Technology Guide 5: Basics of the Internet and the World Wide Web

TG5.1: The Internet

1. Describe the various ways that you can connect to the Internet?
Connecting via an Online Service: Access the internet by opening an account with an Internet service provider. An Internet service provider (ISP) is a company that offers Internet connections for a fee. E.g. America Online, Juno and NetZero. Many telephone providers (Telstra, Optus) and cable companies sell Internet access, as do computer companies such as Microsoft.

Connecting Via Other Means: several attempts have been launched to make access to the internet cheaper, faster, and easier. E.g. terminals known as internet Kiosks have been located in public places such as libraries and airports (and even in conscience stores) for use by people who don’t have their own computers. Accessing the internet from mobile phones and pagers is common.

Internet connection Methods
· Dial-up: used where broadband is not available
· ISDN: more expensive than broadband connections
· DSL: Broadband access via telephone companies.
· Cable Modem: Access over your cable TV coaxial cable. Can have degraded performance if

many of your neighbors are accessing the internet at once.
· Satellite: Access where cable and DSL are not available.
· Wireless: Very convenient, and WiMax will increase the use of broadband wireless.
· Fiber to the Home (FTTH): Expensive and usually only places in new housing developments.

2. Describe the parts of an Internet address.

Each computer is assigned address, called the internet protocol (IP) address, that distinguishes it from all other components. The IP address consist of numbers, in four parts, separated by dots. E.g.135.62.128.97. You can access a Web site b typing this number in the address bar.
Most computers also have names, which are easier for people to remember than IP addresses. These are called the domain name systems (DNS). They consist of multiple parts, separated by dots, which are read from right to left. E.g. the domain name software.ibm.com. The right part of an internet name is its top-level domain (TLD). The letters “com” in software.ibm.com indicates that this is a commercial site. Popular TLDs are:

com commercial sites
edu educational site
mil military government sites
gov civilian government sites
org organisations

“ibm” is the name of the company (IBM) and “software” is the name of the particular machine (computer) within the company to which the message is being sent.

Section TG 5.2 – The World Wide Web

1. What are the roles of browsers?
Users access the web primarily trough software applications called browsers. Browsers provide a graphical font end that enables users to point-and-click their way across the web, a process called surfing. Web browsers became a means of universal access because they deliver the same interface on any operating system under which they run. Leading browsers include Internet Explorer from Microsoft and Safari from Apple.

2. Describe the difference between the Internet and the World Wide Web?
World Wide Web (WWW): is a system of universally accepted standards for storing, retrieving and formatting and displaying information via client/server architecture; uses the transport functions of the internet. The web handles all types of digital information including text, sound and graphics.

Internet: is a global WAN that connects computer networks all over the world. The internet enables people to access data in other organisations and to communicate, collaborate and exchange information around the world, quickly and inexpensively.