (e.g., ISO). See also: Internet Engineering Task Force, Internet Research Task Force, Internet Engineering Steering Group, Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, Request for Comments.
Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) 🗃️ The central registry for lots of Internet protocol parameters, like port, protocol and enterprise numbers, and options, codes and types. The currently assigned values are listed in the "Assigned Numbers" document [STD2]. To request a number assignment, contact the IANA at iana@isi.edu. See also: assigned numbers, STD.
Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) 🚨 ICMP is an extension to the Internet Protocol. It allows for the generation of error messages, test packets and informational messages related to IP. [Source: FYI4]
Internet-Draft (I-D) 📝 Internet-Drafts are working documents of the IETF, its Areas, and its Working Groups. As the name implies, they're draft documents. They're valid for a maximum of six months and may be updated, replaced, or obsoleted by other documents at any time ⏳. Very often, I-Ds are precursors to RFCs. See also: Internet Engineering Task Force, Request For Comments.
Internet Engineering Planning Group (IEPG) 🫶 A group, mostly made up of Internet service operators, whose goal is to promote a globally coordinated Internet operating environment. Membership is open to all!
Internet Engineering Steering Group (IESG) 👑 The IESG is made up of the IETF Area Directors and the IETF Chair. It gives the first technical review of Internet standards and is responsible for day-to-day "management" of the IETF. See also: Internet Engineering Task Force.
Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) 🤝 The IETF is a big, open community of network designers, operators, vendors, and researchers. Its purpose is to coordinate the operation, management and evolution of the Internet, and to resolve short-range and mid-range protocol and architectural issues. It's a major source of proposals for protocol standards, which get submitted to the IAB for final approval. The IETF meets three times a year, and extensive minutes are included in the IETF Proceedings. See also: Internet, Internet Architecture Board. [Source: FYI4]
Internet Experiment Note (IEN) 📚 A series of reports relevant to the Internet. IENs were published in parallel to RFCs and were meant to be "working documents." They've been replaced by Internet-Drafts and are now of historic value only. See also: Internet-Draft, Request For Comments.
Internet Monthly Report (IMR) 📅 Published monthly, the Internet Monthly Reports exist to tell the Internet Research Group about the accomplishments, milestones reached, or problems discovered by the participating organizations.
internet number 🔢 See: internet address
Internet Protocol (IP, IPv4) 📦 The Internet Protocol (version 4), defined in RFC 791, is the network layer for the TCP/IP Protocol Suite. It's a connectionless, best-effort packet switching protocol. See also: packet switching, TCP/IP Protocol Suite, Internet Protocol Version 6.
Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPng, IPv6) ✨ IPv6 (version 5 is a stream protocol used for special applications) is a new version of the Internet Protocol, designed to be an evolutionary step from its predecessor, version 4. There are many RFCs defining various parts of the protocol, its auxiliary protocols, and the transition plan from IPv4. The core RFCs are 1883 through 1886. The name IPng (IP next generation) is a nod to STNG (Star Trek Next Generation) 🖖.
Internet Registry (IR) 🗝️ The IANA has the discretionary authority to delegate portions of its responsibility. For network address and Autonomous System identifiers, it has handed that responsibility to an IR. The IR function is performed by the DDN NIC. See also: Autonomous System, network address, Defense Data Network..., Internet Assigned Numbers Authority.
Internet Relay Chat (IRC) 💬 A world-wide "party line" protocol that lets you converse with others in real time. IRC is structured as a network of servers, each of which accepts connections from client programs, one per user. See also: talk. [Source: HACKER]
Internet Research Steering Group (IRSG) 🧠 The "governing body" of the IRTF. See also: Internet Research Task Force. [Source: MALAMUD]
Internet Research Task Force (IRTF) 🔬 The IRTF is chartered by the IAB to consider long-term Internet issues from a theoretical point of view. It has Research Groups, similar to IETF Working Groups, each tasked with discussing different research topics. Multi-cast audio/video conferencing and privacy enhanced mail are samples of IRTF output. See also: Internet Architecture Board, Internet Engineering Task Force, Privacy Enhanced Mail.
Internet Society (ISOC) 🌐 The Internet Society is a non-profit, professional membership organization that facilitates and supports the technical evolution of the Internet. It stimulates interest in, and educates the scientific and academic communities, industry and the public about, the technology, uses and applications of the Internet, and it promotes the development of new applications for the system. The Society provides a forum for discussion and collaboration in the operation and use of the global Internet infrastructure. The Internet Society publishes a quarterly newsletter, the Internet Society News, and holds an annual conference, INET. The development of Internet technical standards takes place under the auspices of the Internet Society, with substantial support from the Corporation for National Research Initiatives under a cooperative agreement with the US Federal Government. [Source: V. Cerf]
Internetwork Packet eXchange (IPX) 🦖 Novell's protocol used by Netware. A router with IPX routing can interconnect LANs so that Novell Netware clients and servers can communicate. See also: Local Area Network.
InterNIC 🧚 A five year project, partially supported by the National Science Foundation, to provide network information services to the networking community. The InterNIC began operations in April of 1993 and is now a collaborative project of two organizations: AT&T, which provides Directory and Database Services from South Plainsfield, NJ; and Network Solutions, Inc., which provides Registration Services from their headquarters in Herndon, VA. Services are provided via the Internet, and by telephone, FAX, and hardcopy.
interoperability 🔥 The ability of software and hardware on multiple machines from multiple vendors to communicate meaningfully. That's the whole vibe 💜
IP (IPv4) 💅 See: Internet Protocol
IPng (IPv6) 🧚 See: Internet Protocol Version 6 ✨
IP address 🎀 The 32-bit address defined by the Internet Protocol in RFC 791. It's usually written in dotted decimal notation. See also: dot address, internet address, Internet Protocol, network address, subnet address, host address.
IP datagram 🧁 See: datagram
IPX 🦋 See: Internetwork Packet eXchange
IR See: Internet Registry
IRC 💬 See: Internet Relay Chat
IRSG See: Internet Research Steering Group
IRTF See: Internet Research Task Force
IS See: Intermediate System
IS-IS See: Intermediate System-Intermediate System
ISDN See: Integrated Services Digital Network
ISO See: International Organization for Standardization
ISO Development Environment (ISODE) 🧩 Software that lets OSI services use a TCP/IP network. Pronounced eye-so-dee-eee. See also: Open Systems Interconnection, TCP/IP Protocol Suite.
