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Delta Web Design 4036 Cypress Gardens Drive Fort Worth, Texas 76123-1440 PH 817-370-1169 FX 817-370-7212 E-mail Delta Privacy Statement |
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| INTERNET DICTIONARY - LETTER "D" | |
| daemon | A harmless UNIX program that waits in the background and runs when a request is made on the port that it is watching. It normally works out of sight of the user. On the Internet, it is most likely encountered only when e-mail is not delivered to the recipient. You'll receive your original message plus a message from a "mailer daemon." |
| DARPA | See: Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency |
| database front end | In the context of the Internet, this is an interface which integrates WWW applications with sophisticated database programs. |
| Data Encryption Key (DEK) | Used for the encryption of message text and for the computation of message integrity checks (signatures). See also: encryption. |
| Data Encryption Standard (DES) | A popular, standard encryption scheme. See also: encryption. |
| datagram | A packet of information, consisting of data and a header that is placed within network frames for delivery over the network. The datagram's header shows the source, destination, and type of data it contains, as well as its relation to any other datagrams being sent. This header information enables the data to be transported from router to router to its destination; datagrams are unique to the particular protocol being applied. |
| data traffic | The number of TCP/IPpackets traversing a network. |
| data warehousing | A generic term for a system for storing, retrieving and managing large amounts of any type of data. Data warehouse software often includes sophisticated compression and hashing techniques for fast searches, as well as advanced filtering. A database, often remote, containing recent snapshots of corporate data. Planners and researchers can use this database freely without worrying about slowing down day-to-day operations of the production database. |
| 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. The functionality of each Phase of the implementation, such as Phase IV and Phase V, is different. |
| dedicated line | A telecommunications line that lets your computer have a direct, permanent connection to the Internet. |
| default route | A routing table entry which is used to direct packets addressed to networks not explicitly listed in the routing table. Source: MALAMUD |
| Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) | An agency of the U.S. Department of Defense responsible for the development of new technology for use by the military. DARPA (formerly known as ARPA) was responsible for funding much of the development of the Internet we know today, including the Berkeley version of Unix and TCP/IP. Source: NNSC |
| Defense Data Network (DDN) | A global communications network serving the US Department of Defense composed of MILNET, other portions of the Internet, and classified networks which are not part of the Internet. The DDN is used to connect military installations and is managed by the Defense Information Systems Agency. See also: Defense Information Systems Agency. In Australia, DDN is used to denote a Digital Data Network as distinct from an Analogue Data Network. |
| Defense Data Network Network Information Center (DDN NIC) | Often called "The NIC", the DDN NIC's primary responsibility is the assignment of Internet network addresses and Autonomous System numbers, the administration of the root domain, and providing information and support services to the DDN. It is also a primary repository for RFCs. See also: Autonomous System, network address, Internet Registry, Network Information Center, Request For Comments. |
| Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA) | Formerly called the Defense Communications Agency (DCA), this is the government agency responsible for managing the DDN portion of the Internet, including the MILNET. Currently, DISA administers the DDN, and supports the user assistance services of the DDN NIC. See also: Defense Data Network. |
| Deja News Research Service | This is a search engine that is similar to WebCrawler, however, it is a tool for searching Usenet, the largest information utility in existence. Quite simply it is the search engine for the newsgroups. |
| DEK | See: Data Encryption Key |
| denizen | A low citizen on the Internet. |
| DES | See: Data Encryption Standard |
| desktop video | Desktop video (DTV), the merging of the camcorder and the home computer, is at the forefront of videomaking technology. Made possible by advances in home computing power and affordability, DTV opens up a wealth of new possibilities for both the videomaker and the PC enthusiast. SEE ALSO: CUSeeMe. |
| Dial-Up | Use of telephone services to access a network or the internet. |
| dial-up account | A basic type of Internet account that allows you to to dial-up an Internet Service Provider's computer with a modem. These types of accounts usually have a UNIX or other command-line interface. |
| dial-up connection | The most popular form of Net connection for the home user, this is a connection from your computer to a host computer over standard telephone lines. SEE ALSO: ISP |
| digital | A form of representation in which distinct objects, or digits, are used to stand for something in the real world, so that counting and other operations can be performed precisely. Data represented digitally can be manipulated to produce a calculation, a sort, or some other computation. In digital electronic computers, two electrical states correspond to the 1's and the 0's of binary numbers, which are manipulated by computer programs. |
| digiterati | The digital version of literati, it is a reference to a vague cloud of people seen to be knowlegeable, hip, or otherwise in-the-know in regards to the digital revolution. |
| direct connection | A permanent connection between your computer system and the Internet. This is sometimes referred to as a leased-line connection because the line is leased from the telephone company. |
| directory | Best thought of as the table of contents of all files contained on or in a specific section of a computer disk. A directory often shows file name, file size, date and time created, file type, and author. Sometimes called a folder. |
| Directory Access Protocol | 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 for 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. The directory user may be a person or another software element. Source: RFC1208 |
| DISA | See: Defense Information Systems Agency |
| discussion group | A group of people who exchange messages about particular topics. Often associated with newsgroups, they can also take the form of interactive message boards, thread message forums, and e-mailing lists. Dubbed as "online encounters with your own kind" discussion groups vary widely in their variety and format. |
| Distributed Computing Environment (DCE) | An architecture of standard programming interfaces, conventions, and server functionality's (e.g., naming, distributed file system, remote procedure call) for distributing applications transparently across networks of heterogeneous computers. 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 in the Internet is the Domain Name System. |
