Glossary - FAQ

Definitions and links to further information on IT related terms ...

Questions that have been asked about this glossary of terms:

• How can I contribute a new term to the glossary?
• Do contributions have to be IT related?
• I've spotted a mistake in the glossary, what is the best way to report it?
• I know a good link for a term, how can I add it?
• Can I link to a term in the glossary?
• Why is the glossary laid out with one page per item?

If this FAQ does not answer your question then please e-mail support@cryer.co.uk.

How can I contribute a new term to the glossary?

The easiest way to contribute a new term to the glossary is to use this form: Add a Term. Adding an item to the glossary is a great way of sharing your knowledge with others.

Do contributions have to be IT related?

All contributions to the glossary will be reviewed, whether IT related or not. All contributions that are IT related will be included. Contributions which are not directly IT related will be included at the discretion of the reviewer, but as a guide anything that is likely to be of interest to an element of the IT community will probably be included.

I've spotted a mistake in the glossary, what is the best way to report it?

It is unfortunately a fact of life that mistakes will creep into a work such as this, although every effort is made to verify definitions and check links. If you spot a mistake then please either e-mail support@cryer.co.uk or use the following form: Report an Observation.

I know a good link for a term, how can I add it?

Each glossary term can have links submitted against it. The idea is simply that there is a wealth of information available on the internet and there is little point trying to duplicate it here - hence the idea of maintaining a list of links for each glossary term. If you know of a page or site that contains good relevant information for a topic in the glossary then please either e-mail Report an Observation or use the following form: Suggest a Link. Submissions of links is a very good way of making information available to others.

Can I link to a term in the glossary?

Yes. One of the reasons for a recent complete reorganisation of the glossary was to make it easier for sites to link directly to a term in the glossary. Each term is defined on a separate page. To link to a term simply find the page in the glossary and link to it. For example, say you were interested in the term "RFID", the definition for this is located on the page "http://www.cryer.co.uk/glossary/r/rfid.htm" and therefore all you would need to do would be to link directly to that page. No acknowledgement is needed.

Why is the glossary laid out with one page per item?

When the glossary was first put together it was organised by first letter and had a single page for each initial letter. This framework proved to be restrictive because it made it more difficult to include lengthy descriptions with each item. Reorganising the glossary to have one page for each glossary term has a number of advantages:

• It allows for longer descriptions. For example, it would now be feasible to include a mini-essay against glossary terms rather than a simple summary of what the term stands for.
• It allows more links against each item.
• It is faster to load - because only the relevant page needs to be loaded in the browser.
• It makes it easier for other sites to link to specific terms within the glossary.