Differences between Preterite Indefinido, Preterite Perfecto, and Preterite Imperfecto

Question

I am a little confused with terminology. Are Preterite Indefinido and Preterite Perfecto the same thing? As others have highlighted, I am confused with the past perfect and preterite perfect.

Using esquiar as an example: I skied = Yo esquié; I have skied = He esquiado; I used to ski = Yo esquiaba; I have been skiing = Yo estaba esquiado. Am I wrong with these examples?

Accepted Answer

Hola John
Your examples are correct except for the last one: I have been skiing = Yo he estado esquiando (and I was skiing = Yo estaba esquiando).
The confusion about the name of the tenses often comes when we see the word "pretérito" because we always think of a past tense when we see that word; however, in Spanish we have the name "Pretérito Perfecto or Pretérito Perfecto Compuesto" for the English tense "Present Perfect" - seeing the word "pretérito" in the Spanish name and the word "present" in the English name is confusing, but we are all referring to the same tense: I have skied, you have skied, he has skied... (he esquiado, has esquiado, ha esquiado...)
There is a very useful table with all the names used for all tenses in Spanish and in English that will clarify any doubt about tenses names. Here it is. I hope it's useful.
Saludos cordiales 
Inma