E-Comm at UTA - Comprehensive Glossary

Comprehensive Glossary

128-bit encryption
	Encryption is the conversion of data into a form, called a cipher, that cannot be easily intercepted by unauthorized people. Decryption is the process of converting encrypted data back into its original form, so it can be understood. The use of encryption/decryption is as old as the art of communication. In wartime, a cipher, often incorrectly called a "code," can be employed to keep the enemy from obtaining the contents of transmissions. (Technically, a code is a means of representing a signal without the intent of keeping it secret; examples are Morse code and ASCII.) Simple ciphers include the substitution of letters for numbers, the rotation of letters in the alphabet, and the "scrambling" of voice signals by inverting the sideband frequencies. More complex ciphers work according to sophisticated computer algorithms that rearrange the data bits in digital signals. In order to easily recover the contents of an encrypted signal, the correct decryption key is required. The key is an algorithm that "undoes" the work of the encryption algorithm. Alternatively, a computer can be used in an attempt to "break" the cipher. The more complex the encryption algorithm, the more difficult it becomes to eavesdrop on the communications without access to the key. Encryption/decryption is especially important in wireless communications. This is because wireless circuits are easier to "tap" than their hard-wired counterparts. Nevertheless, encryption/decryption is a good idea when carrying out any kind of sensitive transaction, such as a credit-card purchase online, or the discussion of a company secret between different departments in the organization. The stronger the cipher -- that is, the harder it is for unauthorized people to break it -- the better, in general. However, as the strength of encryption/decryption increases, so does the cost. In recent years, a controversy has arisen over so-called strong encryption. This refers to ciphers that are essentially unbreakable without the decryption keys. While most companies and their customers view it as a means of keeping secrets and minimizing fraud, some governments view strong encryption as a potential vehicle by which terrorists might evade authorities. These governments, including that of the United States, want to set up a key-escrow arrangement. This means everyone who uses a cipher would be required to provide the government with a copy of the key. Decryption keys would be stored in a supposedly secure place, used only by authorities, and used only if backed up by a court order. Opponents of this scheme argue that criminals could hack into the key-escrow database and illegally obtain, steal, or alter the keys. Supporters claim that while this is a possibility, implementing the key escrow scheme would be better than doing nothing to prevent criminals from freely using encryption/decryption.

1-Click
	The 1-Click feature is one of Amazon.com's signature strategies for differentiating itself from the competition and building loyalty among its customers. This method allows customers to order, pay for, and arrange for delivery of any item Amazon.com sells, all with a single click of the mouse. The 1-Click method is popular with customers because it gives them a faster, more convenient, more efficient, and more pleasant shopping experience. The uniqueness and consistency of the experience a consumer encounters using the Amazon.com site is crucial to Amazon.com's ability to successfully expand its business. The 1-Click process is a significant element in attracting customers to the Amazon.com web site.

24 x 7
	The numeral way to indicate that services provided by the web-site are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

3-DNow! Technology
	Technology created by Advanced Micro Devices, which enhances floating-point-intensive 3D graphics and multimedia through the use of Single Instruction Multiple Data (SIMD). Introduces in May of 1998, 3DNow! is planned to grow to over 14 million systems by the end of the first quarter of 1999. The basis for expansion ranges from sub-$1000 PCs to high-performance laptops featuring the AMD-K6-III processor.

404
	Somebody who is out of the loop, lost, or plain dumb; from the WWW error message "404 Not Found" (meaning the url could not be located).

4GT
	Fourth Generation Technique that enables software engineer to specify some characteristics of software at a high level. It is also a tool that automatically ggenerate source code based on developer's specifications.

80/20 principle
	In marketing, the idea that 20 percent of all customers generate 80 percent of the demand.

a
	Added by Dr. Mike on July 16, 2002

aa
	entered by Dr. Mike on 120500

aaa
	submitted by Dr. Mike on Oct 3, 2000

AAA server
	A server that provides authentication, authorization, and accounting security services. Standards for such servers include RADIUS and TACACS+.

aaab
	Added by Dr. Mike on July 16, 2002

above the fold
	The part of a web page that is visible once the page has loaded, normally it is the top part of a web page. This term is derived from the newspaper industry, referring to the portion of the front page that is visible with the paper folded.

Absolute URL
	The complete path, address or file on the Internet. (ex. htttp://www2.uta.edu/ecomm)

abstract
	A summary of a document's key points. Usually found at the beginning of an article or paper. Sometimes referred to as "executive summary".

accelerator
	Hardware that is added to improve performance of your computer, includes a combination of an accelerator board and graphics accelerator. The accelerator board replaces the CPU with a higher performance model CPU and the graphics accelerator performs faster access to graphics.

acceptable use policy
	A policy established for a computing resource (e.g. a Web site) that describes how users may access and use the facility. Among other issues, an acceptable use policy typically addresses who may use the resource, the purposes for which the resource may be used, how much of the resource may be used, copying and publication of content, security requirements, and privacy requirements.

access profile
	The information maintained by an AAA server for each user. It includes information needed for authentication and accounting. It also specifies the user's access privileges for authorization by the AAA server.

access provider
	A company which provides its customers a service whereby they can access the Internet. The user normally connects to the access provider’s computer via a modem using a dial up connection. Some of the more widely used access providers are: America Online (AOL), CompuServe, AT&T Worldnet and Netcom.

access URL
	A URL used by a payment switch to enable delivery of a purchased product. The access URL contains the name of the server which can provide the product, the identification of the product, an identification of the buyer (e.g. the buyer's IP address), an expiration date for the access URL, and a digital signature for the access URL.

Accrual Accounting
	Under this method of accounting, income is recognized when earned, whether or not collected, and expenses are recognized when events have occurred that determine that a liability exists and the amount of the liability can be ascertained with reasonable accuracy. For example, at December 31 you ship a customer 100 widgets. You have to record the income in that year, even though you won't get paid until the following year. If you were buying the widgets, you could accrue the expense in the tax year you ordered them. There are some special rules for tax purposes and there can be a significant divergence between recognition of income and expenses for tax and financial accounting purposes

Acquirer
	Acquirer (a.k.a. processor, clearing house) Financial institution (or its agent) which acquires from the card acceptor the data relating to the transaction and initiates that data into an interchange system. The acquirer remains unchanged throughout the transaction.

Acrobat
	Acrobat is a technology developed by Adobe Systems that allows documents created on one computer system to be read and printed on other systems, with the fonts, formatting, text attributes, and graphic elements intact. It works in tandem with the Multiple Masters font technology, in which a font that exists in one computer can emulate the font in the document that was created in another computer system.

active addressing
	A technology that uses transistors, which are stored in chips on the motherboard to improve passive matrix, LCD screens. This image compares to active matrix but does not have the high cost.

active attack
	A persistent security assault by someone trying to gain restricted access by altering data. There are multiple techniques, decryption for example, which can be used to lead the attack.

Active Server Pages
	Active Server Pages are a specification for a dynamically created page on the Web. It consists of a page with a .ASP extension that contains either Visual Basic or Jscript code. At the requests of the browswer for an ASP page, the Web server generates a page that has HTML code and sends it back to the browser. ASP pages are very similar to CGI scripts, though they enable Visual Basic programmers the capability to work with familiar tools.

Active Server Pages
	A specification for a dynamically created Web page with .ASP extension that contain either Visual Basic or JScript code. When a browser requests an ASP page, the Web Server generates a page with HTML code and sends it back to the browser ( Similair to CGI ).

activeX
	ActiveX is Microsoft's answer to the Java technology created by Sun Microsystems and is roughly equivalent to a Java applet. The main thing that you create when writing a program to run in the ActiveX environment is a component, a self-sufficient program that can be run anywhere on your web page. This component, or ActiveX control, could be anything from a scrolling marquis to an animation that is seen on the web page. It could also be an area where the visitor enters information about himself or his credit card. ActiveX is useful in marketing because it can be used to make web pages much more interesting as well as efficient and effective.

ad clicks (or click throughs)
	The number of times a user "clicks" on an online ad, often measured as a function of time("ad clicks per day")

ad impressions
	The number of times an advertiser's banner is seen by users. Determining optimal frequency can be the factor that determines the effectiveness of any advertising campaign. Setting your frequency too high leads to waste; set it too low and your message may not get through.

adaptive decisions
	Company undergoes various decision making process throughout its establishment. They encounter many problems, which can be new or old, known or unknown. Decisions are classified into three categories in genera routine, adaptive, and innovative. Adaptive decisions are the choices made as a solution to the moderately unusual and fairly uncommon problems and alternative solutions. Adaptive means adopted. The key point is the modification and improvement of the part of routine decisions and practices done by the company or the relative companies. Decision, which may be any kind, is effective to the e-commerce because e-commerce does face a lot of problems on its life.

adaptive selling
	A sales technique using a pitch adapted for each prospect in response to the specific sales situation. Electronic commerce can make use of this technique by gathering input from customers through effective interfaces.

adbusting
	A technique that uses a plug-in to eliminate on-line ads from Web pages. It has a potential to affect revenues from site sponsorship. An example of this new technology is Siemens' WebWasher.

ad-buy
	Agreement to place an ad banner on a site or sites until a specified budget, date or number of impressions is reached.

ADC
	Automatic Data Capture. The general capability of gathering status, location, and identifying information without human intervention. ADC reduces the need for manually keying in data and the risk of inaccuracies. Technologies used in ADC include bar coding, magnetic stripes, smart cards, machine vision, biometric identification, voice recognition, and Radio Frequency Identification.

Addenda Record
	A portion of the ACH payment record that contains payment related information. This information, sent in standard formats, can accompany payments exchanged through the ACH network and provides for high volume electronic remittance processing.

Address
	An identifier assigned to networked workstations and other devices so that each device can be separately designated to receive and reply to messages.

address book
	A personal directory of e-mail addresses stored and maintained with one's e-mail program.

Administered system
	It is a system that is established within a marketing channel when a strong organization assumes a leadership position. The strength and power of the leader may stem from economic domination, reputation, or some other form of control.

ADN
	(Advanced Digital Network) -- Usually refers to a 56Kbps leased-line.

Adobe Photoshop
	is one of the most popular graphic programs used in the creation for web graphics. The program was originally designed by the creators of the movie "The Abyss."

adopter
	A user who likes a product so much that they start to build brand loyalty to it.

ADSL
	(Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line) Allows a subscriber to download (receive) data using speeds up to 1.5 megabits per second. The upload (send) speed at 128 kilobits per second. The download speed is different than the upload speed, hence the term "Asymmetric" is valid. An ADSL modem allows the user connections for both the computer and the phone at the same time. This reduces the cost as one line can serve two functions. ADSL uses the current copper wires which are in most homes and businesses.

Advance Shipment Notice
	Document sent to customers to notify of impending delivery of goods.

Advanced E-Commerce
	Personalization: Use personalization software to identify site visitors and configure the online presentation so it matches a customers' preferences as well as tracking customers site usage and purchasing behavior to target products and services. Affinity Engineering: Examines purchasing patterns of customers for post product information that a customer may be interested in. Virtual private network, VPN: creates a pipe that encrypts data sent across the Internet and provides control of the resources visible at the service end of the connection. Digital certificates provide user authentication. Web-telephony integration: Allow customer to click on a button that establishes a voice connection with a customer service representative. Public-key infrastructure: Seriousness about security by the use of PKI, which should include encryption and digital signature services.

Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET)
	Created by the United States Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (ARPA), ARPANET was an experimental Wide Area Network (WAN) established in 1969. Being the testing phase for upcoming networks and network technology, ARPANET would link universities and research centers. Connecting these hosts together, two at UCLA and Stanford provided communication links for researchers to exchange ideas. This later became the forerunner to the Internet.

advertisements
	Making a product or service known using the internet. Also known as the annoying banners that pop up while "surfing the web".

Advertiser
	Companies and individuals that pay to have their products shown and presented to potential customers. Effective advertising companies can dramatically increase sales and profits.

advertising
	impersonal, one-way mass communication about a prodect or organization that is paid for by a marketer

Advertising Appeal
	Identifies a reason a person should purchase a product. Advertising campaign can focus on one or more appeals, which are developed by the creative people in the advertising agency. Typical appeals are profit, health, love fear, convenience and fun.

Advertising Campaign
	A series of related advertisements for a particular product- focusing on a common theme, slogan , and the set of advertising appeals- that extends for a defined time period.

advertising objective
	A specific communication task an advertising campaign should accomplish for a specific target audience.

advertising spiral
	The stages through which a product-class' Advertising passes, including: Pioneering, Competitive and Retentive.

advertorial
	A print advertisement styled to resemble the editorial format and type face of the publication of Web site it is running on.

Advice
	A message where the sender notifies the receiver of an activity that has been taken, requiring no approval but requiring a response.

AdvTHANKSance
	Thank you in advance for your help.

AEI
	Automatic Equipment Identification. The general capability of identifying movable equipment without human intervention.

Affiliate program
	An automated marketing program which a Web merchant recruits other Web sites to place the merchant's banners and buttons on their sites in return for commissions on sales to customers who click on the ads.

affinity group
	People with common interest. On the internet, typically a subject-oriented mailing list, a newsgroup, or a conference on a Web siteor IRC.

AFT
	Automated fuel terminal. Allows purchasers of gasoline to "pay at the pump" with a thermal printer installed at every pump.

after marketing
	The efforts a company makes after a sale is complete to insure the individual remains as a customer of the company.

Aftermarket
	The industry that produces merchandise and products that are usually add-ons to original equipment. The automobile market has a huge aftermarket industry. For instance, there are many truck accessories available after you purchase your truck. You can purchase aftermarket wheels, tires, bug shields, performance equipment, rollbars, and other various add-ons. Aftermarket merchandise is also very big in the computer industry. Consumers can buy just about any add-on they can think of for their computer.

Agency Relationship
	Occurs when one individual (the principle) hires another individual (the agent) to perform a service on behalf of the principle.

agents (droids)
	Also known as intelligent agents, knowbots and droids, an agent is a software routine that waits in the background and automatically seeks out online information based on your queries.

aggregator
	This is a e-commerce business model in which the web site sells products or services which it does not produce or warehouse. Rather, an Aggregator creates an environment where multiple providers (sellers) must compete on terms determined by the use.

aglets
	Invention by Danny Lange a Java-based autonomous software agent. A program that can run on one computer, and then transport itself over a network and continue to execute at a new computer. Normally, a Java applet is downloaded and executed on a single-client machine. An aglet, by contrast, is designed to travel across networks, execute on multiple machines, and contain data that interacts with the applet, according to Lange. The advantage of aglets is that they are ideal ecommerce applications. The disadvantage, at the moment is that many firewall security systems will not allow them onto the server.

AGP
	Accelerated Graphics Port, a recent advance in PC microprocessor design that provides a dedicated data link between the central processor and the graphics processor to speed up the displaying of graphics.

AIDA concept
	A model that outlines the process for achieving promotional goals in terms of stages of consumer involvement with the message; the acronym stands for Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action.

AIFF: Audio Interchange File Format
	Audio Interchange File Format: An audio file format created by Apple for the Macintosh. AIFF encodes the sounds but does not compress them resulting in fairly large files.

AIX
	A multiple-user OS, basically IBM's attempt to copy UNIX

alias
	File that is the master list of e-mail addresses. Many times a corporation will incorporate all their employees into a master list, that way inter organizational messages can be broken down into divisions and ranks. An alias is your view into a company's system

AliWeb
	AliWeb is a search directory for that locates WWW documents. It is provided by NEXOR, a UK based service provider. AliWeb relies on forms that Web authors have submitted to the AliWeb database, which makes it a directory, not a search engine (similar to Yahoo!) because it does not use a spider.

allignment
	the way text is horizontally lined up on the page, all to the right, centered, left, or justified.

All-you-can-afford method
	A method of budgeting for promotions by which all other areas of business are budgeted first and anything left over is used for promotion

Alpha Channel
	A portion of each pixel's data reserved for transparency information. 32-bit graphics contain four channels. It really is a mask that specifies how the pixel's color should be merged with another pixel when both are overlaid.

Alternative Media
	Alternative media is an emerging, narrowly focused advertising vehicle. Examples of this are magazines designed only for physicians’ waiting rooms, or direct mail sent only to specific households based on income. This form of media is the child of demassification, it is demassification at its best.

Amdahl's Law
	This law of computer science states that within a program that processes data in parallel, a few sequential instructions will degrade program speed and that adding more processors will not enable the program to run faster.

American Marketing Association (AMA)
	Is the worlds largest and most comprehensive professional society of marketers, consisting of more than 45,000 worldwide members in 92 countries and 500 chapters throughout North America. The AMA is the only organization that provides direct benefits to marketing professionals in both business and education and serves all levels of marketing, practitioners, educators, and students.

American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII)
	A widely used and internationally recognized coding system to represent characters in a standard way. ASCII is commonly used for storage within computer systems, and for exchange between them. English characters are represented as numbers, with each letter assigned a number from 0 to 127.For example, the ASCII code for uppercase M is 77. Most computers use ASCII codes to represent text, which makes it possible to transfer data from one computer to another. While, the standard ASCII character set uses just 7 bits for each character. There are several larger character sets that use 8 bits, which gives them 128 additional characters. Another set of codes similar, but different to ASCII is used on large IBM computers is EBCDIC.

anacronym
	A group of letters that form a word that represent a phrase or another word. For example “radar” actually stands for “radio detection and ranging”

analysis paralysis (n.)
	The state in which IS developers find themselves when the perceived need to improve a software product being developed results in no production being accomplished

anchor
	A tag in HTML that marks the start and end of the object to be retrieved by the browser from a server.

angel
	Angel is the private individual who acts as an important means of resourceful to the firm. Angel usually invests directly into the firm. In return they get equity state. They can benefit from the firm's growth and also they can suffer from the firm's failures and mistakes. That is why angels often can be seen as business advisor to the founders. Angels are found to be unselfish. They look for the benefit of the firm before their own benefits. Thus they do have demand. They also enjoy seeing firms grow up. Most of the established angels do investment to help people start up business rather than the motivation of making money, which is also an important factor. In e-commerce, angels do play indirect role since it costs lots of money on the online sites. Angels being the advisors and investor do affect in the e-commerce aspect of the firm.

Animated GIF
	A type of GIF image that can be animated by combining several images into a single GIF file. These files tend to be much smaller than other animation files such as Java applets.

Animation
	To give life to. To make or produce ( a cartoon) so as to create the illusion of motion.

Animations
	The perception of movement created with continuously changing frames. This may be accomplished with a series of GIF or JPEG images saved in a compressed file.

annotations
	Annotations are notes that can be added to your Web documents. They are stored on your local disk and are available each time that you access a document. This feature is often found in some Web browsers.

Anonymous FTP
	A service for obtaining files from remote computers over the Internet. It allows the user to log on without establishing an account. Users may log on as "anonymous" and use their e-mail address as the password.

ANSI
	Acronym for the American National Standards Institute. Founded in 1918, ANSI is a voluntary organization composed of over 1,300 members (including all the large computer companies) that creates standards for the computer industry. For example, ANSI C is a version of the C language that has been approved by the ANSI committee. To a large degree, all ANSI C compilers, regardless of which company produces them, should behave similarly. In addition to programming languages, ANSI sets standards for a wide range of technical areas, from electrical specifications to communications protocols. For example, FDDI, the main set of protocols for sending data over fiber optic cables, is an ANSI standard.

ANSI X12
	the ANSI X12 standards specify the format and data content of electronic business transactions. (Electronic Commerce Terms Glossary http://www.oakland.ecrc.org/gloss3.html)

ANSI Standard
	A list of standards published by an ANSI committee, and accepted through public consensus. It is reviewed by an ANSI committee every 5 years for updating.

Anti-Aliasing
	Smoothing or blending the transition of pixels in an image. Anti-aliasing the edges on a graphic image makes the edges appear smooth, not jagged.

anti-direct marketing
	A discipline which encompasses all marketing and adevertising techniques that operates on the principle of eliciting a negative response from prospects or customers.

API: Application Program Interface
	A set of building blocks provided by most operating systems allowing programmers to write their own applications that are consistent with that specific operating system. This allows the users of the application to learn more quickly how to use the application since it is consistent with the operating system.

applets
	Applets are miniature programs. The name comes from the term “applications” which is one variety of a software program. Applets is just a cute name for what is generally called a utility program, but it’s used almost exclusively in the Windows environment. A utility program is designed to do one little function, generally in the service of housekeeping for your computer system, rather than actually producing something. The term “applet,” though, implies that these little programs are actually doing something practical, beyond what a utility would do.

application acknowledgement
	A transaction set whose purpose is to return a response to a transaction set that has been received and processed in an application program. For example, a purchase order software application will provide an order acknowledgement system that will confirm receipt of the order and tell a customer such things as whether the provider can fulfill the order request, the timing and method of delivery, and provide a confirmation number, thus ensuring accuracy of the purchase order system.

applications
	There are several varieties of computer programs, but the ones most of us are familiar with are the applications. An application is a program you use to get some practical work done, such as word processing or accounting or illustrating. Programs such as WordPerfect, PageMaker, Excel, and Illustrator are all examples of applications. Programs such as Adobe Type Manager or Suitcase are utilities because we don’t create work with them—they just help you manage your computer system

applied research
	Research aimed at finding useful applications for new technologies.

Appreciation
	An increase in the value of one asset in terms of another

appz
	A slang term for application softwares.

Aptent
	A term formed by combining the words 'application' and 'content'. The term is used to refere to an Internet application that contains textual and graphic content.

Arbitrage
	The simultaneous purchase and sale of something in two (or more) markets at a time when it is selling (being bought) at different prices in the markets. Profit is the differential minus cost

Arbitrary Allocation
	Method means that a firm simply chooses a dollar amount for promotion without a reference to other factors. Using these methods, the budget allocated may or may not be adequate to effectively promote the product.

Archie
	A search utility that surveys all FTP sites once a month and builds an index. The initial implementation of archie by McGill University School of Computer Science provided an indexed directory of filenames from all anonymous FTP archives on the Internet. Later versions provide other collections of information.

architecture
	the structure of a computer system including details on how it functions and how the components interact. Architecture may include hardware and software. (Earth Commerce Inc.; http://www.earthcommerce.com/glossa.html)

Archive
	To create a redundant copy of computer file data. Typically the backup copy of the data is made in case the original is damaged. In addition to protecting files form loss, this approach also permits any previous version of a file to be restored, typically by date and time.

archive site
	a site which holds older pages and files which can be accessed, often for a fee. Many newspapers, magazines, and other publications provide access to older articles through archive sites

ARPA/ARPANet
	The Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), considered the progenitor of today's Internet, was founded in the late 1950's by the U.S. Department of Defense in response to what was known as the Soviet Union's launch of Sputnik. This agency funded research in the development of computer science and information technologies. In the late 1960's and early 1970's the DOD funded the agency to develop a wide-area-network that would survive a nuclear war. From this research developed the precursor of the Internet, ARPANet, an experimental network linking several U.S. universities and research laboratories.

Articles of Incorporation
	An agreement that is the contract between those individuals starting the corporation or partners in a partnership specifying such items as the name, location, nature of the business, capital investment, etc.

artificial intelligence
	The ability for a computer or other artificial form to learn and make decisions based on what it has learned.

ASC X12
	Stands for Accredited Standards Committee, X12. A committee of government and industry individuals who submit EDI standards to ANSI for approval and acceptance into ANSI standards documentation.

Asking Curve
	An approach tha estimates whole demand curves

asset
	Economic resources that are owned by a company. These resources are expected to benefit the company in the future. For E-commerce companies, assets can range from the physical (computers, hardware, etc.) to the ideas and trademarks that a company might possess.

Assimilation
	When a member of the audience agrees with the speaker and begins to view the speakers thoughts and ideas as their own.

Asynchronous Tansfer Mode (ATM)
	A network technology that supports realtime voice and video as well as data. The "protocol" establishes a logical circuit from end to end which guarantees a quality of service for that connection. Any unused bandwidth is dynamically allocated to other connections.

asynchronous transmission
	This form of transmission is like sending packages through the mail with a address and a return address. Each character of data is a self-contained package with its own start and stop bits. In contrast to synchronous transmission, asynchronous transmission sends data without special timing information and the start and stop bits tell hardware and software that an entire character has been received. Asynchronous is the common form of transmission between modem and computer.

AT commands
	AT is a command used to program SmartModems from Hayes Microcomputer Products. AT commands are beneficial because it programs a variety of modem hardware settings. AT commands were adopted by other modem manufacturers who wanted to market their wares with the term Hayes-compatible

at Symbol (@)
	Is a character that replaces the word "at". It is often used on internet addresses.

AT&T Mondex - Mastercards entry into E-Cash
	AT&T Mondex, unlike most E-Cash systems, was not developed for the Internet, but rather the real world. The concept is based on using a credit card sized device that contains a computer chip. THis device is called a smart card. The smart card has the ability to keep track of how much "money" it contains. Smart cards use a reader much like traditional credit and ATM cards. Swiping a smart card through the reader transfers value directly to the merchants reader, just as if you were taking the money from your wallet and handing it over. You can also transfer value to anyone else's smart card. The primary disadvantage is the requirement for a reader. THe Mondex smart card is backed by MasterCard and AT&T and is likely to become a major E-Cash contender.

Attach File
	This is a handy function available in most mailers that allows a member to "attach" a file, any file, to a piece of E-Mail. If a file is larger than 1MB, it is probably better to transfer it some other way. Some mailers do limit the size of a mail file or attached file.

attachment
	It is a computer file that is electronicaly attached to an e-mail.

auction
	A public or private sale where people bid on a product on-line. The product is given to the highest bidder.

audience
	Any party that receives information from the sender. Audience can be composed of an individual or a group. Audience must be considered when developing a strategy to segment and target a particular market. Audience is generally expressed in demographic, psychographic, and socieographic terms.

Audit Trail
	Information on the significant steps in the progress of a transaction which allows an auditor to determine that there are no errors in the reporting of the transaction. In electronic commerce a good audit trail can help resolve programming errors and discrepancies in the how a transaction is recorded by the parties to the transaction.

Audit Trail
	Record of messages created as a by-product of data processing runs or mechanized operations. The Audit Trail replaces the traditional "paper trail" that can be used to track the course of a transaction or order.

Audit Trail
	auditors use this permanent record to double check information the company dispurses.

Auric Web System
	This is a form of electronic commerce where the user can process transactions. This is a system for identifying globally for Internet Service Providers, consumers and merchants.

authenticated
	Established as being a genuine user or verifying the identify of a user.

authentication certificates
	Authentication Certificates contain information about who it belongs to, who it was issued by, a unique serial number or other unique identification, valid dates, and an encrypted “fingerprint” that can be used to verify the contents of the certificate. The certificates are issued by a trusted third-party organization or company used to create digital signatures and public-private key pairs. The role of the Certification Authority(CA) in this process is to guarantee that the individual granted the unique certificate is, in fact, who he or she claims to be. Usually, this means that the CA has an arrangement with a financial institution, such as a credit card company, which provides it with information to confirm an individual's claimed identity. CAs are a critical component in data security and electronic commerce because they guarantee that the two parties exchanging information are really who they claim to be.

authentication key
	A key that consists of a short string of characters, such as unique information from the message (i.e. date, time or dollar amount) that is used to ensure that the data in a business transaction that is sent electronically remains unaltered. An authentication key can also be used as a form of digital signature on many financial transactions sent electronically over the internet. This verifies the identity of the sender.

Authority rule
	A group decision-making procedure in which a choosen leader makes a final decision, either with or without the advise of the group members. This can help in e-commerce by giving the team leader an opportunity make a final decision when a member is out and the deadline is up in the project.

Authorization
	The process of granting or denying access to a network resource. Most computer security systems are based on a two-step process. The first stage is authentication, which ensures that a user is who he or she claims to be. The second stage is authorization, which allows the user access to various resources based on the user's identity.

automated crime
	The use of a software program to invade a system, commit a crime (e.g. illegal transfer of funds) and erase all traces of the crime, usually within a small fraction of a second.

Automatic Data Capture
	The use of technology to capture data into a computer, generally without human intervention. Also known as keyless data entry.

Automatic Storage and Retrieval Systems
	Technology that enables material handlers to automatically store and pick goods from a warehouse or distribution center, in order to decrease product handling, increases or der fulfillment accuracy, and increase on-time shipments.

Automatic Vending
	Form of nonstore retailing that uses vending machines to offer products for sale.

Automation system
	Systems that uses information technology to perform tasks that otherwise would be performed manually. Typically, systems that are based on a database, which uses the database to perform different fucntions can be categorized under automation systems. An example would be computers that prints out addresses based on any kind of demographic information.

Automatyic Identification
	Use of identification technology to mark and read products as they enter and leave the supplier's warehouse or as they are received by a manufacturer or retailer.

autoresponder
	Email software that usually resides on a email server which sends back "blanket" email messages depending on the email message they receive. For instance, if the administrator of the autoresponder tells it to look for certain characters (in the exact form) in an email message, it will reply with a pre-formated email message to the originator of the message. These are often used for LISTSERVS and sites that take product orders.

Available Market
	that part of the total market which professes an interest in a product, can afford to purchase it, and is not prevented by access barriers from reaching it.

avant garde style
	An approach towards unconventional and unorthodox web-page creation eg. unusual fonts, sharp contrasting colors, casual text, jargons etc.

avatar
	Sometimes called a digital “actor” or placeholder. It represents who and where you are in the virtual world. Some examples where you would have an avatar are 3D chat rooms and VRML worlds. Usually this can any graphical element you want such as a cartoon, a fish.

AVI Video Clip (audio/video interleave)
	File format used for Videos in Windows, one of three video technologies used on personal computers. (The others are MPEG and QuickTime.) In AVI, picture and sound elements are stored in alternate interleaved chunks in the file.

Awards
	Yahoo, the main "yellow pages" of the Web, provides awardgivers in a separate Awards Category in their Directory. These awards processing times can be very unpredictable. The same awardgiver may process one application in 2 days, another in 2 months. Many are volunteer organizations and others are peripheral to main activities, so submission-processing gets done when time is available.

Awareness Objective
	Advertising goal that seeks to increase consumer's knowledge of a product or brand.

B2B
	Short form of commerce or business being conducted over the Web between businesses, or "business-to-business electronic commerce," i.e., B2B. It represents how businesses will transform themselves to connect to other businesses via the Internet to reduce costs and improve delivery in service areas, e.g., supply chain management, support services, product/service development and enterprise resources planning. B2B will be the largest segment impacted by the connected economy. For example, Cisco is a dominant leader in B2B e-commerce with over $22 million per day in orders flowing through the Cisco Connection Online (CCO) site. "Cost savings of more than $600 million annually are being recorded as Cisco's business moves increasingly to a digital platform for doing every imaginable activity."

B2C
	Short form of commerce or business being conducted over the Web between businesses and consumers, i.e., "business-to-consumer electronic commerce," or, B2C. It represents how businesses will transform themselves to connect to customers via the Internet encompassing: 1) How to attract customers; 2) How to hold customers through the interaction and transaction; and 3) How to convince them to return to do business again. It includes both existing businesses who will exploit the Internet as a channel for establishing their digital brand, as well as new businesses who will go to the consumer marketplace exclusively online (Amazon.com being the best known retail example).

B2E
	Short form of online business or commerce being conducted by an organization with its employees over an internal Internet, or intranet. Referred to as "business-to-employee electronic commerce," i.e., B2E. It represents how businesses will transform themselves to connect online with employees to expand the type of information and transactions that can be accessed and executed, as well as to reduce the costs associated with such. Examples might include online manuals, job postings, T&E, benefits selection, training registration and distance learning.

Back door drop-ins
	term used for someone who is guided to page other than the home page initially by a full text search engine. (This is the reason for good navigation aids within a website.)

Back link
	Back link A link in one direction implied from the existence of an explicit link in the other direction.

Backbone
	Is a network or networks that are high speed and connect every network of a single company. The basic parts of a network are the hardware devices used to connect the backbone network to the other networks and the network cable. The hardware includes switches, gateways, brouters,routers, bridges and hubs. The cable is pretty much the same as in a LAN's except it is of a higher quality for it needs to provide higher data rates.

Backup
	An identical copy of a file, program, or set of files, usually on removeable disk or tape, kept in a safe place, in case the original file is lost or damaged.

Backward Compatible
	A new version of an application or program is backward compatible if it can read files created by earlier versions of the same application.

Backward vertical integration
	Establishing facilities to manufacture inputs used in the production of a firm's final product.

bait advertising
	Advertising that offers an unusually low price for an item to draw a customer into a store where the low priced item is usually not available. Then the customer is convinced to buy a more expensive similar product. Also known as bait and switch advertising.

bait pricing
	price tactic that tries to get consumers into a store through false or misleading price advertising and then uses high-pressure selling to persuade consumers to buy more expensive merchandise

bandwidth
	The speed of transmitting data, measured in bits per second (bps).

Bandwidth
	It's a shorthand term for "Internet airtime". For example, posters to newsgroups will say, "Sorry for wasting bandwidth" if they posted something in error. Disliked items may be criticized for "burning bandwidth".

banner
	A picture or graphic that stretches horizontally across a web page. These can be used to title the web page, start or separate different sections, create links to other web pages, or provide a place for advertisements.

banner
	An image on a website that is advertising oriented or announces the name of a particular website. A banner is usually 'clickable' and will transport the user to a separate website that is associated with the banner advertising.

banner advertising
	A marketing mechanism that contains strips of advertisements that are sporadically positioned on a web page and are extremely popular on the World-Wide-Web. These types of ads generally take up a considerable amount of bandwidth and are sometimes disturbing to the web user.

Banner Exchange
	is an inexpensive form of internet marketing. If you agree to show others banners on your site then they will show your banner on theirs. You need to investigate the other site involved in the exchange to ensure that your site in not show on a site that you would consider inappropriate. There are websites on the internet that will provide this service for you.

Bar Code
	Series of thick and thin vertical lines, readable by computerized optical scanners, that represent numbers used to track products.

Barrages
	Advertising in methodical repetitiuos manner put out in spurts. Repetitious advertising in this manner is highly effective for the advertisers.

Base 64
	A type of binary encoding that many mac users like. People who post in non-mac usenet binary groups are likely to be flamed and told to unencode the message.

base price
	The general price level at which the company expects to sell the good or service.

baseband
	A signaling technology used for local area networks. Baseband has a digital signal.

baseband

Basing-point Pricing
	the price of freight costs from a base point location, rather than being determined from the city the goods are shipped from

baud
	The number of times the signal on a modem changes when transmitting a message. Each time the signal changes, the modem sends a certain number of bits that are transmitted over a communication medium. Baud rate and bit rate can often be confused as being the same. They are only equal when one bit is sent on each signal, then the bit rate and baud rate are the same. If you have four bits sent on one pulse, or signal change, the bits per second is four times the baud rate. If eight bits are sent on one pulse, or signal change, the bits per second is eight times the baud rate.

Baud rate
	The signaling or symbol rate of a digital transmission path or device. A symbol can represent more than one bit of information, depending on the encoding or modulation scheme used to create the symbol. Often used interchangeably with bits per second (BPS).

baudy language
	The collection of abbreviations and symbols used in electronic mail messages is sometimes called baudy language. It is an integral part of online communication to use baudy language, since many messages can be misinterpreted unless accompanied by a smile, a frown, a wink, a giggle. The following symbols are to be read with your left ear on your left shoulder. As you become accustomed to using and reading them, you’ll find that you will be able to understand them without bending your head. All of the symbols can have a nose added to them with a hyphen, as in :-). ; ) wink : D big smile, laughing : > sarcastic or devilish smile : ( frown :’ ( crying : \| neutral; bored }: ) horny smile :-{) smile with a mustache, usually indicating a male : {> devilish smile with a mustache : O O Dear, O Woe is Me : P tongue sticking out; raspberry; bronx cheer (really rather rude and not to be used lightly) : X my lips are sealed 0: ) angel }: > devil ::: ::: colons surround an action that the writer is pretending to do {{ }} indicates the person whose name is between the curly brackets is being hugged <--- indicates the person writing this message is the subject of the sentence * kiss P* french kiss ^ ^ ^ giggles -----\--@ long-stemmed rose The following list of shortcuts are abbreviations for commonly used phrases that give the other readers important information. ! I have a comment ? I have a question afk away from keyboard AOL America Online asap as soon as possible awc after while, crocodile bak back at keyboard brb be right back btw by the way byob bring your own bottle CIS CompuServe CI$ CompuSpend cul see you later cula see you later, alligator fyi for your information ga go ahead gmta great minds think alike ima I might add imho in my humble opinion; in my honest opinion imnsho in my not-so-humble opinion imo in my opinion lol laughing out loud obtw oh, by the way oic oh, I see otoh on the other hand rotflol rolling on the floor, laughing out loud rsn real soon now snafu situation normal: all fouled up sos help! tanj there ain’t no justice tanstaafl there ain’t no such thing as a free lunch tptb the powers that be ttfn ta-ta for now ttyl talk to you later wb welcome back wtg! way to go! xoxoxo kisses and hugs

Beautifying
	A term in retail merchandising for cleaning up, organizing a merchandising statement. This process entails putting on the finishing touches in the arrangement of merchandise. Beautifying is giving a person great intense aesthetic pleasure or satisfaction.

benchmark
	A measurement of computer performance for comparison.

benchmarking
	the process of rating a company's products against the best products in the world, including those in other industries

Benchmarking Gap
	Difference in performance of an organization’s particular activity or product, and that of their competition.

benefit segmentation
	The process of grouping customers into market segments according to the benefits they seek from the product. Refers to their needs and wants only.

Berne Convention
	Establised in 1886 for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works (most recently revised in 1971). It protects copyrighted material in ALL countries that signed the Convention. This means that a creator of some work does not have to copyright his/her creation in numerous countries. It is administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization.

Best Practice
	Practices that have been shown to produce the best results for a particular process or activity.

Beta Test
	A computer program is in beta test when its developers have mostly finished but are looking for help from trial users to find bugs and problems before the final, commercial version is issued.

Bevel
	Adding a beveled effect to a graphic image gives the image a raised appearance by applying highlight colors and shadow colors to the inside and outside edges.

binary files
	are any electronic files that contain no more than 256 different characters and are encoded by 8 binary digits per each character. Most graphics, sound files, word processing documents are examples of binary files.

Binhex
	Short for Binary Hexadecimal. This is a method for converting non-text files into ASCII, which is the only form Internet e-mail can handle.

biometric signature
	A signature that cannot be lost, stolen, or recreated. Biometric refers to unique physical traits of an individual such as a fingerprint, retina, or palm print. At this time, the fingerprint is the biometric identifier of choice.

BIOS (Basic input/output system)
	A set of programs, usually in firmware, that enables each computer's central processing unit (CPU) to communicate with printers, disks, keyboards, consoles and other attached input/output devices.

bisynchronous communication
	An electronic method of communication most commonly used by mainframes, but also available on PC's, that data is sent in blocks of characters and in both directions at the same time.

Bit
	Short for binary digit, the smallest amount of data that can be stored; it has one of two possible values - on or off - zero or one.

bit bucket
	No mans land where things on the computer disapear to. Kind of like the sock that disappears in the wash.

bitmap
	is a graphic which specifies the colors of pixels which compose the image. TIFF, JPG, GIF, BMP, are all image formats which are bitmaps.

BITNET
	This is short for "Because It's Time Network". BITNET is one of the oldest and largest Wide Area Networks, used extensively by Universities. A new version called BITNET II relies on the Internet to transfer messages and files.

Black Box
	An expression for an electronic component whose function is not understood.

black hole
	That mythological place said to have sucked up lost e-mail messages.

blatherer
	Someone on the web, who uses two or three pages to say something that could have been said in two or three sentences.

Bleeding Edge
	The latest technological advancement. These advacements often push our hardware and software to their limits. Sometimes the newest technology goes on to become the standard bearer that everyone else scrambles to copy. Often, however, these advancements turn out to be flash-in-the-pan gimmicks.

blind certificate
	A blind certificate is an anonymous version of a cookie. The user can be tracked due to limited information that is provided by the user's system, but the name is withheld. Blind certificates allow marketing departments to trace consumer's spending habits without invading a customer's privacy.

blind signatures
	This system, developed by DigiCash, allows a buyer to obtain e-cash from a bank without the bank being able to correlate the buyer's name with the tokens it issues.

Blistering
	This term describes the fastest, quickest video speed possible for improved performance in running computer applications dealing with pictures to movie animation which have sharp, high definition of graphics. This ultra speed has practically VERY LITTLE to NO SLOWDOWN in video animation which is only possible with a fast processor (at least a Pentium II) along with the new ULTRA-FAST 3D video cards.

Block Graphics
	Graphical images created in character mode.

blow-in
	A technique used for inserting pieces or postcards into a magazine. They are blown-in and fall out into customers' laps.

Blue screen of death
	An error that can appear on computers running Microsoft Windows 95, 98, or NT. Jokingly called the blue screen of death because when the error occurs, the screen turns blue, and the computer almost always freezes and requires rebooting.

Bluetooth
	A new standard for wireless data transfer. Bluetooth is composed of 9 different companies including 3Com, Lucent, Microsoft, and Motorola. It can be built into any wireless application and is not sensitive to electronic noises. Bluetooth trnsmits radio waves at 2.45 GHz. http://www.bluetooth.com

Board of Directors
	Elected by shareholders to manage the corporation. In practice, the Board of Directors chooses the officers of the corporation who make most of the decisions.

BOGO
	By One Get One free

Bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ)
	Any question asked should be job-related. Under the U.S. government's Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) allows only questions that are asked should be for a particular occupation. In developing an e-commerce website, this statement is effective in sticking to just good business conduct on the website. Only asking customers about their line of business.

bookmark
	A marker saved in a user's Web browser so that he or she may return to a Web site later without having to remember the exact URL. In Netscape, they are called "bookmarks," while Internet Explorer labels them "Favorites."

Boolean
	Boolean Logic is a means of searching the Internet using a logical combinatorial system that represents symbolic relationships among search terms. Boolean logical operators include (AND, OR, NOT and the combination AND,OR). Named after the British mathematician George Boole.

Boomerang Effect
	When the audience has a hostile reaction because the speaker's ideas are to radical.

bootstrap (v.)
	To initiate a process with minimal resources.

Borrowed Interest Promotion
	A promotion to capture the attention of a target audience by using the fame, impact, or recognition of an event or personality.

bot
	A.K.A.-Robot. It automatically searches for certain criteria. A bot that looks for the cheapest price for CDs is a shopping bot.

bottom line (n.)
	The simplest conclusion that can be drawn from a set of hypotheses.

Bottoms-Up Information Distribution
	Information flows up the value chain - if the consumer and producer can meet directly, through Web marketing, there is a whole infrastructure of terrestrial costs that vanish.

bounce
	Just like postal mail, when a letter has an undeliverable address the mail comes back to the sender.

Boycott
	An exclusion of all products from certain countries or companies.

bozo filter
	Is a feature supported by many email systems. It contains the addresses of individuals (bozo list) that the user wants to block.

bps
	Acronym for Bits Per Second. This is a measurement of how fast data is moved from one location to another. For example a 33.6 modem can move 36,600 bits per second.

Brainstorming
	A group method or process that encourages all members to contribute spontaneously, creatively, and freely to a range of ideas or a variety of possible solutions available for consideration.

Brand Equity
	the placement of value upon a company and/or brand names

brand image
	A group of characteristics or associated relationships which a consumer attributes to or identifies with a specific brand.

brand loyalty
	A term describing a consumer's tendency to purchase, time and again, one brand of product with which they have had good experiences with in the past.

brand name
	A name given to a product by manufacturers that helps describe the qualities and benefits of that particular product. Manufacturers hope that consumers will identify their product with this "brand name". For many E-commerce companies, their web address can often be thought of as their brand name; e.g. Amazon.com.

branding
	Making your identity memorable through consistent visual representation. While branding is well known in traditional media venues, it has yet to come of age on the Web. You can build brand much faster and cheaper by carrying your identity through all your web publishing endeavors.

BRB
	This is an acronym for "Be Right Back". It is used frequently, while typing and chatting, to pause or take a break from the computer. Examples of "BRB" use are restroom breaks, snacking breaks, or just being occupied with other business. This is just a convenient way of shorting the typing time and to be lazy.

Break-Even
	The least number of sales a direct mail campaign must generate in order for the direct mailer to recover associated costs of the campaign. Dollars of response, measured by order margin, are equal to the total cost of promotion. (Break-even for the business means the order margin must equal the cost of promotion plus all other costs.)

brick-and-mortar
	A term used to describe a land based merchant when discussing internet commerce. Exp.: "Can a brick-and mortar giant like Toys 'R' us really prevail on the Net Vs an entrenched E-tailer like eToys.com ?"

Bridge
	A device used to connect two local area networks, enabling them to exchange data even though they may have different architectures and use different protocols.

broadband web
	A vision of the World Wide Web with high speed broadband connections to the home and desktop. The Broadband Web is expected to pose a significant threat to CD-ROM use and to favor high quality small independent multimedia developers who can afford to offer their products on the Web but who cannot afford to mass market a CD-ROM.

Broadcast model
	A broadcast model is an environment in which one receives (something). For an Internet user, this includes the browser, monitor, computer, computer capabilities, peripherals, etc. Any Web designer or marketing manager must be well aware of the various broadcast models before constructing an effective web presence.

broadcast networks
	A broadcast network is a model of operation network in data transmission. Every computer on the network shares one communication channel provided by the broadcast network. When transmitting data, broadcast networks allow the source computer to send packets with a special code in the address field to all destination computers. Therefore, every machine on the network will receive the same packet.

brochureware
	1. A part of a website that provides an introduction to a company, contactinformation, and news about its products and services. 2. Advertising for planned but non-existent products (see vaporware). Theadvertising implies that the company is actively marketing and selling theproduct. This technique is sometimes used as a strategic weapon to lurecustomers into not making a commitment to a competitors products.

Brownout
	When a system is so overloaded by requests that it slows down to the point of near unusability.

browser
	The generic term for software programs that retrieve, display, and print information World Wide Web. The most popular browsers are Microsoft Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator and Mosaic. Mosaic was the first browser to introduce graphics. Previously, users were only allowed to view the text of web pages. Currently, Netscape Navigator is the most popular browser in the world.

Browsers-
	The tools you use to view your web page, open and close, edit and to close your web page. In this case, this can be Microsoft front page

Buddy List
	A list which contains the screen names and/or email addresses of a person's family members, friends, and business associates who utilize the same internet provider, such as America Online, as the person. Often, the person can send instant messages to and receive instant messages from other people on his or her Buddy List.

Buffer
	Memory area or electronic register where data is stored temporarily while awaiting disposition. It compensates for differences in data-flow rates (ie. between a terminal and its transmission line). It is also used as a data backup mechanism, holding data that may be retransmitted if an error is detected during transmission.

buffer page
	A buffer page is considered to be an alternate or "extra" Web page used primarily for marketing programs. Most popular uses of a buffer page are used as a page you come to after clicking on an ad banner that highlights a special ad offer; it keeps you from going directly to the advertiser’s home page. It serves as a highlight or to upsell the special offer possibly mentioned in the ad banner. It is typically hosted or kept on the server where the ad banner is served, rarely is it on the advertiser’s server or the server of the actual Web site. Buffer pages can be used to increase a Web sites high ranking to search engines.

bug
	An error in the way a system operates.

Bulletin Board System (BBS)
	This is an elctronic message system you dial up directly to read and post messages.

bundling
	Creation of packaged offering to prevent giving the customer hundreds of options. This allows the viewer to narrow the choices and simplify the selection process.

Bus
	An electronic pathway, like a multi-lane motorway, within the heart of a computer that carries streams of data and signals between the main computer components such as the memory and the processor.

Bus Topology
	Bus Topology is usually implemented through coax cable, and is widely used in medium to small networks. It requires that all computers be connected to a main network cable. Messages traveling through the network are handled by several computers in the bus until they reach their destination. Bus topology is used in many e-commerce applications.

Business Analysis
	Stage in the product development process in which demand, cost, sales, and profitability estimates are made.

business case assessment (BCA)
	A business case assessment is undertaken by an organisation or agency before implementing new technologies or processes in order to analyse whether they will be economically viable for the organization.

business ethics
	The purpose of business ethics is to give us the "tools" for dealing with moral problems. This allows for people to analyze the implications of their strategic decisions. The purpose of business ethics is not to teach what is right and what is wrong.

Business Event
	Usually this is something that generates a piece of paper for the company. Very often these are called transactions, but not always.

Business Marketing
	Sales and marketing of products to various buyers for purposes other than personal use. If you sell a computer to a company or state agency, this is an example of business marketing. It is a growing portion of the electronic commerce market.

business plan
	A plan that represents goals a company wants to attain and how that company will attain these goals. A business plan for companies wishing to do business on the web is extremely important. Every facet of your business becomes magnified on the Internet, so it is very important to plan all areas, especially the areas customers will interact with.

Business Process Re-engineering
	The fundamental analysis and radical redesign of everything: business processes and management systems, job definitions, organizational structures and beliefs and behaviors to achieve dramatic performance improvements to meet contemporary requirements.

business process reengineering (BPR)
	Rethinking and redesigning business processes to achieve significant improvements in critical performance indicators (e.g. cost, quality, service,and speed).

Business-level Strategy
	Business-Level Strategy is considered as the interconnected set of commitments and actions intended to provide value to customers and gain a competitive advantage by using the core abilities in specific markets. As the successful Business-Level strategy leads to the success of the business, top managers and employees should constantly involved with planning and formulating strategies. As customer is the main focus of today’s business to be successful, planning and formulating the business level strategies that focus on customers is really important. And for the customer focused strategy, it is very important to know the wants, and needs of the focused customers. As in any other field of management, the business level strategy is vital in the field of E-commerce too. Customer’s satisfaction is considered vital, whether it is a small retail business or a company doing business electronically. The strong Business-Level strategy can create strong business.

business-to-business communications
	The marketing of products from one business to another. These products are needed to make other goods and/or provide services.

Business-to-Consumer Sales
	An example of Business to Consumer Sales is when a company is produced solely to do business on the Internet. These types of businesses offer products and services which are not offered by any company which does not do business over the Internet.

Button
	An anchor which is the source of a link . Often, but not always, represented on screen to look like a push-button.

Buyer Readiness Stage
	The state of preparedness or willingness in which an individual consumer may be in regard to the purchase of a particular product; the stages are commonly listed as awareness; knowledge; liking; preference; conviction and purchase.

Buying Power Index

buying signals
	Verbal & non-verbal signals that show a customer is ready to buy.

Buzz word bingo
	A board game played discretely at business meetings. The cards containing the relevant topic buzzwords are passed out prior to the meeting to the interested players. As the meeting progresses the buzzwords that are mentioned are matched to the bingo cards. The winning player announces his success to the group by prearranged signal, such as a low cough.

byte
	The term "byte" is derived from first and last letters of the words "BinarY" and "TablE". A byte is the standard unit of measure for computer storage. A byte can store one character (i.e., a letter or symbol) or it can store any number from 0 to 255. One byte is typically made up of eight binary digits (also known as "bits"), but can have a ninth digit that is sometimes used to check for errors.

Byte Oriented Operand Feature
	Byte Oriented Operand Feature is an extension to the IBM system/360 architecture that allows references to data objects.

C shell
	A command-line access to the UNIX system for Internet providers that only offer character-base access.

C++
	A computer language derived from an earlier language called C. It is an object-oriented language. That means pictures or objects are used by the end user to enter or respond to information on the computer screen. The user can click on items with a mouse instead of having to type in a code or number to execute a command. This characteristic of C++ has made computers much more user friendly. Microsoft Windows is an excellent example of an object-oriented program. Bjarne Stroustrup developed C++ a the AT&T Bell Laboratories in 1986.

Cable Modem
	This is a modem like most users have at home, but instead of connecting to a phone line, it is connected to the cable TV connection. The advantage is the higher connetion speeds that can be had, but this is also the down side. As more and more users connect, the bandwidth will have to be shared by more users.

cache
	The storage of recently visited sites and data which can be accessed from computer memory instead of linking the server each time you return to the site. This speeds the access time, but does not reflect any changes to the site while in the cache. On rapidly changing sites you may need to click the reload button in order to read the most recent changes.

camera-ready art
	Up until a few years, ago when you wanted to put an ad in a newspaper you went down to the newspaper office and gave the advertising depart-ment your scratch paper describing how you wanted the ad to look, and they took your information and prepared camera-ready art. That is, they turned your scratches into a presentable-looking ad that was ready for the camera person. The camera person took a picture of the ad with their special camera and then someone else used that picture to make a “plate” with which to print the page that included your ad. Now, with this desktop publishing revolution, you are creating your own camera-ready art. That is, now you probably march down to the newspaper office and tell them, “Print this,” giving the ad department the page that you so carefully and lovingly prepared on your computer and printed on your personal printer (or perhaps you sent it to a service bureau for output on their imagesetter). Your ad, since it is all ready for the camera to shoot, is camera-ready art. This concept, of course, applies to any artwork to be reproduced on a press, not just newspaper advertising.

Campaign effectiveness
	discussion of the results of a campaign in terms of increased sales, increase in market share or change in level of awareness; also includes assessment of the reasons for the campaign success or failure.

cannibalization
	The event that occurs when a company loses sales of an existing product after the company markets a new, similar product.

capabilities
	They way a company coordinates its resources and puts them to productive use.

Capability Mapping
	The internal analysis of an organization to determine unique abilities and potential that can be utilized to achieve competitive advantage over their competitors.

