anonymous FTP -- the process of connecting to a remote computer that does not require any identification or password. In this case the user name used is either blank or ╥anonymous╙ and the password is optional. Several archives of Macintosh software are available to all by anonymous FTP.
binary file -- a file that may contain any characters in any format; not a text file. Files in MacBinary II format or MacHost format are binary files.
directory -- a collection of files and sub-directories, equivalent to Macintosh folders. Sub-directories are directories within some other directory; the enclosing directory is known as the parent directory. Most systems have a notion of the current directory, the directory whose files your are viewing at that time. Not all systems have directories, and some systems do not permit sub-directories.
download -- the operation of moving a file from some other computer to your own.
host -- the remote computer you are connected to. This computer runs a program that accepts your connections, and therefore can be seen as your host. Most host computers are minicomputers and mainframes, but a microcomputer can also act as a host.
Internet -- a collection of networks (including NSFnet, Milnet, and others) linking universities, commercial sites, and military bases around the world. All Internet machines are required to support FTP for file transfer, and are therefore accessible to Fetch. Dartmouth is connected to the Internet via NEARnet.
IP number -- a type of computer address of the form number.number.number.number (e.g. 128.170.48.4). Usually you will refer to machines by their names (e.g. "Dartvax") but Fetch can also connect to machines with just their numeric address.
text file -- a file containing lines of letters, numbers, and punctuation. Most word processors can create text files and some editors (such as TeachText and BBEdit) only create text files. A non-text file is a binary file.
TCP/IP -- a protocol suite developed for the Department of Defense, and used by many types of computers (particularly machines running the Unix¬ operating system). FTP, the protocol used by Fetch, is part of the TCP/IP family of protocols. Fetch uses TCP/IP services in one of two ways: with the KSP protocol and a translating gateway (such as Dartmouth's AppleTalk-IP gateway), or with Apple's MacTCP product.
upload -- the operation of moving a file from your computer to some other one.
If you would like to see other terms defined send a note to Fetch@dartmouth.edu.
