Glossary
This glossary serves as a comprehensive resource to help you understand the key terms and concepts related to our field. It is designed to provide clear and concise definitions, ensuring you have quick and easy access to essential information. Whether you’re a newcomer or a seasoned professional, our glossary is here to support your learning and enhance your understanding.
A
A set of rules and protocols for building and interacting with software applications, allowing different systems to communicate with each other.
A unique identifier used to authenticate a user, developer, or calling program to an API. Also called API Token.
The simulation of human intelligence in machines designed to think and learn, often used to enhance data processing and analytics.
Automatically generating index entries or metadata for documents or data without manual intervention, improving searchability and organisation.
The process of verifying the identity of a user or application. Common methods include API keys, OAuth tokens, and basic authentication.
B
Data sent in the body of an HTTP request, typically used in POST and PUT requests to send data to the server.
A form of algebra where all values are reduced to TRUE or FALSE, developed by George Boole in the mid-19th century. It forms the basis for designing digital circuits and is fundamental in computer science and programming. Boolean logic is extensively used in search engines and databases to refine search results. It employs operators such as AND, OR, and NOT to combine or exclude specific criteria, thus allowing users to perform complex searches. For instance, “AND” requires all conditions to be true, “OR” allows any condition to be true, and “NOT” excludes specific conditions from the results.
Technologies and practices for the collection, integration, analysis, and presentation of business information to support better decision-making.
C
A bot that systematically browses the internet and indexes content for search engines.
A security feature implemented by browsers to restrict web pages from making requests to a domain different from the one that served the web page.
Services that keep users informed of the latest developments in specific areas of interest, often through email alerts or dashboards.
cURL is a command-line utility available on most Unix/Linux-based operating systems which can be used to make an HTTP network/API request and receive the response.
D
Enhancing raw data by adding context and valuable information to improve its usefulness and insightfulness.
E
A specific URL where an API can access the resources it needs to carry out a function. Each endpoint corresponds to a different function or data set.
Strategies, methods, and tools used to capture, manage, store, preserve, and deliver content and documents related to organisational processes.
A flexible text format used for structuring electronic documents, and facilitating data sharing across different systems.
The process of responding to and managing errors in the API. This includes providing meaningful error messages and appropriate HTTP status codes.
F
A unique identifier assigned to financial instruments, such as stocks, bonds, derivatives, and more. FIGIs are used globally to standardise the identification of financial instruments, facilitating more accurate and efficient trading and settlement. They are designed to provide a universal method of identifying instruments without changes over time.
A standard network protocol used to transfer files from one host to another over the internet.
H
Part of the HTTP request and response that contain metadata about the request or the response. Examples include Content-Type and Authorization.
Intelligence gathered by means of interpersonal contact, as opposed to technical means, including interviews, conversations, and observations.
The standard markup language used to create and design documents on the World Wide Web. HTML structures a web page and its content by using a series of elements and tags. These tags represent various types of content such as headings, paragraphs, links, images, and more. HTML elements are denoted by angle brackets, for example, <html>, <head>, and <body>. Attributes can be added to elements to provide additional information or functionality. HTML is the foundation of web development, allowing browsers to render and display web pages to users.
Standardised request methods used by browsers to interact with servers. Examples include GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE.
I
Associating or tagging documents with keywords or phrases to facilitate quick retrieval of information.
The process of obtaining relevant information from a collection of resources, including search engines and database queries.
A controlled vocabulary used to categorise news content by subject matter. IPTC topics are part of the IPTC NewsCodes, which provide a standardised way to describe the content of news articles, making it easier to search, filter, and organise news data. These topics help in maintaining consistency in the classification of news across different platforms and systems.
J
A lightweight data-interchange format that is easy for humans to read and write and easy for machines to parse and generate.
K
Quantifiable measures are used to evaluate the success of an organisation or activity in meeting performance objectives.
The process of creating, sharing, using, and managing the knowledge and information of an organisation to achieve objectives.
L
A unique 20-character alphanumeric code that identifies distinct legal entities participating in financial transactions. LEIs are used to improve the transparency of financial data and help regulators track and manage financial market activity. Each LEI is associated with reference data, including the official name of the entity and its registered address.
M
A subset of AI focused on developing systems that learn from data, identify patterns, and make decisions with minimal human intervention.
O
An open standard for access delegation, commonly used as a way to grant websites or applications limited access to user information without exposing passwords.
The collection and analysis of data gathered from publicly available sources to support decision-making processes.
P
The process of dividing a large set of data into discrete pages to make the data easier to handle and navigate. Common pagination parameters include page and limit.
Variables used in API calls to modify the request. They can be query parameters, path parameters, or body parameters.
Variables in the endpoint path that specify which resource is being accessed. They are typically denoted by curly braces ({}).
A unique, persistent identifier assigned to entities such as organisations, securities, and individuals. PERMIDs are used to ensure consistency and accuracy in the identification of entities across various databases and platforms. They support data integration and interoperability by providing a standardised identifier that remains constant over time.
A web-based platform providing a gateway to a wide range of information and services.
Q
Parameters added to the endpoint URL to filter or customise the response. They are usually appended to the URL after a question mark (?).
R
A technique used to control the amount of incoming and outgoing traffic to or from a network. It helps to prevent abuse of the API by limiting the number of requests a user can make within a certain time frame.
An error message indicating that the user has sent too many requests in a given amount of time, as defined by the rate-limiting policy.
Analyses the readership metrics of news articles, offering insights into the audience’s size, engagement level, and demographic characteristics. This enrichment helps users understand the reach and impact of specific articles or topics, providing valuable information for media monitoring, marketing strategies, and audience analysis. By leveraging readership data, organisations can tailor their content and strategies to better engage their target audience.
The structure in which an API returns data to the client. Common formats include JSON and XML.
An architectural style for designing networked applications. It relies on a stateless, client-server, cacheable communications protocol — typically HTTP.
S
A structure representing semantic relations between concepts, often used in AI and natural language processing.
Using natural language processing to identify and categorise opinions expressed in text to determine the writer’s attitude toward a topic.
Codes that indicate the result of the API request. Examples include 200 (OK), 404 (Not Found), and 500 (Internal Server Error).
T
A classification scheme that organises information systematically, making it easier to manage and retrieve.
A feature that enhances raw news data by identifying and categorising key topics and entities within articles. Topics refer to the main subjects or themes discussed, such as politics, economy, or technology. Entities include specific references to people, organisations, locations, and other named items. This enrichment process improves data usability by providing structured insights, enabling more effective search, analysis, and reporting. It helps users quickly pinpoint relevant information and understand the context of the content.
U
Information that does not have a predefined data model or is not organised in a predefined manner, such as emails, videos, and social media posts.
X
A markup language that defines a set of rules for encoding documents in a format that is both human-readable and machine-readable.
