online system

In computing, originally a system that allows the computer to work interactively with its users, responding to each instruction as it is given and prompting users for information when necessary. As almost all the computers used now work this way, ‘online system’ is now used to refer to large database, e-mail, and conferencing systems accessed via a modem or network connection. These often have tens or hundreds of users from different places – sometimes from different countries – ‘online’ at the same time.