Creating Platforms for Innovative Internet Software

Microsoft Developer Relations Group

December 1995
Updated: March 1996

The buzzwords! The hype! The soaring stock prices! By now we all know the promise of, and the promises made about, digital convergence on the Information Superhighway. This cyberland is already well known as "the Internet" to the millions of people who traverse its electron-paved pathways.

All the noise aside, the Internet does represent the greatest opportunity for software innovation since the introduction of the personal computer. By both embracing the existing standards and using appropriate extensions, you'll be able to write killer Internet applications.

Taking Advantage of Win32 and OLE

Connectivity is the basis of this revolution. In fact, the recent releases of Microsoft® Windows® (Windows 95, Windows NT™ 3.5, Windows NT 3.51, and Windows NT 4.0 beta) have focused on building the substrate of Internet connectivity. The additions of Windows Sockets, TCP/IP, DNS, DHCP, WINS, Telnet, SLIP, and FTP are a few of the fundamental components that have been added to Windows to help provide the on-ramp of connectivity and communication to the Internet. (Check the glossary at the end of this article if you're unfamiliar with any of this alphabet soup.)

This is a good start, but what is Microsoft's strategy for the development community? Is it one that allows a compelling and simple transition from the desktop to a worldwide union of information and applications? You bet it is. We're working hard to give you what you need to produce applications ranging from static Web pages to the most sophisticated interactive applications--and everything in between.

Microsoft is busy adding features to the Win32® API (the 32-bit Windows application programming interface, including its component architecture, OLE) to allow developers to "Internet-enable" their applications by leveraging the investments they have already made in Win32 and OLE.

This article provides a high-level discussion of the strengths of today's Internet. It also discusses some of the evolutionary paths that will make the Internet even more compelling and exciting, and explains Microsoft's plan to take those paths. More importantly, it is a basic outline of the APIs and services that Microsoft will deliver in the near term for Win32 and OLE developers. These APIs and services extend Win32 and OLE so that developers are able to more easily take advantage of the Internet in their applications. For more detailed information on the individual parts of Microsoft's Internet offerings, see the other sections of the Internet Development Toolbox Web site.

For definitions of the acronyms and terms used in this article, see An Internet Glossary.

Standards Are the Key to the Internet's Success

The force behind the success and power of the Internet is, quite simply, standards. The standards that make the Internet so compelling and powerful include:

Microsoft's View of Standards

So the natural question is: How is Microsoft going to participate in this world created and based on standards?

By listening to user demands and working with standards bodies, Microsoft is delivering an Internet solution that incorporates industry standards as well as the feature demands of end users. Microsoft will support all HTML extensions, file formats, languages, and protocols that its customers require to create compelling software solutions. Microsoft will continue to research and monitor Internet technology, such as Java™ and HTML, including non-compliant but popular HTML extensions. As Microsoft moves forward in addressing the challenges of the Internet, it will continue to work with the standards bodies such as the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) to ensure that it is openly publishing its proposed extensions, protocols, and file formats. Microsoft strives to help evolve the Internet continuously to meet the requirements of its customers in a timely fashion.

Evolving the Internet

It's common to hear people talk about the Internet and the World Wide Web as if they were synonymous, but it's important to remember the difference: The Web is a great technology for sharing content and communicating. The Internet itself provides powerful and universal connectivity that underlies the Web. The relationship is symbiotic: The Internet provides the great connectivity that makes the Web possible, and the Web provides the powerful user model and garners the attention that makes the Internet ubiquitous. It is important to think about the evolution of the Internet in both areas.

As the Internet grows and develops, there are several areas where independent software vendors (ISVs) will want to expand and extend the capabilities that are currently available:

Extending to protocols beyond HTTP and FTP. HTTP and FTP currently provide a great way to transfer information and files around the Internet. However, as new (and secure) protocols are developed and as distributed applications begin to exploit the connectivity of the Internet, you will want to be able to plug new protocols easily into the existing environment. URL monikers enable developers to do exactly that.

Extending beyond HTML. HTML paves the way on the Internet by providing a single standard format for documents so that all browsers can read all documents. HTML also provides support for navigation so that a user can easily move between HTML pages. That's great, but wouldn't it be nice if you could publish a document on the Web in any format and still ensure all that browsers can read it? Voilà! OLE Document Objects lets you publish in your favorite format and makes sure that the viewing code is available. Additionally, hyperlinks let you add navigation capabilities to any document or application.

