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Online Information Glossary

Last updated: March 21, 2002

Edited by PHIL NORCROSS
Twin Cities Chapter
with the assistance of VALERIE LIPOW
San Diego Chapter

 

The glossary is part of our outreach to students and those new to the Online Information profession. If you have a new term, an alternate definition, additional citations, or more information, send them to Phil Norcross at pnorcross@sdsusa.com.

Fame, gratitude, and animal crackers go to Rosemary Peters, who found etymology of "cookies" at Joe Burns, "So, You Want a Cookie, Huh?", www.htmlgoodies.com/tutors/cookie.html.
 

A   B   C   D   E   F   G   H   I   J   K   L   M   N   O   P   Q   R   S   T   U   V   W   X   Y   Z  

A

A-link (associated link; also a-keyword, cross-reference link)

A link from one topic in a help system to another. A-links allow users to browse related information, as with encyclopedic cross-referencing. Keywords for a-links are compiled in a help file as a list of related topics. They are similar to k-links (see below), except that they do not appear in the help system's index.

Example: In the help window below, the user clicks the "Related Topics" button to see the list of a-links in a secondary window.

Source: Help Authoring Resource Center, "Associative linking provides users with quick access to related information", www.helpauthoring.com/helpplatforms/alink.htm.

Additional information:

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Applet

Literally, so to speak, a "little application." Usually refers to a small program in Java that is downloaded as part of a Web page and executed by a Web browser.

Examples:

Source: Dictionary of the Mainframe World, www.sdsusa.com/dictionary.

Additional information: Douglas Bell and Mike Parr, Java for Students, Prentice Hall, 1999.

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ASP (active server page)

A server-side scripting technology. When a browser requests an *.asp file, the server executes scripts imbedded in the file, then sends the results--e.g., information retrieved from a database-- to the browser for display. ASPs only work on Microsoft servers. For a more widely supported alternative, see JSP, below.

Examples: www.workz.com, www.workz.com/content/default.asp

Source: Larne Pekowsky, JavaServer Pages, Addison-Wesley, Boston, 2000.

Additional information: Go to Microsoft's MSDN Library, msdn.microsoft.com/library. Search for "ASP."

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Authoring tool

Software application used to produce interactive learning materials that bring together all components of a course, such as text, graphics, tracking, and links. See help authoring tool and web authoring tool, below.

Examples:

Source: Jamie Siglar, "Multimedia Authoring Systems FAQ," 4 April 1999, www.tiac.net/users/jasiglar/MMASFAQ.HTML.

Additional information: Vance Stevens, "Authoring Tools," February 7, 2002, www.geocities.com/Athens/Olympus/4631/authorng.htm.

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AVI (audio video interleave)

AVI (Audio Video Interleave) is the de facto standard format for audio/video data on the PC. AVI, defined by Microsoft, is a special case of RIFF (Resource Interchange File Format).

Examples: CNN, CNN.com Video, www.cnn.com/videoselect/

Source: John F. McGowan, "AVI Overview," 2001, www.jmcgowan.com/avi.html.

Additional information: Los Alamos National Laboratory, "Help for AVI Video Files and Plug-ins," Feb. 2000, public.lanl.gov/ggrider/adsmhelp/win/help.html.

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B

BMP image (bitmap, *.bmp)

The simplest, most basic format for an electronic image. A bitmap is simply a rectangular field of pixels, each one of a specified color. The number of colors available, the color depth, depends on the number of bits available to each pixel. A 1-bit image has two colors (21), black and white. An 8-bit image has 256 colors (28) to work with. Most programs that capture screen images deal in bitmaps. Bitmap files are large and inefficient for moving images among machines. In fact, they are seldom useful until converted to some other format.

Example: See the Image Format Gallery, http://www.users.qwest.net/~philn/graphicformats.htm

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C

CMYK color (cyan, megenta, yellow, black)

For full-color images made of ink on paper--photographs on calendars for example--colors are defined as amounts of ink of four colors: cyan (sort of blue), magenta (sort of pink), yellow, and black. A four-color press then puts those four inks on top of one another in the amounts specified. That requires color separations of the image, meaning four different subsets of the image, one for each color or ink.

