Back-end

The backend is the part of an application or website that takes place in the background and is not visible to users. It therefore represents the administrative part of an application or website in which it is managed. For example, a content management system is part of the backend. 

The ​“opposite” is the frontend, which is the user interface that is visible to users. You can read more about the distinction between front-end and back-end here.

CI/CD pipelines

Continuous integration/​continuous deployment pipelines are automations that support development teams in continuously integrating their respective code changes into the entire project and then automatically deploying these changes. Typically, a change to the code runs through different phases — the basic phases are ​“development”, ​“testing” and ​“deployment”. The last two steps are typically automated by CI/CD pipelines, which means that code changes can be tested and deployed within minutes and without the intervention of other people and can deliver their added value in live operation as early as possible.

Cloud computing

Cloud computing is a model in which various resources or services are provided via the internet or ​“via the cloud”. For example, data storage, servers or web applications can be made available via a cloud and are usually billed according to usage. The advantage is that developers or companies do not have to purchase IT infrastructures themselves, but can use the resources of cloud providers depending on their needs.

Command line application

A command line application is software that is started in a shell (Windows: CommandLine, Unix: Terminal). Typically, this type of software does not have a user interface and if it does, then usually only a simple text UI. The purpose of such programs is often to automate work steps or to start background processes that do not require a UI.

Content management system (CMS)

Ein CMS oder Content Management System ist ein System, das es ihren Benutzer:innen erlaubt, Inhalte einer digitalen Anwendung (z.B. einer Webseite oder Webanwendung) auf einfache Weise zu verwalten. Um ein Content Management System verwenden zu können, sind im Normalfall auch keine Programmierkenntnisse erforderlich. Die digitalen Inhalte können dabei über eine Benutzeroberfläche verwaltet werden, die es ermöglicht, dass bestimmte Aspekte des Webauftritts auf relativ unkompliziert geändert oder erzeugt werden können. 

Gängige Content Management Systeme sind zum Beispiel Wordpress oder Craft CMS. Nähere Informationen zu CMS und welche Vor- und Nachteile einige der gängigsten Content Management Systeme bieten, zeigen wir hier.

Cookie banner

Cookie banners, sometimes also called consent banners, are notices (or requests for consent) on a website if a site uses cookies that collect, process or pass on personal data to third parties. 

Here you can find out how to avoid cookie banners on your own website and still be GDPR-compliant.

Cookies

Cookies are small files that are stored by the browser on the user’s end device. Cookies can have a variety of functions, for example saving individual page settings or enabling you to be logged in to websites through so-called ​“session cookies”. However, there are also so-called tracking cookies that collect and process personal data or pass it on to third parties.

Database

A database is a system for managing data. The aim is to store and manage large amounts of data efficiently and consistently and to provide the required parts of this data in a suitable form, e.g. for users or other applications.

Deployment

Deployment or software distribution is the process by which software is transferred from the development or test environment to a production environment in order to make it available to users or customers. This involves transferring and setting up files, configurations and resources in the production environment. The aim is to ensure that the software works properly and is available to users without any problems. Here we show which tools are used for this and why it makes sense to automate the deployment process.

Domain

The domain is a uniquely assigned name on the Internet — it could also be described as the address of a website that exists only once on the Internet and can therefore always be uniquely assigned. For example, our domain is bitperfect​.at. This domain is uniquely assigned and leads exclusively to our website. 

A domain is made up of two components that are separated by a dot: The domain name and the top-level domain (TLD). The domain name is the first part of a domain — in our example ​“bitperfect”. The top-level domain is often a characteristic for a type of company (e.g. “.com” or “.edu”) or a characteristic for the country of origin of the website (e.g. “.at” or “.fr”). However, there are a variety of endings and TLDs such as “.cool” are also possible.

Front-end

The front-end is the graphical user interface of a software — i.e. the part of an application that is visible to the viewer or user. Using the example of a website, the front-end is the part that is accessible and visible to users on the internet. 

The back-end, on the other hand, is the part of an application that is not visible to users and runs in the background.

GDPR

GDPR stands for General Data Protection Regulation and is a regulation of the European Union that was adopted for the EU-wide protection of personal data and has been in force since May 25, 2018. It has a wide range of effects on the handling of personal data. We have summarized some important facts in our GDPR checklist.

Hosting

Hosting is basically the provision of storage space on the Internet. In order to be able to access websites or web applications on the Internet, they must be stored on servers that are accessible around the clock, i.e. connected to the Internet. There are many so-called hosting providers that offer this service.

Hosting provider

Hosting providers are providers that offer storage space on high-performance servers for websites or web applications, making them accessible on the Internet.

