We’ve all been there. You’re in a meeting, someone casually drops a tech term like “zero trust architecture,” and you nod like, “Ah yes, of course,” while your brain silently screams: What does that even mean?
Don’t worry, you’re not alone. Here are five tech buzzwords we’ve all pretended to understand… and then totally Googled later.
1. Zero Trust Architecture
What you pretend it means: “Something about... not trusting anyone ever?”
What it actually means: It’s a security model that assumes no user or device should be trusted by default, not even the ones already inside the network. Everyone has to prove themselves every time.
Think of it as the bouncer at the club checking your ID every single time you leave and come back, even if you just went to the bathroom.
2. Edge Computing
What you pretend it means: “Uhh... computers near the edge?”
What it actually means: Instead of sending data back and forth to a central cloud server, edge computing processes data close to where it’s created, like on your smart fridge or traffic camera.
It’s like doing your homework at school instead of emailing it to your teacher and waiting for feedback.
3. API
What you pretend it means: “I use them... all the time?”
What it actually means: API stands for Application Programming Interface. It’s basically how two apps or systems talk to each other. Think of it like the waiter at a restaurant, you (the app) make a request, and the API (waiter) delivers it to the kitchen (server), then brings back your order.
No API = no food.
4. Machine Learning
What you pretend it means: “Robots taking over!”
What it actually means: It’s a type of AI where computers learn patterns from data, like how Netflix knows you love baking shows or how spam filters spot junk emails. It’s not Skynet. Yet.
5. The Cloud
What you pretend it means: “Everything is just… floating?”
What it actually means: The cloud is just someone else’s computer. Seriously. It refers to servers you access over the internet instead of storing stuff on your own device.
Tech jargon can sound intimidating, but here’s the secret, most people are nodding along and Googling later too. You don’t need to know everything; just stay curious, ask questions, and remember: even the pros had to start somewhere (probably with the same confused look you had five minutes ago).
Until next time, keep fit and have fun!
(TYYV) The Yada Yada Version:
Five common tech buzzwords, from “zero trust” to “the cloud” and yada yada yada you have to read the blog to find out what the words mean.
