internet absolute basics getting you started with the internet Click to enter

back getting started with the internet Don’t know a browser from a hyperlink? Have you ever spent a frustrating hour trying to use the internet and haven’t even got as far as managing to locate a website? The following tips will maybe give you just the information you need to move forwards… click here to move on next

back here’s what we’ll be looking at: what is a website? getting onto the internet – broadband getting onto the internet - connecting typing in a website address navigating around a page hyperlinks and navigating next

back what is a website? A website is rather like a book containing pages. The home page (or front page) of a website acts a bit like a contents page. next An entire website consists of a number of webpages. Home page travel news weather

back what is a website? Some websites, like the BBC website, contain absolutely thousands of webpages, whereas some websites may only contain a few webpages. next So a website is a collection of webpages, like a book is a collection of pages.

back getting onto the internet – broadband You will need a wireless card in your computer, which is an internal card which will ‘connect’ wirelessly with your router. You will also need a wireless router (a small box about the size of a video tape) which you connect to your phone line with a cable. You will also need to sign up for a broadband connection with a company that provides broadband. This could be BT, but there are many other companies that provide broadband, often at a cheaper monthly cost. next

back getting onto the internet - connecting On your computer desktop you will see an Internet browser icon. This may be a blue icon that looks like a letter e for Microsoft Internet Explorer, although it will be another icon if you have different browser software installed. Double click on this icon to launch the browser window. next e Find out more about browsers by following Webwise unit 03 on Browsers. Webwise unit 03 on Browsers

back typing in a website address When you launch the internet browser, you will be faced with a screen showing a webpage. Don’t worry about which webpage it shows – the computer will have been setup to show the same webpage each time you launch the browser. next

back typing in a website address To enter a website address, click in the address bar near the top of the window. next This will highlight the address that is currently showing.

back typing in a website address Start typing the address you want. You don’t need to type - the computer will add this for you afterwards. next A typical address may be or

back typing in a website address Always type the address exactly as you see it:– no spaces, no need for capital letters, but include any full stops or slashes if the address has any. next If you make a mistake, the browser would probably not be able to locate the page. It’s a bit like a postman trying to locate the address on a postcard if it hasn’t been written correctly. But at least the postman is human and has a slim chance of working out what it should be. The computer probably won’t know what it should be if you typed it wrong.

back typing in a website address next Then allow the computer time to search for the webpage you requested. Having typed your address, you can either press the ENTER key on the keyboard… or the GO button on the right hand side of the address bar. Ent er key Go

back typing in a website address next IIIIIIIIIIIII See Webwise Unit 03 on addresses to find out more about typing a website address. Webwise Unit 03 on addresses You should see an activity bar with blue or green coloured rectangles appearing at the bottom of your screen. This indicates that the browser is in the process of searching for and downloading the requested page to your computer.

back navigating around a page Once you have found a webpage, you will need to navigate around it to get the information you need from it. The main way to do this is by using your mouse. If you move your mouse around the webpage, you will notice it changes shape – from a white arrow pointer to a hand. next

back navigating around a page Whenever your mouse hovers over an image or possibly a bold, underlined or coloured piece of text, you will probably see the hand cursor appear. The hand cursor indicates that whatever is directly beneath it on the page is a link. Image s or text can be links. next

back hyperlinks A link (or hyperlink) is simply a shortcut to take you to another page. next To use the link to take you to another page, once the hand appears, click the left button of your mouse. This will tell the computer to locate the page you have requested. See Webwise Unit 3 on buttons to find out more about navigating. Webwise Unit 3 on buttons This may be another page within the website, or even a page belonging to another website.

back hyperlinks and navigating By clicking on a link when you see that hand, you can navigate around the website. If you want to go back to a page you saw earlier, click on the back button on the top left of the toolbar at the top of the screen. Each time you click on this it will take you back a page. next Have fun surfing! Visit the online Webwise course to find out more about using the internet… Webwise

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