Glossary - Key Terms

A:

B:

• Backup - A backup is a sort of save point for your world. If something happens that you don't like in the game (like someone blowing up your entire house with TNT), you can restore your world from one of these backups taken. StickyPiston automatically takes backups of all of our servers once per day, every day.
• Bukkit - This is another name for CraftBukkit.

C:

• Click & Play Installer* - StickyPiston's Click & Play Installer is a tool we have made for our users to allow them to seamlessly switch between worlds and servers without any hassle at all.
• Command - A command is a trigger which leads to an action, or series of actions, being taken by a computer (or Minecraft server). An example of a command would be when you press keys on your keyboard, the keyboard then tells the computer to do something based on what key you pressed.
• CraftBukkit - CraftBukkit is a special type of Minecraft server that allows loading plugins. (Note: Also called Bukkit sometimes)

D:

• Data - Data is information which is stored by a computer or human to keep track of something. Example: Weather forecasters look at data from the past to try and predict what it will be on that day.
• Database - A database is a special type of software that is very good at storing large amounts of data. You may also see "db" when people are referring to databases.
• Development Version - A development version is a type of release that will frequently have a lot of errors in the code causing the game to not behave the way the developers intended.
• Dimension - A Minecraft dimension is a type of world in the game, these usually consist of the Overworld, the Nether, and The End. Mods can also additional custom dimensions.
• Domain Name Server (DNS) - A DNS is a part of the internet which allows websites to direct you to where the code for the website is located.

E:

• Edition - An Edition of Minecraft is a different type of Minecraft. For example: Minecraft on the Nintendo Switch uses the Bedrock Edition, whereas the Minecraft Java Edition uses Java and will work on all of Windows, Mac, and Linux.
• Error - An error is something happening that causes unexpected behaviour in the code. These should be fairly rare, but can occur. They come in different levels, some causing the server to completely stop working immediately and remove all players, and some of them will just cause stuff in the server to not work for a short amount of time without needing to remove any players.
• The End - This is a dimension of Minecraft that is where the final boss of the game is located.
• EULA (End User License Agreement) - The Minecraft EULA is an agreement between server owners and Mojang about how you can use Minecraft servers. This agreement in full can be found at: Minecraft EULA

F:

• File Type - Every file created in your server has a special type, indicated by the portion of the filename at the end of the name. This can be anything from .json, .yaml, .jar. Each file type has a different purpose, some of them are used for configuring plugins, mods, and some are pieces of code that the server should run.
• First Party - This is considered any group or company that is directly associated with a company. In most articles, we will refer to StickyPiston or Mojang as first party, depending on the context of the sentence. For example: Minecraft Realms is a first party solution for server hosting. The Click and Play Installer is a first party solution to switching worlds and server types from StickyPiston.
• Forge - Forge is a version of Minecraft which has been modified to allow mods to run in the game. Most modpacks will use a version of Forge.
• FTP (File Transfer Protocol) - A system for transferring files between two computers by using the internet.

G:

H:

• Hardware - Hardware is the physical components of a computer. For example: The following pieces of technology are considered hardware: keyboard, mouse, screen, speakers, RAM. (This is not a complete list, just a few examples of it.)

I:

J:

• JAR (Java Archive) - A Java Archive is a filetype that indicates that there is code that is ran to do something. The entire Minecraft server is a JAR file, as well as mods and plugins.
• JSON (Javascript Object Notation) - JSON is a filetype that is used for representing data to humans. This is a very strict format and is very easy to break if you do not know what you're doing.

K:

L:

M:

• Memory - See RAM
• Mod - An addition or modification to the game. Mods often introduce significantly larger changes to the base game than plugins. Mods also need to be installed on both the player's game and the server if you want to connect to the server, unlike plugins.
• Modded Minecraft - Modded Minecraft is a type of Minecraft that adds new features to the game, this can be anything from new dimensions to entirely new tech trees. On modded servers, new features are added in modules called mods, groups of these mods already made are called modpacks.
• Modpack - A modpack is a group of mods that work well together that someone has put together. StickyPiston has a wide range of modpacks ready for you to play using the Click & Play Installer.
• Mojang - The company who makes Minecraft.
• Multicraft - Multicraft is a Minecraft server management tool that allows users to control every part of their server. We have customized Multicraft to allow users to make it as easy to use for or server owners as possible.
• MySQL - MySQL is a type of database that most plugins will use. This is not the only type of database that is used by plugins, but it is the most common.

N:

• Nether - One of the default dimensions inside of Minecraft.

O:

• Overworld - The first dimension that players are put into upon loading the world for the first time.

P:

• Plugin - A JAR file that you can tell specific servers to load. Plugins will frequently modify or extend Minecraft features. Plugins are unique in the fact that they do not need to be installed for players and the server, they only need to be installed for the server, unlike mods.
• Port - A port is a piece of software on a computer that allows multiple data streams coming in from the internet to be directed to the application that is responsible for it. Certain port numbers are reserved for specific applications and uses.

Q:

R:

• RAM (Random Access Memory) - This is a part of a computer that allows different programs to have different amounts of code loaded at the same time, so the more RAM you have for your server, the more mods or plugins the server can be running at the same time.
• Restore - Restoring is the action of taking a previously saved file and using it instead of a recently changed file. Think of this as going back to a save point. Restoring often goes together with backup.
• Release - A release is what happens when Mojang gives the public access to new game code, there are multiple release types, ranging from development versions to stable versions.
• Root - The base folder of your Minecraft server, when you connect to your server with FTP, you will be looking at the root of the server. Imagine your folders as a house, where each folder is a room in your house, and each folder inside of that is a closet. The root would be the house as a whole.

S:

• Server - A server is a piece of software which allows players to connect to it and play together. The most common types of servers are: Vanilla, Modded, Spigot, CraftBukkit
• Spigot - Spigot is a special type of server that allows running plugins to extend or modify game functionality.
• Software - Software is the programs that run on a computer. An example of a piece of software is Minecraft.
• Syntax - Syntax is the way something is formatted. Often this will be referring to commands. When you encounter a "syntax", it means that it will be a template of something. For example, the syntax of Minecraft's OP command is: /op <player_name>, where <player_name> is a variable that you change when you are actually using that command.

T:

• Tech Tree - A tech tree is a style of advancing through the game and providing more features to players only when they would be able to use them rather than overwhelming them at the start with everything that they have no idea how to use.
• Third Party - This is considered any group or company that is not directly associated with a company. For example: StickyPiston is a third party Minecraft server hosting solution, whereas Mojang's Realms are a first party server hosting solution. Most of the time this will be referring to any company or group that isn't StickyPiston.

U:

V:

• Vanilla Minecraft - Vanilla Minecraft is referring to the default version of Minecraft, made and released by Mojang
• Version - A version is a specific release of Minecraft, each given with a unique numeric code to indicate the features and bug fixes that occured since the last release.

W:

• World - A Minecraft world is a collection of information files that the server loads and sends to the players connected to the server. By default, each world will have three dimensions, but that can be expanded by mods.

X:

Y:

• YAML - YAML is a data format that is meant to be easy to read for humans. This format is most commonly used for configuring plugins.

Z: