Tech Bytes

 

Development in tech world has led to the formation of a large number of terms most of which when used are not undersstood by us.

• A killer application (commonly shortened to KILLER APP) is a computer program that is so useful that people will buy a particular piece of computer hardware, gaming console, and/or an operating system simply to run that program. Eg. VisiCalc for Apple II, Halo for the Xbox.
• WIKIPEDIA is an online free encyclopedia and is also the Hawaiian word for quick. Wiki Web sites are sites designed for users to be able to make additions or edit any page of the site. They often have a common vocabulary, and consider themselves a "Wiki" community.
• BLUETOOTH is an industrial specification for wireless personal area networks (PAN's). Bluetooth provides a way to connect and exchange information between devices like personal digital assistants (PDAs), mobile phones, laptops, PCs, printers and digital cameras via a secure, low-cost, globally available short range radio frequency. The name Bluetooth was born from the 10th century king of Denmark, King Harold Bluetooth who engaged in diplomacy which led warring parties to negotiate with each other. The inventors of the Bluetooth technology thought this a fitting name for their technology which allowed different devices to talk to each other.
• The BLUE SCREEN OF DEATH (BSoD) is the screen displayed by Microsoft's Windows operating system when it cannot (or is in danger of being unable to) recover from a system error. There are two Windows error screens that are both referred to as the blue screen of death, with one being significantly more serious.
• The MOUSE was invented by Douglas Engelbart of Stanford Research Institute in 1963 after extensive usability testing. It was also called the bug, but eventually this was dropped in favor of mouse. It was one of several experimental pointing devices developed for Engelbart's On-Line System (NLS), which was both a hardware and software system. The other devices were designed to exploit other body movements—for example, head-mounted devices attached to the chin or nose—but ultimately, the mouse won out because of its simplicity and convenience.
• PHISHING:- “Phishing” is a form of Internet fraud that aims to steal valuable information such as credit cards, social security numbers, user IDs and passwords. A fake website is created that is similar to that of a legitimate organization, typically a financial institution such as a bank or insurance company. An email is sent requesting that the recipient access the fake website (which will usually be a replica of a trusted site) and enter their personal details, including security access codes.
• WHITEBOX:- A term used to describe a homemade or small computer shop-made computer. These systems were first called "whiteboxes" back in the early 1990's because of the white or manila colored computer case that these systems would generally have.
• GOOGLE BOMB:- A certain attempt to influence the ranking of a given page in results returned by the Google search engine, often with humorous intentions. Due to the way that Google's Page Rank algorithm works. A Google bomb is created if a large number of sites link to the page in this manner.
• NETIQUETTE:- Network etiquette, or the set of informal rules of behavior that have evolved in Cyberspace, including the Internet and online services.
• SLASHDOT EFFECT:- The Slashdot effect is a particular example of how a popular website can cause a smaller site to slow down or even temporarily close after causing a great increase in the number of visitors going to the smaller site. The huge influx of web traffic is a result of it being mentioned on Slashdot, a popular technology news and information site.
• SPAM origin:- Spam word was derived from a canned meat product made by the Hormel Food Corporation. What made the word spam popular was Monty Python sketch, first broadcast in 1970. In the sketch, two customers are trying to order a breakfast from a menu that includes the processed meat product in almost every item. From here, the word spam was introduced in the computer jargon.
• TRUDY:- Trudy is the short for “Intruder”. A hacker, cracker, and other such bad person is generally called Trudy in network security textbooks and manuals.
• BABELFISH:- Babel Fish is an Internet-based application developed by AltaVista which machine translates text from one of several languages into another. It takes its name from the Babel fish, a fictional animal used for instantaneous language translation in Douglas Adams' novel The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.
• NOISE:- It is an acronym for Netscape, Oracle, IBM, SUN and Everyone Else. This is a term used to lay out the companies working to take on mighty Microsoft.