Fourth Year: Lecture 1

THE INTERNET

The Internet, also called the net, is an electronic communication device. It is one of the largest networks that link millions or trillions of computers all over the world. Internet is simply there and no one knows exactly how many computers are connected to the Internet.

Almost everyone has heard of the Internet, and most people know that www and dotcom have something to do with Web pages. But the Internet is much more than just Web page addresses. With the Internet, you can read up-to-the- minute news reports, reserve plane tickets, listen to music, send and receive electronic messages, get weather reports, shop, conduct research, and much more.

What’s the difference between the Internet and the World Wide Web? The Internet is a network of computers, cables, routers, and other hardware and software that interconnect and run on a network. The World Wide Web is one of the protocols that let you link to many sites in the Internet. The Web is made up of Web pages and Web sites. A Web page is a specially formatted document that can include text, graphics, hyperlinks, audio, animation, and video. On the other hand, a Web site is a collection of Web pages.

Advantages of the Internet

The Internet offers many conveniences at your fingertips.

• Information
The internet gives you access to information on any subject imaginable. You can review newspapers, magazines, academic papers, dictionaries, encyclopedias, travel guides, job listings, airline schedules and much more. This makes the Internet a valuable research tool.

• Electronic Mail
One of the most popular features of the Internet is the electronic mail (e-mail). You can exchange electronic mails with people around the world. Electronic mail is fast, easy, inexpensive and saves time and effort.

• Entertainment
The internet also offers different form of entertainment, such as radio and television broadcasts, videos and music. You can play interactive games with other people around the world.

• Chatting
The chat features allows you to exchange types messages with another person on the Internet. A message you send will instantly appear on the other person’s computer. You can chat with one person or a group at a time.

• Online Shopping
You can order products on the Internet, while browsing the web. You can purchase items such as books, flowers, music CD’s, pizza, stocks, used cars and others.

How the Internet Works

On the Internet, data and information are transferred worldwide by the servers and clients. These are computers connected to the Internet.

A centralized storage of resources (programs and data) on a network is called server. Meanwhile, an access to the contents of the storage area on the server is called a client. On the Internet, a client which can access files and services on a number of servers is called a host computer. Your computer is a host computer.

TECHNICAL TERMS Internet

Chat. This refers to the online discussion group that allows interaction through electronic bulletin board system and session.

E-Mail or Electronic mail. This is a way to send messages to others via the Internet in electronic form.

Expression. This refers to the keyword or topic to be searched in the Internet.

Internet. This is a collection of computers throughout the world which are mostly connected using telephone lines for the purpose of sharing information.

Web Page. This is actually group of electronic files stored on computers all over the world. This page have “links” that allow the user to quickly move from one part to another.

Web Browser. This is software needed in order to find, retrieve, view and send information over the Internet.

Web Site. This refers to the site (location) on the World Wide Web. It may consist of one or more web pages that relate to a common theme, such as person, business, organization or any subject.

World Wide Web. This is one of the protocols that let you link to many sites in the Internet. The basic unit is the web page. A page can be one or many screens when it displays in your monitor.