Capital Budget Analysis
	Evaluating the purchase of long-term, expensive assets.

Capital Requirements
	Capital Requirements are the dollars needed to finance equipments, supplies, advertising and routine business activities. An individual firm’s success depends on the ability to create and mobilize the capital. It helps an individual firm to compete with other firms, fulfill the company’s desired goals. It also helps in the reallocation of resources needed for the operation of a firm. To compete with other firms and to know the wants and desires of valuable customers, research is considered very important, which can’t be done without sufficient capital. Also as in any other fields, capital is essential while doing business electronically as research and developments, and customer satisfaction is considered vital in this field too. As in any other field of businesses, equipments and supplies, delivery costs, employees’ wages, etc are incurred, where capital is required.

Captions
	In terms of Visual Basic, Captions are found on objects like forms, frames, & command buttons. Captions are basically text that is displayed to give the object a title or header.

carbon copying
	This occurs when a user sends a message to an intended person and then another person who may not be the original recipient.

Card
	An alternative term for a node in a system (e.g. HyperCard, Notecards) in which the node size is limited to a single page of a limited size.

carpal tunnel syndrome
	A painful injury affecting the wrist and hand. Symptoms include general hand and wrist weakness, pain in the thumb, as well as tingling and burning throughout the forearm and shoulder.

carryover effect
	Occurs when advertising during one period of time (such as a week or month) continues effectively into the subsequent period of time.

Cartel
	This in an alliance of producers engaged in the same type of business, which is form to limit or eliminate competition and control production and price. It’s kind of like a monopoly. Although, these kinds of things are rare in today’s modern and competitive world, it is still prevalent. Especially, while doing business electronically it has become real important. Big E-commerce firms are purchasing in coming small and popular firms to maintain their monopoly in the market. Recent acquisition of Broadcast.com by Yahoo.com is an example of it. Cartel can occur in any field but it exist mainly in oil, copper, rubber and other raw materials fields. From the producer’s perspective, the main advantage of creating a cartel is: producers can control the price and production.

cascading style sheet
	A web page style sheet derived from multiple sources with a defined order of precedence where the definitions of any style element conflict.

cash cow
	In the portfolio matrix, a business unit that usually generates more cash than it needs to maintain its market share

cash-to-cash cycle
	Also known as an operating cycle. This is the cycle that all businesses go through time after time. One rotation of the cycle equals the time it takes a business to purchase its materials from the suppliers, make the good they are selling, sell the good and collect the cash from the customers.

cause related marketing
	A marketing strategy that ties a company and its product to certain issues or causes. The major goal of social marketing is to improve sales and corporate image.

CCD (Charged-Coupled Device)
	A light sensitive device used in scanners and digital cameras.

CD burner
	A CD-ROM is the process that copies information/data on CDs. Examples are burning (copying) games, songs, and etc. This device is useful to create and record own copies of songs onto one CD for a convenient use for the person, instead of having 12 CDs interchanging because of the different songs on the different CDs. This way a person can compact all their favorite songs into one CD.

CDF
	This is short for "channel definition format" which is a specification that allows a web publisher to "push" content at users. Once a user subscribes to a CDF channel, any software that supports the CDF format will automatically receive new content posted on the channel' web server.

CD-ROM
	Compact disc read-only memory. Similar to the audio disc except that it contains optical data that can be read by a computer.

CD-ROM List
	This are lists of people that are used by the companies that can be accessed through a personal computer. The list contains a customers name, address, and telephone number.

cell protection
	a way of preventing changes of cells in a spreadsheet that requires them to be unlocked in order to make changes

cell reference
	this is the label that is given to a particular cell in a spreadsheet according to the row and column

cello
	A World Wide Web browser developed at Cornell University and integrated with gopher, WAIS, USENET and e-mail tools.

census
	Collection of data from all possible sources in a population or universe.

Central Office (CO)
	This is where the phone company puts all the switching equipment to connect phone calls. In years past, these were large centrally located buildings that handled several thousand lines. In today's world, it may be a two foot cube buried in someones backyard and only handles several hundred lines in the neighborhood.

central-location telephone (CLT) facility
	a specially designed phone room to conduct telephone interviews

Centroid
	Is a mathematically calculated geographic area of a region or center of populations, which can be categorized by zip codes, area codes and so on.

Cerfing
	synonymous with surfing, used in the context of cerfing or surfing the Internet's waves of information to obtain the desired data. Cerfing is derived from the name of Vinton G. Cerf, the "Father of the Internet". Cerf was the co-designer, along with Robert E. Kahn, of TCP/IP protocol, internet-related data packet and security technologies which gave way to the Internet. From 1976-1982 Cerf worked on the U.S. Department of Defense's Advanced Research Projects (DARPA), which utilized darpanet, a forerunner of the Internet.

CERN, Counceil Europeen por la Recherche
	The European Laboratory for Particle Physics in Geneva, Switzerland, where the WWW, HTTP, and HTML were developed by Tim Berners-Lee in 1990.

certificate authority
	A trusted company or organization that will accept your public key, along with some proof of your identiity, and serve as a repository of digital certificates. Others can then request verification of your public key from the certificate authority.

certificate revocation list
	Certificate authorities must maintain a list of digital certificates that are no longer valid (not including those expired).

Certification authority (CA)
	A sercure third-party organization that can verify the identity and origin of a person or component (such as ActiveX controls).

Certification path
	Certificate authorities which secure a digital certificate issued to a user.

certified delivery server
	A server which uses public key cryptography to provide a destination non-repudiation service, similar to certified mail. The server establishes that a message was received or that a good faith effort was made to deliver it.

ceteris paribus
	Latin. "Other things being equal." Used in economics to examine one particular aspect of a scenario or situation that has many variables. Ceteris paribus freezes these variables into place not considering the variation that would occur in them otherwise.

CGI (Common Gateway Interface)
	A standard that lets Web servers and Web browsers share information. This technology is perhaps the most common way to add interactivity to Web sites.

CGI (Common Gateway Interface)
	This tells the visitor's browser to download a series of images one after another. The new image will replace the previous one on the screen. It functions the same way as a cartoon, only slower. Example: making the lights on a christmas tree image appear to twinkle, showing an animated flame etc.

CGI (Computer Generated Image)
	is not to be confused with the other CGI, the Common Gateway Interface. Computer Generated Images are images that were purely created on the computer. This means that at no time was a pre-existing image scanned, modified or used in any way to create the CGI.

cgi-bin
	The name of a directory on a web server where CGI, or Common Gateway Interface, programs are stored.

Chaingang
	a group of homepages which merely link to each other

channel
	The passageway traveled by a message; a transportation mechanism that will eventually reach the sender-receiver.

chat
	This means to talk live to other network users from any to all parts of the world.

chattel
	Anything that is a personal property.

checkbox
	A checkbox is a form that enables a user to choose one or more items from many.

Cheese
	the content of a commercial site that mainly consists of pictures of the products or other equally unuseful information instead of what you want to know

Chemical Media
	For example the underlying technology for movies is photographic chemistry. Photography is considered chemical media. Chemicals are used to develop and produce photographs. This type of media is declining due to how expensive it is to use and the cheap alternative of digital media.

Chimes of Death
	What the user hears when there is a hardware problem with Apple's Macintosh. Only occurs during the startup process. Consists of 6 notes accompanied with a 'unhappy Mac', done in black.

Chooser
	This system level application lets the user choose (see where they got the name) what printer to print with and which network to join. Very helpful with muliple options in either catagory.

Churn
	The process by which customers move from one product to another due to a cheaper, faster, or better version. As the information age makes its more efficient for customers to switch branch loyalty, internet companies such as Yahoo and Excite makes it easy to click from one e-shop to another as competitive advantage such as location and store layout have completely vanished.

CICS
	CICS is the acronym for Customer Information Control System. The term CICS is used when referring to IBM Mainframes (e.g., CICS Region). CICS is an online transaction based facility to allow users to communicate with the application. It should be noted that this facility is invisible to the end users and generally only the programmer or system operators work directly with CICS.

CIE LAB model and mode
	The Lab color model is based on original color proposed by the Commission International d'Eclairge (CIE) in 1931 as an international standard for color measurement. In 1976 the model was refined and named CIE Lab. The purpose of the model is to address the problems associated with reproducing the exact same color on different video monitors and different printing devices by creating device independent color output. Using CIE Lab allows the same color to be produce regardless of the video or printing device used. Lab color consists of a luminance, or lightness component (L), which ranges from white to black and two color components (a) and (b). The (a) color component ranges from green to red while the (b) color component ranges from blue to yellow. The Lab method is recommended when moving images between different system types and for printing to PostScript Level 2 printers.

Cipher
	A cryptographic technique in which a sequence of bits or characters is changed by means of a secret transformation.

CIS (Compact Image Sensor)
	A light sensitive unit used in small inexspensive scanners. CIS are considered inferior to CCD.

citation
	Any referenced case, rule, or statute in a legal document. The citations are often summarized in the table of authorities. (see also: table of authorities)

Classless Interdomain Routing (CIDR)
	CIDR is a protocol used by providers to group large blocks of networks under fewer network addresses. If it weren't for CIDR, the number of network addresses on the Internet would already have far exceeded the storage capacity of even the most powerful routers.

clearing house
	An organisation that provides a message/file collection, routing and distribution service on behalf of other organisations. See also automated clearing house (ACH), Value Added Network (VAN).

Click
	To press and release a mouse button. Refers to the left mouse button or the primary button.

Click of Death
	The noise made by a ZIP drive when it has problems accessing a ZIP disk. The noise is made by the repeated insertion, and removal of the read/write arm into the disk.

Clickable
	This term is used to describe icons or graphics that the user can "clik" on the mouse whe he or she points to them. This are ususlly links to another web site or another section of the same web site.

Click-and-mortar
	Simply describes a store that exists online and also in the physical world. You can purchase products through the Internet or by visiting the physical store.

Clickstream
	Clickstream refers to the path taken by a visitor in a Web site. Each decision is represented by a click on a link. The link could be to a different part of the current page, to another page in the site or to another site altogether. A visitor might also come upon an image or other file to download. This action is also represented by a click. This series of clicks represents that visitor's clickstream. This information is usually stored by the Web server and is a vital source of information for marketers. The visitor’s trails in the site or "popcorn trails" left behind can be analyzed to determine the most (and least) popular destinations for users who enter through the home page or other pages, the parts of the site where visitors are most likely to exit, the time spent at each point in the path, and more. This information provides valuable insight into the effectiveness of marketing-driven site enhancements as well as the value of the site's layout.

click-stream data
	The series of URLs, or Web site addresses, that a client "clicks" through with the mouse while on line.

Click-Streams
	simulated path created with links that connect a user from one site to another or from one topic to the next within one page.

Click-through
	When a user passes-through an Internet advertisement to get to a particular advertiser. Marketers can measure how many times someone comes to their site via a linked advertisement (click-through) and analyze what type of customers are visiting their site and from where they are coming.

Client
	Software program used for contacting Server software program. The Client software request information from the Server. Every Client is designed to interact with at least one specific server program, and every server requires specific client. The Web Browser is an example of a Client.

Client for Microsoft Networks
	The cient for Microsoft networks is a peice of software that is used to establish connectivity between computers on a network. It allows for the sharing of files and information on a network. Is a necessary component depending on the type of network.

clip art
	Pictures and designs that are usually bought in a graphics library package. They then can be used in application software packages.

closed loop stage
	An ongoing quality program to ensure that the Web site is satisfying customer needs and objectives. It also monitors site statistics to see which sites are popular and why.

Closed Question
	In an interview, a type of question that require and leads the interviewee to a brief, yes or no response. It constrains responses into brief answers. This question is appropriate when the interviewer wants a definite or specific answer to a particular question.

Closed System
	A closed system is a computer system that has no outside influences. It is independent of other hardware or software that could interrupt its activity. A small company with a network of a few terminals could be a closed system if the network is not accessible from the outside world. (See also Open System)

closure (n.)
	The normal, expected, "comfortable" conclusion to a process.

cluster analysis
	The science of comparing a series of variable profiles of one subject or group to that of another subject or group and progressively discriminating and associating the subjects or groups into homogeneous clusters. This process statistically minimizes the overall estimate of variation within clusters.

clustering
	clustering is a way of sampling several small populations groups for marketing purposes.

CLUT
	(Color Look-Up Table) A table displaying numerical representations of color. Each color is obtained by listing the percentage of red, green and blue in that color. The colors in the table may be combined or dithered to create more color options.

CMYK
	The CMYK color model is based on the light-absorbing quality of ink printed on paper. As white light strikes the ink, a portion of the color spectrum is absorbed. The portion of the color spectrum not absorbed is reflected back to the eye. The eye interprets the missing color spectrum as color. The initials CMYK stand for pure cyan (C), pure magenta (M), pure yellow (Y), and black (K). Black is represented by (K) in order to prevent it being confused with blue. Combining these four inks in various combinations will reproduce any color of the spectrum. The combination of these inks is referred to as four-color process printing.

coaxial cable
	A type of cable used in network wiring. Typical coax types include RG-58 and RG-62. The 10base2 Ethernet system uses coaxial cable.

COBOL
	Common Oriented Business Language- As a business oriented language, COBOL is designed specifically for commercial applications, such as payroll and inventory, that typically operate on a large volume of data.

Co-branding
	Two companies supporting one website, with both company names appearing together on the page. The most established company in terms of brand name recognition and existing customer base owns the site and the other company is responsible for providing the necessary services.

cobweb site
	Describes a web site that has been abandoned or is rarely updated, thus it has cobwebs.

COCA
	(Cost of Cracking Adjustment) Changing the strength of an encryption over a period of time to account for the ability of newer and faster computers to crack codes at a faster rate. To keep the COCA at a sustained level, the change should be expressed in bits that are added to a key each year.

Code
	Computer instructions

Cognitive Dissonance
	Inner tension that a consumer experiences after recognizing an inconsistency between behavior and values or opinions.

Cohesiveness
	The stage at which team members feel a part of and want to stay with the team. Working in team is very important in developing an e-commerce website. Cohesiveness is a part the team project, where everyone understands that there is a goal to meet in developing an e-commerce website. Everyone wants to contribute their efforts in the project.

Cold Calling
	This occcurs when the salesperson approaches potential buyers without any prior knowledge of the prospects' needs or financial status.

Collaboration
	A request from a Client to a Server for a service that will help the Client fulfill one of its responsibilities.

collaborative engineering
	the design, development and production of new products in close collaboration between the lead manufacturer and one or more suppliers. It may also refer to the IT systems required to make such close collaboration work efficently. Note: This is NOT the same thing as cocurrent engineering. (Glossary of CALS and Electronic Commerce Terms; http://cals.debbs.ndhq.dnd.ca/english/glossar1.html)

collective bargaining
	Collective bargaining is the term used when a party(s) agrees to provide a service(s) or goods to another party. Collective bargining is the actual negotiation between those two parties which will further determine the cost of each good.

collision
	This occurs when two messages are sent at the same time over a local area network.

COLSPAN
	An HTML tag used in a table to determine the number of columns a cell will occupy.

COM Object
	A COM Object is a Component Object Model. Microsoft has migrated COM into DCOM. COM is used to support objects sent/distributed across a computer network. COM facilitates communication between ObjectBroker and OLE.

commerce
	The conduct of commercial transactions through well based ordering systems, eg. shopping-cart software, etc.

Commerce Interchange Pipeline
	The commerce interchange pipeline provides a flexible framework to send data from one trading partner to another. That data can be sent in a variety of formats (such as XML or EDI) over a variety of transports (such as HTTP, SMTP, DCOM, EDI VANs).

Commerce Server
	Web software that runs some of the main functions of an online storefront such as product display, online ordering or inventory management. The software works in conjunction with online payment systems to process payments.

Commerce Service Provider (CSP)
	Provide electronic commerce services to businesses. Often a large telecommunications firm or Internet Service Provider (ISP) that offers reliable internet access and comprehensive services.

commercial
	An announcement of products or services for sale by a business concern, designed to influence the target customers to buy those products/services. There are four general types of commercials: institutional, humorous, sales and seasonal. a. institutional = presents facts and figures about a product/service in a straight-forward manner; may run once, or may run for many days, weeks or months. EXAMPLE: COCA-COLA. b. humorous = injects humor into the message to help make the product's name more "rememberable". EXAMPLE: BUDWEISER FROGS. c. sales = used to reduce inventories a/o bring in new customers. EXAMPLE: YEAR-END CLEARANCE OF CURRENT-MODEL AUTOMOBILES. d. seasonal = can be any (or a combination) of the above three types, but is used DURING A PARTICULAR PART OF THE YEAR to emphasize the season or the product. EXAMPLE: SNOW SKIS ADVERTISED IN WINTER or BIKINIS ADVERTISED IN SUMMER.

commercial art
	Graphic art created for use in various forms of advertising and promotions.

Commercial Internet Exchange (CIX)
	Pronounced “kicks”, this is an agreement between Internet service providers (ISP’s) to make the Internet available to commercial traffic. The association that created this agreement was founded in 1991 by Rick Adams, Marty Schofstall and Susan Estrada. This group created the first public commercial interconnect point on the Internet. CIX is a multilateral agreement, meaning that all members must exchange traffic with each other.

commercialization
	Final stage in the product development process, consisting of tasks necessary to begin marketing the product. This can include initiating production, shipping, training the sales force, and advertising.

Commoditization
	An increase in the number, availability, and similarity of products in a given category which tends to drive down the price of the products. Some people believe the rapid and easy access to information about products on the Internet will make markets more efficient, facilitate comparisons, increase competition, eliminate inconsequential differences between products, and drive toward commoditization and lower prices. Others believe that low marketing and distribution costs will enable companies to differentiate their products and establish a wide variety of niche markets.

Communcation Networks
	Is the orderly patterns or paths which information flows within an organization. This term is useful in e-commerce by the channels of communication flows to get the facts and data to get business done in an e-commerce environment.

Communication
	(1) The flow of information from person to person, (2) A matter of sending and receiving signals, and unless we agree beforehand on the meaning of these signals, we can end up confused.

communication
	Process by which we exchange or share meanings through a common set of symbols.

Communication Climate
	This is the term use to describe the quality of personal relationship in an organization. As an e-commerce site goes live, the website should give the customer a feel about the organization climate and how the organization conduct business either on the web or in the company's culture.

Community
	Within the world of electronic commerce, "community" refers to specific demographic population or group that goes to and uses a particular Internet location to share ideas, experiences and conversation on a subject matter or topic of mutual interest to the group's member/users. For example, the Web site, Bolt.com, is currently the leading teen destination on the Web with 3 million users. The site provides a combination of content, i.e., information of interest to teens, commerce, i.e., selling products targeted to teens, and "community."

Comparative advantage
	Unless a country has the same absolute advantage in producing all goods and services, there would be some goods and services in which it had less relative advantage. It would gain by importing those and exporting the ones in which it had an absolute advantage, or the greatest relative disadvantage.

Comparative Advertising
	an advertising tactic that compares two or more specific brands on one or more specific attributes

Comparative Influence
	One of three types of influence exerted on consumers by reference groups; comparative influence occurs when the reference group provides the means by which consumers compare their beliefs, attitudes and behaviour - the more similarity there is between a consumer's opinions and those of his or her reference group, the greater the comparative influence of that group..

Comparative-advantages organizational plan
	This is an approach that puts several alternatives side by side in order to show which solution is the best. This is a good approach when working in an e-commerce team project and there are more than one alternatives to solve a problem. A team member can lay out all the alternatives and then go with the best solution to develope an effective e-commerce website.

competition
	Competition is derived from the basic concept of supply vs' demand. The term competition is derived when two or more suppliers promote not similiar but identical products within the market. Thus each individual supplier must better their own product to entise the consumer.

Competitive Access Provider (CAP)
	A CAP is a company that provides customers with a viable alternative to the traditional telephone company for residential long distance service.

Competitive Advantage
	Using the internet in combination with workflow to benefit many business processes, including project management, sales force automation, document management, customer service and e-commerce in ways that you competitor have not and that allows your company to provide better service or product at a cheaper cost.

Competitive Advertising
	Is to influence demand for a specific brand; it is often used when a product enters the growth phase of the product life cycle.

Competitive Analysis
	Analyzing the magnitude and reason for the gap between your organization’s performance and the performance measures of competitors.

Competitive Intelligence
	An intelligence (analyzed information) system that helps managers assess their competition and their vendors in order to become more efficient and effective competitor. As a result, intelligence produces important decision-making and policy consequences for an organization.

Competitive Local Exchange Carriers
	CLECs are competing with other carriers for the business of high speed data servicing companies.

Competitors
	other organizations of the same industry or type of business that provide goods and services to the same group of customers

compiler
	A special translator program used to convert source programs into object programs.

Complexity
	The degree of perceived difficulty of an innovation. The more difficult an innovation is to understand or use the slower the rate of adoption

compliance checking
	A checking process that is used to ensure that a transmission complies with the syntax rules.

compression
	This reduces the size of computer files to save storage space and reduce the time spent to send it. A data compression increases throughputs, or the number of bits per second sent over a circuit channel. Compression and decompression are done by a special utility program available for platforms such as DOS, MAC, and Amiga. There are some techniques for compression that are as follows: a. code book compression in which certain codes represent a pattern of characters and phrases stored on each data compressor's memory. Thus, if one character is sent through the circuit, it will represent many other characters which will save time and disk space. b. The Huffman technique uses codes where a different number of bits represents a different technique. c. Run length coding uses a combination of other techniques. There are many standards for data compression including MNP 5 and v.42 bis.

Compuserve
	Compuserve has long had the reputation of being the most business-oriented of the commercial services. It is sometimes abbreviated CIS, for Compuserve Information Service. For example America Online (AOL) and Prodigy, Compuserve is a commercial service. Members pay a monthly membership fee and plus a per hour charge after the first few hours.

Computationally secure
	Does not allow a systematic analysis to break the cipher in a short enough time to cause exploitation.

Computer Aided Surgery (CAS)
	CAS is a technology of surgical simulation that uses computer graphics. It displays images of organs in three-dimensional forms.

Computer Crime
	Criminal actions accomplished through the use of computer systems, especially with the intent of defraud, destroy, or make unauthorized use of computer system resources.

computer graphics
	Graphics created by a computer and outputted by a printer or other form of computer output.

Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing
	A new wave in interviewing where the applicant reads the questions from the screen, and then enters the data directly into the computer. On-line interviewing and applying is getting more popular by the day.

Concentrated Targeting Strategy
	Marketing approach that is based on appealing to a single segment of a particular market.

concentric diversification
	Concentric diversification is one of the five common growth strategies at corporative levels, which guides the overall directions of the firms having more than one line of business. It usually refers to the businesses the firm wants to engage in, ways to acquire or direct businesses, allocations of the resources among the businesses and ways to developing the businesses. Concentric diversification occurs when starts a business/ get into the business which is related to the existing business in terms of technology, markets and products. Concentric diversification also can sometimes be called related diversification. Here, two business share same information, thus, some technology, customers and markets. From the e-commerce point of view, these two businesses most of the time do flourish because the concept behind these two are similar and both refers to the same set of people for business.

Concurrent Engineering
	Also known as parallell or simultaneous engineering; product development process in which all relevant functional areas and outside suppliers participate at all stages, thereby streamlining the development process and reducing its cost.

conditional
	A data requirement designator that indicates that the presence of a specified data element is dependent on the value or presence of other data elements in the segment. The action takes place only if a specific condition is met. For example, for an on-line purchasing request, the order acceptance would most likely be conditional on confirmed method of payment, such as an approved credit card number. In programming, conditional expressions are one of the most important components in programming languages because they enable a program to act differently each time it is executed depending on the input. Most programming languages use the word "if" for conditional expressions.

condominium
	A real estate project in which each unit owner has title to a unit of the project, and sometimes an undivided interest in the common areas.

conference call
	A telephone system is used to make it possible for simultaneously connecting large numbers of distributors for listening to a company representative or upline leader usually for he purpose of training.

conferencing & video conferencing
	A sophistiocated tool which enables communication with Web Page visitors. The interaction may be real time.

connectionless service
	Connectionless service is a model of data communication. In connectionless service, each message carries a full destination address, and each one can be independent from each other. Therefore, the first message that is sent by computer A may be delayed and arrive in computer B after the second message sent by computer A.

connection-oriented service
	Connection-oriented service is a model of data communication. Basically, it works like a telephone system. One user first establishes a connection, use the connection, and then releases the connection.

Consortium
	Also known as Consortium for Global Commerce. It is dedicated to combining the strength of its four Founding Institutions to manage and develop the World Network of Chambers of Commerce. The Consortium is consisted of various organizations from private to public, non-govermental, and political groups. Consortium was established to provide a neutral environment where issues of global commerce may be discussed.

Consultative selling
	The practice of providing information that will help customers achieve their short and long-term goals. This is an outgrowth of adaptive selling plus relationship marketing

consumer
	The consumer is the end user of a good or service provided by the supplier. Often referred to as the customer, the consumer provides the demand part of the supply vs' demand equilibrium.

Consumer behavior
	research that focuses on psychographics, e.g. the criteria for segmenting consumers by life-style, attitudes, beliefs, values, personality, and buying motives.

Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)
	federal agency established to protect the health and seafty of consumers in and around their homes

Contactless card
	A microchip is placed inside a plastic smart card and communicates through the use of radio waves. An example of this would be the cards used to open gates at a private parking facility, such as an enclosed apartment.

content
	The information contained in a web site, including the structure in which it is presented. Web sites often get judged and rated on the quality, quantity, and navigational flow of this information.

Content Provider
	Creators of the online information. They put together and package the information to make it accessable to consumers.

contests
	Contests on your web page are a good way to generate interest in your site. If the website is selling a product, the product can be the prize. Money or trips can also be the prize. However, there are legal issues involved with contests. A good site to check out for rules and regulations involving contests is http://www.arentfox.com/features/sweepstakes/faq/faq.html.

Contextual Commerce
	Consists of editorial content to help sell products on the Web. A disadvantage to contextual commerce is it blurs the distinction between editorial and commerce resulting in information that's not objective for the end consumer.

Contingency planning
	Contingency planning is the preparation for unexpected and rapid change (positive or negative) in the environment that will have a significant impact on the organization and will require a quick response. While doing business electronically, Contingency Planning is considered very important. You never know what will happen tomorrow. Some other firms might spread negative statements in the market to slow down your business. To defend that you have to be real quick and make your management people ready for it. On the other side, you might get well publicity and it might create traffic in your site for the desire of products and services that your have offered. In this case too, you have to be real quick, you have to provide enough main power and equipment to support and handle the customer demands and desires they are seeking for. If you create negative impression instead of positive it would be really harmful to your company. So, well preparation and planning is required. Hence, Contingency Planning is vital for the Company’s Success.

Continuous replenishment
	A business process where in the supplier manages inventory levels at the customer using resale or consumption information transmitted electronically form the customer on a frequent basis.

Contra Account
	Is an asset account that normally has a credit balance. The contra account is used to offset a related account. The approach is used so that the regular asset account is shown at the original or undiminished value. For example, accounts receivable has a contra account usually called allowance for doubtful accounts. Fixed assets have a contra account called accumulated depreciation.

contracts
	A contract in economic terms is when the consumer agrees to specified terms within a negotiation of services or goods provided by a supplier. This may either be in verbal or written form and under state law is binding.

Contractual system
	This is a system of independent firms at different channel levels that coordinate their distribution activities by contractual agreement. A franchise is a common contractual system.

control
	Provides the mechanisms for evaluating marketing results in light of the plan's goals and for correcting actions that do not help the organization reach those goals within budget guidelines.

Control Panel
	Allows such options as set mail forwarding, enable/disable anonymous FTP access, view statistics, change your password and more. It also allows access to HTML Form Generator, Web-based HTML editor and Perl script checker.

control segment
	a segment that has the same structure as a data segment but is used to delineate a group of segments.

control validation
	a message sent that verifies that the control segment information is correct.

Controlled Access
	is the process where a client (a computer or terminal) is directed by a mainframe computer what media can be assessed and when.

controlled circulation
	Free distribution of a print or electronic publication for which access to valuable content is controlled by qualifying subscribers. In exchange for the free subscription, the publisher requires them to provide statistical information designed to assist publication advertisers in selling their products and services.

Convenience Check
	A check that draws against the card account, to be used to pay merchants who do not accept MasterCard. Convenience check transactions appear on the monthly card statement as a line item listing the payee name. Convenience check transactions are considered cash advances and are subject to a fee for each posted check. Checks have the cardholder's name imprinted on them, and the cardholder is the only authorized signer. The convenience check is a conventional check, and is treated accordingly by suppliers and banks.

Convenience Product
	a somewhat inexpensive item that requires little shopping effort

convergence
	The process by which products and producers considered to be in different markets suddenly find themselves in the same market.

cookie
	A cookie is a server tool that allows a computer to know whether it has transferred information to a previous user. The cookie is a server file of user preferences, which is stored on the users hard-drive. When the server detects a cookie from a previous user, it can modify banner information and begin keeping a record of those users visits.

cookies
	Cookies are text files that are stored at the client's hard drive. When a browser requests a document, the web server creates a fragment of data, which is sent to the browser and stored at the client's computer. Afterward, when the browser solicits another document, the cookie is sent with the request. Cookies are very similar to the caller id boxes that have become so popular in that they provide telemarketers with such relevant information as: the consumers name, address, and previous purchase payment record.

Cool Media
	Media that does not require the user to do a large amount of thought to get anything out of it. For example radio and television are often considered cool media. When someone is driving down the road with the radio on, and not paying attention to it, this is cool media. However, if the listener is getting involved in the program it can be considered hot media.

co-op(erative) advertising
	Advertising where (usually) two business concerns advertise their products/services in the same commercial, thereby reducing their costs per commercial run/printed. EXAMPLE: A NIGHTCLUB (IN A MAJOR HOTEL) ANNOUNCING NEXT WEEK'S MUSICAL ENTERTAINMENT, THEN HIGHLIGHTING THE HOTEL'S BUSINESS/CONVENTION SERVICES. Usually, each concern receives approximately half the ad space and shares half the cost of production and advertising.

Cooperative Advertising (Co-Op)
	Advertising including e mail, banners, direct mail, inserts, stuffers, where offers from several different advertisers are included.

copy
	The text portion of an advertisement. From an online perspective, copy is the general text portion of a web page. Web page copy can include narrative text and embedded text links. Copy transmits the bulk of detail information to the user.

copyright
	The right to retain or sell the rights to an artistic work, usually held by the creator of the work.

copyright infringement
	When another party besides the copyright owner reproduces a copyrighted work, in whole or in part, without the copyright owner's permission.

Core Competencies
	The core business functions or capabilities that provide a company with an advantage over their competition.

core service
	The most basic benefit the consumer is buying.

Corporate advertising
	advertising whose purpose is to promote the image of a corporation rather than the sale of a product or service. Also called "Image Advertising."

Corporate culture
	- is the value, merit and customs that a corporation prides itself in standing behind. The corporate culture resembles a corporation's personality. All communications created are reflective of the culture that exists within a specific corporation.

Corporate Internet
	A philosophy of effectively distributing the appropriate levels of information through the Internet, company Intranets and Extranets to strategic partners by using technology and organizational processes.

Corporate Purchasing
	This involves assembling catalog information from multiple suppliers and offering it for purchase through a unified interface. The "customers" are typically corporate employees, so a requisition/approval/departmental charge process replaces the simple selection/payment process of traditional online retailing.

corporate social responsibility
	It is the obligation of a company to "create" certain social criteria in their strategic planning. Companies should make decisions that help the welfare of society.

Corporate Strategy
	Action plan to enable an organization to reach its objectives.

Corporate vertical marketing system
	A channel arrangement whereby successive stages of production and distribution are combined under a single owner

Corporation
	A "legal person" composed of one or more natural persons which is separate and distinct from these persons.

Cost Per Action (CPA)
	a web site is payed by an advetiser for every viewer who connected to and purchased the advertiser's product after seeing the advertisment on their website; the results are tracked with cookies.

Cost Per Click (CPC)
	a web site maintains the advertisment on its web site until a certain amount of clicks on the advertisiment thus the advertiser is paying for a certain amount clicks until the advertisment is removed.

Cost Plus Pricing
	This builds a price by allocating costs and adding on a percentage profit margin. The major disadvantage is that it does not take volume or market into consideration. On the Internet, reduced sales and market access costs would exert a downward pressure on prices which may not be required to stimulate demand.

Cost-Benefit Analysis
	This is a marketing strategy where it is often stated as a ratio and is used to evaluate proposed cause of action.

counter
	A counter is a statistical marketing tool that counts and displays the number of hits to a web page. It is usually located toward the bottom of the page but can be anywhere. Its main purpose is to hold visitors to a site at that site. For instance, a visitor to a site may be unimpressed by its simplicity and inclined to leave. Before the visitor leaves, however, the unusually high number on the counter catches his attention. The visitor then decides to stay and explore the site because he is curious about what has attracted all the previous visitors. Upon exploring the site he finds it useful and returns often. A counter may be the last chance to retain a potential customer. It isvery important from a marketing perspective. The downside to this is that when a counter is initially activated on a web page, it can be set to start counting from any number the composer wishes, usually a very high number. The effect is a distorted perception of the popularity of the web site. A good way to diffuse this distortion is to jot down the number displayed on the counter then return to the site the following day. Compare the number of hits displayed on that day with the number on the previous day. The difference will tell the real truth about the web site’s popularity; that is if the site manager does not distort the number of hits on a daily basis.

Counterfeit Access Device and Computer Fraud and Abuse Act of 1984
	This act makes it a federal crime to knowingly access a computer in order to obtain financial records of financial institutions, consumer credit reports of consumer reporting agencies, and restricted federal government information. It is also a crime to use counterfeit or unauthorized access devices to transfer funds, obtain things of value, or to traffic these devices.

counter-offer
	once an offer has been made when either bidding or buying something negotiable such as a house or car, the parties involved can make a counter-offer. The two parties can keep countering each other's offers until either (A) they agree on terms, or (B) it's decided that they will never agree, and they go their separate ways without doing any business with each other. In the field of e-commerce, we should allow a way to negotiate online; we should place the proper data entry fields on pages to allow for this.

Countertrade
	A form of trade where one set of goods are exchanged for another set of goods.

coupon distribution
	Some marketers and retailers are looking to the Internet as a medium for distributing discount coupons. Several companies are testing online couponing services. One example is an online site where consumers can choose from a range of super markets and manufacturer/retailer-sponsored downloadable coupons.

Coupons
	A promotional device used by marketers to increase sales or store traffic by offering a discount when the coupon is redeemed

CPC (cost per click)
	Is an Internet marketing term used to develop a price for ad banners. Advertisers pay the publishers of the banners based on the number of clicks a specific ad generates.

CPM
	An abbreviation for cost per thousand, in which the M represents the Roman numeral for 1,000. CPM is the cost of reaching 1,000 people.

CPM
	cost-per-one-thousand-display rate This is a term that is used in broadcast Media as a method for charging the advertiser for the amount of people that the medium reaches. In the world of the Internet the new trend is to go with click through counting, which gives an actual count of the sales that an individual advertisement makes.

CPU (Central Processing Unit)
	The main processing unit of a computer. It is considered the "Brain" of the computer.

cracker
	A person who breaks into the security of a computer system.

cracks
	Programs written to falsely make a shareware or demo program act as if it were fully functional. Without the user having to pay for the full licensed product.

crapplet
	A very poorly written or extremely useless JAVA applet. (create link to “applet” here). Credit for originating this term appears to go to Gareth Branwyn.

crawler
	An electronic message/announcement (in print) broadcast on television, usually at the bottom of the picture, that moves ... or CRAWLS from right to left. EXAMPLE: ELECTION RETURNS or WEATHER WARNINGS.

CRAYON (CReAte Your Own Newspaper)
	Integration of information from different sites. By integrating different news sources, one can customize their own newspaper.

Credit Card Processors
	This type of processor provides shared network systems and on-line credit processing systems for individual companies. They also integrate transactions between merchants, financial institutions, and card companies.

cRGB
	The new video-printed media-real life color standard This is a proposed standard for defining color on both print and video media. The purpose is to allow colors to represent the "true life" color of an object. Currently, both computer software, video signal color, and print media colors have unique color pallets from which the colors displayed are defined. Within each media there can be a number of different definition standards. For instance, two graphic software products may each have a unique method of how they define color. In addition to having different software color definitions, the color printer may also have its own color definition pallet. This can present a problem for electronic commerce applications. A consumer looking at their computer display cannot be sure that the product color is the same as the "true life" color. With cRGB this problem is solved by using the same values on each media. These colors are matched with a "true life" color standard and can be compared and adjusted by using a standard photographic reference card. The end result is that what you see, really is what you will get. This standard will likely be introduced by late 1998 or during 1999.

Critical mass
	That point at which the primary means for moving information through a business process is electronically and human intervention is needed only for exceptions. Typically, this is 70%-90% of transactions.

critical mass marketing
	By providing education to, and marketing to the internal staff of a company and their trading partners, the company and partners will see the benefits of managing a business process electronically. Benefits are realized when "critical mass" is achieved--the point when at least 70% to 90% of all processes are managed electronically.

Critical Success Factor (CSF)
	Any factor, condition, event, or the like, such that no matter what else is done and how much effort is put out, without this factor success is not possible.

Critical Success Factors
	Quantitative measures for those few areas where satisfactory performance is essential in order for a business to succeed.

critics-analyzer
	A group who look at the pros and cons in the information they gathered. Each member may discover information that has been left out or elaborate on those they discovered.

Cropping
	Electronically removing part of an image. This may bve done to reduce the file size or delete unimportant details.

cross-selling
	The process of trying to sell complementary products to a customer who has already purchased one product, these complementary products can be from the same company or a different one.

cross-tabulation
	A method of analyzing data that lets the analyst look at the responses to one question in relation to the responses to one or more other questions.

Cryptographic Algorithm
	A set of rules specifying the procedure required for the encryption and decryption of data.

cryptography
	The art of protecting information by transforming it (encrypting it) into an unreadable format called cyphertext. Only those who possess a secret key can decipher (or decrypt) the message into plaintext. Encrypted messages can sometimes be broken by cryptanalysis, also called codebreaking, although modern cryptography techniques are virtually unbreakable. A set of rules specifying the procedure required for the encryption and decryption of data.

CSS
	This is an acronym for "Cascading Style Sheets". This is a feature added to HTML that gives both the Web site developers and users more control over how pages are presented. With CSS, developers and users can create style sheets that will change the appearance of things such as headers and links.

Cultural context
	- is how people of certain cultures assign meaning to signs and symbols. It is a common understanding of meanings and signs in a culture. The context of the signs are how those meanings are interpreted form culture to culture. It is very wise in E-business, to understand the cultural context of all symbols in order not to offend anyone in the process.

Cultural Gridlock
	When a discussion cannot continue because the beliefs are values of different cultural groups are profoundly different.

culture
	The information, beliefs, attitudes, habits, etc. that people acquire because they are members of a particular society.

cumulative audience
	A synonym for reach. The number of different people or homes exposed at least once to a media schedule or vehicle(s) over a specific period of time.

Cursor
	A symbol that indicates the current input position on the screen.

Custom Card
	A card with a design that incorporates the customer's logo or other unique imagery, as opposed to a card that uses a generic design or the issuer's logo. Custom cards are a means for a client organization to extend their brand and to build cardholder loyalty to the program.

Custom Controls
	In terms of Visual Basic, Custom Controls (aka ActiveX controls) are used to better the feature's capabilites through the addition of more powerful controls. This feature is also considered one of Visual Basic's strongest features.

custom data
	Data are facts and figures and database is a collection of data that can be accessed and manipulated according to the needs of the companies. Every organization in today's world lies on the consumer/ customer's data. Computer technology allows companies resolve the information that lies on the database in the cyber space. Customer data becomes more important to the companies if they are enhanced, which means it includes more than just the simple information about the customers. Custom data is the enhanced information acquired by the marketers, which includes customer survey, registration of the products, warranties cards, etc. In today's world where more and more business are being done electronically and less and less primitive exchange taking place, custom data does help a lot defining a target customers for any particular business.

Customer
	A person or group who buys or purchases a product or service.

customer base
	The population of customers that purchase products or services from a company. E-commerce companies need to guard against thinking that they have a large customer base to draw from just because they are on the Internet. Actually they must work harder to find ways just to maintain the customer base they do have.

Customer Connectivity
	Within the arena of electronic commerce, "customer connectivity" generally refers to how a business or organization uses the Internet and its Intranet to communicate and interact with the multiplicity of various customer types or key stakeholders an organization has, e.g., the people or orgnizations to whom its products or services are sold, its internal customers - or employees, its investors - if applicable, its vendors or suppliers, the agencies that might regulate it, as well as its business or alliance partners.

Customer Friction
	Inconveniences to customers/users of e-commerce sites caused by complicated registration requirements, inconsistent purchase experiences, numerous identities to establish and maintain, and different payment methods.

Customer Intimacy
	A detailed and complete understanding of the customer that creates a tight or closer relationship between the company and customer.

customer list
	A list of clients (individuals or organizations)kept by internet-based companies. Sometimes these lists are sold to other organizations, however this practice is diminishing due to confidentiality agreements.

customer loyalty
	This is a state desired by marketers where they can have a product with a loyal following and repeat purchases. This comes as a result of a good product quality or popular brand name

customer responsiveness
	The time it takes for a company to either deliver a good or perform a service. Slow customer service is a major source of customer dissatisfaction.

customer satisfaction
	A product has exceeded a customer's expectations when customer satisfaction occurs. A company will need to measure customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction will be based on quality goods, quality service, and value based prices. These expectations should be met and exceeded to maintain a quality customer. Failure to deliver will lead to customer dissatisfaction and loss of future customers through networking and interaction.

customer value
	The customer's evaluation of the perceived costs versus the perceived benefits of the product or service being offered.

Customers Needs
	Customers needs are desires, wants, or cravings that can be satisfied by the characteristics of a suppliers product or service. Customers needs are very important in e-commerce. Merchants must meet a new breed of customer needs online by providing a fast, reliable, and easily navigated website.

customization
	This enables the user to customize the information of the web-page, thereby giving the customer control in determining what information they need to satisfy their needs. This allows a one-on-one marketing approach.

cut and paste
	A simple technique used to move text from one location to another. The user moves the cursor over the section of desired material to be moved, choose the edit button and select "cut" from the menu. User picks new location for the material, reselects the edit menu, the "paste."

cXML
	cXML is a hybrid of the eXtensible Markup Language that contains a set of DTD tags. Their primary focus is on the electronic commerce transactions.

Cyber Homesteaders
	Those who would participate in a service to set up personal sites to tell the world about themselves, in order to come in contact with others who may have similar interests.

Cyber Marketing
	Developing and implementing marketing activities that you can use with on-line services

cyberbank
	An electronic financial center that provides secure banking through the Internet. Customers are able to use this cyberbank to access bank accounts and carry out personal banking transactions anytime, anywhere.

cybercash
	Cybercash is the technology that allows you to accept credit cards such as Visa and Mastercard online. Through it, customers are authorized and approved for payment before fulfillment of the order. This is especially desirable for "Soft Goods" such as software and online services that provide "instant access" to a service once payment has been received.

Cybercounselor
	an online psychological therapist offering individual, family, marriage, and group therapy. Cybercounselors also monitor chatrooms where patients exchange ideas and information about their disorder(s). Cybercounseling's effectiveness is improved by the use of video conferencing, affording the therapist the opportunity to evaluate the patient's body language, voice inflection, and affect. Cybercounseling is currently being practiced, however, it's licensing and confidentiality issues are under examination by the American Psychological Association.

Cybercrime
	Criminal activities related to the Internet can include hacking, child pornography, cyber fraud, software infringement, etc.

Cyberhomeless
	This is when your computer is in the shop, and you are not able to check your e-mail from your own home.

Cybermall
	A virtual mall on the World Wide Web; there are no walls or bricks and mortar operations. Existence is in time not physical space. Amazon.Com, EBAY are two excellent examples. The future of Ecommerce is Cybermalls, with revenue coming from sales of products, and advertising revenue based on the number of unique page hits.

cybermarketing
	This term refers to any type of Internet-based promotion. This includs Websites, targeted e-mail, Internet bulletin boards, sites where customers can dial-in and download files, and of course sites that engage in internet commerce by offering products for sell over the Internet. The term doesn't have a strict meaning, though, and many marketing managers use it to cover any computer-based marketing tools, including CD-ROM presentations.

cybermediary
	A person or organization that acts as an Internet go-between and charges a fee for putting buyer and seller together.

cybermediary
	Anyone, an individual or organization, who charges a fee for negotiating or conducting transactions over the internet without ever taking possession of the goods or services sold. Prime examples of these cybermediaries are real estate and insurance brokers doing business over the Internet.

CyberPatrol
	Cyber Patrol is an Internet filtering software from The Learning Center. It is commonly used to restrict access to Internet sites that would be inappropriate for some viewers, such as young children. The term has taken hold in the public as the word Xerox has in the phrase, "…to make a xerox of the original".

Cyberphobia
	Fear of computers

Cyberpornography
	Websites where pornographic pictures and materials are sold to on-line customers. This has become a lucrative business for website providers.

Cyberpunk
	Is a term that comes from the work of William Gibson and Bruce Sterling. Cyberpunk was a cultural sub-genre of the science fiction variety. The setting for the story was in the not-so-distant future in a over industrialized society. The term has grown to include many types of human, machine and punk attitudes. The clothing and the lifestyles are included as well.

cyber-questionaires
	A marketing tool used on-line in order to find out more information pertaining to the people who are on-line.

cyberspace
	This term was originated by William Gibson in his novel, Neuromancer. Currently, the word cyberspace is used to describe the part of society and culture that exists in computer networks. It also refers to the whole range of information resources that are available through networked computer systems. One my travel through cyberspace simply by “surfin’ the net”. Furthemore, one my stake his or her claim in cyberspace by creating and maintaining a web page or web site. Most all I.S.P.’s provide free web space for personal web pages.

Cybersquatter
	a person who registers a domain name, containing the name of popular companies or products in hopes of selling the domain name to the company wishing to use the registered domain name. For example, an individual may register the domain name "eddiebauer.com" in hopes of selling the rights to the outfitter Eddie Bauer at a substantial profit. Cybersquatting began in 1997 when a registration fee was implemented, and netrepreneurs began registering well known names in hopes of reselling the domain names at a profit. The term cybersquatter arose out of a court case involving Dennis Toeppen, a Chicago businesman, who was sued over his registration of domain names that contained trademarked company names.

Cybersquatting
	Cybersquatting is the act of registering a popular Internet address,usually a company name with the purpose of selling it to its rightful owner

CyberWall Plus
	is used for electronic commerce internal security addresses. It is apcket inspection engine that can sity anywhere in a network and support multiple network protocols. It has no IP addresses, and is hidden from any attacks, and it can protect important company data from the rest of the enterprise.

CyberWallet
	A new technology which provides a secure transaction between V-ONE Corporation networks and is compatible with Web browsers. This technology was designed to prevent merchant fraud. The wallet holds up to 16 credit card and bank account numbers.

Cycle Time
	The time needed to bring a new product to market or upgrade an existing product. Where cycle time was measured in years it can now be measured in days, hours, and minutes.

Daemon
	A program which runs independently of, for example the browser . Daemons may perform various management tasks such as building indexes, overviews, and back-links. Under unix, "daemon" is used for " server ", because servers normally run independently.

DAGMAR
	This is a comprehensive flow model of advertising that is used to aid in advertising management. It stands for Defining Advertising Goals for Measured Advertising Results. It was developed on the basis that all commercial communication that aim at the ultimate objective of achieving a sale must carry a customer through four levels of understanding a product. This is where most internet marketing companies fail because they offer customers no incentives for making an immediate decision.

daisy chain
	A hardware configuration that allows devices to be connected in a series. The SCSI interface can support up to 7 devices in a daisy chain.

DASD
	DASD is the acronym for Direct Access Storage Device. This term is generally used when referring to disk storage in the IBM Mainframe environment. DASD is the same as a hard drive on a personal computer (e.g., 1.6 gig hard drive), but on a much larger scale.

data
	Facts that are later processed to yield information. The facts could be about a person, place, thing, event, etc...

Data communication
	The transfer of data between two or more computers.

Data communication technology
	Data communication technology is the technology used to send or retrieve data from one location to another. Internet is a good example of a data communication technology. Data communication technology is really valuable in the working place, because it saves time and money. This technology allows managers and employees to send data from one plant to another, or to access data half-way around the world, using different networks. This technology has improved dramatically, it reduces cost and increases the speed of data transmission.

Data Control Language (DCL)
	Concerned with such things as security, integrity, and optimization.

Data Definition Language (DDL)
	Designs and builds the database

Data Element
	The smallest unit of data included in an EDI message. Often equates to a data processing field.

Data Element Length
	The number of character positions that are allowed to be the value of a data element. It may be of variable length or a fixed length.

Data Element Reference Number
	A unique identifying number assigned to a data element.

Data Element Requirement Designator
	a code which is transmitted within a data element telling whether a need is present for a data element value. The X12 codes are mandatory (M), optional (O), or conditional (C).

Data Element Separator
	a unique character separating each data element. The Government uses "*" as a delimiter.

Data Element Type
	The kind of information that is within a data element. A data element may be one of six types: numeric, decimal, identifier, string, date, or time.

Data Encryption Key (DEK)
	Used for the encryption of message text and for the computation of message integrity checks (signatures).

Data Encryption Standard (DES)
	A popular symmetric-key encryption method developed in 1975 and standardized by ANSI in 1981 as ANSI X.3.92. DES uses a 56-bit key and is illegal to export out of the U.S. or Canada if the BXA requirements are not met.

Data Integrity
	A measure of data-communications performance indicating the absence of undetected errors. And data which is not corrupted in any way.

Data Management Language (DML)
	Look after the day-to-day work of adding, deleting, and changing the data values in the database and then retrieving them when needed.

data mining
	Data mining is the iterative process of selecting, exploring and modeling large amounts of data to uncover previously unknown relationships. It requires analytical, data manipulation and visualization tools that enable the user to make discoveries and apply this knowledge to achieving specific business goals.

Data protection
	Preventing personal information from being transmitted from one computer system to another without an individual’s consent.

Data rate
	The speed at which data bits are transmitted and received. Usually measured in bits per second (bps).

Data Segment
	A data segment is an intermediate unit of information in an EDI transaction. It consists of a clearly defined sequence of functionally related data elements.

Data Store
	A place where data is held until needed, when it is passed via a data flow to the process(es) that need it. These stores may be paper files, computer databases, or even a spike file or desk drawer.

Data Transfer
	Data Transfer is the amount of digital data that is moved from one place to another at a given time. Data transfer includes outbound traffic from a Website, with the exception of e-mail.

Data Visualization
	is a buzzword for business application that visually reorganize traditionally flat concepts like files, data fields, and catalogs into 3-D network environments.

data warehouse
	Data warehouse is a massive corporate database, which is generally collected from the various legacy system which includes billing and accounting, distribution, marketing and sales, etc that are already placed within the organization. Data warehouse is a marketing decision support system, which allows people like managers understand the needs of the people and better decision make by exploring data. Some firms do build data warehouse in order to stay in the long-term business battle. These companies make the information at available to their employees at their fingertips and the management to better decides. Data warehouse thus affect the nature of e-commerce largely.

Data Warehousing
	Ask 10 people to define this and you are likely to get 10 different definitions. Data Warehousing represents the processes undertaken by businesses and organizations to define what are the critical information or data components it needs to run its business, the processes for capturing the information into and retrieving the information from a database repository (or data warehouse), and the processes where the data is aggregated, analyzed, clarified and reported to where it is useful at various management levels in the organization for strategic and tactical level decision-support, as well as to gauge the impact of prior decisions made.

database
	A collection of information organized in such a way that a computer program can quickly select desired pieces of data. You can think of a database as an electronic filing system.

Database Administrator
	the main person who participates in the functions of data administration.

Database management software
	- is software designed for the input and archival of data. The software allows corporations to organize and construct the data in an orderly fashion, in order to assist in the decision making process.

Database management systems
	Database management systems is a tool for managers to maintain and retrieve complete data on products, customers, current employees, suppliers, and more. Data base management systems provides a vehicle for supporting and proccessing large quantities of non-scientific information.

database marketing
	A computer based repository of information organized in such a way as to allow for efficient retrieval, manipulation and analysis in order to produce a product to be marketed.

Database Publishing
	Database publishing (DP) is taking a company's information that used to be locked away in databases and making it available to large numbers of people inside and even outside the company. DP makes is much easier to get your job done, but makes managers nervous.

Dataglyph
	This is used for the user to put on display on a webpage for a presentation in place of words or text. It is used in forms of symbols, logos, or pictures to provide a more-realistic look on a webpage which provides better understanding of the presentation.

Day Trading (Internet)
	Day trading is the buying and selling of stocks where one is out of the market at the end of each trading day. Before the Internet, this was done almost exclusivly in one of the exchanges. Now this is something that can be done from anywhere in the world as long as one has Internet access.

Dead link
	This term is used for icons or graphics that are supposed to take the user to another site or page, but at the moment are not working properly and when the user click on these icon he or she gets a error message

Dead Tree Edition
	The paper version of something also found in virtual form; espicially something more commonly found in the virtual format.

debit card
	An object that appears and acts as a credit card that serves as a cash substitute for consumers to make purchases. This substitute does not provide credit and subsequently debits the user's bank account when the transaction takes place.

