The Internet, it can bring you the world.
There are literally millions of people around the globe on the Internet right now.
And today, after watching this video, you too will know what the Internet is, how to
get on it, and how to use it.
On the back of the video box, you'll find a time next to each topic I'll be discussing.
By using the clock counter on your VCR, simply fast forward or rewind to the subject that
you want to review.
Keep a pen and notepad handy, because I'll be giving you some phone numbers and website
addresses along the way.
Now sit back, get comfortable, and let's get started.
What exactly is the Internet?
The Internet is an international collection of interconnected computers.
Put simply, it's a global network of networks.
So what is a network?
Let's say you're a computer, and everyone else in the room is a computer also.
Now everyone hold hands.
I'll give you a second.
Is everyone holding hands?
Good.
You've just formed a network.
A network is a collection of computers that are connected together.
The Internet forms its global network by using telephone lines, high-speed data lines, cable,
and even satellites to connect commercial, academic, and military networks.
In fact, the military gave the Internet its start in the late 60s.
No one owns or controls the Internet, and not all networks are connected to the Net.
Oh, you can stop holding hands now.
Think of the Internet as an information superhighway that carries the services we use like email,
which makes it possible to send electronic messages anywhere in the world in just seconds.
Mailing lists lets you take part by email in discussion groups devoted to thousands
of subjects.
News groups, think of them as public bulletin boards where you can read or send publicly
posted email messages on topics from A to Z.
Chat, enter a chat room where you can meet someone new or discuss current events while
in the comfort of your own home.
The World Wide Web, it gives you access to information around the globe.
On the Web, you can find people or businesses in any state using a Web directory.
You can look for a new job at the Job Center.
Get late-breaking news from CNN or get the latest sports scores from ESPN SportsZone.
Track the financial markets at CNNFN.
Find answers to your health-related questions at Johns Hopkins' website.
Software for your PC is just a click away at Download.com.
Save money planning your next vacation by finding the lowest fares and making your own
reservations at Travelocity.
Make sure before you leave on that vacation to check the weather forecast at weather.com.
And if you want to see what the weather is really like in many cities around the world,
you can use a live webcam.
This is a live picture of Surfer's Paradise in Queensland, Australia.
Do ATMs make you nervous?
At Bank of America's website, you can do your banking from home at any time, day or night.
How would you like to get your tax refund faster?
Of course you would.
As you can by filing online with Secure Tax.
Do your kids get homework problems that you can't even answer sometimes?
Hop on the web for help.
Are you in a market for a new house?
Realtor.com can help you find one and give you mortgage information too.
Looking for a new car?
Take a virtual tour without setting one foot on a dealer lot.
But before you trade in your old car first, find out what it's worth at Kelley Blue Book's
website.
Did you lose this week's TV Guide?
Don't worry, because their website will tell you what's showing and when.
In order to start exploring cyberspace, you're going to need the right hardware, software,
and an internet access provider.
Let's start with hardware.
Most people use a computer when going online.
If you're going to use an IBM-compatible computer, it should have at least a 486 CPU, 16 megabytes
of RAM, 10 to 80 megabytes of free hard disk space, and a modem.
If you don't have a computer and you don't want one, you can still get online using your
television with WebTV.
I'll be talking about WebTV shortly, but first you should know what a modem is.
A modem is a device that allows your computer to make a telephone connection to another
computer for the purpose of transferring data.
Most new computers sold today come with a modem.
You should have at least a 288 modem so you can take advantage of the multimedia content
on the web.
If you have a 336 or a 56K modem, you're doing even better because the faster your modem,
the faster the web pages will appear on your screen.
There are other and faster ways of exchanging data, like with DSL or digital subscriber
line.
DSL technology can provide both voice and internet communications over your existing
telephone lines with speeds at least nine times faster than a 288 modem.
Call your phone company to find out when DSL is coming to your area.
ISDN, or Integrated Services Digital Network, is already available and provides a digital
connection that is four to five times faster than a regular modem, but does require installation
of a special phone line.
Visit this website or call your local phone company for details.
You know that cable coming out of your wall that gives you your MTV?
Well, more and more cable companies are now offering internet access and television on
the same cable line.
A cable modem can be a hundred to a thousand times faster than a regular modem, and it
could also free up your phone line.
Call your cable company or go to this site for more information.
Satellites have begun delivering the internet, too, and at much higher speeds than a regular
phone connection.
Direct Duo can give you both television and the internet with only a small 21-inch dish
on your roof.
Visit your local electronics store or this website to find out more.
