The most commonly misunderstood abbreviations and acronyms in technology have been identified in recent studies.

The technological landscape is ever-evolving and rapidly developing. So far in 2023, discussions have been dominated by the public debut and continuous development of generative artificial intelligence.

It can be challenging to keep up with the rapid pace at which new ideas are introduced and adopted, especially when it comes to abbreviations.

Mason Frank International, a Tenth Revolution Group company, recently analyzed Google search volume data and compiled the top five most searched for terms, along with their trend patterns over the last 12 months, to determine the extent to which the use of acronyms and abbreviations in technology contributes to confusion or misunderstanding.

Listed below are the words searched within the last twelve months,  along with the monthly search volume.

API | 246,000 | +50%

What is AI | 135,000 | +233%

HTML | 110,000 | +49%

DevOps | 90,050 | 0%

CSS | 60,500 | +49%

James Lloyd-Townshend, chairman and chief executive officer of Mason Frank International, in response to the study’s findings shared that although there is a strong usage of these abbreviations and acronyms in the tech world, we have to be mindful of those new to the industry. We don’t want people to feel like they have to memorize everything they read.

When communicating between departments or with a non-technical audience, for example, it is important to use complete phrases and to take the time to explain them, even briefly. Assuming someone already knows something is a bad habit that can make asking for clarification or an explanation awkward.

what is an API?

To put it simply, an API is a bridge between applications. An API facilitates interaction between disparate software applications. The weather app on your phone, for instance, uses an API to access the weather bureau’s database and pull up the most recent forecast.

Explain artificial intelligence.

Artificial intelligence is often abbreviated as “AI.” In 1955, emeritus professor at Stanford John McCarthy coined the word to mean “the science and engineering of making intelligent machines.” However, as time has progressed, the phrase has come to designate to robots and systems that may display learning, problem-solving, and perceptual abilities previously associated with humans. Generative AI, a system that creates content as informed by its access to existing banks of digitized knowledge, is at the center of the present discussion.

What is HTML

Hypertext Markup Language, or HTML, is an industry standard for encoding web pages and other text documents. Web browsers rely on HTML to understand how to display many types of text formatting, such as page breaks, paragraph breaks, highlighted fonts, and more.

Exactly what does “DevOps” entail?

Development Operations, or DevOps, combines the concepts of development and operations. DevOps is primarily a set of tools and procedures utilized in the IT sector and the production of software. Its fundamental ideas are collective responsibility, computerized procedures, and immediate evaluation.

Explain CSS.

Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) is a language for describing the style of a web document that was created using a markup language like HTML. CSS allows for more adaptability and accessibility as a result of its ability to divide presentation from content. Using CSS, the same page can have distinct looks when viewed on a computer screen, printed out, converted to speech, or read out by a Braille reader.

Methodology

Keywordtool.io data for May 2023 reflects a year’s worth of Google searches conducted in English around the world.