Debug
	To detect, locate, and remove errors from a program or malfunctions from a computer.

Decentralization
	The breaking up of central authority, and the distribution of it over a broader field, such as local authorities. The process of distributin authority throughout the organization. Moving the processing or storage of data out from a central site, often with little or no coordination with the central site.

Deceptive pricing
	A practice by which prices are artificially inflated and then marked down under the guise of a sale.

Decision Power
	The function to specify and/or authorize an order, not always the issuing agent. For list purposes both "Ship To" and "Bill To" addresses, when given, are important. Business mailers have a constant need to contact the individuals (or individuals) who can authorize an order. Often the order is put out by a purchasing agent, but he is not the specifier, the party who has made the decision to order. It is because of this that both "Ship To" and "Bill To" addresses, when given, are of value.

decision support system
	An interactive, flexible information system that enables people to obtain and manipulate information to help them when making decisions.

decoding
	Interpretation of language and any symbols sent by a source through a particular channel.

decoding
	Interpretations of language and symbols sent by a source through a channel.

décor
	When the buttons, banners, lines, bullets, and backgrounds of a webpage all complement each other for an appropriate visual appearance.

decryption
	The act of making a secure file readable. Any procedure used in cryptography to convert ciphertext (encrypted data) into plaintext.

Dedicated Line
	A dedicated line is a permanent connection to the Internet using an individual, separate phone line.

default
	A preset value or option that is used unless you specify otherwise.

Defensive Advertising
	Where a company combats a specific competitor with advertising. This is used in many particular add campaigns through "bashing" of the other company or comparing their goods with those of their competitors'

deja news
	A search engine used specifically for newsgroups. Instead of searching the Internet the tool searches Usenet, the largest information utility in existence.

delimiters
	A delimeter is a punctuation character or group of characters that separates two names or two pieces of data, or marks the beginning or end of a programming contruct. For example, the backslash (\) is the delimiter that separates directories and file names. The forward slash (/) is used as a delimeter in URLs. Other common delimeters include the comma (,), semicolon (;), quotes ("), and braces ({}).

Delphi technique
	A decision making technique where members of a group correspond with one another through email or other methods rather than participate in face to face meetings. This is a useful technique for geographically dispersed groups and/or those group members who do not have time to get away for a face to face meeting.

demand
	Demand is the need of a product or service by the consumer. Demand is directly effected by purchases of a specific item and indirectly effected by second hand purchases of a good from another consumer. Demand is counter-balanced by only the current supply of each individual product or service. Each item for sale or service made available for a consumer has its own demand rate.

Demand-Backward pricing
	Setting a price by estimating the price consumers would be willing to pay, then working backward through margins for retailers and wholesalers to determine the price a manufacturer should charge wholesalers

Demarcation (Demark)
	This is the point to which the phone company will provide service, beyond that point the user is responsible.

Demassification
	With the advances in technology the phenomenon of demassification has risen. Instead of targeting a huge audience, advertisers can individualize their message to fit each consumer differently. When you receive a mailer with your name in the message, that is demassification at work. Each message is slightly different.

demilitarized zone (DMZ)
	The neutral area created between a company’s private network and its public network in order to prevent unauthorized access to the company data server.

demographic segmentation
	A method of dividing markets based on vaiables, such as age, ethnic background, gender and income.

demographics
	A measurement tool for determining the size and composition of target markets. The basic factors for consumers are: income, location, age, education, family makeup, length and type of residence and ownership of cars. For non-households, the chief demographic factors are business type, size, and location, and number of employees.

Dependent Demand Inventory
	an items demand depends on the demand for related inventory items

Deregulation
	This is when the government steps out of an industry and allows the market to set the standards. This usually affects the computer industry through the tele-communications industry. In Texas this is known as the last mile, the local provider controling the last mile and can basically "rape" the consumer through monopolistic practices.

Derivative
	Financial term. A contract the value of which changes in concert with the price movements in a related or underlying commodity or financial instrument. The term covers standardised, exchange-traded futures and options, as well as over the counter swaps, options, and other customised instruments.

Derived Demand
	The demand for a business product that is a result from the demand for a consumer product. This forces marketers to more carefully monitor the demand patterns and changing preferences in the final consumer markets.

Design Specification
	explains the specifics to the programmers who will initially use it, the systems designers prepare the document.

Desktop Direct Marketing
	Is where the computers are used to promote the product, examples: banners, free CD's or free product giveaways when a particular item is purchased.

desktop publishing
	Desktop publishing is the process of creating printed documents that look professionally produced, using page layout software running on a personal computer, along with a high-quality, yet affordable, printer. To publish something with the traditional method, you would send typed or handwritten text to a typesetter, who would turn it into typeset text called “galleys,” which took a couple of days. If there were corrections, it took another couple of days to get those back. If you didn't know how to lay out the pages yourself, you'd take the galleys to a print shop, along with your art (illustrations and photographs). The people there would cut up the galleys with scissors and paste the pieces onto the pages along with the artwork. If something needed to be changed on the finished “paste-up” or “mechanical,” it would be possible, but a lengthy and expensive process. Finally, the print shop would reproduce the document in quantity. Instead, you might pay a graphic designer to take the project from conception to completion, and the designer would go through this process, creating the mechanical himself and taking it to the print shop to be reproduced. With desktop publishing, by contrast, you can create the entire document sitting at your own desk. You can think of the page layout software and the computer as the typesetting and layout area, and the laser printer as the printing press. You proof the project on your own printer; if it isn't right, you just turn back to your computer, make the changes, and print it again. Depending on how many final copies you need and the quality you want, you can print the job yourself, duplicate the masters you print on a photocopy machine, or have a professional press reproduce them. For the ultimate in quality, you can take your disk with your finished document to a service bureau, have it output on a high-resolution imagesetter, and then have the resulting pages professionallyreproduced.

Devils Advocacy
	Requires the generation of both a plan and a critical analysis of the plan.

DHTML
	Dynamic HTML is a collective term for a combination of new Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) tags and options, style sheets, and programming that will let you create.

Diagnosis
	Diagnosis is like problem shooting. A diagnosis describes the existing problem, the situation in which it occurs and the information needed to solve the problem. A diagnosis can occur on different levels in an organization. The need for a diagnosis can occur at the individual level, the managerial level and the organizational level.

Dial-up Connection
	A connection made over an ordinary telephone line between a computer (via its modem) and another computer or an Internet service provider.

differential advantage
	A set of unique features of a company and its products that are percieved by the market as significant and superior to the competition.

Digerati
	This is the computer version if literati. In the digital revolution it is a term used to identify a vague nebulous group of folks who have the semblance of knowledge. They appear to be in-the-know with respect to the digital revolution.

digest
	Its a compilation of messages that have been been posted to a mailing list.

digital
	Information that is digital is information represented by numbers (digits) or more broadly, information that can be measured in discreet, exact values. The opposite term is analog, which describes information represented along a continuous range, where there are an infinite number of possible values. The best way to understand the difference between digital and analog is to compare a digital clock to a traditional round clock with hands. The display on a digital clock always shows one particular time, in numbers. A clock with hands, in contrast, is an analog device because the hands move along the entire circle of the clock face; at any one instant the hands can be anywhere on the clock, displaying an infinite number of moments in time. Water is analog; ice cubes are digital. All common computers work only with numbers and are digital devices.

Digital Asset Management
	Digital Asset Management is the gathering, warehousing, and indexing of a company’s ‘digital goods’ (customer information, stock-art etc.) and making them consistently and quickly available to those who depend on them. Digital Asset Management lets you organize your digital assets any way that you need - using familiar folders, custom business information, collections and more. Everyone in your organization can browse, search, view and retrieve the documents, images, or multimedia they need without spending the day looking for them. In companies as small as 10 people, employees may not even know that many of these assets are available to them. Digital Asset Management makes it easy for users to collaborate on projects by facilitating communication about assets, managing concurrent access with "Check-in/check-out" features, and by tracking all versions of each asset. Asset tracking is essential for collaborating staff who are not in the same room, or even the same planet. 2/2/1999 by Othell

digital cash
	A form of electronic currency that exists only in cyberspace. This type of currency has no real physical properties, but offers the ability to use real currency in an electronic format like that used on the World Wide Web. Some companies developing this form of currency are CyberCash and DigiCash. One bank offering this service is Mark Twain Bank. By sending them a check, the bank in turn will send you special software that will allow you to draw from your account with them to your hard drive. You may then use the funds to make purchases over the web. This type of payment system hopes to resolve the security problems related to the use of credit card numbers on the Internet.

digital certificate
	An electronic document, issued by a certificate authority, used to establish a company's identity by verifying its public key.

Digital Certificates
	Digital certificates, are used in much the same way as conventional forms of identification - such as a driver's license or passport - to provide irrefutable evidence of the owner's identity and, in some cases, authority in a given transaction. Digital Certificates are issued, managed, and verified by Certificate Authorities.

Digital Coins
	When a user acquires a payment software package, this type of electronic payment will allow a shopper the ability to download from an account at a bank or to pay by means of a virtual wallet.

Digital Goods
	Any product whose content is sold and delivered over the Internet.

digital halftone
	A photo that has been converted, through the scanning process, to a series of dots that can be stored and manipulated electronically and then printed as a part of the electronically composed page.

digital money transfer method
	Method for making electronic payment where the receiver obtains a signal that is used for further transactions. This section is restricted to those application where transfer can take place over the Internet (as opposed to private building networks).

digital signature
	Digital signatures, like written signatures, are a method of authenticating the source of a document and/or its author. A common form of digital signatures are digital certificates, whereby the issuing company vouches for you and gives you a unique identification that can be verified by a merchant prior to accepting an order.

Digital signatures
	Electronically coded messages that accompany text messages, identifying the author of each document or component. For example, all ActiveX controls transmitted over the Web are digitally signed by their creators.

Digital Wallet
	This is software that stays resident on the hard drive of an online shopper. When they are ready to make a purchase, the "wallet" pops open to reveal payment options. Some "wallets" hold credit cards with encrypted information. Other wallets hold digital coins.

digital watermark
	The process of embedding "invisible" code into a digital file(such as a sound or movie) for the purpose of tracking copyrights.

Digitize
	To translate into digital format. An example would be optical scanners that digitize images by translating them into bit maps.

dimensional
	An appearance of spatial amount, especially of width, height, or length. Three-dimensional adds to the perception of having depth

Direct channel
	A marketing channel where a producer and ultimate consumer interact directly with each other.

direct connection
	A permanent connection between your computer and the Internet. It is sometimes referred to as a leased-line connection because the line is may be leased from the telephone company.

direct e-mail
	Advertising over the internet that uses person-to-person communication through the mail rather than mass media. Advertising is sent via electronic mail and faxes.

Direct foreign investment
	Complete ownership of manufacturing and marketing subsidiaries in foreign countries.

direct mail
	Advertising that uses person-to-person communication through the mail rather than mass media. Advertising is sent via fliers, letters, brochures, or reprints.

direct marketing
	Techniques such as direct mail, catalogs or telemarketing that encourage the customer to order from home.

direct retailing
	A form of nonstore retailing that occurs in a home setting, such as door-to-door sales, party plan selling, and electronic sales over the Web. Traditional forms of direct retailing have waned over the past decade or so, but Internet retailing stands to grow rapidly.

direct sales
	This is a simple model that creates a web site to sell a narrow range of product's they do not manufacture directly to the consumer.

Direct Selling Association
	A national trade association based in Washington D.C. The DSA's Code of Ethics spells out ethical guidelines for companies salespeople to follow in selling products, recruiting new salespeople, and working with salespeople.

direct transmission
	the exchange of data from the computer of the sending party directly to the computer of the receiving party. A third-party value-added service is not used in a direct transmission code.

Directories
	List of Web sites organized and categorized by subjects. Top-level directory page always divided into the widest, most general possible subject area. Usually about 12 to 15 of these subject areas. Each is linked to a second directory level (on a separate page) that divides that topic into subtopics.

Direct-Response Advertising
	This refers to advertising that calls for an immediate response from the buyer.

direct-response marketing
	technique used to get consumers to make a purchase from their home, office, or other nonretail setting

Discounts
	Reductions from a list price that a seller gives a buyer as a reward for some buyer activity favorable to the seller

discretionary spending
	The amount of money a consumer has left after paying their bills and contributing to saving. This is the money that is left for the producers of luxury items.

discussion groups
	A powerful tool to gain corporate exposure by recieving feedback from stake holders (customers, suppliers, regulatory agencies, etc.)

disintermediation
	disintermediation refers to the elimination of intermediate players in the value chain.

Disk Administrator
	Is an administration tool used for Windows NT Server and Workstation. It is used to set the the type of file format (Fat of NTSF)and allocate the size and number of drives that a hard disk may be divided into.

Disk Defragmentation
	From time to time files within the hard-drive of a PC tend to become fragmented. This means that files tend to scatter or spread into other files causing a slow-down in speed & performance. The E-Commerce websites along with the Internet in general take longer load because it must search for those hidden files that are not organized properly. Disk Defragmention is a tool designed to arrange, organize and cleanup any unnecessary files, folders, and directories one drive destination (most common is C) at a time. This helpful tool comes with the computer or can be bought separately (DISKEEPER WKST. 4.0) and must be maintained on a regular basis. Any further information can be found in the April PC-MAGAZINE issue.

Disk Storage Space
	The amount of server disk storage on your account. It normally stores HTML(link) files, graphics, audio clips, POP(link) mail messages, PDFs, and other files incorporated on the Web site.

display type
	Large type, often boldface, used for headlines, breakouts and often attention-getting text.

distance learning
	Type of education where instruction and testing is completed via the internet.

distinctive competency
	It is a unique stregth that a company has that allows it to achieve superior efficiency, customer responsiveness, quality, and innovation. Wish distinctive competency, a company can attain a competitive advantage.

Distribute
	This term refers to the process of giving out of some particular good or service.

distributed content
	Providing specific content, whether internal or external to the web publication itself, to web site visitors in an effort to satisfy their needs and encourage regular return visits.

Distributed Database
	Is a type of database that is stored across several storage areas. It allows for the same data to be redundantly stored for the purpose of error correction, and data security. Is useful to the web, because a site that uses this has the ability to stay afloat if one or more of the severs goes down. The standing server can still function keeping thesite open fo buisness.

dither
	is when a color is simulated that does not appear in the palette of a graphics program by combining pixels of different colors close to each other.

dithered
	Images with a color depth greater than your display are dithered and a grainy effect is produced. One common example of dithering is when a color display is printed on a black and white printer. The printer uses tiny dots of black and white to simulate shades of gray that is in turn simulating the color display. The same effect takes place when color dots are used to simulate colors on a display that are outside the set palette.

Dithering
	Creating the illusion of new colors and shades by verying the pattern of dots. Newspaper photographs are dithered.

Diversification
	Refers to a marketing strategy used by an established firm to increase sales by introducing a new product into a new markets.

DNS
	Domain Name System is a system of servers located on the Internet that have been set up for Internet connections and the routing of e-mail.

Document
	A term for a node on some systems (eg Intermedia). Sometimes used by others as a term for a collection of nodes on related topics, possible stored or destributed as one. The prefered term in W3 documentation.

Document information
	An onscreen window that displays general information, such as location and security status, about the Web page.

DOM
	Short for "Document Object Model", this is a specification for how objects in Web Page ( Text, headers, links, etc..) are represented. Dynamic HTML relies on the DOM to dynamically change the appearance of web pages after they have been downloaded to a user's browser.

domain expertise
	People/companies who have previous experience with a merchants industry for better understanding of the development of a website for the merchant.

domain name
	The Domain Name is a unique name which represents each computer on the Internet. The DNS converts the Domain Name requested by an Internet User into an IP Address. The location of the machine with this IP address is known & the information being requested can then be found. "WWW.UTA.EDU” is an example of a Domain Name. The "EDU" indicates that UTA is an educational institution. Other commonly used codes to indicate types of organizations are: AC - Educational institution CO - Commercial organization COM - Commercial organization EDU - Educational institution GOV - Non military government organization INT - International Organization MIL - Military government organization NET - Network organization, ties to Internet administrative bodies ORG - non profit organization

Domain Name Service (DNS)
	Domain name service allows a more friendly way to remember places on the internet. The internet actually runs not by names such as www.yahoo.com, but on IP numbers like 204.71.200.74 (which is www.yahoo.com's address). DNS is what maps IP numbers to domain names across the internet. Here is an abbreviated example of what a DNS table looks like: $origin thecure.net. @ IN SOA ns1.dfw.net. root.dfw.net. www IN A 206.54.191.23 This tells us that ns1.dfw.net tells people on the internet that www.thecure.net's IP address is 206.54.191.23. This means you can type in the IP address in your URL box on your web browser, or, you can type in the friendly domain name instead!

Domain Registration
	This is one of the firs steps require to start a web site. Is the Registragion of a name (ex.yourcompany.com) and for this there is usually a charge of around $70 for 2 years

domains
	The names given to different locations on the WWW. the notation after the dot is a domain type. They can be com, edu, gov, net, us, or org. The domain specifies what server the locaiton is on, furthermore, the contract for handling domain names was handed to Network Solutions, INC. The government has not renewed that contract, and will handle, that duty in the future.

door
	A software bulletin board application that notifies a user of a program that is needed to run or executed certain procedures. (i.e. games and multi-media sites)

Doorway page
	Highly focused Web pages on specific topics, services or products. They are used to improve search engine results and increase traffic to the Web site.

DOS (Disk Operating System)
	The disk operating system (DOS) is the software that organizes how an IBM-compatible computer reads, writes and reacts with its disks and communicates with various input/output devices. It can be thought of as a "translator" that helps software communicate with hardware, and vise-versa. The most common versions are "MS-DOS", "PC DOS", AND "DR DOS".

Dots Per Inch (DPI)
	The number of ink dots printed per linear inch. The larger the number, the finer the image.

double sampling
	A two-stage selection procedure where data are collected for a large sample (often by a low cost procedure such as a mail survey) and then a smaller subsample of the initial sample is selected for a second stage of data collection (often using a more expensive method of collecting data).

Dow Jones Industrial Average
	A stock market index based on prices of thirty, large, well-established stocks.

download
	To copy data from a main source to a peripheral device. The term is often used to describe the process of copying a file from an online service or bulletin board service (BBS) to one's own computer. Downloading can also refer to copying a file from a network file server to a computer on the network.

Dr. HTML
	Dr. HTML is a website described in the book, Web Pages That Suck, as one of the Most Important Sites on the Internet. Dr. HTML analyzes pages on the Internet, looking for errors. There are other sites that offer similar services. Not all of them charge a fee. Check out http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Information_and_Documentation/Data_Formats/HTML/Validation_and_Checkers/.

Drag-and-drop
	A mouse pointer operation in which you select an object and place it in a new location. Some examples are: -- Draging a file from the hard drive to the A:> to copy a file to the floppy disk. -- Draging a file from the hard drive to the printer icon to print the document.

Dreamweaver
	A WYSISYG application made by Macromedia that allows for more advanced HTML coding. Dreamweaver also incorporates DHTML, CSS and JavaScript allowing the user to creat more interactive web sites

Drill Down
	Used to describe the going deeper into published data, like deeper into a Web site.

drop cap
	A drop cap is the capital letter at the beginning of a paragraph that “drops down” and sits on another baseline, as in this paragraph. There are many variations of a drop cap, it may be taller than any other letters, it may tuck right into the paragraph, it may hang off the side, etc. An initial cap, as a subtle distinction, is supposed to sit on the first baseline. Whether you use a drop cap or an initial cap, please be sure to align the baseline of the capital letter with the nearest baseline of the text.

Drop Ship
	The shipping of a product directly from the manufacturer to the customer without requiring inventory carrying by the retailer.

DSD (Direct Store Delivery)
	The practice of delivering product directly to the retail store and notifying the store of the delivery electronically rather than by paper.

DSL
	Stands for "digital subscriber line". It is a technology for bringing high-bandwidth information to homes and small businesses over ordinary copper telephone lines.

DSML (Directory Service Markup Language)
	Language which enables XML (Extensible Markup Language) applications to share information from a variety of directories despite the differences of the data formats. Particularly useful with Web applications because there are so many different formats.

Dual Scan Display
	A type of passive - matrix LCD display that gives faster refresher rates than conventional displays by dividing a screen into two sections that are refreshed simultaneously.

Dumping
	The practice of selling large quantities of products in foriegn countries below cost to gain market share. Under the U.S. Antidumping Act, a company must prove that the foriegn company's prices are lower here than in the home country and that the U.S. companies are directly harmed.

DUNS (Data Universal Numbering System)
	A database maintained by Dun and Bradstreet that is used by the Government to identify each contractor and their location(s). This number is required to register with the Central Contractor Register (CCR) that is used by the government's electronic commerce/electronic data interchange (EC/EDI) system called FACNET. You can obtain a DUNS number at no cost by calling Dun and Bradstreet at 800-333-0505. Dun and Bradstreet is also available in CD's where you can purchase a copy as an individual/or as a business.

Dynamic Commerce
	The buying and selling of goods and services through flexible pricing models.

dynamic data exchange
	An industry standard accepted by most horizontal application software forexchanging data among different software programs.

dynamic HTML
	Enables dynamic multimedia content, style, and positioning effects for Web page design. Along with complimentary Cascading Style Sheets technology, Dynamic HTML allows Web page authors to design pages once and reuse the content in other Web pages. Users can read or interact with the page while further downloading is progressing. Microsoft and Netscape each have different concepts for using DHTML and creating cross-browser supported Web sites is very challenging.

Dynamic Packet Filter
	A dynamic packet filter is a firewall facility that can monitor the state of active connections and use this information to determine which network packets to allow through the firewall. By recording session information such as IP addresses and port numbers, a dynamic packet filter can implement a much tighter security posture than a static packet filter.

dynamic site creation
	The development and making of a website from any location or place. That may have the effect of controlling peoples physical and moral judgement.

EAN·UCC
	submitted by John McCormack at 3:42pm on September 20th, 1999. Numbering system used for bar-coding

Early adopters
	The second group of people to adopt an innovation. The size of this group is defined statistically as 13.5 percent of all potential adopters.

Earn out
	Either a formula for relating to the final purchase price of a company to actual future earnings, or a means of encouraging management to perform by payment on the basis of future performance.

easter egg
	A surprise feature which is not apparent, but when clicked on does something special. Sometimes takes the form of an extra level in a game or an animation message of some kind. Programmers sometimes bury Easter Eggs in their programs or web sites to add extra depth and challenge users to find them. They are messages, sound effects, or graphics emitted by a program in response to a set of keystrokes or commands, intended as a joke or to display program credits. Easter Eggs are sometimes imbedded into the object code of a program and are intended to be found by someone browsing the code.

Ebook
	is a form of electronic book in which the contents are stored and played back digitally.

eBPP
	submitted by John McCormack at 4:15 PM on October 18th, 1999. eBPP is electronic bill presentment and payment, an e-bill presentment and payment service which connects the bill issuer, the bill payer and the payer's bank to complete billing transactions.

e-branding
	Web site campaigns designed to embed a company or product name in the consumers psyche using a combination of persuasive, emotional advertising campaigns and public relations to encourage a link between a positive "feeling" and a product.

e-business
	"e-business" ("electronic business," derived from such terms as "e-mail" and "e-commerce") is the conduct of business on the Internet, not only buying and selling but also servicing customers and collaborating with business partners. One of the first to use the term was IBM, when, in October, 1997, it launched a thematic campaign built around the term. Today, major corporations are rethinking their businesses in terms of the Internet and its new culture and capabilities. Companies are using the Web to buy parts and supplies from other companies, to collaborate on sales promotions. and to do joint research. Exploiting the convenience, availability, and world-wide reach of the Internet, many companies, such as Amazon.com, the book sellers, have already discovered how to use the Internet successfully.

e-cash
	Electronic cash is a payment mechanism designed for the Internet. It is electronic money that can be passed along from person to person like cash. It is anonymous like cash, and has value immediately - its cash, not a promise to pay later. At present real E-Cash is not in use anywhere but some of the larger players are introducing electronic money in a number of forms.

e-cash classifications
	Secure methods of conducting commercial transactions on the www (CyberCash , CyberCoin, Millicent, etc.) In the early days of the Internet, there were serious security concerns over conducting commercial transactions where confidential information was transmitted. One of the problems with using the Internet is that any information sent from Point-A to Point-B may go through many other points along the way. Each time a message goes through one of these "in between" points there is the potential that someone else may intercept it. If a credit card number was intercepted by the wrong person, the potential for fraudulent use could have alarming consequences. Electronic Cash (E-Cash) is seen as a solution. E-Cash uses technology that typically avoids any use of credit card, checking, or other sensitive financial account information when conducting a commercial transaction. E-Cash provides a secure and low cost way to make purchases on the Internet. In addition, E-Cash is also beneficial from the merchant's perspective since credit card purchases under $10 can be costly due to transaction fees. Recently, credit cards are seeing significant use by consumers to make purchases on the Internet for three reasons: First, the current use of 128-bit encryption allows credit card account information to be safely transmitted over the Internet. Second, federal law limits the liability of a consumer to $50 in the event of credit card fraud. Third, there is a consensus in the credit card security field that there is a greater chance for credit card fraud occuring at a local store by a dihonest employee than over the Internet. Several companies with over a half billion dollars in transactions each year have been studied and found to have never had a single instance of credit card fraud associated with them. The primary benefit of E-Cash is the ability to conduct transactions under $10 without the merchant losing profits. This allows consumers to buy small ticket items and information over the internet for 25 cents or less. By eliminating the need for transaction fees and minimum purchase levels, electronic commerce is much more affordable with E-Cash.

eCHARGE
	Alternative payment method that allows Internet users to shop online and securely "charge" items to their local phone bill.

Echeck
	A buyer can send a request for payment electronically over a network to the seller. The seller then sends the notice to his/her bank and funds are transmitted electronically to the buyer’s bank.

echo
	A communication standard, such that the data sent by a computer is sent back by the receiveing computer, giving the user the impression that he or she is doing everything twice.

echo boom
	The new generation market segment after generation y. These are kids between the age of 8 to 13 and they have more money to spend than ever before.

E-commerce
	Electronic commerce; the exchange of goods or services via an electronic medium (primarily the Internet).

e-commerce mall
	An electronic site that provides e-commerce services and solutions to small and medium sized business while enabling them to cost effectively and efficiently sell their products through the Internet.

Economic Profit
	Return on investment in excess of the average cost of capital in the overall market. Alternatively, profits excluding profits from the increase in value of inventory which the company holds.

Economic Value Added (EVA)
	A measure of financial performance calculated by subtracting a charge for the capital used to produce net operating income (EVA = net operating income - capital charge).

Economies of Scale
	Unit-cost reductions associated with a large scale of output.

ecruiting
	Ecruiting is leveraging the electronic media (Internet technologies) as a company's core recruiting tactic to help them hire better people faster at a lower cost. Similar to the way a headhunter recruits people online.

EDGAR
	Electronic Data Gathering, Analysis, and Retrieval

EDI
	submitted by John McCormack at 3:34PM on September 28th, 1999. EDI = Electronic Data Interchange -

EDLP(M) pricing
	This is a form of pricing whereby a manufacturer charges the same price for a particular brand day in and day out. Rather than charging hight-low prices,"high" prices for a period followed by off invoice or low price for a short period. It involves charging the same price over an extended period.

Edutainment
	Edutainment is a combonation of education and entertainment. These types of sites often offer an interactive feature which allows the user to accomplish learning new material while entertaining at the same time.

Effective Frequency
	an ad should be shown to a person "X" amount of times until the ad has achieved the greatest effectiveness on the individual without wasting impressions.

Effective Reach
	the amount of consumers who will see an ad on the web when it has the greatest effect.

Efficiency
	Refers to how well a company can take its resources and produce a product or service that minimizes its resources but produces a competitive advantage. This can make or break an Internet company because the Internet relies so much on instant customer gratification. Internet companies must have the most efficient system in order to meet customer demands.

Efficient Consumer Response
	The use of Electronic Commerce between food manufacturers, distributors, and retailers to cut inventories and costs by speeding up response times.

E-Form
	An e-form (electronic form) is a computer program version of a paper form. Aside from eliminating the cost of printing, storing, and distributing pre-printed forms, and the wastage of obsolete forms, e-forms can be filled out faster because the programming associated with them can automatically format, calculate, look up, and validate information for the user.

e-fulfillment
	The extension of a business's shipping department that includes assembly, and tracking of products as one unit. This also includes taking care of customer specific packaging methods, materials, labeling and shipping of product to desired destination.

Ego-based sites
	Another word for Personal Websites, ego-based sites are not for profit. They generally share these qualities: They can be about art; They can be about information; They are ALWAYS about ego. People usually take their personal web site very seriously!

Egocentrism
	Believing one own views are the norm.

Eithernet Network
	Developed by 3COM in the eary 1980's, it started out on a coaxial cabe at less than 10mbps. Today's eithernet is reaching speeds faster than 100mbps, there are versions that attain faster speeds. It is the standard network architecture in todays businesses.

Elastic Demand
	It occurs when consumers are sensitive to price changes, whereas inelastic demand means that an increase or decrease in price will not significantly affect demand for a product.

elasticity
	Economic measure of the reaction of one variable to the changes in another variable.

electromechanical
	relating to any power-driven, machine-like apparatus that is electrically operated

electronic
	What's the difference between “electric” and electronic? Well, electronic devices —such as televisions, cellular phones, computers —all process signals of some sort, signals such as radio waves or bits of data through wires. If the device doesn't process any signals —if it just pops up the toast or gets hot or turns wheels —then it's electrical. Electronic devices all used to have vacuum tubes that had a flow of electrons going through them, which is what made them electronic. Now semiconductors do what the tubes used to, and they can involve the flow of holes as well as electrons. A hole is a spot where there should be an electron but there isn't, and they really do flow the way electrons flow.

electronic address
	The address which recipients of electronic mail are known to electronic mail software.

Electronic Atlas
	are digital images of pieces of geographic location, and has physical features, boundaries, rivers, lakes, and names of places and their infrastructure.

Electronic Bartering
	Electronic Bartering is very easy to understand. It is the exchange of goods and services without the use of money. Its sort of like when you a kid and you trade lunches with someone else. The two of you just bartered your lunches without the exchange of money. Most corporate bartering can be done electronically also.

Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT)
	Electronics Benefits Transfer is very similar to Electronic Funds Transfer. EBT is simply the transfer of benefits electronically. Benefits include food stamps and social security checks.

electronic bill delivery
	A bill delivery system offered by Visa Interactive that allows banks to sent customers their bills through their personal computers or via telephone lines. This system now allows customers to transfer funds through their bank to the billing agent itself.

electronic brand
	A unique aspect of a company's offerings that is electronically identified (i.e. via the Web) by words, graphics, symbols, or designs. It also includes the customer's experience while interacting with the electronic medium. An electronic brand allows a company to differentiate itself from competitors. Over time, it allows the company to increase prices because of customers' trust in the company's offerings.

electronic catalogue
	A listing of available products which can be viewed in an electronic format (e.g. the Internet). The catalogue usually resembles a paper-based catalogue and can include information such as pictures of merchandise, prices, and product descriptions.

Electronic Certificates
	Electronic Certificates are used to give assurance to those who use public keys in business. A company must be sure that an individuals public key is indeed his. That individual can obtain an Electronic Certificate to authenticate the public key as his own.

Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)
	Any way of exchanging ecommerce and business over the internet, forms of this can be shopping carts, online secure transactiions involving ecommerce, and forms. When a user fills out a form, he or she is Interacting with the Business or group on the other end. This exchange of data, is important when credit cards and other private information is being transmitted. A website and server, would be considered the EDI in this situation.

electronic data interchange (EDI)
	EDI is the computer to computer exchange of normal business transactions including payments, information exchange and purchase order requests. The most basic EDI line consists of a computer to computer link. The second level incorporates an application to application design where individual companies links a minimum of one of their in-house systems to the EDI interface. The most elaborate version of EDI actually transform the way business procedures are executed to gain optimal productivity. These involve trend-institutions that evolve into a centralized EDI based functions.

Electronic Data Interchange For Administration, Commerce and Transport (EDIFACT)
	The international standard for EDI messages. EDIFACT, also known as UN/EDIFACT, is one of the two international standards describing the syntax of EDI transmissions. EDIFACT is administered by a working party (WP.4) of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE). The EDIFACT syntax rules have been published by the ISO as ISO9735.

electronic desk
	The area of a screen in which a GUI operating system presents the user with icons for starting office automation functions such as electronic mail, word processing, and spreadsheets.

electronic envelope
	Electronic information that binds together a set of transmitted documents being sent from one sender to one receiver. For example, a sender may send by electronic mail a written message that includes one or more attachments. The group of documents would arrive in the receiver's electronic mailbox via one electronic envelope.

Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT)
	Systems and technologies that processes financial transactions and transfers funds (money) electronically between two financial institutions. Includes Fedwire, Bankwire, automated clearinghouses (ACHs), and other automated systems.

electronic mailbox
	It is a location on the reciever's computer or more commonly located on a third-party network, such as networking applications, that is used to hold electronic mail.

electronic mall
	Websites that are in the tradition of a physical mall, where a person can go to many "stores" and browse for different types of products in the same website.

electronic market system
	Component of an interorganizational information system that provides information about industry players so as to increase competition and efficiency in virtual markets, reducing a seller's power and increasing lower prices for buyers.

Electronic Media
	A mode of communication through an electronic circuit or device such as radio, television, or computer.

electronic newsletter
	A newsletter that is distributed online. Usually distributed through email but often can be found on the World Wide Web. Used to pass information about a particular company or topic of common interest to a target group. Also referred to as an Ezine.

Electronic Paper
	Invented by Xerox, electronic paper is a thin piece of transparent plastic that contains millions of small beads. Each bead (1/2 white and 1/2 black) is contained in an oil filled cavity. E-paper is electrically writable and erasable and can be reused hundreds of times. When voltage is applied to the surface of a sheet the beads rotate to display either their black or white sides. Images of pictures or texts are created when a pattern of voltages are sent to the paper. The image remains until the voltage pattern changes.

Electronic Postmaster
	An electronic postmaster is the capability in a program, usually a special program designated as an e-mail server, for handling the distribution, forwarding, and receiving of e-mail in a network. For example, an SMTP server at your access provider acts as an electronic postmaster by forwarding your outgoing messages to their destinations in the network and by collecting your incoming messages so that you can request them from a POP3 server that holds your messages until you request that they be sent to your workstation client.

Electronic Receipt
	This is proof that a transaction has occurred or products have been purchased via the Internet. Receipts often contain instructions with allow the buyer to download the "electronic product" from the merchant's fulfillment server.

electronic round table
	the IT support environment for concurrent engineering . Effectively the IT "workbench" for the CE work team. (Glossary of CALS and Electronic Commerce Terms; http://cals.debbs.ndhq.dnd.ca/english/glossar1.html)

Electronic Shopping
	The process of selecting merchandise, ordering it, and possibly paying for it through a computer or terminal, often located within a person's home.

electronic signature
	A code or symbol that is the electronic equivalent of a written signature.

Electronic Store
	The Internet equivalent of a local store or mail-order catalog. A company could create an electronic store by building a Web site that lists all the products and services that it sells and enables customers to purchase them by ordering them on the web site.

electronic teleshopping
	Online shopping and information retrieval service accessed through personal computers. Home shoppers need only a minimal knowledge of computers to select the information they want as if using a book index. They can buy products, buy services such as airline tickets, play games, get stock market reports, view the latest headlines, pay bills, and access the Internet. Advertisers may provide their messages in the form of logos or names, or in longer segments, depending on how much they want to pay and the message they wish to convey.

Electronic Trading
	An umbrella term to describe the use of different electronic technologies to facilitate trade between individual organisations, groups and countries. Examples are EDI, e-mail, database access, fax and telephone. Often synonymous with electronic commerce.

Electronic wallet
	Also known as the virtual wallet. It is a software mechanism that allows commerce server users to store and use credit card and electonic payment information. Typically, information in the wallet is encrypted and is persistent from session to session.

Elitist
	Elitist are the opposite of populist. Elitist are people who focus on the responsibility that media has to society. They feel that media has the responsibility to contribute to and better society as a whole.

em dash
	Em is Latin for the letter m, which is the 13th letter of the English alphabet. The em dash refers specifically to the space typesetters used for vertical spacing of letters. An em dash represents the column width of space which is the width of the letter m, regardless of the font. By using the em space a dash becomes more uniform in length and enhances the layout of a document. The em space has been generally accepted as the proper space requirements until recently when the en dash is considered to be more aesthetically appealing. More recently the em dash is defined as a square representing a column width.

e-mail
	Correspondence sent from one computer address to another computer address. This is quicker than U.S. Mail that is now called "snail mail"

e-mail bomb
	This term has evolved from the ability to send e-mail that looks like a web page. Netscape 3.0 introduced this capability only to find out later that it created a security problem. The problem is that if a reader receives and reads an e-mail of this nature it may temporarily disable his system. If the reader was doing two things at once, such as working on a spreadsheet or composing a document and reading their mail, having to restart their system to clear the e-mail bomb would cause them to loose whatever else they were working on. Indeed, this problem could be very troublesome and serves as a reminder to save your work often.

Email Marketing
	Adertising and selling to customers via email. This includes building electronic mailing lists of serious prospects, buying bulk mailing lists, or acquiring mailing lists of people in discussion lists with an interest in your industry.

E-mail Questionnaires
	This is one of the most cost effective ways to collect data on the Internet. This entails offering incentives for people to fill these forms out so a product's target audience can be determined.

e-mail surveys
	interviewing technique in which researchers use batch-type electronic mail to send surveys, and respondents send reply via e-mail

Email virus
	A virus that is transmitted through email, which can have relatively minor to extremely detrimental effects on a computer's system, files, and/or software programs. An email virus can be transmitted to a computer by simply opening an email that carries such a virus or by clicking on a hyperlink that is contained within the email message itself. Such viruses have been known to shut down entire networks.

Embedding
	A form of subliminal advertising that involves the use of imagery in products and advertisements to appeal to a potential customers subconcious.

emcee
	A moderator or event host in an auditorium chat session.

emergent strategy
	This is a type of business strategy that usually emerges within an organization (for example, employees at lower level in the organization) without prior planning, often in response to unforeseen circumstances. Companies in an innovative industry usually have to rely on emergent strategies, since the quick changing environment makes it hard for the company to always abide by the top managers' plan.

emissary
	An Internet suite from Attachmate which incorporates some of the most current technology into the Web browser, FTP, e-mail, and newsreader program. Emissary features a "drag and drop" capability allowing users to download a file into any directory. Emissary also allows e-mail and newsgroup encoding and decoding of documents.

emoticon
	A combination of keyboard symbols that, when looked at sideways, resemble a facial expression to indicate an emotional state in electronic mail or news. Although originally intended mostly as jokes, emoticons are virtually required under certain circumstances in high-volume text-only communication forums such as Usenet. The lack of verbal and visual cues can otherwise cause what were intended to be humorous, sarcastic, ironic, or otherwise non-100%-serious comments to be misinterpreted. It appears that the emoticon was invented by Scott Fahlman on the CMU board systems around 1980. Hundreds of emoticons have been proposed, but only a few are in common use. The most common is the "smiley face," :-) for humor, laughter, friendliness.

Emoticons
	Emotions + icons = Emoticons It is difficult to signal emotions in your e-mail, so emoticons can signal simple emotions. A couple examples are: I'm happy : ) and I'm sad : (

Empowerment
	To delegate authority to a particular problem towards a customer.

Empowerment
	The process of giving workers at every level of the organization the power, the freedom, and the responsibilty to control their own work, to make decisions, and to take action to meet the company's objectives.

Empowerment
	To delegate authority to a particular problem towards a customer.

en dash
	En dash is the spacing measure used in electronic publishing and printed documents. It is the space the letter n takes up in a column. It is represented in modern times as a square. Currently, the en dash is favored by typesetters over the em dash. Typesetters consider the em dash to be too wide and too attention-grabbing for conventional and desk-top publications.

enabler
	This is a business strategy that chooses not to build a web site. Rather the enabler builds a data base and an engine that can be put in other companies web sites to make them more effective.

encoding
	Conversion of sender's thoughts and ideas into a message, usually in the form of words or signs.

encryption
	Encryption is the conversion of data into a form, called a cipher, that cannot be easily intercepted by unauthorized people. Decryption is the process of converting encrypted data back into its original form, so it can be understood.

encryption algorithm
	The most common way to make sure that the data in messages are protected from unathorized access is through encryption. Encryption is a means of disguising information using mathematical rules known as algorithms. Encryption takes a message from plain-text and puts it into cypher-text which is non-readable by adding characters to the message; it becomes difficult to break this code and view the message. Decryption brings the message back to readable form. The algorithm performs the data encryption. It is programmed into a specialized computer. A key is used to personalize an algorithm. An encryption algorithm can be used to encrypt data that is confidential to a company, a name, or a credit card number in a financial transaction. An algorithm should be reversible or symmetrical to be useful, but this can cause exposure. If half of the key is stolen, then the other half can easily be identified and the encrypted values can be returned to plain-text. Thus, assymetrical algorithms are being designed so it is harder to break the code to get the message to plain-text. Data Encryption Standard (DES) is the most common type of symmetrical algorithm. Rivest, Shamir, and Adelman (RSA) is an asymmetrical algorithm. This is more secure because it reduces the risk of reversibilty. There are two different keys. One is the public key that the sender uses to encrypt the data and the other is a private key used to decrypt the data that is used by the reciever of a message. In a symmetrical algorithm, these two keys are the same which causes insecurity. The two different keys are generated from the computer at the same time.

end user
	An individual who uses the benefits of IS; a person that uses a computer to perform tasks like e-mail, e-business, etc.

enmeshing effect
	A powerful technique for increasing traffic to your Web page by creating links to other pages on your own Web site. This will prevent a lost opportunity when a customer arrives at Web Dead Ends i.e. a page that has no links. It is important to not have any Web Dead Ends because if a user encounters one they will never take the time to see any other pages that the company has.

Enterprise
	Is a collection of organizations and people formed to create and deliever product to customers.

Enterprise Security Systems (ESS)
	Enterprise Security Systems, or ESS, commonly refers to holistic approaches or solutions of security surrounding information systems management. This includes information technology assets, e.g., computer, network and communications equipment and information architecture, e.g. security surrounding the software and databases used by the organizations to conduct or run its critical day-to-day procedures, processes and systems. Business Continuity Plans that ensure the availability of critical resources are also part of this. Regarding e-commerce, it addresses the fundamental issue of trust in electronic commerce, protecting transactions and confidentiality.

enterprise technology
	A software application, hardware configuration, or network topology expressly deployed to interact with and enhance the business objectives of an organization.

entity
	Data object that represents a person, place, or thing that relates to other objects within a database. Entities are described by individual attributes that compose the data object.

entrepreneur
	An individual who organizes a business and assumes the risk of not making a profit. E-commerce is wide open for entrepeneurs, but they may have some advantage on the Internet since it is possible to start a business quite easily on the Web when compared to "brick and mortar" businesses.

Entropy
	the tendency for a system to run down and become terminated

enveloping
	A process whereby documents of the same type or purpose are grouped together, bound, and sent to the same destination into an electronic envelope. This is done by an EDI management software function.

enviormental advertisement
	A variety of different web advertisements such as pop-up advertisements, external Ad links, Webfomercials, that differ from non-enviormental ads which are intended to be interactive, engaging and entertaining.

environmental management
	when a company implements strategies that attempt to shape the external environment within which it operates

E-Procurement
	E-procurement is the business-to-business purchase and sale of supplies and services over the Internet. An important part of many B2B sites, e-procurement is also sometimes referred to by other terms, such as supplier exchange. Typically, e-procurement Web sites allow qualified and registered users to look for buyers or sellers of goods and services. Depending on the approach, buyers or sellers may specify prices or invite bids. Transactions can be initiated and completed. Ongoing purchases may qualify customers for volume discounts or special offers.

e-program
	Academic courses offered by schools, primarily by colleges and universities. Course content is offered through distance learning mechanisms, primarily via the Internet. Courses can contain any combination of video and audio, as well as receive on-line assistance from instructors.

Equity theory
	Equity Theory relates to how employees make judgments about whether the organization is treating them fairly. J.S Adams did the primary research on this theory. According to him, individuals compare their inputs and outcomes with those of others doing similar work to determine whether they are being treated fairly. Inputs are what and employee fives to job (e.g. time, effort) and outcomes are such as promotions, pay, recognitions, etc. Whether employees are in a retail business, E-commerce or government agencies. They all wanted to be treated fairly. So, whether you are in a retail business or E-commerce, your employees should be treated fairly based on their motivation, skills qualification, and education to get better outcomes.

e-research
	The process of doing market research with online technology such as the internet. By using e-research, companies can save both time and money and still receive reliable information that costlier market research provides.

Ergonomics
	The science of adapting work and the work environment to complement employees' strengths and to suit customers' needs. For example, chairs, desks, and table heights that allow people to work comfortably can help employees perform their jobs faster and more easily.

Ernie
	World's first on-line consulting service, pioneered by international professional services firm, Ernst & Young. Ernie is an on-line, decision-support, consulting service that provides 24 X 7 access to the breadth and depth of E&Y resources, including field-based consultants, proprietary methodologies and best practices. Queries directed to consultants are answered within 2 business days. Other features include: 1) A Previously Asked Questions database and 2) Self-service decision-support tools.

ERP (enterprise resource planning)
	An industry term for the broad set of activities supported by multi-module application software that help a manufacturer or other business manage the important parts of its business, including product planning, parts purchasing, maintaining inventories, interacting with suppliers, providing customer service, and tracking orders. ERP can also include application modules for the finance and human resources aspects of a business. Typically, an ERP system uses or is integrated with a relational database system. The deployment of an ERP system can involve considerable business process analysis, employee retraining, and new work procedures.

escalator pricing
	Price tactic in which the final selling price reflects cost increases incurred between the times when the order is placed and when delivery is make.

Escape Velocity
	For Silicon Valley venture capitalists, it refers to the point at which a company, in a crowded market, pulls away from its competition. Original definition is used by rocket scientists to denote the speed necessary to break out of a planet's gravitational field.

ESD
	Short for Electronic Software Distribution, a system for selling software over a network. ESD systems provide secure communications that customers use to download and pay for software. These systems can operate over the Internet or on a direct modem -to-modem connection. ESD systems can also allow users to use software for a trial period before purchasing.

ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan)
	An exit strategy in which employees contribute a portion of their earnings over time toward purchasing shares of the company's stock

E-tailer
	submitted by John McCormack at 3:45 pm on October 11th, 1999. An E-tailer is a retailer who does business over the internet, such as Amazon.com or Land's End.

e-tailing
	The practice of doing retail business on the Internet.

eterms
	Terms which allow those engaging in Electronic Commerce to enforce legal rules. The terms can be created and applied to public, commercial, and international parties.

Ethernet
	A local area network protocol developed by Xerox Corporation in cooperation with DEC and Intel in 1976. Ethernet uses a bus topology and supports transfer rates of 10 Mbps. The Ethernet specification served as the basis for the IEEE 802.3 standard, which specifies the physical and lower software layers. Ethernet uses the CSMA/CD access method to handle simultaneous demands. It is one of the most widely implemented LAN standards.

Ethics
	The values and beliefs that help govern a group or individuals behavior.

Ethnocentrism
	- is judging another group of people based on your beliefs and background. We must make certain in our global economy and in E-business that we assume nothing in our effort to communicate to the world via the Internet.

E-Tickets
	Electronic Ticketing. Refers to elimination of one document: the passenger's flight coupon. This option is offered by major carriers. Enables refundable fares and advance seat assignment.

E-Training
	Compaies are now using the Internet to train employees. By creating a web based training program the company will save travel expenses and allow the employee to stay in the feild. The training can be completed at the convenience of the employee increasing productivity.

e-vailability
	Having information available to users through applications such as internet, intranet, and extranet every hour and every day of the year.

evaluated receipt settlement
	A business process in which payment is triggered by the receipt of goods rather than by the receipt of an invoice.

Evaluation
	An evaluation can be some sort of a screening method, to determine whether the organizational method, techniques, and systems are working properly. An evaluation can provide information on whether the technology used to gather information, process information, retrieve information or share information is is effective enough.

Event Sporsorship
	A form of brand promotion that ties a brand to a meaningful cultural, social, athletic, or other type of high interest public activity.

Events
	In regaurds to Visual Basic, Events instruct controls as to what to do when it is clicked, moved, or dragged. When you enter code, Events should to be routine. Events are one of four aspects each control has.

Exception Report
	Exception Reports are reports that only alerts managers when a variable is no longer within specified range. Exception reports notifies managers on potential danger. For example, if a company decides that their cash balance account cannot fall below $ 100.000, then an exception report will be sent to all concerned personnel as soon as the balance on the account falls below this pre-set number.

Exchange
	A marketing term used to describe the ides that people are willing to give up something in exchange for something that they would rather have. This is the basis of our whole economy. The exchange of currency for goods and/or services.

Excite
	an interface that administers indexing and searching a collection of documents provided on a Web browser. Allows you to add advanced concept-based searching to your Web site for visitors to search by using keywords or concepts

Excite
	Excite provides a Web browser interface for adminstering, indexing and searching a collection of documents. This function allows you to add advanced concept-based searching on your Web site allowing visitors to search by using keywords or concepts

Executive Champion
	An executive supporter who serves as an advocate of a particular activity, such as new processes, or systems.

Executive information system
	Executive information system provides executive with the information they need. Most often executives have a different information need in comparison with other managers in an organization. Executives often focus more on the external environment, rather than on the internal part of the organization. Executives are those which does the long term planning for the organization, and therefore must have more startegic infaormation available to them. Executive information systems provides this.

Exit Page
	The very last page each user looks at when browsing a web site. The page can be different for each user depending on the order in which they browsed the site. The page can be determined by viewing the log file.

Experiment
	A way of collecting primary data in a research method.

Experiment
	A way of collecting primary data in a research method.

Experiments
	This is used when a market researcher is trying to establish a cost-and-effect relationship. One of the easiest ways is to change the apperance of a webpage across different cultures and groups. This will help determine what is the best way to approach a particular audience.

Expert System
	Expert systems are those systems that require highly specialized knowledge.

Explode
	being able to look at the detail underneath aggregated data. (also, see drill down)

export law
	A United States export law, administered by the Department of State, forbids the export of cryptography software or hardware using a key longer than forty bits without a permit. Export to subsidiaries of US companies is permitted. The law exists primarily to prevent hostile groups from encrypting messages which the US intelligence agencies will have difficulty decrypting. With the increasing speed of computers forty bit cryptography is considered relatively weak and has, in fact, been broken. The cryptography industry is pressing the government to change the law so that US companies can export cryptography, which is competitive, worldwide.

export law

Export of goods
	The process of selling goods produced in a countries home market in other markets outside that country.

exporting strategy
	Business is no longer limited to certain people or place. Especially business is when done virtually geographic boundaries is no longer a question. Every minute hundred of thousands transactions take place virtually. This is where exporting comes in. Exporting is the selling of the products produced domestically to the buyers in another countries. Exporting is the strategy used in the international business, which refers to maintaining facilities within the home country and selling the goods/services to the foreign countries or market. Every company develops certain exporting strategies for their benefits in the global market.

Extended Enterprise
	the "enterprise" represented by all those organizations- customers, suppliers, and sub-contractors- engaged collaboratively in the design, development, production, and delivery of a product to the end user. Also refers to the supply chains and logistics chains. (Glossary of CALS and Electronic Commerce Terms; http://cals.debbs.ndhq.dnd.ca/english/glossar1.html)

Extended value chain
	This is where corporations purchase supplies and parts from suppliers (other corporations). This scenario has a broader scope than corporate purchasing, since it's intra-business commerce.

Extension
	In computer operating systems, a file name extension is an optional addition to the file name in a suffix of the form ".xxx" where "xxx" represents a limited number of alphanumeric characters depending on the operating system.

Extensive Decision Making
	A type of consumer decision behavior that a consumer would use when making a purchase for a product that is unfamiliar, expensive or something that is bought infrequently.

External adlink
	An advertisement that is clickable and links to an internet address.

External Stimulus
	Any kind of input a consumer receives from an outside source that affects any of the five senses.

externship
	Externships permit individuals of one company to work full-time for another company outside the "home" company. The individual is still employed with their home company. For companies wanting to develop a web-based business, working with other companies that offer exterships can gain advice, knowledge and expertise they otherwise would not have.

extranet
	A Web site that links businesses to customers, suppliers, etc. for electronic commerce. These sites usually provide more customer specific information than a public sites and may have security devices such as passwords for a user to gain access to more sensitive information.

extranet
	extranet An extranet is a private network that uses the Internet protocols and the public telecommunication system to securely share part of a business's information or operations with suppliers, vendors, partners, customers, or other businesses.

eyeballs
	In electronic commerce, the number of individuals - or eyeballs - who go to a particular Web site, or a particular area on a Web site. A television analogy would be viewers. Important for electronic advertisers, in that they want the eyeballs to click on their ad.

E-Zine
	A magazine that has its entire content on the Web. An E-Zine might only exist on the Web or it might be a duplicate of a standardly published magazine you are already familiar with. It will typically have free archives of previous months. Several of them will charge a fee for viewing the content. Many people are already reading their daily news On-Line in some form or another. If you have a magazine and don't have an E-Zine format, you're going to be left behind wondering why you aren't selling any copies.

