WAMP Definition Stands for "Windows, Apache, MySQL, and PHP." WAMP is a variation of LAMP for Windows systems and is often installed as a software bundle (Apache, MySQL, and PHP). It is often used for web development and internal testing, but may also be used to serve live websites. The most important part of the WAMP package is Apache (or "Apache HTTP Server") which is used run the web server within Windows. By running a local Apache web server on a Windows machine, a web developer can test we...

MySQL Definition MySQL, pronounced either "My S-Q-L" or "My Sequel," is an open source relational database management system. It is based on the structure query language (SQL), which is used for adding, removing, and modifying information in the database. Standard SQL commands, such as ADD, DROP, INSERT, and UPDATE can be used with MySQL. MySQL can be used for a variety of applications, but is most commonly found on Web servers. A website that uses MySQL may include Web pages that access inform...

Database Definition A database is a data structure that stores organized information. Most databases contain multiple tables, which may each include several different fields. For example, a company database may include tables for products, employees, and financial records. Each of these tables would have different fields that are relevant to the information stored in the table. Nearly all e-commerce sites uses databases to store product inventory and customer information. These sites use a data...

SQL Definition Stands for "Structured Query Language," and can be pronounced as either "sequel" or "S-Q-L." It is a query language used for accessing and modifying information in a database. Some common SQL commands include "insert," "update," and "delete." The language was first created by IBM in 1975 and was called SEQUEL for "Structured English Query Language." Since then, it has undergone a number of changes, many coming from Oracle products. Today, SQL is commonly used for Web database dev...

Perl Definition Perl actually stands for "Practical Extraction and Report Language," but you don't really need to know that unless you want to impress your nerd friends. Perl is a scripting language which uses a syntax similar to C/C++. It is commonly used by Web programmers to create scripts for Web servers. Perl is especially good at parsing text, so programmers often use it for reading and searching through text files. As a regular computer user, you won't get to see Perl in action, since it...

Script Definition A computer script is a list of commands that are executed by a certain program or scripting engine. Scripts may be used to automate processes on a local computer or to generate Web pages on the Web. For example, DOS scripts and VB Scripts may be used to run processes on Windows machines, while AppleScript scripts can automate tasks on Macintosh computers. ASP, JSP, and PHP scripts are often run on Web servers to generate dynamic Web page content. Script files are usually just ...

File Extension Definition A file extension (or simply "extension") is the suffix at the end of a filename that indicates what type of file it is. For example, in the filename "myreport.txt," the .TXT is the file extension. It indicates the file is a text document. Some other examples include .DOCX, which is used for Microsoft Word documents, and .PSD, which is the standard file extension for Photoshop documents. While most file extensions are three characters in length, they can be as short as ...

Trojan Horse Definition In Greek mythology, there is a story about the Trojan War. This war lasted many years, as the Greeks could not penetrate the heavily barricaded city of Troy. So one day, a few of the Greek soldiers brought the people of Troy a large wooden horse, which they accepted as a peace offering. The horse was moved inside the city walls, where it sat until the night. After the people of the city had fallen asleep, Greek soldiers jumped out of the wooden horse, opened the gates to ...

GUI Definition Stands for "Graphical User Interface" and is pronounced "gooey." It is a user interface that includes graphical elements, such as windows, icons and buttons. The term was created in the 1970s to distinguish graphical interfaces from text-based ones, such as command line interfaces. However, today nearly all digital interfaces are GUIs. The first commercially available GUI, called "PARC," was developed by Xerox. It was used by the Xerox 8010 Information System, which was released ...

Android Definition Android is a mobile operating system developed by Google. It is used by several smartphones and tablets. Examples include the Sony Xperia, the Samsung Galaxy, and the Google Nexus One. The Android operating system (OS) is based on the Linux kernel. Unlike Apple's iOS, Android is open source, meaning developers can modify and customize the OS for each phone. Therefore, different Android-based phones often have different graphical user interfaces GUIs even though they use the s...