Back to the Sandbox
The SandboxNow projecting · Drop #001 · 30 Oct 2026
Dev lingo, decoded
The words you'll hear most when building a website or app, translated into plain English, each with an everyday comparison.
| Term | What it means | Everyday comparison |
|---|---|---|
| Stack | The set of tools and technologies a product is built with | The ingredients and kitchen equipment for a recipe |
| Front end | Everything the user sees and touches: screens, buttons, animation | The dining room of a restaurant |
| Back end | The hidden part that stores data and does the work: accounts, payments, sending emails | The kitchen |
| Full stack | Someone (or something) that does both front and back end | A chef who also serves the tables |
| HTML | The language that structures a web page: headings, paragraphs, images | The walls and rooms of a house |
| CSS | The language that styles it: colours, fonts, layout, animation | The paint and furniture |
| JavaScript (JS) | The language that makes it interactive: forms, effects, logic | The electricity and plumbing |
| Domain | Your web address, e.g. moreiraltd.com | Your street address |
| DNS | The internet's phone book that turns a domain into the server it points to | The post office knowing which house is which |
| Hosting | The computers that store your site and send it to visitors | The plot of land your house sits on |
| Server | A computer that runs all the time and answers requests | A shop that's always open |
| Static site | A site made of ready-made files, no database (like ours) | A printed brochure: fast, cheap, hard to break |
| CMS | A content management system: a dashboard to edit a site without code (WordPress, Webflow) | A whiteboard anyone can update |
| Database | Where data is stored and organised: users, orders, scores | A filing cabinet |
| API | A way for two pieces of software to talk to each other | A waiter taking your order to the kitchen |
| SSL / HTTPS | The padlock: encrypts traffic between visitor and site | A sealed envelope instead of a postcard |
| Responsive | Adapts to any screen size, from phone to desktop | A tailor-made suit for every body |
| UX | User experience: how it works and how easy it is | Whether a door is easy to open |
| UI | User interface: how it looks, the buttons and screens | What the door looks like |
| Wireframe | A rough grey layout with no styling, to agree structure | A floor plan |
| Mockup | A polished, static picture of the final design | An architect's rendering |
| Prototype | A clickable mockup that feels like the real thing, but isn't built | A show home |
| Vector | Artwork made of maths (lines and curves), sharp at any size: SVG, PDF, AI | A recipe you can scale up |
| Raster | Artwork made of pixels, blurry if enlarged: PNG, JPG | A photo of the cake |
| Repository (repo) | A project's folder of code, with its full history (on GitHub) | A shared folder that remembers every change |
| Deploy | Putting a new version live | Opening the doors after a renovation |
| SEO | Search engine optimisation: helping Google find and rank you | A sign on the main road |
| MVP | Minimum viable product: the smallest version worth launching | Opening with five dishes before the full menu |
| Sandbox | A safe, separate space to try things out without breaking the real thing (like this page) | A test kitchen |
No match. Try another word.
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