| distribution | A way to limit where Usenet postings go. Handy for such things as "for sale" messages or discussions of regional politics. |
| DIX Ethernet | See: Ethernet |
| DMA | Direct memory access - Hardware devices attached to PCs (ranging from keyboards to sound cards) can be designed to send their instructions to and from main memory in one of two ways. The default is to ask the CPU to do the work. The more efficient way is to allocate one of the PC's DMA channels to send instructions directly to memory. This leaves the CPU free to do more important things. Like IRQs, DMA channels are limited in number, and you can't allocate one channel to more than one device (unless you want to grind your system to a halt). Most users come in contact with DMA when they install a sound card that--if they're lucky--picks the right channel during setup. |
| DNS | See: Domain Name System |
| document | When used in reference to the World Wide Web, a document is any file containing text, media or hyperlinks that can be transferred from an HTTP server to a client program. |
| document info | A feature of IE and NS browsers which gives you mounds of information about the Webpage you are currently looking at. Choosing this menu item, produces a page with a document's structure, composition, and security status. Structure information contains the URLs of images within the document. Composition information includes location, file MIME type, source, local cache file, modification and expiration dates, content length and charset. Security information informs you about encryption and certification. |
| document source | In IE or NS browsers you can view what is called the document source. This feature will open a window which displays the source code (HTML, Javascript etc.) of whatever Web page you're currently looking at. To copy the contents of this file with Windows, press CTRL-A to select the contents, followed by CTRL-C to copy, and CTRL-V to paste into another document. On the Mac the source code is automatically saved into a text file on the desktop each time you view a document source. |
| domain | "Domain" is a heavily overused term in 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 | The "address" or URL of a particular Web site. This is also how you describe the name that is at the right of the @ sign in an Internet address. netlingo.com is the domain name of this Internet dictionary. There is an organization called InterNIC that registers domain names for a small fee and keeps people from registering the same name. |
| Domain Name System (DNS) | A database system that translates an IP address into a domain name. For example, a numeric IP address like 207.219.116.4 is converted into netlingo.com. The DNS is a static, hierarchical name service and it uses TCP/IP hosts, and is housed on a number of servers on the Internet. Basically, it maintains this database for figuring out and finding (or resolving) host names and IP addresses. This allows users to specify remote computers by host names rather than numerical IP addresses.The DNS is a general purpose distributed, replicated, data query service. The principal use is the lookup of host IP addresses based on host names. The style of host names now used in the Internet is called "domain name", because they are the style of names 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. For example, .US (United States), .UK (United Kingdom), .AU (Australia). It is defined in STD 13, RFCs 1034 and 1035. See also: Fully Qualified Domain Name. |
| Doom | A fast-moving virtual reality game in which you are plunged into a brutal 3-D world. To escape alive, you must outfight legions of grisly fiends and solve lethal puzzles. You play a marine equipped with a variety of weapons and technological artifacts, but in the end it comes down to who's tougher. Doom's popularity on the Internet is in part due to it's abilty to allow two players to compete via a modem. So you could in essence play with a friend anywhere in the world. There are countless archives and World Wide Web sites devoted to Doom. They offer everything from hints on game levels, cheat codes to almost entirely new games and scenery. Doom is available as shareware and add on levels are available for both the original Doom and Doom II. |
| dot address | Also "dotted decimal notation" this is the common notation for IP addresses (160.230.54.10). In the form A.B.C.D, each letter represents, in decimal, one byte of a four byte IP address. |
| dot file | A file on a Unix public-access system that alters the way you or your messages interact with that system. For example, your .login file contains various parameters for such things as the text editor you get when you send a message. When you do an ls command, these files do not appear in the directory listing; do `ls -a' to list them. |
| down | When a public-access site runs into technical trouble, and you can no longer gain access to it, it is said to be "down". |
| Downloading | The electronic transfer of information from one computer to another, generally from a larger computer to a smaller one, such as a microcomputer. |
| dpi | dots per inch - A metric used to measure print and screen resolution. |
| drop list | or drop down menu - A list of options that drops down when you click on a down arrow button. |
| DS1 | A framing specification for T-1 synchronous lines. See also: T1 |
| DS3 | A framing specification for T-3 synchronous lines. See also: T3 |
| DSA | See: Directory System Agent |
| DTE | Data Terminal Equipment |
| DUA | See: Directory User Agent |
| duplex | Sometimes referred to as full duplex which is simulataneous bidirectional communications. Both sides send and receive with virtually no turnaround time. OR Data transmission that takes place in two directions simultaneously as opposed to half duplex which also allows transmission in two directions but only one at a time and simplex in which transmission can only be sent in one direction. When used in reference to sound cards and Internet phones such as WebPhone and IPhone this means the ability to send and receive audio at the same time like a standard telephone. Some sound cards and systems require a special full duplex audio driver which is software usually available from either the manufacturer of the sound card or the program itself. If you are searching for duplex drivers for your system, then try using Alta Vista with a search string of: full duplex {name of software} {type of hardware}. |
| dynamic adaptive routing | Automatic rerouting of traffic based on a sensing and analysis of current actual network conditions. NOTE: this does not include cases of routing decisions taken on predefined information. Source: J. Postel |
| dynamic node addressing | A technique enabling nodes to automatically select a unique network address. |
| dynamic rotation | The delivery of ad banners on a rotating, random basis as opposed to static placement of an ad on the same page all the time (hardwired). Dynamic Rotation offers the potential for each user to see a different message and for ads to be seen in more than one place on a site. A component of dynamic rotation advertising is the abilty to place ads on Web pages that are relevant to what the user is doing. For example, if you do a search on Yahoo! for employment, chances are a job related Web site's ad banner will appear on the top of the page. Also known as dynamic delivery. |
