nanosecond --
A measurement of time. There are 1,000,000,000 nanoseconds in a second.
nastygram --
A disapproving or flaming piece of email.
Navigator --
A web browser application from Netscape.
NDA --
See Non-Disclosure Agreement.
Netiquette --
Network etiquette, or the set of informal rules of behavior that have evolved in Cyberspace, including the Internet and online services.
netlag --
A condition that occurs on the Internet in which response time is greatly slowed due to heavy traffic.
netnews --
The content of USENET. See also USENET.
network --
A group of computers or devices that are connected together for the exchange of data and sharing of resources.
net.god --
An individual who has achieved an exulted status due to notable technical accomplishments. This accolade is most frequently applied to those who have played a role in creating and developing USENET or the Internet.
net lingo --
The slang commonly used on the Internet.
net.police --
Those who feel it's their appointed role to flame perceived violations of Netiquette.
net surfing --
Browsing or exploring a network or the World Wide Web to find places of interest, usually without a specific goal in mind. Analogous to channel surfing with a TV remote control.
newbie --
A network newcomer, one who is new to the world of online communications. Sometimes used incorrectly as a pejorative term, as in "clueless newbie." See also power newbie and knowbie.
newsgroup --
A public place where messages are posted for public consumption and response. The most available distribution of newsgroups is USENET which contains over ten thousand unique newsgroups covering practically every human proclivity. The names of newsgroups are comprised of a string of words separated by periods, such as "rec.humor.funny" or "misc.jobs.offered". The first word (i.e. "rec" or "misc") represents the top level category of newsgroups. The second word (in these examples "humor" and "jobs") represents a subcategory of the first level, and the third word a subcategory of the second.
Non-Disclosure Agreement --
(abbreviation: NDA)
A contract commonly used by computer companies to protect the confidentiality of unreleased products. Software developers, reporters, and sometimes beta testers are often required to sign these before they are given access to either information about upcoming products or the product itself.
NSFnet --
One of the Internet's primary backbone networks.
nuke --
To intentionally delete the entire contents of a given directory, hard drive, or storage volume.