Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge Introduction To Using The Internet
Instructor: Kylie Willison
Contents Introduction How the Internet works Jargon Origin of the Internet Costs Using Internet Explorer Surfing the Internet Favourites/Bookmarks Using a search engine Printing, saving, downloading Differences between dial-up and broadband Internet access Antivirus rules Security on the Internet
1 INTRODUCTION
If you find it hard to actually grasp how the Internet works try thinking of it like this:
The Internet is made up of a lot of large computers called servers, around the world, which can connect and communicate with each other via telephone lines.
Here's an example: Sam has a computer and a modem at home. To connect to the Internet her modem rings up an Internet Service Provider and connects to the server. The server, which is always switched on, contains all the data or information. This data travels along telephone lines back to Sam's modem. Her modem converts the data and displays it on the computer screen.
JARGON - WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?
World Wide Web The world wide web is also shortened to just 'the web'. As the name suggests the world wide web is like a huge spider web of interconnected websites which stretches around the world. It is one section of the Internet.
Modem A modem is a small piece of equipment necessary for connecting to the Internet. The modem is connected to your computer and to your telephone line. The modem converts computer data so that it can travel along telephone lines.
Web Browser A web browser is a computer software program necessary for 'browsing' or viewing World Wide Web pages. Two of the most common web browsers are Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox. These are free software programs that you can get from your Internet Service Provider, PC magazines, from friends or already installed on most computers.
I.S.P. stands for Internet Service Provider
Email is Electronic Mail. Email can be sent from one computer to another or from one computer to many.
URL Universal Resource Locater - this is a web site address.
JARGON - WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?
http Hypertext Transfer Protocol - computers use protocols to communicate with each other.
Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge 2 Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge HTML Is the language web pages are written in it stands for Hypertext Markup Language.
Web page/Website Is a page written in HTML that contains text, graphics and sometimes sounds or music that is viewed in a web browser.
Cracker A Cracker is a person who illegally accesses websites or computers.
Cracking Is illegally accessing websites and computers and often causing considerable damage.
Virus Is a file or computer program designed to damage a computer or cause it to malfunction.
Newbie Someone who is new. (new to computers, new to a website, new to a messageboard or game.)
FAQ's Frequently Asked Questions - a good page for newbies to look at.
Search Engine A search engine is a web based utility for searching the World Wide Web for specific information relating to a particular topic or word.
Adware or advertising-supported software is any software package which automatically plays, displays, or downloads advertising material to a computer after the software is installed on it or while the application is being used.
Spyware refers to a broad category of malicious software designed to intercept or take partial control of a computer's operation without the informed consent of that machine's owner or legitimate user.
ORIGIN OF THE INTERNET
The Internet was developed in the United States in the 1960s, it grew very rapidly from a university/military experiment in protecting computers from a nuclear attack. The Internet as we know it today is vastly different from this humble beginning.
Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge 3 COSTS
The costs involved are: Purchasing a modem. Internet access time (which is paid to the Internet Service Provider) Administration Fee (most ISP's charge an initial admin fee) A local telephone call each time you connect to the Internet.(for dial- up Internet access only) Connection fee (broadband)
SURFING WITHOUT WAVES
You may have heard the terms 'surfing the net' or 'surfing the web'. Surfing means looking at websites, moving from one site to another.
The picture above shows Microsoft Internet Explorer with this address, http://www.lm.net.au, in the Address Bar. A website address is also called a URL or Universal Resource Locater.
Type the first address in the address bar of your web browser and press the enter key on the keyboard:
www.sofweb.vic.edu.au/internet
Anywhere where the mouse pointer changes to a hand shape is a link you can click on. Clicking on a link takes you to another web page. Look around the website, you can read about the origins of the Internet, how it works, email, exploring the web, chatting and more.
To go to the next website click in the address bar of your web browser at the end of the address listed there. Using the backspace key on the keyboard remove the current address and type in the new address. Press the enter key. Repeat this for each site you wish to visit.