Internet extensibility in software. Web documents today are largely static--they present information or provide a simple interface for retrieving information from the user. How can we make Web pages more dynamic--more like Web applications, if you will? OLE Controls and OLE Scripting provide the infrastructure that lets you add behavior and scripting to your Web page in a language-neutral and tool-neutral way. OLE Controls and OLE Scripting leverage the investment in tools and knowledge that developers have already made in OLE.

Desktop integration. Today, Internet-access applications and traditional desktop applications are completely separate. Users employ each in different scenarios, and developers build each using very different tools. How can we make Web access and Internet use a seamless extension of the user's desktop, and how can we leverage the investment that developers have made in tools and education? How can we protect the large investment you've made in software for the desktop? Our Internet SDK will allow you to quickly and easily integrate powerful Internet features into your existing apps.

Server efficiency and extensibility. Currently, many Internet server solutions are proprietary or bound to a single hardware architecture. Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS) runs on any platform on which Windows NT™ runs--today, that's Intel, MIPS, DEC Alpha, and Power PC. Often, other servers do not offer optimal performance. For example, every time a CGI script is executed, a new process must be created. You can imagine that several hundred users would quickly flood the process space of a system, because this is an expensive operation. So Internet server software platforms need to be designed from the ground up, not only to be very high-performance and robust but also to scale to meet the load and use system resources efficiently. The Microsoft Internet Information Server, together with the Internet Server API (ISAPI), provide such a solution.

Security. To be effective, security systems need to be usable as well as secure. A prohibitively hard-to-use scheme, with new passwords and server components and so on, will not be used as often as a scheme built into the design of the components. Also, how can we develop solutions to address talking to servers securely? How can we identify servers and clients so that information can be customized or validated? What about performing transactions without fear of fraud? How can we safely run downloaded code without fear of virus infections?

All of this evolution and opportunity is leveraged on Win32 and OLE. Microsoft is extending Win32 and OLE to allow software developers to add Internet features to their applications easily, without starting from scratch.

Enabling the Evolution

Microsoft's architecture is open and extensible so that anyone can plug in their solutions regardless of the tool, language, data format, or protocol used. All of this is built on a standard, secure, open pipe that provides universal and ubiquitous connectivity. The key to greater interoperability is to aggressively embrace Internet protocols (such as TCP/IP, DNS, HTTP, and HTML). This will allow connectivity with all networks, local resources, data types, and languages.

To enable the evolution of the Internet, Microsoft is committed to building a complementary evolution of clients, servers, and tools for Internet software development and content creation. Before diving into the nitty-gritty details, here's a high-level look at the client, server, and tools that Microsoft is building.

The Client

Sweeper is Microsoft's Internet client architecture. Sweeper is an API, built on Win32 and OLE, that enables application developers to Internet-enable their applications. Sweeper includes support for extensibility and scripting, asynchronous access, caching, and navigation. Sweeper will be a set of redistributable modules that can be used by any Windows-based application. There's more information on Sweeper below.

The Internet Explorer is Microsoft's standards-based Internet browser application. Internet Explorer version 1.0 was shipped with Windows 95, and version 2.0 was shipped in late November 1995. Internet Explorer 3.0 (to be released in 1996) will be based on Sweeper, will contain the latest HTML extensions, including frames, and will be further extensible via HTML, scripting, and OLE Controls. It will be split into a set of components and services that will become an integral part of the operating system, making the services available to all developers of Windows-based applications.

See "Sweeper and the Internet Explorer" section below for more information about the Internet client components available from Microsoft.

The Server

The primary features of Microsoft's Internet Information Server are speed and extensibility. The goal is to be the fastest information server and allow the server to be extended via an open API set--the Internet Server API (ISAPI). ISAPI is focused on providing software developers with the necessary flexibility to create high-performance, efficient, and secure commercial add-ons for the server. Microsoft is also encouraging other server vendors to adopt ISAPI so that developers can write to a single set of interfaces. Additionally, the Internet Information Server will provide a secure and easy-to-manage environment for system administrators.

On top of that, Microsoft is building an infrastructure around the system client and server that will allow for signed code, secure transactions, billing, and user authentication.

See "The Internet Information Server" section below for more information. You can also visit the Internet Information Server for downloading information.

