Glossary of Terms

Our website uses some technical words and phrases. It also contains references to popular movies, books, and memes (also known as “pop culture”). If you don’t know what SEO means or if you’ve never heard of David Hasselhoff, don’t worry! This page is designed to help you.

Contents

Glossary

auto-populate
Auto-populated content refers to content that appears on a page without needing to be added by a user. On iFixit, guides auto-populate, or appear automatically, on the device page without you needing to add them to the page.


business days
In the United States, business days typically refer to weekdays (Monday through Friday). For this project, it may take up to two business days for our staff to respond to your email. For example, if you send us an email on Friday, we will respond by Tuesday.


clockwise
Clockwise is the direction in which a clock’s hands move. When an object rotates clockwise, its top moves in a circular motion to the right. To tighten a screw, turn it clockwise.


counterclockwise
Counterclockwise is the direction opposite to that in which a clock’s hands move. When an object rotates counterclockwise, its top moves in a circular motion to the left. To remove a screw, turn it counterclockwise.


e-waste
E-waste is an abbreviation for “electronic waste.” When electronics are thrown away, they become e-waste. You can learn more about problems with e-waste at iFixit.com/right-to-repair.


header
A header, or heading, is a line of text that appears at the top of a page. The headers are outlined in red in the image below.


milestone
A milestone is “a stone set up beside a road to mark the distance in miles to a particular place.” (Dictionary.com) The Standard Project is divided into separate sections, and we call these sections milestones. Each milestone will have different objectives and instructions.


placeholder link
A placeholder link is text that indicates where a weblink (URL) will be in the future. Throughout the project, you may need to link to pages or sources that may not yet exist but will be made in the future. You’ll be asked to create placeholder links for these sources.


prerequisite
Prerequisites are tasks or things that need to be done beforehand. For example, putting on socks is a prerequisite to putting on shoes.


reassembly
Reassembly means putting a device back together. It is the opposite of disassembly, which means taking it apart.


SEO
SEO is an acronym for Search Engine Optimization. SEO is designing web pages and the content (words, videos, and images) on those pages in a way that makes it easy for search engines (like Google or Bing) to find the page.


stripped
When a screw is damaged and the screwdriver can no longer grip the screw to turn it, it is “stripped.” If you come across a stripped screw, check out our How to Remove a Stripped Screw guide.


subheader
A subheader, or subheading, is a secondary title within the header section. The subheaders are outlined in red in the image below.


table of contents
The table of contents is an outline of a page, listing the sections. The table of contents is highlighted in red in the image below.

ta-da photos
”Ta-da” photos refer to images that just show parts laying on a table without any hands or tools. You can find an example “ta-da” photo here.


team tag
A team tag is the code assigned to your team when you sign up on iFixit. These team tags will be used as the subject in the emails to the iFixit team. Instructions on how to join a team can be found here.

  • SCHOOL NAME—INSTRUCTOR’S LAST NAME—TERM, SECTION #, GROUP #

  • ex. UCLA-MADIA-F24S1G1


teardown
A teardown is a guide that shows the disassembly of an electronic device to show the parts, technology, and how it works. iFixit publishes teardowns on popular devices to show new technologies and evaluate how easy they are to repair. For your project you will not be creating a teardown of your device—you will be creating guides showing how to replace the parts.


URL
URL stands for “uniform resource locator.” This is a fancy way of referring to a web address. For example, the URL for this website is: edu.iFixit.com.


wiki
A wiki is a type of website designed so that many users can easily add or change its content. You may have heard of Wikipedia, which is a free and collaborative online encyclopedia. In a wiki, content can be modified by anyone who wants to help. The repair documentation on iFixit works in this same way.

Pop culture references

standard project

  1. “Everything is not awesome!” (link)

    • This is a reference to the theme song of the super-popular Lego Movie (2014). The catchy refrain of the song is “Everything is awesome! Everything is cool when you’re part of a team.”

  2. “Do you know what you’re doing?” (link)

  3. Great Pit of Carkoon and the Sarlacc (link)

  4. Make a run on the Death Star (link)

    • You guessed it! This is yet another Star Wars reference. The Death Star is a giant spherical space station that—spoiler alert!—Luke Skywalker destroys with a proton torpedo.

  5. Halt! Who goes there? (link)

    • This is something a sentry standing guard would say to an approaching stranger.
      Translation: “Stop! Who are you?”

  6. You shall not pass… (link)

  7. Hobbits (link)

    • Hobbits are an imaginary group of small, human-like creatures that appear author J.R.R. Tolkien’s fantasy novels (including, most famously, his book titled The Hobbit).

  8. Whoa there, dude. (link)

    • Surfer slang. A unique dialect that surfers use to speak with each other.
      Translation: “Slow down, my friend.”

  9. David Hasselhoff (link)

Fast Fix Project

  1. Do you have the droids you’re looking for? (link)

  2. Jedi Mind Trick (link)

    • Jedi are a group of fictional characters in the Star Wars movies. Ever hear of Luke Skywalker? Jedi. How about Yoda? Yup, Jedi too. Jedi have developed special powers, including the ability to influence the thoughts and perceptions of others.

  3. Arrrrrrr… (link)

  4. Walking the plank (link)

    • This is a form of punishment (supposedly) used by pirates. Walking the plank means being forced over the side of a pirate ship and falling into the sea, to drown or be eaten.

  5. Sleeping with the fishes (link)

    • A nice way, or euphemism, to refer to someone who has drowned.

  6. Zipping by (link)

    • An adjective describing going too fast, something you wouldn’t want to be doing near the fuzz.

  7. The fuzz (link)

    • A derogatory term referring to the police, who often issue fines to automobile drivers who exceed the speed limit.

Guide Builder Project

  1. There’s no lifeguard on duty (link)

    • This means you are on your own and responsible for your own self, just like you might be in a body of water with no one around to save you.

  2. Kiddie Pool (link)

  3. Floaties (link)

  4. Throw us a line (link)

    • Another way of asking for help. If you are drowning with no means of escape and rescuers approach in a boat, you might ask them to “throw you a line” so they can pull you aboard to safety.

  5. Loose screws (link)

    • This is a way to refer to someone who is acting strangely, just like an engine might if it had some loose screws.

  6. Nuts and bolts (link)

    • These are the small but important details that are easily overlooked. If you have reassembled an engine but still have some nuts and bolts left over, you probably missed some crucial details along the way.

  7. It’s dangerous to go alone. (link)