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www.sa.gov.au www.cadbury.com.au www.netalert.net.au www.bom.gov.au
Some websites display better than others. http://www.angelfire.com/super/badwebs/main.htm This website demonstrates some of the common website design mistakes around. New Internet users often think they've done something wrong when a site doesn't display correctly however that's often not the case. FAVOURITES/BOOKMARKS
Websites which you would like to visit again you can put in your Favourites list so that the computer remembers the URL (address) instead of you needing to remember it. In some web browsers these are called Bookmarks. To set a Favourite go to the website, click on the Favourites menu, click on add to Favourites. When you want to visit that website at a later date click on the Favourites menu and click on the site you placed in the list.
SEARCHING
Searching is one of the most common things done on the Internet. Information on just about any topic can be found by using a search engine. www.google.com.au is one of the most popular search engines. Go to www.google.com.au/help/basics.html which tells you the basics of searching using the Google search engine.
Practice searching for your favourite hobby, sport or place to visit.
PRINTING, SAVING AND DOWNLOADING
Clicking on the print button on the toolbar will print an entire page. To print part of the text, highlight given text, click on the file menu, and then choose print. In the print dialogue box for the print range choose selection then click on ok.
Not all web pages print out well. Web pages are designed to look good on the monitor not necessarily on the printed page. Some websites offer a 'printer friendly version' of their web pages so that they are readable when printed and don't use up sheets and sheets of paper for pictures or little text. http://www.sa.gov.au/site/page.cfm?c=52151 This site has a printer icon to click which takes you to a printer friendly page. To save a picture click on it with the right mouse button and choose 'save picture as' then follow the usual procedure for saving to the hard drive (in My Documents or similar folder). Not all pictures are able to be saved. Some websites prevent users from saving their pictures for copyright or financial reasons.
Downloading is moving files from one computer to another. Everything which comes from the Internet to your computer is considered a download.
Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge 5 Considerations to take into account before downloading: Size of files being downloaded Time You need to weigh up the benefits of having the program or files against the time it will take to download the files. If you are disconnected from the Internet during a download you may need to begin the download again from the start. Internet access plan – cost of downloading Excess download charges Viruses Is it allowed to be downloaded at work Is it legal/ethical
Dial-Up Internet Access Broadband Internet Access purchase Internet time in blocks e.g. 10 hours purchase Internet usage by download amount and connection speed e.g. 500Mb per month at 256kbps fixed hours per month unlimited hours but fixed download amount e.g. 100Mb
Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge 6 Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge UNITS OF MEASURE
Every computer file has a size. This size is measured as shown below in bytes, kilobytes or megabytes. These are just some of the measurements used in computing.
Term Abbreviation Rough Size byte B 1 byte kilobyte kB 1024 bytes megabyte MB or Meg 1024 kB gigabyte GB or Gig 1024 MB
A byte is a small unit of measure similar to a millimetre whereas a gigabyte is a large measurement like a kilometre.
ANTIVIRUS RULES
It is imperative to protect your computer from viruses when using the Internet. Here are some rules to follow.
Purchase a good antivirus program. Norton, McAfee and Vet are some good programs. Antivirus program manufacturers also release minor upgrades every two to three months and major upgrades every twelve to eighteen months. YOU NEED THESE UPGRADES. Minor upgrades are usually free and major upgrades usually cost anywhere between $20 and $40, depending on the manufacturer. Think of this as an expected expense -- just as you have to change your car's oil every so often, you have to upgrade your antivirus software every year to year-and-a-half.
Update your virus definitions frequently. With over 250 new viruses being discovered each week, if you don't update your definitions frequently you won't be protected from ANY of the new viruses floating around the Net. How do you update your virus definitions? That depends on the antivirus program you use. Norton Antivirus has a "Live Update" button built into the program; click on it, and Norton automatically downloads and installs the latest virus definitions from the Internet. McAfee VirusScan has a similar update function.