The Tools

In this section, we've included links to other Microsoft pages that provide more information about these tools If you are new to HTML and designing pages for the World Wide Web, consider starting with Microsoft's set of Internet Assistants. Internet Assistant for Microsoft Word 2.0 includes enhanced support for tables, font color and face, background sounds, inline video, and watermarks. Internet Assistant 2.0 will also enable you to preview your page in your favorite browser. Microsoft has also released Internet Assistant for Microsoft Excel and Internet Assistant for Microsoft PowerPoint.

Microsoft FrontPage99 is a client/server application for creating and managing professional-quality Web publications. Using FrontPage, a user can easily create, deploy, maintain, and administer a sophisticated Web site that includes rich Web pages and interactive functions without programming. FrontPage Client, which is available for Windows 3.1, Windows 95, Windows NT, and the Macintosh®, is a Web authoring environment with a graphical user interface. FrontPage Server can be used as a complete server or as a set of extensions that work with any standard Web server to implement interactive features.

Internet Studio (formerly Blackbird) is slated to be Microsoft's full-featured authoring environment for creating, publishing, and managing interactive applications for the Web. In December 1995, Microsoft announced plans to migrate Internet Studio from a product based primarily on technology specific to The Microsoft Network (MSN) to one based completely on Internet standards. The first product release of Internet Studio (the date is not currently available) will fully support Microsoft's Internet client architecture for Windows (Sweeper).

Microsoft plans to deliver these technologies across platforms. An in-house development team is focused on delivering key technologies for the Macintosh (OLE has already been delivered, and Microsoft has publicly demonstrated a ). In addition, Microsoft continues to work closely with its key UNIX® partners (Software AG, Bristol, and Mainsoft) to deliver the server and client technologies for the various UNIX platforms.

For more information on these publishing tools, see the Macintosh version of the Internet Explorer/windows/ie/mac/macdl.htm section of the Internet Development Toolbox Web site.

Since the Windows Internet Client and the Internet Information Server are the cornerstones of the platforms Microsoft is building for the development community, let's dive in a little deeper and examine each in more detail.

Sweeper and the Internet Explorer

As described above, the Internet client has two major components: Sweeper and the Internet Explorer.

Internet Explorer 2.0 is shipping today, and it has full support for industry standards, including HTML 3.0 features (tables, formatting, and so on), NNTP News, VRML, and SSL (Secure Sockets Layer). Internet Explorer 2.0 uses progressive rendering, intelligent caching, "cookies," and HTTP Keep Alive to make the best use of available bandwidth. The Internet Explorer's new media capabilities include inline video, background sounds, RealAudio, and VRML. Internet Explorer will continue its strong commitment to HTML and VRML in the future. Microsoft will also support new additions to HTML that publishers ask for and implement in their content (for example, frames). Additionally, the various parts of the Internet Explorer (the HTML parser and display engine) will be delivered as a set of components to be used in applications and will be built on the Sweeper APIs (more on Sweeper below).

One of the most exciting components of Sweeper is OLE Controls. The next version of the Internet Explorer will be built on Sweeper and will be extensible via OLE Controls. This will allow content creators to leverage the work of hundreds of controls developers. In addition, this gives the component builders another avenue to distribute their control.

So, finally, let's talk more about Sweeper. Sweeper is a broad set of client system services and APIs that allow developers to Internet-enable their applications in leveraged and evolutionary ways. Sweeper's core components are listed below.

For preliminary versions of these specs, you can download the Internet SDK.

OLE Document Objects (DocObjects, for short). OLE Document Objects is a set of OLE interfaces that are built on top of the standard OLE in-place activation interfaces. A DocObject server owns the entire client area of the DocObject container in which it is running. For Internet applications, this means that OLE Document Objects enable Web browsers to be extensible so that they can view any type of document (not just HTML) that is published on the Internet.

Let's look at an example. Suppose you want to publish a document in its native *.ABC format. When a DocObject-enabled browser tries to view that document, it downloads (with the user's permission, of course) the *.ABC DocObject server and runs it. The *.ABC DocObject server takes over the browser's entire client area and displays the *.ABC file. To end users, this is completely seamless; they use the same tool to browse through anything on the Internet, regardless of the format. If you publish documents on the Internet, this means that you are not restricted to publishing in HTML, you can use any format you choose, and you are still guaranteed that end users will be able to view your documents.

DocObjects also enable a browser to launch a specific application when it gets to a page; the browser acts as a navigation tool to find and launch an Internet application.

