Glossary of Internet Terms

©2007 by Walt Howe

Select the first character of the term you want to look up or use the Search link below.

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Letter E

e- (prefix)
A prefix meaning electronic for current jargon terms, such as e-commerce, e-business, and so on.

Easter egg
A hidden, undocumented program sequence built into a program that only activates when you press the right keys. They are often funny, and they are often used to introduce the team that developed the program. For many examples, see the Easter Egg Archive.

e-mail
Electronic mail. One of the earliest standard Internet protocols which enables people with different computers and operating systems to communicate with each other. E-mail allows one-to-one or one-to-many mailings. Mail is received and held by a mail server within an organization or by an Internet service provider until the addressee logs on to collect the mail. The Internet e-mail standards include no provision for authenticating the sender, which makes it possible for spammers to use false From addresses and routing. See the E-mail FAQ.

emoticon
See smiley face.

ethernet
LAN protocol developed by DEC, Intel, and Xerox as an outgrowth of Harvard graduate student Bob Metcalfe’s dissertation on packet networks. Computers using TCP/IP often connect to the Internet via ethernet LANs. Ethernet typically uses a bus (daisy chain) topology.

extranet
A network that supplements a closed intranet by providing access to customers, suppliers, subcontractors, and others outside the organization who have a need for selective information from the organization. It is not accessible to the Internet at large.

(last updated 22 October 2012)