A Glossary of Publishing Terms

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AA:

The abbreviation for Author Alteration, which changes are accountable to the editor; also called author correction and client alteration. See change order, insert, sandwich, PE, proofread.

ABC:

The abbreviation for Audit Bureau of Circulations; being the group formed by advertisers, agencies, and the media to audit the circulation statements of its media members and release this information to advertisers and advertising agencies. See circulation, audience, tracking.

abstract/abstract art:

Art that emphasizes line, color, and nonrepresentational form; also called "non-objective art". Art from which some element has been abstracted. See ASCII art, emoticon.

accent:

Prominence of a syllable, as in its differential volume, stress, pitch, elongation, or a combination thereof, to emphasize a part, word, or phrase; see syllabary, schwa, glide. Also, a mark used to distinguish meaning or to clarify pronunciation, for stress indication (apostrophe or diacritic), for vowel quality (grave, acute, breve, circumflex), or for pitch; see point, tittle, punctuation, floating accent, Unicode. Also, symbolic or derivative notation of assigned values, as with numbers or measurements. Also, a mode of tonal or inflected pronunciation characteristic of or distinctive to the speech of a particular person, group, or locality, a verbal affect; see dialect, idiolect, slide. Also, regularly recurring stress or emphasis in rhythmic verse, as dieresis, macron, anacrusis; see foot, elision, caesura, forced line, verse.

accessibility/disability access:

Materials, publications, and software adapted for use by disabled persons, or for interface with devices that enable use by disabled persons, as provided by supplemental scripting and third-party modes in voluntary compliance with governmental and interest-group guidelines. Website accessibility, as defined by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), is enhanced by tagging all images and tables with descriptive labels, by titling all frames and sources, by using the style sheet command directly on the webpage (instead of external CSS), by using client-side protocols and programs (instead of server based entities), by using relative (instead of absolute) positioning, by making content color independent, and by making navigation consistent. A fundamental concept that web designers and other content providers must understand is: availability is not accessibility. See specialized format, large print, PDF, DAISY, crawl, MSAA, WAI, validation, sign language.

accordian-fold:

An artistic presentation of book contents, usually contained in a slipcase, in which serial pages are printed sequentially on a long strip, and continued on the reverse at the halfway point, then alternately folded to page size. Also known as "z-fold", "s-fold", or concertina-fold. See boustrophedon, French fold, foldout, parallel-fold, wrap-fold.

acid-free paper:

Archival paper that resists discoloration and disintegration due to the absence of caustic chemicals and acidic fibers during manufacture; primarily used for classic reprints and photographic essays. See paper.

acknowledgments/acknowledgments page:

A book page, usually Roman-numeral verso, recognizing authorizations, contributions, citations, constructions, and appreciations; which may include a dedication, masthead, or colophon with the copyright and other legal declarations. The British spelling is "acknowledgements". See title page, credit line, dedication, front matter, disclaimer, specialized format.

Acrobat:

The document exchange software suite from Adobe Systems. Acrobat provides a platform-independent means of creating, viewing, and printing documents. Acrobat can convert an MS-DOS, Windows, Macintosh, or UNIX document into a stable Portable Document Format (*.PDF), which can then be displayed on any other computer with a freeware version of the Acrobat reader. When others view a PDF file or printout, the document will appear in the exact layout as the author intended. This style consistency when transported is its main advantage over other formatters, such as HTML, which can generate unreliable outputs under various circumstances. See PDF, program, software.

acronym:

A word formed from the initial letters or groups of letters of the words in a name or phrase (eg: RADAR, SONAR, LORAN, CARE, MedEvac, YIPpie); being an acrostic, which may have originated as a mnemonic. Compare initialism.

addendum/addenda:

Anything to be added, or a list of additions. Also, an appendix to a book. See back matter.

ad diction:

