Translating IT Speak to Plain English.

Translating IT can be tricky… We’ve all been there, on the phone with IT Support, getting help with a crashed computer when you start hearing words you didn’t haven’t a clue what they mean. Stuff like ‘Virtualisation’ and ‘BIOS.’ We are here to decode these for you, helping you understand those complex, techy phrases you might hear on the phone.

Bandwidth:

Geek Speak: ‘A measure of data transmission capacity.’

Plain English: Imagine bandwidth as a highway for data. The wider the road, the more data can flow through smoothly. Essentially, the higher the bandwidth the faster the download speed.

Firewall:

Geek Speak: ‘A network security system that monitors and controls incoming and outgoing traffic.’

Plain English: Think of a firewall as a digital bouncer. It checks who’s coming in and going out, making sure only invited guests get through.

Cache:

Geek Speak: Temporary storage area for frequently accessed data.

Plain English: This is like keeping your favourite book on your nightstand for quick access. It saves time by not having to search the entire library every time you need it.

Cookie

Geek Speak: Small pieces of data stored in a user’s web browser.

Plain English: Cookies are like digital crumbs left by websites to remember your preferences.

Virtualisation:

Geek Speak: Creating virtual versions of hardware, software, or networks to improve efficiency and flexibility.

Plain English: Virtualisation is like creating multiple “virtual” computers or servers on a single physical computer, allowing you to run different operating systems or applications independently.

DNS:

Geek Speak: A system that translates domain names (like www.genmar.co.uk) into IP addresses for computers to understand.

Plain English: DNS is the internet’s GPS, helping you find websites using easy-to-remember names instead of complicated coordinates.

BIOS:

Geek Speak: Firmware used to start a computer system and manage its essential components.

Plain English: BIOS is the computer’s morning routine – waking up, brushing teeth (checking hardware), and choosing the outfit (loading the operating system) for the day ahead.

SaaS (Software as a Service)

Geek Speak: A software distribution model where applications are hosted on the cloud and accessed via the internet.

Plain English: SaaS is essentially like renting software instead of buying it.

Latency

Geek Speak: The time delay between the initiation of a process and the moment it begins, often in networking and data transmission.

Plain English: Latency is basically the time your data takes to travel from point A to point B.

Hopefully this has helped you better understand those techy phrases you’re hearing when conversing with your IT company.

To get a free quote on upgrading your IT, head to our IT Support Price Calculator