Source: Donnie O'Quinn and Matt LeClair, Digital Prepress Complete, Hayden, 1996.

Additional information: In the CMYK color space, colors are defined by a series of four numbers representing amounts of ink. For example, 0-91-76-6 defines a red similar to RGB 191-26-44 (see RGB color, below). Note that as CMYK numbers increase, there's more ink on the paper and the color approaches black; while as RGB numbers increase, there's more light on the screen and the color approaches white.

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Content item

Narrative information in dynamic delivery systems, e.g., computer-based or online training. Content can be in any media format, including text, graphics, animation, video, audio, and HTML plug-in. A content item is retrieved from the content repository, knowledge base, or database according to specified metadata categories, such as title, subject, etc., and delivered according to a plan, schedule, or designated display to the learner/user.

Example: One step in a procedure in a training program.

Sources:

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Content-on-demand (CoD)

Immediate availability via the Web of an offering packaged in a media format such as audio on demand (AoD) or video on demand (VoD).

Source: Andreas von Bonin, "Content on Demand," 1998, www.a-von-bonin.de/papnoam.htm#text.

Additional information: Browse the Web for "content on demand" and you'll see that media companies are scrambling for hardware, software, and bandwidth to deliver content-on-demand (especially music and video) to consumers.

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D

 

 

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E

Embedded help

Help that appears within an application rather than in a separate help window. Embedded help is typically context-sensitive: it delivers assistance specific to elements currently on the screen, rather than help for an entire application.

Examples: See the help in Home Site 4.5 or Microsoft Money.

Source: Scott DeLoach, "Designing Embedded Help," 2000 STC International Conference.

Additional information: Cheryl Lockett Zubak, "What is Embedded Help?" Intercom, March 2000.

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EPS image (encapsulated PostScript, *.eps)

An image format for printing on paper, not suited to the Web because files are generally too big and browsers don't read them. EPS files are the chief format for moving artwork among graphic artists and printing presses. Depending on how they are created, EPS files often contain information other than just a flat image--color separations for example. EPS is also the format for moving vector images (see below) from one machine to another.

Example: See the Image Format Gallery, http://www.users.qwest.net/~philn/graphicformats.htm

Source: Donnie O'Quinn and Matt LeClair, Digital Prepress Complete, Hayden, 1996.

Additional information:

  • Note that many page formatting programs--Word and PageMaker for example--do not display on-screen the actual EPS image that will print to paper; they show a low-resolution preview of that image FPO ("for placement only") so you can work on screen. On Windows machines, that preview is usually a TIFF image (see below).

  • Printing an encapsulated PostScript image to a laser printer requires a PostScript printer driver. A PCL (printer control language) printer cannot read an EPS file.

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F

 

 

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G

GIF image (Compuserve graphics interchange format, *.gif)

The most common graphics format for browers and the Web, because it is good for compressing images into small file sizes. GIF files are small because they contain 256 colors, no more, often less. Hence they work well for simple drawings. Color photographs, on the other hand, are typically served to the Web as JPGs (see below). GIFs also use LZW compression, which converts a line of same-color pixels into a shorter bit of code that says "make x number of pixels of color y." Such compression does not throw away information, like JPG compression does, but it only works for long lines of a single color. GIFs can contain a transparent color, and they can provide animation.

Example: Compare the GIF and JPG images in the Image Format Gallery, http://www.users.qwest.net/~philn/graphicformats.htm

Source: David Siegel, Creating Killer Web Sites, 2d ed., Hayden, 1997, www.killersites.com--provides a clear and thorough explanation of how and why Web graphics work.

Additional information:

  • The patent on LZW (Lempel-Ziv-Welch) compression is owned and protected by Unisys, which requires license fees from people who create software that creates GIFs (not from us users of GIFs). For that reason, it is rumored that the Web will someday rely on PNG images (see below) in place of GIFs.