ISOC See: Internet Society
ISODE See: ISO Development Environment
ITU See: International Telecommunications Union - Telecommunications Standards Sector
ITU-TSS See: International Telecommunications Union
JKREY 🌸 Joyce K. Reynolds
KA9Q 📻 A popular implementation of TCP/IP and associated protocols for amateur packet radio systems. See also: TCP/IP Protocol Suite. [Source: RFC1208]
Kerberos 🔐 The security system of MIT's Project Athena. It's based on symmetric key cryptography. See also: encryption.
Kermit 🐸 A popular file transfer protocol developed by Columbia University. Because Kermit runs in most operating environments, it gives you an easy method of file transfer. Kermit is not the same as FTP. See also: File Transfer Protocol [Source: MALAMUD]
Knowbot 🤖 A "Knowledge Robot" is a program that seeks out information based on specified criteria. "Knowbot," as trademarked by CNRI, refers specifically to the search engine for Knowbot Information Services. See also: Corporation for National Research Initiatives, X.500, white pages, whois, netfind.
Knowbot Information Services 🔍 An experimental directory service. See also: white pages, whois, X.500.
LAN See: Local Area Network
layer 🍰 Communication networks for computers may be organized as a set of more or less independent protocols, each in a different layer (also called level). The lowest layer governs direct host-to-host communication between the hardware at different hosts, and the highest consists of user applications. Each layer builds on the layer beneath it. For each layer, programs at different hosts use protocols appropriate to that layer to communicate with each other. TCP/IP has five layers of protocols; OSI has seven. The advantage of different layers of protocols is that the methods of passing information from one layer to another are specified clearly as part of the protocol suite, and changes within a protocol layer are prevented from affecting the other layers. This greatly simplifies the task of designing and maintaining communication programs. See also: Open Systems Interconnection, TCP/IP Protocol Suite.
LDAP See: Lightweight Directory Access Protocol
Lightweight Directory Access Protocol 🪶 This protocol provides access for management and browser applications that offer read/write interactive access to the X.500 Directory. See also: X.500.
link 🔗 A pointer that may be used to retrieve the file or data it points to.
list server 📬 An automated mailing list distribution system. List servers handle the administrivia of mailing list maintenance, such as adding and deleting list members.
little-endian 🧠 A format for storing or transmitting binary data in which the least significant byte (bit) comes first. See also: big-endian. [Source: RFC1208]
LLC See: Logical Link Control
Local Area Network (LAN) 🏠 A data network intended to serve an area of only a few square kilometers or less. Because the network is known to cover only a small area, optimizations can be made in the network signal protocols that permit data rates up to 100Mb/s. See also: Ethernet, Fiber Distributed Data Interface, token ring, Metropolitan Area Network, Wide Area Network. [Source: NNSC]
Logical Link Control (LLC) 🧵 The upper portion of the datalink layer, as defined in IEEE 802.2. The LLC sublayer presents a uniform interface to the user of the datalink service, usually the network layer. Beneath the LLC sublayer is the MAC sublayer. See also: 802.x, layer, Media Access Control.
Lurking 👀 No active participation on the part of a subscriber to a mailing list or USENET newsgroup. Someone who is lurking is just listening to the discussion. Lurking is encouraged for beginners who need to get up to speed on the history of the group. See also: Electronic Mail, mailing list, Usenet. [Source: LAQUEY]
Lycos 🕷️ Lycos, Inc. is a new venture formed in late June 1995 to develop and market the Lycos technology originally developed under the direction of Dr. Michael ("Fuzzy") Mauldin at Carnegie Mellon University. The part of Lycos you see when you do a search is the search engine. "Lycos" comes from Lycosidae, a cosmopolitan family of relatively large active ground spiders (Wolf Spiders) that catch their prey by pursuit, rather than in a web. [Source: Lycos's FAQ]
MAC See: Media Access Control
MAC address 🪪 The hardware address of a device connected to a shared media. See also: Media Access Control, Ethernet, token ring. [Source: MALAMUD]
mail bridge 🌉 A mail gateway that forwards electronic mail between two or more networks while ensuring that the messages it forwards meet certain administrative criteria. A mail bridge is simply a specialized form of mail gateway that enforces an administrative policy with regard to what mail it forwards. See also: Electronic Mail, mail gateway. [Source: NNSC]
Mail Exchange Record (MX Record) 📮 A DNS resource record type indicating which host can handle mail for a particular domain. See also: Domain Name System, Electronic Mail. [Source: MALAMUD]
mail exploder 💌 Part of an electronic mail delivery system that allows a message to be delivered to a list of addresses. Mail exploders are used to implement mailing lists. Users send messages to a single address, and the mail exploder takes care of delivery to the individual mailboxes in the list. See also: Electronic Mail, email address, mailing list. [Source: RFC1208]
mail gateway 🚪 A machine that connects two or more electronic mail systems (including dissimilar mail systems) and transfers messages between them. Sometimes the mapping and translation can be quite complex, and it generally requires a store-and-forward scheme, whereby the message is received from one system completely before it is transmitted to the next system, after suitable translations. See also: Electronic Mail. [Source: RFC1208]
mail path 🛤️ A series of machine names used to direct electronic mail from one user to another. This system of email addressing has been used primarily in UUCP networks, which are trying to eliminate its use altogether. See also: bang path, email address, UNIX-to-UNIX CoPy.
mail server 🗂️ A software program that distributes files or information in response to requests sent via email. Internet examples include Almanac and netlib. Mail servers have also been used in Bitnet to provide FTP-like services. See also: Bitnet, Electronic Mail, FTP. [Source: NWNET]
mailing list 📣 A list of email addresses, used by a mail exploder, to forward messages to groups of people. Generally, a mailing list is used to discuss a certain set of topics, and different mailing lists discuss different topics. A mailing list may be moderated. This means that messages sent to the list are actually sent to a moderator, who determines whether or not to send the messages on to everyone else. Requests to subscribe to, or leave, a mailing list ALWAYS should be sent to the list's "-request" address (e.g. ietf-request@cnri.reston.va.us for the IETF mailing list) or majordomo server. See also: Electronic Mail, mail exploder, email address, moderator, majordomo.
majordomo 🤵 A program which handles mailing list maintenance (affectionately known as administrivia), such as adding and removing addresses from mailing lists. See also: email address, mailing list.
