Directory: N

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This is the living glossary of terms related to interactive television development. Most of these terms were graciously donated to OEDN by Vidiom Systems and Time Warner Cable. Browse the list below, search for specific terms, and provide comments to terms to clarify their meanings.

  • N + 1

    "N + 1 is a formula which refers to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requirements that provide for expansion of channel capacity for non-broadcast use. If the governmental, educational, public access, and leased channels are in use 80 percent of the weekdays?Monday through Friday?for 80 percent of the time during any three-hour period for six consecutive weeks, the system operator must expand the system?s channel capacity within six months. See also Federal Communications Commission (FCC)."

  • NABTS

    See North American Basic Teletext Specification (NATBS).

  • narrowband

    "Narrowband is a medium that can carry voice, fax, paging, and relatively slow-speed data (not full video applications), typically at 64Kbps or less. Narrowband can also mean a transmission medium or channel with a single voice channel. Vertical Blanking Interval (VBI) transmission is narrowband. See also vertical blanking interval (VBI)."

  • narrowcast

    "In terms of advertising and/or programming, narrowcast means to target the wishes and/or interests of smaller and smaller audiences, even down to the individual viewer. This is versus blanketing a region with a commercial and hoping enough interested viewers might see it even though most viewers would not be interested in the topic of the commercial."

  • narrowcasting

    Narrowcasting refers to the actual delivery of programming that addresses a specific need or highly focused audience.

  • NAT

    See network address translation (NAT).

  • National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA)

    "The National Cable and Telecommunications Association ?formerly, the National Cable Television Association?is a trade association for the cable television industry. NCTA provides its members with a strong national presence by providing a single, unified voice on issues affecting the cable and telecommunications industry."

  • National Institute of Standards and Testing (NIST)

    "The National Institute of Standards and Testing is a federal technology agency that works with the industry to develop and apply technology, measurements, and standards."

  • National Television Systems Committee (NTSC)

    "The National Television Systems Committee (NTSC) is responsible for setting television and video standards in North America. The NTSC standard for television defines a video signal with a refresh rate of 60 half-frames (interlaced) per second. The format is 525 lines in a 4-MHz video bandwidth. All television sets sold in North America are compatible. The NTSC standard is incompatible with most computer video standards, which generally use RGB video signals. However, special video adapters are available for computers to convert NTSC signals into computer video signals and vice versa."

  • native application

    "In OCAP, a native application is an application written in or compiled to the machine code for the particular processor. Typically, it is written in C, C++, or assembly language and may be supplied with the OCAP implementation or downloaded over the cable. See also OpenCable? Application Platform (OCAP)."

  • navigator

    "A navigator is a resident application, typically provided by the manufacturer, that the end user can activate at any time. Viewers can use the navigator to select services, applications, and initiate interoperable applications."

  • NCTA

    See National Cable and Telecommunications Association (NCTA).

  • NDIS

    See Network Driver Interface Specification (NDIS).

  • near-video-on-demand (NVOD)

    "Near-video-on-demand is an entertainment and information service that broadcasts a common set of programs to customers on a scheduled basis. At least initially, NVOD services are expected to focus on delivery of movies and other video entertainment. NVOD typically features a schedule of popular movies and events offered on a staggered-start basis (every 15 to 30 minutes, for example). See also video-on-demand (VOD)."

  • net weekly circulation (NWC)

    "The net weekly circulation refers to the estimated number of television households viewing a particular station at least once per week, Monday-Sunday, 6 a.m. to 2 a.m., EST. The net weekly circulation is used to determine whether a station is significantly viewed in an area and must be carried by a cable system operating in that area."

  • NetBEUI

    See NetBIOS Extended User Interface (NetBEUI).

  • NetBIOS Extended User Interface (NetBEUI)

    The NetBIOS Extended User Interface (NetBUI) is an enhanced version of NetBIOS. It is a network protocol used for communication between computers on a Local Area Network (LAN).

  • network

    "1) A network is a group of radio or television outlets linked by cable or microwave that transmit identical programs simultaneously, or the company that produces programs for them. 2) A network is a collection of computers or other devices that communicate with one another over telecommunications networks. 3) A network is a collection of MPEG-2 transport stream multiplexes transmitted on a single delivery system?that is, all digital channels on a specific cable system."

  • network adapter

    A network adapter is typically a combination of hardware and software that enables a system to interact with others on a network such as the internet. Network adapters are big with video game players as it enables them to compete with others playing that game worldwide.

