9/16/2019 BASIC INTERNET CONCEPTS

BASIC INTERNET TOOLS

Prepared by

Pat Boyd
Technology Coordinator

Roseburg Public Schools

I. What is the Internet?

The Internet is a global collection of computer networks that are linked together by
devices called routers and use a common set of protocols for data transmission known
as TCP/IP (transmission control protocol / Internet protocol). The primary purpose of
the Internet is to facilitate the sharing of information. There are many different tools
used on the Internet to make this possible. Some of the more common tools include
email, listservs, newsgroups, telnet, gopher, FTP, and the world wide web. Probably the
most popular of all Internet tools is the world wide web.

II. What is the World Wide Web (WWW)?

The WWW is a collection of Internet sites that can be accessed by using a hypertext
interface. Hypertext documents on the web contain links to other documents located
anywhere on the web. By clicking on a link, you are immediately taken to another file
or site to access relevant materials. The interesting thing about Hypertext links is that
the links might take you to related material on another computer located anywhere in
the world, rather than just to a file on your local hard drive.

III. Basic WWW Concepts

A. BROWSER -- A WWW browser is software on your computer that
allows you to access the World Wide Web. Examples include Netscape
Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer. Please know that a browser
can’t work its magic unless you are somehow connected to the Internet.
At home, that is normally accomplished by using a modem that is
attached to your computer and your phone line and allows you to
connect to, or dial-up, an Internet Service Provider (ISP). At work, it may
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be accomplished by connecting your workplace’s local area network to

the Internet by using a router and a high speed data line.
B. HYPERTEXT AND HYPERMEDIA -- Hypertext is text that contains
electronic links to other text. In other words, if you click on hypertext it
will take you to other related material. In addition, most WWW
documents contain more than just text. They may include pictures,
sounds, animations, and movies. Documents with links that contain
more than just text are called hypermedia.
C. HTML (HYPERTEXT MARKUP LANGUAGE) -- HTML is a set of
commands used to create world wide web documents. The commands
allow the document creator to define the parts of the document. For
example, you may have text marked as headings, paragraphs, bulleted
text, footers, etc. There are also commands that let you import images,
sounds, animations, and movies as well as commands that let you
specify links to other documents. If you wanted to create your own web
page, you would need to know HTML or be able to use a tool that can
generate HTML such as Claris HomePage or Adobe PageMill.
D. URL (UNIFORM RESOURCE LOCATOR) -- Links between documents
are achieved by using an addressing scheme. That is, in order to link to
another document or item (sound, picture, movie), it must have an
address. That address is called its URL. The URL identifies the host
computer name, directory path, and file name of the item. It also
identifies the protocol used to locate the item such as hypertext, gopher,
ftp, telnet or news. For example, the URL for the main page of the OPEN
(Oregon Public Education Network) website is http://www.open.k12.or.us
E. HTTP (HYPERTEXT TRANPORT PROTOCOL) -- HTTP is the
protocol used to transfer hypertext or hypermedia documents.
F. HOME PAGE -- A home page is usually the starting point for locating
information at a WWW site. Currently, the home page for Roseburg
High School’s web site is located at
http://schools.rosenet.net/roseburg/rhs/
G. CLIENTS AND SERVERS -- If a computer has a web browser installed,
it is known as a client. A host computer that is capable of providing
information to others is called a server. A server requires special
software in order to provide web documents to others.

IV. Using Netscape

A. To start Netscape from your Macintosh, double-click the icon labeled
Netscape. (Note: If the icon for Netscape is in Launcher then you should
just single-click.) Prior to the loading of Netscape, the server should
prompt you for a user name and password. Your user name will be the
first letter of your first name followed by your last name. For example,
my user name is pboyd. Your password will be what you turned in on the
page that you signed agreeing to the acceptable use policy.

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B. Assuming that you have logged in correctly, Netscape will load the
default home page.
C. Once a web page has been loaded, you can move about the web in many
ways:
1. Text that is underlined and in a different color indicates a link. Click on it
and it will take you to more information on that topic.
2. If you have been moving between documents and you want to go back to
the previous document, press the Back button from the menu bar.
3. To go directly to a WWW site, you can type the address (URL) directly into
the text box in the address bar and then press enter as in the example below:

4. If you find a site that is particularly good and you want to remember it for
future visits, you can pull down the Bookmarks menu and select Add

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Bookmark.

5. While browsing the web, if you want to go back to a site that you were at
earlier during that same session, pull down the Go menu. A list of visited
sites will be displayed. Click on the one that you want to go back to.
D. If Netscape is performing sluggishly, you can speed it up by turning off
the automatic loading of images. Do this by pulling down the Options
menu, and click off Auto Load Images. This will unselect it.
E. If it is taking a particularly long time to load a document, and you don't
want to wait any longer, press the Stop button to stop loading.
F. To save a document, pull down the File menu and select Save As . In the
Folder Box, navigate to the folder that you wish to save the file in. In the
Save As Box, enter a name for the file. In the Format Box, select Text.
Click the Save button.

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G. To save a picture that you find on the web, put the mouse pointer on the
graphic and hold down the mouse button, then select the Save this
Image As ... option.

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