Alta Vista

The name of a software firm associated with Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC). Alta Vista offers software products you can use to locate and manage information on the Internet or a private computer network that uses Internet tools (an intranet). The best known product from this company is the Alta Vista Search system that anyone can use to find information on the World Wide Web. People often use the term Alta Vistato refer to this free search service.

The Alta Vista search service contains one of the largest Web indices. The index is maintained and generated by programs, called robots or spiders, that follow links on Web pages, downloadthe pages, and then index them according to the words and phrases that the pages contain.

Also see How Web Search Engines Work in the Did You Know . . . ? section of Webopedia.

Webopedia Staff
Webopedia Staff
Since 1995, more than 100 tech experts and researchers have kept Webopedia’s definitions, articles, and study guides up to date. For more information on current editorial staff, please visit our About page.
Get the Free Newsletter
Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
This email address is invalid.
Get the Free Newsletter
Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis
This email address is invalid.

Related Articles

Virtual Private Network (VPN)

A virtual private network (VPN) encrypts a device's Internet access through a secure server. It is most frequently used for remote employees accessing a...

Gantt Chart

A Gantt chart is a type of bar chart that illustrates a project schedule and shows the dependency between tasks and the current schedule...

Input Sanitization

Input sanitization is a cybersecurity measure of checking, cleaning, and filtering data inputs from users, APIs, and web services of any unwanted characters and...

IT Asset Management Software

IT asset management software (ITAM software) is an application for organizing, recording, and tracking all of an organization s hardware and software assets throughout...

ScalaHosting

ScalaHosting is a leading managed hosting provider that offers secure, scalable, and affordable...

HRIS

Human resources information system (HRIS) solutions help businesses manage multiple facets of their...

Best Managed Service Providers...

In today's business world, managed services are more critical than ever. They can...