Glossary

This glossary describes terms used in this book and words used with other than their everyday meaning. In some cases, a definition might not be the only one applicable to a term, but it gives the particular sense in which the word is used in this book.

If you do not find the term you are looking for, see the index or the IBM Dictionary of Computing, New York:. McGraw-Hill, 1994.

application programming interface (API)
An application programming interface consists of the functions and variables that programmers are allowed to use in their applications.

asynchronous messaging
A method of communication between programs in which programs place messages on message queues. With asynchronous messaging, the sending program proceeds with its own processing without waiting for a reply to its message. Contrast with synchronous messaging.

authenticator
A program that verifies the senders and receivers of messages.

bridge
A WebSphere MQ Everyplace object that allows messages to flow between WebSphere MQ Everyplace and other messaging systems, including WebSphere MQ.

channel
See dynamic channel and MQI channel.

channel manager
A WebSphere MQ Everyplace object that supports logical multiple concurrent communication pipes between end points.

class
An encapsulated collection of data and methods to operate on the data. A class may be instantiated to produce an object that is an instance of the class.

client
In WebSphere MQ, a client is a run-time component that provides access to queuing services on a server for local user applications.

compressor
A program that compacts a message to reduce the volume of data to be transmitted.

connection
Links WebSphere MQ Everyplace devices and transfers synchronous and asynchronous messages and responses in a bidirectional manner.

cryptor
A program that encrypts a message to provide security during transmission.

encapsulation
An object-oriented programming technique that makes an object's data private or protected and allows programmers to access and manipulate the data only through method calls.

gateway
In WebSphere MQ Everyplace, a computer running the WebSphere MQ Everyplace code including a channel manager.

Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)
A language used to define information that is to be displayed on the World Wide Web.

instance
An object. When a class is instantiated to produce an object, the object is an instance of the class.

interface
A class that contains only abstract methods and no instance variables. An interface provides a common set of methods that can be implemented by subclasses of a number of different classes.

Internet
A cooperative public network of shared information. Physically, the Internet uses a subset of the total resources of all the currently existing public telecommunication networks. Technically, what distinguishes the Internet as a cooperative public network is its use of a set of protocols called TCP/IP (Transport Control Protocol/Internet Protocol).

Java Development Kit (JDK)
A package of software distributed by Sun Microsystems for Java developers. It includes the Java interpreter, Java classes and Java development tools: compiler, debugger, disassembler, appletviewer, stub file generator, and documentation generator.

Java Naming and Directory Service (JNDI)
An API specified in the Java programming language. It provides naming and directory functions to applications written in the Java programming language.

Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP)
A client/server protocol for accessing a directory service.

message
In message queuing applications, a communication sent between programs.

message queue
See queue.

message queuing
A programming technique in which each program within an application communicates with the other programs by putting messages on queues.

method
The object-oriented programming term for a function or procedure.

MQI channel
Connects a WebSphere MQ client to a queue manager on a server system and transfers MQI calls and responses in a bidirectional manner.

WebSphere MQ
WebSphere MQ is a family of IBM licensed programs that provide message queuing services.

object
(1) In Java, an object is an instance of a class. A class models a group of things; an object models a particular member of that group. (2) In WebSphere MQ, an object is a queue manager, a queue, or a channel.

package
A package in Java is a way of giving a piece of Java code access to a specific set of classes. Java code that is part of a particular package has access to all the classes in the package and to all non-private methods and fields in the classes.

personal digital aistant (PDA)
A pocket sized personal computer.

private
A private field is not visible outside its own class.

protected
A protected field is visible only within its own class, within a subclass, or within packages of which the class is a part.

public
A public class or interface is visible everywhere. A public method or variable is visible everywhere that its class is visible.

queue
A queue is a WebSphere MQ object. Message queueing applications can put messages on, and get messages from, a queue.

queue manager
A queue manager is a system program that provides message queuing services to applications.

registry
Stores the queue manager configuration information.

server
(1) An WebSphere MQ Everyplace server is a device that has a WebSphere MQ Everyplace channel manager configured. (2) A WebSphere MQ server is a queue manager that provides message queuing services to client applications running on a remote workstation. (3) More generally, a server is a program that responds to requests for information in the particular two-program information flow model of client/server. (3) The computer on which a server program runs.

servlet
A Java program which is designed to run only on a Web server.

subclass
A subclass is a class that extends another. The subclass inherits the public and protected methods and variables of its superclass.

superclass
A superclass is a class that is extended by some other class. The superclass's public and protected methods and variables are available to the subclass.

synchronous messaging
A method of communicating between programs in which programs place messages on message queues. With synchronous messaging, the sending program waits for a reply to its message before resuming its own processing. Contrast with asynchronous messaging.

Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)
A set of communication protocols that support peer-to-peer connectivity functions for both local and wide area networks.

transformer
A piece of code that performs data or message reformatting.

Web
See World Wide Web.

Web browser
A program that formats and displays information that is distributed on the World Wide Web.

World Wide Web (Web)
The World Wide Web is an Internet service, based on a common set of protocols, which allows a particularly configured server computer to distribute documents across the Internet in a standard way.


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