This is list of various video file types, with a short descriptor.

• MOV/QT - QuickTime Movie
• AVI - Audio Video Interleaved
• MPG - Moving Pictures Expert Group
• WMV - Windows Media Video
• ASF - Advanced Systems Format
• ASX - Microsoft Stream Redirector
• RM - Real Player Video
• MP4 - MPEG-4 Video
• SWF - Macromedia Flash Object

This is list of various audio file types, with a short descriptor.

• WMA - Windows Media Audio
• MP3/MP2/MPA - MPEG Audio (Most common audio format)
• AAC - iTunes Music File
• OGG/OGM - Ogg Vorbis
• RA - Real Player Audio
• WAV - Microsoft sound
• AIF/AIFF - Macintosh digital audio

Simultaneous transmission of live or delayed audio or video programming over the World Wide Web to all who own the equipment needed to receive it, the Internet counterpart of broadcasting via radio or television. In a narrower sense, to send the same web-based content (audio, video, graphics, text) to a group of Internet users, based on their individual needs or interests. Synonymous with netcast.

From the Online Dictionary of Library and Information Science (http://www.lu.com/odlis/)

Short for:
COmpressor / DECompressor

Programs or devices used to convert and compress analog A/V sources into digital files then decompress them upon playback. MPEG, Indeo, and Cinepak are examples of codecs.

Podcast is a broad term used to describe downloadable audio broadcasts. Podcasts are not normally broadcast live, but rather are available for download so the user can listen to them at thier convenience.

Video and sound that are broadcasted over the internet in real-time rather than requiring the user to download and play it back after the download has been completed. Typically, the video or audio is downloaded into a buffer, which is then played back, to eliminate any interruptions in the stream due to connection slowdown.

HD describes an increase in display resolution. Typical HD formats are 480p, 720p, 1080p and 1080i. This is in contrast to standard definition, which is 480i.

These combinations of numbers and letters describe the number of horizontal scan lines in a video. The "P" stands for Progressive, and the "I" stands for Interlaced. With 480p, you have 480 lines of horizontal resolution that are Progressively refreshed.

Progressively Scanned video means that each horizontal line of video is refreshed with each frame of video. Progressive Scan video provides a more fluid motion for video, and is in contrast to Interlaced Scan

Interlaced Scan video means that every other horizontal line of video is refreshed with each frame of video. Interlaced Scan can often provide higher resolutions, but with less motion capture. This is in contrast to Progressive Scan.

As it is used in the webcasting industry, Buffer is an area of computer memory that is used to temporarily store video or audio data.

Bitrate or Bit Rate is the average number of bits that one second of video or audio data will consume. Higher bitrate means bigger file size and generally better video or audio quality while lower bitrate means lower file size but poorer video or audio quality. Bitrates are typically measured as Kilobits per second (Kbps), for example, 128Kbps

Bittorrent is a file distribution protocol used to distribute large files to multiple points without extraordinary bandwidth demands on the source. The files are sectioned, and different sections are delivered to different clients that are downloading the file. Once one client has a section of the file, the protocol will then send that section of the file OUT to other clients, while still receiving other sections of the file. The most interesting part of Bittorrent, is that the more people that are downloading the file, the quicker the download will be for everyone. Bittorrent will also continue to send sections to other users once the download has been completed. Bittorrent is NOT an illegal program, and has many legitimate uses, even though it is widely used to distribute copywrited works.

HD-DVD (for High-Density Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical media format, and is one of the specifications being proposed as the standard for high-definition DVD. HD-DVD is similar to a competing format, Blu-Ray. HD-DVD is backed by Toshiba, NEC, and Microsoft, amongst others..

Blu-Ray is a digital optical media format, and is one of the specifications being proposed as the standard for high-definition DVD. Blu-Ray is similar to a competing format, HD-DVD. Blu-Ray is being promoted by the Blu-Ray Disc Association (BDA), which includes Sony, Apple, HP, Samsung, and Philips, amongst others.

H.264, or MPEG-4 Part 10, is a high compression video codec developed by VCE and MPEG Groups. H.264 uses the latest innovations in video compression technology to provide higher video quality from smaller amounts of video data. This means you see crisp, clear video in much smaller files, saving you bandwidth costs, without sacrificing quality. H.264 delivers the same quality as MPEG-2 at a third to half the data rate and up to four times the frame size of MPEG-4 Part 2 at the same data rate.

Software that is open-source is software for which the source code is freely available. This means that another developer is free to modify the code according to his/her needs, or to reverse-engineer a product created by the software.

DSL stands for Digital Subscriber Line, and is a broadband internet connection over the telephone line.
Cable is a common abbreviation for Cable Modem technology, which is a broadband internet connection over cable television lines.
ISDN stands for Integrated Services Digital Network, which is a broadband internet connection over telephone lines.