  • network address translation (NAT)

    "Network address translation is a function, typically employed in internet connections, that performs address translation."

  • network attached storage

    Network attached storage is designed to separate storage resources from network and application servers. A network attached storage device attaches directly to an entity?s Local Area Network (LAN). A file system is located and managed on the network attached storage device and data is transferred to clients over industry-standard network protocols. See also application server.

  • network congestion

    "Network congestion refers to a state of overload within a network, where there is a risk of traffic loss or service degradation."

  • Network Driver Interface Specification (NDIS)

    "The Network Driver Interface Specification is Microsoft?s version of the software interface between the transport protocol and the data link protocol, which allows multiple protocol stacks to run over one network adapter. "

  • Network Interface Card (NIC)

    A network interface card is a hardware interface card that connects a computer to the network cabling. Each device on the network must have an operating system and software that enables it to have networking capacity. Some systems allow the wiring of the home to be used for transferring data on the network.

  • network layer

    The network layer refers to Layer 3 in the Open System Interconnection (OSI) architecture. It is the layer that provides services to establish a path between open systems.

  • network management

    Network management refers to the functions related to the management of data link layer and physical layer resources and their stations across the data network supported by the hybrid fiber/coax system. See also hybrid fiber coax (HFC) and data link layer.

  • network management system (NMS)

    "The network management system is a system that provides fault and alarm management, configuration management, and equipment management."

  • Network Operations Center (NOC)

    The network operations center is a large group that is responsible for the day-to-day operations and maintenance of a network.

  • network operator

    "A network operator is an organization, though generally a business, from which a network?s telecommunications are supervised, monitored, and maintained. This can include where cable and satellite signals are transmitted from. It does not necessarily include where the interactive television content was actually created, but it may if the organization is the content provider as well as the network operator."

  • network service provider

    "In terms of interactive television, a network service provider is a network that among other services might offer interactive television to its customers, assuming that the customer has the right hardware for it."

  • network storage

    "In terms of interactive television, network storage most often refers to when the content provider stores the content at their business? location, and typically on their servers."

  • network termination

    "Network termination is a part of the access network?owned by the carrier or the subscriber?located on the side of the subscriber?s home. The following are functions of the network termination: coupling of home wiring to the carrier wiring, grounding, radio frequency (RF) filtering, splitting, media conversion, remodulation, security and interdiction, provisioning, and loopback testing by the carrier. See also access network, radio frequency (RF), and subscriber."

  • network transport

    The network transport refers to the portions of a system that work towards transporting data over the network. This often is the most expensive part of broadband systems for the content provider. See also broadband and content provider.

  • NIC

    See Network Interface Card (NIC).

  • NIST

    See National Institute of Standards and Testing (NIST).

  • NMS

    See network management system (NMS).

  • NOC

    See Network Operations Center (NOC).

  • node

    "1) A node is an addressable unit in a network, which can be a computer, workstation, or some type of communications control unit. 2) A node is a point in a cable television system that interconnects traditional coaxial cable and fiber optics. The place where an optical signal is converted to a radio frequency (RF) signal, or vice versa. See also coaxial cable, fiber optics, and radio frequency (RF)."

  • noise

    The word noise is a carryover from audio practice. Noise refers to random spurts of electrical energy or interference. Noise may produce a salt-and-pepper pattern over the picture. Heavy noise is sometimes called snow.

  • non-lossy compression

    "Non-lossy compression refers to a compression technique that eliminates and/or reduces redundant data, thus keeping full picture quality but reducing the file size."

  • noncomposite

    Noncomposite video is a video signal without sync added to it.

  • nonlinear

    "The term nonlinear is used for editing and storage of audio, video, and other data. Data can be brought up from anywhere on the media?such as a laser disc or computer disk?without having to know when, where, and how often it was entered in that media."

  • North American Basic Teletext Specification (NATBS)

    "The North American Basic Teletext Specification is a joint EIA/CVCC Recommended Practice for Teletext: (NABTS) (ANSI/EIA-516-88) (May, 1988). This open standard is for the transmission of data over the Vertical Blanking Interval (VBI) of a television signal. See also vertical blanking interval (VBI) and Electronic Industries Association (EIA)."

  • NTSC

    See National Television Systems Committee (NTSC).

  • NVOD

    See near-video-on-demand (NVOD).

  • NWC

    See net weekly circulation (NWC).