GATEWAY: Pretty much synonomous with Portal.  Also, the computers that control traffic within a private network or at your local ISP are gateways.  See Hubs, Switches & Routers for more explanation.  Recently, hardware manufacturers have been selling a combination DSL/cable modem and router which it calls a “gateway” as well. (Not related to the now defunct Gateway Computer Co.)

GAUGE: With reference to wire, the gauge is the diameter of the wire itself.  This reference is incorporated into a standard known as the AWG (American Wire Gauge; sometimes known as Brown & Sharpe (“B & S”) Wire Gauge for non-ferrous (copper, aluminum and other) wire conductors.  The HIGHER the gauge, the SMALLER the diameter and the THINNER the wire. Typical household wiring is either 12 or 14 gauge; telephone wire is usually 22, 24 or 26 gauge, as is data cable.  Thicker wires can carry more current because they have less electrical resistance over long distances.

GbE: Stands for Gigabit Ethernet, network transmissions at a rate of 1000 bits per second.  See Ethernet.

GEN: As in “My Gen”.  Stands for generation. (Remember? Talkin’ ‘bout my generation?  The Who, 1965!) First, there were the Traditionalists, born between 1900 and 1945 (there are no set dates, just generalities), comfortable with the command-and-control, line-and-staff management style attributable to winning WWII.  They worked their way up through the system, respected their bosses, and many were quite content being employees of a single company for life. And, in those days, the corporations reciprocated that loyalty.   Then came the post-war Baby Boomers, born  between 1946 and 1964, who viewed the erosion of authority through the eyes of Watergate and the Viet Nam war, and tended to view authority as unreliable or misguided, although still accepting some workplace command structure.   After the Baby Boomers, Gen X, born between 1965 and 1978, have seen so many authority figures self-destruct that they have virtually no reverence for authority and are completely repelled by command-and-control management.  Because they grew up in an environment with both parents working (“latch-key” kids), they became self-reliant and independent, and rebelled against internal rules and bureaucracy. Finally came Gen Y, a/k/a Millennials, a/k/a/ Echo Boomers (children of the Baby Boomers) which amplified these traits.  Born between 1979 and 1994, they grew up in a time when families had fewer children and greater resources (thanks to the birth control pill), and where many social authority figures stumbled, so they’re attracted to and motivated by organizations where an inclusive management style listens to them and allows them to contribute to decisions.  They tend to be less self-reliant than Gen Xers because they’ve had their family infrastructure supporting them since grade school.  Their “helicopter” parents swoop in whenever they’re in trouble to fix the situation.  They feel entitled because they have had so much support in their efforts to accomplish and achieve.  In order to hire employees from or sell to people from these generations, you have to know what motivates them.   Don’t think it’s true?  Look around you.  How many of you are wearing wristwatches?  How many are from Gen X and Millennials?  Very few, I bet.  ‘Cause they use their smart phones for everything, including telling time.  Why be tethered to another device when one already has everything?  Only grandpa calls a watch a “timepiece” anyway. See also, “G” above as it relates to iterations of software or hardware.

GEOFENCING:  A virtual permiter of a specified geographic area using a location-based service: Used with mobile telephones, for example, to notify  when a mobile device enters or exits a given geographic area.

GEOSYNCHRONOUS: Sometimes geostationary.  Refers to any object, usually a satellite, that orbits the earth at the exact speed of the earth’s rotation, placing it at a static point above the earth’s surface; useful for IoS, for example.

GEOTAGGING:  A feature offered on newer cell phones like the iPhone, and also through photo management programs that imbed  (“geocode”) information in photographs such as the place that a photo was taken, the equipment used to take the photo, it’s GPS coordinates and the like.  Such information is then included with the photo when it is copied, sent by e-mail, etc.  See the discussion under Privacy considerations.  Also, be aware of geoblogging, which uses geotagging to attach specific geographic information to blg entries, and geocaching, through which participants in an outdoor game use GPS coordinates to hide and seek containers (a/k/a/ caches or geocaches) anywhere in the world.

GESTURE-BASED:  Possibly the next wave of computing, where computers will interpret human gestures (a nod, wave, pointing, etc.) in order to interact with us.  Much like the games on Wii Kinect, where you can play tennis with your Wii-enabled TV.

GIG: Industry slang for Gigabyte (“Gb”), above.  See, Bits & Bytes.

GIGO: Acronym for “Garbage In - Garbage Out”.  Intended to remind us that the use or accuracy of the product we get from our computers is directly limited by the quality of the input.