Facsimile (fax)
	A facsimile is a method of transmitting a written or paper document from one location to another almost instantly. One fax machine scans the data of an original document, then translates that information into an electronic code or signal, and finally passes it through a phone line (usually). In today's advancing world phone lines are not always necessary, but the signal must be passed between the two machines by some means. Next, another receiving fax machine collects the code or signal, then converts it back to readable data, and finally prints a hard copy or facsimile of the original document.

fad
	A fad is any product (or person) that experiences a phenomenol level of popularity during its (his/her) introductory period in a market, but then rapidly declines into obscurity with little or no demand for it (them) ever again.

Fair Information Practices
	Standards that govern the collection and use of personal information with regards to privacy and accuracy.

familiarity
	Refers to the perception of individuals who have had actual experience with your product or service.

Fan Fiction
	Fictional short stories and novelettes that appear on various web sites and are written by fans about their favorite celebrities or fictional characters. The characters that appear in these short stories and novelettes can be actual celebrities, fictional characters in movies, characters in soap operas, or characters in television series such as the X-Files and Buffy the Vampire Slayer. It is even possible to subscribe to fan fiction electronic magazines, which are known as e-zines, that are sent via email.

FAQ
	Frequently Asked Questions are documents that contain catalogues of both questions and answers for the most common asked questions. This enables companies to address users needs in an online manner. This is the first step in the Help Desk approach to customer service.

Fasgrolia
	is the fast-growing Internet language of abbreviations, initials and acronyms. Newsgroups, chat rooms, and email have generated a set of acronyms and initials for common phrases. A few of the more common ones are: FWIW - For What It's Worth; IMO - In My Opinion; or IMHO - In My Humble Opinion; and LOL - Laughing Out Loud

Fast Ethernet
	Fast Ethernet is a an upgraded/faster version of Ethernet which was developed in the 90’s. Fast Ethernet is commonly referred to as 100 Megabit, where as regular or the older Ethernet was referred to as 10 Megabit. This just means that Fast Ethernet can carry 100 Mbps compared to the older Ethernet which can carry 10 Mbps. In very simple terms, Fast Ethernet is approximately 10 faster than standard Ethernet. It is important to note that to utilize Fast Ethernet, the PC and network require upgrade Network Interface Cards (NIC) and routers.

Fat Client
	In client/server architecture, a client that performs the bulk of data processing operations.

Favorites
	Favorites is a category that browers like Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator on their menu bar to allow users to add a collection of favorite pages. It is an easy way to keep a list of websites that can be downloaded without having to type in the URL (the address).

FAX
	FAXing is a process by which paper material including pictures, text, or images are scanned and the scanned data is transmitted via telephone to a receiving FAX machine which converts the electronic data back into a paper or hard copy format. Modems can now be used to send and receive fax data.

Faxmodem
	A combination of a FAX and a data modem. Using a Faxmodem, the user can not only receive faxes, but send as well. However, when sending a fax, the fax must be a document stored in electronic format on the computer. Faxmodems cannot scan like a traditional fax machine. Faxmodems can be internal or external and require a serial port.

Feasibility Stage
	The stage during which the possible benefits and costs of implementing a business or system change are evaluated. The deliverable of this stage is a feasibility study.Today businesses are going globally. Business environment and customer wants and desires are changing rapidly. So, each and every single decision making process might affect an organization as a whole. A small mistake can create a huge loss. So, while making an important decision management people should be aware of the change that might bring to an organization. Thus, the decision making process should be well studied and if is a big part, should be researched. Feasibility stage is considered really important while doing business electronically too. As the e-commerce field is changing so fast, each decision should be studied before implementing. Thus, feasibility stage is considered important.

Feasibility Study
	A document generated out of investigation into the economic environment, internal and external pressures, systems, procedures, and communication capability in a business area within a firm. A deliverable to help corporate managers evaluate possible benefits of implementing a business or system change and is an integral part of a corporate implementation plan. It’s purpose is to provide a structured method to focus on problems, identify objectives, evaluate alternatives, and aid in the selection of the best solution, to improve confidence that the recommended action is the most viable solution to the problem, to assure that projects requiring Information Systems Resources can be done, should be done, and will be done.

Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
	Federal agency empowered to prevent persons or corporations from using unfair methods of competition in commerce. They are now involved with monitoring commerce on the Internet, especially with regard to its growth, content, and potential for fraudulent activity.

Fedwire
	The Federal Reserve System's EFT network for transferring funds between the banks' reserve accounts [U.S.]. File conversion-The process of translating a file to a format that can be read by an incompatible computer system.

Feedback
	The listener's instant response to a speaker. An evaluative response or return of information due to the result of an activity or process.

fetch

Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI)
	FDDI is how digital data is sent over fiber-optic cable. An acronym for Fiber Distributed Data Interface. FDDI is how digital data is sent over fiber optic cable.

fiber optic cables
	Fiber optic cables are one of the media for data transmission. Each fiber cable contains three components: jacket, cladding, and core. The cladding and the core of fiber optic cable are made from glass while the jack is made from plastic. Fiber optic cables provide some great advantages: big capability, no cross talk, weatherproof ability, and smaller size.

File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
	A service that allows you to transfer files to and from other computers on the Internet. Anyone who has access to ftp can transfer publicly available files to his or her computer. Files retrieved from outside sources can contain viruses. All files retrieved from the Internet should be check with a virus protection program.

filtering services
	A search service that allows users to identify key words they are interested in thus deleting information not relevant to their needs

Finger
	This is a software tool for searching out folks on diverse Internet sites. It can be put to use to grant access to personal facts, but the most prevalent application it to see if a individual has an account at a certain Internet site. Numerous sites do not allow incoming Finger requests.

finger
	Finger, used as a verb, is the act of retrieving information about a person on the Internet by using the specific finger program.

finger
	Software programs found on various webpages, that allow users to find information about other users.

firewall
	A combination of specialized hardware and software set up to monitor traffic between an internal network and an external network (i.e. the Internet). Its primary purpose if for security and is designed to keep unauthorized outsiders from tampering with or accessing information on a networked computer system.

Firewall
	Security system protecting a LAN or other network. Performs monitoring and perhaps routing of traffic in and out of a network or at a bridge, perhaps limiting access to services. Firewalls used to insulated sensitive data from the Internet without isolating the entire network

First Mover Advantage
	First Mover Advantage is the first company to release a product and market it effectively. The company that can produce a new product that solves a lot of problems, can consume most of the market for the product early on. Hence, they would be considered the first mover.

Five C's of Credit
	Criteria bankers use to evaluate the credit-worthiness of loan applicants: capital, capacity, collateral, character, and conditions. A small business must have a stable base before a bank will grant a loan. A synonym for capacity is cash flow. The bank must be convinced of the firm's ability to meet its regular financial obligations and to repay the bank loan, and that takes cash. Collateral includes any assets the owner pledges to the bank as security for repayment of the loan. Before approving a loan the banker must be satisfied with the owner's character. The conditions surrounding a loan request also the owner's chance of receiving funds. The higher a small business scores on these five C's, the greater chance of receiving the loan.

fixed position
	The advertisement will run at a particular time or on a particular page. Usually listed at the highest rate in broadcast. In print, some positions can be negotiated at normal pay rates while others involve premium cost.

flame
	Flaming refers to any message (e-mail, ASSENT posting, etc.) that addresses another person in a derogatory or attacking way, particularly if, instead of addressing the issue at hand, it attacks the recipient as stupid for having such a point of view in the first place. Flaming began with messages which argued their points using language we might describe as "embellished." “Flames” are unfortunately common. People who frequently write flames are known as flamers.

Flame war
	A flame war occurs when flamers (those upset over another's misuse of the Internet) exchange their nasty, often hostile notes between each other. Marketing managers have to be most concerned about flames when a promoter, intentionally or unintentionally, posts something that is perceived as an advertisement to an area that is regarded as noncommercial. This will generate a lot of hostile response, and can be very damaging to a company's reputation.

Flash
	A product by Macromedia which creates streaming images and allows for interaction, sound, and handling of forms. Macromedia is vector based, which allows for great compression of vector images.

flat file
	Flat files are records that have no coding associated with them to give a program (ie. MS Word) information to format the data.

flighted media schedule
	Media scheduling strategy in which ads are run heavily every other month or every two weeks, to achieve a greater impact with an increased frequency and reach at those times.

Flighting
	Scheduling heavy advertising for a period of time followed by a hiatus, then coming back with advertising at the same, higher, or lower level.

Flow Control
	Flow control is the management of data flow between computers or devices or between nodes in a network so that the data can be handled at an efficient pace. Too much data arriving before a device can handle it causes data overflow, meaning the data is either lost or must be retransmitted.

fluid Internet pages
	fluid referes to those sites requiring constant updating such as stock quotes, news services, sports, etc.

Focus Group
	A group of approx. 7 - 10 people who hold a discussion on a product and led by a moderator.

Focus group
	A discussion group with seven to ten people set up with a mediator.

Focus group
	A discussion group with seven to ten people set up with a mediator.

folk-tech
	A Web design style that is typical or representative of the local culture

Font
	A set of characters of design and size, used to display information on the monitor or for print out.

Forcible Entry
	Forcible entry requires a visitor to log in his or her name before entering the website. This is generally a bad idea on a commercial or informational site. The rule of thumb to follow is to NOT do anything that will chase your visitors away.

Form
	An input method provided by HTML to receive information from standard users across the Internet. A form typically asks for personal information, E-Mail addresses, credit card numbers for shopping, or even provides lists of things to choose from. The input methods include drop down menus, buttons, check boxes, text fields, and more. Many forms are also VALIDATED, or passed through an error checking script that verifies that the information entered is valid and within specifications. If you visit many sites and click or type information you are probably using a form.

form page
	this is a page on any web page that allows the user to enter information, which may be added to a database, sent via email, or to a text field as desired by the web page builders to another person.

Formal Communication Networks
	In order, to get a job done on an e-commerce website, the developer of the site designed a communication system to follow in order to get a consistant e-commerce website.

Forms
	Forms are the central point in all activities conducted in Visual Basic. When you run your program, you will see the forms as normal windows. Once in these windows you can do a number of things. For example, you can select options, choose icons that you have drawn, and enter data.

four-color separation
	Four-color separation refers to both the process and the final result of separating the colors in a photograph or illustration into the four process colors that will be printed: cyan, magenta, yellow, and black. Special hardware and/or software (depending on how the procedure is accomplished) views the full color image and electronically decides how much of each of the four colors is in each part of the image. Then a separate page is created for each of the colors: the cyan (blue) tones, the magenta (kind of red) tones, the yellow tones, and the black tones. The four separate pages are not output in color—they are black dots on clear film. A printing press can only print solid ink, so the colors are simulated by dots —the combination of the size of the dot, the space around the dot, and how many dots in an area determine how intense each color is. When the four separated pages (made into printing “plates”) are printed in the four transparent process inks, the combination of inks creates the illusion of full color. You can easily see the four separate colors in any printed piece with a magnifying glass.

Fractal
	Shapes that look the same at different magnifications.

frame error
	Error that occurs when a sample drawn from a population differs from the target population.

Frame Rate
	It means the speed of how many frames (pictures) of video animation can be accessed per second. This is important because the user must be able to see or create new applications which can run real smoothly. In this case the user would prefer to have video movie animation move at a speed of 60 frames per/second has a FAST FRAME-RATE. SLOW FRAME RATE (30 frames a second) results in pictures being distorted and animation running real slow or choppy. Having a Pentium III processor does no good if the FRAME-RATE within the video card is real slow. The FRAME-RATE within a video card must be balanced along with the speed of a Pentium III processor.

Frame Relay
	A packet-switching protocol for connecting Wide Area Networks. Frame Relay networks supports data transfer rates ranging from 1.544 Mbps to 45 Mbps. Currently, Frame Relay is quite popular due to its relatively inexpensive cost.

Frame Relay
	Frame relay is a telecommunication service designed for cost-efficient data transmission for intermittent traffic between local area networks (LANs) and between end-points in a wide area network (WAN). Frame relay puts data in a variable-size unit called a frame and leaves any necessary error correction (retransmission of data) up to the end-points, which speeds up overall data transmission.

frames
	are used in Web based pages most commonly for navigation. The page is divided into multiple windows and each window is a frame and can contain data separate from the other.

FRAMESET
	An HTML tag used to divide a web page into sections. The tag will set up a specified number of rows and columns for each frame. An example would be a constant table of contents appearing on the left hand side of a web page.

Franchise
	Franchising is a form of licensing in which an organization provides its franchise with a complete assortment of materials and services, including equipment, products, product ingredients, managerial advice, and standardized operating system. Franchising is considered the most rapidly growing path to entrepreneurship. Although franchising is common in the fast-food chain, computer stores, auto shops etc. due to the development of Internet, it is growing up in E-commerce field too. Electronic business is getting so big that huge businesses have realized that it is better idea to authorized franchise in different part of the world. This idea not only makes the local customers convenient to get the product and services but also eases the main company in shipping the products, customer services and dealing with different people of different backgrounds and cultures.

Franchisor
	Originates the trade name, product, methods of operation, and so forth and in return receives a fee and continuing revenues from the business operation of the franchisee.

fraud
	Fraud is defined under economic terms as the intent by one party to purposly mislead or misidentify information in order to gain an unfair competitive advantage.

free market
	Market unregulated by any entity, except for the forces of supply and demand. A free market facilitates the free flow of information; thus, it is composed of equally-educated buyers.

Free Standing Insert
	Advertisements that are loosely inserted into magazines and newspapers.

Freeloader
	This is a person who gains benefit from an activity or group of activities, to which he gave very little or no input.

Freeware
	free software made available to anyone with no cost or strings attached. Most of it is written by students with minimal programming skills and may have flaws. Take caution when using freeware because NO ONE ASSUMES RESPONSIBILITY FOR WHATEVER HAPPENS WHEN YOU USE IT.

freeware
	Freeware is software that is available for downloading free of charge because it is in the public domain.

frequency
	Number of times an individual is exposed to a message during a specific period.

Frequent Buyer Program
	A sales promotion that encourage greater sales by giving the consumer something back for buying certain amounts of products.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
	FAQ is usually linked to a page containing the most frequently asked questions along with the answers to those questions.

Front Page
	A Microsoft product which allows users to create HTML web documents without having any knowledge of the HTML coding scheme. The product features a very user friendly graphical interface which totally hides the coding from the user.

FrontPage
	Microsoft's personal web publisher. Allows for everyday computer users to create and publish their own webpages on the Internet. Benefits include forms, database connections, and visual programming, which allows the user to simply click and drag buttons, options,etc to the webpage, all this is automatically converted into HTML.

Fulfillment Server
	This term applies to E-tailers that sell digital goods, such as electronic documents or software. Unlike physical goods, which are shipped, digital goods can be delivered to the buyer's computer over the Web immediately. Digital receipts are sent to the buyer which contain a URL directing the buyer to a location where the goods can be retreived.

full duplex
	A method of transmitting information over a communication channel, in which signals may be sent in both directions simultaneously.

Full-motion video
	Video image sequences or sustems that provide the minimum number of images per second to produce the illusion of smooth motion.

Fully Qualified Domain Name (FQDN)
	The "official" name assigned to a computer. Organizations register names, such as "ibm.com" or "utulsa.edu." They then assign unique names to their computers, such as "watson5.ibm.com" or "hurricane.cs.utulsa.edu."

functional acknowledgement
	A transaction set transmitted by the receiver of an EDI transmission to the sender, indicating receipt and syntactical acceptability of data transmitted according to the ASC X12 standards. The functional acknowledgement allows the receiving party to report back to the sending party problems encountered by the syntax analyzer as the data are interpreted. It is not intended to serve as an acknowledgement of data content.

Functional Group Identifier
	Each message set is assigned a functional group identifier code. This identifier is the first data element of the functional group header segment. The applicable functional group identifier is shown at the top of each message set after the message set name. In cases where no functional group ID is given, the message set assumes the functional group ID of the functional group with which it is transmitted. As in other type of business from a small retail to big multi-national corporations, functional group identifier is considered important doing business electronically too.

fusion marketing
	Involves creating a relationship with Web site visitors. It increases interactivity for the visitor and will entice him or her to visit the site again. The methodology can be implemented by having visitors sign-up for Web site memberships, e-mail lists, etc.

fuzzy-logic (n.)
	An artificial intelligence programming term that refers to complicated sets of mathematical algorithms which can, to some degree, approximate the thought processes of intelligent beings in some types of real-world processes.

GAK
	Government Access to Keys, a U.S. government proposal to require that encryption software include a way for the government to break the code.

Garage Liability Insurance
	A policy for businesses that work with autos. The policies provide coverage for operations in progress and completed operations as well as the premises

Gatekeeper
	Anyone who can stop or change a message en route to an audience is a gatekeeper. Editors, authors, producers, and publishers are all examples of gatekeepers. This is a vital part of the communication process. When gatekeepers make mistakes both the communication process and the message suffer.

gateway
	A combination of hardware and software that links two different types of networks. A gateway may also be any device that passes packets from one network to another network in their trip across the Internet. For example, many commercial services have e-mail gateways for sending messages to Internet addresses. In a company network, a proxy server acts as a gateway between the internal network and the Internet.

geek
	To quote from The New Hacker’s Dictionary, a computer geek is “one who eats (computer) bugs for a living. One who fulfills all the dreariest negative stereotypes about hackers: an asocial, malodorous, pasty-faced monomaniac with all the personality of a cheese grater. Cannot be used by outsiders without implied insult to all hackers. A computer geek may be either a fundamentally clueless individual or a proto-hacker in larval stage. Also called ‘turbo nerd’ or ‘turbo geek.’ ”

geekspeak
	The slang term for the technical rhetoric spoken by people who have an advanced understanding of computer software, hardware and, in all probability, the Internet. Geekspeak is composed primarily of hard to remember acronyms such as HTTP, URL, SCSI, EIDE, PCI, ISA, SDRAM, TCP/IP, etc., etc. Masters of geekspeak are usually referred to as geeks, dweebs, nerds, techies, eggheads, four-eyes and other derogatory terms that they usually just find "amusing."

Gender Segmentation
	Dividing your prospective market based on thier gender. For example, gender segmentation shows that 95% of Espn.com users are men. This allows you to better reach your target audience.

generic product
	A product that is identified by category often used in marketing strategies. When you go to a browser, it generally will search by product or services not by a specific brand.

Generic standard
	A standard that applies to more than one industry.

Geographic Information System (GIS)
	Is a software that is designed to captive, store, manipulate, analyze and print geographically referenced information.

geographic segmentation
	Segmenting markets by region of the country or world, market size, market density, or climate. Market density refers to the number of people in a given unit of land. Climate is included because of it's impact of resident's needs and wants.

GIDEON
	Gateway to Internet DEmographic ONline. Gideon is a powerful web-based application that enables you to analyze the demographic characteristics of the Internet population.

GIF
	Stands for Graphics Interchange Format. The most commonly used file format for graphics that are published on the World Wide Web.

Gigabit Ethernet
	This is the latest version of the Ethernet that can transfer data at 1 Gigabit or 1,000 megabits opposed to the original Gigabit Ethernet that transfered at 802.3z.

Gigabyte (GB)
	A unit of measure for memory or disk storage capicity. Two to the 30th power (approximately one billion) bytes.

gigaflop
	Another term for 1000 Mega Hertz.

GIMP: Gnu Image Manipulation Program
	GIMP is a freely distributed image manipulation software designed for UNIX systems. GIMP includes many tools for photo retouching and image manipulation. GIMP has similiar capabilities as the more familiar Adobe Photoshop in many of its features.

global alliance
	The world-wide relationship between organizations or individuals.These individuals have similarities in common for marketing,advertising, and saling via the internet or in person.

Global Business Exchange (GBX)
	It is a program that offers any company the placement of a text only business opportunity (buy, sell, invest, partnership, etc.) It provides a quality control check for the general accuracy of the information presented by the company. It helps businesses find what is needed and required in order for it to succeed.

Global Information Infrastructure (GII)
	This is the term used by the White House for all the areas that the internet encompasses when drafting the Framework for Global Electronic Commerce on July 1, 1997.

global marketing
	With the use of global vision, global marketing involves breaking the geographic and demographic barriers and attempting to tap into each culture to in order to successfully market goods and services.

global niche
	Pertains to products or services that are targeted to meet the needs of a very focused group of users in the market eg. unique antique cars priced at a certain price.

Global Outsourcing
	the objective of obtaining the cheapest sources of labor and supplies by engaging in the international division of labor

global retailing
	Store concepts are now being tested on a global bases. Communication networks and mass media have made expansion across national borders more feasible. One event that has made this possible is the spread of communication networks and mass media. Accessible markets have enticed U.S. retailers into Mexico, Canada, Europe, Japan and China through the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). The ability to predict future trends are necessary in commerce.

Global Vision
	Recognizing and acting on marketing and sales opportunities throught the world, as well as recognizing threats from your competitors throught the world. It is the best way to market your company in the evergrowing international marketplace.

globalization of markets
	We are moving toward a system in which different national markets are converging into one "universal" marketplace. People in different nations are now beginning to "merge" into one global norm.

Globex
	It is an electronic trading system that that creates a 24 hr global market place Option and futures listed on the stock exchange, are traded electronically in a Globlex. Typically a good convenience for the everyday investor.

goodwill
	The dollar amount that a company's good reputation and customer appeal are worth.

gopher
	The term “gopher” is actually a pun on “go for”. It is a computer program with an accompanying data transfer protocol. Gopher is used to read information on the Internet that has been made available to the public. It is being superseded by newer Internet browsers that can read HTTP, such as Netscape and Microsoft’s Internet Explorer.

GOSIP (Government OSI Profile)
	the implementation of Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) used by governments. (Earth Commerce Inc.; http://www.earthcommerce.com/glossa.html)

gov
	When these letters appear at the last part of an address, (for example, in cu.nih.gov) they indicate that the host computer is run by some government body, probably the U.S. federal government.

graceful degradation
	Backward compatible (for example: a Web page that displays properly in older browsers)

gradient
	A gradient is a gradual transition between two or more colors. Gradients are usually applied as either a linear or a radial fill. A linear fill gradient causes the color blend to flow from the first color to the next in a straight line. For example: An image can have a blue top that gradually blends into a green bottom. A radial fill gradient causes the color blend to flow from the center of the first color to the next in a circular pattern surrounding the point selected. For example: An image can have an orange center that gradually blends into a green field surrounding it.

Gradients
	Color used to fill image elements. The color is not a solid color; it spans a spectrum similar to a rainbow.

graphical user interface (GUI)
	This term is more commonly known by its acronym “GUI” (pronounced “goo-ee”). It is an interface between computer users and applications. GUIs make applications more user friendly by substituting computer input and output programming with pictures. Examples of these pictures include icons, pull-down menus, and dialogue boxes. A pointer is used to select specific tasks (pictures) and the pointer is typically controlled using a mouse. Examples of GUIs are Windows and MacIntosh.

graphics filters
	Relates to how applications use graphics and image files created in another application. For instance: graphics filters are necessary so that Word (a Microsoft product) can import and utilize a graphic or image that was originally created in CorelDRAW (a Corel product).

gray marketing
	Using unauthorized channels to sell products under trademark. There are many legal consequences that arise due to gray marketing. Many times products sold through gray marketing do not conform to government standards. Consumers also suffer from this because gray market items may not be under warranty. On the other hand, manufacturers can be held liable for gray market items that are defective.

green marketing
	A marketing strategy that emphasizes a product's benefit to the environment. It involves producing products whose production, use, and disposal are less harmful to the environment. It also involves developing products that have a positive impact on the environment.

greenmarketing
	This marketing approach is a politically correct way to position brand and company loyalty and to convey concern for society in the battle against global-warming. Walmart opened a store in Lawrence, Kansas that uses a refrigerant that does not deplete the ozone and covered their parking lot with recycled asphalt. Auto parts retail chains such as Pep-Boys offer a place to dispose of used motor oil. Fast food chains decided to use recycled newspaper for take-out bags. Grocery chains offer earth-bags for light shopping and have drop-off slots for plastic bag returns. The Star-Telegram placed 1/2 yard dumpsters to recycle newspapers.

gross exposures
	the number of times an ad is shown, including multiple showings, that one indiviual will see.

Grossman's Paradox
	Sanford Grossman’s contradictory point that the economist’s theory on markets knowing all available information is wrong. Grossman points out that if markets are perfectly informed, then gather more information should not benefit the market. But, if nobody gathers information, then the market would not be perfectly information. Therefore, he concludes that we can never know it all – or at least we can never know that we know it all.

Groundzero
	A term that is used for a user who is using a new e-business application for the first time such as E-COMMERCE. A user who has no experience must learn how to use the E-Commerce software for better understanding of webpage development.

Groupthink
	A group of decision makers embarks on a course of action without questioning underlying assumptions.

Groupware
	A general term for software programs designed to enable groups of people, often in different locations, to work collaboratively on documents and databases, coordinate their work schedules, and electronically communicate with each other.

growth stage
	In every business there is a product or service, which undergoes various stages from their formation throughout their lifetime. It is actually the concept providing way to trace the stages of a product's acceptance, from its introduction to its consumption. The second stage of produce life cycle is growth stage, which is merely a advanced introductory stage. In this stage the sales rate shows typical incensement. Various competitors enter the market. There can be lots of merging and business takeovers in the market. Also profits rate grow up to it's saturation until competitors get into the market. The advertising becomes more aggressive. Distribution plays vital role in this stage and also company build up long-term relations with the dealers and distributors. Company struggles to acquire better market position. Every means of business for example the company promotes retail, wholesales, and e-business.

Growth Strategy
	Relative to E-business because many of the Internet companies are in the growth period of their company. This is where companies try to maintain some type of advantage so they may grow with the rapidly changing market and stay competitive within that market.

Guestbook
	This term refers to a list of users than have visited a certain website and is used by the owner of the website to get an idea of the people visiting the site as well as to get feedback from the users

guru
	The "help person". Expert on which one may rely to help solve problems with software and/or hardware.

hacker
	An unthorized individual (user) who intrudes and tries to gain access to information (usually high security information).

half duplex
	A method of transmitting information over a communication channel, where signals can be sent in both directions, but one way at a time. This is also known as local echo.

handle
	A user's nickname or screen name. Often used as the name on an e-mail address or in a chat group.

Hard Goods
	Goods sold over the Internet that can not be obtained through a digital medium.

Hardware
	The physical parts of the computer, including electronic and mechanical components of the computer system. This includes all devices such as a monitor, disk drive, keyboard, mouse, printer, etc.

headend
	A central distribution point in a cable television network that typically serves tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of homes. In a traditional cable TV network all communication was one way TV video and sound carried from the headend to the subscriber residences. Cable networks have been upgraded to carry data and voice as well as video, and to carry some traffic in both directions.

headend

header
	The portion of an e-mail document or news article, preceding the actual data, that contains the source, destination address, and subject information.

heterogeneity
	Heterogeneity encompasses the services that are less standardised and uniform than the goods. Services that are not standardized have inconsistent patterns of performance, although training and standardization help to increase consistent production stats. The positive aspects of heterogeneity is interpersonal skills, individual performance, and pride that replaces the frustration of automation.

hexidecimal color code
	Combination of letters and numbers used by computer machine language to describe and display colors. For example: black is 000000 and white is ffffff.

Hibernation
	A feature of many computers in which the computer maintains the current layout of the computer, including all programs and open files, when turned off by saving it to the hard drive. When the computer is turned on, the system will return to the state as it that it was in before the system was shut down.

High Performance Parallel Interface (HIPPI)
	At high speeds and short distances, the HIPPI is an interface that is used to physically connect devices for transfers in 32 bits with a data transfer speed of 0.8 Gbps.

high-end solutions
	Describes practical, effective problem solving tools used to expand capabilities and productivity of any business culture.

History list
	The pull-down menu from a browser which displays the sites you've recently visited, so you can return to site instantly or view your latest surfing session. It also makes possible for servers to track where you were before visiting a particular site -- better viewing habit information than television networks providing.

hit
	A hit refers to the instance of an internet browser requesting a single item from an internet server. This means that in order for an internet browser to display a web page containing 2 images, 3 hits must occur at the server. The first hit would access the HTML page and each of the other two hits would access the images. This data is useful because it can yield statistical information that is helpful to network managers, organization web site managers (profit or non-profit), marketers, users who actually maintain a personal web site or page and plain old internet surfers. From the network managers’ point of view, the number of hits to the network server can be a measure of the load on the network. This measure can then be used to help balance network capacity with network load. The point of view from the organization web site managers and marketers is strictly marketing. Counting the number of hits to the initial HTML page of a web site can help marketers spot popular web sites and help organization web site managers guage the popularity of their respactive web site, either internally or against the competition. Users who actually maintain a personal web site can see how many surfers are looking at their web page. If a personal web page has a high number of hits in a given frame of time, it may be seen by a marketer and could potintially become profitable. The number of hits to a web site can be helpful to surfers simply by making them feel like they are participating in something popular or trendy. For instance, a surfer may not be as inclined to explore a site that has a low number of hits compared to a site that has a high number of hits. (also see counter) It is important to note that this statistical information can be distorted. A hit is counted every single time a request is made to a server. This includes reloads, accessing all the different images for a page and going to an information area, then feturning to the page. From the marketing point of view, one hit on a site would also include tens or even hundreds of hits to the server. It is because of the lack of differentiation between hits that it is hard to judge what is an actual hit for a site or just a hit on an image file.

Hit Counters
	Hit Counters are monitoring features that allow web servers and visitors to see the amount of traffic on a web page.

hit list
	A salesperson's list of individuals who are ready to buy or will be buying soon.

Hoax Virus
	It is a "Fake" virus. Most are e-mail messages that are sent to many people and usually contain a statement to the effect of - Please forward this message to all your freinds or to everyone in your address book. Like a virus, these messages clog servers, but unlike a virus, they do no real damage, just slow you down.

Holdback
	The portion of a loan not paid out to the borrower until a certain requirement is completed. For example, a lender may release 10% of the total amount of a loan on completion of the foundation, an additional 15% when rough plumbing is in, etc.

Hologram
	This is a two dimensional object or image that closely represents something that appears to be three dimensional. This is the same process that is used to design 3-D movies and hologram stickers. Some companies are currently working on projects to allow the use of 3-D images concurrently with our computers. Holograms could be used in ecommerce by adding appeal and making the technology of it more realistic to the computer user or potential e-commerce customers.

Home
	Is the first page in a web site. This is where the users would go when he or she type the domain name of a ceratin website. This is usually where the user will find a map of the site.

Home automation
	A new technological innovation in which products can communicate with each other in the home through such devices as coaxial cable or even a simple power line. Watering, entertainment, and lighting are just some products within the home using this type of communication.

Home Shopping
	Shopping where the consumer doesn't have to leave the comfort of their own home. They usually shop via mail-order catalogs, television shows (QVC, etc) and adds or more commonly, the internet.

homepage
	The introductory or menu page of a Web site. A home page usually contains the site's name and a directory of its contents. All other pages on a server are usually accessible by following links from the home page.

honey pot
	A site that attracts visitors due to its rich content and compels the visitors to return regularly, resulting in the development of an online community. Two of the sweetest honey pots on the Internet can be found at netscape.com and aol.com.

Host
	Any computer or machine on a network that is a repository for services available to other computers on the network.

hosting
	This is a service required to have a website on the internet. After the owner of a website registers the domian name or URL. He or she has to find a host company that will offer the service of hosting the site.

hot link
	This is a link whithin a site that will take you to\ another site, with out typing in a new URL.

Hot Media
	Forms of media that require a higher level of thought to use. For example newspapers, books, and magazines are all examples of hot media; they all require the user to get involved in the subject in order to get anything out of it.

Hot Swapping
	This is the ability to replace devices such as PC Cards, optional modules or USB peripherals while the computer is left on.

HotDog Express
	HotDog Express is a program from MindSpring, for creating personal Web pages. HotDog Express is designed with the novice user in mind, and will walk you through the creation of a basic personal web page.

hotspot
	A hotspot is a multiple set URL addresses displayed by images connected on the same page.

Hover Button
	A Hover Button is a special type of clickable input method that typically links you to another document. They are easily generated with Microsoft Frontpage, which creates them and lets you specify properties such as color, displayed text, and URL to go to when a visitor clicks on the button. Hover Buttons add flash and character but should be used in moderation to prevent oversaturating the document with clutter. Load up a copy of Microsoft Frontpage and try out a Hover Button today!

HTML
	HyperText Markup Language Is the coding terminology used to produce Hypertext records for use on the WWW. HTML appearance is like the old-fashioned type-setting method, where you enclose a block of alpha characters with codes that denotes how it will be visible, in addition, with HTML you can stipulate that a block of text, or a word, is associated to another document on the Internet. HTML files are intended to be observed using a WWW client program such as Netscape or Mosaic.

http
	“http” is an acronym for “HyperText Transfer Protocol”. The protocol facilitates communication between servers on the World Wide Web. It enables the client-server to connect to a web server and to transfer html pages, i.e., enables the user to view web pages.

HTTP Metadata
	Data written in the top portion of the HTML tags that is information concerning the web site. This information is not presented on the web site, but about the web site.

https
	The prefix given to a secure site by your browser. Example: https://www.mysite.com

Hub
	A large company very active in EDI. Such a company strongly encourages its paper-based business partners to begin using EDI; these in turn are called "spokes." Also called a "sponsor."

Hubs
	are devices used as a traffice cop controlling the flow of data to and from the various networks that are linkded together.

Human Resource Management (HRM)
	Activities undertaken in an organization to attract new employees and maintain/develop the existing employee base of the organization.

Hybrid EDI
	Introduced by service providers to accommodate situations in which only one trading partner is capable of using EDI, while the other continues to trade using traditional methods involving paper or fax. An example would be a trading partner sending an electronic purchase order which is then faxed by a service provider to the recipient. Hybrid EDI can also include one partner using a form driven, web-based system connected through an EDI Gateway to another partner's more traditional EDI system.

Hybrid Internet-media company
	The term refers to the merger between two companies – America Online (AOL) and Time Warner in January 2000. This hybrid Internet-media company, called AOL Time Warner, is expected to have abroad impact on a range of industries from online content and e-commerce to magazine publishing and even music.

Hygiene Factors
	This is a term used in marketing to describe the consumers dissatisfaction of a particular product. This could include cleanliness, or even product presentation. Hygiene factors are useful in e-commerce by allowing the customer to give feedback to the seller and manufacturer about the quality and usefullness of the product. In e-commerce it is important for the user to be able to evaluate the product it is purchasing, even if it is bought and sold via internet.

hypercompetitive
	A term used to describe an industry which is in the state of perpetual innovation. The computer industry is an example of a hypercompetitve industry.

hyperlink
	On a Web page, either underlined text or a graphics image represents a hyperlink. The hyperlink takes a user from one document (web page) to another by clicking (using a mouse) on the hyperlink. The use of hyperlinks greatly enhances the speed with which users are able to “surf” the Web.

hyperlinks
	These links are jumps to other Websites that is an extension of the previous web site or a totally different web site.

hypermedia
	Media such as pictures, videos, and audio on a web page that links the user to another web page by clicking on the media. This is especially useful in marketing because so many logos are recognized around the world. The logo alone can entice a potential visitor to click on that logo and go to the home page of that particular business.

hypernews
	hypernews refers to posting messages directly to newsgroups in order to get feedback.

hypertext
	Invented in the 1960s hypertext allows a person to follow associative trails of thought through a document. Rather than a linear structure of information, hypertext is a non-sequential, complex web of information, all creatively linked—you can click on a word or phrase and instantly get more information on that word, or perhaps find the next or previous instance of that word, or watch an animated sequence explaining the word, or be transported to another part of the document that contains related information. Online help screens are now often done in hypertext.

Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
	Hypertext Markup Language is used to create documents for the World Wide Web. These documents are referred to as hypertext documents. Hypertext documents are regular documents that are marked with special tags that give commands that direct the size, shape, coloring, and placement of text, graphics, sound and motion of the published document. Hypertext is particularly needed in documents where tabs are used. For instance, the use of double tabs is not translated directly into HTML and must be set using HTML.

Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP)
	Hypertext Transfer Protocol. Hypertext invented in the 1960s by Ted Nelson, gives users a method to follow a nonlinear flow of information through a document. HTTP is based on Transfer Control Protocol/Internet Protocol(TCP/IP) developed for the Web. Data is transformed into small packets that are transmitted over the Internet and upon arrival at the end-user the data is reassembled into its previous useable form. By using these agreed-upon standards of the International Standards Organization(ISO) and various other voluntary boards, information can be shared between different types of computers such as the IBM PC-compatible, Apple and Unix-based computer systems. A hypertext document usually has different colored words that when clicked lead you to a another document, video clip, audio clip, or movie file.

Hytelnet
	An extensive clearinghouse of Telnet sites. A client program that indexes a master list of Telnet servers which includes a database of the largest collections of pointers to Telnet-accessible library catalogs, electronic bulletin boards, and community networks.

Iceberg Principle
	Since sales volume may be large and overll company activities varied, difficulties or proglems in one area may be submerged below the surface like an iceberg. All may appear to be calm and peaceful, yet a more careful analysis may reveal jagged edges which can severely damage or even "sink" the business.

icon
	A screen illustration representing a software program or document.

ICQ
	ICQ is an Internet tool that allows users to send messages, files, URLs, and games to others. It's also a very user-friendly chat tool with its own search engine and white pages. ICQ allows a person to find if his or her friends are online. He or she can also make new friends from chatting with other users. Because of ICQ's cool functions, it's getting more popular and popular in these years.

ideal self-image
	The way an individual would like to be.

IETF
	Acronym for Internet Engineering Task Force, the community of Internet users that determine how the Internet will evolve and operate.

IIC - Institution Identification Code
	Unique number assigned to an institution participating in financial card originated message interchange.

Image Map
	An image map is a single or composite image on a Web site that contains various hyper-linked hot regions. By clicking on the image map, visitors can navigate to different links within the site.

image processing
	The refinement of a picture or photo to improve the clarity. It is used in image recognition and computer vision.

imagesetter
	An imagesetter is a high-quality printer that outputs (prints out) your files. At home you probably output to your personal printer. You know the kind of quality you get with your own printer. When you want higher quality printouts, you can put your file on a disk and take it down to a service bureau that has an imagesetter. The service bureau follows the same basic process you follow to print your file, except their printer costs about $100,000. It doesn't print onto “plain paper” with toner; it prints onto resin-coated paper with a photo-graphic process. The resolution on your home printer is probably around 300 - 600 dots per inch; the resolution on a typical imagesetter is 1270 or 2540 dots per inch.

imaging
	Images that were created from film, photos, videotapes or scanning are preserved and made into a form that can be read by a computer.

IMHO
	Acronym for "In My Humble Opinion". Appended to a comment written to discussion forums and other online messages. Suggests to the reader that the writer is expressing something debatable.

impact
	The level at which a customer is affected by a message, such as an advertisement. For example, the World Wide Web has higher impact than radio ads because users are actively seeking information.

Implementation Guide
	A publication listing of the EDI messages that are in use in a particular industry or application. It indicates how the information in those messages should be presented on a segment by segment, and data element by data element bases, including which segments and data elements are needed, which ones need not be used, and what code values will be expected in the application of that particular message. Implication guide is considered important while doing business electronically, as the information and interpretation of presented message is really important in reaching the target customers and changing their attitudes toward the firm. Thus, implementation guide should be well prepared.

Import of Goods
	The process of bringing in goods produced in other country into ones home country.

impressions
	Advertising has begun to be sold on websites all over the WWW. It comes in the form of a banner (usually animated and flashing) which sits on the webpage much like an advertising banner is displayed at sporting arenas and stadiums. The spaces are usually sold in blocks of thousands of impressions. In this case, an impression is exactly the same as a hit. After purchasing an amount of impressions for your banner, you can be guaranteed that many people have hit the page containing your advertisement.

Imprinted Product
	A promotional product that has a company logo or advertising message on it.

in the loop (adj.)
	Included in all deliberations; syn.: "CC me in the e-mail"

incentive pay
	Incentive pay is a positive reinforcement applied by the companies in order to promote performance of their employees. Lots of companies are seemed to be giving the incentive pay to their employees for their superior performance. Company cannot flourish without better internal work forces. Therefore it is the primary concern of the company. It is also the way of keeping companies' high performers stick to their company in the long run. It is also a motivation to the poor performers to better perform. Incentive pay has been cost effective as well. Less cost and increase productivity has been the characteristic of incentive pay. Bonuses, merit pay, stock options, employee stock, ownership plans are few examples of incentive pay company now a days enforces. It not only applies to internal work force but also applies to outside characters. Retailers or wholesalers doing more sales get higher commission. E-business has now definitely increased business, which allows businesses to allocate more incentive pays.

Incremental Innovation
	An extension of existing technology.

Index
	Something which points at other data; a server facility which provides pointers to particular data as a function of a query; a table of contents of a book in hypertext form

Individualized Marketing
	A system based on gathering data on individual customers and then developing a marketing program designed specifically to appeal to their needs, tastes, and preferences.

Industrial Advertising
	Description or presentation of a product, idea, or organization, in order to induce other industries to buy, support, or approve of it. This can be done by creating brochures, catalogs, trade ads, line cards, trade show signage and videos.

Industrial Espionage
	Attempting to steal a competitors trade secrets or to sabotage thier day to day business opperations. This is the main reason that tight security is nessicary for anyone who conducts thier business over the internet.

Industrial Strength
	In information technology, industrial strength is the ability of a hardware or software product or a system to work capably and dependably in the operational world of business. Prior to the advent of today's information technology revolution, the term was used to describe such products as cleansers, lubricants, and stepladders.

industry dynamism
	A dynamic industry is one which the environment changes rapidly (the computer enviroment is constantly changing).

Industry Impact Statement
	A statement produced (usually within government) before undertaking a large project which researche and describes the possible impacts of the project on all relevant industries.

inelastic demand
	Aspect of a demand curve where demand stays virtually unaffected by changes in price.

inflation
	A continual economic rise in prices and decrease in the value of currency.

infobahn
	The german equivalent of information superhighway.

infoglut
	Too much information. An employee's productivity may decrease because of it.

Infomediary
	A company that gives informed consumers control over all demographic data gathered on them. The consumer would control access and control to the data and be able to be compensated for the data. The company would be an intermediary between the individual and the data base industry.

Infomercial
	A form of television advertising that serves as an innovative alternative to the conventional form of short television commercial. It is full length commercial segments run on cable TV that typpically last 30 mins and combine product news and entertainment.

Infonesia
	Inability to remember where one saw or heard a particular bit of information.

Infopreneur
	A person who starts up a business in online communications or information technology.

Information
	Data that has been processed by some means to give it meaning.

Information Lag
	The time that it takes for information to be disseminated worldwide. The length of information lag has closed from several weeks in the 1800s to a few hours in the early 1900 to a few seconds today.

information overload
	Occurs when the inflow of information is faster than an individual can assimilate or interpret. Individuals and companies that wish to find out about certain products or services on the Web are often overwhelmed by the amount of information available making it difficult to make decisions or choices.

information Resource Management
	Is a management discipline dealing with the research, planning, and implementing of project development, information infrastructure, and strategies for the management of rescources related to the information.

information superhighway
	Originally this was a buzzword used in a speech by Vice President Al Gore. It is a form of network communication that carries information including data, video, and voice, this information is available worldwide. The Internet is an example that provides many of these features.

Information Theory
	Information theory measures the efficiency of communication between people, and machines. The procedure used to do these measurements is a branch a statistics. This theory defines information as inputs or outputs. Output is what one partner sends, and input is what the other partner receives.

information utility
	The usefulness of information to the user.

information warfare
	Deals with attacks on computer systems that manage such things as security, air traffic control, financial transactions, and emergency systems.

Informational element
	an element of a web site that conveys the intent of the author and is usually somewhat abstract.

Informative Advertising
	Advertising that has a main goal of informing a customer rather than trying to remind or persuade.

Infoscan
	A sales tracking service based on sales for packaged goods.

InfoScan
	Is a sales-tracking service for packaged goods that is done with a scanner.

infoscan
	Scanner-based, sales-tracking service found in the consumer packaged goods industry. The system uses data from the stores the package was purchased from.

Infoscan
	A sales tracking service based on sales for packaged goods.

infoware
	Information that can be purchased electronically.

In-House List
	A list of names, addresses and/or telephone numbers of customers put together by a company.

initialization string
	Used when setting up your computer for Internet access. There are different strings for various types of computers and modems; you would have to chech you ISP. It consists of a string of characters that gets a modem into action, usually "AT" for "attention."

innovation
	A product of idea perceived as new.

Innovation
	Ideas; taking existing products and enhancing them to make them better. synonyn- Apple Computer; antnonym- Microsoft

In-Pack Premium
	A premium that is packaged with another product such as when you buy a box of cigars and it also comes with a free lighter.

Inquiry/Hit Conversion Ratio
	This is one of the ways that Internet marketers measure the sucess of their operations. Inquiries are the number of names that you have recieved as a result of your web presence. The hit rate is the number of requests that users have made while on your page. This ratio helps determine how much of a potential customer base you have gained as a result of your web operations.

instant links
	Links that need perpetual updates eg. stockmarket quotes, news, sports, etc.

instititional advertising
	A form of advertising designed to promote and enhance the company's image instead of a particular product.

institutional marketing
	A form of advertising designed to enhance a company's image rather than promote a particular product. An overwhelming number of companies currently use the Web for this purpose.

Integrated Development Environment (IDE) Tool
	software product that help in writing code, easing the creation of application components, and linking programs to other systems like databases and file servers.

Integrated Interviewing
	An interview that is taking place over the internet by a respondent to an ad or job search.

integrated marketing
	Is the use of sales & marketing decision support systems combined with relational databases in order to facilitate strategic and tactical planning, integration and implementation processes for product development, pricing, distribution, customer/prospect communications, sales contact, and sales/marketing reporting systems.

Integrated marketing communication
	Building a strong relationship with your client through each business to client transaction.

integrated marketing communications (IMC)
	the method of carefully coordinating all promotional activities to produce a consistent, unified message that is customer-focused

Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN)
	ISDN is an international communications standard for sending voice, video, and data over digital telephone lines. ISDN requires special metal wires and supports transfer rates of 64 Kbps. Most ISDN lines offered by telephone companies give you two lines at once, called B channels. You can use one line for voice and the other for data, or you can use both lines for data to give you data rates of 128 Kbps, four or five times the data rate provided by today's fastest modems.

intellectual property
	The ideas and thoughts of a person can be owned and copyrighted.

intelligent agents
	Software tools that automatically comparison-shop for the lowest prices on internationally available brand-name merchandise.

Intensive distribution
	Distribution aimed at having a product availabe in every outlet where target consumers might wnat to buy it

intensive distribution
	The distribution aimed at having a product available in every outlet where target consumers might want to buy it.

interactive
	Two way communication between a computer and its user where information is exchanged and questions answered.

Interactive Control
	a component of EDI managment software that makes sure that all transactions sent are received and vice-versa

interactive e-mail
	The process of sending e-mail that contains links to other Internet based sites contained within the text.

Interactive Envelope
	an envelope containing one or more functional groups that will be sent from the same sender to the same receiver

Interactive Marketing
	Interactive Marketing involves advertising to a customer on a one on one basis. By using an Interactive forum the company is able to gather and remember the responses of the individual which they are advertising too, thus giving the customer what he/she wants based on those responses.

interactive multimedia
	An application requiring a high amount of viewer participation with two or more mediums such as text, graphics, animation, sound, video and images.

Interactive product placing
	An object representing a product or brand that is placed into a programmable enviorment and responds to user events..

intercast
	A technology that permits one way Web page transmissions within a standard television signal.

interchange
	In EDI (Electronic Data Interchange), it is the exchange of information where a group of transactions, or a single transaction, is made between two companies at one time.

interchange control segments
	These segments identify a unique interchange being sent from one sender to one receiver (see electronic envelope).

Intercultural Communication
	- is the process of sharing ideas between opposite cultures. With the nostalgic boom of the Internet world wide, different cultures are sending and receiving information from one another, each and every day.

interests
	A marketer tries to detemine a conumers interests. By doing this successful target marketing can be done to influence a consumer into purchasing products or services form a company.

Interface
	The point at which a connection is made between two elements so that they can work together.

interface (v.)
	The act of persons, computers, data structures, processes, &c. coming together to accomplish a task

interlaced GIFs
	The GIF file format allows for "interlacing" which causes the GIF to load quickly at low or chunky resolution and then come into full or crisp resolution.

interlaced image
	An extra step in the information process that enables a browser to display increasing amounts of information, in passes, instead of the entire image at once. A low-resolution version appears after the first pass, then a medium-resolution version appears after a second pass, and finally the final image displays after the last pass.

Intermarketing
	This is a new style of interactive marketing. It allows marketers to understand in much more detail how the customers buying trends are changing. It also allows much more personal contact with the customers.

Internal Data
	data an organisation records and stores from its completion of normal transactions and activities.

Internal link
	A link to a node in the same database .

International Standards Organization (ISO)
	a non-governmental organization, formed in 1947 (with roots dating back to 1906.), to achieve cooperation in the areas of intellectual, scientific, technical, and economic activity. The ISO makes technical recommendations about standards that will facilitate the international exchanges of goods and services, including international data communication standards. The organization consists of approximately 90 members, with one representative from each participating country. Agreements reached by the ISO members are published as International Standards. For example ISO 8601 is the international standard for date format: Year-Month-Day, 1999-03-22.

Internesia
	Inability to remember which website one saw a particular bit of information on

internet
	The Intranet is essentially a private Internet operating on a company's internal network. Intranets exploit the incredibly popular and low-cost Internet tools to gain strategic advantage over competitors, cut costs, and improve operational effectiveness. An Intranet typically has three features lacking on the Internet: speed, security and control. Many company’s use the Intranet for publishing corporate documents, phone directories, employee information such as benefits, job postings and employee bulletins. Many companies also incorporate employee training, featuring audio and visual tours of the company and mission statements from company leaders. The Intranet can also provide a universal data entry for employee database changes, 401k enrollment, W4 Forms, etc.

Internet 2
	Is the next generation internet that will become active in February. The Abilene project, the key subnetwork that makes up the backbone for Internet2, will consist of 13,000 mile, 2.4G-bps research network connecting 150 universities and three corporations. It will serve as a bestbed for the nextgeration Internet application such as IP multicasting, advanced security and differentiated service levels.

Internet Age
	Internet Age refers to the time period starting in late 20th century when almost anything can be done on the Internet – from doing businesses to watching TV, listening to music, and even shopping, especially grocery shopping.

internet appliance
	A computer terminal that does not have an operating system or applications but only supports Web access.

internet auto response
	Enables customers to retrieve information via e-bots, infobots or mailbots, thereby allowing for efficient distribution of product information. Potential applications include the distribution of marketing and technical support literature as well as general inquiry.

Internet Bullseye Marketing Model
	The Internet Bullseye Marketing Model is composed of 30 factors that can be used to predict potential sales success for a particular product or service on the Internet. These 30 criteria for the model relate to the industry cost structure, the marketing environment, the target market, and factors that relate to product,price, promotion, and distribution characteristics.

Internet dating
	A relatively steady relationship that is conducted via the internet between two people who have romantic intentions toward each other. The couple can communicate with each other via email and/or in private chat rooms. This type of dating could take place between people who live many miles apart or even in different countries. Some internet dating relationships have resulted in marriage.

Internet Explorer
	Browser developed by Microsoft Corporation in 1995, partially developed at University of Illinois. Allows the retrieval and viewing of Internet files on the web. Major competitor with Netscape broswers. Advantage of this broswer, is the bundling of Microsoft products with dynamic web applications.

Internet Inbound Marketing Strategy
	A strategy to be avoided. Its success is dependent on customers coming inbound to retrieve the content. An Outbound Marketing Strategy is recommended.

Internet Intoxication
	A rather dubious claim made by a criminal defense attorney that his client couldn’t be held responsible for his crimes because he had become temporary mentally incapacitated due to sensory over saturation by his use of the World Wide Web.

Internet junkie
	A person who spends an excessive amount of time online for mainly entertainment purposes. This type of person may neglect personal relationships, family relationships, schoolwork, job responsibilities, and even his or her personal health just to spend time cerfing the World Wide Web.

Internet Keyed Payment (IKP)
	A group of secure payment protocols created by IBM that let customers purchase goods and services securely over the Web.

Internet Loyalty/ Reward Programs
	Subscribers to this type of site earn points for everything from viewing sponsor merchant ads to filling out surveys and buying merchandise online to sending in product proofs of purchase. In return the points can be used to purchase sponsor merchant products and gift certificates.

Internet Mail Access Protocol (IMAP)
	The IMAP provides remote connectivity features for e-mail clients. It must be supported on both the e-mail client side and the e-mail server side.

Internet Marketing Objectives
	In addition to use of Internet for generating sales as the only marketing objective, companies are now starting to adopt the marketing objectives of generating profits and establishing long-term relationships. Four necessary processes are development, marketing, sales and support.

Internet Myopia
	A situation whereby an individual does not understand the true scope and capabilities of the Internet. Defining the Internet in a narrow manner leads to a narrow definition of the opportunity. This results in the creation of a series of marketing objectives which only begin to drive the true potential from the Internet.