MAN See: Metropolitan Area Network
Management Information Base (MIB) 📊 The set of parameters an SNMP management station can query or set in the SNMP agent of a network device (e.g. router). Standard, minimal MIBs have been defined, and vendors often have Private enterprise MIBs. In theory, any SNMP manager can talk to any SNMP agent with a properly defined MIB. See also: client-server model, Simple Network Management Protocol. [Source: BIG-LAN]
Martian 👽 A humorous term applied to packets that turn up unexpectedly on the wrong network because of bogus routing entries. It's also used as a name for a packet which has an altogether bogus (non-registered or ill-formed) internet address. [Source: RFC1208]
Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU) 📏 The largest frame length which may be sent on a physical medium. See also: frame, fragment, fragmentation.
mbone 🎙️ The Multicast Backbone is based on IP multicasting using class-D addresses. The mbone concept was adopted at the March 1992 IETF in San Diego, during which it was used to audiocast to 40 people throughout the world. At the following meeting, in Cambridge, the name mbone was adopted. Since then, the audiocast has become full two-way audio/video conferencing, using two video channels, four audio channels, and involving hundreds of remote users. See also: multicast, Internet Engineering Task Force.
MD-2, MD-4, MD-5 See: Message Digest
Media Access Control (MAC) 🧱 The lower portion of the datalink layer. The MAC differs for various physical media. See also: MAC Address, Ethernet, Logical Link Control, token ring.
Message Digest (MD-2, MD-4, MD-5) 🔏 Message digests are algorithmic operations, generally performed on text, which produce a unique signature for that text. MD-2, described in RFC 1319; MD-4, described in RFC 1320; and MD-5, described in RFC 1321, all produce a 128-bit signature. They differ in their operating speed and their resistance to crypto-analytic attack. Generally, one must be traded off for the other.
message switching See: packet switching
Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) 🏙️ A data network intended to serve an area approximating that of a large city. Such networks are being implemented by innovative techniques, such as running fiber cables through subway tunnels. A popular example of a MAN is SMDS. See also: Local Area Network, Switched Multimegabit Data Service, Wide Area Network. [Source: NNSC]
MIB See: Management Information Base
Microcom Networking Protocol (MNP) 💾 okay so this is a whole series of protocols built into most modems that error-check or compress data being sent over a phone line. Basically the behind-the-scenes crew keeping your data clean ✨
mid-level network 🌈 Mid-level networks (a.k.a. regionals) make up the second level of the Internet hierarchy. They're the transit networks that connect the stub networks to the backbone networks, so they're the middle girlies of the whole setup 🫶 See also: backbone, Internet, stub network, transit network.
MIME — See: Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions
MNP — See: Microcom Networking Protocol
moderator 👑 A person, or small group of people, who manage moderated mailing lists and newsgroups. Moderators are the ones responsible for deciding which email submissions get passed on to the list. Main character energy, fr. See also: Electronic Mail, mailing list, Usenet.
MOSPF — Multicast Open Shortest-Path First. See: Open Shortest-Path First.
MTU — See: Maximum Transmission Unit
MUD — See: Multi-User Dungeon
multicast 🦋 A packet with a special destination address that multiple nodes on the network may be willing to receive. See also: broadcast, unicast.
multihomed host 🧚 A host that has more than one connection to a network. The host may send and receive data over any of the links, but it won't route traffic for other nodes. It's giving "popular, but not a delivery service" 💀 See also: host, router. [Source: MALAMUD]
Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (MIME) 💌 An extension to Internet email that lets you transfer non-textual data, such as graphics, audio and fax. See also: Electronic Mail
Multi-User Dungeon (MUD) 🗡️ Adventure, role playing games, or simulations played on the Internet. Devotees call them "text-based virtual reality adventures," which is so iconic. The games can feature fantasy combat, booby traps and magic. Players interact in real time and can change the "world" in the game as they play it. Most MUDs are based on the Telnet protocol. See also: Telnet. [Source: LAQUEY]
MX Record — See: Mail Exchange Record
NAK — See: Negative Acknowledgment
name resolution 🔍 The process of mapping a name into its corresponding address. See also: Domain Name System. [Source: RFC1208]
namespace 🌷 A commonly distributed set of names in which all names are unique. [Source: MALAMUD]
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 🏛️ A United States governmental body that helps out with developing standards. Formerly the National Bureau of Standards. [Source: MALAMUD]
National Research and Education Network (NREN) 🚀 The NREN is the realization of an interconnected gigabit computer network devoted to High Performance Computing and Communications. See also: HPPC, IINREN. [Source: HPCC]
National Science Foundation (NSF) 🔬 A U.S. government agency whose purpose is to promote the advancement of science. NSF funds science researchers, scientific projects, and infrastructure to improve the quality of scientific research. The NSFNET, funded by NSF, was once an essential part of academic and research communications. It was a highspeed, hierarchical "network of networks." At the highest level, it had a backbone network of nodes, interconnected with T3 (45Mbps) facilities which spanned the continental United States. Attached to that were mid-level networks, and attached to the mid-levels were campus and local networks. See also: backbone network, mid-level network.
Negative Acknowledgment (NAK) 🙅 Response to the receipt of either a corrupted or unexpected packet of information. See also: Acknowledgement.
netfind 🕵️ A research prototype to provide a simple Internet "white pages" user directory. Developed at the University of Colorado, Boulder, it tries to locate telephone and email information given a person's name and a rough description of where the person works. See also: Knowbot, whois, white pages, X.500. [Source: Ryan Moats]
netiquette 🫶 A pun on "etiquette" referring to proper behavior on a network. RFC 1855 (FYI 28) contains a netiquette guide produced by the User Services area of the IETF. See also: Acceptable Use Policy, Internet Engineering Task Force.
