Absolute Path

An absolute path is a unique location of a file or directory name within a computer or file system. Absolute paths are sometimes called full paths , and typically contain the root directory or drive letter in the beginning of the path. Directories and subdirectories listed in a path are usually separated by a slash "/".

Artificial Intelligence - ( AI )

AI is defined as intelligence exhibited by an artificial entity. Such a system is generally assumed to be a computer . Research in AI is concerned with producing machines to automate tasks requiring intelligent behavior. Examples include control , planning and scheduling , the ability to answer diagnostic and consumer questions, handwriting , speech , and facial recognition .

Atom

A format for syndicating content on news-like sites, viewable by Atom-aware programs called news readers or aggregators.

See also: news reader , RSS , RDF

Blog

A blog , or weblog , is an online journal, diary, or serial published by a person or group of people.

Blogs often contain public as well as private content. Depending on the functionality of the CMS software that is used, some authors may restrict access - through the use of accounts or passwords - to content that is too personal to be published publicly.

Blogging

Blogging is the act of writing in one's blog. To blog something is to write about something in one's blog. This usually involves linking  ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperlink ) to something the author finds interesting on the internet.

See also: blogosphere , blogroll

Blogosphere

The blogosphere is the subset of internet web sites which are, or relate to, blogs .

See also: blog , blogroll

Blogroll

A blogroll is a list of links to various blogs or news sites. Often a blogroll is "rolled" by a service which tracks updates (using feeds ) to each site in the list, and provides the list in a form which aggregates update information.

See also: blog , blogosphere , feed , news reader

Comments

Comments are a feature of blogs which allow readers to respond to posts . Typically readers simply provide their own thoughts regarding the content of the post, but users may also provide links  ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperlink ) to other resources, generate discussion, or simply compliment the author for a well-written post.

Comments can be controlled and regulated through the use of filters for language and content, and often times can be queued for approva l before they are visible on the web site. This is useful in dealing with comment spam .

See also: blog

Content

Content consists of text, images, or other information shared in posts . This is separate from the structural design of a web site, which provides a framework into which the content is inserted, and the presentation of a site, which involves graphic design. A Content Management System changes and updates content, rather than the structural or graphic design of a web site.

Content Management System

A Content Management System , or CMS , is software for facilitating the maintenance of content , but not design, on a web site. A blogging tool is an example of a Content Management System.

See also: blog

cPanel

cPanel is a popular web-based administration tool that many hosting providers provide to allow users to configure their own accounts using an easy-to-use interface.

Developer

A developer , or dev , is a computer programmer who is active in creating, modifying, and updating a software product.

Draft

The draft post status is for WordPress posts which are saved, but as yet unpublished. A draft post can only be edited through the Administration Panel , Write Post SubPanel by users of equal or greater User Level than the post's author .

Eblast

An electronic message (e-mail) sent to a list in an html format.

Excerpt

An excerpt is a condensed description of your blog post and refers to the summary entered in the Excerpt field of the Write Post SubPanel (see Advanced Editing ). The excerpt is used to describe your post in RSS feeds and is typically used in displaying search results. The excerpt is sometimes used in displaying the Archives and Category views of your posts. The Template Tag the_excerpt() can be used to access the contents of this field.

An excerpt should not be confused with the teaser which refers to the first few sentences or paragraphs of a post . When typing a long post you can insert the <!--more--> Quicktag after a few sentences to act as a cut-off point. When the post is displayed, the teaser , followed by a hyperlink (such as Read the rest of this entry... ), are displayed. Your visitor can then click on that link to see the full version of your post . The Template Tag the_content() can be used to display the teaser.

Feed

A feed is a function of special software that allows "Feedreaders" to access a site automatically looking for new content and then posting the information about new content and updates to another site. This provides a way for users to keep up with the latest and hottest information posted on different blogging sites. Some Feeds include RSS (alternately defined as "Rich Site Summary" or "Really Simple Syndication"), Atom or RDF files.

FTP

FTP , or File Transfer Protocol , is rather predictably, a client-server protocol for transferring files. It is one way to download files, and the most common way to upload files to a server.

An FTP client is a program which can download files from, or upload files to, an FTP server .

Hack

A hack is a bit of code written to customize or extend the functionality of a software product. Older versions of WordPress used a hack-based extension system, but versions 1.2 and above of WordPress use a plugin API with hooks for extensions.

Hacking

Hacking is the process of writing code for, or contributing code to, a piece of software.

