Let's talk about what the Internet is not. It isn't a single entity,
for example. There's no central mainframe computer named the Internet.
The world wide web has no physical location. No government, corporation,
university or person "owns" or "runs" the Internet. It is largely
unregulated, unorganized, uncontrolled - and ever-changing.
The Internet is universal - anybody anywhere with a computer and a
modem can access the world wide web.
But, most of all, the Internet is an unimaginably vast and virtually
unedited repository of knowledge networked in all sorts of idiosyncratic
ways. There's no index or table of contents.
In ancient times, the sages sought to collect all the world's wisdom
in the library at Alexandria. They did - and then the library burned to
the ground. The Internet is the modern version of that quest, except
that, unlike books, the web cannot be destroyed by fire or other
disaster. It's everywhere and nowhere at the same time, and continuously
expanding.
Remember as you surf the web, reliability is not a given. Internet
newbies often fall into the trap of assuming that something's true
because it's on the web. Of course not! Anybody and her younger brother
can put together a web page and post it on the 'net. Remember that the
stuff is not screened by anybody, and doesn't have to have its facts
checked. Just like that high school history teacher kept saying way back
when: check your sources. If the Civil War battle statistics are on the
Pennsylvania State University website, they're more reliable than the
first-person narrative typed up by a doting great-grandson.
With that caveat, let's start!
How do you access the web? You have to have a browser. Fortunately,
that's not a problem because (thanks to Bill Gates), if you have
Windows, you also have Internet Explorer. Some people prefer Netscape
Navigator - or something else. Whatever! All that pesky programming to
interface with protocols has been done by the geeks so you have an easy
gateway to the Internet.
Now that you've logged on with your Internet Service Provider and
fired up your browser - what next?
There are two basic ways to search for information: Portals and
search engines.
Portals are entry sites categorized by topics, with branches usually
chosen and organized by an actual human. Each topic breaks into
subtopics, and each of those breaks down again, with everything arranged
in a hierarchy "tree". Goto.com and Yahoo! are examples of portals.
If you're new to the Internet, they're a great way to become familiar
with what's out there - somebody else has done some editing and
arranging of the information. At a portal, you start with a major topic
in a directory (for example, Science) and move down menus of subtopics
and sub subtopics until you find what you want.
The second category is the search engine. Examples are AltaVista,
Excite, Google and Lycos. Each is different, and each looks through a
different subset of web pages. If you are looking for something specific
(say, a picture of the flag of Ghana), a search engine is faster than a
portal. With a search engine, you type a word or words in the box and
hit "go". The site looks for pages meeting your criteria, and ranks the
results by its own special formula.
Some sites use Boolean operators. Those are terms that let you hone
in on your target: "and" narrows a search, "or" broadens it and "not"
excludes something. They confuse the heck out of me, so I like to use
Google, which just assumes I mean "and" when I use more than one keyword
in a search.
Practice makes perfect when you're trolling the 'net for
information-so get on line and hone your skills. Here are some portals
and search engines to try: 
SOME TERMS TO KNOW
PC (Personal Computer)
A computer based on integrated
circuit technology designed for single person use
Internet
A network of networks connecting computers
worldwide.
Protocol
A standard for storing, reading and transferring
information on the Internet.
TCP/IP (Transfer Control Protocol/Internet Protocol)
The
underlying protocol of the Internet.
http (HyperText Transfer Protocol)
The protocol that
supports the world wide web.
World Wide Web (www)
A protocol that is extremely popular
because of its ease of use and support for hypertext and multimedia.
Hypertext
Text that has been specially prepared so that
when a user clicks on certain words or phrases, she is taken directly to
a new page.
HyperLink
Any text in a hypertext document that is
designated as a link to another document. In most web browsers,
hyperlinks are underlined, and are usually shown in a different color
than other words on the screen.
Multimedia
The integration of text, graphics and other
elements (which could include video, audio, or other media) into one
document.
Web browser
A special program designed to help a user
navigate the Internet. Two of the most popular are Netscape Navigator
and Microsoft Internet Explorer, although there are many others.
URL (Uniform Resource Locator)
The address of a www
document. The URL usually (although not always) starts with http://
(specifying it is a document designed specifically for the world wide
web), then contains the name of the mainframe that holds the document
followed by the name of the document itself. URLs are usually entirely
in lower case, and are always one word. The URL can often be typed
directly into a location box.
Location box
This is a way to tell the browser the address
of the site you want to visit. Usually, you'll type the URL into the
location box (or address box) and hit enter to be taken directly to the
site you've specified.
Search engine
A special web page that connects the user to
a computer with a database program containing myriad web pages.
Previous page
Browser toolbars usually have a way to back
up one page; typically, it's an arrow pointing left.
Forward
Sometimes when you're looking for information,
you'll find it helpful to click on the arrow pointing right. If you've
been backing up (with the left arrow) it can take you forward again.
Home
Use this command when you want to return to the page
your browser opens with.
Bookmark/Favorite (Netscape/Microsoft)
This command takes
you to a list web sites you have told your browser to "remember".
History
Most browsers keep a list of all the sites you
have visited. You can return to a site by examining the list through the
"history" command.
--glossary adapted from Introduction to Computing, Indiana
University MMCC Project
Article by Susan McKee
E-mail: spmckee@att.net
Author's URL: http://www.susanmckee.com/