The fractured syntax and word conversions employed in slogans and catch-phrases to attract attention to products and to persuade patronage; also called "ad speak", "biz buzz", "sales lingo", "commercial speech". Among purists, the corruptions of ad diction are a perversion of proper grammar; but among devotees, they're a vital coinage of a dynamic language. Sample colloquialisms and pleonasms include: bowlarama, check-into, check-over, check-up, cheese burger, close-down, colorwise, continue-on, fade-away, fade-out, flavorwise, fold-up, foodarama, framed-up, head-up, hide-out, jobwise, lose-out, love-in, motorcade, newscast, newswise, no-show, saleswise, scoutorama, showed-up, sit-in, smellorama, talkathon, telethon, up-until, walkathon, win-out, workathon, wraps it up. See puffery, balderdash, pap, vernacular, flackery, advertising.

additive color:

Color produced by light falling onto a surface. The additive primary colors are red, green, and blue. Compare subtractive color, subtractive primary colors; see illustration.

advance:

The furnishing of some payment or goods before an equivalent is received, as an advance on royalties, which will be amortized and is recoupable; see escalation, royalty, production advance, grant. Also, a press release, publicity, or news copy prepared before the event it describes has occurred. Also, anything made, given, or issued ahead of time, as an advance payment or an advance copy (qv).

advance copies:

The first pressrun copies of a new book or magazine sent to the preferred clients of the publisher, to production staff, to content contributors, and other select persons before regular distribution. See samples.

advance order:

Quantity reserved by publisher for wholesalers and retailers prior to production, based upon advertising of reviews; also known as "lay-down" or "pre-publication order".

advertising:

The practice of offering goods or services to the public through paid announcements in the media; which act of mercantile sponsorship supports the commercial publishing of periodicals and other broadcasts. Advertising revenue constitutes less than half the income for the average periodical. To be effective, ads must be noticed [nb: the average American is exposed to approximately 3,000 commercials each day in all media], which makes them inherently irritating. Advertising dicta opts for "more" and "sooner", rather than "just right" and "later". Ads are formulated to: attract Attention, build Interest, create Desire, compel Action (AIDA). Advertising effectiveness is often expressed as a sexual metaphor: "It's not size, but frequency and location that matters most."! References include: "Standard Directory of Advertisers", "Standard Directory of Advertising Agencies" (The Red Book), "Business Publication Advertising Source", "Standard Rate and Data Directory" (SRDS), "Newspaper Advertising Source". The American Association of Advertising Agencies (AAAA) is a membership organization with voluntary conformity to a code of rules and procedures. See echo effect, word of mouth, card, fractional ad, tombstone, island ad, RDA, column inch, double spread, center spread, cover positions, double pyramid, rollout, bill, broadside, poster, one sheet, fly sheet, handbill, collateral, audit, tear sheet, ballyhoo, puffery, make good, reader profile, CPM, jingle, PSA, ad diction, propaganda, disinformation, advertorial, infomercial, pop-up, adware, colophon. [nb: specimen advertising magazines: "Ad Week" and "Advertising Age"; specimen no-ad magazines: "Consumer Reports" and "Ad Busters"] [nb: huckstering was reversed during WWII to embrace patriotic anti-consumerism with specialized advertising, as the slogan: "Use it up. Wear it out. Make it do, or do without!"]

advertising linage:

The number of advertising pages carried by a magazine in any given period, usually includes a perspective on advertising space compared to editorial content, expressed as a ratio or percentage.

advertising specialties:

Items emblazoned with advertising, such as calendars, coffee cups, hats, matchbooks, and pencils. See premium; compare collateral.

advertorial:

A newspaper or magazine advertisement that promotes the sponsor's product in the guise of objective analysis or public information; derived as a blend of advertisement and editorial. To qualify for publication postal permits, advertisements must not appear to be editorial matter, and any ad presentation that may be confused with general interest copy must be labeled. See editorial well, PSA, infomercial, advertising.

adware:

A form of intrusive spyware that covertly monitors online computer use so as to display advertisements and solicitations in the web browser which are related to the user's interest; such adware (advertisement+software) is allegedly a form of tailored "junk mail" delivered electronically. Also, software that has advertising already embedded, requiring the user to "click through" pop-ups and dialog boxes before accessing the primary program or application. See cookie, pop-up, spam, sniffer.

aesthetics/esthetics:

The branch of philosophy analyzing the theories of taste, and the study of beauty in nature and art; derived from "sensory or intuitive perception" (aisthetiks). See tour de force, masterpiece, opus, oeuvre, ars gratia artis, l'art pour l'art, golden proportion.

afflatus:

Creative inspiration or artistic revelation; derived from "emit", as to be breathed upon by divine communication. The slang expression for this sudden insight is "brain fart". See muse, aesthetics, art, artwork, videation. [v: noetic, limen]

A4 paper:

ISO paper size 210mm X 297mm used for letterheads, forms, magazines, catalogs, laser printer and copying machine output. See paper.

afterword:

A closing statement or concluding commentary at the end of a book, treatise, or other publication. Compare foreword; see back matter.

agate:

A five-point (5.142pt) type; or a typeface sized smaller than that used for news text, especially in classified advertisements (14 agate lines = 1 column inch). Compare pearl, ruby; see fractional ad, milline, linage, font, type.

agent-sold subscriptions:

Subscriptions sold to libraries and institutions through outside agencies such as Ebsco and Faxon. On an annual basis, publishers send these agencies brief editorial descriptions plus subscription information which the agencies publish in their catalogs at no cost. Publishers can also pay for larger display ads. Librarians then purchase subscriptions through these catalogs using the agency essentially as a middleman. Many commercial magazines offer 15%-20% subscription discounts in return for the convenience of the agency's services. See subscription.

air:

White space in a layout. See apron, gutter, river.

airbrush:

A mechanical atomizer producing an adjustable spray of paint, used especially for retouching (qv) photographs and other design illustrations.

ALGOL:

A contraction of ALGOrithmic Language, being a computer language in which information is expressed in algebraic notation, and according to the rules of Boolean algebra. See Pascal, language.

algorithm:

A set of problem-solving rules, or a finite sequence of executable steps or instructions, as designed for a computer.

alignment:

The position of text lines on a page relative to its defined margins or grid boxes; including centered, flushed, justified, columnar, and text boxes. See leading, solid leading, minus leading, kern, solid, flush, justify, feathering, ragged, straight composition, H&J, indent.

ALL CAPS:

Notation for setting all designated letters, usually a title or heading, in full capitalization; also called "Cap 'n' Cap". See CAP, LC, CAP&LC, OC, small-cap, CAP&SC, C&IC, proofreader's marks.

allocation:

Quantity of a product, such as a brand of paper, that is rationed to distributors and customers until a specified date.

allonym:

An author's assumed name; the fictitious or counterfeit name under which a writing is published, as derived "other + name". Synonymous with pen name, nom de plume, pseudonym, cognomen, anonym, alias, soi-disant, nom de guerre. See samizdatchik, ghostwriter, byline, autograph, plagiarism. [cf: innominate]

allusion:

A passing reference, either direct or implied, without explicit identification or explanation, to a literary passage, work, or character, or to an historical person, place, or event; used to succinctly establish mood or setting, and to concisely convey subtle meaning to the intended audience. [eg: "from pillar to post" alludes to rushing or being tossed from one thing to another (cf: "hither and thither" or "badgered and bothered"), and may derive from architecture, horse racing, tennis, or punishment (from pillory to whipping post)]

alphabet:

Any system of letters or symbols used for writing, which represents speech sounds or language; implicitly entails phoneme, allomorph, syllable, homonym/homograph/homophone, heteronym, doublet, orthoepy, paragoge, apheresis, prothesis, syncope, metathesis, sandhi, haplology, spoonerism, anagram, acrostic, abecedari. See digraph, ligature, logo, diacritic, morpheme, syllabary, elision, punctuation, syntax, vowel, parse, pidgin, type, typology, font, rune, orthography, oxymoron, neologism, dictionary, semantics, semiotics, lexigram, pictography, ideogram, language, rhetorical forms. The earliest dated written material is c4236BC from Egypt. Sumerian pictography ca3500BC became Mesopotamian cuneiform ("wedge shaped") writing, as used by the ancient Akkadians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, and others. The simple Greek alphabet (16 letters by Cadmus, and 4 letters by Palamedes) was introduced from Phoenicia. Alphabets independently invented elsewhere, as Egyptian hieroglyphics ca3,000BC, Minoan Linear-A/Mycenean Linear-B ca1200BC, Indus Valley script (at Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa) ca3,000-2,400BC, Chinese (ideogram) seal script ca1,500BC, Mayan script caAD50, Ogham (Irish Ogam/Ogum) alphabetic script caAD400-1000, Irish Gaelic caAD1175, Aztec Kipu script caAD1400.

alpha test:

The experimental testing of an early version of a software product, that may not contain all of the features that are planned for the final version, to discover programming errors and conflicts. Typically, developmental software testing is two tiered prior to completion. The first stage, called alpha testing, is often performed only by users within the organization developing the software. The second stage, called beta testing, generally involves a limited number of external users. Compare beta test, vaporware; see bug, glitch, patch, kludge, debug, tweak.

alt tag:

An alternative HTML attribute that displays the stipulated data, which may be nested or sequenced. Compare title tag; see tag, markup, validation.

amanuensis:

A person employed to transcribe what another person has dictated or written; also known as scribe, scrivener, copyist, secretary. Compare ghostwriter; see writer.

ampersand:

A character or symbol (&) for 'and'; a literal contraction of "and per se and" (the symbol of 'and' by itself stands for 'and'). See notation, punctuation.

anachronism:

To make a wrong time reference in which a person, object, or event is situated out of correct sequence or proper context, most often as an error rather than a literary device. See factoid, poetic license.

analects/analecta:

Passages or pieces selected from the writings of an author or from different authors, as excerpts, abridgements, or condensations; derived from "to gather". See compilation, digest, truncation, ellipsis, bite, snippet.

analog/analogue:

Something having analogy or being analogous to something else, as pertaining to the measurement of continuously variable data by readout displays having incremental slides or dials, instead of numerical digits. Analog computing represents data in continuously variable physical quantities, in contrast to the digital representation of data in discrete units (the binary digits 1 and 0). The digital to analog converter (DAC) is an electronic circuit that converts digital information (eg: from CD or CD-ROM) into analog information (eg: sound/audio signals). The digital to analog conversion translates digital information (1s and 0s) into analog information (eg: sound waves). An analog signal is converted to digital by sampling at regular intervals; the more frequent the samples and the more data recorded, the more closely the digital depiction represents the analog signal. Converting analog signals into digital makes it possible to preserve the data indefinitely and make many copies without qualitative deterioration. See bit, byte, quantum.

anchor:

To fix a graphical object in desktop publishing so that its position, relative to some other object, remains the same during editing or repagination. Also, a significant literary work or an appealing image that's been strategically positioned to draw readers into the publication; see violin piece, feature.

anchor tag:

The HTML attributed tag specifying a link to another location, either on the same or a different document. The anchor tag uses embedded hypertext reference patterns: <A HREF="URL">click</A>; <A HREF="URL#string">click</A>; <A NAME="string">text or image</A>; <A HREF="webpage"><IMG SRC="file">next page</A>; <A HREF="URL" TARGET="_top">go there</A>. See URL, internet address, tag, markup.

animation:

Simulating lifelike movement in images or objects; derived from "give life". Animations can be created with graphics programs, but must then be assembled with construction software specific to the format. See morph, Flash, GIF, SVG, transparent palette, flipbook, cartoon, joystick, kiosk, illustration.

anodized plate:

An electrolytically-coated offset printing plate, so treated as to reduce wear during printing.

anonymous FTP:

The feature of File Transfer Protocol (FTP) software that lets anyone without an account on a host computer log-on using the user identification "anonymous". See FTP, HTTP, TELNET.