Hyperlinks. Hyperlinks provide general navigation APIs that can be used by any application. Coupled with OLE Document Objects, the hyperlinking and URL-caching API allows all application developers to navigate back and forth between documents and to keep a history, just as Web browsers do today.

OLE Control and Control Container Guidelines. The guidelines define the exact interfaces and methods that are required of well-behaved OLE Control and Control Container desktop applications. Sweeper proposes two new OLE Control component categories--Internet and multimedia/run time only--specifically to address Internet-enabled and multimedia controls.

OLE Scripting. This is a syntax- and language-neutral architecture that allows scripting vendors to "plug-in" and perform automation between components. OLE Scripting provides an infrastructure that will allow developers to plug any scripting engines into their applications. In addition, Microsoft's new scripting solution, called Visual Basic Script, will use OLE Scripting and include a compiler and run time.

Internet Extensions for Win32. This API set abstracts Gopher, FTP, and HTTP protocols into easy-to-use, task-focused interfaces that simplify access to the Internet significantly.

URL Monikers. URL monikers are an implementation of asynchronous monikers, which can perform binding asynchronously to OLE objects via URLs. URL monikers encapsulate protocols: An application simply binds to the URL moniker. The moniker works with the appropriate protocol to activate the OLE object and go to the specified Internet location.

Persistent Cache API. This API is used by clients that need persistent caching services. Persistent caching allows the caller to save data in the local file system for later use. This is useful when access to the data is over a low-bandwidth link or the access is not available at all.

Pluggable Protocols and Data Formats. Given the dynamic nature of the Internet world, it is highly likely that new file formats and protocols will emerge. Sweeper uses "Quartz" (an architecture for the processing of streams of multimedia data) Filter Graphs to handle new media types and the IBind* interfaces for plugging in new protocols.

The Internet Information Server

The Microsoft Internet Information Server is the Web Server for Windows NT. The Internet Information Server is an industrial-strength, programmable Web platform that is easy to manage and that integrates with your current environment.

By using the underlying features of Windows NT Server, the Internet Information Server offers a high-performance, secure, and extensible information publishing solution that can also serve as a platform for solutions and site developers. The primary features of the Internet Information Server include WWW, Gopher, and FTP Services; Internet Service Manager; client browsers for Windows 3.11, Windows for Workgroups, Windows NT, and Windows 95; easy setup and manageability; and an extensible platform.

The set of extensibility interfaces includes the following (for preliminary versions of these specs, you can download the Internet SDK):

Common Gateway Interface (CGI). The Internet Information Server supports the industry-standard CGI as well as Perl, the most common language for developing simple Web applications, such as data input forms and log analysis routines.

ISAPI Internet Server Applications (ISA). ISAs are dynamic-link libraries (DLLs) that are similar to CGI scripts. ISAs are loaded in the same address space of the HTTP server--unlike CGI, which creates a separate process for every request. This creates a back-end scripting solution that provides a higher level of performance than CGI and consumes far less RAM.

ISAPI HTTP Server Filters. An HTTP filter is a replaceable DLL that the server calls on every HTTP request. When the filter is loaded, it tells the server what sort of notifications it is interested in. After that, whenever the selected events occur, the filter is called and given the opportunity to process that event. Some simple applications of filters are to provide aliases for URLs and to build HTML pages on the fly.

ISAPI Internet Database Connector. This allows Web browsers ODBC (open database connectivity) database access for HTTP requests. Developers can use this feature to create Web pages with information from the database; to insert, update, and delete information in the database based on user input; and to perform other SQL commands.

For information on the availability of the Internet Information Server, see the Server Software section of the Internet Development Toolbox Web site.

Summary

Well, that's a bunch of new information. Let's take a minute to step back and look at how all of the new technology in Sweeper, the Internet Explorer, and the Internet Information Server helps evolve the Internet in the key areas described earlier.

Most importantly, all of this technology is built on top of Win32 and OLE, enabling you to build on your existing investment to Internet-enable your applications.

Where to Go from Here?

A platform is only as interesting as the applications that are written for it. The quality of the applications for a platform is a direct result of the dissemination of technical information to the development community. That's why Microsoft built the Internet Development Toolbox--to provide you with the resources to create successful Internet software. As we mentioned at the beginning of this article, Microsoft has a lot of ground to cover, and the company plans to refine, update, and add more content regularly to the Internet Development Toolbox as soon as the information becomes available.

