Searching the Internet

Introduction

Search Tools

Planning and Conducting a Search

Scavenger Hunt

Glossary

Teaching Guide


 

WIT Homeroom Module:
Searching The Internet


Glossary

browser
A tool for navigating and accessing information on the Internet or an intranet

dial-up
A connection to a computer by telephone, through a modem.

domain
A collection of computers that share a common domain database. Each domain has a unique name.

encryption
A way of making data indecipherable while it is being sent from computer to computer.

File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
An industry standard for sharing files between computers

firewall
A system or combination of systems that enforces a boundary between two or more networks and keeps hackers out of private networks.

gopher
A hierarchical system for finding and retrieving information from the Internet or and intranet

hyper link
A way of jumping to another place on the Internet. 

hypertext
Documents with links to other documents. 

Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
The formatting language used for documents on the World Wide Web.

Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP)
The underlying protocol by which WWW clients and servers communicate.

Internet
The global network of computers that communicate through a common protocol, TCP/IP

Internet Explorer
A popular Web browser created by Microsoft.

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
Public providers of remote connections to the Internet.

intranet
A TCP/IP network that can be connected to the Internet but is usually protected by a firewall or other device (for example. a corporate network)
 

Netscape Navigator
A popular Web browser

Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP)
A protocol used for exchanging mail on the Internet.

subject directories
A set of human organized and catalog web sites

search engines
A set of Web sites organized and catalog by a computer program that crawl the Web and log the words on each page.

search methods
A set of strategies for searching the Internet.

search tool
A computer program that allow a user to access Web sites and retrieve information on the Internet.

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)
A networking protocol that allows computers to communicate across interconnected networks and the Internet. Every computer on the Internet supports TCP/IP.

Uniform Resource Locator (URL)
A naming convention that uniquely identifies the location  of a computer, directory, or file on the Internet. The URL also specifies the appropriate Internet protocol, such as gopher, HTTP, and so on.

Usenet
The most popular news group hierarchy on the Internet.

Web browser
A software program, such as Internet Explorer, that retrieves a document from an Web server, interprets the HTML codes, and displays the document to the user with as much graphics as the software can supply.

Web page
A World Wide Web document. Pages can contain almost anything, such as news, images, movies, and sounds.

Web server
A computer equipped with the server software to respond to Web client requests, such as requests from a Web browser. A Web server uses the Internet HTTP, FTP, and gopher protocols to communicate with clients on a TCP/IP network.

World Wide Web (WWW)
The most graphical service on the Internet. The Web also has the most sophisticated linking abilities.
 

Top of page

 

The contents of the Web Institute Web Site, including the On-Line Curriculum, Web Tank, and Session Notes, are Copyright 1999-2000, Graham School of General Studies, University of Chicago. No one may print, copy, or otherwise reproduce these materials without the express written permission of the Director of Education Programs at the Graham School. All rights reserved.

The chapters from Curriculum Webs: A Practical Guide to Weaving the Web into Teaching and Learning are Copyright 1999-2000, Craig A. Cunningham and Marty Billingsley. No one may print, copy, or otherwise reproduce these materials without the express written permission of the authors. All rights reserved.