Industry 4.0

The idea of Industry 4.0 is a fourth industrial revolution in which networked systems are to play a central role. In simple terms, it is about the digitalization of industry, in which machine-operated processes in industry are to be made even more efficient by smartly connecting them with each other. 

The term Internet of Things (IoT) also plays a central role here.

Internet of Things (IoT)

Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the technologies for connecting physical objects using software, sensors and other technology so that they can be connected to other physical objects. This makes it possible for data to be exchanged between technical objects and for the objects to work together. 

These technologies not only play an important role in everyday life by connecting physical objects with the virtual world, e.g. smart homes, but also everyday objects such as numerous robot vacuum cleaners. They also play a particular role in Industry 4.0, in the sense of a smart factory in which machines, processes and products are connected.

Kiosk systems

Kiosk systems are interactive self-service terminals that provide users with information or a service or also offer an opportunity to initiate a business transaction. Well-known examples include information terminals in shopping centers and museums, digital site and building maps, as well as ticket sales counters.

MVP

MVP stands for ​“Minimum Viable Product” — that mans a product which is viable or practicable and already fulfills its core function. The background to an MVP is the idea of launching a product as quickly as possible — in other words, launching a functioning product within a very short time and not waiting until the product is fully developed. The functionality of the product is then gradually expanded. 

This strategy can be useful, for example, to exploit competitive advantages or to enter the market with an idea as quickly as possible.

MySQL

MySQL is a relational database management system. Relational here means that the structure of the data is defined by a database model. MySQL is freely available as open source software, and there is also an ​“Enterprise Edition” to cover more specific requirements. This database management system is developed by Oracle and forms the basis for many dynamic websites.

The name MySQL is a combination of ​“My” — the name of the daughter of one of the co-founders — and ​“SQL”, which stands for ​“Structured Query Language”.

Personal data

Personal data is information that can be used to identify a person — this also includes pieces of information that can be used together to identify a person. Examples of personal data are name, date of birth, address or even health data, appearance or weight. 

Personal data plays a special role when it comes to the GDPR. We show you what you should bear in mind here.

PHP

PHP is a scripting language that is primarily used to create dynamic web applications or dynamic websites.

Plugins

Plugins are additional programs that can be integrated into web applications or programs to extend their functions. By installing a plugin, an additional function can be added to a software program that it did not have before. The advantage: the entire program does not have to be rewritten, but the plugin is simply added via a programming interface — via so-called APIs. 

Examples of plugins are tracking tools such as Google Analytics or Plausible Analytics to track and analyze user behavior on the website. These are connected to the website via an interface and do not change the actual code of the website.

Search engine optimization

Search engine optimization is a collective term for measures to increase the visibility of a website in search engines such as Google or Bing. The term SEO refers to the improvement of visibility in organic search engine rankings, i.e. the unpaid results in a search engine. There are various strategies to improve the ranking, in particular by offering relevant content for users, but also a lot can be optimized on the technical side.

Paid content, i.e. the placement of advertising in search engines, is known as SEA (Search Engine Advertising).

Serverless

Serverless” refers to a development model in which applications are designed and created in such a way that it is not necessary to provide a local server infrastructure for them. Instead, the setup and management of the server environment is left entirely to cloud providers on whose servers the application is to run. The name ​“serverless” is therefore a little misleading, as the servers are of course still physically there. The only difference is that you do not have to take care of the server environment yourself, but it is provided by cloud providers and the application runs there ​“in the cloud”. This gives the impression that the application is running ​“serverless”.

Staging environment

A staging environment is used to enable the testing of websites or applications under almost real conditions. The use of a staging environment is a common procedure in the development process. 

One example of this is testing a website in an isolated environment to which only a limited number of users have access — for example, a dedicated website that is password-protected and only visible to authorized users. The website can be tested there with all its functions before it goes live. Even if new features are integrated into an existing website, it makes sense to test them in advance on a staging environment before they go live.

UI/UX-Design

UX design means ​“user experience design” and focuses on the user’s entire experience with a product. This can be pretty much any product — from a website to a wristwatch to a pedestrian light. However, the term is used particularly in the technical field. UX design is therefore about how people interact with a product and takes into account various elements that contribute to the experience of this interaction. 

UI design, on the other hand, is a purely digital term: a user interface (UI) is the point at which a digital product and the user ​“meet” and interact. UI design is primarily about the haptics and interactivity of the user interface so that it is as interactive as possible.

User tracking

User tracking, sometimes also referred to as web tracking or user tracking, is a tool for analyzing user behavior — for example on websites. A well-known tool for tracking user behavior on websites is Google Analytics, which is repeatedly criticized for data protection issues. A GDPR-compliant alternative to this is Plausible Analytics. We show how plausible​.io works and what advantages it offers here.