[Vibrant Android Development] N00B_IN_N33D:
GLOSSARY-

ADB-The Android Debug Bridge. A collection of tools that any rooted Android user should have. ADB allows one to interact with their device from a terminal interface. This enables the user to do a variety of tasks such as sideloading applications and more.

Android-A Linux based operating system created and mostly designed by Google. The major revisions are 1.0, 1.1, 1.5 (Cupcake), 1.6 (Donut), 2.0/2.0.1/2.1 (Eclair), 2.2 (Froyo), 2.3 (Gingerbread), 3.0 (Honeycomb - tablet only), 4.0/4.0.1/4.0.2/4.0.3/4.0.4 (Ice Cream Sandwich), and 4.1 (Jellybean). The majority of Android major revisions are named after desserts.

APK-Android PacKage. These are, basically, Android applications and all of their data. They are run via the Dalvik Virtual Machine on your device.

Bootloader-The part of a computer that loads the operating system. If this is damaged/deleted... You're going to have a bad time.

ClockworkMod-A tool that allows you to flash the phone with different ROMs from the phone (without using a PC). This is handy for developers or those who like to play around with different modified ROMs.

Download Mode-Activating Download Mode gives you will have the ability to flash .pit, .tar, .tar.md5, or other files via ODIN on your PC.

Flashing-The act of installing a ROM, Kernel, or other Mod (usually contained in a .zip folder) onto an embedded device or emulator.

Heimdall-A community designed alternative to Odin, Heimdall allows you to do everything Odin does in a much safer, less buggy environment.

JFD, JI6, KA6, etc-Samsung's naming system for the software updates they build. If you look at the full name of a firmware update, say T959UVKA7, T959 is the device model (Vibrant), UV is the region code (UnitedStates Vibrant, maybe?), K is the year of release (J = 2010, K = 2011), A is the month (A-L = January-December), and the number at the end is the revision number. So the firmware name is telling you "Vibrant, United States, 2011, January, revision 7.

Odin-The infamous flashing tool designed by Samsung, Odin is a Windows program that allows users to push ROMs, radios, and more onto their device from the comfort of their PC. Notoriously buggy. Heimdall is the recommended alternative.ROM - The name given to software on embedded devices (mobile phones, for the most part). "Flashing" a ROM means that you install that software on your device.

Overclocking-Increasing the "clock" of a processor to increase its speed at the expense of battery life and possibly your phone. Not all processors overclock the same, even if the hardware is identical. One phone with a Hummingbird SoC will not be able to overclock to 1.2ghz, yet another would be able to overclock to 1.7ghz (not very likely).

Radio/Modem-The parts of a firmware that allow communication between the operating system, the telecommunication hardware, and a mobile network. Some radios give good battery life, some good signal, some neither.

ROM-Read Only Memory, in this case referring to the phone's internal memory where your firmware/apps are stored. When people say they're flashing a new ROM, it means they are flashing a new version of the Android firmware onto their phone - the two terms are interchangeable.

Rooting-A device hack that provides users with unrestricted access to the entire file system of their mobile devices.

Sideloading-To install applications without using the official Android Market.

XDA-This site; XDA Developers was founded for developers by developers. It is now a valuable resource for people who want to make the most of their mobile devices, from customizing the look and feel to adding new functionality.