Knowledge base

The glossary

Every term we use with clients, defined plainly. Browse a subject area, jump to a letter, or search.

Browse by subject

Each area collects the concepts that belong together.

Web Hosting Plain definitions of the web hosting words you meet when you put a website online: uptime, service level agreements, storage, SSL and the parts of a hosting plan that decide how fast and reliable a site is. 2 Servers What servers and the databases on them do, in plain words: VPS and dedicated machines, MySQL, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Redis and the terms you need when you run your own server. 4 Domains Domain names made simple: registration, DNS, nameservers, renewals, transfers and the words you need to choose, connect and protect your website's address. 0 E-commerce The language of selling online: SKUs, product variants, abandoned carts, order tracking, payments, point of sale and the numbers that show how a store is really doing. 30 Cloud Computing Cloud computing and the tools that ship software to it: what the cloud is, how Docker and Kubernetes run applications, and how Git and CI/CD keep releases safe. 5 Social Media Social media terms for businesses: WhatsApp marketing, influencer campaigns, video ads and the words behind growing an audience and talking to customers where they already are. 3 Websites The building blocks of a website in plain words: HTML, CSS, responsive design, right-to-left layouts and how a website differs from a web application. 6 Web Applications Terms you meet when a company builds or buys a web application: APIs, dashboards, user roles, single sign-on, deployment, scalability and the cost of owning software. 29 Mobile Apps Mobile app words explained: native and hybrid apps, push notifications, in-app purchases, app store review, offline sync and what keeps an app updated and secure. 25 Cybersecurity Security terms every business should know: phishing, ransomware, encryption, two-factor authentication, zero trust, backups and the habits that keep data and accounts safe. 35 Digital Marketing Digital marketing terms explained: conversion rate, landing pages, sales funnels, email campaigns, pay per click, attribution and the numbers that show what really works. 26 Artificial Intelligence Artificial intelligence in plain words: machine learning, large language models, chatbots and how businesses use AI to answer customers and automate everyday work. 4 Internet of Things Internet of Things terms made simple: connected devices, sensors, gateways and the words behind smart buildings, tracking and machines that report their own status. 0 Programming Languages Short, clear definitions of the programming languages behind today's software: Python, PHP, JavaScript, TypeScript, Java, Go, Rust, Kotlin, Swift, SQL and more. 12 Frameworks The frameworks developers build on, defined plainly: Laravel, Django, React, Next.js, Node.js, Flutter and what each one brings to a web or mobile project. 6 Search Engines Search engine terms explained: SEO, indexing, sitemaps, canonical URLs, featured snippets, search intent and what helps a website appear in Google and AI answers. 30 User Interfaces User interface and experience terms: prototypes, user experience, dark mode and the design choices that make software and websites easy and pleasant to use. 3

Where people start.

Loyalty Program A loyalty program is a scheme that pays customers for coming back, usually in points they can spend on a later purchase. E-commerce Coupon Code A coupon code is a short word or number that a customer types at checkout so the shop takes an agreed amount off the order. E-commerce CSS CSS CSS is the language that decides how a web page looks, and because it sits in its own file, one change there restyles every page at once. Websites Chatbot A software assistant that talks with visitors by text or voice on a website or messaging app to answer questions, take orders, or book appointments at any hour. Basic versions follow fixed button menus, while AI versions understand everyday language. Artificial Intelligence PHP PHP is a programming language that builds a web page on the server before sending it to your screen, and much of the web still works that way. Programming Languages App Store Review App store review is the check that Apple and Google run on every app and every update before they let it into their store. Mobile Apps Two-Factor Authentication 2FA Two-factor authentication is a sign-in that asks for your password and then for something you are holding, so a stolen password alone is not enough to get in. Cybersecurity Rust Rust is a programming language that refuses to build your program at all if it contains the memory mistakes behind most serious security holes. Programming Languages JavaScript JavaScript is the language every web browser understands on its own, which is why anything that changes on a page without reloading it is written in it. Programming Languages Artificial Intelligence AI Artificial intelligence is software that works out useful answers from examples, instead of following rules that a person wrote out in advance. Artificial Intelligence MySQL MySQL is the most widely used free database in the world, and it is where a website keeps its customers, orders and prices in tidy tables. Servers TypeScript TypeScript is JavaScript with labels on the data, so a mistake is caught while the code is still being written instead of after it reaches customers. Programming Languages