Netnews — See: Usenet
network 🕸️ A computer network is a data communications system that interconnects computer systems at various different sites. A network may be composed of any combination of LANs, MANs or WANs. See also: Local Area Network, Metropolitan Area Network, Wide Area Network, internet.
network address 🏠 The network portion of an IP address. For a class A network, the network address is the first byte of the IP address. For a class B network, the network address is the first two bytes of the IP address. For a class C network, the network address is the first three bytes of the IP address. In each case, the remainder is the host address. In the Internet, assigned network addresses are globally unique. See also: Internet, IP address, subnet address, host address, Internet Registry.
Network File System (NFS) 📁 A protocol developed by Sun Microsystems, and defined in RFC 1094 (RFC 1813 defines Version 3), that lets a computer system access files over a network as if they were on its local disks. This protocol has been incorporated in products by more than two hundred companies, and it's now a de facto Internet standard. [Source: NNSC]
Network Information Center (NIC) 📞 A NIC provides information, assistance and services to network users. See also: Network Operations Center.
Network Information Services (NIS) 💁 A set of services, generally provided by a NIC, to help users get around the network. See also: Network Information Center.
Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP) 📰 A protocol, defined in RFC 977, for the distribution, inquiry, retrieval, and posting of news articles. See also: Usenet.
network mask — See: address mask
network number — See: network address
Network Operations Center (NOC) 🖥️ A location from which the operation of a network or internet is monitored. Additionally, this center usually serves as a clearinghouse for connectivity problems and efforts to resolve those problems. See also: Network Information Center. [Source: NNSC]
Network Time Protocol (NTP) ⏰ A protocol that assures accurate local timekeeping with reference to radio and atomic clocks located on the Internet. This protocol is capable of synchronizing distributed clocks within milliseconds over long time periods. See also: Internet. [Source: NNSC]
NFS — See: Network File System
NIC — See: Network Information Center
NIC.DDN.MIL 🌐 This is the domain name of the DDN NIC. See also: Defense Data Network, Domain Name System, Network Information Center.
NIS — See: Network Information Services
NIST — See: National Institute of Standards and Technology
NNTP — See: Network News Transfer Protocol
NOC — See: Network Operations Center
Nodal Switching System (NSS) 🔀 Main routing nodes in the NSFnet backbone. See also: backbone, National Science Foundation. [Source: MALAMUD]
node 📍 An addressable device attached to a computer network. See also: host, router.
NREN — See: National Research and Education Network
NSF — See: National Science Foundation
NSS — See: Nodal Switching System
NTP — See: Network Time Protocol
OCLC — See: Online Computer Library Catalog
octet 🧮 An octet is 8 bits. This term is used in networking, rather than byte, because some systems have bytes that are not 8 bits long.
Online Computer Library Catalog 📚 OCLC is a nonprofit membership organization offering computer-based services to libraries, educational organizations, and their users. The OCLC library information network connects more than 10,000 libraries worldwide. Libraries use the OCLC System for cataloging, interlibrary loan, collection development, bibliographic verification, and reference searching. [Source: OCLC]
Open Shortest-Path First (OSPF) 🛣️ A link state, as opposed to distance vector, routing protocol. It is an Internet standard IGP defined in RFCs 1583 and 1793. The multicast version, MOSPF, is defined in RFC 1584. See also: Interior Gateway Protocol, Routing Information Protocol.
Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) 🧩 A suite of protocols, designed by ISO committees, to be the international standard computer network architecture. See also: International Organization for Standardization.
OSI — See: Open Systems Interconnection
OSI Reference Model 🍰 A seven-layer structure designed to describe computer network architectures and the way that data passes through them. This model was developed by the ISO in 1978 to clearly define the interfaces in multivendor networks, and to provide users of those networks with conceptual guidelines in the construction of such networks. See also: International Organization for Standardization. [Source: NNSC]
OSPF — See: Open Shortest-Path First
packet 📦 The unit of data sent across a network. "Packet" is a generic term used to describe a unit of data at all levels of the protocol stack, but it is most correctly used to describe application data units. See also: datagram, frame.
Packet InterNet Groper (PING) 🏓 A program used to test reachability of destinations by sending them an ICMP echo request and waiting for a reply. The term is used as a verb: "Ping host X to see if it is up!" See also: Internet Control Message Protocol. [Source: RFC1208]
Packet Switch Node (PSN) 🔁 A dedicated computer whose purpose is to accept, route and forward packets in a packet switched network. See also: packet switching, router. [Source: NNSC]
packet switching 📬 A communications paradigm in which packets (messages) are individually routed between hosts, with no previously established communication path. See also: circuit switching, connection-oriented, connectionless.
PD — Public Domain
PDU — See: Protocol Data Unit
PEM — See: Privacy Enhanced Mail
PGP — See: Pretty Good Privacy
PING — See: Packet INternet Groper
Point Of Presence (POP) 📍 A site where there exists a collection of telecommunications equipment, usually digital leased lines and multi-protocol routers.
Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) 🔌 The Point-to-Point Protocol, defined in RFC 1661, provides a method for transmitting packets over serial point-to-point links. There are many other RFCs which define extensions to the basic protocol. See also: Serial Line IP. [Source: FYI4]
POP — See: Post Office Protocol and Point Of Presence
port 🚪 A port is a transport layer demultiplexing value. Each application has a unique port number associated with it. See also: Transmission Control Protocol, User Datagram Protocol.
Post Office Protocol (POP) 📨 A protocol designed to allow single user hosts to read electronic mail from a server. Version 3, the most recent and most widely used, is defined in RFC 1725. See also: Electronic Mail.
Postal Telegraph and Telephone (PTT) ☎️ Outside the USA, PTT refers to a telephone service provider, which is usually a monopoly, in a particular country.
postmaster 💌 Okay bestie, the postmaster is the person at a site who handles email problems, answers questions about users, and does all the related work. Literally the hero of the inbox 🦸♀️ See also: Electronic Mail. [Source: ZEN]
PPP 🎀 See: Point-to-Point Protocol
Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) 🔐 A program developed by Phil Zimmerman that cryptographically protects files and electronic mail from being read by others. It can also be used to digitally sign a document or message, which authenticates the creator. Very trustworthy energy ✨ See also: encryption, Data Encryption Standard, RSA.
Privacy Enhanced Mail (PEM) 🕵️♀️ Internet email that gives you confidentiality, authentication and message integrity using various encryption methods. See also: Electronic Mail, encryption.
