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CONTENTS:
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1.
How the Web Works
- number of people using the web is conservatively estimated to be over 30
million and rising in over 50 countries
- WWW is part of the Internet
- the Internet is a huge collection of computers networks that can communication
with each other (a network of networks)
- a network is a collection of (2 or more) inter connected, individually
controlled computers that can communicate and share common resources, such as
printers, storage space, etc.
- the first computers to form the Internet were connected to major US government
and Dept. of Defense networks for the purpose of establishing a reliable method
for disseminating information in the event of a national emergency. Next
others, mostly major colleges, universities and research institutions, around
the world joined the Internet.
- an Internet access [or service] providers (ISPs) are commercial services that
establish a connection to the Internet and then provide public access to that
connection for a fee, and often other Internet-related services such as
technical support and free software.
- ISPs usually connect to the Internet through special high-speed phone lines
that can carry much more information than a standard phone line.
2.
How does the Internet work?
- physical connection between computers to make a network
- a common language to communication: TCP/IP (Transmission Control
Protocol/Internet) which computers (whether PC or Unix or Mac) on the Internet
agrees to use
- computers which do not use TCP/IP (and therefore not considered part of the
Internet) can access the Internet through a gateway--a combination of software
and hardware that translates (allows information to flow) between networks
- the Internet is governed by Rconsensual anarchyS -- there is no overall
governing body (though some smaller networks may have them) -- or place to
complain to if things donUt work
3.
How does the Web fit in?
- the Web is a specific kind of Internet interface--one that uses hyperlinks and
multimedia documents
- the Internet refers to the physical side of the global network (the computers
and cables)
- the Internet includes:
- World Wide Web - largest and fastest growing part; usually the easiest to
use; draw back is speed to access and load documents
- E-mail - [electronic mail] - the most used and highly developed aspect of the
Internet; send and receive personal messages or participate in mass-mailing
lists
- File transfer protocol - (FTP) - allows users to easily transfer files
between computers ont he Internet and their home computers; FTP sites are
often vast storehouses holding shareware, freeware, demo applications, multi-
media files, plain text-based information, anything that can be put into a
digital format
- gopher - application based on the concept of clients (programs used to
request information) and servers (programs that provide the requested
information); popularity is on the decline due to the WWW
- Telnet - prior to WWW, the primary means to get around the Internet; a
UNIX-based system that is fast and reliable; purely text-based; often
menu-driven interfaces (shells) to complex UNIX functions
- Usernet News Groups - a massive collection of news and discussion groups;
these public forums attract postings of wide variety (debate, pleas for help,
insults, gossip, etc.
4.
What is the Web?
- (World Wide Web, WWW, W3, Web) is the most visual & fastest growing part of
the Internet
- based on the display of Web pages, which are computer documents that can
present text, graphics, sounds, film clips, software, database searches
- Web page represents a single location on the Web [When you are "on the Web"
you can usually see only one Web page at a time
- Web site is made up of two or more interconnected Web pages presented as a
unified place on the Web [Site can have a handful to hundreds of pages] and
usually have a common theme and graphical structure [no standard definition]
- Home page is the intended central or starting place on a Web site; usually the
first a visitor sees and often guides the exploration of the rest of the Web
site
5.
How does the Web function?
- a common computer language called Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) allow
images, words, or anything else on a Web page to become a link (also called a
hyperlink) and to transport the user to other locations on that page, other Web
pages, or other locations on the Internet (e.g. gopher)
- Hyperlinks are based on the principle of hypertext, which is a method of
publishing that relies on interactive participation. There is no set path when
reading hypertext (Victory Garden)--the userUs feedback determines the way.
This way different readers can follow different paths through the same work.
- Hyperthink--hypertext is a metaphor for the way the human mind works
6.
What can you do on the Web?
- Original purpose for development of the Internet and the Web was as a tool to
support research in colleges, universities, government, and private industry
- you can locate people, shop, access job postings, track bills before Congress,
send a message to the President, play cards, learn about health issues such as
AIDS and Cancer, get the news and weather, take courses, find out about movies
and their stars
7.
How to Connect to the Web
- Typically, three things are needed
- a computer (386 processor or better; modem 9,600 bps base requirement for
Internet, 14,400 bps for graphical Web access, 28,800 bps for any kind of speed
& V.34 compatible; for real surfing, at least 8 megabytes of RAM and 25
megabytes of free hard-drive space, 486 or Pentium microprocessor). Shoptalk
with salesmen. Learn what the know and verify it with salesmen from other
stores.
- Internet access (ISP as your gateway to the Internet, e.g. America Online
[AOL] or CompuServe). Talk to others who use the service and find out how they
like it, how reliable it is, and what happens when it all goes wrong.
- the proper software to make it work
8.
Web Navigation 101
- A browser is a program used to explore the Web. ItUs main function is to
interpret hypertext documents, read URLs, and navigate the Web's hyperlink
structure.
- Some browsers use color, icons, pull-down menus, button to make exploration easier
- Basically there are two kinds of browsers: text-only and graphical
- Despite all the glitz and hype of multimedia, graphical browser's best feature
for about half the serious web navigators is the feature that turns off the
graphics
9.
How Browsers Work
- browsers interpret documents created with hypertext programming and display
them in a format commonly known as the Web page. All browsers make it possible
to navigate the Web.
- All browsers work with TCP/IP--recall, this is the common language all
computers (whether PC or Unix or Mac) use to communicate on the Internet.
- almost every item of information on the www can be accessed directly as each
has its own URL.
- parts of the URL (Uniform Resource Locator) :
protocol: http:// file:// ftp:// news://
domain name www.scsu.ctstateu.edu/
directory path software/win95
document file name utils.html
anchor name #WINZIP
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