Gantt Chart
A diagrammatic technique used for planning and tracking projects.
Gateway
A networking device, which links networks together. It scrutinises the data traveling between networks and may block its path for any number of reasons. In many ways similar to a hostile border guard which may decide to refuse admission to a person traveling to an adjoining country.
GIS
Geographic Information System. Data warehousing decision support tool focusing on data that has a spatial aspect. An example of GIS in action is where the data associated with people's income is plotted on a map of say Europe.
GNU
GNU is Not Unix. This recursive title is a reference to a Unix-like operating system, which spawned the open source movement. At this point in time it exists in a parallel universe to Linux, but they are converging.
Gnutella
Is a file sharing system, which allows networked users to share files on each other's computers. It is open source software. The originators were keen eaters of Nutella, and intended to license the software under the GNU General Public Licence.
Gopher
Gopher is a distributed document search and retrieval system that acted as a pre-web version of the World Wide Web. Being text-based it lost out to the graphical user interface of the modern day World Wide Web.
Green screen
A term used to describe a dumb terminal. It is a reference to the fact that many dumb terminals have a dark green background on which is displayed light green text.
Grid Computing
A term associated with distributed computing. Specifically the Grid is an instance of this created by academic institutions and looks set to become the next internet. The academics have linked very powerful servers together using high-speed networks. Latterly IBM has commandeered this term to describe how it can help organizations pool and utilize the unused processing resource available in both their servers and desktop devices.
GSM
Group Special Mobile. A digital cellular technology for providing voice quality communications. Sometimes referred to as 2G.
GUI
Graphical User Interface. A type of user interface, which utilizes graphics, colour and windows. The less attractive alternative is a character based user interface (aka command line).
Hardware
IT systems are made up of hardware, software and data. Hardware is the stuff you can see and touch. It generally is of no use until it is loaded with software. Examples include, printers, PCs and servers.
Help desk
An arrangement set up to act as an interface between users/clients and the internal technical staff. Most commonly used to protect IT departments from abusive phone calls.
HTML
HyperText Mark Up Language. The language used to create web pages. Not a programming language, as such, it simply provides the means format the web page. So HTML determines the 'look and feel' of the web page. To give the web page functionality one needs to incorporate software into the web page. See Scripting Language.
HTTP
Hyper Text Transfer Protocol, part of the TCP/IP series of protocols, specifically responsible for managing transfer of web pages from the web server to the user's device.
Hub
A piece of hardware that forms the central point of a star network topology. It is a device that is usually used in small offices to network computers together, e.g. all the PCs and printers would be connected, wired or wirelessly, to the hub.
Hypermedia
Multimedia with hyperlinks. With hypermedia it is possible to incorporate hyperlinks into video. So if you like the look of James Bond's watch then click on it and the order form will appear.
IBM
International Business Machines. An IT services company that can be considered as one of the creators of the modern IT industry.
ICANN
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. It handles a number of Internet related tasks such as domain name and IP address allocation. It is sponsored by the US Government, which makes many people feel that the Internet is owned or at least controlled by the United States.
ILM|
See Information Lifecycle Management.
I-Mode
A wireless internet technology created by Docomo of Japan, which allows users to access the Web via their palm tops and phones. Seen as a user-friendly alternative to Wap.
Implementation
The phase of the software development lifecycle associated with code generation and system building (aka integration). Sometimes referred to as the Build or Construction phase. NB. Technophobic line managers are comforted when the project enters this phase, hence their occasionally misguided desire to schedule it before analysis and design.
Infomediary
Information intermediary. A provider of information. In e-business terms this takes the form of a website which provides users with a single point of access to a variety of related information resources.
Information Lifecycle Management
A term used to describe an organization's approach to managing its storage technologies. Choice of technologies is usually governed by speed of access versus cost of media.
Intelligent Network
Is a fixed and wireless network architecture that enables telecom operators to provide value-added services without having to redesign the underlying switching equipment.
Intermediation
An e-business term to describe an organization that positions itself between two established points in the business supply chain, eg. WorldPay sitting between banks and consumers. Some doteconomy 'die-hards' refer to this as antidisintermediation.
Internet
A network of networks that span the world that is underpinned by TCP/IP and routers, which enables users to use applications such as email and the world wide web.
Internetworking
A term used to refer to communications that extend across multiple networks.
Interoperability
The degree to which two or more software / hardware components work together.
Intranet
A closed network based on Internet technologies. Typically used by organizations to facilitate information sharing within the organization.
IP
Internet Protocol-Each computer (known as a host) on the Internet has at least one IP address that uniquely identifies it from all other computers on the Internet. Because a message is divided into a number of packets, each packet can, if necessary, be sent by a different route across the Internet. Packets can arrive in a different order than the order they were sent in. The Internet Protocol just delivers them. It's up to another protocol, the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) to put them back in the right order.
IPv6
Internet Protocol Version 6- The most obvious improvement in IPv6 over the IPv4 is that IP addresses are lengthened from 32 bits to 128 bits. This extension anticipates considerable future growth of the Internet and provides relief for what was perceived as an impending shortage of network addresses.
IT Governance
Can be considered a subset of corporate governance. It refers to the performance and management of one's IT assets. The growing 'popularity' of regulatory compliance means that strategic IT decision making needs to include input from all stakeholders. Traditionally the IT department was treated as a black box and as a result such decisions were left to the IT staff. This is unacceptable from a corporate governance perspective.
i-TV
Interactive TV. Turning the TV into a 2 way medium. Digital television is enabling this. This will take off as broadband networking, the web and broadcast media increasingly overlap.