Prospero 🧚 A distributed filesystem that gives you the power to create multiple views of a single collection of files spread across the Internet. Prospero provides a file naming system, and file access happens through existing access methods (e.g. anonymous FTP and NFS). The Prospero protocol is also used for communication between clients and servers in the archie system. See also: anonymous FTP, archie, archive site, Gopher, Network File System, Wide Area Information Servers.
protocol 📜 A formal description of message formats and the rules two computers must follow to exchange those messages. Protocols can describe low-level details of machine-to-machine interfaces (e.g., the order in which bits and bytes are sent across a wire) or high-level exchanges between allocation programs (e.g., the way in which two programs transfer a file across the Internet). [Source: MALAMUD]
protocol converter 🔄 A device or program that translates between different protocols which serve similar functions (e.g. TCP and TP4).
Protocol Data Unit (PDU) 📦 "PDU" is internationalstandardscomitteespeak for packet. See also: packet.
protocol stack 🥞 A layered set of protocols which work together to provide a set of network functions. See also: layer, protocol.
proxy ARP 🫥 The technique in which one machine, usually a router, answers ARP requests intended for another machine. By "faking" its identity, the router accepts responsibility for routing packets to the "real" destination. Proxy ARP allows a site to use a single IP address with two physical networks. Subnetting would normally be a better solution. See also: Address Resolution Protocol [Source: RFC1208]
PSN 🛰️ See: Packet Switch Node.
PTT 📞 See: Postal, Telegraph and Telephone
queue 🫶 A backup of packets awaiting processing.
RARE 🌍 Reseaux Associes pour la Recherche Europeenne. See: Trans-European Research and Education Networking Association.
RARP 🔁 See: Reverse Address Resolution Protocol
RBOC 🏢 Regional Bell Operating Company
Read The F*cking Manual (RTFM) 🙈 This acronym is often used when someone asks a simple or common question.
Read The Source Code (RTSC) 👩💻 This acronym is often used when a software developer asks a question about undocumented code.
reassembly 🧩 The IP process in which a previously fragmented packet is reassembled before being passed to the transport layer. See also: fragmentation.
recursive 🔂 See: recursive
regional 🗺️ See: mid-level network
remote login 🖥️ Operating on a remote computer, using a protocol over a computer network, as though locally attached. See also: Telnet.
Remote Procedure Call (RPC) 📞✨ An easy and popular paradigm for implementing the client-server model of distributed computing. In general, a request is sent to a remote system to execute a designated procedure, using arguments supplied, and the result is returned to the caller. There are many variations and subtleties in various implementations, resulting in a variety of different (incompatible) RPC protocols. [Source: RFC1208]
repeater 📡 A device which propagates electrical signals from one cable to another. See also: bridge, gateway, router.
Request For Comments (RFC) 📝💜 The document series, begun in 1969, which describes the Internet suite of protocols and related experiments. Not all (in fact very few) RFCs describe Internet standards, but all Internet standards are written up as RFCs. The RFC series is unusual in that the proposed protocols are forwarded by the Internet research and development community, acting on their own behalf, as opposed to the formally reviewed and standardized protocols that are promoted by organizations such as CCITT and ANSI. See also: BCP, FYI, STD.
Reseaux IP Europeens (RIPE) 🇪🇺 A collaboration between European networks which use the TCP/IP protocol suite.
Reverse Address Resolution Protocol (RARP) 🔄 A protocol, defined in RFC 903, which provides the reverse function of ARP. RARP maps a hardware (MAC) address to an internet address. It is used primarily by diskless nodes when they first initialize to find their internet address. See also: Address Resolution Protocol, BOOTP, internet address, MAC address.
RFC 📝 See: Request For Comments
RFC 822 💌 The Internet standard format for electronic mail message headers. Mail experts often refer to "822 messages." The name comes from RFC 822, which contains the specification. 822 format was previously known as 733 format. See also: Electronic Mail. [Source: COMER]
RIP 🛣️ See: Routing Information Protocol
RIPE 🇪🇺 See: Reseaux IP Europeenne
Round-Trip Time (RTT) ⏱️ A measure of the current delay on a network. [Source: MALAMUD]
route 🛤️ The path that network traffic takes from its source to its destination. Also, a possible path from a given host to another host or destination.
routed 🛣️ Route Daemon. A program which runs under 4.2BSD/4.3BSD UNIX systems (and derived operating systems) to propagate routes among machines on a local area network, using the RIP protocol. Pronounced "route-dee". See also: Routing Information Protocol, gated.
router 🔀 A device which forwards traffic between networks. The forwarding decision is based on network layer information and routing tables, often constructed by routing protocols. See also: bridge, gateway, Exterior Gateway Protocol, Interior Gateway Protocol.
routing 🧭 The process of selecting the correct interface and next hop for a packet being forwarded. See also: hop, router, Exterior Gateway Protocol, Interior Gateway Protocol.
routing domain 🏰 A set of routers exchanging routing information within an administrative domain. See also: Administrative Domain, router.
Routing Information Protocol (RIP) 🛣️ A distance vector, as opposed to link state, routing protocol. It is an Internet standard IGP defined in RFC 1058. See also: Interior Gateway Protocol, Open Shortest-Path First.
RPC 📞 See: Remote Procedure Call
RSA 🔑 A public-key cryptographic system which may be used for encryption and authentication. It was invented in 1977 and named for its inventors: Ron Rivest, Adi Shamir, and Leonard Adleman. See also: encryption, Data Encryption Standard, Pretty Good Privacy.
RTFM 🙈 See: Read The F*cking Manual
RTSC 👩💻 See: Read The Source Code
RTT ⏱️ See: Round-Trip Time
SDH 📶 See: Synchronous Digital Hierarchy
Serial Line IP (SLIP) 🔌 A protocol used to run IP over serial lines, such as telephone circuits or RS-232 cables, interconnecting two systems. SLIP is defined in RFC 1055, but is not an Internet Standard. It is being replaced by PPP. See also: Point-to-Point Protocol.
server 🖧 A provider of resources (e.g. file servers and name servers). See also: client, Domain Name System, Network File System.