  • Another helpful explanation of Web graphics is in Mikkel Aaland, Photoshop for the Web, O'Reilly, 1998.

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H

Help authoring tool (HAT)

Software for creating formatted text and turning it into an online help system that typically includes, along with help text, a table of contents, an index, and a full-text search tool. The output of a HAT is specifically formatted for, and displayed by, a particular "help engine" (see below).

Examples: RoboHelp, Doc-To-Help, ForeHelp, Webworks

Additional information:

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Help engine

Software that manages, displays, and searches help information, a.k.a. "help format" or "help platform."

Examples: WinHelp, WebHelp, HTML Help, HTML-based help, JavaHelp

Additional information:

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HTML (hypertext markup language)

The text-formatting code read by browsers and displayed as Web pages. Files are typically named *.htm or *.html. HTML is a subset of SGML (Standard Generalized Markup Language), and its logic appears to have copied that used earlier by phototypesetters. HTML's unique virtue is the link: click on a link and the browser performs some action--getting another Web page or starting a script, for example.

Examples: Use a browser to display a Web page, then tell the browser to display the source code for the page. In Netscape 4.x, select View/Page Source; in Internet Explorer 5.x, select View/Source. The HTML codes appear between greater-than and less-than signs (<html>).

Additional information:

  • W3C (World Wide Web Consortium), "HyperText Markup Language Home Page," http://www.w3.org/MarkUp/. These are the standard specifications for html; the most recent release is 4.01.

  • A reliable reference book is Chuck Musciano and Bill Kennedy, HTML & XHTML: The Definitive Guide, 4th ed., O'Reilly, 2000, http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/html4/.

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HTML help

A Microsoft product. With the release of Windows 98, it replaced WinHelp as the standard help format for Windows software. Reading HTML Help requires Microsoft Internet Explorer.

Examples: Seek help from a recent Microsoft product on a Windows 98 or Windows 2000 machine.

Source: Microsoft, "HTML Help Start Page," http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/en-us/htmlhelp/html/vsconhh1start.asp.

Additional information:

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HTML-based help

User assistance built of HTML, regardless of what tools are used to create or display it. Also known as "HTML help"--that's low h "help." Not to be confused with a Microsoft product named "HTML Help."

Examples:

  • See the help files that accompany Netscape 4.x or Macromedia Dreamweaver.

Source: Weisner Associates, Inc., HtmlBasedHelp.com, http://www.htmlbasedhelp.com/index.html.

Additional information:

  • "HTML-based help" is a generic term for help that can be written with a text editor and read with any browser. "HTML Help" is the name of a Microsoft product that requires Microsoft software for its creation and display. When an author uses one or the other term, double-check that it's used correctly, or you can get very confused.

  • See also WinWriters, "Web Resources," http://www.winwriters.com/resmisc.htm#help.

  • EHelp Corporation, "Help Format Comparison," http://www.ehelp.com/products/robohelp/formatcomparison.asp.

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I

 

 

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J

Java

An object-oriented, portable computer language. An object is a body of code wrapped into a package that other programs can incorporate--somewhat like a word processor using a couple key strokes to run a macro. Portable means a single program can run on a wide range of platforms. Java belongs to Sun MIcrosystems, but it is widely available free of charge.

Examples: Douglas Bell and Mike Parr, "Java for students - 2nd edition: Programs from the book," www.shu.ac.uk/schools/cms/teaching/db/java/programsFromTheBook/list.htm.

Additional information:

  • Douglas Bell and Mike Parr, Java for Students, Prentice Hall, 1999.
  • The direct source for Java technology and information is Sun's Java Web site--java.sun.com.

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Javadoc

Software that reads comments in a Java program and turns them into HTML help files that explain use of the progam. Javadoc uses only those comments that program developers specifically format for its use.

Examples: "Appendix B: Creating Java Documentation," in Ivor Horton, Beginning Java 2, JDK 1.3 edition, Wrox Press, 2000.