An Internet Glossary

address  Code by which the Internet identifies you. The format is username@hostname, where username is your user name, login name, or account number, and hostname is the name of the computer or Internet provider you use. The host name may be a few words strung together with periods.

America Online  A public Internet provider. If you have an account on America Online®, username@aol.com is your Internet address, where username is your America Online account name.

anonymous FTP  A way to use the FTP program to log on to another computer to copy files when you don't have an account on that computer. When you log on, enter anonymous as the user name and your address as the password. This gives you access to publicly available files.

ANS (Advanced Network Services)  ANS runs one of the largest high-speed networks on the Internet. Run by IBM, MCI, and Merit.

Archie  A system that helps you find files located anywhere on the Internet. After Archie locates the file, you can use FTP to get it. Archie is both a program and a system of server computers that contain indexes of files.

authentication  Verifying the identity of a person or computer process.

backbone  A high-speed line or series of connections that form a major pathway within a network. The term is relative, because a backbone in a small network will likely be much smaller than many nonbackbone lines in a large network.

bandwidth  How much "stuff" you can send through a connection. Usually measured in bits per second (bps). A full page of English text is about 16,000 bits. A fast modem can move about 15,000 bits in one second. Full-motion, full-screen video would require roughly 10,000,000 bps, depending on compression.

BBS (Bulletin Board System)  A computerized meeting and announcement system that allows people to carry on discussions, upload and download files, and make announcements without being connected to the computer at the same time. There are at least several thousand BBSs around the world. Most BBSs are very small and run on a single IBM-PC compatible with one or two telephone lines.

browser  A client program (software) that is used to search through information provided by a specific type of server. (See also: client, URL, WWW)

chatting  Talking in real time to other network users from any and all parts of the world.

client program  A software program that is used to contact and obtain data from a server software program on another computer, often across a great distance. Each client program is designed to work with one or more types of server programs.

com  When these letters appear at the end of an address (info@microsoft.com), they indicate that the host computer is run by a company rather than a university or government agency. It also means that the host computer is most likely located in the United States.

CompuServe  An online information provider (sometimes abbreviated CIS) that gives some Internet access. If your CompuServe account number is 7123,456 your Internet address will be 7123.456@compuserve.com. Notice that the comma in the CompuServe address becomes a period in the Internet address.

cookies  A mechanism for server-side connections to store and retrieve information on the client side.

cyberspace  A virtual universe of computers, programs, and data.

Delphi  An online information provider that includes access to Internet services. If you have an account on Delphi, your Internet address is username@delphi.com, where username is your Delphi account name.

DNS (Domain Name System)  A system for translating computer names into numeric Internet addresses.

domain name  The unique name that identifies an Internet site. A given machine may have more than one domain name, but a given domain name points to only one machine. It is also possible for a domain name to exist but not be connected to an actual machine. This is often done so that a group or business can have an Internet e-mail address without having to establish a real Internet site. In these cases, an Internet service provider's machine must handle the mail on behalf of the listed domain name. (See also: IP number)

edu  When these letters appear at the end of an address (info@mit.edu), they indicate that the host computer is run by an educational institution. It also means that the host computer is most likely located in the United States.

e-mail (electronic mail)  Messages, usually text, sent from one person to another via computer. E-mail can also be sent automatically to a large number of addresses by using a mailing list. (See also: listserv)

finger  A program that displays information about someone on the net. On most UNIX systems, this command tells you who is logged on right now. On most Internet hosts, it tells you the name (and possibly some other information based on the person's Internet address) and the last time that person logged on.

firewall  A filter for messages. If an organization wants to exchange mail with the Internet, but does not want other Internet members "Telnetting in" and reading those files, its connection to the Internet can be protected by using a firewall.

FTP (File Transfer Protocol)  A method of transferring one or more files from one computer to another over a network or telephone line.

gateway  A computer that connects one network with another when the two networks use different protocols. The UUNET computer connects the UUCP network with the Internet, providing a way for mail messages to move between the two networks.

GEnie  An online service run by General Electric. If you have an account on GEnie and your mail name is ABC, your Internet address is ABC@genie.gies.com.

GIF (Graphic Interchange Format)  The file format commonly used to distribute graphics files on the Internet.