SGML 🏷️ See: Standardized Generalized Markup Language
SIG 🫂 Special Interest Group
signature ✍️ The three or four line message at the bottom of a piece of email or a Usenet article which identifies the sender. Large signatures (over five lines) are generally frowned upon. See also: Electronic Mail, Usenet.
Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) 📬 A protocol used to transfer electronic mail between computers. It is specified in RFC 821, with extensions specified in many other RFCs. It is a server to server protocol, so other protocols are used to access the messages. See also: Electronic Mail, Post Office Protocol, RFC 822.
Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) 🧃 The Internet standard protocol developed to manage nodes on an IP network. The first version is defined in RFC 1157 (STD 15). SNMPv2 (version 2) is defined in too many RFCs to list. It is currently possible to manage wiring hubs, toasters, jukeboxes, etc. See also: Management Information Base.
SLIP 🔌 See: Serial Line IP
SMDS 📶 See: Switched Multimegabit Data Service
SMI 🧱 See: Structure of Management Information
SMTP 📬 See: Simple Mail Transfer Protocol
SNA 🏛️ See: Systems Network Architecture
snail mail 🐌 A pejorative term referring to the U.S. postal service.
SNMP 🧃 See: Simple Network Management Protocol
SONET 📶 See: Synchronous Optical NETwork
Standardized Generalized Markup Language (SGML) 🏷️ An international standard for the definition of system-independent, device-independent methods of representing text in electronic form. See also: Hypertext Markup Language.
STD 📚 A subseries of RFCs that specify Internet standards. The official list of Internet standards is in STD 1. See also: Request For Comments.
stream-oriented 🌊 A type of transport service that allows its client to send data in a continuous stream. The transport service will guarantee that all data will be delivered to the other end in the same order as sent and without duplicates. See also: Transmission Control Protocol. [Source: MALAMUD]
Structure of Management Information (SMI) 🧱 The rules used to define the objects that can be accessed via a network management protocol. These rules are defined in RFC 1155 (STD 17). The acronym is pronounced "Ess Em Eye." See also: Management Information Base. .br [Source: RFC1208]
stub network 🌿 A stub network only carries packets to and from local hosts. Even if it has paths to more than one other network, it does not carry traffic for other networks. See also: backbone, transit network.
subnet 🧁 A portion of a network, which may be a physically independent network segment, which shares a network address with other portions of the network and is distinguished by a subnet number. A subnet is to a network what a network is to an internet. See also: internet, network. [Source: FYI4]
subnet address 🎀 The subnet portion of an IP address. In a subnetted network, the host portion of an IP address is split into a subnet portion and a host portion using an address (subnet) mask. See also: address mask, IP address, network address, host address.
subnet mask 🎀 See: address mask
subnet number 🎀 See: subnet address
supernet ✨ Okay so a supernet is when you take a bunch of IP network addresses and advertise them as ONE classless network address, bestie 🫶 Picture four Class C networks: 192.0.8.0, 192.0.9.0, 192.0.10.0 and 192.0.11.0, each with the intrinsic network mask of 255.255.255.0. You can advertise 192.0.8.0 with a subnet mask of 255.255.252.0 and suddenly they're one aggregate 💅 It's giving efficiency. See also: IP address, network address, network mask, Classless Inter-domain Routing.
Switched Multimegabit Data Service (SMDS) 🦋 An emerging high-speed, datagram-based public data network service developed by Bellcore, and it's expected to be widely used by telephone companies as the basis for their data networks. Main character energy for telcos 🎀 See also: Metropolitan Area Network. [Source: RFC1208]
Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH) 🌈 The European standard for high-speed data communications over fiber-optic media. Transmission rates range from 155.52Mbps to 2.5Gbps ✨
Synchronous Optical NETwork (SONET) 🌸 SONET is an international standard for high-speed data communications over fiber-optic media, no cap, it's iconic. The transmission rates range from 51.84Mbps to 2.5Gbps.
Systems Network Architecture (SNA) 👑 A proprietary networking architecture used by IBM and IBM-compatible mainframe computers. [Source: NNSC]
T1 🍓 A term for a digital carrier facility used to transmit a DS-1 formatted digital signal at 1.544 megabits per second.
T3 💜 A term for a digital carrier facility used to transmit a DS-3 formatted digital signal at 44.746 megabits per second. [Source: FYI4]
TAC 🙈 See: Terminal Access Controller (TAC)
talk 💬 A protocol which allows two people on remote computers to communicate in a real-time fashion. See also: Internet Relay Chat.
TCP 🦋 See: Transmission Control Protocol
TCP/IP Protocol Suite 🌈 Transmission Control Protocol over Internet Protocol. This is a common shorthand which refers to the suite of transport and application protocols which runs over IP. It's the whole squad! See also: IP, ICMP, TCP, UDP, FTP, Telnet, SMTP, SNMP.
TELENET 🧚 The original name for what is now SprintNet. It should not be confused with the Telnet protocol or application program. Same spelling-ish, totally different vibes, so don't mix them up 🙅
Telnet 💻 Telnet is the Internet standard protocol for remote terminal connection service. It is defined in RFC 854 and extended with options by many other RFCs.
TERENA 🌍 See: Trans-European Research and Education Networking Association
Terminal Access Controller (TAC) 🌸 A device which was once used to connect terminals to the Internet, usually using dialup modem connections and the TACACS protocol. While the device is no longer in use, TACACS+ is a protocol in current use. Retired icon, but the protocol is still slaying 💅
terminal emulator 💅 A program that allows a computer to emulate a terminal. The workstation thus appears as a terminal to the remote host. [Source: MALAMUD]
terminal server 🎀 A device which connects many terminals to a LAN through one network connection. A terminal server can also connect many network users to its asynchronous ports for dial-out capabilities and printer access. See also: Local Area Network.