ANSI:

The abbreviation for the American National Standards Institute; formerly known as the American standards Association (ASA). See ISO, ASCII.

anthology:

A collection of selected works, often in the same literary form, of the same period, or on the same subject; derived from "gathering of flowers". Also called "album". See compilation.

anticlimax:

An event, statement, conclusion, or resolution that is far less significant, powerful, or striking than expected; a weak, inglorious, or disappointing conclusion. Also, a noticeable decline or a ludicrous descent in power, quality, or dignity, from lofty ideas or expressions to banalities or commonplace remarks. Compare climax; see deus ex machina, kicker, drama, media event. [v: bathos]

antihero:

The protagonist or central character of drama and literature (qqv) who lacks ennobling qualities and traditional virtues.

anti-offset powder:

Fine powder lightly sprayed over the printed surface of coated paper as sheets leave a press. See pounce.

antique finish:

Roughest finish offered on offset paper. See paper coating.

apex/apexes/apices:

The upper junction point in oblique character stems, the meeting of which is less than perpendicular, as in letters A/M/N/W. See font, type, typeface, typography.

API:

The abbreviation for Application Program Interface (or Application Programming Interface). An interface between the operating system and application programs, which includes the way the application programs communicate with the operating system, and the services the operating system makes available to the programs.

apodosis:

The clause expressing the consequence or conclusion in a conditional sentence; derived from "returning", give back. Compare protasis; see rhetorical forms.

apostrophe:

The sign (') used to indicate the omission of one or more letters in a word (whether pronounced or unpronounced), to indicate the possessive case, or to indicate plurals of abbreviations and symbols, which being an eliding mark derived from "turn away"; see swung dash, elision, punctuation, compare quotation marks. Also, a digression in the form of an address to someone not present, or to a personified object or idea; see strophe, soliloquy, verse.

appendix/appendices:

Any supplementary material at the end of a text; derived from "appendage". See back matter, reference marks. end sign.

application:

Computer program used for specific tasks such as word processing, page layout, or editing photographs.

appositive:

The addition or application of a word or phrase to another, such that these usually consecutive expressions bear the same grammatical relation and referent; an adjunct word or phrase used to qualify or explain the preceding expression. See phrase, parts of speech.

appropriation:

The unauthorized use of private or proprietary property, as to expropriate; derived from "to make one's own". See plagiarism, fair use. Also, to set apart for a specific purpose or use, as a budget (qv) allocation. See sweat equity, marketing plan.

apron:

Additional white space allocated in the margins of text and illustrations when forming a foldout. See white space, margin.

aqueous coating:

Coating in a water base and applied like ink by a printing press to protect and enhance the printing underneath.

archive:

Cache of documents and files saved for possible use in any subsequent design or print jobs; also called "legacy".

argus:

Any observant person or vigilant guardian, such as a meticulous editor. In both senses of the word (ie: a giant with a thousand eyes, a brilliantly marked peacock), an editor is either a writer's best asset, or merely another obstructive pettifogger. When done properly, editing will be invisible, and the editorial staff anonymous. Publishers and writers both owe deserving proofreaders and copyeditors an "Argus Award" for excellence!

array:

An ordered arrangement of data elements in one or more dimensions: a list, a table, or a multidimensional arrangement of items. A vector is a one-dimensional array; a matrix is a two-dimensional array. Multidimensional arrays are used to store tables of data, especially in scientific simulation and mathematical processing. Data items in an array are distinguished by subscripts.

arrow keys:

The keys on the keyboard that are used to move the cursor in the indicated directions (up, down, left, right), and may have other uses in combination with other keys; sometimes called "cursor keys" or "cursor cross". See cursor.

ars gratia artis:

