Computer Technology

Where Did It All Begin?  The World Wide Web began at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland  In one of the largest scientific laboratories in the world.  The laboratory was called CERN (Counseil European Pour la Recherche Nucleaire – European Laboratory for Particle Physics)

What is the Internet?  The Internet is the worldwide, publicly accessible network of interconnected computer networks that transmit data by packet switching.  It is a “network of networks” that consists of millions of smaller domestic, academic, business, and government networks, which together carry various information and services, such as , online chat, file transfer, and the interlinked Web pages and other documents of the World Wide Web.

What does WWW stand for?  WWW = World Wide Web  The Internet and the World Wide Web are not synonymous: Web is actually something that is available via the Internet.  The Internet is a collection of interconnected computer networks.  The Web is a collection of interconnected documents, linked by hyperlinks and URLs.

What is a Network?  Network - two or more computers that are connected for the purpose of sharing information.  LAN  A local area network (LAN) is a computer network covering a small area, like a home, office, or small group of buildings.  Computers that are near each other.  WAN  A wide area network (WAN) is a computer network covering a broad geographical area.  The most well-known example of a WAN is the Internet.

What is ARPANET?  First network developed in early ‘60’s and ’70’s by scientists and military experts.  Allowed them to share information and research data over long distances.  An experimental network designed to see how well distributed networks work.

Connecting to the Internet  Modem - A MO -dulator DE - M odulator.  Converts digital information to analog and analog to digital.  Analog like sound waves  Digital signal is 1s and 0s  Types of Modems  Telephone - designed to modulate a data signal over the telephone.  DSL - designed to modulate a data signal over the telephone using new technology to increase transmission speed.  Cable Modem - designed to modulate a data signal over cable television.

Analog & Digital Information  Analog - like sound waves, a computer cannot read them.  Digital - 1s and 0s. Computer Language.

What is an ISP?  I nternet S ervice P rovider  A service company that provides a user with an account on a host computer to have access to the Internet.  ISPs  Comcast  AOL  MSN  Netzero  Earthlink  Qwest  People PC

Navigating in the Web How do you get around?

What is a Browser?  Software which allows you to view information and Web Pages on the WWW.  Different browsers can have radically different capabilities and limitations.

Viewing the Internet  Types of Browsers Microsoft Internet Explorer Firefox

The parts of a Browser  Title Bar  Shows the title of the open Web Page and the name of the Browsers.  Menu Bar  Provides a convenient way for you to execute typical file, edit, view and help commands.

What is the Title Bar?  It shows the title of the open Web Page.  It shows the Web Browsers.

What is the Menu Bar?  It provides a convenient way for you to execute typical file, edit, view and help commands.

More parts of a Browser  Toolbar  Shows the icons for moving around the Web Page.  Address Bar  Contains the address of the web site you are on— It’s where you type the address of the web page you want to go to.

Toolbar Buttons  Home: quickly takes you back to your default home page.  Refresh: reloads a page that may be temporarily unavailable.  Back: takes you back to the previously visited web page.

What is an Icon?  Pictures of the menu item you are choosing – an executable program or shortcut to a file.  Examples

Where is the Web Page?  The web page comes after the toolbar.

Uniform Resource Locator  URL - U niform R esource L ocator  It has a four part addressing scheme:   Transfer Protocol  Filename  Pathname  Domain Name

What is a Domain?  The group that website or address belongs to.  It tells where the address is located i.e..com;.edu;.gov  The name that is to the right of the last dot in the Internet address.  

Some Common Domains... .COM - commercial .EDU - educational .NET - network .GOV - government .ORG - non-profit organizations .INT - international .MIL - military

What is the Status Bar?  It is located at the bottom of the screen.  It generally indicates the name of the Web Page that is loading.  It gives the loading status.  It gives important messages, such as “Document Done.”

Navigating the Internet  Search Engine - is a program designed to help find information on the World Wide Web.  They locate and isolate desired information by searching for keywords that the user specifies.  Examples of Search Engines  Google  Yahoo  MSN  Ask  Dog Pile

Common Internet Terms  Surfing - the term we use when exploring the Internet.  Hit - the term used when you connect to the page you are looking for.  Link - allows you to jump from one site to another.  - the type of mail sent over the Internet.  Chatting - talking with someone on the internet. Often called Instant Messaging.

Internet Language & Communication  H yper T ext M arkup L anguage (HTML)  The coding scheme used to format text for use in developing Web Pages on the WWW. 

HTTP  H yper T ext T ransfer P rotocol  The transmission standard used to send an HTML document across the WWW.  Ensures reliable connections between many different computer types.  A common set of standards that ensures all computers connected to the Internet will have common ground on which to work.

The Internet & You  Netiquette - the rules of behavior on the Internet.  Privacy - There is NO privacy on the Internet. All visits to websites are tracked using cookies and logs.  Passwords can help protect your information on the Internet.

What is Shareware?  Software that you can obtain for free on a trial basis.  May require some payment for continued use.

What is Freeware?  Software that is distributed at no cost to the user.  The author maintains the copyright.  Basically: Software that is copyrighted but can be used freely.

What is Public Domain?  Software that is NOT copyrighted.  It can be copied or used freely.  Basically: Public Property.

Pop-Ups  Pop-Ups - unwanted advertisements on the web.  Pop-Ups usually come from downloading “free” software.  Some companies give you software for free as long as they can put SPYWARE on your computer and monitor where you go on the Internet.

What Are Firewalls?  A Hardware or software blocking mechanism that blocks unauthorized intruders into a computer system.  Blocks potential hackers from invading your computer or your network.  Any computer that is connected to the Internet should have a firewall.

Other Internet Stuff  User Friendly - a term used when a program or website can be used with ease by people who have little or no computer experience.

Acceptable Use Policy  An Acceptable Use Policy (AUP; also sometimes called acceptable usage policy) is a set of rules which outline the ways in which the network may be used.  You all signed an AUP in order to gain access to the school network.  You have signed a contract to take care of the computer equipment – NO EXCEPTIONS!