Three Letter Acronym (TLA) 🔥 A tribute to the use of acronyms in the computer field. See also: Extended Four Letter Acronym. The irony of a three-letter acronym for "three letter acronym" is not lost on me 💀
Time to Live (TTL) ⏳ A field in the IP header which indicates how long this packet should be allowed to survive before being discarded. It is primarily used as a hop count. See also: Internet Protocol. [Source: MALAMUD]
TLA 🙃 See: Three Letter Acronym
TN3270 🖥️ A variant of the Telnet program that allows one to attach to IBM mainframes and use the mainframe as if you had a 3270 or similar terminal. [Source: BIG-LAN]
token ring 💍 A token ring is a type of LAN with nodes wired into a ring. Each node constantly passes a control message (token) on to the next; whichever node has the token can send a message. Often, "Token Ring" is used to refer to the IEEE 802.5 token ring standard, which is the most common type of token ring. See also: 802.x, Local Area Network.
topology 🗺️ A network topology shows the computers and the links between them. A network layer must stay abreast of the current network topology to be able to route packets to their final destination. [Source: MALAMUD]
traceroute 🕵️ A program available on many systems which traces the path a packet takes to a destination. It is mostly used to debug routing problems between hosts. There is also a traceroute protocol defined in RFC 1393.
Trans-European Research and Education Networking Association (TERENA) 🌍 TERENA was formed in October 1994 by the merger of RARE and EARN to promote and participate in the development of a high quality international information and telecommunications infrastructure for the benefit of research and education. See also: Reseaux Associes pour la Recherche Europeenne, European Academic and Research Network. [Source: TERENA Statutes]
transceiver 📡 Transmitter-receiver. The physical device that connects a host interface to a local area network, such as Ethernet. Ethernet transceivers contain electronics that apply signals to the cable and sense collisions. [Source: RFC1208]
transit network 🚉 A transit network passes traffic between networks in addition to carrying traffic for its own hosts. It must have paths to at least two other networks. See also: backbone, stub network.
Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) 🦋 An Internet Standard transport layer protocol defined in RFC 793. It is connection-oriented and stream-oriented, as opposed to UDP. See also: connection-oriented, stream-oriented, User Datagram Protocol.
Trojan Horse 🐴 A computer program which carries within itself a means to allow the creator of the program access to the system using it. See also: virus, worm. Bestie, don't accept gifts from strangers 💀
TTFN 👋 Ta-Ta For Now
TTL 🙃 See: Time to Live
tunnelling 🚇 Tunnelling refers to encapsulation of protocol A within protocol B, such that A treats B as though it were a datalink layer. Tunnelling is used to get data between administrative domains which use a protocol that is not supported by the internet connecting those domains. See also: Administrative Domain.
twisted pair 🧵 A type of cable in which pairs of conductors are twisted together to produce certain electrical properties.
UDP 🌊 See: User Datagram Protocol
unicast 🎯 An address which only one host will recognize. See also: broadcast, multicast.
Uniform Resource Locators (URL) 🔗 A URL is a compact (most of the time) string representation for a resource available on the Internet. URLs are primarily used to retrieve information using WWW. The syntax and semantics for URLs are defined in RFC 1738. See also: World Wide Web.
Universal Time Coordinated (UTC) 🕰️ This is Greenwich Mean Time. [Source: MALAMUD]
UNIX-to-UNIX CoPy (UUCP) 📬 This was initially a program run under the UNIX operating system that allowed one UNIX system to send files to another UNIX system via dial-up phone lines. Today, the term is more commonly used to describe the large international network which uses the UUCP protocol to pass news and electronic mail. See also: Electronic Mail, Usenet.
urban legend 👻 A story, which may have started with a grain of truth, that has been embroidered and retold until it has passed into the realm of myth. It is an interesting phenomenon that these stories get spread so far, so fast and so often. Urban legends never die, they just end up on the Internet! Some legends that periodically make their rounds include "The Infamous Modem Tax," "Craig Shergold/Brain Tumor/Get Well Cards," and "The $250 Cookie Recipe." [Source: LAQUEY]
URL 🔗 See: Uniform Resource Locators
Usenet 🗞️ A collection of thousands of topically named newsgroups, the computers which run the protocols, and the people who read and submit Usenet news. Not all Internet hosts subscribe to Usenet and not all Usenet hosts are on the Internet. See also: Network News Transfer Protocol, UNIX-to-UNIX CoPy. [Source: NWNET]
User Datagram Protocol (UDP) 🌊 An Internet Standard transport layer protocol defined in RFC 768. It is a connectionless protocol which adds a level of reliability and multiplexing to IP. See also: connectionless, Transmission Control Protocol.
UTC 🕰️ See: Universal Time Coordinated
UUCP 📬 See: UNIX-to-UNIX CoPy
uudecode 🔓 A program which reverses the effect of uuencode. See also: uuencode.
uuencode 🔐 A program which reversibly converts a binary file in ASCII. It is used to send binary files via email, which generally does not allow (or garbles) the transmission of binary information. The original binary can be restored with uudecode. The encoding process generally creates an ASCII file larger than the original binary, so compressing the binary before running uuencode is highly recommended.
Veronica 🔍 A Gopher utility which effectively searches Gopher servers based on a user's list of keywords. The name was chosen to be a "mate" to another utility named "Archie." It later became an acronym for Very Easy Rodent Oriented Netwide Index to Computer Archives. See also: archie, Gopher.
virtual circuit 🛤️ A network service which provides connection-oriented service without necessarily doing circuit-switching. See also: connection-oriented.
virus 🦠 A program which replicates itself on computer systems by incorporating itself into other programs which are shared among computer systems. See also: Trojan Horse, worm.
W3 🕸️ See: World Wide Web
WAIS 🔎 See: Wide Area Information Servers
WAN 🌐 See: Wide area network
WebCrawler 🕷️ A WWW search engine. The aim of the WebCrawler Project is to provide a high-quality, fast, and free Internet search service. The WebCrawler may be reached at "http://webcrawler.com/". [Source: WebCrawler's "WebCrawler Facts"]
WG 🧑🤝🧑 See: Working Group
white pages 📖 The Internet supports several databases that contain basic information about users, such as e-mail addresses, telephone numbers, and postal addresses. These databases can be searched to get information about particular individuals. Because they serve a function akin to the telephone book, these databases are often referred to as "white pages." See also: Knowbot, netfind, whois, X.500, InterNIC.
whois 🔎 An Internet program which allows users to query a database of people and other Internet entities, such as domains, networks, and hosts. The primary database is kept at the InterNIC. The information stored includes a person's company name, address, phone number and email address. The latest version of the protocol, WHOIS++, is defined in RFCs 1834 and 1835. See also: InterNIC, white pages, Knowbot, netfind, X.500. Now you know who's who on the Internet 💜
Wide Area Information Servers (WAIS) Okay so WAIS is a distributed information service 🔍 that gives you simple natural language input, indexed searching for fast retrieval, and a "relevance feedback" mechanism which allows the results of initial searches to influence future searches. It's giving smart search energy ✨ Public domain implementations are available. See also: archie, Gopher, Prospero.