There is some controversy surrounding the meaning of this term. It began as a benign term meaning "to exercise proficiency" or "to alter or improve," but the popular media have since construed it to mean "to break into a computer system, usually with malicious intent." Many in the computer industry have recently begun trying to 'take back' the word from its popular mutation, and many have adopted the term cracking to replace the malicious interpretation. Because of the desire to reclaim the word, you will often find the term used in conjunction with open source  ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_source ) projects, intended in its benign form.

Hosting provider

A hosting provider is a company or organization which provides, usually for a fee, infrastructure for making information accessible via the web. This involves the use of a web server (including web server software such as Apache ), and may involve one or more related technologies, such as FTP , PHP , MySQL , and operating system software such as Linux or Unix .

HTML

HTML , or Hypertext Markup Language , is the W3C  ( http://www.w3.org ) standard language with which all web pages are built. It is the predecessor to XHTML , but HTML is often still used to describe either one. It is often used in conjunction with CSS and/or JavaScript .

IP address

An IP address is a unique number (e.g. 70.84.29.148 ) assigned to a computer (or other internet-capable information appliance, such as a network printer) to enable it to communicate with other devices using the Internet Protocol . It is a computer's identity on the internet, and every computer connected to the internet is assigned at least one - although the methods of assigning these addresses, and the permanence and duration of their assignment, differ according to the use of the computer and the circumstances of its internet use.

Every web server is assigned an IP address as well, but often times hosting providers will assign multiple IP addresses to one computer, in the event that multiple web sites reside on the same physical server. This is the case with most inexpensive 'managed' or 'group' hosting packages.

Domain names  ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name ) were created to provide an easier means of accessing internet resources than IP addresses, which are cumbersome to type and difficult to remember. Every domain name has at least one corresponding IP address, but only a small number of IP addresses have a domain name associated with them, since only computers that are web servers require domain names. The Domain Name System (DNS)  ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNS ) is what maps Domain names  ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_name ) to IP addresses.

Meta

Meta has a number of meanings, but generally means information about . In WordPress, meta usually refers to administrative type information. As described in Meta Tags in WordPress , meta is the HTML tag used to describe and define a web page to the outside world (search engines). In the article Post Meta Data , meta refers to information associated with each post , such as the author's name and the date posted. Meta Rules define the general protocol to following in using the Codex.

MMS - The Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) is, as its name suggests, the ability to send messages comprising a combination of text, sounds, images and video to MMS capable mobile handsets.

Moblogging

Moblogging is the act of posting to one's blog via a mobile device, e.g. mobile phone, smartphone, or Blackberry.

News reader

A news aggregator or news reader is a computer program which tracks syndicated information feeds , via RSS , RDF , or Atom . Most news aggregators allow one to 'subscribe' to a feed, and automatically keep track of the articles one has read, similar to an email client tracking read emails.

Many blogs make their content available in feed form for the convenience of readers using news aggregators. WordPress can generate feeds in RSS and/or Atom formats.

Open Source

Open source is simply programming code that can be read, viewed, modified, and distributed, by anyone who desires. WordPress is distributed under an open source GNU General Public License (GPL)  ( http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html ) .

Page

A Page is often used to present "static" information about yourself or your site. A good example of a Page is information you would place on an About Page. A Page should not be confused with the time-oriented objects call ed posts . Pages are typically "timeless" in nature and live "outside" your blog.

The word "page" has long been used to describe any HTML document on the web.

Permalink

A permalink is a URL  ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Url ) at which a resource or article will be permanently stored. Many pages driven by Content Management Systems contain excerpts of content which is frequently rotated, making linking to bits of information within them a game of chance. Permalinks allow users to bookmark full articles at a URL  ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Url ) they know will never change, and will always present the same content.

Ping

Ping is a common utility used in a TCP/IP environment to determine if a given IP Address exists or is reachable. Typically, Ping is used to diagnose a network connection problem. Many times you will be asked, "Can you ping that address?". That means, does the Ping utility return a success message trying to reach the "problem" IP Address

PingBack

Pingback lets you notify the author of an article if you link to his article (article on a blog, of course). If the links you include in an article you write on a blog lead to a blog which is pingback-enabled, then the author of that blog gets a notification in the form of a pingback that you linked to his article.

See also: trackback

Podcast

Audio sent out over the Internet and to mobile devices.

Post

An individual entry of content into a blog, or the act of uploading a new piece of content to the live blog site. Posts can be edited after they are published, if necessary or desired.

Post Slug

A word or two describing an entry, for use in permalinks (replaces the %posttitle% field therein), especially useful if titles tend to be long or they change frequently.

RDF

Resource Description Framework. A language used to describe the locations of resources on the web. WordPress can produce output in RDF format that describes the locations of posts. Like RSS, RDF is used for content syndication.