GIMP: Acronym for “GNU Image Manipulation Program”, a free open source graphics creation and manipulation application similar to Adobe Photoshop, created in 1995 and now maintained under the auspices of the GNU project.

GIS: Stands for Geographic Information System, the modeling and mapping software and technology that creates and saves data, maps, globes, models and the like for use on a desktop, browser or in the field, depending on the needs of an organization.  See also, GPS, the software that provides the data.

GLYPH:  In typography, the shape given to a particular typeface to a character or symbol (“grapheme”).  It can be a letter, numeral, punctuation mark, symbol (e.g. a “dingbat”) and the like.  Two or more glyphs representing the same grapheme are called allographs. This actually gets quite complicated, more than I care to discuss.  If you’re interested in graphemes, phonemes, trigraphs and digraphs, here’s a LINK you might find interesting.

GNOME: GNOME (pronounced Guh-nome, with no silent G) is an acronym for GNU Network Object Model Environment, the shell interface for many distros of Linux.  See Linux for more.

GNU PROJECT:  A mass collaboration project, announced in 1983 by Richard Stallman, initiating the GNU Operating System and other free software, the goal of which is to develop a sufficient body of free software to get along with software that is not free.  GNU is a recursive acronym which stands for “GNU’s not Unix”.

GODMODE:  Originally this referred to playing video games so that you always win, since you cannot be killed.  It’s also used with reference to Windows 7 “GodMode” folders, which are merely folders that are hidden until one enters a special, secret code.

GOOGLE:  One of the most popular search engines on the Internet.  So popular, in fact, that it is a noun as well as verb.  Google itself is the noun representing the search engine into which a computer user on the Internet can type a search query and be rewarded with web sites corresponding to query.  As a verb (“I’m going to “Google” Bill Smith...”), the term connotes the idea of researching the background or public information about a person, place or thing.  Started by Larry Page and Sergei Brin, two PhD students at Stanford, on 9/15/97, and now a multi-million dollar powerhouse and the leading search engine on the Web.  In 2003, the pair hired Larry Page (who stepped down in 2011) to manage the company.  It was originally named “BackRub” because the system checked backlinks in order to estimate the importance of a site.  The name Google, which came about in 1997, is said to originate from a common misspelling (perhaps on the part of the founders when trying to register the domain name)  of the word “googol”, which refers to 10 to the 100th power, or 10 followed by 100 zeros.  For more information about Google search queries, click HERE for a guide.  Google now produces many other software products, even an O/S (Chrome), discussed below:

GMAIL:  Google’s free, advertising-supported e-mail service launched on 4/1/2004 (beta) and then 2/7/2007 to the public.

GOOGLE BLOGS:  Formerly Blogger, acquired by Google.  Co-founded by Evan Williams of Twitter fame) and acquired by Google in 2003.

GOOGLE BUZZ:  Google’s entry into the social networking arena, which debuted on February 9, 2010.  It suffers from the same personal privacy objections from EPIC as many of the other social networking applications (FaceBook, MySpace, etc.) Buzz was discontinued in early 2011 as it was unsuccessful, just like Google’s “Wave” e-mail and productivity program late the previous year. 

GOOGLE CHROME:  The web browser from Google, released on 9/2/08.  It’s quite fast and relatively safe, as it uses “sandboxing” to open each browser tab within its own process, so it cannot infect other open pages.  Also, announced in July 2009, the Chrome Operating System.  Finally Chrome netbooks, a/k/a ChromeBooks, introduced in July, 2011, keyed to cloud computing, by using almost exclusive Internet access to speed up boot and operating times.

GOOGLE DESKTOP:  This is search software for computer desktops made by Google for stand-alone computers (PCs, Macs, Linux).  Desktop runs text searches of files, emails and other formats.  Discontinued in Sept, 2011, Google says, because so many more people store their data in the cloud as opposed to on their computer.

GOOGLE DOODLE:  This is the Google logo on the search engine’s main page, just above the search box, which is changed daily.  Some doodles (e.g. packman, a playable guitar) are interactive; most commorate holidays or events.,

GOOGLE DRIVE:  Introduced in April, 2012, Google’s answer to services like Dropbox and Box and iCloud which allow file sharing services in the cloud.

GOOGLE GOGGLES:  A smart phone Internet image search tool, which uses a photo instead of text, so you can snap a photo, then search the web for landmarks, products, businesses and people.  See Facial Recognition.

GOOGLE KNOL:  A Wikipedia knock-off, discontinued by Google..

GOOGLE LATITUDE (FORMERLY DODGEBALL, a SMS created by the founders of Foursquare): A part of Google Maps - a location-aware mobile app, which allows a mobile phone user to allow others to view their current geographic location.

