Disqus has its own vocabulary that we use to describe our different tools and features. Here's a list of a few of our need-to-know terms and definitions.
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API - The API enables developers to communicate with Disqus data from within their own applications. Our documentation provides further explanation on how to use our API, specifically. You can find more information on APIs, in general, on Wikipedia and Quora.
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​Ban User - The "Ban User" setting lets you block a user, IP address, or email address to prevent certain people from posting comments on your site.
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​Comment Count - The number of comments per post. You can add a comment count link to display the number of comments below the title of each post. Get the how-to.
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​Community Guidelines - Rules of engagement for commenters on your site. Guidelines can cover topics like privacy, etiquette, expectations, and moderation settings. Learn more.
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​Configuration Variables - These are parameters for Disqus's behaviors and settings. Configuration variables must be defined on each page that Disqus is loaded on, so be sure to include configuration variables in your dynamic templates that render pages.
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​Display name - A full name is the name carried across the Disqus network on your profile and is the name displayed with your comments. Your full name does not have to be unique and can contain spaces.
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Full names are optional, though highly recommended. For added security, we recommend choosing a full name different from your username.
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​Embed - The discussion thread powered by Disqus—this is the comments section that Disqus adds to your site.
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​Engagement - Engagement indicates how active your commenters and readers are. Engagement is measured by number of comments and votes.
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​Forum - A forum is your website community on the Disqus network. When you register your website on Disqus, you are creating a forum with a unique shortname. Your shortname is different than your username.
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Every website using Disqus has a unique forum which is moderated by their respective administrators. A forum consists of the comments and comment threads posted by other users. Users, a.k.a. community profiles, are not unique to forums since people can belong to any number of communities on Disqus.
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​Import & Export Tools - Let you upload comments from another system into Disqus or download your Disqus comments onto your computer.
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​IP Address - A unique identifier for each computer connected to the network. You can ban an IP address to ensure that no commenters using that IP can post on your site.
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​Migration Tools - Let you update or move discussion threads on your site to a new thread. Migration tools are useful when you update your domain name, change your blogging system, or want to merge discussion threads.
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​Moderation Panel - Site owners moderate the comments posted to their site (approve, mark as spam, delete) from the moderation panel. A forums' moderation panel can be accessed with the following link: http://yourshortnamehere.disqus.com
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​Moderator - A moderator is responsible for managing a site's community. Moderators delete and approve comments, mark spam, block or unblock commenters, and handle disputes between commenters. There are several different moderator types, including: Site Founder (primary moderator who can edit settings or comments), Site Admin (can edit settings or comments), and Site Moderator (can edit comments).
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​Pre-moderation - Turn on pre-moderation controls to require moderator approval for all comments.
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​Shortname - A unique identifier for your site that appears in your account URL. Access your site's Disqus account by visiting yoursitesshortname.disqus.com/admin
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​Thread - The string of comments that readers post on your site. Disqus creates comment threads for your site so that your readers can have discussions about your content.
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​Trust User - Mark a user, IP address, or email address as "trusted" so those users can bypass certain moderation filters (such as spam).
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​Trusted Domains - Domains set by websites to specify which domains are allowed to create and load new threads with the Disqus javascript embed. We recommend that you add a trusted domain to ensure that your comments thread is hosted exclusively on your site.
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​Username - The name you use to login to Disqus. A username must be unique, and cannot be in use by more than one commenter at a time. A username cannot contain any spaces or special characters.
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Usernames are used mostly for two purposes: logging into Disqus, and moderation (for site owners).
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​Word Filters - Use word filters to create a list of restricted words that automatically get queued for your review. Comments containing restricted words will not appear in the discussion until they've been approved by a moderator.
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Ad Revenue - The amount of money you earn from Disqus ads.
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​Below-the-fold - The area of a webpage that is only visible after a reader scrolls down the page.
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​Impressions - An impression is counted every time a reader views a page on your site.
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​RPMv - Revenue per a thousand viewable impressions. This is the revenue you'll receive every one thousand times your readers scroll down to view the ads in your Disqus forum.
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​Sponsored Links - Ads for popular articles from around the web.
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​Sponsored Story - The default ad type. These are cost-per-impression ads informed by reader engagement.
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​Viewable Impressions - How often a reader scrolls down to the Disqus forum below-the-fold to see Disqus ads. Your Ads earnings are based in part on Viewable Impressions.
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​Viewability Percent - How often a reader scrolls down to view Disqus ads as a percentage of total pageviews. In other words, the percentage of viewable impressions per total impressions on your page.