Source: Sun's Javadoc page, java.sun.com/products/jdk/1.2/docs/tooldocs/javadoc.

Additional information: ---

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JavaHelp

A help engine (see above) driven by Java code and requiring a Java Runtime Engine on the the client.

Examples: ---

Source: Sun's JavaHelp page, java.sun.com/products/javahelp.

Additional information:

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JavaScript

A "lightweight" programming language with object-oriented capabilities. Its general core is embedded in Netscape 4.x and Internet Explorer 4.x, allowing executable content to be included in Web pages. Regardless of superficial similarities, JavaScript is not Java, or watered-down Java, or a relative of Java. Developed and owned by Netscape, but widely available free of charge.

Examples: Dictionary of the Mainframe World, www.sdsusa.com/dictionary, is driven by JavaScript. See a copy of the code in www.sdsusa.com/dictionary/glossScripts.txt.

Source: David Flanagan, JavaScript: The Definitive Guide, third edition, O'Reilly, 1996, www.oreilly.com/catalog/jscript3.

Additional information:

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JPG image (also JPEG, for Joint Photographic Experts Group; also JFIF, for JPEG file interchange format; *.jpg, *.jif)

JPG is the format for full-color, photographic-type images on the Web. JPGs can contain up to 16 million colors, hence, unlike GIF images (see above) they can display gradual shifts in color from one pixel to the next. But making a JPG file small enough to travel over the Web means compressing the image. JPG compression works by converting circles of adjoining pixels to a single "average" color. The size of the circles varies with the degree of compression. Under JPG compression, anything with fine details and sharp edges--like text--turns to mud. Making JPGs is always a compromise.

Example: Compare the GIF and JPG images at the Image Format Gallery, http://www.users.qwest.net/~philn/graphicformats.htm

Source: David Siegel, Creating Killer Web Sites, 2d ed., Hayden, 1997, www.killersites.com--provides a clear and thorough explanation of how and why Web graphics work.

Additional information:

  • Visit the Joint Photographic Experts Group at www.jpeg.org/public/jpeghomepage.htm.
  • Another helpful explanation of Web graphics is in Mikkel Aaland, Photoshop for the Web, O'Reilly, 1998.

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JScript

A scripting language very similar, but not identical, to JavaScript (see above). JScript belongs to and is only supported by Microsoft.

Examples: The chief issue for Web developers is to recognize the differences between JScript and JavaScript. They are spelled out in, e.g., Steven Holzner, JavaScript Complete, McGraw-Hill, 1998.

Additional information: Go to Microsoft's MSDN Library, msdn.microsoft.com/library. Search for "JScript."

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JSP (JavaServer Page)

An HTML page with Java code embedded in it. When a browser requests the page, the server creates and runs a servlet (see below) according to the Java instructions, then delivers the result to the browser. JSP technology belongs to Sun Microsystems, but is widely available free of charge.

Examples:

Source: Larne Pekowsky, JavaServer Pages, Addison-Wesley, Boston, 2000.

Additional information:

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K

K-link (keyword-link; also k-keyword, index keyword)

Word or phrase in the index of a help system. Authors identify key words to appear in the index, then specify the topic(s) where the term appears. After the help system is compiled and run, the topic(s) are displayed as dynamic links when the term is selected in the index. Index keywords are optional in help systems. Compare to a-links, above.

Example: In the help system shown below, the k-links are listed in the index.

Source: Help Authoring Resource Center, "Associative linking provides users with quick access to related information", www.helpauthoring.com/helpplatforms/alink.htm.

Additional information:

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L

 

 

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M

Modular help

Modular help systems combine several independent help files into one cohesive system.

Example: See the help files for Microsoft Office applications.

Source: Car James-Tanny, "Using Dynamic Linking," Help Corner, April 2000, www.helpstuff.com/HelpCornerArchives/04-2000/hc4-00.htm.

Additional information: Consider using modular help when...