Gopher  A system that lets you find information by using menus. To use Gopher, you usually Telnet to a Gopher server and begin browsing through the menus.

host  A computer on the Internet you may be able to log on to. You can use FTP to get files from a host computer and use other programs (such as Telnet) to make use of the host computer.

HTML (Hypertext Markup Language)  A system used for writing pages for the World Wide Web. HTML allows text to include codes that define fonts, layout, embedded graphics, and hypertext links.

HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)  The method by which World Wide Web pages are transferred over the network.

hypertext  A system of writing and displaying text that enables the text to be linked in multiple ways, available at several levels of detail. Hypertext documents can also contain links to related documents, such as those referred to in footnotes. Hypermedia can also contain pictures, sounds, and /or video.

IETF  The protocol engineering and development arm of the Internet. The IETF is a large, open, international community of network designers, operators, vendors, and researchers concerned with the evolution of the Internet architecture and the smooth operation of the Internet. It is open to any interested individual.

Internet  The vast collection of interconnected networks that all use TCP/IP and that evolved from ARPANET of the late 1960s and early 1970s. The Internet connects roughly 60,000 independent networks into a vast, global network.

IP (Internet Protocol)  The transport layer protocol used as a basis of the Internet. IP enables information to be routed from one network to another in packets and then reassembled when they reach their destination.

IP number  A four-part number separated by periods (for example, 165.113.245.2) that uniquely identifies a machine on the Internet. Every machine on the Internet has a unique IP number; if a machine does not have an IP number, it is not really on the Internet. Most machines also have one or more domain names that are easier for people to remember.

IRC (Internet Relay Chat)  A system that enables Internet users to talk with each other in real time over the Internet rather than in person.

ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network)  A way to move more data over existing regular telephone lines. ISDN is only slowly becoming available in the USA. ISDN can provide speeds of 64,000 bits per second over a regular telephone line at almost the same cost as a normal telephone call.

Jughead  A program that helps you find specified information in Gopher directories. Similar to Veronica, but more focused.

LAN (Local Area Network)  A group of connected computers, usually located close to one another (such as the same building or floor of the building) so that data can be passed among them.

leased line  Refers to a telephone line that is rented for exclusive 24-hour, 7-days-a-week access between your location and another location. The highest speed data connections require a leased line.

listserv  A family of programs that manages mailing lists by distributing messages posted to the list, adding and deleting members automatically.

Login  A noun or a verb. Noun: The account name used to gain access to a computer system. Unlike a password, the login name is not a secret. Verb: The act of entering into a computer system; for example, "Login to the WELL and then go to the GBN conference. "

message  A piece of e-mail or a posting to a newsgroup.

mirror  An FTP server that provides copies of the same files as another server. Some FTP servers are so popular that other servers have been set up to mirror them and spread the FTP load to more than one site.

Modem (MOdulator + DEModulator)  A device that you connect to your computer and to a telephone line to allow the computer to talk to other computers through the system. Modems convert the computer's digital signals into analog waves that can be transmitted over standard voice telephone lines. Modem speeds are measured in bits per second (bps)--also sometimes expressed as kilobits (thousands of bits) per second (Kbps). For example, 28.8 Kbps and 28,800 bps are the same thing--28,800 bits per second.

Mosaic  A Windows-based, WinSock-compliant program that lets you access information on the World Wide Web. Microsoft's version of Mosaic is called The Internet Explorer. Another version is Netscape.

name resolution  The process of mapping a name into its corresponding address.

Netnews  Another name for Usenet. Often refers to Usenet News when being received via the Internet, via NNTP.

Netscape  A Windows-based, WinSock-compliant program that lets you access information on the World Wide Web. This is an improvement on Mosaic.

network  Any time you connect two or more computers together so that they can share resources, you have a computer network. Connect two or more networks together and you have an internet (small "i").

newsgroup  A distributed bulletin board system about a particular topic. Usenet News (also known as Netnews) is a system that distributes thousands of newsgroups to all parts of the Internet.

NNTP (Network News Transfer Protocol)  A protocol defined for distribution, inquiry, retrieval, and posting of news articles.

node  A computer on the Internet, also called a host. Computers that provide a service, such as FTP sites or places that run Gopher, are also called servers.

packet  A chunk of information sent over a network. Each packet contains the destination address, the sender's address, error-control information, and data.

page  A document, or collection of information, available via the World Wide Web. To make information available over the WWW, it is organized into pages. A page may contain text, graphics, video, and/or sound files.

ping  A network management tool that checks to see whether you can communicate with another computer on the Internet. It sends a short message to which the other computer automatically responds. If the other computer does not respond to the ping, you usually cannot establish communications.

