client-server

Intermediate 💻 Tech / IT

Definition

An architecture where multiple client programs request services and resources from a centralized server, like a restaurant where customers (clients) order from a kitchen (server) instead of cooking themselves. It's the backbone of most modern computing, from email to web browsing, where the heavy lifting happens on powerful servers while clients just display results. The IT equivalent of specialization and division of labor, now with more latency issues.

Example Usage

Our client-server application worked perfectly in testing, but in production the server became overwhelmed and all 500 clients just stared at loading spinners.

Source: Common IT terminology

Related Terms

Beginner

server

A powerful computer whose entire purpose in life is to serve data, files, or applications to other computers like a digital butler. It's the hardworking machine sitting in a climate-controlled room, handling requests 24/7 while your laptop gets all the credit. When it goes down, everything grinds to a halt and IT people start sweating profusely.

💻 Tech / IT
Intermediate

partition

In tech, the act of dividing a hard drive or database into separate, independent sections that pretend not to know each other exist. It's like building walls in your digital house so that when one room catches fire, the others might survive. Also used in data architecture to make queries faster by only searching relevant sections, because even computers appreciate not having to look through everything.

💻 Tech / IT
Advanced

pointer

In tech, a variable that stores a memory address rather than an actual value, making it both incredibly powerful and the source of countless debugging nightmares. It's like giving someone directions to a house instead of bringing them the house itself—efficient until someone writes down the wrong address. The leading cause of segmentation faults and developer existential crises.

💻 Tech / IT
Intermediate

Epic Games

The video game company behind Fortnite that became a lightning rod for gamer controversy due to frequent game changes, competitive scene drama, and their aggressive battle with app stores. Known for making decisions that simultaneously print money while enraging their most dedicated players. They're like that friend who keeps changing the rules mid-game because they own the board.

💻 Tech / IT
Intermediate

viscosity

The scientific measurement of a fluid's resistance to flow, or as regular humans call it, "thickness." This friction coefficient determines whether your substance pours like water or oozes like honey. Engineers obsess over this because apparently knowing the exact internal friction of liquids is how bridges get built and engines don't explode.

💻 Tech / IT
Beginner

incident

In IT and corporate settings, an unplanned event that disrupts normal operations or threatens to do so—basically anything that makes the help desk phone start ringing. Incidents range from minor glitches to full system meltdowns, each triggering incident management protocols. It's the polite way of saying 'something broke' without causing panic.

💻 Tech / IT

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