GOOGLE ORCUT:  One of Google’s first attempts at social networking, discontinued.

GOOGLE PHOTOS:  Formerly Picasa, acquired by Google in 2004.

GOOGLE+:  Google’s third attempt (after Buzz and Orkut) to get into the social networking area, introduced in July, 2010.  Google claims it will make social networking more like sharing “in real life.”  It uses features named Circles (rotating graphical wheels (designed by former Apple engineer Andy Hertzfeld), labeled with groups like friends, family, acquaintances), Sparks (lets users specify their interests and then adds fresh news stories and related user discussions into the site’s news feeds) and Hangouts (face-to-face video chats), as well as the “+1” button (much like Facebook’s “like” button), all in an attempt to establish “cliques” of people, reducing the sharing with the entire world that is Facebook.

GOOGLE SITES:  Formerly JotSpot, acquired by Google in 2006.

GOOGLE WALLET:  See Wallet.  Google’s foray into the electronic wallet arena, known as Google Checkout (see logo), using cell phones to make what would otherwise be credit card purchases.

GOOGLE WAVE:  Google’s entry into the e-mail arena in  2009.  It was intended to merge key features of e-mail, instant messaging, wikis and social networking.  But it didn’t take, and Google abandoned it in August, 2010.

GOPHER: Prior to the establishment of the WWW’s hypertext transfer protocol, from about 1992 through 1996, this browser was the Internet application that located primarily text-based files from the web.  Contrary to some popular belief, the name Gopher has nothing to to with searching for web information (as in “go for” this or that) but instead, it was developed at and named after the University of Minnesota, whose sports teams are known as “The Golden Gophers.”

(AL) GORE: Contrary to politically fueled public belief, former U.S. Vice President Al Gore never claimed to have “invented the Internet”.  However, the Internet as we know it owes much to Gore, and might never have evolved without his efforts.  Why?  As perhaps the only highly visible legislator (D-TN) who was a proponent of networking, in 1991 he pushed Congress to pass a law known as “The High-Performance Computing Act”.  The “Gore Act” paved the way for a privatized, commercialized internet that could thrive and evolve outside of Government control, much as it exists today. See also, Information Superhighway, allegedly coined by Gore.  [The correct Gore quote from CNN's Late Edition: "During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet. I took the initiative in moving forward a whole range of initiatives that have proven to be important to our country's economic growth and environmental protection, improvements in our educational system."]

GPIB:  General Purpose Interface Bus.  Also, HP-IB (Hewlett Packard Instrument Bus) or IEEE-488.  A short range digital communications bus specification used primarily with automated test equipment, allowing up to 15 devices to share a single 8 bit parallel bus by daisy-chaining connections.  Invented in the late 1960s by HP, and later standardized into an IEEE standard. IEEE-488 uses a 24 pin Amphenol-designed micro ribbon connector:

IEEE-488 STACKING CONNECTORS

GPS:  Global Positioning System is a worldwide satellite navigational system formed by 24 satellites orbiting the earth at about 12,000 miles above the surface.  Using any three satellites, GPS can calculate the longitude and latitude of the receiver; using a fourth GPS it can also determine altitude.  It makes its calculations by tracing the satellite signals, which travel at the speed of light, and determining how far away each satellite is from the receiver.  Developed by the Department of Defense, it was originally called NAVSTAR (Navigation System with Timing and Ranging).  In 1983, President Reagan decreed that GPS would be open to the public.  In 2007, marketing research company Forward Concepts reported that 171 million units were shipped, and predicts that three times as many will be shipped in 2011.  And that’s not including computer users who use Mapquest or Google Earth or cell phone GPS.  Research by iSuppli shows that 79% of all cell phones shipped had GPS capability and that, combined with embedded GPS in notebooks and gaming devices, by 2014, virtually all PNDs will have GPS.  The growth is primarily attributable to the increase in smartphones (iPhone alone has over 6,000 location based apps) and social networking sites.  Of course, advertisers are thrilled with this knowledge, as they can pinpoint their advertising to available products and services at the user’s location.   [See also GIS, for uses of GPS.]

GPT: Stands for GUID Partition Table, a Microsoft Windows disk partitioning system.  Windows only supports booting from a GPT disk on systems that contain  Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) boot firmware.  When compared to MBR, GPT has the advantages of up to 128 primary partitions (vs. MBR’s 4) and a much larger partition size than the 2Tb MBR limit.  See also File System.

GPU: Stands for Graphics Processing Unit, which is the complex chip that powers 3D graphics cards.