  • You are developing help for an application that can easily be divided into sections.
  • You are part of a multi-author team, each author responsible for a portion of the help system.
  • Your project contains large RTF and/or graphic files, which take a long time to compile. It is easier to work with multiple help files individually; they compile more quickly.
  • You want to include links to future help files.

  • You have one or more sections that are common to several applications, for example, a glossary.

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N

 

 

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O

 

 

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P

PNG image (portable network graphic)

A graphics format said to have great promise for the Web, but new enough that it is not widely used or supported. Like a GIF, a PNG can include a transparent color. Like a JPG, a PNG can include millions of colors. Like both GIF and JPG, a PNG can be made to load progressively--the browser quickly shows you a low-resolution image, then proceeds to fill in the detail. Like an EPS, a PNG can contain vector data. Finally, PNG compression does not lose any information.

Example: See the Image Format Gallery, http://www.users.qwest.net/~philn/graphicformats.htm

Source: Macromedia Fireworks help files.

Additional information: PNG is the native format for the graphics tool Macromedia Fireworks. That product's help files say that, "for high-color images, JPEG produces a superior quality."

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Q

 

 

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R

Raster image

Electronic images are of two kinds: raster and vector. The code for raster images, a.k.a. bitmaps, defines a rectangular field of pixels and the color of each of pixel. Most images, by far, are raster images. All BMP, GIF, JPG, and TIFF images are raster images. See vector images below.

Example: What you see on your screen is a raster image.

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RGB color (red, green, blue)

For computer monitors, color is defined as portions of red, green, and blue light.

Example: Often, you can adjust the relative portions of red, green, and blue that your monitor uses, thus changing the hue of everything you see. On a Windows machine, look in the control panel for Display or Monitor.

Additional information: In the RGB color space, colors are defined by a series of three numbers between 0 and 255. For example, 191-26-44 defines a red similar to CMYK 0-91-76-6 (see CMYK color, above). Note that as RGB numbers increase, there's more light on the screen and the color approaches white, while as CMYK numbers increase, there's more ink on the paper and the color approaches black.

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RTF (rich text format)

A text format defined by Microsoft for moving text and format specifications from one software application to another. RTF preserves such characteristics as type font, face, and color.

Examples: In Microsof Word or a variety of other software tools, create a file with a range of text formats, then select Save As, then specify RTF. Open the RTF file with some other software tool that can read RTF. The formatting will be displayed.

Source: internet.com, Webopedia, "rich text format," http://webopedia.internet.com/TERM/r/rich_text_format_RTF.html

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S

Servlet

A Java program that resides on and is executed by a Web server. Because it runs on the server and persists after the associated Web page is unloaded at the browser, servlets are generally faster than applets (see above) and can provide "session persistance" for a user visiting multiple pages on a single server.

Examples:

Source: Larne Pekowsky, JavaServer Pages, Addison-Wesley, Boston, 2000, www.aw.com/cseng.

Additional information:

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T

TIFF image (tagged image file format)

An image format for printing on paper, not suited to the Web because files are generally too big and browsers don't read them.

Example: See the Image Format Gallery, http://www.users.qwest.net/~philn/graphicformats.htm

Additional information: Regarding images for printing on paper, a very good guide is Donnie O'Quinn and Matt LeClair, Digital Prepress Complete, Hayden, 1996.

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U

User assistance

The various forms of help that are provided with a software application, hardware item, service, or other product. Includes procedures, reference information, user interface elements, wizards.

Examples: Go to most any software application and click on "Help," or go the software section of your local bookstore.

Source: Cheryl Lockett Zubak, "Developing Help for the Web: Designs, Trends, Strategies," Intercom, Jan. 2001, pp. 9-15.

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V

Vector image

A vector image is what artists call "line art." The file contains mathematical definitions for points, lines, and curves. Where a raster image has 400 red pixels in a row, a vector image might say "starting at point 10,60, draw a horizontal red line across 80% of the canvas." Vector images have these two advantages: The files are smaller than raster image files. And the images can be scaled to any size. That's why electronic type fonts are vector data--so that type can be produced at various sizes without destroying the fine details it requires. Vector images have this disadvantage: They can be only be saved in EPS, PNG, and a few application-specific formats, like Adobe Illustrator *.ai files.