RSS

" Real Simple Syndication ": a format for syndicating many types of content, including blog entries, torrent files, video clips on news-like sites. Programs called news aggregators permit users to view many feeds at once, providing 'push' content constantly.

SMS (Short Message Server )

SMS enables you to send queries as text messages over your mobile phone or device and receive text messages in return.

SMSC - Short Message Server Center

Spam

Once upon a time, SPAM  ( http://www.hormel.com ) was an animal by-product that came in a can and was fodder for many Monty Python sketches, but since the world-wide adoption of the internet as an integral part of daily life, Spam has become synonymous with what is wrong with the internet. Spam, in general terms, is an email or other forms of unsolicited advertising. Spam is very easy to spread throughout the internet, and works on the principle that if you send out thousands, or hundreds of thousands of unsolicited advertisements, scams, or other questionable methods of making money, that you only need a very small percentage of people to be fooled and you will make lots of money.

Common spam these days comes from online gambling sites and those trying to sell drugs for "male enhancement." Lately, web logs, or blogs, as we call them, have been targeted by spammers to try and increase their site ratings in the search engines. Spammers use various methods to distribute their electronic junk mail, and employ bots, or computer programs to quickly and easily send email or comments to millions of addresses and IPs all over the world.

Spammers can be difficult to track down as they often hijack people's email and IP addresses. When this happens, it may appear a friend sent you the spam, but in fact, the spammer's bot  ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_bot ) grabbed your friend's email address and used it to hide the true source of the spam. WordPress developers and community members are constantly working on more and better ways to combat these annoying spammers as they clog the internet with their garbage. You can help by offering your talents, ideas, suggestions, or just by being vigilant and installing any of the currently-available spam combating tools .

Tagline

A tagline is a catchy phrase that describes the character or the attributes of the blog in a brief, concise manner. Think of it as the slogan, or catchline for a weblog.

Theme

A theme is a collection of files that work together to produce a graphical interface with an underlying unifying design for a weblog. A theme modifies the way the weblog is displayed, without modifying the underlying software. Essentially, the WordPress theme system is a way to skin your weblog.

Trackback

Trackback helps you to notify another author that you wrote something related to what he had written on his blog, even if you don't have an explicit link to his article. This improves the chances of the other author sitting up and noticing that you gave him credit for something, or that you improved upon something he wrote, or something similar. With pingback and trackback, blogs are interconnected. Think of them as the equivalents of acknowledgements and references at the end of an academic paper, or a chapter in a textbook.

See also: PingBack .

Vblast

Video sent to a list via e-mail.

Vcast

(Video Cast) Video sent out over the Internet and to mobile devices.

Vlog

Video added to a Blog

WAP

(or Wireless Access Protocol) The protocol that makes it possible to access the Internet from a mobile phone or other wireless device

Webcast

A webcast is similar in intent to a broadcast television program but designed for internet transmission. Webcast clients allow a user to connect to a server, which is distributing ( webcasting ) the webcast, and displays the televisual content to the user.

Initially webcasts were non interactive, in other words, the user was not able to alter the content of the webcast or to interact with the subjects of the webcast. For the most part they were also hosted live (with recordings retained for later dissemination), however more recently there has been greater overlap between video conferencing and webcasting such that webcasts have been generally consigned to being recordings of video conferences and training material where there is much less demand for an interactive session.

Webinar

A Webinar is a seminar which is conducted over the World Wide Web . It is a type of web conferencing . In contrast to a Webcast , which is transmission of information in one direction only, a webinar is designed to be interactive between the presenter and audience. A webinar is 'live' in the sense that information is conveyed according to an agenda, with a starting and ending time. In most cases, the presenter may speak over a standard telephone line, pointing out information being presented on screen, and the audience can respond over their own telephones,

Web server

A web server is a computer containing software for, and connected to infrastructure for, hosting , or serving, web sites written in HTML . The most common web server software on the internet is Apache , which is frequently used in conjunction with PHP , Perl , and other scripting languages.

It is possible to create one's own web server, hosted on any speed of internet connection, but many people choose to purchase packages from hosting providers , who have the capacity and facilities to provide adequate bandwidth, uptime, hardware, and maintenance for frequently-visited web sites.

XFN

The XHTML Friends Network  ( http://gmpg.org/xfn ) . A decentralised project to have inter-blog links that represent relationships between bloggers.

XML

XML , or Extensible Markup Language , is written in Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) and essentially allows you to define your own markup language. XML is extremely useful in describing, sharing, and transmitting data across the Internet. Typically used in conjunction with HTML , XML defines data and HTML displays that data.