What User is
A term that defines the online audience, it also refers to anyone who uses a computer. The term "users" rubs some people the wrong way because, in the past, if you said you were a user, it meant you were habitually consuming an illicit drug. Nowadays, a user is a person who is online. It comes from techies, who refer to people as "computer users." Historical reference: The word "users" is not yet in the American Heritage Dictionary, but the word "user-friendly" made it; perhaps because we are the first group ever to be online users.
Historical Reference: The word "users" isn't in the American Heritage Dictionary but the word "user-friendly" made it. The term "use" is defined in a variety of ways which, when taken in the context of "Internet users," can be quite poignant: "to put into service, to employ, to exploit, to consume completely, the privilege of using something," and so on. In the past you'd never refer to yourself as "a user" unless you were drug addicted... does this say something about how we're all getting addicted to the online world?
The meaning of Server
A host computer on a network. It houses information and responds to requests for information (for example, it houses Web sites and executes their links to other Web sites). The term "server" also refers to the software that makes the act of "serving information" possible. Commerce servers, for example, use software to run the main functions of an e-commerce Web site, such as product display, online ordering, and inventory management (you'll also hear this described as shopping cart technology). A server is the control computer on a LAN, meaning it controls the software, access to printers, and other parts of the network (usually accompanied by workstations that "share the load"). A server may be dedicated (where its sole purpose is to be the server) or non-dedicated (where in addition to being the server, it can be used for basic computing purposes).
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