This is probably the most important rule of them all. Never double click (or open) any email attachment, regardless of who the file is from, until you scan that file first with your antivirus program. The majority of people don't know that their computer is infected with a virus. They may tell you it's safe but don't take any risks, it's just not worth it.
Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge 7 Think of a computer virus as a well-packaged letter bomb. You can move a letter bomb from room to room in your house without any danger. Open the letter bomb, however, and you die. The same is true with computer viruses. You could download a billion virus-infected files from the Internet and receive another billion virus-infected files attached to email messages and your computer still wouldn't be infected with a virus. Open, or double-click on, just ONE of those files, though, and your computer is dead.
Turn on macro virus protection in Microsoft Word and beware of all Word macros, especially if you don't know what macros are. Word Macros are saved sequences of commands or keyboard strokes that can be stored and then recalled with a single command or keyboard stroke. They enable advanced Word users to easily accomplish what would otherwise be difficult tasks. They also allow virus writers to do serious damage to your computer. For example, the Melissa virus was actually a Word Macro virus.
Run Windows Update at least once a month. Windows is aptly named because it is full of holes. There are several, inadvertent 'open doors' (or 'security holes') in the Windows operating system that *COULD* conceivably make your computer vulnerable to outside attack. In specific, a mean-spirited cracker *COULD* 'walk through' one of these open doors on your Windows PC and read any file on your computer, delete specific files or programs, or even completely erase your hard drive. When the folks at Microsoft discover a security hole, they immediately release a software patch to close it. Without the patch -- and there are MANY -- your computer is wide open to outside attack. Fortunately, downloading these patches couldn't be simpler. Built into every version of Microsoft's Windows Operating System and Internet Explorer since version 4.0 is something called "Windows Update." Windows Update is an easy-to-use tool that helps you ensure that your PC is running the absolute latest Microsoft software patches and drivers.
Antivirus Rules adapted from an article in - The Internet Tourbus http://www.internettourbus.com
Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge 8 Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge SECURITY ON THE INTERNET
There are a lot of concerns with regard to security on the Internet. Personal safety, children's safety, viruses, harassment and credit card fraud are just a few. These are a few guidelines for protecting your own and your children's privacy and safety online:
learn for yourself and teach your children about the dangers of online predators use screening or blocking software to limit children's access to offensive material stick to the Antivirus Rules as outlined previously use Windows Update as described in the Antivirus rules teach children what information they can and can't give out online develop a workplace Internet usage policy (if you don't already have one)
Teen Challenge SA Inc – Murray Bridge 9 EXTRAS
Find out some more of the services which Google provide. To get you started there is Google Images. What other services are there, what are they for and how could you use them at work?
If you're making a brochure, poster or newsletter or writing a report you can find extra information online. Not all information online is legitimate. It's important to verify your information before you print it as well as giving attribution of where the information has come from.
Research drugs and their side effects, mental health, other work related topics or issues. Use some of the below sites. What other sites did you find, which sites were helpful and which weren't. www.google.com.au www.depressionet.com.au www.beyondblue.org.au www.reachout.com.au www.about.com
Copy and paste information into a word processor document. You can also copy some graphics.
Scams Scams can range from emails that ask you to “verify” your personal or banking details by following a link, to letters, emails or phone calls requesting an upfront payment of a relatively small fee in return for promised riches. They can also come in the guise of lottery winnings for draws you never entered or calls about terrific investment opportunities from people you've never met. The best defence against these scams – do not respond. www.scamwatch.gov.au
Wikipedia And Other Wikis Wikipedia is an international web-based cooperative free-content encyclopedia. It exists as a wiki, a website that allows visitors to edit its content. www.wikipedia.com
Blogs Blog is short for web log. A web log or blog is an online diary, some are better than others depending upon the writer's skill or subject. www.blogger.com This is a popular blog site with a free blog for anyone who'd like one.
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