World Wide Webfx Internet Glossary of Computer Terms

Glossary of Computer Terms
from World Wide Webfx

Mac: a short name for the Macintosh computer.
machine name: the name of a computer has been given (some have more than one name) see FQDN and hostname.
Macintosh: type of microcomputer made by the Apple computer company.
mail address: an address to where electronic mail is routed. The address is ususally made up of the person's userid and FQDN of machine where their acc ount resides, e.g.; mst3k@darwin.clas.virginia.edu.
mail exploder: Part of an e-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. Some systems administrators prefer to receive mailing list mail at a local exploder address on their system, and to have a local mailing list that users can subscribe or unsubscribe to locally, rather than having each user subscribe to the various mailing lists separately. This helps control the amount of disk space used by copies of e-mail, and can also prevent problems that would occur if the user's ID changes locally or the account terminates on the host. See also e-mail address.
mail folder: a file organized in a standard format where one or more e-mail messages are stored.
mail gateway: A computer that connects two or more (possibly dissimilar) electronic 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. Some mail gateways also have the capability of selecting which messages will be allowed through, either on political or technical grounds. See also e-mail.
mail server: A program that distributes files or information in response to requests sent via e-mail. Internet examples include Almanac and netlib. Mail servers have also been used in BITNET to provide FTP-like services. See also email, File Transfer Protocol.
mailing list: A list of e-mail addresses, used by a mail exploder, to forward messages to groups of people. Generally, a mailing list is used to discuss a particular set of topics. If a mailing list is moderated, messages sent to the list are actually sent to a moderator who determines whether to send the messages on to everyone else. Requests to subscribe to, or leave, a mailing list should always be sent to the list's "-request" address (for example, ietf-request@cnri.reston.va.us for the IETF mailing list).
mailer: a program used to read and write electronic mail.
main menu: usually refers to the first menu you encounter in a software program.
mainframe: A type of computer suited for processing vast quanities of information.
man pages: Along with FAQs and RTFM, man pages (short for manual pages) are one of the single most useful online sources of information on UNIX systems. The complete documentation for many system utilities can be accessed through the man pages. To ask for help, type man man. This peculiar-looking command gives you instructions on using the "man" facility itself. See also Frequently Asked Questions.
megabit: One million bits. See also bit, kilobit, T1.
megabyte (MB): Approximately one million bytes (1,048,576).
megahertz (MHz): One million cycles per second. A unit of measurement to compare clock speed of computers. The higher the number, the faster the computer.
memory: computer hardware (usually chips) used to store information, not to be comfused with hard drive.
menu: a list of items that you may select that may do a variety of functions: provide information, start an application, show another set of choices.
microcomputer: A personal desktop or portable computer; usually refers to either a IBM or compatible PC or Macintosh
microprocessor: Chip that contains the arithmetic-logic unit and control unit of a CPU.
Microsoft Windows: a graphical interface that runs on the MS/DOS operating system.
mid-level network: Mid-level networks (a.k.a. regionals) make up the second level of the Internet hierarchy. They are the transit networks that connect the stub networks to the backbone networks. NYSERNet, CERFNet, SESQUINET, and MIDNet are examples of mid-level networks.
MIME: See Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions.
mirror: Just as a mirror reflects accurately the image portrayed in it, an "FTP archive mirror" contains all the contents of the original archive site. Mirror sites are updated on a regular basis to maintain congruency with the original site.
MMX: Matrix Math eXtensions, NOT an acronym for "MultiMedia eXtension", according to Intel, but an Intel brand name. A set of extra instructions built into new versions of Intel's Pentium microprocessors for supporting multimedia and communications. MMX-enhanced processors were released early in 1997. They are fully compatible with previous Intel processors and software. They can handle many common multimedia operations, such as digital signal processing, normally handled by a separate sound card or video card.
modem: Abbr. for MOdulate-DEModulate hardware device that allows computers to communicate (exchange information) over a telephone line. A modem converts digital signals to analog and back again to digital.
moderator(s): A person, or small group of people, who manages moderated mailing lists and newsgroups. Moderators are responsible for determining which e-mail submissions are passed on to the list. They only forward mail which meets the standards that the group has established for itself for topicality, civility of speech, and commercial content. See also e-mail, mailing list, Usenet, Frequently Answered Questions.
monitor: Output device that produces on-screen display of processed data and computer instructions.
mouse: Device used with a Graphical User Interface system software to position on-screen pointer for choosing tasks.
MPEG: Motion Pictures Experts Group, which defined a standard compression format for video and sound. It is used to display and hear online movies.
MS Windows: See Microsoft Windows.
MSDOS: Microsoft's Disk Operating System, the operating system used by most personal computers.
MUD: See Multi-User Dungeon.
multimedia: usually refers to the combination of sound and video on a computer or software package.
Multimedia Extensions: The code which makes a computer able to precess and display Multimedia data
Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (MIME): An extension to Internet e-mail that provides the ability to transfer nontextual data, such as graphics, audio, and faxes. Many e-mail clients, such as Pine, mh, and NetCruiser have at least simple Mime capabilities. See also American Standard Code for information interchange, binary, e-mail.
Multi-User Dungeon (MUD): Adventure or role-playing games or simulations (such as political campaigns, conferences, or creativity exercises) played on the Internet. Devotees call them "text-based virtual reality adventures." 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. MUDs can be an excellent interaction and learning tool, as advanced "wizards" must learn to program the underlying structures in order to create their own realities, but the popularity of the game can cause resource problems for network administrators. See also congestion, Telnet.
MVS: Multiple Virtual Systems, the operating system used by some mainframes

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