All concepts, A to Z

A

A/B Testing A/B testing shows two versions of the same page to different visitors at the same time, so you can count which version got more people to act. Read the definition Abandoned Cart An abandoned cart is a basket a customer filled in your shop and then left without paying, which happens to roughly seven baskets out of every ten. Read the definition Account Takeover ATO Account takeover happens when a stranger signs in to a customer's shop account with a password stolen somewhere else, then spends the saved card and the points. Read the definition Anchor Text Anchor text is the clickable wording of a link, and it tells the reader what they will find before they decide to click. Read the definition App Download Size App download size is the number of megabytes someone has to spend before your app will even open on their phone for the first time. Read the definition App Localization App localization is making an app feel as if it were built in the country using it, from its language and screen direction to its dates and prices. Read the definition App Maintenance Cost App maintenance cost is the money you spend every year after launch to keep an app working, and it is the part owners forget to budget for. Read the definition App Permissions App permissions are the yes-or-no questions your phone asks before an app is allowed to touch something private, like the camera or your location. Read the definition App Ratings and Reviews App ratings and reviews are the stars and short comments on your store page that most people judge your app by in about three seconds. Read the definition App Store Optimization ASO App store optimization is the work of getting your app to show up in the App Store and Google Play when someone searches for the thing it does. Read the definition App Store Review App store review is the check that Apple and Google run on every app and every update before they let it into their store. Read the definition Application Programming Interface (API) API A software bridge that connects your website or mobile application to external services like payment gateways and maps, enabling systems to exchange data and instructions quickly and securely. Read the definition Artificial Intelligence AI Artificial intelligence is software that works out useful answers from examples, instead of following rules that a person wrote out in advance. Read the definition Attribution Model An attribution model is the rule that decides which of your adverts gets the credit when a customer finally buys something. Read the definition Audit Trail An audit trail is the record a system keeps of who changed what and when, so an argument about a cancelled invoice can be settled in two minutes. Read the definition Authenticator App An authenticator app is a free app on your phone that produces the six-digit code a website asks for after your password, so a stolen password is not enough. Read the definition Average Order Value AOV Average order value is the money you take divided by the number of orders, which tells you how much a typical customer spends in one visit. Read the definition

B

Backend The backend is the part of a system you never see, where the records are kept and the rules are checked for every screen that asks. Read the definition Backup A backup is a second copy of your files, kept somewhere safe from whatever destroys the first copy, so you can get your work back. Read the definition Biometric Login Biometric login lets you open an app with your fingerprint or your face instead of typing a code, because your phone does the checking for it. Read the definition Bounce Rate Bounce rate is the share of your visitors who look at a single page and then leave again without clicking anything else. Read the definition Broken Link A broken link points at a page that no longer exists, so the visitor gets a short 404 message instead of what they clicked for. Read the definition Buy Now, Pay Later BNPL Buy now, pay later is a checkout option that splits the price into instalments for the customer while a finance company pays the shop in full straight away. Read the definition

C

C# and .NET C# and .NET are Microsoft's pair for business software, where C# is the language you write in and .NET is the toolkit that runs it. Read the definition Canonical URL A canonical URL is the line in a page's code that tells search engines which copy of that page is the original one to show. Read the definition Cash on Delivery COD Cash on delivery lets your customer hand the money to the courier at the door instead of paying on the website when the order is placed. Read the definition Change Request A change request is anything you ask a software team to add or alter after the price was agreed and the work began. Read the definition Chatbot A software assistant that talks with visitors by text or voice on a website or messaging app to answer questions, take orders, or book appointments at any hour. Basic versions follow fixed button menus, while AI versions understand everyday language. Read the definition CI/CD CI/CD CI/CD is an automatic path that tests every change to your software and puts it live once the tests pass, so a release stops being an event people dread. Read the definition Click-Through Rate CTR Click-through rate is the percentage of people who clicked your result out of everyone who was shown it in the first place. Read the definition Client Portal A private web page where customers sign in to track their orders, view invoices, and message support at any hour without waiting on the phone. Read the definition Cloud Computing Cloud computing is renting computer power by the hour from a company such as Amazon, Microsoft or Google instead of buying servers of your own. Read the definition Conversion Rate CR Conversion rate is the share of your visitors who do the one thing you wanted them to do, such as booking, calling or paying. Read the definition Cost Per Lead CPL Cost per lead is what a single enquiry costs you once you divide everything you spent on getting enquiries by the number that actually arrived. Read the definition Coupon Code A coupon code is a short word or number that a customer types at checkout so the shop takes an agreed amount off the order. Read the definition Cross-Platform App A cross-platform app is one system that opens in a browser, on an Android phone and on an iPhone, with all three sharing the same records. Read the definition CSS CSS CSS is the language that decides how a web page looks, and because it sits in its own file, one change there restyles every page at once. Read the definition Customer Relationship Management CRM Customer relationship management is one shared place where every enquiry, quote and conversation about a customer is kept, so nobody has to remember it alone. Read the definition Cyber Insurance Cyber insurance is a policy that pays for the clean-up after an attack, as long as you kept the security promises you made on the application form. Read the definition

D

Dark Mode A way to show the screens of a website or app with a dark background and light text, so they are easy on the eyes in low light and use less battery on many modern phones. Read the definition Dashboard A dashboard is the first screen a person sees after logging in, and a good one carries today's numbers and the decisions still waiting for an answer. Read the definition Data Breach A data breach is the moment private customer information leaves your control, whether a thief took it or someone simply sent it to the wrong address. Read the definition Data Synchronisation Data synchronisation is the work of keeping the same numbers on every device, so the phone in a van and the office computer never disagree. Read the definition Deep Link A deep link is an address that opens one exact screen inside an app, such as a single invoice, instead of leaving the person on the home screen. Read the definition Disaster Recovery Plan DRP A disaster recovery plan is a short written document that says exactly what your business does, and who does it, on the morning the systems stop working. Read the definition Django Django is the main framework for building web applications in the Python language, best known for turning a description of your data into a working back office. Read the definition Docker Docker packs a program and everything it needs into one sealed bundle, so it runs the same on a developer's laptop as it does on the live server. Read the definition Drip Campaign A drip campaign is a fixed run of emails sent on a timer, so a new subscriber gets the right message on the right day without anyone pressing send. Read the definition

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