Web 2.0 Vocabulary Lesson

Thu Mar 8, 2007 5:54PM EST

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Okay, so maybe you know that what we're writing here are blogs, short for web logs, and that spam, inspired by Monty Python, is the word used to describe unwanted email. But do you know what spim, spit, splog, and sping are?

The Internet has spawned lots of creativity, and, along with it all, jargon to describe it. As a parent, some of the words that are second nature to our kids may be lingo we haven't heard yet. Or heard but don't want to admit we don't quite know the meaning.

For those of us not fully in the know, I came across a fun article in the International Herald Tribune with a few definitions of current web terms. Here are a few:

Spim - unsolicited sales pitches that arrive via instant messages or chat software

Spit -  unwanted messages over Internet telephone

Splog - a fake blog set up to boost traffic and possible attract paid advertising, either by lifting content from legitimate blogs or publishing nonsensical words.

Sping - A message from a splog that indicates the fake blog is updated and worth checking out as a means of driving more traffic to the site.

SEO - Stands for Search Engine Optimization, which is the use of keywords and links on a web page to attract search engines that comb the Internet and return certain web sites high on search lists in response to users' queries.

Tagging - Giving a web page, photo, video, or blog entry individual search terms that make it easier to find by you and others.

Mashups - It's not only a mix of different kinds of music to make a new song or sound.  It's also the combining of content from web sites or web applications to create a single new site or experience. Say a map site with a photo application to overlay photos over neighborhoods.

Have you come across any new web terms you've learned lately? Post 'em below, or search for terms you've been wanting to know more about. Don't be left behind as the ever-evolving web spins forward.

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  • 27 Posted by antirbard on Thu Sep 3, 2009 2:56PM EDT Report Abuse

    The use of Spam to describe unsolicited commercial emails was inspired by Monty Python, the PSam sketch and the way they keep singing it and nothing will make them stop... it's an awful lot like the way spam promulgates in the web marketplace.

  • 29 Posted by suzdav68 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:50PM EDT Report Abuse

    This may sound a bit - stupid, but since you don't agree {as the majority don't} why not publish your own paper on the defination of words used. I'm sure if this "publication" is really wanted there is a way to get it done.

  • 30 Posted by movieman727 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:27PM EDT Report Abuse

    These people need to move out of there Mom's basements and get girlfriends.(Real ones.)

  • 31 Posted by sfc1mo on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:14PM EDT Report Abuse

    eBS?? Yepper! Spam isn't bad fried and put on toast, topped with a little ketchup. I pwned a can of it once. yuk yuk Amazing how a simple article can draw a cfrownd (oops, crowd)

  • 32 Posted by p_busch_nmhu_05 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:23PM EDT Report Abuse

    Who comes up with this ----- ? Is this what our society has come to? With articles such as this one, is it any wonder that most developed countries are ahead of the US? God help all of us.

  • 35 Posted by jameson.seattle on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:28PM EDT Report Abuse

    This is not what the technology behind Web 2.0 is about. Bad (misleading) choice of words for the title.

  • 36 Posted by hanyou_no_miko5 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:16PM EDT Report Abuse

    WTF? Nobody in teh intarwebz talks like that. You fail at researching.

  • 37 Posted by clvcpoet on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:27PM EDT Report Abuse

    I'm confused about the term Web 2.0. When I first heard a vendor talk about it, I thought it meant new software. But now I understand it as the overall new environment of blogs, wikis and RSS. When did Web 2.0, or the term, arise?

  • 38 Posted by tall_scguy on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:55PM EDT Report Abuse

    These comments are an example of Web 2.0. it's a reference to "User Generated Content." Or, another Internet term, UGC. Why do the terms above make people angry? SEO is a standard form of any and all marketing efforts for any brand or company. If you don't know what it means, you know nothing about Internet business. I suppose that's the catch. The terms above are used by insiders within the industry. That's why the non-adults who've posted comments seem so unaware.

  • 39 Posted by guatiao55 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:14PM EDT Report Abuse

    Hello Devlin: I wanted you to know that in spite of all the negative comments, I enjoyed this article. Thank you.

  • 40 Posted by joemartin303 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:38PM EDT Report Abuse

    i am looking for my cat. her name is snuggles. if you see her please email me. i miss her.

  • 41 Posted by jillmarienolan on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:35PM EDT Report Abuse

    I have certainly learned a lot on this article. Thanks! :-)

  • 42 Posted by vectoracs on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:32PM EDT Report Abuse

    Most of the Internet jargon's that people have come up with are completely useless and do not follow the correct etiquette of most languages spoken. Example: "I am tired of all the Splogs these days." Whats the point in using a term like Splog? To save 5 extra words?To save ten seconds? Is your time worth that much? Or are you going to waste your time on myspace adding people you do not know? Even if you use that term its quite likely that the person your talking to you does not what that word is; so you have to spend your time explaining what the word means anyways...You would waste the same amount time in the process of explaining a word like 'splog' to them than just stating what your talking about in a grammatically correct fashion. I understand having perfect grammar isn't realistic but using the grammatically correct terms that you learned in school is best for mutual understanding between people. It gets bad when you see kids use 'Leet' in school and in their daily lives. Example: "u r so kool." "yep.i git wat u mean." Do you understand my perspective on this situation?

  • 43 Posted by bethe0503 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 3:05PM EDT Report Abuse

    How about a few more commonly used Vocab words. I admit I haven't been online for a while...I could use a "remedial update". I don't think I'll ever use any of the vocab terms in this article. aren't they way too obscure for the "everyday plain Jane" internet user?

  • 44 Posted by gothmothgrrl on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:11PM EDT Report Abuse

    this article lacks enough information or insight to even be called an article .. it is essentially worthless.

  • 45 Posted by phoenixamaranth on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:10PM EDT Report Abuse

    Ok this article was absolute "spam." Yep, it was nothing but junk. Spam originated as a term for junk email. Basically, the idea is that Spam, the meat product, is nothing but the unwanted leftovers of animal parts mashed together. Whether it is or not, the common perception and connotation labels it as byproduct and so junk email is spam. Pwned was a common misspelling of "owned" that came from internet gaming, mainly Counterstrike, where a player has a limited amount of time to type and so it usually would be sloppy. It spawned the vocabulary known as "leet speak" or just "leet," a ----- ization of the word elite, where common words and phrases would be modified for quick typing. Again, gamers focusing on being "better" than their opponents needed a way to communicate ridicule faster. As for the terms used in this article, it seems the writer and the creators of the terms were all hoping to cash in on the next great catch phrase or buzzword. They failed miserably. I hope those words never catch on outside of a select circle of people because they lack character and a true foundation. They present themselves as nothing more than poor slang created by an unimaginative mind. At least words like blog(web-log) and spam had a real basis in a language and quickly represented concepts that over time had begun to seem too long-winded when referenced repeatedly.

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