Terms to Know
When using Plymouth Create, it is important to know the terminology associated with creating a site. Below are some common Plymouth Create terms and their definitions.
| Administrator Account | a management account that is created with every instance of an installed application |
| Backup | a copy of your site that can be used to restore data |
| cPanel | the control panel interface that is seen when logging into Plymouth Create; allows users to manage their sites |
| Dashboard | your cPanel homepage |
| DNS | Domain Name System |
| Domain | a unique Web address (e.g. yourname.plymouthcreate.net) that can be made with Plymouth Create |
| Domain Mapping | allows you to assign your domain (or a subdomain) to another service, such as Google Sites or Tumblr |
| FERPA | Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act; protects the privacy of student records |
| FTP | File Transfer Protocol; a method that allows you to remotely move files to a Web server from another location – usually your local/personal computer |
| Installatron | a script installer that allows you to quickly and easily install web applications to on the web space |
| LAMP server | Linux (operating system), Apache (Web server), MySQL (database server), PHP/PERL/PYTHON (programming language); the environment Plymouth Create runs on |
| Migration | moves your domain and content to an individually-owned hosting account |
| Open Source | software that is freely available for use, modification, and redistribution |
| Reclaim Hosting | the service that Plymouth Create is hosted through |
| Shibboleth | refers to your academic institution |
| Subdirectories | an alternative to subdomains (ex: yourdomain.com/blog VS yourdomain.com/gallery) |
| Subdomains | a distinct, individual site off of your main site that can use its own web application (ex: http://campus.plymouth.edu VS http://library.plymouth.edu/) |
| URL | a web address |
| Web Applications | a piece of software that runs on a web server, such as WordPress, Mediawiki, and ZenPhoto |
| WordPress | one of the most commonly used web applications; allows users to create and customize a blog-style site |
WordPress Terms
As one of the most popular web applications, it is important to know some of the terms associated with WordPress when creating a WordPress site for the first time.
| Categories | groups of content that are predefined as belonging to a particular topic |
| Pages | static portions of a site that are not subjected to the reverse-chronology of posts; used to create sections on a site such as “About Me” or “Contact Information” |
| Plugins | software that can be installed through WordPress to add additional features and functionality to a site |
| Posts | articles that are written for a WordPress site, shown reverse-chronologically, and often categorized by topic |
| Tags | similar to categories, tags group content together based on a predefined term; often used more precisely and liberally than categories |
| Themes | a prefabricated design for a WordPress site |
| Widgets | often added to sidebars, widgets are small areas that perform a specific function in a WordPress site, such as adding a calendar or showing Recent Posts |
For more help on using Plymouth Create, see the Plymouth Create Support site or contact ITS Help Desk by emailing helpdesk@plymouth.edu.