9 Commonly Misunderstood Terms By Clients
Recently, a lot of clients have been asking us, what does that mean? In the world of the Internet, it is often difficult to describe what we mean when new terms are constantly being coined. As such, we have decided to take a few minutes to define some key terms that will ultimately help clients familiarize themselves with the Internet and its many tools and applications.
What Is A Browser?
A browser is the program which enables you to use, or browse, the Internet. The most widely used browsers include Internet Explorer, which comes pre-loaded on Windows computers; Firefox, a free alternative which can be used on any type of computer; and Safari, which comes pre-loaded on Macintosh computers. We would recommend using one of the major three browsers: Internet Explorer 7, Firefox, or Safari. All are free to download and use for any computer system. We highly recommend against using AOL browser or other branded browser, such as MSN browser. These usually incorporate Internet Explorer 6 technologies, which have lots of security flaws and do not support new technologies and techniques for displaying websites.
How can I tell which browser I have?
You can always click on the Help item in the top menu of your browser window and select the About [browser name] from the drop down. That will display a pop up window with the version number and the brand of browser you are using.
You can also check the screen shots below of some common browsers. You are most likely using one of them. If you have Internet Explorer 6, please upgrade to the Internet Explorer 7, which includes many security patches and improved features and support.
 Internet Explorer 6 |
 Internet Explorer 7 |
 Firefox 3.0 |
 Safari |
What Is Browser Cache?
Browser cache is a temporary storage space on your computer hard drive that allows your web browser to save files you access often on the Internet. By storing these files, which usually include images, Flash animations or videos, it allows your browser to display these items faster by using the last stored version. Each time you visit a website, your computer downloads the images on the web page and stores them in the cache. If you revisit a site, your browser will check the cache to see if it has already downloaded the images or other files on that page and display the previously downloaded versions if they exist. You may notice that some websites load quicker once you’ve been there a couple times.
Ok, so I get what a browser cache is. What does this have to do with me and why do I need to know about something that runs automatically in the background?
The browser cache can sometimes play tricks on you when we are updating items on your site and we ask you to check out the changes. For example, we update a picture on your site and say, “Hey! Your new picture is up! Take a look!” You go to your site, which you visit often, and your browser shows the same old image. Why?? You write us back, “I don’t know what you’re talking about; the old image is still there!” This is because the browser cache is showing you the old downloaded version.
Ok ok, so now I see how the browser cache can affect my working relationship with you. How do I work around this?
Often times, just refreshing your browser will work. However, for larger files, a simple refresh won’t do the trick. This is when you need to clear your browser cache. To do this, you will need to know what browser you are using (see above if you aren’t sure). Here are some simple instructions for the three major browsers. If your browser isn’t listed here, you can do a search in Google for your browser name and version number with the words “clear cache”.
Internet Explorer 6: Please upgrade to Internet Explorer 7 by clicking here and following the instructions.
Internet Explorer 7:
- From the Tools menu, select Internet Options.
- Choose the General tab.
- Under Browsing history, click Delete.
- Next to “Temporary Internet Files”, click Delete Files.
- Click Close, and then OK to exit.
Firefox 3:
- From the Tools menu
- Select Clear Private Data
- Check Cache checkbox
- Click Clear Private Data Now.
Safari:
- From the Safari menu, select Empty Cache.
- When prompted, click Empty to confirm that you want to empty the cache.
What is a Refresh Button?
As mentioned above, we may ask you to refresh your browser if you do not see updates that we made to your website. There are several ways to refresh your browser and the methods are typically cross-browser. You can try pressing the F5 key, or, if you use Mac, you may need to press the Command key and R together. Every browser also has a button you can click to refresh the page. It will generally look like this and be located somewhere along the top main navigation toolbar of your browser.
Internet Explorer 6 Refresh Button
Internet Explorer 7 Refresh Button
Firefox Refresh Button
Safari Refresh Button
What is Hosting or a Web Server?
You may wonder why we charge $14.95 per month or $150 per year for this obscure service called Hosting. We promise; we aren’t ripping you off! Every website that you can access through your web browser MUST have hosting service. Websites are made up of a bunch of files, which contain your website content and tell your browser how to display the content. As such, your files must have a place to call home. This place is called a web server: a computer somewhere that stores your files and allows other computers attempting to view your site to download a copy of the files. Your browser does this every time you access any website. How do the computers know which server to go to for your files? That’s where your website domain name comes in. The domain name servers tell websites where your files are stored and directs them there so they can retrieve your website.
What is a Domain Name?
Your domain name is your web address, or URL. They are usually in the format of www.yourdomain.com. They can also end in .net, .org, or other various endings.
What Are Domain Name Servers (DNS)
Most likely, we will handle updating these for you. The nameservers are usually in format of ns1.domain.com. The name server is an address for your web server and tells your domain where to look for the files when someone types your domain name in to access your site.
