BONALESEDI COMPUTER TRAINING – COMPUTER COURSE

Introduction to
The Internet

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1-Introduction:

By the turn of the century, information, including access to the Internet, will be the basis
for personal, economic, and political advancement. The popular name for the Internet is
the information superhighway. Whether you want to find the latest financial news,
browse through library catalogs, exchange information with colleagues, or join in a lively
political debate, the Internet is the tool that will take you beyond telephones, faxes, and
isolated computers to a burgeoning networked information frontier.
The Internet supplements the traditional tools you use to gather information, Data
Graphics, News and correspond with other people. Used skillfully, the Internet shrinks
the world and brings information, expertise, and knowledge on nearly every subject
imaginable straight to your computer.

What is the Internet?

The Internet links are computer networks all over the world so that users can share
resources and communicate with each other. Some computers, have direct access to all
the facilities on the Internet such as the universities. And other computers, eg privately-
owned ones, have indirect links through a commercial service provider, who offers some
or all of the Internet facilities. In order to be connected to Internet, you must go through
service suppliers. Many options are offered with monthly rates. Depending on the option
chosen, access time may vary.
The Internet is what we call a metanetwork, that is, a network of networks that spans the
globe. It's impossible to give an exact count of the number of networks or users that
comprise the Internet, but it is easily in the thousands and millions respectively. The
Internet employs a set of standardized protocols which allow for the sharing of resources
among different kinds of computers that communicate with each other on the network.
These standards, sometimes referred to as the Internet Protocol Suite, are the rules that
developers adhere to when creating new functions for the Internet.
The Internet is also what we call a distributed system; there is no central archives.
Technically, no one runs the Internet. Rather, the Internet is made up of thousands of
smaller networks. The Internet thrives and develops as its many users find new ways to
create, display and retrieve the information that constitutes the Internet.

Who Pays for the Internet?

There is no clear answer to this question because the Internet is not one "thing", it's many
things. No one central agency exists that charges individual Internet users. Rather,
individuals and institutions who use the Internet pay a local or regional Internet service
provider for their share of services. And in turn, those smaller Internet service providers
might purchase services from an even larger network. So basically, everyone who uses
the Internet in some way pays for part of it.

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2-what makes the internet work?

The unique thing about the Internet is that it allows many different computers to connect
and talk to each other. This is possible because of a set of standards, known as protocols,
that govern the transmission of data over the network: TCP/IP (Transmission Control
Protocol/Internet Protocol). Most people who use the Internet aren't so interested in
details related to these protocols. They do, however, want to know what they can do on
the Internet and how to do it effectively.

The Client/Server Model:

The most popular Internet tools operate as client/server systems. You're running a
program called a Web client. This piece of software displays documents for you and
carries out your requests. If it becomes necessary to connect to another type of service--
say, to set up a Telnet session, or to download a file--your Web client will take care of
this, too. Your Web client connects (or "talks") to a Web server to ask for information on
your behalf.

The Web server is a computer running another type of Web software which provides
data, or "serves up" an information resource to your Web client.

All of the basic Internet tools--including Telnet, FTP, Gopher, and the World Wide
Web--are based upon the cooperation of a client and one or more servers. In each case,
you interact with the client program and it manages the details of how data is presented to
you or the way in which you can look for resources. In turn, the client interacts with one
or more servers where the information resides. The server receives a request, processes it,
and sends a result, without having to know the details of your computer system, because
the client software on your computer system is handling those details.
The advantage of the client/server model lies in distributing the work so that each tool
can focus or specialize on particular tasks: the server serves information to many users
while the client software for each user handles the individual user's interface and other
details of the requests and results.

Electronic mail on the internet:

Electronic mail, or e-mail, is probably the most popular and widely used Internet
function. E-mail, email, or just mail, is a fast and efficient way to communicate with
friends or colleagues. You can communicate with one person at a time or thousands; you
can receive and send files and other information. You can even subscribe to electronic
journals and newsletters. You can send an e-mail message to a person in the same
building or on the other side of the world.

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How does E-mail Work?

E-mail is an asynchronous form of communication, meaning that the person whom you
want to read your message doesn't have to be available at the precise moment you send
your message. This is a great convenience for both you and the recipient.

On the other hand, the telephone, which is a synchronous communication medium,

requires that both you and your listener be on the line at the same time in order for you to
communicate (unless you leave a voice message). It will be impossible to discuss all the
details of the many e-mail packages available to Internet users.
Fortunately, however, most of these programs share basic functionality which allow you
to:
*send and receive mail messages
*save your messages in a file
*print mail messages
*reply to mail messages
*attach a file to a mail message

Reading an Internet Address:

To use Internet e-mail successfully, you must understand how the names and addresses
for computers and people on the Internet are formatted. Mastering this technique is just as
important as knowing how to use telephone numbers or postal addresses correctly.
Fortunately, after you get the hang of them, Internet addresses are usually no more
complex than phone numbers and postal addresses.
And, like those methods of identifying a person, an organization, or a geographic
location--usually by a telephone number or a street address--Internet addresses have rules
and conventions for use.
Sample Internet Address: [email protected]
The Internet address has three parts:
1.a user name [custcare in the example above]
2.an "at" sign (@)
3.the address of the user's mail server [aucegypt.edu in the example above] Sometimes
it's useful to read an Internet address (like [email protected]) or a domain name
from right to left because it helps you determine information about the source of the
address.
An address like [email protected] doesn't tell me much about the person who's
sending me a message, but I can deduce that the sender is affiliated with an educational
institution because of the suffix edu.
The right-most segment of domain names usually adhere to the naming conventions listed
below:

EDU Educational sites in the United States

COM Commercial sites in the United States
GOV Government sites in the United States
NET Network administrative organizations
MIL Military sites in the United States
ORG Organizations in the U.S. not covered by the categories above (e.g., non-profit
orginaizations).

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