Archive for January, 2008

What is Ripping and Burning?

Rip a Disk
Rip is the slang term for the process of copying digital data from a CD or DVD onto a computer. The word rip comes from the idea of ripping, or peeling, the data from a disc, which is not what really happens. Ripping a disk simply copies the data. It does not remove […]

Uploading and Downloading

Upload is the general term to describe the process of sending a computer file from your computer to somewhere else on the Internet. For the casual user the term is encountered mostly when sending photos or video clips, either to a friend via web email or to a photo-sharing site like Flickr.
When computer files, including […]

Bandwidth and Broadband

Bandwidth is the term used to describe the amount of information that can cross any particular point in either direction on the Internet. Higher bandwidth means more data can be transferred. It also costs more money. Related to bandwidth is the term traffic. If you think of bandwidth as a highway, ranging from a gravel […]

What is an ISP?

Your Internet service provider, abbreviated ISP, is the company that you pay to connect your home computers to the Internet. In the early days of the Internet, online subscription services such as GEnie, Prodigy, CompuServe, and America Online (AOL), had dial-up services with graphical interfaces, but they were all closed systems. In other words, once […]

Does Everyone need a Router?

Most homes have a single connection to the Internet, which is shared by all of the computers in the home. This process is made possible by an additional piece of hardware called a router. Technically, a router is a more general term which applies to specialized computer devices which control all Internet traffic at an […]

The Cyber-Toothed Tiger

The cyber-toothed tiger, Smilodon cyberis, was the last surviving species of the genus Smilodon: Class Mammalia » Order Carnivora » Suborder Feliformia » Family Felidae – prehistoric saber-toothed cats easily identified by the extreme size of their maxillary canine teeth, that roamed North and South America for millions of years.
Most of the smilodons became extinct […]