Latin slogan: art for art's sake, or art for its own sake. The artwork in publishing must convey some message, from evoking mood to augmenting text, in justification of its expensive presence. See l'art pour l'art; compare tour de force, masterpiece, aesthetics. [v: aestheticism]

art:

Everything except textual copy, including styles, images, ornaments, in either radial symmetry, bilateral symmetry, or asymmetry. See graphics, illustration, clipart, design, font, afflatus, aesthetics, stylish; compare artwork.

art board:

The pre-press layout backing for graphics and type; also known as "paste-up" onto pasteboard. See mechanical, artwork; compare storyboard. [cf: tablature: to mark or score on a board]

art director:

The person responsible for the selection, development, and production of all illustrative and stylistic aspects of a publication, including graphic arts and advertisements, which set the tone and mood for the reader; also called "art editor", as derived from former periodical 'art buyer'. As a visual interpreter, the art director arranges convertible design elements to represent or supplement the textual component. Compare editor.

artifact:

Anything made by humans that's intended for later or repeated use; see semiotics, glyph, ideogram, logogram, alphabet, word, lexigram, syntax, literature, scroll, banderole, incunabula, codex, manuscript, book, periodical. Also, any fragment or remnant of a man-made object belonging to an earlier era [v: archaeology, anthropology, ethnology]. Also, an artificial substance or structure; an unnatural feature. Also, a spurious observation or anomalous result.

art paper:

A smooth paper, obtained by coating one or both sides of the paper with a China clay compound. See book paper, paper, paper coating.

artwork:

The elements that constitute a mechanical (qv) paste-up, as type, proofs, and illustrations. See job order; compare art.

ascender:

The part of a lowercase letter, such as b/d/f/h/k, that rises above x-height (qv). See minuscule, baseline, typeface, font, body size, demon letters.

ASCII:

The abbreviation for American Standard Code for Information Interchange; being the worldwide standard for the code numbers used by computers to represent all the upper- and lower-case Latin letters, numbers, punctuation, and related data. Each alphanumeric character is represented as a number from 0 to 127, translated into a 7-bit binary code for the computer. ASCII is used by most computers and printers, and because of this, text-only files can be easily transferred between different kinds of computers. ASCII code also includes some control code characters to indicate backspace, line feed, and carriage return, but does not include accents and special letters not used in English. A plain-text ASCII file does not include style formatting such as bold, underline, Italics characters, or centered text. Some ASCII files contain program source code, scripts, or macros written as text. Extended ASCII has additional characters (128-255). Extended ASCII symbols may include foreign language accents, ligatures, math or graphics symbols, and so forth, but are not universal. The ANSI set of extended characters in DOS and Windows is non-standard, and Macintosh allows users to personalize the higher-ASCII definitions. Legitimate filename extensions for ASCII text include: *.TXT, *.ASC, *.DOC. See EBCDIC, Unicode, ANSI, ISO.

ASCII art:

The drawing of pictures and designs on a computer, using only ASCII alphanumeric characters. Using the HTML <PRE> tag, ASCII art can be displayed in text-based media on the web, as an alternative to graphical browsers, where other images cannot be shown. Many e-mail signatures include an ASCII art image. Compare emoticon; see illustration.

A sizes:

ISO paper sizes for standard trim sizes on products that don't involve bleeds or trimming outside the edges. See paper.

