Definitions beginning with V

Vacancy status

Current state of a vacancy shown on the site, such as open, paused or filled.

In practice: close applications when the role is filled.

Vanity URL

Short memorable URL designed for a campaign, communication or redirection to a more complex address.

In practice: Test the short address aloud and verify its redirect before printing it.

Vary

Header identifying request fields that influenced representation selection. It helps caches separate variants, for example by Accept-Language or Accept-Encoding.

Reference: MDN : Vary

Source consulted : MDN · 2026-10-17

Request a resource with two values of the relevant header and check that responses are not mixed.

Vector database

Database optimized to store and search multidimensional numerical representations by similarity.

In practice: Plan source document updates and deletion before indexing vectors.

Vector image

An image described with shapes, such as SVG, whose paths scale without pixelation. Often useful for diagrams, although a complex vector image can still be large.

Reference: MDN : Image formats · Source consulted 2026-10-18

In practice: Check stroke legibility at final size and an appropriate text alternative.

Vector search

Similarity search across numerical representations, used to retrieve semantically related content without requiring identical words.

In practice: compare results with expected examples and inspect mismatches.

Version control

System keeping file-change history, facilitating collaboration and allowing return to a previous state. Define which files are actually tracked and verify that a state can be recovered. Code history does not replace a backup of operational data.

Reference: Git · About version control · Source consulted 2026-10-25

In practice: Connect changes to a reason, review and possible rollback.

Video marketing

Strategic use of video to inform, demonstrate, reassure, attract or convert an audience.

In practice: Provide a transcript, summary and next action without requiring playback.

Video thumbnail

A preview image shown before or during video loading, including through HTML poster. It helps identify the subject but does not replace a clear title or accessible alternatives.

Reference: MDN : HTML video · Source consulted 2026-10-18

In practice: choose an image representing the clip actually offered.

Video transcript

Organised text version of spoken content and essential visual information in a video.

In practice: include essential visual information alongside speech.

Viewport

The browser area used to present a page. The layout viewport and the actually visible area can differ during zoom or when a mobile keyboard opens.

Reference: MDN : Viewport concepts · Source consulted 2026-10-18

In practice: Check display with browser controls and the mobile keyboard visible.

Virtual host

Configuration allowing one server to serve several websites by associating each hostname with content and settings. An IP address alone therefore does not always determine which site appears. DNS, HTTP configuration and the TLS certificate must work together to identify the intended service.

Reference: Apache HTTP Server : Virtual hosts · Source consulted 2026-10-18

In practice: test each domain and its www and non-www variants over HTTP and HTTPS. Check the destination, certificate and response to an unknown hostname so it does not accidentally expose another hosted site.

Visual hierarchy

Graphic organization indicating what should be seen and understood first through size, contrast, space and position.

In practice: Ask someone to identify the topic, evidence and main action after a few seconds of reading.

Visual search

Search using an image or visual region as the query to recognize, compare or retrieve related content.

In practice: Use clear contextualised images with faithful descriptions.

Voice search

Search spoken to a device or assistant, often in the form of a conversational question.

In practice: Write a natural answer to a precise question and test how it sounds aloud.

VPN

Virtual private network connecting devices or networks over shared infrastructure. In common remote-access use, an encrypted tunnel can protect traffic as far as the VPN exit point. This protection does not replace authentication, access permissions or security of the device and destination service.

Reference: NIST : Virtual private network · Source consulted 2026-10-18

In practice: check who can connect, which services are reachable and what happens when the tunnel disconnects. Do not assume every connection passes through the VPN: routing and configuration determine the actual scope.

VPS

Virtual Private Server: virtualized server environment with isolated resources and operating system on a shared physical machine.

In practice: Include updates, backups and monitoring in this server’s total cost.

Vulnerability

Design, code or configuration weakness that can be exploited to compromise a system.

Reference: NIST CSRC · Vulnerability · Source consulted 2026-10-31

In practice: Record affected version, real exposure and available fix before prioritising.