Wide Area Network (WAN) A network, usually constructed with serial lines 🧵, which covers a large geographic area 🌍. See also: Local Area Network, Metropolitan Area Network.
Working Group (WG) A working group, within the IETF 🎀, is a group of people who work under a charter to achieve a certain goal. That goal may be the creation of an Informational document, the creation of a protocol specification, or the resolution of problems in the Internet. Most working groups have a finite lifetime. That is, once a working group has achieved its goal, it disbands 👋 There is no official membership for a working group. Unofficially, a working group member is somebody who is on that working group's mailing list 📬; however, anyone may attend a working group meeting. See also: Internet Engineering Task Force, Birds Of a Feather.
World Wide Web (WWW, W3) A hypertext-based, distributed information system created by researchers at CERN in Switzerland 🌐 Users may create, edit or browse hypertext documents. The clients and servers are freely available 🌸
worm A computer program which replicates itself and is self-propagating 🐛 Worms, as opposed to viruses, are meant to spawn in network environments. Network worms were first defined by Shoch & Hupp of Xerox in ACM Communications (March 1982). The Internet worm of November 1988 is perhaps the most famous; it successfully propagated itself on over 6,000 systems across the Internet 😭 See also: Trojan Horse, virus.
WRT With Respect To
WWW See: World Wide Web
WYSIWYG What You See is What You Get
X X is the name for TCP/IP based network-oriented window systems. Network window systems allow a program to use a display on a different computer. The most widely-implemented window system is X11 - a component of MIT's Project Athena. 🪟
X.25 A data communications interface specification developed to describe how data passes into and out of public data communications networks. The CCITT and ISO approved protocol suite defines protocol layers 1 through 3.
X.400 The CCITT and ISO standard for electronic mail. It is widely used in Europe and Canada. 💌
X.500 The CCITT and ISO standard for electronic directory services. See also: white pages, Knowbot, whois.
XDR See: eXternal Data Representation
Xerox Network System (XNS) A protocol suite developed by Xerox Corporation to run on LAN and WAN networks, where the LANs are typically Ethernet. Implementations exist for both Xerox's workstations and 4.3BSD, and 4.3BSD-derived, systems. XNS denotes not only the protocol stack, but also an architecture of standard programming interfaces, conventions, and service functions for authentication, directory, filing, email, and remote procedure call. XNS is also the name of Xerox's implementation. See also: Ethernet, Berkeley Software Distribution, Local Area Network, Wide Area Network. [Source: Jeff Hodges]
XNS See: Xerox Network System
Yahoo! Yahoo! is a hierarchical subject-oriented guide for the World Wide Web and Internet. Yahoo! lists sites and categorizes them into appropriate subject categories. Yahoo! may be reached at "http://www.yahoo.com/". [Source: Yahoo's "What is Yahoo?"] 🧚
Yellow Pages (YP) A historic (i.e., no longer in use) service used by UNIX administrators to manage databases distributed across a network. 📒
YP See: Yellow Pages
zone A logical group of network devices. 🦋
References 📚
- BIG-LAN "BIG-LAN Frequently Asked Questions Memo", BIG-LAN DIGEST V4:I8, February 14, 1992.
- COMER Comer, Douglas, "Internetworking with TCP/IP: Principles, Protocols and Architecture", Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1991.
- FYI4 Malkin, G., A. Marine, "FYI on Questions and Answers: Answers to Commonly asked "New Internet User" Questions", RFC 1325 (FYI 4), Xylogics, SRI, May 1992.
- HACKER "THIS IS THE JARGON FILE", Version 2.9.8, January 1992.
- HPCC "Grand Challenges 1993: High Performance Computing and Communications", Committee on Physical, Mathmatical and Engineering Sciences of the Federal Coordinating Council for Science, Engineering and Technology.
- MALAMUD Malamud, Carl, "Analyzing Sun Networks", Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, NY, 1992.
- NNSC "NNSC's Hypercard Tour of the Internet".
- LAQUEY LaQuey, Tracy, with Jeanne C. Ryer, "The Internet Companion: A Beginner's Guide to Global Networking", Addison-Wesley, Reading, MA, 1992.
- NWNET Kochmer, Jonathan, and NorthWestNet, "The Internet Passport: NorthWestNets Guide to Our World Online", NorthWestNet, Bellevue, WA, 1992.
- RFC1208 Jacobsen, O., D. Lynch, "A Glossary of Networking Terms", RFC 1208, Interop, Inc., March 1991.
- STD1 Postel, J., "INTERNET OFFICIAL PROTOCOL STANDARDS", RFC 1920 (STD 1), March 1996.
- STD2 Reynolds, J., J. Postel, "ASSIGNED NUMBERS", RFC 1700 (STD 2), ISI, October 1994.
- TAN Tanenbaum, Andrew S., "Computer Networks; 2nd ed.", Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1989.
- ZEN Kehoe, Brendan P., "Zen and the Art of the Internet", February 1992.
Security Considerations 🔐
Okay, this one's serious bestie 🥺 While security is not explicitly discussed in this document, some of the glossary's entries are security related. See the entries for Access Control List (ACL), authentication, Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT), cracker, Data Encryption Key (DEK), Data Encryption Standard (DES), encryption, Kerberos, Message Digest (MD-2, MD-4, MD-5), Pretty Good Privacy (PGP), Privacy Enhanced Mail (PEM), RSA, Trojan Horse, virus, and worm.
Editor's Address 💌
Gary Scott Malkin
Xylogics/Bay Networks
53 Third Avenue
Burlington, MA 01803
Phone: (617) 238-6237
EMail: gmalkin@Xylogics.COM📦 where this page comes from
- ietf: rfc1983 1996-08
- 💖 girlified by claude-haiku-5-5 on : a language model's rewrite of the original, under its terms