Example: See the Image Format Gallery, http://www.users.qwest.net/~philn/graphicformats.htm

Source: Donnie O'Quinn and Matt LeClair, Digital Prepress Complete, Hayden, 1996.

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W

Web authoring tool

HTML editors and web site management tools.

Examples:

  • WYSIWYG editors, such as Drumbeat and NetObjects Fusion
  • Pure code-based editors, such as HomeSite and HotDog Professional
  • Compound editors, such as HoTMetaL PRO, Macromedia Dreamweaver, Microsoft FrontPage

Source: Edward Mendelson, "Web Authoring Tools," PC Magazine, January 20, 1998.

Additional Information: There are many sites on the Web for learning Web authoring techniques. One of the best is WebMonkey, hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey.

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Web-based training (WBT; also on-line courses, web-based instruction)

Computer-based training in which the training material resides on Web pages.

Example: National Library of Medicine, "PubMed Tutorial," July 2001, www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/pubmed_tutorial/m1001.html.

Source: WBT Information Center, "What is Web-based Training?" 1997, www.webbasedtraining.com/wbt/pages/whatiswbt.htm.

Additional Information:

  • Infoworld, Buyer's Guide to Web Training, 1998, www.infoworld.com/cgi-bin/displayTC.pl?/981123sb11-buyers.htm.
  • Advantages
    • Easy delivery of training to users.
    • Multiplatform capabilities, delivery to Windows, Macintosh, Unix.
    • Easy updating of content.
    • Shift from costly programming to interface and content design.
    • Quicker turnaround of finished product.
    • Less need for technical support.
    • Controllable access.
    • Billing options by user ID, number of accesses, date/time of access.
    • Options for installations on private networks for security or greater bandwidth.
    • Options to link with other training systems.
    • Multitasking capability suitable for electronic performance support systems (EPSS).
    • Vast, untapped market for training.
  • Disadvantages
    • Limited formatting of content in current browsers.
    • Bandwidth/browser limitations restrict instructional methodologies.
    • Limited bandwidth means slower performance for sound, video, and intense graphics.
    • Someone must provide server access, control usage, bill users.

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Web-safe colors

It was the Netscape people who long ago decided that browsers will display a certain 216 colors, the Web-safe pallette. When an image uses those colors and no others, you can be confident it will look the same from screen to screen, browser to browser. GIF images are frequently indexed so that they use only the colors of the Web pallette. The pallette is often pictured as a cube, 36 colors each side, called the color cube. The number 216 (63) comes from this equation:

     [(2 colors/bit) x (8 bits/pixel)]
   - (40 colors for Windows)
   -----------------------------------
   = 216 colors for browser

Example: The Web-safe pallette is available for downloading from David Siegel's site, see the source note below.

Source: David Siegel, Creating Killer Web Sites, 2d ed., Hayden, 1997, www.killersites.com--provides a clear and thorough explanation of how and why Web graphics work.

Additional information: Another helpful explanation of Web graphics is in Mikkel Aaland, Photoshop for the Web, O'Reilly, 1998.

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WinHelp

The format by which Microsoft provided help for Windows software up through Windows 95 and NT 4.0. It was then replaced by HTML Help. WinHelp files are named *.hlp. The application for viewing them is winhelp.exe.

Examples: Find a Windows 95 or Windows NT 4.0 machine and seek help for a Microsoft product.

Source: HyperAct Inc., "WinHelp Resources," http://www.hyperact.com/hyper9.html

Additional information:

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X

 

 

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Y

 

 

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Z

 

 

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Examining a 2002 Distinguished Award Winner
Using XML in Static and Dynamic Web Pages, Part 1
Practical Magic — Reluctant Trainer
Resources & References — Home

Second / Third Quarter 2002 (Volume 5, #2)

Copyright © 1998, 2001 Society for Technical Communication