Tech Terms: Website Terminology You Should Know

Keeping up to date with tech terminologies will allow you to quickly and easily fill your website with informative content. Whether for a PROVIDER-Site or a PRACTICE-Site, Dr. Leonardo is informed and wants you to be informed as well.

Below are common terms that may sound like confusing jargon for those who aren't familiar with building and maintaining websites. Understanding their meaning will help you get a better grip on your site's online presence and management.

BackLink
Sites that are linked to your website are known as BackLinks. On blogs, they are also known as 'trackbacks'. Backlinks have a considerable impact on how your website ranks on search engines; when you have many BackLinks (especially within your anchor text), your website is thought to be more relevant to Google and Bing.

Below The Fold
This is a term that was carried over from newspaper publishing times. In newspaper terms, it means the content that is at the bottom half of the page. In web design terms, "below the fold" refers to the content that will be below the point first viewable to a website visitor on his/her browser. Viewers may have to scroll down to see the content.

Bounce Rate
This term refers to the percentage of people who leave the site from the same page they entered it. They didn't click through any other pages before they left. Knowing the bounce rate is important for the owner and is used as a tool for how good a website's navigation is as well as the quality of the content presented.

Cache/Caching
Cached files are files that are saved, copied or downloaded by a web browser so that the next time that user visits the site, the page will load faster.

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)
Also known as CSS, Cascading Style Sheets determine the look and feel of a website in addition to the site's HTML. CSS allows a website to completely change its appearance with a single file without making direct changes to its content. Dr. Leonardo uses CSS to define different Design Layouts, or Themes.

CMS
CMS, Content Management System, is important when it comes to easily updating your site's content. From changing out a header image, to adding a link, to creating and publishing a new blog post, the range for updating content is endless. For example, running particular procedures during a month can be a post you create using your CMS. If there is something on your site that can't seem to be changed using your CMS, contact your web design company for additional help.

DNS
Domain Name Server. In short, this DNS it what causes a website address to resolve to the actual page(s) of the site. DNS servers translate the website URL (domain name) to the actual IP address of the web server.

Domain Name
Your domain name is the title of your website as well as your URL, address or webpage name. Domain names are commonly followed by .com or .net, or can also be specific to a country. An example of this can be a medical practice from Canada who chooses to end their domain name in .ca. If the .com domain name you want to use is already claimed by someone else, Dr. Leonardo will generate alternatives that will still properly represent your practice.

Fold
Another term carried over from the newspaper design, the fold in a website is where the webpage rests at the bottom of a user's browser. In order to see anything below this point, scrolling down is required.

HTML
An acronym for Hypertext Markup Language; it is the most common language used in writing web pages. HTML is used primarily to provide content for a website. It's other function is to determine how this content will be displayed on the web page.

Hyperlink
A hyperlink is a text or image that is usually highlighted in a certain way to stand out. When it is clicked on, it takes the user to another page, either the same website or a different one. Hyperlinks are meant to grab a user's attention and can be underlined or put into a different font or color so the user will be drawn to click it.

IP address
IP stands for Internet Protocol and is a unique address that is assigned to each specific computer. They can be assigned to printers, modems, smartphones and tablets as well. Your IP address reveals your location so that things such as news and weather updates can be tailored to you. They can be static, and are capable of changing. A website can also have its own IP address and giving your site a unique and different address will make it more stable and reliable.

Landing Page
The landing page is the page that appears when the visitor first enters the website. Creating a special landing page is important to get a certain response from the new visitor and can be in connection with an advertising or a marketing campaign.

Link Farm
A Link Farm is a website that contains multiple pages that link to other websites for the sole purpose of attempting to increase the popularity of the websites and pages to which it is linked. Most Link Farms provide irrelevant links, so search engines such as Google will frequently penalize websites that use Link Farms.

Meta Tag
The meta tag is an HTML tag that is used to incorporate meta data in the header of your web page.

RSS
RSS stands for Rich Site Summary, although sometimes referred to as Really Simple Syndication. This allows for content to be constantly posted onto your site using automatic updates. Using an RSS feed to a page like your homepage or your blog page will especially keep your site looking fresh and up to date.

Tag
Tags are used to indicate the start and end of an element by using a set of markup characters placed around it. Including HTML or other code to show how that element will appear and behave on the web page is another purpose of a tag.

Template
Templates are files used to produce consistent designs across your website. They are commonly paired up with a CMS and contain structural information on set-up as well as stylistic information about how the site will appear. Dr. Leonardo PRACTICE-Sites feature more than 1,000 different templates for dental, medical and veterinary practices.

URL
An acronym for Uniform Resource Locator, a website's URL is its address. This is the item that indicates exactly where on the Internet it can be found.

Web Page
Commonly written in HTML/XHTML, the web page is a single document that is meant to appear in a web browser. Other coding and programing such as PHP, Ruby on Rails or ASP can be used. Web sites are usually built from various interlinked web pages.

Web Server
The web server is a computer that contains installed software and network capabilities which allows it to host web sites and pages and make them accessible to internet users located somewhere else. Different startups can be used for web servers, such as LAMP setup.

XML
XML is an acronym for Extensible Markup Language. It is a particularization for creating custom markup languages. XML allows the user to define the mark-up elements on his/her website.

Dr. Leonardo Can Help You With a Personal Profile-Site or a Website For Your Practice

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