Not familiar with computers? Have no idea what a URL is? Get lost when we talk?
No problem! Here’s a few words that you may want to keep near a computer for reference if you ever call me and have no idea what I’m talking about.
Internet Explorer: It’s an internet browser that hosts the world wide web. To access it, click the blue ‘E’ that’s either on your desktop or your Start Tool Bar.
Web Browser: The application that allows users to interact with the text, pictures, and content on the web page.
URL field/box: A URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is a protocol for specifying addresses on the Internet (www.dictionary.com, www.techterms.com). Simply put, it’s a web address. Every website, which is a group of webpages, has an unique web address or URL. To go to the page, you must either type it in the URL field box at the top of the web browser or click on a link.
Tool bar:A tool bar is a set of icons or buttons that are part of a software program’s interface or an open window. There are different tool bars on the internet window. The first is the URL field/box/toolbar. The second is Menu Bar which has ‘File’ ‘Edit’ etc. The most important of these is the ‘Internet Options’ menu because you can delete cookies and temporary files from this location.
Temporary Internet Files: Temporary Internet Files are downloaded information from web sites you visit.
Cookies: Cookies are data sent to your computer by a Web server that records your actions on a certain web site. This includes information about passwords. Sometimes these are kept in the memory and will automatically recall them. To clear this, you must go to the Internet Options. Select the ‘Tools’ menu on the toolbar. Click Internet Options. You will see ‘Delete Temporary Files’ and ‘Delete Cookies’. Click either of these buttons to delete the stored data.
Link: A hyperlink or link is the physical address that is in text that you are reading that you can click to access the website. From techterms.com, a link is When you are browsing the Web and you see a highlighted and underlined word or phrase on a page, there is a good chance you are looking at a link. By clicking on a link, you can “jump” to a new Web page or a completely different Web site. While text links are typically blue and underlined, they can be any color and don’t have to be underlined. Images can also serve as links to other Web pages. When you move the cursor over a link in a Web page, the arrow will turn into a little hand, letting you know that it is a link. The term “hypertext” comes from the way links can quickly send you to another Web destination.
Desktop: The desktop is the screen that’s on the monitor when no window is open. It is like a physical desktop; it can hold items that you need to access quickly such as commonly used files or shortcuts to webpages you frequent.
Window: A window is an area on the screen that displays information for a specific program (techterms.com). Anything you open opens up in a window. It usually has toolbars and icons that are uneditable but the middle of the window houses the content you are wanting to interact with, be it reading or sending email or awarding points.
These are just a few of the words that I may use when discussing the computer/internet.
Question: Are there any other words that you don’t know what they mean? Let me know! Leave a comment!
