P

Packet

A piece of a message transmitted over a packet-switching network. One of the key features of a packet is that it contains the destination address in addition to the data. In IP networks, packets are often called datagrams.

Parked Domains

A parked domain is a reserved domain name that does not load any web site. It sits in wait on a name server to be used by its owner at a later date.

Payment Gateway

As it applies to e-commerce, a payment gateway is software that is hosted on a server that links an online store to a process that verifies that a customer, who is placing a credit card order, has the credit available and that the order should be accepted. Later, when the merchant is ready to submit the charges for processing, the payment gateway accepts them and submits the charges to a payment processor who facilitates the transfer of funds to the merchant.

PERL

Popular Extraction and Report Language, the most widely used language for programming CGI applications.

Pixel

Short for Picture Element, a pixel is a single point in a graphic image. Graphics monitors display pictures by dividing the display screen into thousands (or millions) of pixels, arranged in rows and columns.

POP3 Account

Storage space for e-mails delivered via the most recent version of the Post Office Protocol (POP). You can use a standard e-mail client, such as Eudora, Netscape Mail or Internet Explorer Mail to download the e-mail to your computer.

Port

An interface on a computer where you can install/connect a device. Personal computers have various types of ports. Internally, there are several ports for connecting disk drives, display screens, and keyboards. Externally, personal computers have ports for connecting modems, printers, mice, and other peripheral devices.