Internet Outbound Marketing Strategy
	It refers to any technique on the Internet that is proactive and takes you to the consumer, rather than being inactive and waiting for the consumer to come to you. This strategy is necessary to maximize your share of users' bandwidth and real estate. This Strategy include: 1.Using e-mailed newsletters and e-zine. 2.Getting WebWired 3.Getting RealWired 4.Marketing to Internet media publishers 5.Using other electronic strategies such as marketing on bulletin board systems(BBSes), online services, and distributing electronic media such as disk or CD-ROM.

internet protocol (IP)
	The Network layer protocol in which the Internet is based. IP allows a single connectionless packet exchange. Other protocols, including TCP and UDP use IP to perform their connetion-oriented or guaranteed delivery services.

Internet Protocol (IP) address
	The Internet Protocol address is a unique number which is used to represent every single computer in a Network. All the computers on the Internet have a unique IP address. To the Internet, a given server's IP address is all numbers and dots in the format "000.000.000.0. Humans aren't as good as computers at remembering numbers so IP numeric addresses also have a textual representation. The usual format is [machine name].[sponsoring organization].[type of organization, such as ".com"].

Internet Protocol (IP) faxing
	Using an Internet Protocol -based network, especially the Internet, to transmit faxes. IP faxing is similar to Internet telephony, but it's optimized for transmitting fax data. IP faxing generally works by sending fax data over the Internet to strategically placed fax servers. Once a fax arrives at the server closest to its final destination, it's transferred onto normal telephone lines and transmitted like a normal fax. Because the data is transmitted over the Internet for most of its journey, the total cost of transmission is much less than if it traveled over long-distance telephone lines like conventional faxes. There are many products that enable large companies to set up IP faxing servers at their own office locations. There are also national and international IP faxing services that allow companies and individuals to send faxes over their IP faxing networks for a fee.

Internet Protocol Address (IP Address)
	a number given to all computers using the Internet.

Internet Relay Chat (IRC)
	This is a program, downloable, from the web that enables users to join one of thousands of chat rooms. One does not need AOL, just internet connection. One can chat, share softwarre, or dominate chat sights in this medium. Just goto YAHOO! and type in MIRC to get you going.

Internet Security Association & Key Management Protocol (ISAKMP)
	A leading candidate for Internet key management being considered by the IP Security Working Group of the IETF. ISAKMP provides a framework for authentication and encryption for many different key exchange methodologies. ISAKMP requires that at least one pair of messages be exchanged between the communicating peers before a secure link can be established.

Internet Service Provider (ISP)
	ISPs connect users to the internet. They give access to email, the web, FTP and the like.

Internet Society
	Internet Society (ISOC) is a non-profit organization supported by the Corporation for National Research Initiatives and U.S. Federal Government. The organization produces a quarterly newsletter called the Internet Society News and are responsible for the development of Internet technical standards.

Internet telephony
	- is the ability of persons to converse vocally by means of the Internet. The ability of computers to convert vocal signals into digital signals and send them to a receiver has replaced the much more expensive analog phone lines.

Internet Underwear Theory
	The theory states that a formal , stuffy approach to communications will not be as well received as a more casual breezy approach. It also suggests that this casual environment has an impact on how we preceive various messages that reach us.

Internic
	URL address governing entity for the United States. The InterNIC is an organization that is overseen by the National Science Foundation. It is responsible for assigning and registering IP addresses and domain names. The InterNIC contracts with General Atomics, AT&T, and Network Solutions, Inc. to actually handle the issuance and coordination of domain name and IP databases. If you want to have your own name or company name (Called a Universal Resource Locator or URL) on the Internet this is the governing body that you need to contact. The InterNIC will assign your name to an IP address that is a series of unique numbers seperated by periods. To contact the InterNIC: InterNIC Services Reference Desk / General Atomics Phone: (800) 444-4345 (619) 455-4600 Fax: (619) 455-4640 E-Mail: info@internic.net Mail: InterNIC Information Services General Atomics P. O. Box 85608 San Diego, CA 92186-9784 InterNIC Registration Services / Network Solutions, Inc. Phone: (703) 742-4777 E-Mail: hostmaster@rs.internic.net Mail: Network Solutions Attn: InterNIC Registration Services 505 Huntmar Park Dr. Herndon, VA 22070 For complete online information, including seeing if a name is already registered, you can check the InterNIC web page at: http://www.internic.net/ Typical fees for registering an Internet domain name range from $25 to $100 and require a $50 annual fee.

interoperability
	The ability of various types of computers and programs to work together.

Interorganizational Information System
	The term Interorganizational Information System describes the information flow between two or more organizations. Transaction speed and reliability are very important to an Interorganizational Information System. In contrast to an Electronic Market there is no negotiation, just execution.

Interpersonal messaging
	The use of Electronic Mail technology to exchange unstructured text messages between people.

intershop
	a web site set up in such a way that customers can browse, compare prices, and place items in a virtual shopping cart, just like in a "real" shop

Interstate Highway
	Analogy used to describe the network of information available online. Instead of connecting states, computer technology connects individuals, corporations, and businesses.

Interstitial
	Meaning "in between", an interstitial is an advertisement that appears in a separate browser window while you wait for a web page to load. Interstitials are more likely to contain large graphics, streaming presentations, and applets than conventional banner ads. Some studies have found that more users click on interstitials than on banner ads. Some users, however, have complained that interstitials slow access to destination pages. Interstitials are also known as pop-up ad windows.

interstitial
	An advertisement that appears while a Web page is loading. Unlike traditional banner ads, these advertisements contain applets and larger graphics. Many people have found that an interstitial does slow down the time for a page to load. However, these advertisements tend to attract more Web surfers than traditional banner ads.

intramarketing
	Is dedicated to integrate specialized solutions to increase the productivity of the companies using tools such as: networks of intranets, applications of automatization of sales, marketing research (AVM), electronic commerce, education and training in AVM, administration of the change and human development by means of PNL.

intranet
	The Intranet is essentially a private Internet operating on a company's internal network. Intranets exploit the incredibly popular and low-cost Internet tools to gain strategic advantage over competitors, cut costs, and improve operational effectiveness. An Intranet typically has three features lacking on the Internet: speed, security and control. Many company’s use the Intranet for publishing corporate documents, phone directories, employee information such as benefits, job postings and employee bulletins. Many companies also incorporate employee training, featuring audio and visual tours of the company and mission statements from company leaders. The Intranet can also provide a universal data entry for employee database changes, 401k enrollment, W4 Forms, etc.

intrinsic controls
	Embedded controls within a web page that provide interaction between hte browser user and the Web server hosting the page. This comes within HTML, using various tags a user can define their attributes. Examples of this can be a checkbox, radio, button, reset, submit, etc.. Visual Basic also provides some of these controls.

inventory
	Items that are available for sale.

Inventory loading
	Unreasonable purchase of large quantities of inventory solely to qualify for bonuses or advancement.

Inversion
	is a feature that allows the creator to flip the data of an image - usually from a black-and-white or grayscale image - to add color. Grayscale refers to images commonly in black, white of shades of gray.

investment
	the capital that is provided up front and subsequently as needed to get a business going. It is used to buy equipment, pay advertisers, and generate business. The people who provide the resources for investment usually expect to be the ones who benefit financially when the business begins to turn a profit.

involvement
	The effort a person puts into the use of information. For example, an online purchase requires more involvement than a peek at a company's page.

IPO - Initial Public Offering
	The term used for a companies initial sale of stock in a public market such as the New York Stock Exchange.

IRC
	IRC is short for Internet Relay Chat. This is a "chat" system that was developed in the late 1980s by Jarkko Oikarinen of Finland. This system enables users from all over to join together in common discussions without having to travel or spend the money on phone bills. To run the system, each user must have an IRC client and be connected to the IRC server. All messages that any one individual sends to the chat room is broadcasted, therefore everyone in the chat room sees them. In the last couple of years, systems like this have caused many problems in the legal realm by certain members slandering others on chat rooms. This has led to several court room decisions on the security of chat rooms.

IRC (International Record Carrier)
	Provides network and messaging services.

IRDS rapporteur
	provide International Standards for an infrastructure for the integration of all systems analysis and development tools. Run time tool integration requires the.

ISAKMP

ISAPI
	Internet Server Application Program Interface An application programming interface, created by Process Software and Microsoft; it is designed for Internet servers. ISAPI uses Windows'dynamic link libraries (DLLs) which make processes faster than under regular APIs.

Issuing Bank
	Issues the credit to a credit card holder. When sale authorization is requested, The merchant's bank, requests the funds to be transferred from the credit card company, which in turn receives the funds from the issuing bank.

Jabber
	An error in which a faulty device continuously transmits corrupted or meaningless data on to a network. This can stop an entire network from transmitting data because other devices will perceive the network to be busy.

Jaggies
	Stairlike lines that appear where there should be smooth straight lines or curves.

Jargon
	Technical language used within an industry and often misunderstood in an audience.

Java
	Java is a programming language intended to be a universal language for the Internet. Developed by Sun Microsystems, Java programs can run in any modern computer and operating systems and can deliver application programs on the Internet.

Java
	A programming language created by Sun Microsystems designed to create software for consumer electronic products. This language creates platform independent applications which can run on any operating system.

Java Electronic Commerce Framework
	This is a series of Java libraries, from Sun Microsystems, that include wallet and security options to help Java programmers handle electronic payments.

Java Virtual Machine (JVM)
	Developed by Sun Microsystems, Inc., to run Java language programs on. JMVs are unique because they are not actual machines. They are systems or programs that a real computer uses to run programs on. JMVs translate Java into commands that a computer can understand and then complete. These Virtual Machines run independent of the computers programs or the other software being used on that computer. These JMVs can be thought of as a translator or middleman between the computer and the programming language.

Javascript
	A programming language that is object-based which allows Java objects to be directly embedded in an HTML page. Software that can interpret Javascript include Netscape 2.0 and all of their subsequent browsers.

JDK
	(Java Development Kit) -- A software development package from Sun Microsystems that implements the basic set of tools needed to write, test and debug Java applications and applets.

JEDI (Joint Electronic Data Interchange)
	JEDI-Joint Electronic Data Interchange. Group that sought coordination of X12,TDCC, UCS, and WINS.

Jini
	A radical new technology developed by Sun Microsystems to allow all dissimilar electronic appliances to communicate with each other. The language is to allow a new level of intelligence and interaction to be brought to the devices. Jini enabled devices will be able to interact with each other via cables or Internet.

jobber
	This is a small-scale (small time) wholesaler.

Joint Electronic Payment Initiative (JEPI) protocol
	JEPI is one of several initiatives proposed as an industry standard for electronic payment negotiation protocols. Proposed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and CommerceNet, JEPI allows browser applications and electronic wallets to use a variety of payment services. See also SET.

joint venture
	when two or more companies combine forces to begin a new business or organization, capitalizing on each other's strengths

JPEG
	A format used for saving and processing graphics and photos. It is supported by HTML.

JPEG
	A type of still-image found all over the Net. Files in this format end in .jpg or .jpeg and are called jpeg (pronounced JAY-peg) files. Stands for Joint Photographic Experts Group.

JSP: Java Server Page
	JSP is used to control content and the appearance of web pages. JSP uses small servlets specified within the HTML in order to modify a page. JSP is comparable to ASP, but is not server platform specific.

jughead
	A network of "Gopher" links which accepts work searches and allows the result to be distributed to numerous "Gophers".

junk e-mail
	Junk E-mail is similar to the mounds of junk-mail that plague residences accompanied by those annoying phone solicitations. The only distinct difference between the two is that you receive these ads via e-mail. These advertisements, however, are not free due to connection and storage costs they require. Cyber consumers can also have their mailboxes "bombed" by one of these ads, totally disabling their e-mail account.

Just In Time (JIT)
	Redesigning and simplifying manufacturing by reducing inventory levels and delivering parts just when they are needed on the production line.

juster scale
	An 11-point rating scale used in survey questionnaires predicting behavior. For measuring attitudes or opinions a 5-point scale (typically ranging from "agree strongly" to "disagree strongly") is usually used.

just-in-time
	The concept of reducing inventories by working closely with suppliers to coordinate deliveries of materials, or parts, just before their use in the manufacturing or assembly process. Analogous to quick response.

K56flex
	A modem standard for 56kbps communications. This standard was developed by Rockwell.

Kaizen Philosophy
	A total quality management philosophy which holds that small improvements made over time acccumulate into a radically reshaped and improved business process.

keiretsu
	Japanese society of business, which takes one of two main forms: a bank-centered keiretsu, or a massive industrial combine centered around a bank; and a supply keiretsu, or a group of companies dominated by the major manufacturer they provide with supplies.

kern, kerning
	Kerning is the process of adjusting the spacing between two adjacent letters. Traditionally kerning meant to decrease the amount of space, but the term has come to mean either increasing or decreasing the spacing between the letters. Each letter in a typeface is designed with a predetermined amount of space to its right. But certain combinations of letters, such as Ta or Wo, look awkward when you set them with this standard spacing. And when you use a badly-spaced pair, the awkward letterspacing can detract from the legibility of the entire word. So the bad combinations must be kerned. The ideal is to create visually consistent letter spacing—when you look at the text, you should not notice any letters that are set too tight or too loose in relation to any other letters. Most commercially available typefaces are designed with predefined kerning instructions for certain pairs of letters, those most commonly known to cause problems. Based on this information, some applications will automatically use these “kern pairs” as you type. In some applications, you can “manually” adjust the kerning between any two characters or over a range of characters. Typically you will find kerning capability only in page layout (desktop publishing) programs, and in some top-of-the- line word processors.

key
	A very sophisticated series of encrypted numbers that would take so long to decode that it is essentially unbreakable and allows a user to read encrypted messages that others cannot.

Key Hygiene
	A CommerceNet term for proper security management of digital keys.

Key Line
	A row of alphanumeric characters designating selected facts about an individual customer record such as length of term, size of purchase, classification, identification number.

Key Pair
	a set of related numbers that are easy to create but hard to factor. One of the pair becomes a user's public key (which can be given to anyone) and the other the private key (never given out). Messages encrypted with a sender's private and a receiver's public key are easily decrypted with the receiver's private key. Third parties listening/intercepting such a message will have to do all the work to factor the keys which should be a long, slow process.

Keycode - Generic
	A form of hierarchical coding in which promotions can be analyzed within type of media-newspapers, Sunday supplements, magazines, mailing lists, radio and promotion, self-standing stuffers, TV promotion, take-ones, and so on.

keyword (n.)
	A word that concisely describes, defines, or refers to a particular subject. Use of a keyword is necessary in searches in the popular search engines on the World Wide Web, or help facilities that come with software. Often businesses can "purchase" keywords from search engines, so that when a search is done, their banner will appear at the top of the results page, alleviating the user of the need to filter through the results which are often too convoluted to offer any useful information.

Keywords
	Keywords are search words used by search engines. Advertising, a major source of revenue for Web sites, is often linked to keywords. There is currently some dispute over the legality of linking keywords to advertising that is displayed when a search is made using trademarked search words. Playboy and Estee Lauder are two companies that are suing companies that own Web search engines.

kill
	A term used when a project or procedure is prematurely terminated.

Kilobyte (KB)
	A unit of measure for memory or disk storage capacity. Two to the 10th power (1,024 bytes).

kiosk
	A small stand-alone structure used to disseminate products and/or information. A stall set up in a public place where one can obtain information, e.g. tourist information. The information may be provided by a human or by a computer. In the latter case, the data may be stored locally (e.g. on CD-ROM) or accessed via a network using some kind of distributed information retrieval system such as Gopher or World-Wide Web.

KISS Principle
	KISS is the acronym for "Keep It Simple and Straightforward". This principle can be applied in almost all areas of life and business.

Knowbot
	A type of artificial intelligence software that roams the Web looking for information.

Knowledge Asset & Management
	Intangible asset such as people sharing knowledge, insights, tools and practices. This leads to knowledge management - requiring an infrastructure to utilize information, competencies and experiences. And foremost understanding what knowledge is critical and that knowledge is not just taking up space.

Knowledge Management
	Systems put in place by organizations to capture its knowledge, intellectual capital and intangible assets and have such readily accessible and easily usable by its staff or business partners. Components might include: 1) organizational or industry best practices 2) replicative internal company processes and 3) common information/data bases. A well-designed Knowledge Management System that embraces the entire organization augments the intellectual capital of that organization. It leverages the re-use of proven practices and knowledge, and minimizes redundant efforts by the organization's personnel. The results should be increased levels of individual and organizational productivity, as well as higher levels of customer or client and employee satisfaction.

Lag
	The amount of time it takes between when you make an online request or command and when you receive a response. When the Internet response time approaches zero, the Internet will be more consumer-friendly.

laisser-faire leader
	An individual who leads very little. This leader inflicts no order on a group and gives very little direction.

landscape
	when a document is printed horizontally on a piece of paper instead of vertically

Latency
	In a network, latency, a synonym for delay, is an expression of how much time it takes for a packet of data to get from one designated point to another.

launch
	When a company opens a website for business, it is said that they launch the site.

layer
	An image consists of a background upon which are placed various other objects. For example: A blue sky which then has clouds placed on it. Next a green hill is placed on the image followed by trees and then a house and barn. Finally, a few cows are added. Each of these placement events comprise a layer. As can be seen, an image can consist of numerous layers. Layers allow specific areas of an image to be edited without affecting any other data. Objects in one layer can be repositioned, edited, drawn, pasted, and removed without disturbing objects on other layers. In our example, for instance, we could change the clouds from cotton puff to thunder storm types without affecting any other aspect of the image.

layers
	a graphic term, in which a floating layer of an image can be manipulated in such a way that it does not affect the other layers. This allows for easy manipulation of complicated graphics, however the image must be flattened into one layer prior to posting on the Web.

LCD-Monitors
	This new type of video hardware flat-screen monitor is used to display sharp, crisp, quality images at VERY high resolutions (graphics at 1600 by 1024). One great feature is that this monitor is not very heavy and does not take up much room on a desk. However, this type of monitor is also very expensive (over $1000), but worth having if affordable. Any other facts or information can be found in the April issue of PC-MAGAZINE.

Leading
	(pronounced "ledding") The space between lines of type. Variations in leading affect ease of reading text.

learning organization
	Our world is changing rapidly and so are our customers. Due to the technological advancement and modernization the thing we are using today might be worthless tomorrow or we might not want to use in anymore. Identifying and learning this process is considered really important for today’s businesses. Learning Organization can be defined as an involvement of all employees in identifying and solving problems, thus enabling the organization continuously to experiment, improve, and increase its capacity to deliver new and improved goods or services to customers. As we are heading towards doing business electronically learning process and identifying the customers wants and desires is really important for E-commerce. So experiment, improve and deliver new and improved goods or services to customers has become really important in the field of E-commerce.

Leased-line
	Refers to a phone line that is rented for exclusive 24-hour, 7 -days-a-week use from your location to another location. The highest speed data connections require a leased line.

Legacy Application
	This is an application in which an organization has already invested a considerable amount of time and money. Legacy applications are typically database management systems running on mainframes or minicomputers. New software applications should be designed to work with a company's legacy applications.

legal notice
	notice usually referred to as fine print, should be made conspicous in all sites where there are offers made, or expensive items sold, or copyrighted items sold. Helps protect the seller or web host from law suits or legal liabilities. Usually, requires the user or buyer to click a button signifying that they have read the notice and agree with it.

libel
	This term refers to any written or pictorial statement that is damaging to a person or organization. You can be sued for posting libelous statements on the Internet.

License
	The legal process whereby a licensor agrees to let another firm use its manufacturing process, trademarks, patents, trade secrets, or other proprietary knowledge. The licensee in turn pays a royalty or fee for the license.

Licensing Strategy
	E-commerce field is increasing so rapidly that for some companies it has become difficult to handle all the demands and services solely. So lots of businesses are developing licensing strategy. This strategy involves a firm (the licensor) in one country giving other domestic or foreign firms (licensees) the right to use patent, trademarks technology, or product in return of the payment of fees. Big Companies like Coca-Cola and Pepsi Co. have used this strategy for a long time. This strategy helps businesses to spread their products, services and goodwill to generate revenue. In the field of E commerce this strategy has help the E-business to go globally and provide products and services to the people through out the world.

Lifestyle
	This is a marketing term used by retailers to describe the customers needs and wants by their opinions and interests. It is easier for companies to track this information when purchases are made via the internet. This is because the internet does not accept cash. Lifestyle is the key to e-commerce by the way it explains to the supplier what the customers desires. In conclusion the customers desires, whether it be an ecommerce product or service, is the key to product design and location distribution.

Limited Decision Making
	A type of consumer decision behavior that a consumer would use in making a purchasing decision that requires a moderate amount of time for gathering information and deliberating about an unfamiliar product. Used for products that are purchased only occasionally.

Limited edition software
	free software packages that are usually commercial quality, subject to licensing restrictions, and attract paying customers by limiting the features of the application.

line palette
	the colored boxes that can be clicked to change the color of an object

Lingua franca
	Lingua franca is the language of communication on the Internet. This allows any computer connected to the Internet to communicate or exchange information without restriction of any computer operating systems.

link
	As it pertains to the Internet, a link is considered to be an item on a Web page that, when clicked, transfers the user directly to another Web Page, either on the same site or possibly on a different server.

Linkrot
	Linkrot is the tendency of hypertext links from any site to other sites on the World Wide Web to become useless as other sites cease to exist or remove or reorganize their Web pages.

Linux
	Linux is a free operating system run on Unix machines. Originally created by Linus Torvalds, Linux is true multitasking (running two or more applications at one time), and its source code is freely available to everyone. And Linux can be run on Macs and PC's. The software to run on Linux is not as extensive as what PC users have to choose from.

List Serve
	Common kind of mailing list dealing with a specific topic.

Listener
	An individual who translates the message given by the speaker to construct its meaning. A person who is alert and pays attention to a broadcast.

Listserv
	The most common kind of maillist, "Listserv" is a registered trademark of L-Soft international, Inc. Listservs originated on BITNET but they are now common on the Internet.

Live Audio Feed
	Audio broadcast over the Internet. Currently the popular method is through streamlining, a method invented by Real Audio which plays portions of an audio broadcast as it is download instead of waiting for the complete download. However, currently technology still limits to the feed to a few second of information lag.

Load
	Is the action gathering the information required for a document to be read. (ex. the user will usually get a message that said "loading" when trying to view a movie or listen to a sound

local area network
	A network of computers and servers that can send and receive data between themselves using a physical connection such as cable.

local area network (LAN)
	A group of small computers and peripherals that share the resources of one common server within a small area.

Local host
	this is the person or company that is hosting your web page for you on its servers. This is the company you contact and publish your web page online after you have designed it. They charge fees depending on the services you want to be included on your web page.

location
	When establishing a website, it is very important to secure the .com domain name which would logically be associated with your company. Many people either don't know how to use search engines or have grown weary of using them. Instead, they just type in the obvious domain name for the company when they do not know the URL. To show how important it is, Gateway2000 can be used as a perfect example. As Gateway2000 began its website, it found gateway.com was already taken by another technologically aggressive company with "Gateway" as part of its name. As a result, Gateway2000 had to settle for gw2k.com. Over time, Gateway2000 and the WWW exploded with popularity. Gateway2000 felt many customers were lost when their page did not come up at gateway.com when their primary competitors had theirs (Dell has dell.com and Micron is at micron.com). Gateway2000 eventually aquired gateway.com most likely after paying a premium price. Web traffic and revenue can be lost without the right location!

location window
	A text window located immediately beneath the tool bar in which the URL of the current page is displayed. It can also be used to enter a new URL.

Logic bomb
	Similar to a virus except that it does not reproduce itself.

Logic error
	A program error that can be caused by a mistake in the sequencing of instructions or from an improperly coded instruction that does not accomplish what was desired.

Login
	The set of identifying letters and numbers that is used to access, or logon, to a computer or enter a site.

Logistics
	Is the science of planning and implementing the acquisition and use of the resources necessary to sustain the operation of a system.

logo
	Any arrangement of text and/or graphics used in business to represent a company or its products. (i.e. McDonald's Golden Arches, Pepsi's red, white and blue wave.)

Logo
	A graphic used to represent or symbolize a company such as the Nike swoosh.

LOL
	An acronym for Laughing Out Loud. Look for it in your E-mail or chat rooms

loop
	A group of semantically related segments; these segments may be either bounded or unbounded. In programming, a loop is a series of instructions that is repeated until a certain condition is met. Each pass through the loop is called an iteration. Loops constitute one of the most basic and powerful programming concepts.

Loss-Leader Pricing
	Selling a product at a loss to encourage the buying of another product or products that are sold at a profit.

lossless, lossy
	When a graphic image is very large or complex, it often needs to be compressed if you want to move it from one computer to another, or if you want to save it for future use. Compressing compacts the data, or the information, that tells the computer what to display on the screen or what to print to the printer. A compressed file then takes up much less space on the disk. Usually you must uncompress an image if you want to work with it. A compression scheme that works in such a way so as to prevent any loss of data while compressing the image, and thus preventing any degradation of the image, is called lossless. A compressor that loses data every time an image is compressed is called lossy.

lossy compression
	A data compression technique in which some data is deliberately discarded in order to achieve massive reductions in the size of the compressed file.

low earth orbital satellites (LEOS)
	Satellites that can interact with transponders in personal computers, allowing them to send and receive data without being phisically connected to an ISP.

low overhead
	The inventory concept of keeping inventory at a minimum level that allows the company to save costs and still have enough inventory to meet the needs of its customers in a timely fashion. Some say that the concept of e-commerce has this attractive feature.

Low-cost leadership
	The strategy that seeks to achieve competitive advantage by allowing a business unit, by keeping its cost low, to make more profit than its competitors at the same price

loyalty marketing programs
	Promotional program designed to build long-term, mutually beneficial relationships between a company and its key customers.

luminosity
	is a graphic term, which enables the background to be seen through what is in the foreground of a graphical image, it is very useful when trying to make complicated graphics fit a design scheme of a Web site.

lurk
	A lurk is a person who goes around looking at all the Usenet newsgroups or chat rooms without participating in the conversation or posting a message. However, the negative connotation that we apply to the word does not necessarily apply online. Most people lurk when they are new to a group until they are familiar with the scope or the rules.

Lurking
	Observing but not participating in an activity, usually a UseNet newsgroup. Often this method is used to gather information from free speaking users who are more candid about their opinions, particularly something that may be socially sensitive. As a result, an organization can use this information in its decision making structure with greater confidence in truthfulness.

lynx
	Lynx is the third most popular web browser of choice behind Netscape's Navigator/ Communicator and Microsoft's Internet Explorer. Lynx is a text only browser which is included on UNIX operating systems. When viewing pages with lynx, the view is reminiscent of the WWW's predecessor, gopher.

machine language
	The only executable language; teh language into which programs must be translated before execution.

Macintosh
	Apple Computer's personal computer. Debuting in 1984, during the Super Bowl, Apple let it be know that it is okay to be different in the computer world. Apple introduced the mouse, GUI, and intuitativeness to the computer industry.

Macro virus
	is a small piece of executable code that can be added to files created by word processors or spreadsheets.

macrosegmentation
	Method of dividing business markets based on such General characteristics as geographic location, type of organization, customer size, and product use. Resultant segments should be accessible, identifiable, measurable, have some predictable responsiveness, and be large enough to be worthwhile.

magnetic media
	Magnetic media are one of the most common ways to carry data from one computer to another. Magnetic media includes a floppy disks and magnetic tapes. They record data on magnetic films inside the disks or tapes. The greatest advantage of magnetic media is the low cost of transporting data; which is comparable to a truck full of tapes and other data transmission media.

Mail Forwarding
	Addressed mailed sent to your domain from real e-mail addresses.

mail server
	A computer on the Internet that provides mail services.

Maillist
	Maillist (or Mailing List) is an automated system that allows users to send e-mail to an address and from there the e-mail or message is copied and sent to other subscribers to the maillist. This system allows people who have different kinds of e-mail access can participate in discussion together.

Mailto Link
	A hyperlink that opens to a window where an email message may be composed and sent to a specific adress.

Maintenance, Repair, and Operation (MRO)
	Products used for maintenance, repair, and operation. They include consumables (office supplies, laboratory supplies), furniture, computers, repair tools, as well as industrial equipment and plant maintenance spare parts (e.g. pumps, valves, gaskets). Some organizations use the term Operation Resources to refer to a broader class of indirect procurement items which includes MRO items).

Mall intercept interview
	A survey research that has been set up at a shopping mall.

Mall intercept interview
	A survey research that has been set up at a shopping mall.

Managed Services
	Is the next level of product offerings by ISP providers. In two words managed services is network outsourcing. Providing IP access, transport connectivity, CPE and a single point of contact help desk support under a published rate plan for local, regional, national and international boundaries as a base offering under contained within a single service agreement. Some are calling manage services the end of the private networking era in which ISP base service was IP access. Managed services is the beginning of the "ultimate" outsourcing of a company's networking needs dubbed virtual private network (VPN).

mang
	An expletive of unresponable emotion. Agast at a statement or situation.

mapping
	The process of matching one set of values with the set of values in a different set. In EDI, this is done when internal data elements are converted into EDI data streams or vice versa. In network operations, the logical association of one set of values, such as addresses on one network, with quantities or values of another set, such as devices on another network (name-address mapping, inter-network route mapping, protocol-to-protocol mapping).

Markdowns
	Markdowns are the reductions in the selling price to help increase the sales of an item or category of merchandise. Markdowns can be created on a temporary basis by running a sale. Permanent markdowns are created when the decision is made to eliminate an item from the merchandise assortment and to permanently reduce the price for clearance of all on-hand ownership. Markdowns are calculated as a percentage of sales. Markdowns cause a loss in sales/revenue.

market
	In economic terms, the market is defined as any medium in which business can be conducted between two or more consenting paries. This medium also includes the internet, telephone, person to person, etc.

market attractiveness/company strength matrix
	Tool for allocating resources among strategic business units on the basis of how attracrtive a market is and how well the firm is positioned to take advantage of opportunities in that market.

Market concentration strategy
	Refers to segmentation where companies narrow their field and concentrate only on a particular product or specific group in hopes of specialization towards that group or product. Simply another way to try to gain a competitive advantage. Can be a key point for an E-commerce company because of the vast amount of competition there is on the web.

Market Development
	A marketing strategic alternative that is used to attract new customers to an already existing product by expanding the target market or expanding the current market geographically.

market forces
	Whenever the market fails (Japanese car case) it become necessary for intervention (government intervention). Introducing laws for control. The market fails because of disparagement in information.

Market Mavens
	Individuals who have information about many kinds of products, places to shop, and other facets of markets, and who initiate discussions with consumers and respond to requests from consumers for market information.

market opportunity analysis (MOA)
	It is when a firm goes into a type of business and has to first determine the demand good of service. This will determine the size of the market segment, which will help the firm to target the estimation and sales. For people to know this knowledge will be an advantage for the firm against the other competitors. Before, a firm wants to start any business, it should consider the market opportunity analysis to get a great outcome of success. There are some strategies a firm should consider such as requesting the entire market with one marketing mix, focusing on one segment, and demanding to multiple segments using multiple marketing mixes.

Market Orientation
	Philosophy that what a consumer buys or doesn't by is based not on high pressure salse techniques, but on what they decide they really need or want.

market penetration
	Measure of a company strategy that increases market share for a firm.

market positioning
	Involves two sets of factors: controllable and uncontrollable, and how they affect and influence customer perceptions. Controllable: Product specification, Advertising, Packaging, Price, Distribution, Service aftersale. Uncontrollable: Word of mouth, Distribution, Competitors, Way of use (which may be other than intended), Use with complementary products, Economic conditions, Regulations, Politics, The environment. Positional analysis: takes in 5 steps: 1. Given a target customer (whose perceptions are you going to represent?), 2. Given a set of relevant alternatives, 3. Hypothesise a set of relevant benefits, 4. Obtain positions, 5. Interpret results.

market segment
	A group of people or firms sharing one or more characteristics that cause them to have similar product needs.

Market Segmentation
	The way a company decides to group customers, absed on important differences in their needs or preferences, in order to gain a competitive advantage.

Market Share Approach
	Sets the budget at a level presumed adequate to maintain a given market share to obtain a certain target share.

Market Testing
	Presentation of advertising and other promotion materials for several products, including a test product, to members of the product's target market.

marketing
	Marketing refers to the plan for getting a product out to the people who need it, but first those people have to be convinced that they do indeed need the product the marketing person is trying to sell. Marketing includes figuring out just who it is who needs the product (or can be talked into needing it), plus advertising strategies, merchandising, pricing, distribution, etc. Marketing, rather than the quality of the product, is often the key to whether a product is successful or not.

Marketing Controlled Information Source
	This is an information source that originates with the marketers of the product. This is like researching a Mustang at the official Ford Web Site. The information is naturally biased.

Marketing Information Systems (MKIS)
	Marketing Information System is a subset of an organization's Management Information System. This system is used to gather, sort and evaluate information that is to be provided to marketing decision makers.

marketing mix
	The mix of product, promotion, distribution, and price that marketers use to market a product. The mix has to be changed and tuned until the right mix is found.

marketing myopia
	Business defined in terms of goods and services rather than in terms of the benefits that customers seek.

Marketing Product Data Management (MPDM)
	New emerging application which helps the marketing organization of enterprise to manage and publish product information

marketing research
	Discovering product niches and demographics via surveys, following someone's on-line activity, etc.

marketing strategies
	A set of objectives and policies that guides a firm's marketing effort which is partly dependent on the changing environment and competitive conditions. It is also a consistent and feasible set of principles through which a company aims to achieve long term customer share and profit objectives. These can be achieved in 3 ways:a) Direct Attack Strategy - in which a competitor tries to take over a market leadership through sheer doggedness; b) Backdoor Strategy - in which a competitor runs around the dominant firm rather than into it; c) Guppy Strategy - in which a company attacks smaller competitors rather than the market leader.

market-share
	Calculated promotion needed to win a market share approach was used to promote the "Health-Rider". A new product requires a heavier promotion budget to build products awareness and educate the target market. A market-share is expressed in revenue or units. Market-share and return are strongly related. Market-share reports enable companies to track their performance in various products over time.

market-site
	Allows vendors of different specialties to conduct commerce online using a common website.

marketspace
	This is a new term used to describe the transition from traditional markets defined by physical location, to virtual markets based on, and controlled by information. "Unlike the physically defined 'marketplace,' the marketspace refers to an electronic- or information-defined arena in which business activity can occur, margin can be created, and value can be extracted." (Rayport & Sviokla)

Marquee
	Scrolling Marquee displays text that slowly moves across the screen. This provides an eye-catching experience as many people are fascinated by animations

marshalling
	Collecting data from one or more disparate sources, merging the data into a format as prescribed by the recipient.

mask
	Masks are used in graphics software products to protect an area from editing. Masks are frequently used when applying changes in transparency,texture, color, and background to a graphic image. A mask is applied to an object by selecting it. This is usually done by either clicking on a specific object or by tracing around an object or area on the image with a pointer (Mouse or drawing device). Once the mask is created, either the object itself or the rest of the image, can have changes applied without worrying about changing the other. For example: A barn could be selected from a picture of a farm. Once selected, the barn could be made bright red without altering the appearance of the rest of the farm image.

mass customization
	The use of technology, such as the internet, to deliver customized services on a mass basis. This results in giving each customer whatever they ask for.

Mass Merchandising
	The strategy of setting moderate to low prices on a great variety of products, coupled with big promotional budgets to stimulate a high turnover of inventory.

masterbrand
	A product category in a consumer's mind. It will have the consumer thinking of the products attributes, situation and benefit. An example would be, buying toilet paper over the internet.

matching
	After engaging with the customer in the One-to-one (reference to the Profiling definition), an action is taken, such as ordering a product, downloading software or infor-mation purchases, or completing surveys by matching content to user profile. Companies are able to match incentives to profiles and also create unique incentive programs. Overall, One-to-one enable companies to customize incentives to customers with highly specific profiles and behavior patterns.

Mathematical Calculator
	This is a device used in math, to aid in the formulation of solution to problems.

MECCAS
	An acronym for Means-End Conceptualization of Components for Advertisiong Strategy, a model for applying the concept of means-ends chains to the creation of advertising messages.

media
	Media can refer to the computer parts that store information, such as disks and tapes. Most forms of computer media are magnetic media. If any of these storage devices go bad on you, you could have a “catastrophic failure.” Media can also refer to the various types of data communication, such as video, audio, and print. When a project involves more than one type of communication media, it is considered multimedia. For instance, a multimedia presentation of a story (text) might include pictures on the computer screen where the reader can click a button to turn the pages or animate the scene (video), plus sound effects (audio). If the user can control some of the effects, the presentation is “interactive multimedia.”

Media Buyer
	Is where an advertising agency have specialist on their staff who plans and purchases media space for their clients

Media Buyers
	Employess who decide where to place ads for the most effective use of company advertising dollars. They also submit the ads to be run.

Media costs
	the price of advertising through various channels of communication, such as print, electronic, out-of-home (e.g. billboards) and direct mail.

Media Mix
	The combination of various medium used for a promotional campaign.

medium
	In the communication process this is the channel or method used to make the communication. Examples include print, voice, radio and tv.

Megabyte
	A million bytes. Technically 1024 kilobytes.

Mega-merger
	Mega-merger refers to the merge between or among giant companies/corporations like America Online and Time Warner, Exxon and Mobil, Bank of America and Nations Bank, etc. As a result of the Internet and e-commerce developments which change the landscape of many businesses, companies/corporations in specific strategic groups must get together to create and bring more business values in order to strengthen their business positions.

Memes
	Memes rhymes with schemes. It is the cyber name for the fashion or trend of the day. Memes take on 'lives of their own' and change the way people think and behave.

memory
	Memory is a storage place for data in a computer. Typically, "memory" refers to the set of RAM and ROM chips inside a computer. Data is held in memory where it is manipulated and instructions (programs) are executed. Because memory is a computer's workspace, the size of the memory is directly related to the number of programs that can be run simultaneously and the speed and quantity of data that can be processed.

Menu
	A display list of items from which an end user makes a selection

Merchandise mix
	These are the components involved in merchandising a department. Proper merchandise mix is determined by the ratio in which the merchandise is sold. For example, sales history has shown the typical customer purchases 3 tops for every bottom garment.

merchandise positioning
	Marketing practice of placing a company's products or brand name in a strategic location in a movie,commercial, or other public venue. With the advent of e-commerce we see merchandise positioning in the form of banner adds, pop-ups.

Merchant
	Someone trying to sell either goods or services on the Internet. Delivery can either be across the Internet or through an "out of band" distribution channel.

merchant bank
	The bank where the online store performs its banking transactions. This is the first place a credit authorization occurs.

mesh
	This is a form of network topology where there is a connection of devices that consist of numerous redundant interconnections among the network nodes.

message
	The communication of information from a source node to one or many destination nodes. The message is made up of three parts. The first part is a heading which contains an indicator for the beginning of a message, a source, a date, a time, and the route the message should take. The second part is the body of information, and the third part is an indicator for the end of the message. This term can be used to describe a set of transactions in Edlectronic Data Interchange(EDI). The transaction set may include data for a purchase order, a shipping notice, or any other electronic document containing information that is traded between business partners. The message begins and ends with a set of characters that contains information from the message. This could be a set of characters that represent a purchase order.

Message Board
	A message board is a facility to interact and get input from visitors to a Web page. Messages are usually filed under topics of discussion and responses follow in an orderly fashion. They are perfect for allowing users to interact with the host of the Web page and other visitors in general. This type of interactivity is what brings visitors back to a site again and again. I encourage you to consider this as an option on your next Web page.

Message digest
	The representation of text in the form of a single string of digits, created using a formula called a one-way hash function. Encrypting a message digest with a private key creates a digital signature, which is an electronic means of authentication.

message tailoring
	As a result of the precise target marketing that can be done on the Web, messages can be designed to appeal to the specific needs and wants of the target audience.

Meta ad
	Used in search engines, and advertisement displayed on the results page of a search, specific to the searched term. Also referred to as keyword advertising. Advertisers pay search engines to target their ads and only display the banners when relevant keywords are searched on by a user. Keyword advertising on the search engines enables an advertiser to target a specific audience. For example, if a user searched on the term "digital camera" the ads may be for electronic boutiques or camera shops that sell digital cameras. The meta ads are displayed on the dynamic pages that result whenever the keyword "digital camera" is searched on.

META tags
	Lynx is the third most popular web browser of choice behind Netscape's Navigator/ Communicator and Microsoft's Internet Explorer. Lynx is a text only browser which is included on UNIX operating systems. When viewing pages with lynx, the view is reminiscent of the WWW's predecessor, gopher. META tags are another html tag which give "behind the scenes" information. The most common use of the META tag is to define keywords for search engines by which the author of the webpage suggests their website to be indexed. Another META tag allows for the webpage author to offer a description of the webpage for the search engines to use. Here is an example of some META tags from The Weather Channels website: <META name="description" content="Weather.com, The Best Source of Weather Information on the Web, offers forecasts for over 1600 cities worldwide as well as numerous radar and satellite maps. From the latest weather news stories to allergy information, The Weather Channel web site is your complete source of weather information."> <META name="keywords" content="weather, forecast, tornado, hurricane, storm, cloud, thunder, lightning, snow, blizzard, rain, precipitation, radar, Doppler, satellite, allergy, health, gardening, aviation, travel, vacation, flight, nexrad, nowrad, snowboarding"> Many more things can be declared by the META tag, but the above examples are the most important.

meta word
	This term falls under the category of advanced search features when using the HotBot search engine. Meta words are shortcuts that allow searchers to use HotBot non-text search features from the main text box. For example, title:presidents will return documents with the value of "president" within the titles.

metadata
	The digital information used by search engines to locate, describe and index data.

metadata
	Standards which all data of a certain type is summarized and described; data about data.

metadirectory
	A central repository of coordinated directories designed to offer a single source for varied user information.

Methods
	In regaurds to Visual Basic, Methods are routine just like Events. Methods differ from Events in that the code is hidden inside the control. For instance, the code can instruct the control to add items to a list box. Methods are one of four aspects each control has.

Metropolitan Area Exchange (MAE)
	A network access point where major Internet Service Providers (ISPs) connect with one another to hand off traffic as it circulates on the internet. Traffic across a MAE travels at extremely high speeds that can be measured in gigabits (billion bits per second).

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
	This is a network that is much larger than a LAN (local-area network)and smaller than a WAN (wide-area network. Its' main purpose is to serve a town or city characterized by high-speed connections through fiber optic cable.

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
	Metropolitan Area Network is a network that is similar to LAN (Local Area Network). Although they are built with similar technology, MAN is bigger than LAN. It usually covers a citywide range. Which are advantages to companies that have branch offices in the same city.

Mezzanine finance
	Loans, usually unsecured, which rank after secured or senior debt buy before equity in the event of the company failing. To compensate for the greater risk, they typically carry one to three percentage points above secured loans, and often carry an equity "kicker" to give the lender a stake in the equity.

micro payments
	Micropayments consist of digital coins, currency, and coupons that assist merchants and consumers in their attempt to conduct secure transactions on the web. Digital payments contain encrypted information about the customer that allows the corporation to track that customer's spending patterns, as well as, provide a safe platform for business transactions.

microcash
	Microcash is a form of electronic currency. Because electronic currency is strictly numerical there are no denominations per se, thus allowing ‘sub-denomination’ transactions of fractions of a cent.

microchip

micrographics
	The process of changing microfilm and microfiche into graphical images that will be simple for users to view and make adjustments. Indexing techniques can search these images.

Micromarketing
	The tailoring of marketing decision-making based on prospective buyers in concentrated geographical areas.

micromerchants
	Those who offer their wares on the Internet in exchange for e-cash.

micronation
	Where by one or more people who form an independent country of their own making. Customs, laws, and government exhist. May or may not seek physical establishment and offical reconization. Also know as counternations or ephemeral states. Several such 'pretend' countries exhisit via websites.

micropayments
	Transactions between $.25 and $10, usually made to access or download graphics, information, or games. Pay-as-you-go micropayments were thought to revolutionize the electronic commerce field. However, many consumers have been unwilling to play along with micropayments.

Micropayments
	usually related to payment schemes for small amounts of money. Credit card transactions are usually uneconomic for amounts of less than $5.00 (US). Micropayment schemes are designed for much smaller increments of payment.

microsegmentation
	Microsegmentation is the process of refining and optimizing market niches. Finer segmentation is generally more appealing to customers because products reflect more of the customer’s preferences. A problem with segmentation is that the resulting market niche may not be profitable enough, although its few customers are very happy. Gathering customer profile data and analyzing it electronically, combined with the one-on-one relationship that the Web provides, allows companies to segment their markets efficiently and offer more appealing products and services.

middleware (n.)
	Network-aware system software, layered between an application, the operating system, and the network transport layers, whose purpose is to facilitate some aspect of cooperative processing. For example, directory services, message-passing mechanisms, distributed transaction processing monitors, object request brokers, remote procedure call services, and database gateways. Microsoft Transaction Server (MTS) is middleware.

millenium bug
	"Unplanned obsolescence." The problem computers will be - might be(?) faced with in the year 2000. Many software programs designed in the '60's, '70's, and '80's were outfitted with a dating program that calculated only the last two numbers for internal dating records. This was done in order to save memory bytes. The worry now is over what will happen to computers using these system when the dates "roll over" (like an odometer on an automobile) in the year 2000. Will all the computers in the world freak out and short-circuit? Or will the Y2K debate be nothing more than a visual roll-over in the land of computer dates?

Millicent
	A digital currency protocol proposed by Digital Corporation that uses a "pay ahead coupon system" that uses vendor-specific digital scrips. These scrips have a serial number with a particular value, expiration date, and the name of the vendor who accepts it.

MIME
	Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions. An Internet standard for transferring nontext-based data such as sounds, movies, and images.

Mindshare
	measures what people are talking about. Getting the word out about a product increases the potential for sales. Comprable to word of mouth.

Mirror
	To maintain exact copies of information

mission-critical application
	Mission-critical applications are crucial to a business organization's survival. These applications provide functions beyond daily transaction processes and inventory controls so that the organization can make strategic decisions and maintain its competetive advantage in the industry. Some examples of mission-critical applications are Decision Support Systems, electronic offices, telecommunications and so forth.

Miva
	Miva is a revolutionary scripting language similar to CGI that offers its users much more security and is much more reliable. Miva is a type of middleman between the Web document and the computer that hosts it. Miva can perform database queries, save files for later use, or retrieve information about the server or the guest who is currently on the Web page. Unlike CGI, Miva goes through a special mechanism that checks for errors before it runs. This allows for less down time on the servers and more up time for you! Make sure your Web page is on a Miva supporting server. If not, you may lose valuable clients due to the down time you may experience.

MLM (Multi Level Marketing)
	A multilevel marketing (MLM) plans which, are a way of selling goods or services through distributors. These plans promise that if you sign up as a distributor, you will receive commissions and other benefits -- for both your sales of the plan's goods or services and those of other people you recruit to join the distributors. Be careful of plans that offer to pay commissions for recruiting new distributors. This is called "pyramiding" and is illegal in most states.

MMX (Multimedia Extension)
	Technology created by Intel for its processor, which enables high quality use for graphics, video and audio for the Intel chip. MMX instructions process multiple data elements in parallel using a technique called Single Instruction Multiple Data (SIMD). As a result, programmers who add a few extra codes to their existing programs will reap great benefit from the chip.

mobility barriers
	Something that prohibits movement of companies between groups in a particular industry.

modem
	(Modulator/demodulator) A device that converts a data signal from a computer into an analog signal that can be transmitted across a phone line. Conversely, the same device converts analog signals received along a telephone line into digital signals, which can be received and processed by a computer.

modem pool
	This term refers to a large bank of modems that your ISP uses to handle hundreds or thousands of incoming phone calls.

Moderated Discussion List/Newsgroup
	The person who categorizes the topics and selects posts is the moderator. Thus, a moderation discussion list or newsgroup is a service in which the moderator organizes participants' comments or suggestions are organized into topics or categories.

Modified Rebuy
	Some additional analysis or rethinking of the buying situation is done, but not nearly as much effort is involved as in the new-task buying.

MOET
	entered by John McCormack at 12:00pm September 2nd, 1999 MOET is Microsoft Order Entry Tool, a supposedly secure way to order things online, if you trust Bill Gates.

moment of sale
	The exact moment a transaction takes place through the use of a web site.

mondex
	This is electronic cash on a smart card. It uses the smart card to store electronic cash, which can be used to pay for goods and services, just like real cash. It is more beneficial than cash because it has an electronic locking system, which is more security for the user. The security resides in a chip on the card, not on the network, therefore making transactions on the Internet safe. Each time the chip is used, the card generates a unique "digital signature" which is then recognized by other Mondex cards. The "digital signature" allows for guarantee that the Mondex card is genuine and it has not been tampered with. Also, the recognition process identifies who the card is intended for and therefore it can not be intercepted by a third party. Mondex cards can be used through the phone and computer lines, which it sends and receives the payment instantly.

Money Markets
	Markets that deal in securities with a maturity of a year or less.

montage
	Grouping of visual sequences to show passage of time, change of location, create an opening for a program, etc.

mood
	color of some objects can exhibit certain feelings. Color schemes can be used to make web sites more appealing to various consumer types according to marketing research.

Mosaic
	A primitive Web browser ( developed about 5 years ago) that was a precursor to Internet Explorer and Netscape main stays.

motherboard
	A circuit board that contains a computer's processor as well as other chips central to the computer's operation. The motherboard may also contain slots for conntions to other circuit boards, especially those that control the input, output, and storage devices.

Mouse potatoes
	Since almost everything nowadays, even watching TV, can be done on the Internet or the World Wide Web (WWW), the idea is that "couch potatoes" -- where people just sit on the couch and watch TV all day long -- will soon be replaced with "mouse potatoes" -- where people sit and click the computer mouse all day to not only do business but also to entertain as well.

Moving Pictures Expert Group (MPEG)
	This is a format for compressing video in a format similar to JPEG.

mozilla
	Nickname for a net browser.

MP3
	MPEG Layer 3 is an digital audio coding of signals. The process of transferring musical dialog data files through one's computer. MP3s can be downloaded from www sites by being a compressed algorithm. MP3s uses less memory space than wave files. Using this will benefit the person and will be satisfied saving time. In addition, people can create their own list of songs on the computers like recording songs of a tape, but in reality it is downloaded on the computer. Therefore, people can just open it up to play and listen to the music anytime.

MsgBox
	In terms of Visual Basic, the Message Box is basically a ready-made form for displaying messages to the user to respond to before doing anything else. This is great for error messages.

mSQL Database Server
	mSQL(miniSQL), is a lightweight database engine tailored to provide fast access to stored data.

mud

Multi User Dungeon
	Virtual worlds on the internet are often called 'MUDs'. MUD stands for "Multiuser Dimension" or "Multiuser Dungeon". These realtime multiuser virtual worlds began when Dungeons and Dragons players wanted to create a higher-speed, computer-based system which could act as a "Dungeon Master" -- a controller that kept track of where everyone was in a virtual world, could track special abilities and points assigned to each player, and could broker interactions between players, resident monsters, and other objects in the world.

Multicast
	Multicast is communication between a single sender and multiple receivers on a network. Typical uses include the updating of mobile personnel from a home office and the periodic issuance of online newsletters. Together with anycast and unicast, multicast is one of the packet types in the Internet Protocol Version 6. Multicast is supported through wireless data networks as part of the Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) technology. Multicast is also used for programming on the Mbone, a system that allows users at high-bandwidth points on the Internet to receive live video and sound programming.

multi-channel marketing
	An integrated marketing strategy that brings together the most efficient combination of the vehicles of communication to achieve a given goal in the shortest amount of time. It involves selecting and employing the most appropriate media to get the job done effectively, efficiently, and quickly. (per e-mail message from Kevin Tynan, the author of Multi-Channel Marketing)

multi-currency
	The ability to accept various non-traditional methods of payment. This could include: electronic checks, credit cards, automatic debit from personal banking accounts.

multi-level marketing
	Multii-level or network marketing is a method of marketing products and services through independent representives who refer customers to the multi-level company they represent.

multimedia
	Full-motion videos and sound files. Full-videos have large files sizes while audio files have varying sizes.

multimedia consistency
	The same person's face should be viewed for the product's tv, print and electronic media ads; this same person's voice should be heard for the product's radio, tv and electlronic media ads. Familiarity may breed contemp, but in advertising, it ALSO breeds REMEMBERABILITY of the product in the customer's eye/ear!!!

Multimedia Presentation
	The use of various modes of communication to present a project or message such as an video or overheads.

multinational corporation
	Company that moves resources, goods, services, and skills across national boundaries without regard to the country in which the headquarters is located. The number of these is growing, partly facilitated by the growth of electronic commerce.

multiple regression
	A statistical technique used in direct marketing to compare the relationship between responses to mailings with Census demographics and/or to characteristics of a selected mailing list. This technique is an extension of simple regression. It allows for more than one independent variable to be included in predicting the value of a dependent variable. For forecasting purposes, a multiple regression equation is often referred to as a causal or explanatory model.

multiple selection
	Allows more than one selection to be made. Gives user many choices instead of limiting to one selection.

multiplier
	This is a number assigned to an advertisement based on the number of times it will be seen by a visitor relative to the other ads on PC-Help Online. For example, an ad with a multiplier of three will be seen three times as often as an ad with a multiplier of one.

Multiplier Effect
	When a small increase or decrease in demand has a large impact on the demand for equipment and facilities required to produce the good.

MUSE
	(Multi-User Simulated Environment) -- A type of MUD usually with little or no violence.

