What the?! 5 Odd Internet Terms

Many people these days are familiar with basic terminology relating to the internet, as most of us use this technology on a daily basis and have therefore had to become familiar with certain terms.

However, unless you work in certain industries, namely the IT and computer industries, there are probably many terms that you have never heard before and that might completely baffle you if you come across them! Here are five odd internet terms that you may not have come across in the past, along with an explanation of what they actually mean...

Cloud computing
This is a term that is becoming more and more common, simply because the facility is becoming increasingly popular. In a nutshell, cloud computing involves the use of remote server networks that are hosted on the internet in order to store and manage files and data. This is as opposed to using local servers, which restrict access to files and data.

Many of us use cloud computing regularly without even realizing that we are doing it, such as when we use social networking sites or Google Drive. The cloud is a virtual environment that offers huge capacity, flexibility, and easy access to stored data as well as the ability to share files and data.

Disemvoweling
This might sound like something that happens in a horror flick, but it is actually a process that more and more of us have started to use as a result of the amount of time we spend using our high tech devices. Basically, disemvoweling is the removal of all vowels from a word, which then abbreviates the word, thus speeding up the time it takes to type a sentence.

Many of us associate it with text messages but it is also becoming more common in places such as internet forums. For example, you might type brwn instead of brown (note the removal of the 'O') or lzy instead of lazy (with the 'a' having been removed). You can create whole sentences and paragraphs like this.

Mousetrapping
Mousetrapping has been described as a deceptive and unfair practice used by some websites to try and stop visitors from leaving their website and expose them to information and services even though they may not be interested and may simply want to come out of the site. Processes such as a barrage of pop ups or even the resetting of the user's homepage are used to trap internet users and keep them on the site as long as possible.

Email bankruptcy
This term basically means that all emails that are older than a specified date are deleted because of the high volume of messages. This process can occur with legitimate messages where volumes have built up, such as in cases where you have been away for a long period. Usually, senders are notified of the situation during the process so that they can resend important messages if necessary.

Eyeballs
The term eyeballs is used to refer to the number of people that look at a site. In years gone by, many companies starting up on the Internet spent a lot of time focussing on how they could attract more 'eyeballs' but not enough time focussing on how they could actually convert these eyeballs into cash, which created huge issues and is thought to have contributed to the dot.com bubble.

  Hannah Geach

About the Guest Author:

Hannah Geach is a specialist in telecoms, using providers such as Macquarie Telecom in her day to day work.