Glossary
The following terms are used throughout the documentation.
arweave
Arweave is a decentralized data storage protocol that allows you to store documents and applications in perpetuity on a permanent internet — the permaweb.
bitrate
The number of bits per second that can be transmitted along a digital network.
blockchain
A blockchain is a growing list of records, called blocks, that are linked together using cryptography.Each block contains a cryptographic hash of the previous block, a timestamp, and transaction data (generally represented as a Merkle tree). The timestamp proves that the transaction data existed when the block was published in order to get into its hash. As blocks each contain information about the block previous to it, they form a chain, with each additional block reinforcing the ones before it. Therefore, blockchains are resistant to modification of their data because once recorded, the data in any given block cannot be altered retroactively without altering all subsequent blocks.
cdn
A content delivery network (CDN) refers to a geographically distributed group of servers that work together to provide fast delivery of Internet content.
dao
A decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), sometimes called a decentralized autonomous corporation (DAC), is an organization represented by rules encoded as a computer program that is transparent, controlled by the organization members and not influenced by a central government. A DAO's financial transaction record and program rules are maintained on a blockchain.
defi
Decentralized finance, or DeFi, is a system by which financial products become available on a public decentralized blockchain network. That makes them open to anyone to use, rather than going through middlemen like banks or brokerages.
dex
Decentralized exchanges (DEX) are a type of cryptocurrency exchange which allows for direct peer-to-peer cryptocurrency transactions to take place online securely and without the need for an intermediary.
dns
The Domain Name System is the hierarchical and decentralized naming system used to identify computers, services, and other resources reachable through the internet or other internet protocol networks.
front-end
he frontend of a software program or website is everything with which the user interacts. From a user standpoint, the frontend is synonymous with the user interface. From a developer standpoint, it is the interface design and the programming that makes the interface function.
hns
Handshake is a decentralized, permissionless naming protocol where every peer is validating and in charge of managing the root DNS naming zone with the goal of creating an alternative to existing Certificate Authorities and naming systems.
ipfs
The InterPlanetary File System is a protocol and peer-to-peer network for storing and sharing data in a distributed file system. IPFS uses content-addressing to uniquely identify each file in a global namespace connecting all computing devices.
livepeer protocol
The code that dictates all of the rules of using and interacting with Livepeer. Implemented as a set of smart contracts that run on the Ethereum blockchain.
lpt
In the Livepeer protocol, Livepeer Token (LPT) is required to perform the work of transcoding and distributing video on the network. Its purpose is to coordinate, bootstrap, and incentivize participants to make sure the Livepeer network is as cheap, effective, secure, reliable and useful as possible.
pool
A liquidity pool is a collection of funds locked in a smart contract. Liquidity pools are used to facilitate decentralized trading, lending, and various services such as CDN, storage or transcoding.
segment
A video segment (or chunk) is a fragment of video information that is a collection of video frames. Combined together, these segments make up a whole video.
transcoding
The process of taking a raw video file and reformatting it so that no matter bandwidth you have - whether 2g or 5g - and no matter what device, you're ensured the most optimal viewing experience.
wallet
A collection of keypairs that allows users to manage their funds.
webrtc
WebRTC (Web Real-Time Communication) is a free and open-source project providing web browsers and mobile applications with real-time communication (RTC) via application programming interfaces (APIs). It allows audio and video communication to work inside web pages by allowing direct peer-to-peer communication, eliminating the need to install plugins or download native apps.
web3
Web 3.0 represents the next iteration or phase of the evolution of the Web/internet and could potentially be as disruptive and represent as big a paradigm shift as Web 2.0. Web 3.0 is built upon the core concepts of decentralization, openness, and greater user utility.