Musical Instrument Digital Interface (MIDI)
	is a type of audio file that uses an existing catalog of instrumental sounds from the computers sound card. It is a type of synthesis which recreates sound waves based on information on duration of the note, the pitch, instrument, and other types of definitive characteristics of a particular type of sound.

mutually dependent
	The state in which two companies are equally dependent of one another and therefore, neither one can make strategic decisions that endangers any one of the companies.

Narrowcasting
	Broadcasting goes to the general populace, while narrowcasting is intended for a niche audience. Cable television was the birth place for narrowcasting, and it will come of age with the convergence of TV and the 'net.

National Association for Promotional andAdvertising Allowances, Inc. (NAPAA)
	The only not-for-profit trade association in the U.S. devoted to educating those involved with the creation and implementation of co-op advertising and other trade allowance programs.

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST)
	The National Institute of Standards and Technology was established by Congress to assist industry in the development of technology ... needed to improve product quality, to modernize manufacturing processes, to ensure product reliability ... and to facilitate rapid commercialization ... of products based on new scientific discoveries.

Navbar
	Short for navigation bar. A Navbar is just a kind of "Table of Contents" of a site that stays available so the reader can move easily from place to place. This site has a very good example of this which remains on the left hand frame.

navigation
	Navigation is exactly what it implies, being able to get around. In this case, it talks about the ability to move around on the WWW and especially on your website. The ease by which users of your website may successfully navigate must always be the primary concern when designing your site. A site which makes navigation hard will only succeed in turning business away.

Need-Gap Analysis
	An analysis used to identify what the unmet needs of consumers are. The test group is asked to think of the ideal brand or product and then to rate various existing brands or products on specified key attributes. If none of the existing brands or products measures up to the ideal, a gap exists. This gap indicates that a new product could be created to fill this "gap".

needs assessment
	Determination of the customer's specific needs and wants, and the range of options a customer has for satisfying them.

nerd, nerdette
	Websters defines nerd as “A boring, dull, or unattractive person.” Now, we neerd wouldn't agree with that at all. Nerds just have different interests from the mainstream of yuppies and prom queens and football players. Nerds tend to be very creative in very different and interesting ways.

Net cheque
	A payment mechanism that may be sent via email. This "cheque" is treated the same as a regular check when deposited. Funds are taken from the check writer's account and then transferred to the payee's account. The Netcheque differs from a paper cheque in that a digital signature mechanism is used instead of the signed form in the paper cheque.

Net Future Expectations (NFE)
	Net Future Expectations, or NFE, is a term that has been service marked by Ernst & Young, LLP. It represents the conceptual framework to identify and quantify Net-based opportunities for businesses or organizations. It is defined as NFE = DCF + NFO, where Net Future Expectations is the sum of the discounted cash flow (DCF)stemming from the CORE BUSINESS PLATFORM of the organization + the Net Future Opportunity (NFO) of Net-driven BUSINESS GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES stemming from increased revenue potential (from new business platforms, platform dominance, better knowledge of customers and scaling up to meet customer demands) and reduced cost potential (adapting capital expenditures to changing market conditions and scaling down to match customer demands). Value Drivers for the CORE BUSINESS PLATFORM are: customer ownership, branding and operating model. Value Drivers for the Net-driven BUSINESS GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES are: innovation, flexibility and ability to execute.

Net Nanny
	Net Nanny is a program that restricts unauthorized usage from children. This keeps children from accessing web sites that are inappropriate to view.

Net Present Value
	Represents the contribution of an investment to the value of the firm and, accordingly, to the wealth of the shareholders.

NetBill
	NetBill is a micropayment system. NetBill was acquired by CyberCash in the spring of 1997. CyberCash provides a vehicle for micropayments called CyberCoin as well as credit card and electronic checking schemes. CyberCoin payments are private but not anonymous. A key benefit of CyberCoin is that while the purchaser has a notational record of each purchase, the merchant does not know who the customer was. CyberCoin transactions are just like paying with real cash out of your pocket. The advantage NetBill offers to CyberCash is security. NetBill's security system is currently the most elaborate of all the current electronic cash systems and is being incorporated into the entire family of services offered by CyberCash. NetBill uses both an encryption and a challenge system to secure its transactions. In addition, if the transfer does not go through properly, the purchaser simply selects it from the list of notations to transmit again. The unique identifiers keep the purchaser from being double billed. To authorize a purchase you use the Money Tool to stamp the transaction with your electronic signature. You will receive a receipt from NetBill confirming your purchase. Security is further enhanced by using symmetric cryptography which uses a single secret key known only by the sender and recipient. Transactions using symmetric security are much faster than public key based transactions and passwords are never passed over the internet. CyberCash is backed by a team with significant financial and bankung experience including: The founder of Verifone (A leading maker of credit card authorization terminals); the leader of a team that created TCP/IP; a former executive for electronic funds transfer at Nynex; and a developer of ARPANET. CyberCash should be one of the leading contenders in the E-Cash arena.

NetCat
	An internet catalog ordering and quotation system.

netcheck
	a check which is sent electronically, unlike ecash. This comes from you account, just like a paper check. Just as a paper check requires a signature, this requires a digital signature for security.

Netiquette
	Etiquette to be used on the Internet.

netiquette
	That which is accepted as proper procedure on a network

Netizen
	Borrowed from the term citizen, pertaining to a citizen of the Internet, or an individual who uses networked assets. The term connotes community accountability and cooperation not unlike the definition of citizen.

Netizens
	People who distribute,discuss, and debate topics using the internet as a medium. This includes using email, chat, message boards, and other methods of sharing opinions and ideas. The word comes from the term NET, which is short for Internet, and ZENS, which is short for Citizens, in short these are people who use the net to communicate.

netrepreneurs
	These are pioneers of doing business on the Internet, the ones willing to take the initial risk. An electroic version of the entrepreneur.

Netscape
	A WWW or Internet Browser. The Netscape browser was originally based on the Mosaic program.

Netspeak
	When a dialog gets rolling and the content is humorous, you'll find lots of Netspeak acronyms laced through out the discussion. An example is LOL-Laughing out loud.

Network administrator
	Is the person in charge of of the whole network. This person gives access to the users that need it and make sure that the network is working properly

Network Administrator
	Is the person that keeps the network routers, hubs, file servers, and web servers running. This individudal also researches and evaluates new technologies as they come out onto the market to keep the network up to date.

network architecture
	The relationship that network designers intend to establish among a network's participants.

Network File System
	The Network File System (NFS) is a client/server application that lets a computer user view and optionally store and update files on a remote computer as though they were on the user's own computer. The user's system needs to have an NFS client and the other computer needs the NFS server. Both of them require that you also have TCP/IP installed since the NFS server and client use TCP/IP as the program that sends the files and updates back and forth.

network interface card (NIC)
	This is an expansion board that enables the computer to be connected to a network by inserting an expansion board into the computer.

network Management
	Is the process of desigining and maintaining a computer network. Designing file structures, allocating resources, and researching problems caused by conflicting software. The setup and maintanence of backup schedules for all of the servers on the network. Trouble shooting and maintaince of server, hub and router hardware on the network.

Network Marketing
	Network marketing, also known as "third wave" marketing, represents an evolution of the multi-level marketing concept. Network marketing companies are multi-level, but take advantage of current information systems technologies to support the business of independent distributors or associates. These technologies include: fax-on-demand distribution of information, broadcast or participative telephone conferencing, Internet/web-based product and organizational information, and e-commerce. Network marketing companies usually operate internationally, and usually handle the inventory management and distribution of products for the independent distributors.

Network Meltdown
	A state in which a network grinds to a halt due to excessive traffic.

Network Monitoring Services
	A system or service designed to protect virtual or intellectual assets. A full Network Monitoring Service provides companies the software and people to create a barrier against corporate espionage and computer problems. The software would be used to protect against viruses and hatchers. The people would be used as security guards to find problems or holes in a company's secured computer property. The service is also used to find problems with hardware and software before they become big or noticeable problems. A service like this allows a small company that does not have the resources to have its own security team to outsource the work at a lower cost. Redalert.com is a good example of a Network Monitoring Service.

Network Schema
	is the network administrator's view of the entire database organization. This includes a definition of the database names, the record type for each record, and the components that comprise the records.

Networked Information Center (NIC)
	NIC often refers to the office that handles information for a network. On the Internet, NIC is called InterNIC, which is where new domain names are registered.

networking
	Process of finding out about potential clients from friends, business contacts, co-workers, acquaintances, and fellow members in professional and civic organizations.

New Economy
	Refers to a shift in an area of the economy where businesses operate. Many companies have had to alter the way they do business because of the explosive growth of technology in the U.S. Much of the New Economy is made up of a growing number of individuals and companies that have embraced doing business on the Internet, forgoing traditional methods for conducting business.

New Task Buying
	Occurs when a firm has a new need. It establishes product specifications, sources of supply, and an order routine which can be followed in the future if satisfactory results are obtained.

newbie
	A newcomer to the Internet or to an online service. This term surfaced in the newsgroup talk.bizarre but is now in wide use, originally from British public-school and military slang variant of "new boy".

Newsgroup Marketing
	Blatantly advertising and getting direct sales from newsgroups. This includes advertising and selling through BBSs, CompuServe, and AOL forums.

newsgroups
	Newsgroups are public forums or discussion ares that exist on a computer network. Messages can be posted and read by all users of the network. Questions can be posted in the hope that someone will know and post the answer. Newsgroups are very popular and the most famous are distibuted worldwide by the Usenet system.

NIC
	(Network Information Center)Any office that handles information for a network. The most common is the InterNIC, which is where domain names are registered.

NIC (Network Information Center)
	An object representing a product or brand that is placed into a programmable enviorment and responds to user events..

niche market
	A segment of the market that have different preferences or needs from the mainstream audience. Small compact refrigerators were created to fill the niche of college students living in dorm rooms.

niche marketing
	A segment of the market that has different preferences or needs from the mainstream audience.

Nickname
	is also common known as an alias and is an alternate e-mail name or account that can be used for addressing e-mail messages to a department, person or group handling a particular project, issue or system. The feature is provided by most e-mail servers.

Nixies
	Slang in the direct mail industry for pieces of mail returned as "undeliverable as addressed."

Node
	Any single computer connected to a network.

noise
	In marketing, anything that interferes with, distorts or slows down the transfer of information

Nongraphical browser
	A browser which only shows text. Why would anyone want a nongraphical browser? Probably because they run on a computer system that doesn't show pictures, usually a remote terminal linked to a university system or a central processor in a country where personal computers are very expensive. The most popular nongraphical browser is Lynx. Some professional researchers also like Lynx because, without pictures, the Web can be very fast.

Nonlinear Communication
	Web users can plot their own course through the information. Information is not sent in a flowing sequence form with a beginning and an end.

Non-Marketing Controlled Information Source
	This is a product information source that comes from an unbiased, independent reviewer. This is like researching a Mustang through Consumer Reports.

Nonprice Competition
	A type of competition that is not determined on price. Companies may compete on product differentiation, product quality, service, or other various techniques. Nonprice competition for an Internet company may be just the point that brings back a customer. If your company competes soley on price, you will need to be continously lower than all of your competitors to keep that customer.

Nonprofit marketing
	Includes marketing activities conducted by inidviduals and organizations to achieve some goal other than normal business goals, such as profit, market share, or return on investment

Non-profit Organization Sites
	Non-profit organizations usually exist to disseminate information. However, the name Non-profit does not mean they don't want your money. They need money to survive and accept contributions. The AIDS Memorial Quilt is shown on a non-profit site for the NAMES Project Foundation. The site address is http://www.aidsquilt.org/.

non-repudiation
	The inability of one entity involved in a communication to deny having participated in all or part of the communication.

Non-serialized Items
	are items such as printer paper or diskettes that are inventoried but do not have any serial number or other code for tracking purposes.

non-store retailing
	Selling goods and services to the final customerwithout setting up a store.

Normalization
	is the process of assigning attributes to an unit

notebook
	A small computer or program with a large computer that simulates the features associated with a notebook, pencil and eraser.

Novell NetWare
	Novell NetWare is one of the most popular network systems for personal computers. It can downsize a company's network from mainframe based to a network of personal computers. It's also known as an example of client-server systems.

Novell Netware Client
	Is the network client designed by Novell tobe used with Novell's Netware serve software. It enables the work station to communicate with server, and print servers on the network.

nude
	Machines delivered without an operating system.

nuke
	To stop a process that is currently working.

Object Box
	In terms of Visual Basic, the Object Box conveys to you which control you are referring to. A list of all the objects will apear by clicking on the arrow on the right of the box.

Object Orient Database Management System
	An OODBMS (object-oriented database management system, sometimes shortened to ODBMS for object database management system) is a database management system (DBMS) that supports the modelling and creation of data as objects.

Objective Errors
	Where the final product does not meet the specification. In other words, the system does not do what the customer said he wants.

objective-and-task approach
	A method of setting a promotion budget that begins with promotional objectives, defines the communication tools required to achieve those objectives, and then adds up the costs of the planned activities.

object-oriented graphics
	A graphic image composed of objects such as lines, circles, ellipses, and boxes that can be moved independently. This type of graphic is used for print-based design because it can be printed at a higher resolution than a computer screen.

Object-Oriented Programming
	Associating data objects and their relationships is the difference between Object-Oriented Programming and traditional programming. C++ is an example of Object-Oriented Programming.

Observation research
	Is a method that is setup to research people watching people, people watching activity, and machines watching people.

observation research
	Research method that relies on three types of observation: people watching people, people watching activity, and machines watching people.

Observation research
	Is a method that is setup to research people watching people, people watching activity, and machines watching people.

Observation research
	A type of research that observes people watching people, people watching activity, and machines watching people.

Occupant (Resident) Lists
	Lists put together from households passed which consist of addresses only. The main lists used for chain grocery and department store flyers. Include apartment numbers and are the only list source covering all 100 million households. Occupant lists are maintained not only in carrier-route order, but also in carrier-walk order, the order the carrier utilizes in delivering to his route. (See DSF Sequence File.)

ODBC
	Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) is a standard or open application programming interface (API) for accessing a database.

odd-even pricing (psychological pricing)
	Price tactic that uses odd-numbered prices to connote bargains and even-numbered prices to imply quality.

Odd-Price Pricing Strategy
	The practice of pricing a product just below an even dollar amount in order to create the illusion of increased value.

Offline
	Pertaining to a device or function that is not electronically connected to the main device or network. Many operations are performed offline to protect sensitive data or processes from users of publicly accessible networks, such as the Internet, or from unauthorized users on a local network

off-line debit card

off-line debit card
	A debit card that settles transactions by drawing funds from the user's checking account approximately two days after the transaction. Funds are transferred almost instantaneously when online debit cards are used. Consumers and merchants handle off-line debit cards (also known as check cards) like credit cards. Customers sign a transaction slip but do not need to provide a PIN.

off-line debit card system

off-line debit card system
	A system occurring most often in retailers handling small transactions (e.g. gas stations) in which debit card transactions are not validated and processed as they occur but are handled in batch mode. The merchant accepts the same risk of loss as with a paper check.

Off-line Transaction Processing
	Capture of order and credit card information for later authorization and transaction processing through a traditional card swipe terminal or through a computer.

oldbie
	A experienced longtime user of the internet.

Old-school media
	Old-school media is the idea that in the past, there were not many choices available to users in the media industry. What was given is what was expected to be taken. However, with the development of the Internet industry and e-commerce, there are more choices with better quality are available.

oligopoly
	An industry where a relatively small number of firms dominate the market for a good or service.

on the fly
	Refers to dynamic web pages that are "built" when a visitor requests them, compared to static pages that remain constant until manually updated by a web programmer.

one-time password system

one-time password system
	An authentication system in which the user's private key or pass-phrase is never sent over the network but is used to calculate passwords which are unique to the user and which are different and unpredictable each time they are used. One-time password systems are designed to protect against passive attacks by preventing replay of passwords that have been captured by eavesdropping on the network.

One-way hash function
	An algorithm that turns messages or text into a fixed string of digits, usually for security or data management purposes. The "one way" means that it's nearly impossible to derive the original text from the string. A one-way hash function is used to create digital signatures, which in turn identify and authenticate the sender and message of a digitally distributed message.

on-line
	Turned on and connected. For example, printers are on-line when they are ready to receive data from the computer. You can also turn a printer off-line. While the printer is off-line, you can perform certain tasks such as advancing the paper, but you cannot send data to it. Most printers have an on-line button you can press to turn the machine on- or off-line. Users are considered on-line when they are connected to a computer service through a modem.

online brochure
	A small, simple Website, the online equivalent of a business envelope-sized paper brochure. This is essentially a description of a business, product, or service, with an e-mail link to allow customers to get more information.

Online Brochure
	It is a small and simple Website which is the online equivalent of a business envelope-sized paper brochure. This is essentially a description of a business, product, or service, with an e-mail link to allow customers to get more information.

Online Classrooms
	Interactive classes offered on the Web to keep users up to date with the latest in technological advances with subjects ranging from programming and Web page publishing to just-for-fun stuff.

online community
	Communities which exist on the Internet and are comprised of individuals which have a particular interest in common. The types of communities are practically endless, limited only by our imagination. E-commerce companies often try to foster a sense of community to appeal to current and prospective customers, thus creating their own type of online community.

Online Database
	A database found on the Internet where marketers can obtain names and information required for marketing research.

Online database
	An outside database that has been setup with public information that can be accessed from a computer.

Online database
	An outside database that has been setup with public information that can be accessed from a computer.

on-line database vendor
	Intermediary that acquires databases from Database creators. Some examples are KR Dialog, DataStar http://phoenix.dialog.com/products/datastarweb, Medline, and LEXIS-NEXIS www.lexis-nexis.com.

Online Gambling
	Gambling which takes place via web sites which have been created by legitimate establishments or questionable parties. A patron of this sort of gambling establishment is required to utilize his or her credit card to pay for his or her debts, if any, which are accrued at the establishment in question. The legality of online gambling is still undetermined in some states while any type of gambling is considered to be illegal in other states.

online journal
	A personal journal of life events posted to a website. These are usually updated on a regular basis, if not daily. Online journals can include: diary entries, poetry, pictures, anything that lets the diarist express themselves.

Online Retailing
	This is the traditional business-to-consumer retailing, where a single business sells its wares to the general public, typically over the Internet. Most e-commerce activity to date has been focused in this area.

on-line retailing
	A two-way interactive service offered on-line. On-line shopping provides customers with shopping opportunities including: weather, "El Nino"; news, "KTVT'; recipes and stock information. Customers log on to an on-line provider for a monthly or yearly fee. American Online, Star Text, Genie, CompuServe, Prodigy and Flashnet are just a few of the most popular electronic and shopping services. Advertisers such as car makers and the travel industry provide brochures, ticket sales, and now on-line purchases of cars. Shoppers can order their product by viewing a picture of the model and electronically transfer the proper amount of money via banks account to retailer. A delivery service such as UPS or Federal Express will deliver small purchases to the residence or office.

online shopping
	Browsing and buying on the Internet from the comfort of your home.

online-advertising
	This refers to the advertising that is on web pages that are not of the company of the page. The most common is the banner add seen at the top and bottom of pages. Most include a link to the advertiser's site.

open architecture
	When a manufacturer publicly publishes the specifications for their computer, the computer is said to have an open architecture. This allows other companies to create add-ons to enhance and customize the machine, and to make peripheral devices such as external hard disks and scanners that work properly with it. With a closed architecture, only the original manufacturer can make add-ons and peripherals. A computer with an open architecture, such as the IBM PC, also means that other developers can not only make add-on parts, but can also make a similar machine, which spawned the whole world of IBM clones. The Macintosh architecture is only partway open. Apple gives other manufac-turers enough information to make add-in boards and peripherals, but not enough to create a Mac clone.

Open Buying on the Internet (OBI)
	OBI, created by the Internet Purchasing Roundtable, intends to ensure that all the different electronic commerce systems can communicate with one another. OBI, which was released by the OBI Consortium (http://www.supplyworks.com/obi) in June of 1998, is backed by technology leaders such as Microsoft, InteliSys, Oracle, Actra, and Open Market.

Open Question
	A question that invites a person to discuss the meaning of occurrence. This type of question allows for spontaneous and unstructured response. In an interview, questions that prompt discussions and responses with no limitations.

Open System Interconnection (OSI)
	A model defined by the ISO to conceptually organize the process of communication between computers in the form of seven layers, called protocol stacks. The seven layers of the OSI model helps one to understand how communication across various protocols take place.

Open Trading Protocol (OTP)
	OTP intends to standardize numerous payment-related activities, such as purchase agreements, payments, and receipts for purchases. It was created as a competing standard to Open Buying on the Internet (OBI) by companies such as Hitachi, IBM, AT&T, CyberCash, Sun Microsystems, British Telecom, and Oracle.

open video system
	A business model for distribution of video signals, established and regulated by the Telecommunications Act of 1996, in which an LEC (which see) may control up to a third of a video distribution system capacity and provide the remainder on a non-discriminatory basis to any and all content providers. An LEC operating within this model is not regulated as a cable TV system and is not required to obtain a cable TV franchise from the local community.

Open Web
	This term normally refers to those Web addresses that are available to anyone with Internet access. For example, some America Online information is available only to America Online members. Some, like the information at www.aol.com, is available on the Open Web--anyone with Web access can visit. If you're designing a Website for the Open Web, you need to be aware that your readers may come from different countries, may be using different kinds of computer systems, and may have different browsers. Your work is much harder than if you put up information that is only available to a pre-specified audience.

Open-book management
	The process of giving employees access to all of a company's records, including its financial statements, so they can understand why they need to raise productivity, improve quality, cut costs, and improve customer service.

open-book management
	The process of giving employees access to all of a company's records, including its financial statements, so they can understand why they need to raise productivity, improve quality, cut costs, and improve customer service.

Operating System (OS)
	This is the low level software which starts the computer. This low level software handles the communications between the computer and peripherals devices such as printers, scanners, hard drives etc.

Operational Plan
	A detailed evaluation of a company's internal operating procedures as they relate to business document processing and internal efficiencies. An Operational plan focuses the EDI implementation for maximum benefit/return while providing input for the strategic plan.

OPI-Open Press Interface
	A procedure that replaces low-resolution FPO images with high-resolution scans in a page layout.

Opportunity To See (OTS)
	the ability to view a banner or advertisment on a web site without them being an impression.

Optical Character Recognition (OCR)
	Is a computer based tool that is used for translating pictures of text into actual text which can then be edited and manipulated by a word processing software or page layout program

Optimizers
	A business customer that reviews several bids or proposals from active and inactive suppliers before selecting a bid or proposal.

Order/Enquiry Conversion
	This is one of the ways that Intenet Marketers measure the sucess of their operations. This simply measures how many Inquiries turned into sales. A low number may mean that you need to redesign the site or that a customer base for your product does not exsist. This may not apply to all marketing sites because some are only in the business of disseminting information.

Organizational Culture
	The members' view of the organization. The culture, the environment, or the way things are in the organization. An e-commerce website can be effected by the company's culture. If a company have a specific product in the public market place and that same product is also posted on the website, the product should look and feel the same as in the public market place.

orphan annie
	A webpage that has been abandoned or left an orphan. An example would be student webpages on the UTA computer two years after they graduate. These sites are as annoying as links that no longer work.

OSDBU (Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization)
	These offices offer small business information on procurement opportunities, guidance on procurement procedures, and identification of both prime and subcontracting opportunities with the United States Government

out bound stage
	A internet marketing strategy encompassing any proactive technique that takes you to your customers rather than relying on them to visit your Web site.

out of the box
	Phrase used to describe original thinking or ideas

out-of-home media
	Those media meant to be consumed only outside of one's home e.g., outdoor, transit, in-store media.

outreach
	ECRC reaches out to clients to help them understand and know the benefits that the current technologies are offering (EDI, CALS). ECRC does this through trade shows, hosting workshops and seminars, and giving presentations on a one-to-one basis and also through groups.

outsourcing
	As relates to electronic commerce, hiring a professional e-commerce provider to manage the day-to-day operation of an enterprise's Internet presence. The business can benefit from the resources and experience of the service provider without incurring the cost of ownership.

Overprinting
	Printing in space over an area already printed.

override
	An amount applied to sales volume from the sale of a particular product and/or service.

packet switching
	A type of data transmission in which the data is divided into packets, each having a destination address. Each packet is then routed across a network in an optimal fashion. An addressed packet may travel a dirrerent route than other packets related to it. The packets are then reassembled at the destination node according to their sequence numbers.

packets
	Small units within protocols, each of which contain a sequential number and address of the sender and the recipient. Packets go through different routes. If one route is blocked, packets can find alternative ways to reach the same destination

packet-switched
	Describes the method in which information is routed through networks in packets. This distribution allows many users to send data over the same line simultaneously. In contrast, telephone lines are considered dedicated. Only one receiver and sender can use the line at a time. With packet switching, the information is assembled into the ‘packets’ on the sender’s end and, along with other ‘packets’, is distributed along a line and re-assembled at the receiving end.

padding
	The amount of space between the inside border of a cell and the text.

Page Views
	Number of times a user requests a page that may contain a particular advertisement. Page views may overstate ad impressions if users have turned off their browsers' graphics to speed browsing.

Page-White Display
	Special type of LCD screen that uses supertwist technology to produce a high contrast between the foreground and the background.

palette
	The range of colors which are available within a program application. An example would be a graphic program like Paint.

Pantone Matching System (PMS)
	Is a color system used in graphics to match the exact color that one is looking for. Is categorized by numbers. Printers and graphic designers use this system.

Paper-based Business Document
	A business document whose information is printed on a paper form, for example, a purchase order or invoice. Paper based document is very important in all businesses, from retail to a multi-national. This document is required from the establishment and throughout its life. The law requires this too. Even though businesses are doing business electronically, paper based document is still important, as each and every deals and transactions cant be done electronically. And also for the future references, companies should file all the important paper documents. An individual company might do all sorts of business electronically but still need some paper based documents, like the certification of incorporation application, the merge deal; which needs to be signed be the executives of each company, etc. In these cases only paper-based documents is considered legal and valid.

paperless trade
	This is a term that is used for all the financial transactions on the web. These transactions usually do not involve hard cash or any tangible type of money; hence the word "paperless" makes sense. With the growth of e-commerce, paperless trade is more prominent in our society.

PAQ
	Acronym for Previously Asked Questions, or PAQs. Similar to Frequently Asked Questions, or FAQs, the difference being that in a knowledge management environment it is valuable to capture all queries coming from customers or customer groups. In the context of data mining, this starts the process of identifying query trends that may highlight developing concerns or opportunities. Dependent on the other e-commerce external and internal needs of an organization, accumulating PAQs may also lead to identifying and categorizing FAQs for internal or external customer groups.

paradigm shift
	A major change in the way we perceive and understand the world around us. When this occurs in an organization, it often encompasses a serious change in the focus and strategy of the company.

paralanguage
	The meaning comes from the way a person says the words as much as from what the words mean.

Parallel Processing
	The simultaneous use of more than one cpu to execute a program. Ideal parallel processing makes a program run faster because there are more engines (cpus) running it.

parenthesis
	These are brackets which enclose any additional words to explain further within an already complete sentence.

parity
	A means of guaranteeing complete accuracy when transmitting or receiving data, parity makes sure the user receives text in written form not in code.

parse
	To divide something into smaller components that can be easily analyzed. Parsing is a method often employed by search engines to seek out key components to categorize a website.

partner affinity programs
	A person or organization that has formed a contractural relationship with an acquaintaince. Both partners partake in anything associated with this contract. This may include development, profits and losses. This can be a continuing relationship or a one-time relationship. An example would be and individual,who can make a web-page for companies. The individual is then paid for this site.

Partnership
	A business organization of two or more persons.

password
	A secret word or phrase used to identify oneself whom is permitted to enter a place or have access to gain information.

Patent
	provided for under Article I, Section 8, Clause 8 of the United States Constitution to promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for a limited time to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries. A patent normally covers the design of a programming technique and prevents others from using that technique without the consent of the patent holder. The spirit of the patent provision is to encourage the cooperation among competitors and peers while protecting the long-term investment of the author or inventor.

Path
	An ordered set of nodes or anchors which represent a sequence in which a web can be read. A path may represent the sequence a reader actually used, or may be a sequence recommened to the reader by the author.

Payment remittance transaction
	An electronic authorization to make a payment.

payment URL
	A URL used by a payment switch that specifies a merchant, the name of merchant's payment switch, the URL of the product being bought if it is a product which can be delivered online, the price, the expiration date of the price/offer, and the digital signature of the payment URL derived from the merchant's private key. The switch combines the payment URL with the encrypted buyer identification and password or passwords. After authentication of the buyer and the merchant, the switch authorizes payment by the buyer designated financial institution.

payment URL

Payment Vendor
	A company that provides secure online processing of digital currency to online businesses.

PDA
	Personal Digital Assistant, a hand held mini-computer that usually supplies information such as calendars, address books and appointments.

PDF
	This is an Adobe Page Description Format. It is often used as a format which allows much more complete, controlled layout of a page and its graphics and text than conventional HTML. It requires a browser plug-in (such as Adobe Acrobat) to see a Web page in PDF format.

PEN COMPUTER
	A computer that uses an electronic pen (stylus) instead of a keyboard to input info. Pen computers usually require special operating systems that support handwriting recognition so that users can write on the screen or a tablet.

penetration
	The percentage of people( or homes ) within a defined universe that are physically able to be exposed to a medium.

Penetration pricing
	Pricing policy whereby a firm changes a relatively low price for a product initially as a way to reach the mass market.

penetration rates
	Results from a statistical analysis, indicating the success or failure of conducting electronic commerce on the Web. The analysis may not only include the total number of visitors but also information pertaining to a site's peak usage time, total number of visitors and inquiries that were made, number of visitors who completed a transaction, etc.

pentium processor

perception
	The impression most commonly held by your target market about your product, service or company. Perceptions may not necessarily reflect reality.

Perceptual Mapping
	Means of displaying or graphing, in two or more dimensions, the location of products, brands, or groups of products in customer's minds.

perl
	Perl is an interpreted programming language similar to the C language but including a number of popular UNIX facilities such as sed, awk, and tr. It is regarded as a good choice for developing Common Gateway Interface (CGI) programs because it has good text manipulation facilities (although it also handles binary files). It was invented by Larry Wall.

Perl
	Perl stands for Practical Extraction and Report Language and is a programming language for Unix programmers and is distributed over USENET. It is the language of choice by many Web developers.

perpetual inventory system
	This is a detailed inventory record that has information on all the purchases and sale during a period. It is automatically updated each time a sale takes place.

Personal agents
	- are like having your own special search engine that is specified to your particular needs and wants. A personal agent has the ability to construct your desktop to search and retrieve information that is pertinent to your requests. It acts as a filtering process by providing only the information that you warrant as being important.

personal computer (PC)

Personal Selling
	It is direct communication between a sales representative and one or more prospective purchasers, for the purpose of making a sale. This can be accomplished through a face-to-face, personal sales call or over the telephone, called telemarketing.

personalized economy
	Baby-boomers led the demand and importance of individuality. Successful commerce meets the demands of this generation through delivery of goods and services for a reasonable value on demand. Seventy-six million babies born in the United States between 1946 and 1964 which created a huge market. Baby-boomers are an educated market. This generation was encouraged to go to college and are now Corporate-America. In a successful personalized economy strategy these three characteristics play an integral part: immediacy, customization, and value. Amazon.com found their market with middle-aged consumers who buy more reading materials and subscriptions to magazines . The travel industry is in another boom stage as consumers have the time, financial resources, and on-line services to enjoy the ease of booking leisure activities.

Persuasive Speech
	A speech intended to influence the audience actions or beliefs on issues the speaker care about.

ph server
	A served database of e-mail addresses and other personal information about users on a particular network.

phrack
	Someone who breaks into computers and phone systems (originating from the terms "cracker" and "phreak").

phreaking
	The use of a computer or electronic device to defraud telecom services.

Physical Design
	when delivering a system this is choosing the particular hardware.

PICS
	Platform for Internet Content Selection. It is the label which is inserted into the header tag of our HTML page that communicates to the filtering software the rating of your site. You may have a service rate your site and create a PICS label for you or you may create one yourself. Internet Marketers need to pay special attention to rating conventions since it is possible to have your site rated by others and filter from your target audience.

picture gallery
	A picture gallery is used to show a wide variety of pictures (usually thumbnails) for easy viewing on one page. It creates convenience for the consumer by allowing them to view a wide variety of products without navigating through numerous pages.

Piggyback
	A commercial announcement from an advertiser, part of which promotes one product or service. And another part of which promotes another product or service. Also known as co branding. Each part is also capable of standing alone.

Ping
	Ping is a term used for a software facility that tests how long it takes for data of a certain size to reach a destination on the Web and return to your computer. For example, if you wish to see how fast data is returned from the Netscape Web server, you may go to the MS DOS prompt or any UNIX shell and type: "ping netscape.com" This command can alert you to extremely slow sites that are overloaded with visitors or it might tell you how overloaded your current Web Site is with visitors. If your Ping becomes too high, your server may need to be upgraded to accept more traffic.

pioneering advertising
	Intended to stimulate primary demand for a new product or product category.

Pipeline
	The pipeline architecture models a business process (e.g., a product order) into a framework consisting of a number of stages, each stage representing a discrete operation on a business object (e.g., an order form). At each stage, one or more specialized components operate on the object, then pass it to the next stage in the pipeline.

pixel
	The smallest dot or unit on a computer screen. The clarity of screen display depends on the number of pixels per inch on the monitor.

pixel coordinates
	These are points within an image that are clicked.

pixelated
	This term is used when a picture has low resolution and you see the pixels (small squares) when you enlarge this pictures would lose more resolution

Pizazz
	A term in merchandising used to describe the ambiance of a department. By making the merchandise exciting to the customer they are in tern attracted to the merchandising display. Also, pizazz is characterized as a flair for style.

PKI - Public Key Infrastructure
	Using a digital certificate issued by an organization to sign documents on the Internet that would act as the certificate of authenticity. Digital certificates link a person's identity to an encryption key pair so he/she can use the certificate to sign a document electronically. With each digitally signed document there must be a remote online check of a certificate revocation list (CRL).

Planned Obsolescence
	Planned Obsolescence - Planned Obsolescence is used as a startegic tactic to ensure their future products will be desirable to the consumers that use their current ones. As in the software industry, many software companies intentionally leave certain features out of their products so that the prodcut will be obsolete in a couple of years. Of course, the software manufacturer then delivers a new version in which the customer will want because of the "new" features.

Planning
	This is very important for an organization to become successful. To be successful an organization should plan its strategy from an accounting to finance, management to marketing and advertisement, employees to customers. Well-planned strategy can leads to success. An organization should plan it strategy from its creation. This is an ongoing process means it never ends. As in any other fields for a successful E-business, a company should be well planned in its management, functional, and its operational level. A company should plan who their target customer will be how to reach them, what services to provide? How to modify or change? as they get reactions from their customers etc. So in each and every field of business good planning is required.

Platform for Internet Content Selection (PICS™)
	A standardized format for ratings systems. The PICS™ specification enables labels to be associated with internet content. It was originally designed as a way to screen out on-line material unsuitable for children.

Platform for Privacy Preferences Project (P3P)
	The Platform for Privacy Preference Project, an activity of the The World Wide Web Consortium, seeks to require Web sites to express their privacy practices and enable users to exercise preferences over those practices. P3P products will allow users to know the site's practices (in both machine and human readable formats) so they can delegate decisions to their computer when appropriate.

plug-in
	A software program that extends the capabilities of a major software package. Most often plug-ins are for image editing programs and Web browsers. QuickTime, Shockwave and LiveAudio are just some of the Web browser-oriented plug-ins. As far as browsers are concerned most enhance the page-seeing experience with movies, animation and sound.

PNG: Portable Network Graphics
	PNG is the lossless and well compressed image file. PNG provides support for indexed-color, grayscale, and truecolor images, plus an optional alpha channel for transparency.

Point of Presence (POP)
	Referring to an ISP, this is the place that their customers call to gain access to the internet. In other words, a place where the internet is divided into rows and rows of modems for use by the public.

pointer
	an indicator that points to an area on your screen to perform funtions

point-of -sale system
	A real-time internet - to - processor interface that allows merchants to safely process credit card transactions.

Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP)
	Its a scheme that you use to connect to the Internet over the phone line.

Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol (PPTP)
	A set method for connecting Windows NT clients and servers to each other over a Remote Access Services. When PPTP is combined with encryption, it makes up a virtual network between a LAN or WAN and ordinary dial up users.

policy card
	A hardware apparatus that when combined with encryption engine establishes encryption algorithm strength.

Polling
	Is what a client (a computer or terminal) does to determine when it send or receive data.

pooled interdependence
	Pooled interdependence is the type of technological interdependence, which requires sharing of resources or information among individuals and department within the company. Technological interdependence is the factors or the act of coordination among each other required for the transformation of raw materials into finished products. Every department has their own specialized tasks to perform but the total outcome is actually accomplished from the together efforts. All needs resources and information even though they all do different interpretations and different work on them. Therefore everybody is bounded with some rules, which are consistence to every one. In e-commerce technological interdependence is very important. We know the entire department have their contributions and also have links to each other. E-commerce is only possible when each department of the company share information and resource together.

POP
	Point Of Presence

Pop Accounts
	These are email or any another type of account that relates to your web page on a server. This allow you to retrieve information sent to you, to allow multiple uses access to access certain areas of a web page. The most common thought are POP accounts

pop3
	POP3 (Post Office Protocol 3) is the most recent version of a standard protocol for receiving e-mail. POP3 is a client-server protocol in which e-mail is received and held for you by your Internet server.

Population
	Is a collection of items or data from which a sample, smaller group, is taken from.

Populist
	Populist are the opposite of elitist. Populist feel that the purpose of media is to serve itself, they feel that the media's role is to give consumers what they want, regardless of its consequences.

port 80
	On a Web server or HTTPD (Hypertext Transport Protocol daemon), port 80 is the port that the server "listens to" or expects to receive from a Web client, assuming that the default was taken when the server was configured or set up. A port can be specified in the range from 0-65536 on the NCSA server. However, the server administrator configures the server so that only one port number can be recognized. By default, the port number for a Web server is 80. Experimental services may sometimes be run at port 8080.

Port number
	an assigned or required value needed to access a port for a single telnet session.

portable
	Portable refers to software or files that will work on different computer hardware and software systems. A portable application is a program that can run on two or more platforms, but only if it is generated separately for each of those platforms. In other words, the programming code is what's portable - if you have a version of the finished program that runs on a Mac, for instance, that program file wont work on a PC if it is just copied to the other computer. On the other hand, if a document file is truly portable, it should work fine on another platform without any changes.

Portal
	IDT, an interenet telephony service provider and software developer plans to open a portal on Feb1 that will aim to make electronic commerce easier for international internet users via Internet telephony. It will enable international customers to interact with ecommerce companies thorugh IDT's Net2Phone Internet telephony applications.

portal
	These are similar to search engines in that they contain search capabilites. They also include contant from the producer of the site. Some examples are Snap.com, AOL, and MSNetwork. They are designed to bring all the web contant through their site, or portal if you will.

Portal Theory of Valuation
	Online consumers will be more likely to link to e-commerce sites from either a "first screen" or from directories and search engines with which they are already familiar.

Porter's five forces
	Porter's five forces of competition determine if the company is in a high risk or low risk industry. The fewer the competitors in an industry, the more secure a company is within an industry. An ideal situation from the company's perspective would be when all the forces are weak. The five forces are: threat of new entrants, bargaining power of suppliers, bargaining power of customers, threat of substitute products and intensity of rivalry.

portfolio matrix
	Tool for allocating resources among products or strategic business units on the basis of relative market share and market growth rate.

Ports
	physical devices that all telnet connections are made through and each of which has its own number.

position
	The place a product, brand, or group of products occupies in consumers' minds relative to competing offers

Post
	An electronic message. The act of putting information online, usually to a message board.

Posting
	A single message entered into a network communications system. This could be a message posted to a message board or newsgroup.

POTS, Plain Old Telephone Service
	Transmission lines for surfing unless you are using ISDN lines, cable modems or satelite connections..

power builder
	An object-oriented programming language. Its use is to design and build effective graphical user interface, client/server applications.

Powerpoint
	This is a software tool from Office 2000 designed for certain types of presentations in e-commerce. For powerpoint it's possible to include graphics such as pictures from a website, diagrams for business, color for the outlook, text, etc. Another cool feature is that a user only needs to list the most important parts of a presentation rather that reading many words from notecards. However, Frontpage may be better suited for website presentations.

PPPP
	PPPP refers to four core area concepts of the marketing mix. They stand for Product, Place, Promotion & Price.

Preamble
	A preamble is a signal used in network communications to synchronize the transmission timing between two or more systems. Proper timing ensures that all systems are interpreting the start of the information transfer correctly.

predatory price
	The practice of charging a very low price for a product with the intent of driving competitors out of business or out of a market.

preferred position
	A requested advertising location in a periodical or magazine, such as the front page or the back cover.

Premium
	A free gift offered to a prospect to induce a greater response to the main product or service that is being sold. A premium need not bear any relationship to the product being offered.

Premium Pricing
	This is also known as 'skimming the market'. This allows the seller to price the item above the market, based on perceptions of quality. This works best on the Information Superhighway because Internet users assocaite high prices with better quality.

Pre-press
	Activities related to the preparation of a document for professional high-volume, high speed printing. They include the use of publishing software to prepare the layout of the document.

presence
	Marketing concept of getting a company's product services, or name exposure to consumers. This can be done none on the web. Search engines can pick up your meta data and place you before potential consumers.

Presentation
	A speech to an audience with the speech content and the integration of nonverbal communication skills, especially body language.

Presentational element
	a formatting element within a web site that has a specific meaning.(ex. Underlined colored text is used to specify a hyperlink.)

Price
	Perceived value of a good or service

Price Discrimination
	Having several different pricing scales for different customers based on certain conditions

price fixing
	An agreement between two or more firms on the price they will charge for a product.

Price Lining
	Price lining in retail parlance is defined as choosing either even dollars or selected endings in cents to obtain best sales results. In direct mail parlance price lining is defined as testing a group of prices through a grid test to allow the buying public to select for the operator the one price producing the most bottom-line profit.

Price signaling
	Allows companies to signal their intentions to other competitors, whether it be a defensive action or to signal coordination among companies. Can be done very easily with Internet companies because notifying your competitors can be done very quickly.

Price War
	Intense competition among businesses where each competitor cuts their retail prices below those of theie competitors. An prime example of a company that is heavily involved inprice wars is the airline industry!

price-skimming
	Price-skimming is an approach to pricing that "skims the top" of new products to offer unique advantages to the customer. A customer will pay outrageous prices for a HDTV for the advantages it will offer and prestige. As HDTV progresses through its life cycle the price will change to successfully reach larger market segments. This strategy works because the market is willing to buy the product at an above-average price. Mazda used this strategy with their Miata, placing the little convertible on showroom floors increasing the demand while slowing down supply at the same time increasing the price. Intel did the same with their Pentium computer chips at $900 for purchase in large lots by computer manufactures.

Primary data
	Data that has been collected by an organization like the Senses bureau and is very reliable.

Primary data
	Data that has been collected by an organization that is reliable.

prime time
	The time period during which the Internet has the largest number of users on line, usually during regular work days and times.

Printer
	In computers, a printer is a device that accepts text and graphic output from a computer and transfers the information to paper, usually to standard size sheets of paper. Printers are sometimes sold with computers, but more frequently are purchased separately. Printers vary in size, speed, sophistication, and cost. The main function of computers in e-commerce is to print invoices and receipts.

Privacy Enhanced E-mail (PEM)
	A mail program that automates message encryption and decryption to maintain maximum security between e-mail senders and receivers.

Privacy Enhanced Mail (PEM)
	A form of Internet electronic mail which provides confidentiality, authentication and message integrity using various encryption methods.

Private Key
	The Private Key goes hand in hand with the Public Key as far as Encryption goes. E-commerce websites often use encryption when taking in credit card transactions. Encryption gives the customer and the vendor a bit of security.

PRIZM
	A marketing term for the consumer segmentation by zip codes to organize consumers by income level, age, and spending behavior.

Problem-Solution Pattern
	This is a plan to first persuades the person that there is something wrong with the current situation. Then try to solve or give suggustions how to correct the situation. If a customer have a problem with the company's e-commerce site. The company should provide a source of communication on the e-commerce site for customer's feedback (such as e-mail).

procurement life-cycle
	The complete series of purchasing tasks and transactions. It includes information seeking, contracting, ordering, delivery and payment.

product differentiation
	A marketing plan designed to distinguish one firm's product from the product of the competitors.

Product Life Cycle
	Concept describing a product's acceptance in the marketplace over four stages: introduction, growth, maturity, and decline.

Product Line
	This is considered to be a group of closely related products. This could be anything that the consumers sells to its customers. Most clothing companies come out with a different line for each of the four seasons. A product line is important to ecommerce just as it is important to any product or service supplier. In e-commerce you could see different products for different holidays or seasons. But it is important to keep a valid inventory in order to keep the products in group with the proper seasons.

Product Management
	Managing the creation, updating, and reviewing of engineering and manufacturing of your product.

product oriented business
	This type of business primarily focueses just on the markets served and the on the products sold. Focus isn't really on customer satisfaction, which should be the main goal of a business.

Production
	Basic input element of a company, what good or service is the company producing. With all of the new Internet companies that start up daily deciding what your business is going to be may be determined by the existing products.

productivity
	Productivity is a management term that is used to describe how well a company's resources are being used to produce value. An e-commerce site can be a relatively low cost investment that can improve the productivity of a company.

Productivity paradox
	Computers are now most businesses' biggest investment item. Executives say they buy the machines to boost productivity - to enable workers to do more each day. Problem: even in the rip-roaring US economy, most standard statistics show that overall productivity growth has seldom been more sluggish - particularly among the very white-collar workers whose output should be benefitting most.

Profile
	In terms of Visual basic, Profile is used to save all your choices using the Wizard process.

profiling
	Learning more about customers' current and future needs by engaging in dialogues with the customers. One-to-one allows a company to obtain useful information to tailor services to the customer's specific characteristics and requirements. The customizable program captures information from external systems, past interactions, and current sessions so that the company can deliver content that fits customer's profiles.

profiling
	To build a picture of a target customer by utilizing information from various sources.

profit
	Profit in economic terms refers to the positive net gain associated to one party when dealing with another party. Profit can be measured in multiple standards, including monetarily, or intangible means. jeff rine 09-23

profit impact of market strategy (PIMS)
	Method for analyzing strategic alternatives that involves consulting a database summarizing the financial and market performance of 3,000 strategic business units of more than 450 firms. This database is provided by The Strategic Planning Institute, www.thespinet.org (site still under construction).

program
	A set of instructions that operates on input data and converts it to output.

progressive JPEG image
	A JPEG image that loads gradually onto your computer and appears onscreen before it is fully loaded, so the user can see the image sooner.

Project Manager
	An individuals, usually a functional manager, assigned to organize the activities of the project team to electronically reengineer the business processes.

promo(tional announcement)
	A non-revenue-producing announcement promoting an event by/for the business concern. Example: A local TV station promoting a special one-hour program entitled, "Clinton vs. Larry flint: Who is Sleazier?"

promotion
	That part of the marketing mix which relates to creating awareness, effecting perception and consummating the sale of your product or service; includes both personal and non-personal.

promotion strategy
	Advertising, public relations, publicity and sales promotion make-up promotion strategy. Press coverage, special events, media advertising and displays are carefully planned. Frequent shopper programs are being tested. Retailers are flocking to direct-mail and "on-site" shopping. Long-term commitments are not necessary. A retailer no longer needs to decide on a permanent location, but needs to be "more creative" developing technological skills to promote their product on the web.

Promotional Mix
	Combination of promotion tools (including advertising, public relations, personal selling, and sales promotion) used to reach the target market and fulfill the organization's overall goals.

promotional plan
	A carefully orchestrated sequence of events designed around a common theme and geared to specific objectives.

Promotional Strategy
	It is a plan for the optimal use of the elements of promotion. The main function of promotion is to convince target customers that the goods and services offered provide a differential advantage over the competition.

Propaganda
	The process of spreading positive or negative information or ideas about a business or industry.

propensity scores
	A rating method using consumer browsing and buying habits.

Properties
	In reguards to Visual basic, properties govern the way a piece of text looks, its shape, size, color, and how it behaves. Properties are one of four aspects each control has.

prospect
	Someone found on-line or someone who might be found on-line who could be chosen for a particular reason, i.e. a person who frequents a particular is a prospective customer.

protocol
	Protocol is a set of voluntarily-agreed-upon conventions established by the ISO for the computer industry that allow communication to occur between software with computers run under different operating systems. The ISO and the industry developed a model called Open System Interconnection (OSI) that addresses the physical connection, data link transmission reliability, network routing, transport, communication session, presentations' syntax and application issues between networked users. Protocol is the equivalent of a modern-day "Rosetta Stone" that allows computers to communicate effectively.

proxy
	A method of hiding data by rerouting requests. Proxy network: A computer and associated software which will pass on a request for a URL from a World-Wide-Web browser such as Mosaic to an outside server and return the results. This provides clients that are sealed off from the Internet a trusted agent that can access the Internet on their behalf. Once the client is properly configured, its user should not be aware of the proxy gateway. A proxy gateway often runs on a firewall machine. Its main purpose is to act as a barrier to the threat of crackers. It may also be used to hide the IP addresses of the computers inside the firewall from the Internet if they do not use official registered network numbers.

proxy negotiation

proxy negotiation
	The establishment of a secure communications link where the negotiating parties (i.e. hosts) are not the endpoints for which the security association negotiation is taking place. Proxy negotiation allows the identities of the end parties to remain hidden.

proxy server
	In an enterprise that uses the Internet, a proxy server is a server that acts as an intermediary between a workstation user and the Internet so that the enterprise can ensure security, administrative control, and caching service. A proxy server is associated with or part of a gateway server that separates the enterprise network from the outside network and a firewall server that protects the enterprise network from outside intrusion.

pseudocode
	A program pllanning tool that uses English-like expressions rather than diagrams to depect the logic in a structured program.

psychographic segmentation
	Segmenting markets by: 1. personality - traits, attitudes, and habits; 2. motives for buying 3. lifestyles - how time is spent, beliefs, income, education, etc.

psychographics
	Analysis technique used to examine consumer lifestyles and to categorize consumers.

Public domain (PD)
	The total absence of copyright protection. If something is in "the public domain", then anyone can copy it or use it in any way they wish. The author has none of the exclusive rights which apply to a copyright work.

Public Key Encryption
	Encryption using a key or keys that is publicly available, known by more than one person. Usually used in combination with some other mechanism, such as a private key, one known only to the holder

Public Net Terminals
	Allows access to internet and internet commerce through out public places such as airports, hotels, and office buildings.

public relations
	Marketing function that evaluates public attitudes, identifies areas within the organization that the public may be interested in and executes a program of action to earn public understanding and acceptance.

Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)
	A global network of interconnected digital and analog communication links originally designed to support voice communication between any two points in the world. As the computer revolution exploded, it was quickly adapted to handle digital data traffic. Besides the traditional voice support, the PSTN now functions as the Physical layer of the Internet by providing dial-up and leased lines for private and public use.

publicity
	Public information about a company, good, or service appearing in the mass media as a news item.

public-key encryption
	This encryption method requires two unique software keys to for decrypting data, one public and one private. Data is encrypted using the published public keys and the unpublished private keys are used to decrypt the data. Pretty Good Privacy (PGP) is a well-known example of this kind of encryption system. This system provides secure data across a public network.

publishing
	Posting text on the Internet is considered to be equivalent to publishing a piece of work in print.

pull marketing strategy
	Refers to a selfselecting environment, that is, individuals will only visit the sites that appeal to them.

Pull Media
	Pull media are types of media in which the consumer has a choice of whether or not they want to listen to the ads. Examples of this type of media are television and radio; if the person decides they don’t like the ads, they simply hit a button and turn it off or change the channel.

pull quote
	A qoute taken from the main text of a story, enlarged and inserted like a graphic in the text to highlight a certain phrase and to catch a reader's eye, drawing attention to the story.

pulling power
	The ability of an ad to fulfill or create its desired purpose.

punter
	A program device that is used to freeze the computer that causes a malfunction, which disconnects (kicks) people off the Internet and requires the process to "sign on" again. This is very annoying and could be frustrating in the result of being disconnected from the Internet. If people use this on you, then immediately notify the Internet Terms of Service. This will eliminate those types of people.

Purchase-with-purchase
	An offer that lets you buy a second product at a discounted price but only if you buy the first product at its regular price.

purchasing application
	A formal request for a particular item on the open web market, with intentions of purchasing and obtaining a specific item.

purchasing card
	Aimed at the business market, the purchasing card allows company staff to deal directly with suppliers and reduce costs by cutting out paper, e.g. the need for a purchase order. Orders can be placed over the phone and the company receives management information detailing spending by employee, supplier etc.

purchasing system
	A transaction processing system that supports and documents transactions associated with the purchasing of goods and services.

Purchasing Transaction
	One of many transactions containing information relating to the purchase of a product or service. If anybody wants to buy something, purchasing transaction should be filled. After that for example, purchase order, purchase order change, purchase order acknowledgment.In addition to the hard copy of the Purchase Order, the requisitioner may also view their order "on line" via the Banner Purchasing System. Once the order has been entered into the system by the buyer, all information related, including budget, receipt and invoicing information, can be viewed through the Document History form The Document History form displays the processing history of a purchasing and payment document. It identifies and provides the status of all documents that are in the processing stream for the document that you query. In addition to the type of document and the document number(s) associated with a transaction, the system displays an indicator for each document, which denotes the current status. The user can navigate to the actual document by using the "List Field Values" option. This allow the user to view the document only. No changes can be made from this form.

