backbone - a high-speed line or series of connections that forms a major pathway within a network. The term is relative as a backbone in a small network will likely be much smaller than many non-backbone lines in a large network.

 

backdoor (or remote access Trojan) – is a program that surreptitiously allows access to a computer's resources (files, network connections, configuration information, etc) via a network connection. Note that such functionality is often included in legitimate software designed and intended to allow such access.

 

backslash (\) - DOS symbol used to separate directory, sub-directory and file names in a path statement or when changing to another directory using the CD command. (compare "slash")

 

backup - spare copy of a file, file system or other resource for use in the event of failure or loss of the original.

 

backward combatability - A software or hardware change that allows older versions to coexist without crashes or giving error messages.

 

bandwidth - amount of data that can be sent through a network connection, measured in bits per second (bps).

 

batch file - text file containing operating system commands that are executed automatically by the command interpreter.

 

baud rate {bawd} - number of discrete signal events per second occurring on a communications channel. (Not to be confused with bit rate.)

 

bells and whistles - Features added to a program or system to make it more flavorful from a hacker's point of view, without necessarily adding to its utility for its primary function. Distinguished from chrome, which is intended to attract users. No one seems to know what distinguishes a bell from a whistle. The recognized emphatic form is “bells, whistles, and gongs.”

 

It used to be thought that this term derived from the toyboxes on theater organs. However, the “and gongs” strongly suggests a different origin, at sea. Before powered horns, ships routinely used bells, whistles, and gongs to signal each other over longer distances than voice can carry.

 

BHTML [Broadcast Hypertext Markup Language] - markup language based on XML, designed for synchronization of digital television, data, and Internet technologies.

 

binary - numbering system based on 2, using only 0 and 1.

 

binary file - file that contains more than plain text (ASCII), such as pictures, programs, etc. (compare "ASCII file")

 

BIOS {BI-ose} [Basic Input/Output System] - the part of the operating system of a PC that provides the lowest level interface to peripheral devices

 

bit [derived from the contraction of binary and digit] - A computational quantity that can take on one of two values, such as true and false or 0 and 1.

 

bitmap - An image represented as an array of bits. In bitmap graphics, an image is displayed on the screen as a collection of tiny squares called pixels, which together form a pattern.

 

bit rate - an indication of how fast bits of information are transmitted during data transfer. A measurement of the speed (usually in bits per second) of operation of a modem.

 

blog - Short for weblog, an on-line web-zine or diary (usually with facilities for reader comments and discussion threads) made accessible through the World Wide Web. This term is widespread and readily forms derivatives, of which the best known may be blogosphere.

 

blogosphere - The totality of all blogs. A culture heavily overlapping with but not coincident with hackerdom. Bloggers often divide themselves into warbloggers and techbloggers. The techbloggers write about technology and technology policy, while the warbloggers are more politically focused. The overlap with hackerdom is heaviest among the techbloggers, but several of the most prominent warbloggers are also hackers. Bloggers in general tend to be aware of and sympathetic to the hacker culture.

 

blue screen of death - error that sometimes appears on computers running Windows 9x or Windows XP; the screen turns blue, and the computer usually freezes.

 

Bluetooth - a networking standard that works at two levels:

* It provides agreement at the physical level - Bluetooth is a radio-frequency standard.

* It provides agreement at the protocol level, where products have to agree on when bits are sent, how many will be sent at a time, and how the parties in a conversation can be sure that the message received is the same as the message sent.

 

bookmark (Netscape) - stored Web page address (URL) that you can go to easily by clicking a bookmark icon in the Personal Toolbar or choosing the bookmark's name from the Bookmarks menu.

 

borderless printing - A print that covers the entire sheet of paper. In the past, many printers would only print with a small unprinted border around the edge. Now, many printer models come with borderless printing as a feature. When the image does not have the right ratio to cover the entire page, users can frequently allow the printer to automatically crop the image so a full-page print is possible.

 

boot - load and initialize the operating system on a computer. The series of steps that take place when a computer is started.

 

boot disk - formatted disk, containing the operating system, which can be used to start a computer in Drive A.

 

boot drive - drive (usually drive C) that contains the operating system and is used to boot the computer.

 

boot up - load a computer's operating system.

 

boot virus - A virus that infects a computer when the computer is booted from an infected disk. A boot virus may make it impossible to start the computer.

 

bounced e-mail - An electronic mail message returned with a notice indicating the transmission failed, either because the message was misaddressed or a connection failed.

 

bps [bits per second] - number of bits transmitted every second during data transfer. A measurement of the speed of operation of a modem. (Not synonymous with "baud")

 

broadband - transmission medium that can carry signals from multiple independent network carriers on a single coaxial or fiber-optic cable, by establishing different bandwidth channels. Broadband technology can support a wide range of frequencies and is used to transmit data, voice, & video over long distances.

 

browser - program that allows the user to navigate the World Wide Web without having to know or remember site addresses.

 

browser helper object (BHO) - component that Internet Explorer (IE) will load whenever it starts, shares IE's memory context, can perform any action on the available windows and modules. A BHO can detect events; create windows to display additional information on a viewed page; and monitor messages and actions. Microsoft calls it "a spy we send to infiltrate the browser's land." There are many exploits of this technology that search all pages you view in IE and replace banner advertisements with other ads, monitor and report on your actions, change your home page, etc."

 

burner - A CD recorder or DVD recorder.

 

bus - internal pathway along which signals are sent from one part of the computer to another.

 

byte - a unit of measurement of information storage, most often consisting of eight bits.