dictionary of multimedia and internet applications: a guide for developers and users. francis botto

Print ISBN 0-471-98624-0 Online ISBN 0-470-84178-8

Nanometre A billionth of a metre.

Nanosecond A billionth of a second.

Navigating The process of moving between points via links in hypertext-

based material such as Web applications. Originally navigating was a macro-level activity, in that it was a search for material by passing to and from high-level components. These include entries in indexes, lists of contents, and libraries of video clips, programs, graphics etc. Browsing was considered to be the process of moving to and from microfeatures in a hypertext-based information model. Today both operations are considered browsing.

(See Browse and Browser.)

NC (Network Computer) A computer designed for connection to the Internet or to an IP network. The subsequent rationalisation of hardware results in low system costs and reduced costs of ownership. Apple, IBM, Netscape, Oracle and Sun have issued the Network Computer (NC) Reference Profile. Base case NCs are not fully specified standalone multi-media devices. They do, however, offer streaming multimedia functionality that plug-ins and ActiveX controls may provide to the client. The NC Reference Profile guidelines below are general requirements and capabil-ities, many of which are supported involuntarily by all PC makers.

Support for popular IP protocols TCP (Transmission Control Protocol). Optional

security is provided by the Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). FTP (File Transfer

Protocol) for file exchange over the Internet. Telnet client/server protocol for

optional character-based console access to remote hosts. NFS (Network File

System) support for NCs that feature distributed file systems. UDP (User

Datagram Protocol) for application-specific communications. SNMP (Simple

Network Management Protocol)

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