Push
	Push describes a technology in which the user, in advance, has signed up for a request and the server, at a later date, delivers or "pushes" the information automatically to your computer. This is contrasted to the usual technique of downloading a webpage, where you send a request to the web server asking ("pull") for a specific page.

push marketing strategy
	A marketing tool that augments the pull strategy by persuading the potential customer to visit a speciffic Web site eg. via banners, flash adds, etc.

Push Media
	Advertisements that the consumer has no control over, they’re always on. A basic example would be when you are walking through a grocery store and a voice over the loud speaker announces that they are having a special on donuts at the bakery. The web has many sophisticated forms of this type of media, the best example is the ad banners found on many web sites.

Push Technology
	A new approach that gives the user or potential customer only what he or she wants and needs. Content is sent from a data store to the appropriate user for which that information is relevant or wanted. Push Technology is very beneficial to all users simply because of convenience.

Pyramid
	An illegal multilevel "scheme" wherein people pay an entrance fee for the opportunity to recruit others to do the same. Pyramids have no products (chain letters is an example).

qualifier
	A data element that identifies or defines a related element, set of elements, or a segment. The qualifier contains a code taken from a list of approved codes.

qualifying prospects
	People who fit a description as a possible target of marketing strategies.

Qualitative Research
	This allows for the potential Internet marketer to determine its customer base. This uses exploratory and diagnostic tools to get a feel for the situation. This analysis will help a firm decide if its presence on the web will be profitable.

Quality
	Refers to how individuals view the companies product or service. High quality can lead to a competitive advantage. Quality could be the key point that establishes your E-business.

Quality Assurance
	A final test of the delivered product against the specs and of the specs against the users' requirements.

Quality Control
	in information systems, this is a way of making sure a brand new system works as it was designed.

Quantity Discount
	This is offers to the customer or retailer who wants a discount and needs a large supply of a certain product. Companies on the internet that offer products may get a discount when they purchase in bulk. This also applies to e-commerce. In this e-commerce situation it is a win-win situation for both the seller and the buyer. The seller or provider moves more product while the buyer gets it at a cheaper cost.

Quantum Innovation
	Represents a radical departure from existiong technology - the introduction of something that is new to the world.

QUERTY
	The first six letters of a typewriter. It represents the success of a bad design over good design and the value of being first with a marketing concept. The keyboard was designed to slow typists down so the typewriter arms would not jam.

Query
	The process of extracting data from a database and presenting it for use.

Queue
	commands or processes waiting to be processed

quick response
	A supply chain management philosophy in which business can respond quickly to customer orders. Analogous to just-in-time manufacturing.

QuickTime™
	QuickTime is a software product from Apple Computer. QuickTime synchronizes the recording and playback of images and sounds (little movies) that have been created in other applications. It also supports various types of compression. That's important because movies can take up an enormous amount of disk space.

Radio Button
	This is used on many web pages to pick between alternatives what best suites them between a number of choices. One of this will be the choice whether to pay by credit card or by check, you click the radio button next to your choice.

RAM
	RAM is an acronym for random access memory. This is where the computer stores information temporarily while you are working with it. If you loose power or shut down before saving, whatever is in RAM at the time is lost.

Random error
	Is a false representation of the overall population selected from a sample size.

Random error
	Is a false representation of the overall population selected from a sample size.

Random Sample
	A type of probability sample where every element of the population has an equal chance of being chosen as part of the sample.

Rapid implementation
	A process of quickly implementing an EDI transaction with a trading partner without conducting an operational or strategic plan to assure maximum benefit/return.

Raster
	A graphic file stored as a colection of data points used to display web graphics.

raster
	A raster is the pattern of sweeping horizontal parallel lines across a screen such as a television set or computer monitor. On a television set the lines are horizontal and continuous. On a computer monitor the lines consist of dots that are individually illuminated. A cathode-ray-tube (CRT) within the monitor sends an electron beam sweeping across the screen in a pattern from left-to-right, top-to-bottom. The whole sequence takes a small fraction of a second to complete. The area of the visible scan is created is called a raster.

Rating Services for web site
	It is a service which is to identify sites with adult content that might not be suitable for children. There are many different services available. Almost all allow you to register your site for free. Once registered, your Website must include a rating indicator. It called PICS Label.

Ratings
	A site may be rated with a meta tag. The rating defines the content of the site and is used by web browser and Filtering software. The RSACi is responsible for defining the levels and content area of the ratings.

Raw
	Raw is unprocessed data that is passed along to an input/output (i/0) device without being interpreted.

Raw materials
	This is the basic essentials when building a product or service for sale. This is essentially your products ingredients at their most natural state. Without the raw materials it would not be possible to have a finished product for the company to sell. This is also true in e-commerce. Raw materials are important to e-commerce providers which could be anything from computers to write software codes, to nuts and bolts to build a computer. Raw materials are important to any e-commerce site on the internet because without the raw materials there would be no product or service to supply.

reach
	Percentage of intended audience that receives the message sent by an advertisement.

Reader
	We have used this term for the person who browses, to distinguish him/her from the program ( browser ) which (s)he uses.

read-only user
	Someone who uses computers almost exclusively for reading Usenet, bulletin boards, and/or email, rather than writing code or purveying useful information.

Real Audio
	Real Audio is the name of a software that allows for the streaming of sound across the Web. Before this technology was available, you would have to download an entire audio file before you could listen to it. With the emergence of Real Audio, you can listen to audio as it downloads! This saves valuable waiting time. Real Audio also allows you to listen to live broadcasts. A similar product, Real Video, does the same thing with moving pictures. They are combined into a product called Real Player. You can download these products from many sites around the Web.

real time
	Text appearing on one's screen at the same time that it is being typed on another's computer. A good analogy would be live television as opposed to a taped show.

Real Time Credit Card Processing
	Any experienced on-line merchant knows that a major key to on-line sales is ease of payment. In order to capture impulse buys and complete the sale at the moment the client makes a decision, we must provide a mechanism for an instant transaction. InternetSecure (Real Time Credit Card Processing) provides precisely that mechanism. InternetSecure's facilities become an extension of the Web site allowing the client to enter their credit card number securely, process payment instantly, and receive a receipt and confirmation of their purchase. No more clumsy delayed email transactions, or credit cards processed off-line. Consumers can now make purchases instantly in the manner to which they are accustomed. This translates to more on-line sales for merchants...Some benefits include: - No bank approval process - Applications are processed, approved and guaranteed by InternetSecure - No special banking or account arrangement required - InternetSecure assists with any "clear copy" requests or chargebacks from the bank, and does so easily with full records of your transactions. - The Risk Management system is the most sophisticated and best tested of any Internet Credit Card processing service in the world.

Real Video
	Developed by Real Networks, Real Video provides streaming video for the web. Real Player is needed to pplay RealVideo

RealAudio
	A trademarked name for streaming audio. RealAudio can be downloaded for free from the WWW. The technology allows users the ability to listen to continuous audio feeds from the WWW.

RealAudio
	RealAudio is a real-time audio broadcasting technology developed by RealNetworks (formerly know as Progressive Networks). Most audio on the Web is accomplished by playback of various audio (.wav, .snd, .au, .raw, etc.) or MIDI files. RealAudio allows for live broadcasts to occur on the Internet. RealAudio is available as a commercial application, which must be purchased, or as a free Netscape plug-in. For more information, visit RealNetwork’s web site at http://www.real.com/

real-time conferencing
	Networked computers that allow people to hold meetings electronically. Individuals at different locations can express their thoughts and opinions by typing messages into the computer for others to view.

realtime image
	A graphics image that is displayed as it would be seen in the real world.

real-time processing system
	A system which can guarantee credit card and check transcation clearance instantly.

Rebate
	When purchasing a product, a company sometimes offers rebates to promote higher sales of a certain product. Some retailers may offer rebates at their stores or websites only. In e-commerce this would be used to increase customer flow. This would also be used to reduced the cost of a product. Customers may have to mail in a certificate or voucher with a receipt to recieve your rebate directly from the company through the mail. With e-commerce some companies offer lower prices for purchases from their customers over the internet.

Recall Objective
	Aims to increase the percentage of the target market that can recall the campaign's message and the product.

recession
	Period where economic growth rate slows down, stops, or even reverses.

reciever
	In the process of communication this object of the message, or the one to whom the message is intended to reach.

reciprocal linking
	When two or more websites find it beneficial to promote each other on their perspective Webpages. Each site involved includes references and often links to the other businesses Webpages.

Reciprocity
	Occurs when firms give purchasing preference to firms that are also current customers.

Recruitment
	Recruitment involves searching for and attracting candidates, external or internal for job vacancies. New people are found and brought into the organisation. This involves communicating with actual or potential job seekers, motivating them to apply and persuading candidates that they really want to come and work for the firm. The objectives are to attract candidates of the right quality in the right number. The best candidates may in jobs and not looking to change them. Many candidates must leave their present job. In a situation of low unemployment/labour shortage, good candidates may be scarce, competition exists in the labour market. Conversely where there is high employment, some good candidates may be reluctant to move from positions where they perceive some stability. Recruitment occurs across the whole spectrum of occupations from school and college leavers to the unskilled and semi-skilled, to technologically oriented staff and successful senior managers. Recruitment activity has an element of public relations about it. The organisation opens its doors to job seekers and hence the outside world. Certain organisation development, marketing, promotional and quality aspects take recruitment activity beyond being just a maintenance process. Strategic policy questions are raised.

Red, Green and Blue (RGB)
	An acronym that stands for Red, Green and Blue. These primary colors can be mixed together in combinations that will generate a large portion of the color spectrum. More expensive monitors use four combinations of cyan, magenta, yellow and black. These color monitors are described as CMYK.

reference groups
	All formal and informal groups that influence the buying behavior of an individual.

Refresh
	Refresh is the amount of time it takes before a Web page reloads all of its content. Some sites, such as a continually updating weather radar image, will refresh the page content to update your images for you. Other sites require that you press the reload or refresh button on your browser to see the updated information. If you visit a site and the content looks outdated, hit your Refresh button and it will get the latest copy for you.

Refund Anticipation Loan

refund application loan (RAL)
	A very short term loan made by a bank to an electronic taxpayer once a tax return is filed and due to be repaid when the refund is received from the Internal Revenue Service. When the IRS receives the return it issues a DDI (Direct Deposit Indicator) number that assures the lending bank that the taxpayer has no other debt to the government. RALs were once viewed as extremely safe loans but fraudulent returns, filed specifically to obtain RALs, have forced banks to raise their fees or abandon making such loans altogether.

Regional Clearing House Association
	The geographical banking organization of member depositing institutions. The regional clearing house is the geographical processing point in the banking system where transactions are received from its member depositing institutions.

Registry
	Please Delete

regrettable talk
	A person says something that embarrassed her/him or someone else.

regulations
	Regulations are detailed guidlines governing over any business transaction. Fiscal regulations are controlled by the Federal Trade Commision. Regulations are designed to create equality within all business pratices.

rehi
	"Hello Again". Used when returning to a chat room or e-mail conversation.

relationship marketing
	Relationship marketing is currently used in traditional sales operations whereby a sales representative is assigned one or more customer accounts. A limitation with this arrangement is that small accounts with customers that do not purchase frequently enough are not worthwhile for the sales agent to devote his or her time, thus the small accounts are deprived of custom service. With electronic commerce, customer accounts, their preference profiles and sales history are kept in a database, thus allowing custom service with each and every transaction. Examples of this custom service include email notification of promotions for products a customer has purchased or is likely to purchase, and customized web pages based on the customer’s preference profile.

Relative market share
	Refers to the amount of market share one company has relative to the leader of their industry. Because of the fierce competition among some Internet companies, establishing a sizable relative market share is very important.

Relative URL
	A partirl URL used to link to an object or page within the same website.

Reliable
	Indicates that a method will still give the right answers in a new environment.

reload
	Is similar to the refresh button in Internet Explorer browser, the reload button is offered in Netscape browser. Its function is to go back to the previous website.

Remote Access
	Remote Access is the ability to log on outside of the physical location of the network and obtain its resources as if on-site.

render, rendering
	Rendering is the process of applying color, shading and shadows to an image to make it appear realistic. Much of this can be done automatically on the computer, converting outline drawings to fully formed and solid objects.

repaginate
	the procedure by which pages are rearranged and, if necessary, renumbered after the substantial addition or deletion of information

Repeat Sales
	This is very important to any part of commerce. A person buys your product over and over. Or the customer comes back to your website over and over.

Repositioning
	Existing products are targeted at new markets or market segments.

Requirements Definition
	The document that spells out what the eventual system must do, the information it must produce, and when and where, without dictating how it will be done.

Research
	Careful study of a subject.

reset
	A hardware or software command that puts all operating settings back to their original values.

resolution
	In a general sense, the term resolution pertains to how sharp and clear an image looks on the screen or in print, and how much detail you can see; it refers to how finely resolved an image appears to be. In a low resolution image, fine lines look coarse and overlap one another, and curves are obviously jaggedy. The higher the resolution, the less you notice these defects. If you’re being quantitative, you can express the resolution of a particular screen, printer, or bitmap graphic in numbers.

Resources
	Please Delete

response elasticity
	Degree to which an audience is affected by marketing.

Response Time
	The amount of time it takes for a computer to execute a command. Can also refer to how quickly a business can give customers what they demand exactly when they demand it. Because E-commerce may be concerned with instant customer gratification, response time is very important.

retail life cycle
	Retailing goes through identifiable life cycles. There are four distinct stages: 1) introduction, 2) growth, 3) maturity, and 4) decline. One such area in the introduction stage is interactive electronic shopping. New competition enters the market during the introductory stage enters the market during the introductory stage and a battle for market share ensues. New concepts are introduced and unfulfilled market niches position themselves. The growth stage is the stage when a market sees the most inclines. Superstores, off price outlets and warehouse clubs are in the growth stage slipping into maturity. During the maturity stage, market shares begin to level out and profits will begin to decline due to competitive attacks by new forms of marketing. Sears was our most prominent example of a decline stage in a retail market. Baskin and Robins hit a decline stage due to the "fat- free" diets while Braums rose to the occasion offering more variety as a "one-stop-shop" and added a "fat-free" yogurt to their menu.

retailing
	All activities directly related to the sale of goods and services to the ultimate consumer for personal, nonbusiness use.

Retailing MIx
	Combination of the six P's. Price, Place, Product, Promotion, Personnel, and Presentation to sell goods and services to the ultimate customer

revenue
	money generated by a business's activities

reverse DNS
	Reverse DNS is exactly the opposite of DNS. Instead of wanting to know the IP address of a domain name, we know the name and need the number. So, if we have the IP number 206.54.191.15, we can look it up to see that the machine name is www.dallasmemory.com. Here is an abbreviated version of a reverse DNS table (It is slightly different than the tables for DNS): $ORIGIN 191.54.206.in-addr.arpa. @ IN SOA ns1.dfw.net. root.dfw.net. 15 IN PTR www.dallasmemory.com. This tells us the reverse DNS for IP addresses beginning with 206.54.191 is being hosted by ns1.dfw.net. In this case we see that 206.54.191.15 is, in fact, www.dallasmemory.com.

Reverse Engineering
	analyzing the software that allows a system to document and identify how and what it does.

RFC
	Request For Comment

Rich e-mail
	Way of sending web-page like documents via e-mail rather than plain text.

Rich Media
	Rich media is an Internet advertising term for a Web page ad that uses advanced technology such as streaming video, downloaded applets (programs) that interact instantly with the user, and ads that change when the user's mouse passes over it.

Right Sizing
	either for an orgainization or ones' own individual system, this is the process of figuring out the particular architecture to use.

ring topology
	This is a connection that is capable of spanning large distances and offers a high bandwidth. It is rather expensive and hard to install this type of connection because each device is connected to two other devices that brings all the devices into a closed loop.

Risk
	Uncertainty about long-term life cycle costs of buying a good or serivce.

RJ-45
	Th RJ-45 is a style of connector used to connect a piece of cabling to a Network Interface Card. It is the standard for networks today. It is used on CAT3-CAT 6 cableing.

Robust
	The ability of software or hardware to keep from crashing through many uses over time.

Rodney Dangerfield valuation
	Internet stock lingo for a low price/earnings ratio. A Rodney Dangerfield valuation is a stock that has such a low p/e ratio that it just can't get no respect. Before January 1999, for example, Lycos' stock price and valuation lingered far behind the other portal sites, even though it was rumored to be a takeover target.

Romancing
	Romancing the merchandise creates an imaginary illusion allowing the customer fanciful or impractical thoughts or dreams related to the merchandise. These dreams are to trigger a desire for purchasing the merchandise.

rotational advertising system
	This is the system used by PC-Help Online which displays a different ad each time a page is accessed by a visitor.

Router
	On the Internet, a router is a device or, in some cases, software in a computer, that determines the next network point to which a packet should be forwarded toward its destination. The router is connected to at least two networks and decides which way to send each information packet based on its current understanding of the state of the networks it is connected to. A router is located at any juncture of networks or gateway, including each Internet point-of-presence. A router is often included as part of a network switch.

routine response behavior
	This is a consumers' point of view making a decision when purchasing low cost goods and services. This takes patient because the process consist of research and decision time. Usually the consumers that fit on the routine response behavior do not realize the problem until they are out in the open to advertising or see the product on displayed on a store shelf. Most of the consumers buy first and then evaluate the results later. Using and considering this decision making will be an effective use for consumers and will benefit them while shopping.

routine response behaviour
	A type of decision making made by consumers when buying frequently purchased, low-cost good. It requires little research and decision time.

RSA encryption
	A method of encryption that uses a public key system. Users of this system have two digital keys: one to encrypt information, and t the other to decrypt information. This method of encryption provides for authentication of both sender and recipient.

RSACi
	stands for Recreational Softwars Advisory Council. They are a non-profit organization which established a 5 level, 4 catagory rating system for internet sites. Many ISP's use filtering software which prohibit access to websites based on their RSACi rating.

RTFM
	(Read The Fine Manual) people often use these initials when new users ask a question that is commonly answered in the FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions) section.

Run-out Strategy
	This is a strategic decision to allow a product in the decline stage of its life-cycle to continue to be sold, especially if the product has a sizable market which insists on buying it. Often the marketer may raise the price a little to obtain a slight premium price while paring all promotional costs.

Salary
	This term refers to compensation made at different times for services rendered

Sales Maximization
	The effort to increase market shares. All other markering objectives are ingored, as long as sales keep increasing

Sales Objectives
	Goals or targets set by the management to reach in a certain amount of time. Can be long and short term.

Sales Promotion
	An activity in which a short-term incentive is offered to the customer to induce the purchase of a particular good or service.

Sales Reporting
	The most important step in developing a management system is the design and implementation of a sales reporting. It is a process by which a seller of product advises the supplier of the product what product was sold in a given time frame. It may also include the identity of the customer to assist in issues such as warranty registration. The report system is broken down into two different areas inquiry and sales lead effectiveness. This system is very important for the sales persons as well as manufactures. As the report is generated after the sale is occurred, manufacturers will know what product to produce more, and whole seller and retailers will know what product to get from the manufacture to keep up with the demand. Sales reporting is considered important while doing business electronically too. Even though, the medium that the product passes from producers to the ultimate consumers will be short, it will help the e-businesses to decide questions like, what to order? And what to keep in stock? And where the customers are located? Etc.

Sample
	is a smaller group of items or data taken from a larger group or population.

Sampling
	Sampling - Sampling is used as a promotion strategy to ensure a certain product or service is known to the public. Sampling is usually done free of charge or at a reduced price. Sampling is used extensively in the pharmaceutical industry. Many drugs are sampled to doctors so that they can give them to their patients to try. Additionally, it also gives the patients that don't have money to pay another option for treatment.

sampling error
	Difference between a target population and a sampled population; used to measure how closely a sampled population represents the intended target population.

sampling resolution
	Sampling resolution affects quality, just like dpi resolution affects the quality of images. Standard sampling resolutions are 8-bit mono, 8-bit stereo, 16-bit mono, and 16-bit stereo.

satellite office
	A branch from the main office that is an alternative to the home office. An employee might divide time between the three offices so that commuting time is decreased, but still allows for face-to-face contact when necessary.

Satisfiers
	Customer satisfaction based on factors such as customer serevice, quality and reliability.

saturation
	Defines the intensity of color.

scalability
	The ability of a business to add content and resources as its prescence on the web grows.

scalable font
	A scalable font is a font that can be resized on the screen or when you print to any point size without becoming distorted. TrueType and PostScript are both scalable font formats.

scaled-response question
	A closed-ended question designed to measure the intensity of a respondent's answer.

scam
	Scam is a slang term to describe a fraudulent business scheme.

scanner
	A hardware device that "reads" a photograph or other piece of art and transforms it into a collection of dots that can be stored as bit-mapped file on a hard disk, manipulated in various software programs, and placed electronically in a page layout program.

Scanner Plus
	The next generation of scanners. They will be able to communicate with personal computers in home. One function could be to analyze an individual household's consumption based on its prior purchase patters and offer menu projections or product use suggestions with an associated shopping list. Scanner Plus may also keep track of each household's coupons and the other special offers received directly from advertisers.

Scenario
	Scenario is a written description of a possible future.Scenario is a written description of a possible future. A scenario can be thought of as a concrete description of an interaction between a user and a system seen from the user's perspective. The description need not be formal in nature and the collection of scenarios that is used to represent how the user would interact with the system for the purpose of analysis, design, evaluation or training may not be comprehensive in coverage, rather the set of scenarios may concentrate on those deemed as the most important or prevalent.

Scheduled picture
	a feature that allows a person to display a picture on a web page for a specified time, and either replace it with another, or remove it from view. This is good for displaying items that are seasonal that are hot items or breaking news hyperlinks on the net.

Scheduling
	Scheduling is the process of matching inventory, equipment, and personnel to the work process. Scheduling provides the right amount of raw material, equipment and the appropriate personnel to complete a certain activity. Scheduling becomes complex when the availability of these components do not match the required need.

SCORE
	The Service Corps of Retired Executives is a volunteer management assistance program of the SBA. SCORE volunteers provide one-on-one counseling and workshops and seminars for small businesses. There are hundreds of SCORE offices throughout the United States. These services offices are located in almost all the States. They can be found on the internet at:- http://www.sbaonline.sba.gov/gopher/Local-Information/Service-Corps-Of-Retired-Executives/

Scoring
	To provide potential and probability of response to consumer mail. Modeling programs effectively calculate a "score" or "weight" for each record. For business such scored weights for each 8-digit SIC by one of the nine employee size groups are added together to give comparable potentials for individual territories, branches, divisions or product groups. Consumer lists, by similar means, can be scored high to low in deciles.

Scratch-and-sniff
	A process used to convey a particular scent to the reader. The scent bubbles are released when the area is scratched.

Screen name
	A pseudonym or "handle" that is used in place of the user's real name.

Screen resolution
	If you're familiar with printers, you know that printers with more "dots per inch", like 600 DPI printers, can show more detail in the same amount of space than printers with lower DPIs, like 300 dots per inch. The same type of measurements hold true for computer screens, but there it's called Screen Resolution. For Web designers and marketing managers, this is a major factor when designing a site. The audience may be viewing at 640x480, 800x600, or even higher. Sites must be designed to accomodate all viewers, not just those who spend the most for their monitors.

Scrolling
	The electronic equivalent of page turning in the internet and is usually accomplished by vertically dragging the slider bar or clicking on a down-pointing or up ward-pointing arrow.

Search
	Specific exploration of online information rather than a casual examination.

search engine
	Any of several data bases available on the Internet that allow users to find Web sites based on words included on those pages. Some, such as Alta Vista and Infoseek, are huge indexes. While a large size obviously allows the user to find a larger number of sites, the downside is that sometimes one may find it difficult to narrow their search to a manageable number of site selections (say down to several hundred rather than several thousand choices). To view ratings of different search engines, visit <http://www.searchenginewatch.com>

Search String
	Key words or phases that are entered into search programs and become the basis of an Internet search.

Secondary data
	Data that has been collected by one self or others, and might be unreliable.

Secondary data
	Data that has been collected by oneself or others but is not reliable.

Secondary data
	Data that has been collected by oneself or others but is not reliable.

Secondary data
	Data that has been collected by oneself or others but is not reliable.

Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) protocol
	Proposed by MasterCard and Visa, SET is another standardized protocol for processing electronic transactions.

Secure Electronic Transmission
	Payment transfers process that integrates digital certificates to verify the identity of all parties.

Secure HyperText Transfer Protocol (S-HTTP)
	A secure version of HTTP, developed by Netscape, that provides general transaction security services over the Web.

secure server
	Secure servers are used to conduct confidential transactions over the internet. Data is sent between the server and the client in an encrypted form that cannot be read by other computers. They are commonly used to conduct credit card transactions across the Web.

Secure shopping
	Secure shopping is an environment which provides users and store owners a safe place to conduct business. On the Web, this can be done using a secure server. This can be quite expensive for smaller operations. Alternatively, space can be rented in a cybermall that provides secure shopping. Some marketing managers choose to put just their "online order department" in this type of mall, and keep all of their other unsecured pages on their own server. With hypertext, this is quite easy to do, and can solve the security problem very quickly if you add a store to an existing information or promotional site.

Secure Socket Layer Technology
	This is when a company on the internet will encrypt your account,name or credit and give you a different code when you buy. This allows them to get back in contact with you, for future purchases or promotions. This tool is not foolproof, but it tries to maintain the privacy and security of the consumer.

Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
	SSL is an acronym that stands for Secure Socket Layer. SSL was designed by Netscape for use in electronic commerce for transactions involving confidential information such as credit card numbers. Secure Socket Layer uses a system of public and private key authentication combined with other schemes to verify electronic signatures. The ability to conduct secure and confidential transactions over the Internet is critical to the success of electronic commerce.

Security
	Refers to techniques for ensuring that data stored in a computer cannot be read or compromised. Most security measures involve data encryption and passwords. Data encryption is the translation of data into a form that is unintelligible without a deciphering mechanism. A password is a secret word or phrase that gives a user access to a particular program or system.

Security and Exchange Commission (SEC)
	The SEC is an independent, nonpartisan, quasijudicial regulatory agency with responsibility for administering the federal securities laws. The purpose of these laws is to protect investors in securities markets that operate fairly and to ensure that investors have access to disclosure of all material information concerning publicly traded securities. The Commission also regulates firms engaged in the purchase or sale of securities, people who provide investment advice, and investment companies.

Security Certificate
	Information that is used to establish a secure connection.Security Certificates contain information about who it belongs to, who it was issued by, and an encrypted term that can be used to verify the contents of the certificate.

Segment
	This is the term which refers to a piece of, or a part of a whole. It is a fraction of the total amount

Segmentation Base
	A particular characteristic that is common to individuals, groups, or organizations that marketers use to divide a certain market into distinct segments.

Segmentation Base
	The dividing of potential consumer market into various catagories base on the various charistics of the group. This is one of the largest benefits of electronic commerce. It allows you to segment your market to best decide who you want to direct you product towards.

Seigniorage
	In economics, the income a government receives from the minting of currency (coins and paper bills) derived from the difference between the cost of materials in the currency and the currency's face value. US government annual income from seigniorage approaches twenty billion dollars. Digital cash, issued by banks or other parties, may be opposed by governments because it can replace currency and decrease government income from seigniorage.

Selective Distribution
	Achieved by screening dealers to eliminate all but a few in any single area. Shopping goods usually have selective distribution, as do some specialty products.

Selective Exposure
	An individual’s perception of certain facts, stimuli, or advertisements and disregards all others.

Self-extracting archives
	a compressed file or program that uncompresses itself once it has been downloaded.

Sell-Through Rate
	the amount of times an ad is sold rather than traded thru an ad network.

sender
	In the communication process this is the originator of the message. The point where the communication starts.

Serial Line Interface or Point to Point Protocol (SLIP/PPP)
	Serial Line Interface or Point to Point Protocol; currently the quickest and most powerful method to access the internet with a modem.

Serialized Items
	are hardware items such as computers and printers that have serial numbers or another code that is used to track their location for inventory purposes.

serif
	a line or curve projecting from the end of a letter form. Typefaces with these additional strokes are called serif faces.

server
	A computer or series of computers that shares its resources with other computers. ( i.e.. An, ISP, Internet Service Provider is a "Server" for other computers to the Internet.)

server space provider
	A server space provider is an individual, company, or organization that provides storage space on a server for Web pages, usually for a charge. Some independent access providers and online services provide a limited amount of free space for Web pages (for example, one megabytes of hard disk storage). Note that not all access providers offer server space. And many server space providers do not provide access. Server space and access are two different services. Relative to other costs of developing a Web site, the cost of server space is usually small. A new trend on some sites, however, is to charge for the amount of traffic your pages get rather than the space they use. This is because server space is relatively cheap compared to the administrative costs of managing a busy site for someone.

server statistics
	These are basically a report card of how your website is doing on the internet. Server statistics are calculated from logs kept by the web server itself which record everything that is requested of the website. A program goes through the logs and generates a useful report full of summary information on your website. From this report, one can see when exactly the website was hit. Graphs show which months, days, and even hours of the day were most popular during the logged period. Another important feature is the host report. This is exactly who is looking at your site. A typical listing would look like this: Requests Bytes Host 97 0.08% proxy3.emirates.net.ae 112 0.07% ppp4_sys5000_slot09.sminter.com.ar 47 0.05% hr-185.hr.vc-graz.ac.at 166 0.08% atlas.dmn.com.au 48 2.10% ww-tf03.proxy.aol.com 1 0.06% socks11d.raleigh.ibm.com 2 0.03% marco.idealab.com 8 0.27% lohs20.integris-health.com 14 0.62% 207.55.220.121 26 0.45% 207.93.175.190 How is this possible? Every time a person on the WWW requests something, the web server knows a certain IP address has asked for a certain file. In this case, we will say that a person at IP number 207.158.119.102 has asked for a file named poofs.wav. The web server uses reverse DNS to look up the name of the computer that IP is assigned to. Here is what the web server records: ftw-tsa6-38.cyberramp.net - - [10/Feb/1998:01:06:15 -0600] "GET /chris/sounds/poofs. wav HTTP/1.0" 200 39884 This tells us that a person from Fort Worth, TX (ftw) who gets their access from cyberramp.net requested poofs.wav at 1am on Feb 10, 1998. The web server keeps all of these entries over time. Server statistics allow you to view this information in a more meaningful view (as above). This information tells us what is getting looked at how often and by who!Definitely a tool for marketers everywhere.

server-side imagemap
	A server-side imagemap requires that the information about the imagemap be saved within a "map definition file" that needs to be stored on a server and accessed by a CGI script.

service
	This is a specialized function or utility provided by a server. Services can refer to programs that transmit data or provide conversion of data in a network, but services are not limited to just networks.

session
	When dealing with communications, a session is simply a connection between two machines on a network or on the Internet.

Settlement
	A transfer of funds to complete one or more prior transactions made, subject to final accounting.

Settlement Institution
	Financial institution (or its agent) at which the accounts are held by the parties settling. This institution, acting on information provided by the parties, transfers the appropriate funds between the accounts.

SGML (Standard Generalized Markup Language)
	a standard that defines a language for document representation which formalizes markup and frees it of system and processing dependancies. It provides a coherent and unambiguous syntax for describing whatever a user chooses to identify within a document. (Electronic Commerce Terms Glossary; http://www.oakland.ecrc.org/gloss3.html)

shareware
	Freeware for which the author requests some payment, usually in the accompanying documentation files or in an announcement made by the software itself. Such payment may buy additional support, documentation or functionality. Software which is openly available, but not free.

Shelf Talker
	These are the signs used for advertising purposes that hang over the edge of the shelf.

Shipping
	The process of moving something by land, sea, or air from one point to another.

Shockwave
	Shockwave is a software by Macromedia that allows you to view animation and sound on your web browser. This is good for games and interactive ads and demos because the information continues to flow in as it's being downloaded so your pictures and sound is displayed smoothly. The Shockwave player is free, but to do your own creations you need one of the three Macromedia tools, Flash, Director, or Authorware.

shopping bag
	It is when a customer is shopping online that uses a storage place for their purchasing to be held in the bag, until the final decision of buying the product is made. This is useful for people who order many items and forget what they want. This shopping bag keeps items on an organized list to show the items that may be purchased. In addition, the shopping bag saves time and is convenient for a customer to click instead of writing down on a piece of paper with a pen of what they want.

shopping cart
	The way most companies online keep record of what you have picked while browsing in their online store. Just as in a physical store you can put in and take items out of your online store before you actually buy it.

Shopping products
	The products that are expensive than convenience products and found in fewer stores

Shortcut
	A feature of Windows systems (Windows 95 and later) that allow you to access programs and files from the desktop by double clicking on the icon.

shortcuts
	icons that you can click on that will give you a short cut to a particular function

shovelware
	Any text, graphics, or images taken from a company’s printed marketing materials and placed on web pages with minimal changes. Examples of printed materials include company brochures, or reports, etc.

shtml
	A Web file with the suffix of ".shtml" (rather than the usual ".htm") indicates a file that includes some information that will be added "on the fly" by the server before it is sent to you. A typical use is to include a "Last modified" date at the bottom of the page.

SIC (Standard Industrial Classification Code)
	A four-digit number assigned to identify a business based on the type of business or trade involved. The first two digits correspond to major groups such as construction and manufacturing, while the last two digits correspond to subgroups such as constructing homes versus constructing highways. A business can determine its SIC number by looking it up in a directory published by the Department of Commerce, or by checking in the SIC book in the reference section of a local library. SBA size standards are based on SIC codes.

signature
	A block of information used to sign the end of an e-mail or discussion group message. It usually includes an author name, company name, e-mail address, and other information. Most Unix mail and news software will automatically append a signature from a file in the user's home directory to outgoing mail and news. The composition of one's signature can be quite an art form, including ASCII logo or one's choice of witty sayings.

Signpost
	This term is to inform site viewers how new information relates to the topic by using a specific word, phrase or sentence. In creating an e-commerce website, the site have to get the viewer's attention within a limited time frame.

silent close
	The technique of ending a sales presentation by saying nothing and waiting for the potential buyer to make a response.

Simple Mail Trasnfer Protocol (SMPT)
	This is the method in which Internet mail is deliverd from one computer to another.

Single Unit Marketing Model (SUMM)
	A marketing model used to determine what characteristics of a specific product should be advertised to consumers that will encourage them to buy it.

Sitelet
	A sitelet is a small and often temporary section of a Web site, usually focused on a particular topic or purpose. Most Web banner ads take users to hard-selling sitelets instead of main Web sites. Sitelet addresses are often used as an alternative to domain names in magazine and direct mail advertisements.

Situation Analysis
	Extensive background investigation into a particular marketing problem.

skimming
	A product pricing strategy in which a new products' prices are initially set high, when introduced into the market, so that the company can get a high profit or margin from the early buyers.

Skins
	Skins are colorful, customized and similar sets of graphics, which allow Internet users to continually change the look of their desktops or browsers, without changing their settings or functionality. Skinnable applications are growing in popularity and available through a variety of Web tools, including ICQ and RealNetworks.

Slack Resources
	Slack resources are the materials, funds, and time that an organization stockpiles in order to be able to respond to environmental changes. Today’s world and businesses are changing rapidly as to fulfill the desires and wants of the customers. Today’s small business might be multi-national business tomorrow. So, management persons should be aware in managing slack resources. In today’s, booming economy most growing businesses are electronic businesses. And lots of people are running towards it. Thus, every businesses operating electronically should be aware in planning and managing enough slack resources if in case of need. This will help them prosper and to expand.

slash symbol
	The slash symbol(/) replaces the backslash(\) symbol used in DOS.

slave coder
	A person in another country other than the where the main coorporation resides, who writes code for programs.

slogan
	A word or phrase used by a company to uniquely identify itself or its products to consumers in an easy to remember (and often catchy) way. (i.e. Microsoft: "Where do you want to go today?", Burger King: "Have it your way", etc.)

smart card
	Cards that have the technology in them to hold a wide variety of information on them. They are now being used in The United States mostly as telephone calling cards. Debit cards are another example of a "kinda" smart card. In the future, one smart card will be all that you have to carry. It will show your license and all financial accounts you own. This will make it a smaller wallet for everybody.

Smartdrive
	This loading device was designed in PCs' to help business applications within e-commerce to access information faster. Unfortunately, using this device takes up some memory, but there's not a major difference between enabling (ON) and disabling (OFF) this device. Although for those users who prefer applications within e-commerce to load up data quickly enabling this item should be recommended.

smiley
	Smiley is a combination of special or unique characters that portrays emotions. ie. :-) is a symbol for happy. These combinations are commonly used in e-mail and internet news groups.

smiley
	Is a simple way of expressing person’s emotions using keyboard characters such as a comma(,), an asterisk (), parenthesis ( ), a colon (:), etc…. :-) Smile ;-) Smile with a wink :-\|\| Mad >:-\|\| Very mad :-( Sad :' -( Crying :-)) Really happy :-D Big grin :- A kiss :-o Wow! or I'm surprised :-\| Grim :-P Sticking out your tongue :-/ Perplexed =:O Frightened (hair standing on end) =8O Bug-eyed with fright :-} Embarrassed smile ;-^) Tongue in cheek 0:-) Angel [:-\|] Robot (:V) Duck :-[ Vampire C\|:-= Charlie Chaplin =\|:-)= Abe Lincoln *<:-) Santa Claus (:)-) Scuba diver

S-Mime Encryption
	Protects the privacy of email. If the sender and receiver both have email clients that support the S-Mime protocol, they can communicate with email that is secure.

smurfing
	"Smurf" is the name of an automated program that attacks a network by exploiting Internet Protocol (IP) broadcast addressing and certain other aspects of Internet operation. Smurf and similar programs can cause the attacked part of a network to become "inoperable." The exploit of smurfing, as it has come to be known, takes advantage of certain known characteristics of the Internet Protocol (IP) and the Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP). The ICMP is used by network nodes and their administrators to exchange information about the state of the network. ICMP can be used to ping other nodes to see if they are operational. An operational node returns an echo message in response to a ping message. A smurf program builds a network packet that appears to originate from another address (this is known as "spoofing" an IP address). The packet contains an ICMP ping message that is addressed to an IP broadcast address, meaning all IP addresses in a given network. The echo responses to the ping message are sent back to the "victim" address. Enough pings and resultant echoes can flood the network making it unusable for real traffic. One way to defeat smurfing is to disable IP broadcast addressing at each network router since it is seldom used. This is one of several suggestions provided by the CERT Coordination Center.

Snail Mail
	A term for the Post Office services which takes days to receive a message instead of seconds like email.

sneakernet
	Network consisting of users transfering files and data on disks by walking the disks from the source computer to the destination. By all rights this isn't a real network, and it's name is derived from the sneakers worn by the transporter(communication medium).

sniffer
	A trouble-shooting program designed for networks. One of its purposes is to search data files for informational fields. Sniffers monitor the data traveling over a network. Because the sniffers are hard to detect, they propose a serious security threat to networked computers.

Sniffer
	A sniffer is a program that monitors and analyzes network traffic, detecting bottlenecks and problems. Using this information, a network manager can keep traffic flowing efficiently. A sniffer can also be used illegitimately to capture data being transmitted on a network. A network router reads every packet of data passed to it, determining whether it is intended for a destination within the router's own network or whether it should be passed further along the Internet.

soc
	This is one type of news group that discusses different social topics.

social class
	A group of people with similar attitudes, beliefs, and lifestyles. Usually a social class is classified by income level or consumption patterns.

social marketing
	The application of marketing strategies to elicit a positive reaction from the targeted individual or group.

Social Responsibility
	A businesses concern for society's welfare. The business needs to consider their long range best interests as well as their relationship to the society within which it is doing business.

social stratification
	The hierarchial division of a society into distinct groups of people by their attitudes, beliefs, and lifestyles. Social stratification is key to product positioning.

socket
	This is what a program will use to connect to antoher program running on a another computer on the Internet.

soft offer
	It is a sale offer that allows consumers to try a new product for a small period of time before having to pay for it.

Software Escrow
	the practice whereby a software development firm or team delivers the software, code, development notes, memoranda, development team names and addresses, and other related material to a third party to be held in trust or "escrow" until the occurrence of specific condition(s), established in an escrow agreement. For example, a condition could be that a software client is requesting changes to the code and the lead programmer left the firm for another job. The third party escrow agent is bound to confidentiality.

Software Sentries
	Products are available to help parents restrict access or monitor usage by some sort of activity report. These products all filter based on keywords and fixed lists of systems that are believed (by the program's authors) to have objectionable material. None of the products tells you exactly what they block.

Sole Proprietorship
	A business owned by one person.

Soundcard
	This hardware device comes with the PC or can be bought separately as an upgrade for use in better sound quality. This includes speech, music, and cool sound effects to help bring e-commerce websites to life without using any text. However, it is not a requirement for e-commerce, but it does make it more realistic.

source code
	Source code and object code refer to the "before" and "after" versions of a computer program that is compiled before it is ready to run in a computer. The source code consists of the programming statements that are created by a programmer with a text editor or a visual programming tool and then saved in a file.

source code
	The actual computer language used to write a piece of software, as opposed to the text and graphics that appear onscreen to the user.

spam
	Flooding many inappropriate newsgroups or mailing lists or your mailbox with off- topic articles--usually ads or promotions. It is a major violation of netiquette and if you try it, it violates your member agreement in most places and can lead to account cancellation. The term was inspired by an old Monty Python sketch.

Speaker
	An individual who communicates to an audience an oral message designed to persuade, celebrate, or inform.

spec(ulative) spot
	This is a DEMONSTRATION announcement/commercial produced to show a prospective client how an advertising company would produce that client's commercial(s). It is not intended to be printed or broadcast; it is merely an example of just one of the ways a commercial COULD be produced for that client.

Specialty Product
	This is a product that a consumer would search very hard to find. Also, the consumer would very rarely accept a substiture for it. These products are usually very successful either because this product is consider better than the rest, or because there may not be many subsitutes for it. Specialty products are important for e-commerce in order to gain customers who search for their brands. It is especially important for customers who cannot locate a particular product or service at their local store. This customer can purchase the product he or she may be comfortable with via the internet and keep coming back because of the convenience of the process.

Speech Recognition software
	- is a program that acts like a customer service representative. Many companies today use the latest technology to provide better customer service, ridding themselves of the obnoxious phone menus. The software is able to recognize an extreme amount of vocabulary providing the next best thing to actually speaking with a real person.

spider
	Spiders are simply automated programs that explore the Web, looking for information. The most common kinds of Spiders are the ones that collect Web addresses for the Search Engines to catalogue.

spiral branding
	A three-stage marketing strategy using traditional media, the World Wide Web, and personal e-mail. First, you use a traditional media source, i.e., TV, print or radio, to incite personal interest in a product or service and send them to the Web. Second, you use the Web to get those customers involved via specialized content and interactive services. Here you also collect their email addresses. Third, you use email to remind your customers about TV and the Web again thus closing the loop and starting the spiral again.

splash page
	A main menu screen or opening graphic to a web page.

splash screen
	A main menu screen or opening graphic to a web page.

Spline
	In graphics, a smooth curve that passes through two or more points. Splines are generated through mathematical formulas.

sponsorship
	The purchase of any amount of space on a web page or other online document, for the purpose of advertising your product or service. This term is used to avoid the negative impressions that go along with the term advertising, while emphasizing the original non-commercial nature of the Internet.

spoofing
	When one party masquerades as someone else on line.

spot
	A broadcast term meaning an advertisment a/o commercial; also an AVAILABLE spot in the broadcast day in which an advertisement a/o a commercial might be placed/run.

Sprite
	A graphic image that can move within a larger graphic. Each sprite has a set of rules that define how it moves and how it behaves if it bumps into one another.

SSL encryption
	A security measure developed by Netscape that scrambles data to provide data encryption and authentication of servers or clients often dealing with highly sensitive data. SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is a method used for functions such as FTP, Usenet, or the Web.

Staight-Line Depreciation
	A process of decreasing the value of a fixed asset other than land by dividing the asset's useful life into the total cost of the asset minus any value that it may have at the end of its useful life. The resulting amount is a uniform annual depreciation expense that is subtracted from income.

Stakeholders
	Individuals or groups, either within or outside an organization, that have some claim on the organization.

Staples
	Products that are always in demand and rarely influenced by fashion changes.

star
	A layout for a local network that uses an individual cable from a central point to each device on the network; also a topology for a local area network that exists when all workstations and devices are connected to a single central repeater/switch that reads the address of any message it recieves and forwards it directly to the intended recipient.

startup
	a company or business which is not a spinoff of any other organization. This term is usually used to refer to a company which has started small and has become huge very quickly. Example: Yahoo!, started by college students in 1993, worth hundreds of millions today.

static
	random noise produced in a receiver - such as hissing or crackling in a radio or specks on a television screen - commonly caused by electrical discharge after a buildup of electrical charges on an insulated body

static web pages
	Web pages that don't change based on a user's interaction

status quo pricing
	A pricing objective which maintains existing prices or meets the competition.

Steering committee
	An element of jthe project team composed of top management executives. Responsibilities include providing overall direction and resources to the EDI project, with specific focus on incorporating the EDI strategic plan into the goals of the company's business paln.

Stereotype
	An overall generalization of gender, nationality, or race that presumably represents the characteristics of that group.

stereotyping
	A public relations term, that can be applied to the way that marketers for the web try not to exhibit. The demographics of the users of theworld wide web are changing these days at a brisk pace. Company web sites have to attempt to not predict who their customers are,stereotyping them. Or else, they can lose out on consumers purchasing from their site.

Stickiness
	A term used as a measure of how long people linger at a Web site. New sites, for instance, have high stickiness because readers spend a great deal of time there.

Sticky
	An adjective for features that keep you lingering at a portal instead of clicking through to another website. News, sports, and weather info are generally considered data that keeps a users eyeballs sticking to the original site.

Stimulus-Response Approach
	This is were a pitch (sales) is designed to make a person react a certain way.

stitching niches
	Strategy for multicultural marketing which combines ethnic, age, income and lifestyle markets, on some common basis, to form a large market.

stoned virus
	A virus that may carry over from one exe. file into one or more of its internal extensions. This will cause the instructions to be overwritten.

Storage
	A device into which data can be entered, in which it can be held, and from which it can be retrived

storage area network
	A storage area network (SAN) is a high-speed special-purpose network (or subnetwork) that interconnects different kinds of data storage devices with associated data servers on behalf of a larger network of users.

storefront design
	The way a website is designed to be shown to the public.

storyboard
	A series of written or printed pages that outline and/or represent the structure and appearance of a proposed website.

Straight Rebuy
	A routine purchase which may have ben made many times before.

strategic alliance
	Cooperative agreement between business firms, taking the form of a liciensing or distributrion agreement, joint venture, research and development consortium, or partnership.

strategic alliance stage
	Help implement corporate partnering inorder to improve global reach and application reach by creating corporate business systems between business partners in the value chain. This is achieved by creating joint applications that are useful to the customer as a package eg. car leasing and auto insurance combination deals.

strategic business unit (SBU)
	a subgroup of a single business or collection of related businesses within the larger organization

strategic business unit (SBU)
	Subgroup in a larger organization, with a distinct mission and specific target market of its own, control over its resources, its own competitors, and plans independent of the other subgroups of the total organization.

Strategic Intent
	An activity management undertakes in focusing the organizations attention on the essence of winning; motivating people by communicating the value to the target.

Strategic Leadership
	The ability to articlate a strategic vision for the company to motivate others to buy into that vision.

Strategic Planning
	Managerial process of creating and maintaining a fit between the organization's objectives and resources and evolving market opportunities.

streaming
	Patience may be a virtue, but most netizens have none. As a result, it is important to streamline your web pages so they take the least amount of time to load. When something like audio or video must be a part of the web presentation, download times are usually terribly long. Streaming is an important alternative. Instead of having to wait for the entire file to download before you can view it, the computer begins playback only seconds after beginning to download the file. While quality is usually decreased to allow for streaming, it's accessibility is extremely attractive for most surfers and propective clients.

streaming multimedia technology
	Allows a site visitor to to begin viewing a video even before the downloading process is complete. This is achieved through compressed audio and video distribution.

Streaming Video
	Video that can be played in real time via a Web page. It does not have to be downloaded on the host computer for it can be viewed automatically.

Stub
	A stub is a small program routine that substitutes for a longer program, possibly to be loaded later or that is located remotely.

Style Sheets
	A desktop publishing concept, style sheets enable developers to create sophisticated page design (typography and layout) and manage the complexities of developing, maintaining and updating their sites. The style sheet is made up of style rules that tell a browser how to present a document. Styles rules can be embedded inside a page or referenced in a separate file. Style sheets work by separating style and layout from the structure of content. Style sheets' independence of style from structure makes it easier to adapt the Web to different technologies and ways of experiencing those technologies.

subculture
	A culture within a culture. A subculture is a segment within a larger culture that has specific behaviors, attitudes, and values that distinguish it from the larger culture.

sub-processes
	A process in which the buyer recompenses a seller in an exchange for an item of value. The most typical type of payment for services or goods is then rendered. An example, once an item is marketed, a claim for recompenses (invoice) is required and then the method of payment is determined to complete the transaction. Finally, the transaction is matched to other business processes.

subscriber
	A visitor that visits a Web site and fills out a request for requesting that he or she receive electronic notification any time the information at the site changes, the visitor then becomes a subscriber.

Subsidiary Pages
	Subsidiary pages are any page other than a home page or a main topic page. Usually, they will be connected to a main topic page as a subset. It is important to be able to return to the home page from your subsidiary pages, so have a link to the home page.

Subsidiary Rights
	Rights sold by authors and publishers to market their books through book clubs online. Also refferred to as a secondary market, because it allows for further sales of the publication.

Subsidy
	A direct or indirect payment by a government to its country's firms to make selling or investing abroad cheap for then and thus more profitable. This is the most important type of incentive given to businesses by the government. These incentives given by the government will not only make the selling or investing aboard cheaper but also let the small and incoming business (like, e-commerce) compete with the big and giant established companies. This will help the incoming business to grow and prosper as well as helps the economy of the nation to expand as the market will expand with the incoming businesses and firms.

Substitution
	This replaces a section of text with a specified value or another string if text as desired. This information on the Web Page is used to display time sensitive information.

suggestive selling
	Occurs when a seller promotes goods complimentary to a good the customer wants. Web sites can suggest goods to purchase based on search criteria the user supplies to a search engine.

supplier
	This is the person or group of people who make a certain good or service available to the market.

Supply Chain
	Most commonly used in product manufacturing-related environments, it refers to the effective integration of the processes related to the forecasting of the product's market demand, the acquisition of the raw materials to make the product, its manufacturing, the inventorying of the product, its transportation to market, its eventual sale (or the fulfillment of demand), and the measurement of the satisfaction of the customer who purchased it. With the expansion of the Internet, companies are using the Web to more efficiently manage their supply chain, being more "connected" to their vendors and customers in real time.

Support
	To contain constructs and mechanisms that make it convenient for programmers to take advantage of a feature.

support staff
	Management respcibility to have personel that can handle consumer quetions, problems, or even company personels similar problems. I t is important to have support staff for an e- commerce site.

Surf
	Surfing (or Internet Surfing) is a slang term for accessing information on the Internet. As web browsers became easier to use, the phrase "surfing the 'Net" arose as synonymous with the 'surfing' of waves of information that is available on the Intenet.

survey
	This a marketing technique that companies use to garner volutary consumer opinions about a company's services, products, customer satisfaction, and consumer expectations. This type of technique is being implemented on company websites through forms, e-mail to links, 1-800 phone number listings, and other ways.

Survey research
	A survey poll set up to gather primary data of individual facts, opinions, and attitudes.

SVG: Scalable Vector Graphics
	SVG is the language used to describe objects in XML. SVG can consist of vector shapes, images and text. SVG allows fully interactive and animated text or images within the XML.

SWIFT (Society for Worldwide International Financial Telecommunications)
	An EFT linking system containing over 2,000 banks.

Swing Buyers
	These are the guys that will readily change brands to take advantage of a promotional offer.

Switched Ethernet
	Provides the device utilizing it a full 10mps bandwidth or 100mps bandwidth for Fast Ethernet. This is different over traditional Shared Ethernet where each device shares the 10mps or 100mps bandwidth. In most circumstances Switched Ethernet provides a quicker response over traditional Shared Ethernet.

Switched Multimegabit Data Service (SMDS)
	Switched Multimegabit Data Service is one of the data communication services. It was designed by Bellcore in 1980s. Its purpose was to connect multiple local area networks, especially for companies that have branch offices and factories.

Switches
	is a way of connecting two or more computers or networks together that use the same data link and network protocol.

switching hub
	Also known as a port-switching hub, switching hubs forward packets to the proper ports due to the address of the packet. Load balancing is supported by most swithing hubs so the ports are redesigned dynamically based on traffic patterns to different local-area network segments.

SWOP
	(Specifications for Web-Offset Publications) Specifications for color separation films and color proofing.

SWOT
	Acronym for the analysis of a brand's strengths, weakness, opportunities, and Threats.

