Select the first letter of the word from the list above to jump to appropriate section of the glossary or type the term on which you want to search.

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conversion program

an application that changes a file from one format to another.

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cookie

a piece of data such as logon and user information, user preferences, and shopping information automatically sent by a Website through a Web server and stored by a Web Browser. It is the intent of the Website sending the cookie to recognize a user who has visited them in the past. On subsequent visits, the information contained in the cookie returns to the originating site, allowing the operator to offer specific products and services tailored to the user’s preferences as determined by previous visits. Due to certain privacy issues regarding the gathering of personal information, users sometimes have the option of disabling cookies.

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CoolTalk

a real-time desktop audio conferencing and data collaboration tool specifically designed for the Internet. CoolTalk provides real-time audio conferencing at 28.8K and faster modem speeds, and includes a full function whiteboard, text-based chat tool, and answering machine.

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copy

1. the duplication of information.
2. a DOS, OS/2, or Windows command that makes a copy of a file.
3. to duplicate and temporarily store data in a holding space or buffer such as a clipboard for further use. see copy and paste.

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copy and paste

in a word processing application, to duplicate an item such as an individual character, line of text, image or an entire document, and insert it at another point within the document, or into a different document or file, while retaining the original copied material in its original location. see paste.

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copy protection

various methods used mainly in the 1970s and 1980s to keep users from making unauthorized copies of software programs on disk. The drawback to copy protected software is that making a backup copy becomes difficult if not impossible. Under US Copyright law, users are allowed to backup disks. Consequently, software manufacturers have tried to discourage piracy by requiring that the user enters a registration number when installing the program.

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copyright

the right to copy, a legal restriction of the reproduction of written, recorded, and electronic articles, books, audio and video recordings, and most computer software programs. The copyright is intended to protect the author’s rights of ownership of the work. An author need not register a work with the US Copyright Office to be protected under the law. Technically, simply declaring that a work is copyrighted by publishing it with © and the date is enough, however, official registration with the US Copyright office may prove to be prudent. The copyright symbol is common and appears as follows: The User Friendly Guide to Internet & Computer Terms Copyright © 2001 Gold Standard Press Inc. All rights reserved.

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CORBA

(Common Object Request Broker Architecture) a standardized architecture that allows portions of programs, known as objects, to interact without regard to differing programming languages.

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Courier

a typewriter-like font used on typewriters, inkjet, dot matrix, and laser printers.

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CPU

(Central Processing Unit) sometimes referred to as the brains of the computer, the CPU is where the majority of the mathematical calculations, decoding of data, and the execution of coded instructions occurs. In personal computers the central processing unit resides in a single chip called a microprocessor. When someone refers to the speed of a computer, the reference is to the CPU and is measured in megahertz (Mhz). see microprocessor, processor.