Point of Presence (POP)  A physical site in a geographic area where a network access provider, such as UUNET, has equipment to which users connect. The local telephone company's central office in a particular area is also sometimes referred to as their POP for that area. (As an example, AT&T's POP for the Seattle area is in downtown Seattle.)

Post Office Protocol (POP)  A system by which a mail server on the Internet lets you grab your mail and download it to your PC or Macintosh. Most people refer to this protocol with its version number (POP2, POP3, and so on) to avoid confusing it with Point of Presence.

PPP (Point-to-Point Protocol)  A scheme for connecting two computers over a telephone line (or a network link that acts like a telephone line). Similar to SLIP.

Prodigy  An online system run by IBM and Sears. If you have a Prodigy account, username@prodigy.com is your Internet address, where username is your Prodigy user name.

router  A special-purpose computer (or software package) that handles the connection between two or more networks. Routers look at the destination addresses of the packets passing through them and decide which route to use to send them.

server  A computer that provides a service to other computers on a network. An Archie server, for example, lets people on the Internet use Archie.

SLIP (Serial Line Interface Protocol)  A software scheme for connecting a computer to the Internet.

SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol)  A protocol used to transfer e-mail messages between computers.

socket  When your computer is on the Internet via a SLIP connection, a socket is a conversation your computer is having with a computer elsewhere on the Internet. You may have one socket for an FTP session, another socket for a Telnet session, and another socket taking care of getting your mail.

TCP/IP (Transfer Control Protocol/Internet Protocol)  The system that networks use to communicate with each other on the Internet.

Telnet  The command and program used to login from one Internet site to another. The Telnet command/program gets you to the "login" prompt of another host.

terminal  A device that allows you to send commands to another computer. At a minimum, this usually means a keyboard and a display screen and some simple circuitry. Usually you will use terminal software in a personal computer--the software pretends to be ("emulates") a physical terminal and allows you to type commands to another computer.

UNIX  A computer operating system (the basic software running on a computer, underneath things such as word processors and spreadsheets). UNIX is designed to be used by many computer users at the same time (it is "multiuser") and has TCP/IP built in. It is the most common operating system for servers on the Internet.

URL (Uniform Resource Locator)  The standard way to give the address of any resource on the Internet that is part of the World Wide Web. This is an example of a URL: http://www.matisse.net/seminars.html. The most common way to use a URL is to enter into a Web browser program, such as Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape® Navigator.

Usenet  An informal group of systems that exchanges news. Usenet predates the Internet, but today, the Internet is used to transfer much of Usenet's traffic.

UUCP UNIX-to-UNIX copy  A file-copying facility between UNIX systems, on which mail and Usenet news sevices were built. Although UUCP is still used (and is somewhat useful), the Internet provides a better way to do the same job.

UUNET  UUNET Technologies, Inc., provides global communication via the Internet. UUNET offered the first commercial-quality service for Usenet and UUCP connectivity, and it was the first to provide officially sanctioned relaying of mail between the Internet and UUCP worlds.

Veronica (Very Easy Rodent Oriented Net-wide Index to Computerized Archives)  A program that uses word searches to locate articles in Gopherspace. Developed at the University of Nevada, Veronica is a constantly updated database of names of almost every menu item on thousands of Gopher servers. (See also: Gopher)

viewer  A program used by Gopher, WAIS, or WWW client programs to show files with contents other than text. You would use a viewer to display graphics or video files, or to play sound files.

WAIS (Wide Area Information Servers)  A system that lets you search for documents that contain specific information that you are looking for.

WAN (Wide Area Network)  Any internet or network that covers an area larger than a single building or campus. (See also: Internet, LAN, network)

Windows Socket (WinSock)  Windows Sockets is a standard way for Windows-based programs to work with TCP/IP. You can use WinSock if you use SLIP to connect to the Internet.

WWW (World Wide Web)  A hypermedia-based system for accessing information on the Internet.

W3C (World Wide Web Consortium)  The World Wide Web is the universe of network-accessible information. The World Wide Web Consortium exists to realize the full potential of the Web. W3C works with the global community to produce specifications and reference software. W3C is funded by industrial members, but its products are freely available to all.

© 1996 Microsoft Corporation