SWOT analysis
	(strengths(internal), weaknesses(internal), opportunities(external), threats(external)) SWOT is a situation analysis used by companies to help them determine where they are and what they need to do with what they have to meet there goals. This may lead a company to add a market to their business or to leave their current market.

syllabus
	generally used for academic presentations, a synopsis of the main areas of interest for a course of study

syllabus
	generally used for academic presentations, a synopsis of the main areas of interest for a course of study

synchronous optical network (SONET)
	A high-speed fiber-optic transmission standard originally used on backbone networks, which is now making its way onto local links. It is sometimes configured in rings to allow for rerouting in the event of link congestion or an outage.

synchronous transmission
	More complex than asynchronous transmission, this usually high-speed data transmission uses a special timing signal to set a time interval between communication of any two characters. This form of transmission is used most often to communicated from modem to modem.

Synonym
	when data can be named by two or more words meaning the same thing.

syntax error
	An error caused by a violation of a programming rule.

Sysop
	The operator (and usually the owner) of a bulletin-board system.

T1
	T1 is the designation for a data connection from a computer to the Internet and uses a digital signal to transmit information with a maximum speed of 1,544,000 bits per second. Home users usually use an analog signal from existing telephone lines and with a 56K modem, for example, can send or receive information at 56,000 bits per second. T1 is fast and expensive, but to see full-screen, full-motion video on your computer, 10 million bits per second is required. A T3 connection would then be needed, since it is 30 times faster than a T1 line.

table
	Tables, in the traditional uses, are the use of columns and rows in order to compare data. The have since been incorporated by designers. in order to have a more precise handling of the layout of a page.

table of authorities
	Usually found in a legal document, a listing of citations in that document. These listings are the appropriately referenced cases, rules, and statutes that pertain to that document. The table lists the citation, and indicates the page on which it is found in the master document. (see also: citation)

tag
	The basic component of HTML which describes to the Web browser how to display information or instructions. the command is always surrounded by a pair of brackets <>.

Talking Email
	This type of program reads a person's email out loud to him or her. Talking email is ideal for a person who is involved in another task or for a person who is simply tired of staring at a monitor all day. Some of these talking email programs are capable of reading any type of text, such as the contents of a clipboard or a word processor, in a variety of voices which enables a person to easily edit text.

Target Anchor
	The destination for a hyperlink.

target audience
	The group of people who you are aiming your product or information at. Usually determined by marketing research and by careful planning of material or product.

target market
	The group that a company designs and advertises it products for, intending to meet the needs of that group.

target market
	Group for which an organization designs, implements, and maintains a marketing mix intended to meet the needs of that group, resulting in mutually satisfying exchanges.

target marketing
	A major advantage of the Web is the ability to target very specific groups of individuals with a minimum of waste coverage.

taskwizard
	a template for creating documents and forms for different software applications that helps guide you through the basic process and basically does everything for you by answering a few basic questions

Taxware
	A software program, developed by Taxware International, that provides detailed tax rate information to commerce servers over the Internet.

Tcl/Tk
	Tcl/Tk is not one, but two products originally developed at the University of California Berkeley. It stands for: Tool Command Language / Tool Kit. Tcl is a versatile scripting language and Tk is a graphical interface development tool. It is important to note that the The Tcl language was designed to be compatible with the C language!

TCP-IP
	TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) is the basic communication language or protocol of the Internet. It can also be used as a communications protocol in the private networks called intranets and in extranets. When you are set up with direct access to the Internet, your computer is provided with a copy of the TCP/IP program just as every other computer that you may send messages to or get information from also has a copy of TCP/IP. TCP/IP is a two-layered program. The higher layer, Transmission Control Protocol, manages the assembling of a message or file into smaller packets that are transmitted over the Internet and received by a TCP layer that reassembles the packets into the original message. The lower layer, Internet Protocol, handles the address part of each packet so that it gets to the right destination. Each gateway computer on the network checks this address to see where to forward the message. Even though some packets from the same message are routed differently than others, they'll be reassembled at the destination. TCP/IP uses the client/server model of communication in which a computer user (a client) requests and is provided a service (such as sending a Web page) by another computer (a server) in the network. TCP/IP communication is primarily point-to-point, meaning each communication is from one point (or host computer) in the network to another point or host computer. TCP/IP and the higher-level applications that use it are collectively said to be "connectionless" because each client request is considered a new request unrelated to any previous one (unlike ordinary phone conversations that require a dedicated connection for the call duration). Being connectionless frees network paths so that everyone can use them continuously. (Note that the TCP layer itself is not connectionless as far as any one message is concerned. Its connection remains in place until all packets in a message have been received.) Many Internet users are familiar with the even higher layer application protocols that use TCP/IP to get to the Internet. These include the World Wide Web's Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), the File Transfer Protocol (FTP), Telnet (Telnet) which lets you logon to remote computers, and the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP). These and other protocols are often packaged together with TCP/IP as a "suite." Personal computer users usually get to the Internet through the Serial Line Internet Protocol (SLIP) or the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP). These protocols encapsulate the IP packets so that they can be sent over a dial-up phone connection to an access provider's modem. Protocols related to TCP/IP include the User Datagram Protocol (UDP), which is used instead of TCP for special purposes. Other protocols are used by network host computers for exchanging router information. These include the Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP), the Interior Gateway Protocol (IGP), the Exterior Gateway Protocol (EGP), and the Border Gateway Protocol (BGP).

Teamware
	Teamware is a complete suite of team productivity software for workgroups, departments and enterprises.

technical expertise
	People/companies who have experience with the products and technology systems already in place.

Technological Myopia
	When a company gets blinded by the wizardry of a new technology and fails to examine whether there is consumer demand for the product.

Technophbia
	Fear of technology.

Telco
	Systems that will surpass the Internet in delivering audio and video information. These services will be provided by telephone and cable companies.

Telecommunications Act of 1996
	Established as law on 2.8.96, this act changed the laws affecting telecommunications and the Internet. An attachment to the act was the Communications Decency Act, which was intended to protect children from obscene information on the WWW.

telecommuting
	Telecommuting is a partial or total substitution of the telecommunication technology to and from work. In addition, it also include the associated change in the organization management and work structure.

teleconference
	A facilitating mechanism for the exchange of information between two or more sites. Members at each site are videoed and transmitted to the other sites via satellite communications. Some teleconferences have accommodations for non-videoed viewers to interact with the originators via telephone.

Telemarketing
	Telemarketing uses outbound calls from telephone salepersons for purpose of 1) opening new accounts 2) qualifying advertising leads, and 3) servicing existing business, including reorders and cutomer services.

telemarketing
	A wide ranging term which applies to the process of selling or marketing goods and services through the use of either outbound and/or inbound telephone calls.

telemedicine
	Telemedicine is the management and education of patients and staff by using a system that has access to the patient. They can also obtain advice and information regardless of their location.

Telesales
	Is a form of marketing were a regular sales person is conducting a face-to-face sales calls that are handled on the telephone. They are difficult to replicate also in a sense that every representative does it differently.

Teletrade
	The method of trading goods and services, satisfying customer needs, and expanding into other markets without the existence of a physical company.

Teleweb
	Conducting a telephone conference and using a web site as the visual presentation medium. This is an advance for of telecommunications.

telnet
	A software program that lets you login to remote computers. The Internet standard protocol for remote login. Unix BSD networking software includes a program, telnet, which uses the protocol and acts as a terminal emulator for the remote login session. Sometimes abbreviated to TN.

template
	A template is an original document all set up with specifications and formatting, from which you can pattern other documents. For instance, you may have a glossary of terms - like this one. You can make a template of the first letter in the alphabet, including the text and graphics in it as placeholders. For every other letter in the alphabet you open a copy of the template and replace the existing text and graphics with the new material. The pages are already laid out and set up, and the text is already formatted, so you hardly have any work to do. The advantage of a template over using the same document repeatedly is that you start with a fresh original each time, rather than a mutating document.

Temporal Discrepancy
	The time lapse between when a product or good is produced and when the consumer is ready to purchase that product or good.

Tender Pricing
	Tendring occours when a firm estimates the price its competitors are charging for a particular product and tries to beat it to gain a contract. This is widely used in Internet marketing because this allows consumers to find the best possible price for the product.

terabyte
	One terabyte equals one trillion bytes.

Test Marketing
	Limited introdiction of a product and a marketing program to determine the reactions of potential customers in a market situation

Testing Plan
	in order to make sure of the software development quality this plan is used during the design stage.

text box
	It is used in form to gather or collect information from the user.

text file
	This is a file that contains only text characters. This means that there is not any graphics, sounds, or images.

Text Links
	Text links are one of the several navigation tools available in a website. They make excellent navigational tools because they load quickly. One advantage to text links is that your visitor can click on the Stop button to stop the download of images, but your text link will still show up, enabling them to see where to go without waiting for your entire page to download.

text only browsing
	Browsing through web pages that can not produce images. Much like Mosaic and Lynx, which one can access on UTARLG.

Theme
	Consistent color scheme, and a consistent style for all elements used in a project. I.e. a web page or presentation. Done with the same format that is desirable or understandable for the other users.

THEnet
	A large protocol network that connects over 50 sites in Texas. Formerly known as TEXNET, this network is managed by The University of Texas office of Telecommunications Services.

Thin Client
	A jargon word referring to a low-capacity computer that is connected by a network to a large ("fat") server computer. The thin client calls on the central server to perform many of the functions such as storing disk files or doing complex calculations.

Third-line Forcing
	This is an arrangement in which a manufacturer sells a prodcut to a reseller only on the condition that the reseller also buys another product from some other (nominated) manufacturer. Third-line forcing is usually illegal under the Trade Practices Act.

Thread of Control
	A path of execution that is currently being followed through the program code.

throughput
	1. The rate at which a processor can work expressed in instructions per second or jobs per hour or some other unit of performance. 2. The amount of data a communications channel can carry, usually in bytes per second.

thumbnail
	rough sketches of a page's design.

thumbnail picture
	On a webpage, a thumbnail picture is a smaller version of the picture found on another webpage. Usually if the thumbnail is clicked on, the full size image is shown. A thumbnail is very effective for saving space and creating convenience.

tier 1 supplier
	in the Extended Enterprise, a supplier with prime design responsibility for key subsystems or components of the end product. Also referred to as "prime contractor" or simply "prime". Glossary of CALS and Electronic Commerce Terms; http://cals.debbs.ndhq.dnd.ca/english/glossr1.html)

tier 2 suppliers
	in the Extended Enterprise, a supplier to a tier 1 supplier, or a direct supplier of less critical components. Also referred to as "sub-contractor" or "sub". (Glossary of CALS and Eectronic Commerce Terms; http://cals.debbs.ndhq.dnd.ca/english/glossar1.html)

TIFF
	Short for Tag Image File Format, a format for electronically storing and transmitting bit-mapped, gray-scale, and color images.

tight integration
	Where retailers with on-line shopping and physical store fronts interact with customers as a single organization. Physical store fronts handle their web-customers the same way they would handle a customer who purchased an item at the physcial store, and visa versa. Example: returns of items can be handled via the web or a physical store.

Tiles
	A small graphic file, usually square, used in repitition for backgrounds on web pages. The file is repeated similar to floor tile on the background of the page.

Time Sharing Option (TSO)
	TSO is a programming environment that allows multiple users to operate individually without being aware of each other's operation.

timeout
	When two computers are talking to each other, one may take so long to respond that the other computer will eventually give up, or log off. When this break in connection occurs, it is called a timeout.

Time-out
	When a program or computer reaches the end of a preset amount of time in which it did not recieve requested data, the system will stop. This stopping is called time-out. When this happens people will often say the system has "timed out." It does this to give the user a chance to clear potential problems or to move to the next piece of work. This will often happen when a website takes to long to be located or to appear on the computer screen.

Tip-In
	An advertising page inserted into a periodical whose regular page size is larger.

Tip-On
	This is a advertising method where a coupon, sample, or reply card is glued by one edge to a page of advertising.

Title Tag
	is used by web robots to boost the ranking of internet sites on search engines. Good internet marketers will include several keywords within their sites title tag to increase traffice to their site. The information in this tag is also shown in the top netscape bar.

Toggle Key
	each time one pushes down on certain keys, such as scroll lock or caps lock, upon the keyboard it initiates one of two functions.

token bus network
	This is very similar to a token ring network,the main difference is that the two points at the end of the bus do not meet up to form the actual ring. A token bus network is a bus topology that is a form of a local-area network (LAN)that regulates traffic on the bus by using a token passing mechanism.

Token Ring
	A topology developed by IBM. Token Ring uses concentrators in a logical ring structure with the workstations connected to the concentrators in a star topology. There are two speeds of Token Ring 4 mps and 16 mps. The 4 mps is seldomly used anymore. An advantage of Token Ring over Ethernet is that Token Ring does not have collisions between packets, resulting in the need to retransmit the packet.

Token Ring Network
	Is a proprietary network architecture for IBM. It uses a "token" that is passed between each computer. When a computer needs to send a message it picks up the token (if it is free) and sends the message, if the token is not free then it waits until a free token is passed.

tokens
	Strings of digits representing a certain amount of currency. The issuing bank validates each token with a digital stamp.

tone
	Graphics term used to describe any picture or design in terms of emotions. Some e-commerce sites give the feeling of respectability for example.

Tool Command Language (Tcl)
	Tool Command Language, Tcl for short, is a scripting language that was developed by John Ousterhout. According to the Web sit www.scriptics.com Tcl is used in a number of industries including: "telecommunications, health care, financial services, Web, and EDA industries." It can be used as an interpreter to other programs. It is the language though which the user interfaces with the operating system of the computer.

Toolbar
	In regaurds to Visual Basic, it is much like the toolbars on most Windows applications (ie Microsoft Word). It gives you the opportunity to simply click on icons that you need to use, instead of having to pull down a menu and search for what you need.

top menu
	The menu on a server that functions as its table of contents, more commonly known as a home page.

Top Page
	The Top Page, also known as Front Page, is the home page of your website. It is your main page.

top-of-mind
	The product that comes first to the mind of a consumer when asked to think of a certain product category.

Topology
	The allowable connectivity between nodes, anchors and links: for example, 1-1 or many-1 mappings.

TOS
	An acronym for "Terms Of Service". A set of instructional rules that people must obey at all times before and while using the Internet provider. If one does not follow the rules, then the person will be terminated from that provider. This applys to the people who uses the punter device. Also, includes people who hacks into other peoples' accounts. In addition with the people who like to cause fights online by using profanity. This is a very helpful service that can be very useful when it needs to be applied.

Total Command Language (TCL)
	is a portable language with the capacity to run on many different platforms such as Unix and Macintosh. It was created by John Ousterhouse at the University of Califorania at Berkerly in 1988, and is often pronounced as "tickle."

Total Float
	The difference betweent the time avialable to perform the activity(measure from the earliest start time to the latest finish time )and the expected length of the activity

Total Float
	The difference betweent the time avialable to perform the activity(measure from the earliest start time to the latest finish time )and the expected length of the activity

total quality management (TQM)
	Coordination, throughout the entire organization, of efforts to provide high-qulity goods, processes, and services in order to ensure customer satisfaction.

Toy Program
	Is a tool used by Desktop Marketers that are available for color publishing. They look like real products but are not as reliable as those designed by professionals.

Traceability
	Relative ease with which a shipment can be located and transfered

Tracing
	The automatic finding of nodes by automatic navigation . Examples might be finding all nodes dependent on another node, all people interested in a given node, all modules which use a given module. Another example is a trace starting with more than one node, such as to find a node in common between two groups, or path linking two nodes.

Trade Allowance
	A price reduction offered by the manufacturers to intermediaries, such as wholesalers or retailers, in exchange for the performance of specified activities.

trade cycle procurement
	The act of obtaining, exhanging, bartering, buying,or selling of commerce, and commodities during a specific time frame; that is sequential in nature.

Trade Publications
	Trade Publications - Trade publications are magazines, journals, newsletters, and other such publications that provide information for specific industries. Such publications are used to educate industry members and leaders in what the rest of the industry is doing. The computer industry is the most extensive trade publication industry. There are publications for software, hardware, networking, and many other computer related subjects.

trade resources
	A library that covers customs, tariffs, economics, business news, government procurement, and other essential information that have researched and reviewed.

trade secrets
	Industry or company information that has been acknowledged as confidential. Steps have been taken to maintain the secrecy of this information. A few examples of information that might be kept confidential are: manufacturing processes, formulas, designs, customer lists, etc.

trademark
	The exclusive right to use a brand or part of a brand. Others arev prohibited from using the brand without permission.

trading partners
	Trading Partners are companies that an organization does business with, for example, customers, suppliers, financial institutions. Both parties sign a formal agreement which sets out legally binding rights and obligations of the partners. In addition to standard contract provisions, essential elements of a Trading Partner Agreement include: ? Data standards, including references and publications used for guidelines ? Documents -- transaction sets -- to be exchanged ? Communications mode ? Conditions for transactions to be legal e.g., signature/authorizing codes ? Security procedures o Mailbox review requirements ? Allocation of risks and liability of garbled or erroneous transmissions. (SBA)

traffic
	Because networks and the Internet are often referred to as “the Information Highway”, traffic is simply data crossing a network. Traffic can refer to any data from a electronic financial transaction to an e-mail. All data are just cars traveling on the information highway although sometimes they can be more like a bus or a wide-load semi.

traffic builder
	This is the lowest priced service or product that a company offers. It helps the company maintain a customer base and revenue.

Transaction
	One or more related messages within the same message class designed to complete (insofar as this is possible) the intention of the sender of the original message.

transaction
	The actual process of buying an item or store.

Transaction Destination Institution
	The final institution receiving the request, advice or notification message in a transaction. The transaction destination remains unchanged throughout the transaction.

transaction processing
	The act of receiving the order, verifying the method of payment, and sending the product out. Companies that are on the internet have to deal with secure websites and encryption so consumers feel safe to use their site.

transactional commerce
	Transactional commerce is a similar to relationship marketing in that the interface between the customer and the company is customized to the preferences of the customer. An example of this is usage of dynamic Web pages that are customized to the customer’s preferences, such as text-only pages, or only showing products that the customer specifies.

transactional communication
	A communication as a transaction between two or more people.

Transactional environment
	An environment which allows transactions to take place. Particularly used in relation to World Wide Web sites.

transfer of risk
	Vendors accept a certain discount on the amount owed in return for transferring the payment risk to the credit card issuer. This same concept applies throughout the entire system of commerce, electronic or otherwise.

translation/translator
	The conversion of a document from one format to another. This is done by using a translator which is the application system, that performs the conversions through a link. The system links flat files from an internal application system and the EDI X12 transaction set.

Transmission control standards
	A defined format for the address information required for trading partners to exchange business data contained in transaction sets, commonly referred to as the EDI envelope.

trial
	The middle step in the marketing process. There are five steps: awareness, direct response, trial, acquisition, churn (or retention).

Trialability
	The degree to which a product can be tried on a limited basis. Demonstration and sampling help trialability

Trojan Horse
	Like the Trojan horse of mythology, Trojan Horse viruses pretend to be one thing when in fact they are something else. Typically, Trojan Horses take the form of a game that deletes files when the user plays.

Troll
	Posting messages on newsgroups or listservs that are designed to agitate readers. Trolling is like baiting others to participate in a counterproductive discussion.

truck
	One advertisement covering a full page in print/electronic media.

TRUSTe
	TRUSTe's mission is to establish trust and confidence in electronic transactions. The organization seeks to promote the mass adoption of electronic commerce by providing consumers with a trusted brand for privacy

TTYL
	This is an acronym for "Talk To You Later". It is used frequently in the closing of a conversation while typing when chatting or emailing. It is used frequently, while typing and chatting, to pause or take a break from the computer. Examples of "TTYL" use are restroom breaks, snacking breaks, or just being occupied with other business. This is just a convenient way of shorting the typing time and to be lazy.

tunneling
	A methodology that allows digital data to be transmitted and read at another location that uses a different format from the original source.

turnkey solution
	Integrates all the pieces minimizing disruption in the workplace. Software, hardware and networks are seamlessly integrated . This may include follow-on contractual actions, such as testing, training, logistical, and operational support.

Tweening
	Short for in-betweening, the process of generating intermediate frames between two images to give the appearance that the first image evolves smoothly into the second image.

TWIP
	A unit of graphical measure which is 1/20 of a point.

twisted pair
	Twisted pair is the oldest and most commonly used transmission medium. For example, the current telephone system is one of the applications of the twisted pair. Although coaxial and fiber optic cables are getting popular, twisted pairs will still be the most widely used transmission medium for a period because of their low cost and acceptable performance.

Two-Phase Committ
	A feature of the transaction process that enables databases to be returned to the transaction state if an error condition happens. Two-phase committ is designed to ensure that all databases are updated or none of them so that database remain synchronized.

Two-version Web site
	Designing a Web site for the general public is a difficult task. Viewers are using different browsers on computers with different capabilities. One way to combat this problem is to create a two-version Web site. Version one is designed for those using the more current browsers on more capable machines. Version two provides the viewer with less sophicated hardware and software a different version. This version, although much more plain, still provides the viewer with the essential content he or she desires. Some designers even recommend a three or four-version site.

Two-way medium
	Traditional marketing, from a communications standpoint, is primarily a one-way medium. Internet marketing, on the other hand, is a two-way medium. Your customer or prospect makes the choice about whether they want to view your material, what parts of your material they want to view, and when they want to view it; furthermore, they have the capability to let you know what they think of it.

Ubiquity
	Networks put everybody constantly in touch with everybody else. And that means you can sell anything anywhere to anyone, at any time. No need to get Joe Customer into the store - you can sell to him wherever he is, as soon as the impulse strikes him. In a networked economy, success goes to those who can insinuate themselves into that moment, when unarticulated desire - the urge, say, to buy a book or trade some shares - becomes real demand for a specific thing.

Umbrella marketing
	campaign that focuses on a family of brands, or a multi- product group. e.g. Panasonic ad showing VCR, TV, Videocam, etc.

Uncertainty
	Uncertainty is present with every business transaction. This has never been more true today with the birth of the internet. A company must invest millions in the creation and maintenance of their website to stay competative with their competition. Company websites have a high risk of uncertainty, but also they have proven to be very profitable.

uncompressing
	Uncompressing is the act of expanding into its original form a compressed file, including the file packages known as zip or tar files. Software that you download from the Internet often comes in a compressed package that can uncompress itself when you click on it. You can also uncompress files using popular tools such as PKZIP in the DOS operating system, WinZip in Windows, and MacZip in Macintosh.

Undifferentiated Targeting Strategy
	A marketing approach that is based on the assumption that the market has no individual segments and therefore requires a single marketing mix. It employs a mass market philosophy that views the world as one big market with no individual segments.

Unfair Trade Practice Act
	This is a federal law that prohibits wholesalers, retailers or professional websites from selling their products at below cost. This was created to keep the smaller businesses, who cannot afford to buy cheaper products in bulk, from going out of business. This is also important to internet e-commerce in order to keep smaller or growing businesses from falling victim to the larger and more profitable ones.

Unicode
	Unicode is a coding system for the alphabets of different languages for computer programs to utilize the written language. It uses 16 bits ( 0's or 1's ) which is 2 bytes per character. Not only English but many languages of the modern world and some classical and historical text as well is included in The Unicode Standard, Version 2.0, the reference for computer programmers working on multilingual applications.

Uniform Rules of Conduct for the Interchange of Trade Data by Teletransmission (UNCID)
	A set of standard rules of conduct for the exchange of trade messages using EDI or other electronic means. UNCID was developed by the International Chamber of Commerce in Paris.

Unique Users
	The number of different visitors a site has within a specific time period. Web sites rely on some form of user registration or other identification system to identify unique users.

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE)
	The Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE) is a trade and economic body/forum in Europe which the countries of North America, western, central and eastern Europe and central Asia come together to forge the tools of their economic cooperation. This organization is the working backbone that administers EDIFACT and plays a leading role in developing EDI.

Universal Resource Locator (URL)
	A World Wide Web address that specifies a specific site, page, graphic, or document on the Internet. ( i.e.. www.uta.edu/infosys/e_comm )

Universe
	the entire percentile configuration of consumers from a particular advertising segment that is used to figure the frequency, reach and response.

UNIX
	The operating system commonly used on the Internet until very recently. Because the average user has found it difficult to understand and interface with, more user-friendly programs have been developed. The average user today need know very little about UNIX.

Unrestricted Internet sample
	- is a survey administered through the Internet that is accessible to anyone who desires to participate.

Unsolicited Email
	Unsolicited Email, also known as "Spam", is email that users receive in which they did not ask for or want. Unsolicited Email is used mostly by advertisers as another way to reach their prospective clients. Although many people do not approve of such tactics, it is a great way to communicate your message if your an advertiser. Certain ISPs or OSPs are very well know for the amount of "Spam" that their users receive. AOL is one of the most common names of OSP that comes to mine, although they are now strictly controlling the amount of "Spam" that goes through their system.

Unsought Products
	The buyer does not know about or does not actively seek to buy. These products include insurance, burial plots, encyclopdias and so on

update
	Some event done to a commercial to make it current or timely. Example: At the end of most radio/TV commercials for movies, there is a small announcement (or "tag") stating when the movie will begin its run. The movie tag might say, "Starts Friday at a theatre near you!" It would sound somewhat dumb if, on Friday, it still said, "Starts Friday at a theatre near you!" It would sound better if the tag said, "Starts today at a theatre near you!", or "Now showing at a theatre near you!" Carrying this example one step further, it would really sound dumb if, on Saturday, it still said, "Starts Friday at a theatre near you!" It obviously would sound much, much better if the tag now read, "Now showing at a theatre near you!"

upgrade fever
	Condition where a person feels they must upgrade regularly to new software even if unnecessary.

upload
	To transmit data from a computer to a bulletin board service, mainframe, or network. For example, if you use a personal computer to log on to a network and you want to send files across the network, you must upload the files from your PC to the network.

usage-based billing
	The practice of charging business units and/or customer-clients based on consumption. Leading to heighten consumer usage efficiency along with more a efficient infrastructure and a declining network services cost growth rate. It takes IT from a back-office cost center to a value-added service provider.

USB
	USB (Universal Serial Bus) is a "plug-and-play" interface between a computer and add-on devices (such as audio players, joysticks, keyboards, telephones, scanners, and printers). With USB, a new device can be added to your computer without having to add an adapter card or even having to turn the computer off. The USB peripheral bus standard was developed by Compaq, IBM, DEC, Intel, Microsoft, NEC, and Northern Telecom and the technology is available without charge for all computer and device vendors. USB supports a data speed of 12 megabits per second. This speed will accommodate a wide range of devices, including MPEG-2 video devices, data gloves, and digitizers. It is anticipated that USB will easily accommodate plug-in telephones that use ISDN and digital PBXs. Since October, 1996, the Windows operating systems have been equipped with USB drivers or special software designed to work with specific I/O device types. USB is integrated into Windows 98. As of mid-1998, most new computers and peripheral devices were equipped with USB. A different "plug-and-play" standard, Firewire/IEEE 1394, originated by Sony, is designed to support much higher data rates and devices such as video camcorders and digital video disk (DVD) players. Both standards are expected to exist together, serving different device types.

Usenet
	Usenet, also known as Internet news, is made up of many computers connected together for people to post or read news articles on the Internet.

USENET
	The USENET is a collection of bulletin boards where people are free to post emails or other messages about a certain topic. There are well over 20,000 USENET groups at this time and the number grows everyday. Often you will hear the USENET be referred to as "news" or "news groups" because of their informative nature. The USENET, as with the WWW, has become avery popular pasttime on the internet.

Usenet Newsgroup
	- is the process of visiting a certain location in order to view messages. Different from mailing lists through your e-mail the messages are not sent to you. In order to read the posted messages you must belong to the newsgroup and view the messages with a reader program you have installed on your computer.

User
	A user is a person who uses a computer resource or owns a computer account.

user ID
	A unique combination of numbers and letters used to identify a user by a server.

User Loyalty Programs
	User loyalty programs involve various forms of customer service. The purpose is to encourage repeat customer traffic. In a recent survey, three-fourths of Web merchants surveyed said they used site personalization and mass-customization features to increase customer satisfaction.

utility
	A utility is a small program that is not an application. That is, you don’t usually create something with a utility, but you use it to enhance your work environment. For instance, AfterDark is a screen saver utility that protects your monitor. Suitcase is a utility that lets you manage a large number of fonts. ATM is a utility that makes your type display on the screen with smooth edges and curves.

UUEncode
	A set of algorithms/binary files being converting into a series of 7-bit ASCII characters that can be transmitted over the Internet. Uuencode which comes from Unix-to-Unix encode has now become a universal protocol used to transfer files between different platforms such as Unix, Windows, and Macintosh. Uuencoding is commonly used in sending e-mail attachments. Nearly all e-mail applications support uuencoding for sending attachments and uudecoding for receiving attachments.

Uuencode
	Uuencode (also called Uuencode/Uudecode) is a popular utility for encoding and decoding files exchanged between users or systems in a network. It originated for use between users of UNIX systems (its name stood for "UNIX-to-UNIX encoding"). However, it's available or easily obtainable for use in all operating systems and most e-mail applications provide it as an encoding alternative, especially for e-mail attachments. If you're sending e-mail with an attachment and you suspect your recipient(s) may not have a MIME-compliant system (for example, an older PC or UNIX system), you may want to specify "Uuencode" for the attachment to an e-mail note. (In Eudora, when writing a note, look for the little box set to a default of "MIME" and change it to "Uuencode.") Basically, what Uuencode does is to translate or convert a file or e-mail attachment (it can be an image, a text file, or a program) from its binary or bit-stream representation into the 7-bit ASCII set of text characters. Text can be handled by older systems that may not handle binary files well and larger files can be more easily divided into multi-part transmissions.

Valid Hits
	Valid hits are hits that deliver all requested information to the user. Redirects, error messages and computer-generated hits are excluded from valid hit counts.

Value Added Network (VAN)
	In a typical EDI scenario, suppliers and retailers exchange purchase orders and invoices electronically from computer to computer. Usually, this transfer is mediated through a value added network service provider (VAN). Companies engaging in sending and receiving EDI documents use these VAN's as an electronic post office. The buyer sends their EDI Purchase Orders to a VAN, who proceeds to rout the orders to the appropriate suppliers electronic mailbox. The supplier connects to the VAN and to their mailbox, and receive the orders from their buyers. The same scenario is followed when the supplier sends an EDI Invoice to the retailer. VAN's also provide verification and confirmation of the transaction insuring security and quality control of the data processed.

Value Added Reseller (VAR)
	a company that offers for sale a product made by another company with the addition of services or components. A value added reseller would include a company that sells computer, software, and peripherals along with the added services of installation of the hardware, software, or user training and software modifications.

Value Chain Initiative
	The Value Chain Initiative (VCI) brings together software, hardware, and supply-chain companies to deliver an integrated architecture that will support dynamic data sharing among diverse software applications. Taking advantage of the connectivity of the Internet, this architecture looks to enable collaborative communication and management decision support among trading partners worldwide.

value-based pricing
	Pricing strategy that starts with the customer, considers the competition, and then determines the appropriate price.

values
	consist of: 1)how managers of a company plan to conduct themselves 2)how managers plan to do business 3)what kind of company they intend to build. Values are a very important foundation for a company.

vaporware
	Vaporware is a product that the vendor keeps promising is about to arrive any moment (real soon now) - but it goes so long past its shipment date that no one believes it will ever really ship.

VAR
	value added re-seller (Glossary of CALS and electronic commerce terms; http://cals.debbs.ndhq.dnd.ca/english/glossar1.html)

VBscript
	VBScript is short for Visual Basic Scripting Edition. It was developed by Microsoft. VBScript is based on Visual Basic, but it is much easier to work with. It is a Web designing tool. Because this product was created by Microsoft it is used heavily in Microsoft's Internet Explorer. This means that many of the features that are created in VBScript may not be fully recognized by other Internet browsers.

vendors
	Companies or people that sell products or services.

venture capital
	Financing made available for new, high-risk ventures. Internet and E-Commerce companies frequently make use of venture capital to start up or expand.

venture team
	Entrepreneurial, market-orientated group staffed by a small number of representatives from different disciplines.

Veronica
	Veronica helps you find information on Gopher menus and within the text of Gopher documents. It's an acronym for "Very Easy Rodent-Oriented Net-wide Index to Computerized Archives."

version/release
	A version/release identified the publication of the standard being used for the generation or the interpretation of data in the X12 standard format. May be found in the Functional Group Header Segment (GS) and in the Interchange Control Header Segment (ISA).

Versioning
	The automatic finding of nodes by automatic navigation . Examples might be finding all nodes dependent on another node, all people interested in a given node, all modules which use a given module. Another example is a trace starting with more than one node, such as to find a node in common between two groups, or path linking two nodes.

Vertical Marketing
	Vertical marketing systems are formalized links between each manufacturer/ intermediary in a marketing channel.

verti-port
	A web site that focuses on a particular industry, subject matter or target group. The online retailer Amazon.com is a verti-port pioneer that until recently concentrated solely on books. Internet.com and industry.net are verti-ports in Internet and engineering.

video display terminal
	Computer display for computer graphics and/or data.

video for Windows
	A multimedia architecture and application suite that provides an outbound architecture that lets applications developers access audio, video and animation from many different sources through one interface. As an application, Video for Windows primarily handles video capture and compression, and video and audio editing.

videoconference
	A videoconference is a person-to-person or group discussion where they are in different places but can see and hear each other as though they were within the same location.

videotex
	An interactive communication system that allows the user to communicate by phone or television for banking and shopping.

Videotex Shopping
	Is a two-way, interactive service offered to users with personal computers. It provides customers with a variety of information, including news, weather, stock information, sports news, and shopping opportunities.

violator
	An electronic message superimposed over the TV picture found printed diagonally across the top left or top right corner of the screen. The message usually states a date, location or condition of the image on the screen. Example: If a photo/tape of an American airlines DC-10 is shown while a newscaster describes a minor accident that occurred while an American Airlines DC-10 landed at DFW International Airport that afternoon, the "Violator" might read "File Photo" or "File Tape".

Viral Marketing
	This is a form of advertising or marketing techniques that spread like a virus by getting passed on from consumer to consumer and market to market. HotMail and Yahoo! both use viral marketing techniques such as adding a tagline and link at the bottom of every HotMail and Yahoo! email users' message. What has made such techniques popular for many Web companies is that effective viral marketing programs can be created and launched with less money, time, and effort than traditional promotion programs. Viral marketing has also been an effective online marketing technique because of the speed and efficiency of Internet communication.

Virtual
	Conceptual or appearing to be, rather than actually being. Kind of like, the pay raise your boss said you are getting!!!!

virtual Adz
	Java Applets that are embedded into an email message which allow the receiver to access the advertiser's web site from the message itself.

Virtual Assistant
	computerized service that provides business people and telecommuters with a central phone number and 24-hour, seven day a week access to email, voice mail, fax, appointment scheduling, news and subscription services. Virtual assistants can be used to place, receive and screen telephone calls. The virtual assistant uses voice recognition technology to provide interactive service where the caller can enter voice commands and receive prerecorded responses. Text-to-speech technology is used to read a client's email messages or scan email banner information.

Virtual Catalog
	Catalogs that are created and stored on the intranet and by reaching out over the internet ot a supplier's web site or by accessing a central marketplace.

Virtual Circuit
	A virtual circuit is a circuit or path between points in a network that appears to be a discrete, physical path but is actually a managed pool of circuit resources from which specific circuits are allocated as needed to meet traffic requirements.

Virtual Community
	Web pages grouped around similar subjects form virtual communities

virtual corporation
	An entity composed of geographically disperse workers wh share their work and communicate mostly by electronic means, with little, if any, face-to-face contact.

virtual enterprises
	groups of independent companies that pool their competences so that they can offer products or services that would be beyond the capabilities of any of the individual companies

Virtual Local Area Network
	A VLAN is defined as a limited broadcast domain comprising groups and/or members that are linked logically, regardless of physical location. A VLAN or Virtual Local Area Network, usually consists of two or more collision domains but is still considered a single subnet. The VLAN is created by connecting multiple collision domains (or even fileservers or workstations) to a device called a switch. Since the whole VLAN is addressed as a single subnet, the switch must keep track of which MAC Addresses lie in which collision domain. The switch then sends communications for that machine only out the single port that connects the device.

virtual mall
	Virtual malls are another example of shopping online. The earlier explorer of this was Prodigy who failed by only selling on $50,000 worth of goods with a membership database of over 2 million. Today virtual malls are being replaced with online shopping which allow the user to make or select an item and purchase it if available.

Virtual Neighborhood

Virtual Offices
	Sites where visitors can exchange files, chat with colleagues, and collaborate on projects online.

virtual pin
	A distinct number that makes it possible for a customer and a vendor to perform safe transactions over the Internet. The business owner and the patron are the only two who have access too it.

virtual reality
	Virtual reality is a three dimensional visual computer simulation that responds to users input. This visual interaction make users feel as though they exist in another world or space.

virtual store
	Commercial websites that allow people to browse the products like a person would browse the aisles in a physical store.

virtual tag
	A virtual card that allows interaction by the consumer which contains a miniature web sight that is positioned inside a banner.

virus
	A program which replicates itself on computer systems by incoporating itslf into other programs that are shared among computer systems.

Virus detection software
	software that locates viruses by watching for identifying signatures that give them away.

Visits
	The sequence of requests made by one user at one site. If no new information is requested within a "time-out" period (generally 30 minutes), the visitor's session is considered closed. The next request by that visitor will be considered a new visit.

Visual Basic
	Visual Basic was developed by Microsoft in 1990. It is an event-driven or object-oriented language. It is a way of programming without having to enter hundreds of lines of raw code to get an end result. A programmer can import objects on to a page and build the image or program they desire to build. Although code is necessary to fine tune the work, Visual Basic speeds up and simplifies the process. Other examples of object-oriented programs include C++ and Java.

visual language
	The visual language is an unspoken form of communication that transcends speech. Our minds process information into packets and categorizes them into groups. For example: thinking of the word "spotted cow" starts the subconscious mind into bringing up everything it associates with spotted cow: milk, cheese, bells, utters, and anything else an individual's personal experience has placed in the spotted cow category.

Voice Commerce (V-Commerce)
	V-Commerce lets users access information through layered menus over the phone. This is done with interactive voice recognition software.

Voice over IP
	This form of telephone calls converts the audio signal into an IP packet for transmission on a data network. Uaually, but not always, these conversations will end up going over the Internet.

volume discount
	The price discount offered advertisers who purchase a certain amount of volume from a medium.

Voxel
	A voxel is a unit of graphic information that defines a point in three-dimensional space.

VPN
	VPN enables users to seamlessly, quickly and securely transmit and receive data by carving a tunnel through the internet,, rather tahn fighting public traffic for broadwidth. It promises to be low cost, ubiquitous and standards based on internet services that are well suited to a world of intranets.

VPN - Virtual Private Networks
	Network pipes that encrypts data sent across the intranet and provides control of the resources visible at the service end of the connection. To the end user, it appears has if they are the only ones using the network. This allows one provider of network service to service many users on the same physical network infrastructure. Which leads to benefits like economies of scale and higher quality service.

VRML (Virtual Reality Modeling Language)
	This language lets programmers create 3-Dimensional Web spaces in which they can place objects (including links to other objects and othe Web pages). Although 3-D technology already exists and is available on the World Wide Web it is not used because it is very slow to download. This is therefore considered a futuristic technology. But when easily available it will allow the users find a simulated community, complete with streets, homes and stores. They will be able to go shopping, borrow a book from a library etc.

VXI
	An electrical and mechanical standard mainly utilized in the ATE industry to assist different vendor's equipment to work together in a common control and packaging environment.

WAIS
	Acronym for Wide Area Information Server, a method whereby large organizations can search for electronic information from a large number of sources using English-language queries.

walled garden
	An approach planned by cable TV companies to offer free access through the TV screen and a remote control device from some limited Web sites, pages, and services. The approach will support localization of the offered Web sites and will allow the cable operators to charge merchants for making their Web sites available through the free service.

wallet
	A helper application for a Web browser used to pass an encrypted credit card number from a buyer, through the sales merchant and on to the server maintained by the credit company (Cyber Cash or Veritone, for example) for authentication and approval.

warez
	Warez (pronounced as though spelled "wares" or possibly by some pronounced like the city of "Juarez") is a term used by software "pirates" to describe software that has been stripped of its copy-protection and made available on the Internet for downloading. People who create warez sites sometimes call them "warez sitez" and use "z" in other pluralizations. These websites usually contain advertisements to adult sites as a means of making money from advertisements. A note - The information downloaded from these sites are illegal and whomever downloads products from these sites could be punished up to $10,000 and/or jail time.

warez artist
	This is another word for a hacker. A hacker is a person who illegally breaks into and most of the time tampers with information in a computer system.

Warez Site
	A place on a computer where stolen software can be found; quite often placed surreptitiously on legitimate computer systems by pirates. Worez: Stolen or "hot" software.

warm-fuzzy (n.)
	A conclusion based on non-quantitative data.

Warranty
	This is an agreement that comes with a product for the consumer that offers replacement of the product or its parts in the case that it should not meet basic requirements of the company. It is cheaper for a company to offer warranties than hire someone to inspect each product before it leaves the factory. Warranties are also important in e-commerce in order to supply the customer, who may or may not interact with an actual seller, the safe feeling that the product is guaranteed to meet their requirements.

Wastage
	When used in the context of advertising, wastage refers to that part of the audience of an advertisement which is "wasted" because it is not part of the target market.

WATS
	WATS (Wide Area Telephone Services) are special-rate services that allow dialed circuit calls for both voice communcations and data transmission to be purchased in large quantities.

WAV
	Format (.wav) used to store audio files.

Waves
	Ads that aim to convince customers through repeated contact and interaction. Though customers often find them annoying, they are highly effective for the advertisers.

Wealth Maximization
	Maximizing the present value of all future benefits to be received by the owners of a firm.

wearout
	A web term and generic commerce term that is a level of frequency or a point in time when an advertising message loses its ability to effectively communicate. This is common with 'obsolete' or outdated ad pages.

Web Address
	An address on the World Wide Web that has describes the domain name which include: the host name at the location dot the hierarchy i.e. admin@uta.edu

Web advertorial
	Internet page(s) created in nonprogrammable media that provides information on a product or service.

Web author
	A person who creates Web pages and Web sites.

Web Cam
	A Web Cam is a method of displaying live video over the Web using any of a number of cameras. The content is often live. Web Cams are used for a variety of functions, such as video conferencing, traffic cameras displaying the roadways, or even nature cameras displaying an animal habitat live on the Net for you to see. Dropping in price, Web Cams are available at most computer hardware stores at a reasonable price. When you see them on the shelf, hopefully you will know what they are now.

Web graphical resolution
	refers to the pixels per inch or resolution of an image on the Web. This resolution has been standardized at 72 pixels per inch, since higher quality resolution (73+) only takes up more memory without any graphic superiority in appearance on the Web. (this is the case as the technology stands now, but can conceivably change in the future.)

web master
	The person who is responsible for looking after a particular Web Site; the system administrator for a world wide web server.

web page

Web Party
	A pre-planned online get-together, which usually takes place in a chatroom, of a group of people who have something in common with each other. Most web parties have specific themes such as a web party celebrating an internet club's anniversary.

web pressence
	This reffers to a companies display, or lack of, on the internet. A strong web pressence is indicated by a visitor being able to easily find your company on the world wide web, find the information they want, or request more online, and intyeract with your company in some fashion. An example would be an online store, with a customer servies section.

Web publisher
	A person who hosts others' Web pages and Web sites.

Web Server
	A Web server is a computer that provides web pages. It delivers the pages to the computer that requested the pages. It uses the URL or address of a Web site to locate it and then serve the page to the end user. A number of companies make Web server software so anyone can become a Web server.

web site biography
	A person's life story written by someone else and posted on-line. It can usually be found on a personal web site or on a commercial site used to describe a person of relevance.

Web TV
	Web TV is a special type of Television that allows people to access and navigate the Internet without any prior computer knowledge. This is great for people that do not like computers or do not understand them. If you're not on the Web because you hate computers, check out the Web TV at your nearest Best Buy! They'll even hook it up for you!

Webcast
	A realtime broadcast of a program or a major event, such as a concert or a sporting event, via the internet. A webcast makes it possible for millions of people from all around the world to view a program or an event simultaneously even when the event may not be broadcasted via other media sources.

webertising
	Any advertising that occurs on the World Wide Web.

webfomercial
	An advertisement created in programmable media that is animated or interactive and inteded as an end destination.

Webisode
	web based animated advertising in the form of electronic streamed stories.

Webisode
	submitted 2/28/99, definition will follow

Webliography
	A Web-based bibliography.

webpromote
	This is registering one's web site with an Internet announcement service. These announcement service sites provide one with access to hundreds of search engines without one having to manually find each engine. Then the service site will submit your web site to the search engines so your site can be found on the web.

website

Webweaver
	Just a fancy term some people use instead of Web Designer.

Webwitness
	An online service that documents, notarizes and verifies authorship of Web content.

WFM - Wired for Management
	Intel's umbrella term for a set of management standards supported by hardware vendors. WFM communicates with network management software to help PCs send inventory data, manage power, and boot remotely. WFM initiative offers management specifications that when implemented will ease IT's administrative tasks. WFM gives administrators more flexibility to handle clients remotely through a central console with protocols that are vendor-independent.

Whistle-Blowing Program
	A two-way communication system in which employees anonymously report breaches of ethical behavior through established channels.

White Papers
	a collection of documents detailing technical specifications, industry comparisons and perspectives, or government policy and legislation. The documents may also consist of company literature, services, and product listings.

white space
	The areas of the page without text or graphics; used as a deliberate element in good graphic design.

WHOIS
	A program that polls the domain name database; allows the user to determine who owns and administrates a domain. An Internet directory service for looking up names of people on a remote server. Many servers respond to TCP queries on port 43, in a manner roughly analogous to the DDN NIC whois service described in RFC 954. Other sites provide this directory service via the finger protocol or accept queries by electronic mail for directory information. On Unix the client command is.

wide area network
	A network of local area networks connected via telephone lines or satellite links.

widget
	Pronounced “wih-jit”, for HTML a widget is an object that accepts input such as check boxes, radio buttons and drop-down lists. But for the most part, it is used to describe examples of made-up products.

wildcard character
	a substitute letter that you can put in place of another letter when trying to search for a particular word or topic

WINAMP
	An acronym for "Windows Audio MPEG Player". This is the device that people use to decode and play MP3s. WINAMP helps to be organized with the MP3s. It can have all the uses like a CD player, but it is just in the form of a computerized CD. With WINAMP it has all the songs organized in the way it is downloaded, which makes convenience use because people would not have to put in or take out CDs back and forth. In addition, WINAMP can be auto hide by the computer.

winsock
	Winsock is a programming interface and the supporting program that handles input/output requests for Internet applications in a Windows operating system. It's called Winsock because it's an adaptation for Windows of the Berkeley UNIX sockets interface. Sockets is a particular convention for connecting with and exchanging data between two program processes within the same computer or across a network. Winsock provides this interface for different versions of the Windows operating system. A comparable interface exists for Mac computers. Beginning with Windows 95, Winsock came as part of the operating system, but in earlier systems, a Winsock program had to be installed. UNIX systems do not require a Winsock equivalent because TCP/IP and its use of sockets was designed to run directly with UNIX application programs. A number of companies offer a Winsock program, sometimes along with a suite of Internet protocol programs and applications. For example, Chameleon offers a suite that includes a Web browser, an FTP utility, a mail utility, and others. The Winsock program is included. The Trumpet Winsock is another popular stand-alone version. Winsock runs as a Windows dynamic link library (DLL) file. That is, it is loaded into the computer when an application needs it but doesn't need to be included as part of the application. When you initially get set up with Internet access, you may need to make sure you have the right version of Winsock for your operating system and the applications provided by the access provider. If your operating system provides one version and the application suite provided by the access provider provides another, one version of Winsock may need to be removed.

Wireless
	Wireless refers to a communications, monitoring, or control system in which electromagnetic or acoustic waves carry a signal through atmospheric space rather than along a wire. In most wireless systems, radio-frequency (RF) or infrared (IR) waves are used. Some monitoring devices, such as intrusion alarms, employ acoustic waves at frequencies above the range of human hearing.

Wireless Application Protocol (WAP)
	WAP is the latest protocol that turns mobile phones into small internet browers. The protocols that essentially brouoght the internet to life are readjusted slightly to fit within the limitations of the wireless infrastructures. The future of WAP will hold secure payments, e-commerce transactions paying for the products or services via their phone bill, and "localization" (asking the mobile phone where the closest McDonald's is)!

Wireless communications

wizard
	Usually found in Microsoft products, a step-by-step process to guide the user through document preparation and/or installation procedures

womtom
	Word of Mouth, Top of Mind: "Word of mouth" being the most well-regarded source of information on any subject, "Top of mind" being where you want your site to be in your audiences' thinking.

Word Prediction Software
	A software program which allows the user to type one, two, or several letters which activates a series of words on a menu from which the user can choose. These software programs usually have functions that allow the user to electronically "hold down" two keys at once. This type of software program is very helpful to people with disabilities who cannot physically type as fast as the average person and/or cannot manually hold down two keys at once.

wordart
	a feature that is used to change words into block letters that can be positioned and curved in various ways with creative color shcemes

workflow and online marketing
	The idea of marketing via internet, by using constant information gathering and submission of ideas, and products. A tool that is ongoing and changing with regards to the sale of a product, or doing a survey study.

Workscape
	Much like a cyber mall, except for the fact that a workscape represents a virtual office. Many corporations have enabled employees to work from portable laptops and from home, this allows greater flexibility and employee and employer benefits. The internet is the main medium for this work place.

Workstation
	Any individual personal computer that is connected to a network.

World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
	A worldwide organization that administers and enforces copyright laws.

World Wide Web (WWW)
	A collection of information located on many Internet servers that can be accessed with a browser or by navigating via hypertext links. The "Web" was developed in 1991 at CERN (the European Particle Physics Laboratory) in Geneva, Switzerland. An extensive user community has developed on the Web since its public introduction. On the WWW everything (documents, news and indices) is represented to the user as a hypertext object in HTML format. Hypertext links refer to other documents by their URLs.

World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
	The W3C, an international industry consortium, was founded in 1994. Its purpose is to develop common protocols that promote the World Wide Web's evolution and ensure its interoperability. Services provided by The W3C is a repository of information about the World Wide Web for developers and users. Other services provided include: reference code implementations to embody and promote standards and various prototype and sample applications to demonstrate use of new technology.

WorldPay
	Provides a smart card control micropayment services and standard credit card payment methods. It can be used anywhere in the world. The price of the product is converted into your payment price at the time of your purchase. There is however, a fee for connecting the WorldPay server. WorldPay application was developed by The Supernet Group Ltd.

worm
	A computer program or "virus" that reproduces itself and may destroy the files on a computer.

wraparound text
	Text that wraps around a graphic.

WSP (Web Service Provider)
	The company hired to store the web site so other users may access it via the Internet.

www (prefix)
	Stands for World Wide Web (also known as the Web and W^3). This is a set of pages or documents that are connected by hyperlinks and with a mouse, one can browse by jumping from one document to another.

WYSIWYG
	WYSIWYG stands for what you see is what you get (pronounced “wizzy-wig”). WYSIWYG refers to whether the text and images you see on your computer screen match what actually gets printed. As the image on the screen has gotten more and more sophisticated over the years, we have come to expect more and more from a WYSIWYG setup. Years ago we thought it was pretty WYSIWYG if the line breaks in the word processor were the same as the line breaks when it printed out.

X.400
	A software standard set up by ANSI. The guidelines for transmitting the data of packaged documents.

Xeon
	This is a new INTEL-Pentium III processor used for simply better performance compared to previous processors running within PCs'. One nice feature is that it's designed for more reliability among network servers using any e-business applications such as e-commerce. It's also a valuable upgrade for computer games. Any further information can be found at www.intel.com/PentiumIII/Xeno.

xlapse
	The number of people unable to access the Internet multiplied by the length of time their access was cut off.

XML
	Extensible Markup Language (XML) have the Document Type Definition (DTD) tags which carry information pertaining to a data structure and its content within a document. The tags are needed by XML interpreters as a way to look for information across databases.

Yellow Pages
	Listing of database machine by name and address.

Zero Based Budgeting
	This is a method of budgeting in which past sales and previous expenditure levels are ignored; the company cauculates its profit goals, determines the actions that will be required to achieve its goals, and estimates the expenditures that will be necessary to carry out the actions.

zine
	An underground publication usually done on business time.

ZIP
	The most widely used file compression format for downloading on the Web. Also a generic term for removable mass storage media of 100M or more i.e. Zip drive, Zip disks.

Zombie
	A zombie is an abandoned and sadly out-of-date Web site that for some reason has been moved to another Web address.

Zone pricing
	No matter what the nature of business is, the right pricing is very important. Base pricing is the level of pricing at which the company is willing to sell its goods/services. Today business is done nationally and internationally very easily. E-business has also accelerated this a lot. Freight cost affect the total cost a lot because of the nature of business companies get into. Zone pricing is the division of the large geographic areas into various zones and changes a flat freight rate, which will make the business more different and is also a tactics to moderate the impact of freight cost on distant customer. Zone pricing is the work of marketing managers typically for equalizing the costs among buyers within large geographic areas.

zoo
	A zoo is a Web site that holds collections of Internet viruses.

Zoom
	A feature (usually in imaging programs) which allows you to enlarge the image to see more detail in a particular area.