GRANULAR/GRANULARITY: The degree to which something can be broken down into separate smaller components or details (i.e. “grains”).  The more grains, the finer the detail, the more granular it is - as in a yard broken down into inches is “more granular” than a yard broken down into feet.  Viewed at the “granular level,” it would be viewed in inches.

GRAPHIC:  Images used with and sometimes created by computers, such as pictures, drawings, charts and graphs and other designs. The file extension after the name of the graphic denotes the type of file (.png, .jpg) or program which created it (.psd).

GREEN: Generally speaking, means it’s good for, or at least not harmful to, earth’s environment.  As applied to computers, this means using less power, generating less heat (saving air conditioning costs), conserving desktop and printer usage (less paper), obtaining greater network efficiency (less computers) and reducing disposal effects (hazardous or non-biodegradeable materials).  You should be aware that, as of 2010, 23 states and several individual cities have enacted electronic waste laws which dictate electronics disposal methods, controlling how manufacturers recycle and dispose of electronic waste, and also limiting how and where consumers may dispose of their electronics.  If you’re looking for an electronics recycler, look for an e-Stewards certified electronics recycler, which assures that it complies with all environmental mandates for electronics recycling.  See LAWS for more.

GREY LITERATURE: Written materials, including trade literature, that are not formally published or subject to editiorial control or peer review, such as technical reports, conference proceedings and working papers.

GRID COMPUTING: The application of several computers to solve a single problem at the same time.  Through the automated sharing and coordination of the collective processing power of many widely scattered computers, a problem can be solved with exponentially greater speed than with a single computer.  See also, cluster, distributed and parallel computing.

GROOVE FOLDER SYNCHRONIZATION: This is a confusing term that started appearing when you right-click on the Win XP and later desktops. It was actually added by Office 2007 and it used to synchronize workspace folders across multiple PCs and even the Internet.  As other cloud applications became more popular, this one didn’t really take off.

GROUPON: An Internet startup launched in 2009 by Andrew Mason, which rocketed to fame in 2011 by offering consumers discount coupons over their GPS enabled smart phones based on businesses who signed up with the company (for a split of the profits) to fill slow or empty time slots or move slow items for sale.

GROUPWARE: Software which allows several usually remote parties to collaborate about a project over the Internet.

GRUB: A boot loader program used for a wide range of architectures, notably LINUX. It’s a shell program which starts up the operating system.

GSM: Global System for Mobile Communications, one of the leading digital cellular systems, using narrowband TDMA (“Time Division Multiple Access”, a/k/a/ “multiplexing”) which allows eight simultaneous calls on the same radio frequency using timed digital data packets to reduce interference.  First introduced in 1991, by the end of the nineties, it became the de facto standard in Europe and Asia, available in over 100 countries.  CDMA is still the predominant standard in the U.S.  See also, CDMA, HSDPA, UMTS.

GUIBO DISK:  This used to be a euphemism for b.s.  It came from a TV commercial for Midas (?) where the wife is on the telephone with her husband, telling him that the mechanic says that the Guibo disk needs replacement, implying that there is no such part.  In actuality, there is a Guibo disk on many cars (e.g. Cadillac, BMW);  It is the driveshaft front flex disk, which is between the trans output and the drive shaft.  Maybe it was named after the commercial, who knows? But computers definitely do not have a guibo disk.

GUI: (Pronounced “gooey.”) Means “Graphic User Interface”.  This is a fancy way of saying that a computer uses graphics (pictures instead of text) to communicate with the computer.  When you click on an icon of a printer to print, that’s “GUI”!  GUI was originally developed by Douglas Engelbart (the inventor of the computer mouse) at the Stanford Research Institute around 1970.  It was expanded in the 1980s by Xerox PARC for use with the Xerox 8010 Star Information System, but in 1984 Apple, IBM and Microsoft took GUI and ran with it to develop the Common User Access specifications that formed the basis for today’s MAC and Windows systems.  Early versions of GUI were sometimes referred to as WIMP, an acronym for “window, icon, menu, pointer”.

GUID: Stands for Global Unique Identifier. A combination string of numbers and letters assigned by Microsoft to provide a unique identity for everything from files (such as Word documents), interfaces, replica sets, records and other objects. They generally look like bracketed designations, such as the following system folder designations:

{20D04FEO-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}  MY COMPUTER

{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2DY-08002B30309D}  MY NETWORK PLACES

{7007ACC7-3202-11D1-AAD2-00805FC1270E}  NETWORK CONNECTIONS

{2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D}  PRINTERS AND FAXES

{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}   RECYCLE BIN

{D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF}  SCHEDULED TASKS

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