ASP:

The abbreviation for Active Server Page, being a specification (*.ASP) for a dynamically created webpage that utilizes ActiveX scripting (usually VBscript or Jscript code). When a browser requests an ASP page, the web server generates a page with HTML code and sends it back to the browser. Active Server Pages are similar to CGI scripts, but they permit Visual Basic programmers to work with familiar Microsoft tools. See Cold Fusion, web server. Also, the abbreviation for Application Service Provider. Also, the abbreviation for Association of Shareware Professionals, a trade group for shareware authors, who submit programs for virus checking and CD-ROM distribution.

aspect ratio:

The ratio of width to height of a glyph, image, or object. See hint, proportional font, font, typography, typeface.

assisted self-publishing:

An author, wishing to retain copyright and maintain editorial control of their manuscript, may hire a commercial assisted self-publishing house to provide professional services throughout any part of the publishing process. See publishing house, subsidy publisher, self-publishing, vanity press.

asterisk:

A small starlike symbol (*) used in writing and printing as a reference mark (qv), or to indicate omission, ungrammatical usage, doubtful matter, or the like; see ellipsis, notation, end sign. Also, a parameter representing a search string or filename, also called "star" or "splat"; see wildcard.

athenaeum:

An institution for the promotion of literary or scientific learning, which often maintains a free-access reading room or library. See renaissance, enlightenment, literature.

ATM:

The abbreviation for Adobe Type Manager, being a font utility for Macintosh and Windows platforms that enables a computer to print PostScript fonts and show PostScript screen fonts; see Display PostScript, EPS, font. Also, the abbreviation for Asynchronous Transfer Mode, and referred to as BISDN and Cell Relay, being the SONET standard for a high-bandwidth, low-delay, connection-oriented, packet-like switching and multiplexing technique that uses cells of fixed length (53-byte cells, 5-byte header and 48-byte payload) that are switched throughout a network over virtual circuits. Standardized by the ITU-T in 1988 to create a Broadband Integrated Services Digital Network (B-ISDN). Its ability to accommodate multiple types of media (voice, video, data) and high-speed makes it a likely player for full service networks based on ADSL and VDSL. Because of the architecture, ATM has the capability to run from 45 Mbps using a DS3 to 2.5 Gbps using an OC-48. Also, used as chatroom or instant messaging shorthand meaning "At The Moment".

at sign:

A symbol (@) used to mean 'at' or 'at such' in commercial and scientific notation, with limited application in regular text; see notation. Also, a coding sign in computer software; see MIME, internet address, language. Possible derivation from a ligature of Latin 'ad' meaning "to", or the sign for Florentine "amphora", based on trade with these standardized terracotta jars as a unit of weight or volume; also known as "at mark", "at character", "commercial at symbol"; and various agnomens as vortex, whorl, whirlpool, cyclone, twiddle, a-twist, ear, arabesque, curl, snail, worm, monkey tail, elephant trunk, strudel, cinnamon roll, rollmop.

attic:

An enlarged top margin, being white space without header or headpiece. See margin, apron, white space; compare sinkage, horizon line, basement, skyline.

atticism:

Concise and elegant expression, diction, or the like; derived from Attic Greek being the stylistic basis for other dialects or languages [cf: solecism]. See diction, eloquence, elocution, euphemism, rhetorical forms, language.

attribute:

Designates the properties or status of qualified data by assigning a type identifier with one or more values. Attributes can make programs "read only", directories "archive", system files "hidden", or user files "no copy". May be used as a modifier within a tag, as <TAG ATTRIB="X">.

audience:

The persons reached by distribution of a book or magazine, by a radio or television broadcast; a regular public manifesting interest and support for such media, including readers, subscribers, clients, and advertisers. About 88% of Americans purchase one or more publications each month. The best market research is a reader survey. See universe, newsstand, subscription, reader profile, tracking, pass-along, audit, sell-through rate, circulation, mass market, crossover market, niche market.

audit:

An examination of circulation data by an impartial accountant, that verifies distribution and subscription reports from the publisher, as an assurance of audience for advertisers, as so noted in the masthead. Audits are usually performed to warrant higher advertising rates for newsstand periodicals. A "visitor counter" operated by the server, which may also sample periodicity and other statistical factors, will serve as an audit for online e-mag publications.

autograph:

To write one's name in, on, or upon something, especially to sign as a memento; see show-off, signet, logo, brand, indicia. Also, something written in a person's own hand, as a manuscript or letter (qv); see manuscript, script, cursive, paraph.