Finally, you could even start getting the internet through your electric power lines.
A company has figured out a way to do this, and they're currently testing this service
in England.
Next, you'll need software to go along with that hardware.
You'll be using a software program called a web browser to navigate the internet.
Just like a word processing program knows how to read text documents, a web browser
knows how to read and display HTML or hypertext markup language.
HTML is the software that's used to create web pages.
The two most popular web browsers are Netscape's Navigator and Microsoft's Internet Explorer.
The latest versions of both these browsers are available for free on the web.
We will be using Internet Explorer 4.0 for this video.
Next, you'll need to choose an internet access provider, and they come in a few varieties.
First, for those of you who would like to use your TV for getting online, then WebTV
is for you.
What is WebTV?
Let's visit their website and find out.
The WebTV system includes the WebTV internet terminal, a remote control, and a subscription
to the WebTV network.
The terminal box is about the size of your VCR, and allows you to surf the web using
your television.
You can also add a wireless keyboard and a printer so you can print your email messages
or color photos from the web.
WebTV's email has capabilities of up to six different users, each with his or her own
email address and password.
There's also a special parental control to make sure your children don't access inappropriate
content or receive email from strangers.
Each user can also save a list of their favorite websites.
With WebTV, you don't need a computer, and you don't need computer skills.
Anybody who can operate a regular television remote can easily use WebTV.
For more information, call their 800 number or visit your local electronics retailer.
What is an online service?
An online service not only provides access to cyberspace, but also provides other services
as well.
As you can see here from America Online, they offer their subscribers neatly organized content,
which may include news, software, chat rooms, games, and so on.
The advantage of using an online service is that there is little or no setup, and they're
generally easy to use.
What is an internet service provider?
An internet service provider, or ISP, provides you with a straight connection to the internet
and that's about it.
ISPs can range in size from local to nationwide operations.
Their prices can range from $10 to $50 a month or more.
The advantage of using an ISP is that you can get internet access cheaper than an online
service.
So how do you find an internet access provider?
Besides looking in the yellow pages, you can find a provider a few different ways, including
using your computer.
For those of you who haven't used Windows, when you start the computer, the opening screen
called the desktop will look a lot like this.
Operating a computer isn't what it used to be.
Windows makes it easy now.
All you have to do to start a program is click on its icon with your mouse.
The easiest and fastest way to get on the net is to click on the pre-installed software
your computer manufacturer has provided you.
Click Start, Programs, then Online Services, and you will see a short list of service providers.
Click on one, and you'll be guided through the setup process where your computer will
automatically be configured for the internet.
Make sure you have your credit card number ready, because you'll need that to activate
your account.
Another way to find a provider is to use a program called the Connection Wizard, which
is specifically designed to get you online quick and easy.
You can find it in the Internet Explorer folder, and once you have an account, come back to
this folder to start Internet Explorer, or Outlook Express, which is the email and newsreader
program.
Now, to start the Wizard, simply click on it, and when the Get Connected dialog box
appears, click Next.
The Setup Options box will appear with three options to choose from.
Choose the first option.
Then after you've entered your area code and prefix, the Connection Wizard will download
a list of service providers that serve your area.
A brief description of their offerings is available for you to look over.
Once you choose a provider, click Sign Me Up, and your account setup proceeds automatically.
If you like, you can call some of the larger service providers right now, and they'll send
you their software to get you started.
I recommend trying out several service providers to see which one you like the best.
You might like one provider's content and customer support over another speed and price.
Once you're online, visit The List.
The List provides a comprehensive list of service providers that you can easily search
by your area code.
You can find out what each service has to offer and at what price.
Yes, you can get free Internet access, and here are a few ways you can do it.
Free Trials.
Many service providers will give you one month free Internet access to coax you into signing
up with them.
So, if you try out several companies, as I recommended earlier, you could surf the web
for months free before settling down with a service provider you like the best.
Free Nets.
A free net is a service provider that gives free public access to a community-based computer
system.
Think of free nets as a computer equivalent of television's PBS or radio's National Public
Radio.
To find out if your community has a free net, call your local library, or on the web, go
to www.ofcn.org to see a list.
Speaking of libraries, find out if yours is logged on.
If it is, ask if you need to reserve time to get online, or if it's first-come, first-served
basis.
Your school or workplace could also be a convenient place to surf.
A cyber café is a great place to browse the web and also have a cup of joe.
The first thing people want to do when they get on the Internet is surf the web.
So what is the World Wide Web?
It is the collection of all the web pages stored on Internet computers around the globe.
You can make your own web page, but that's another video.
A website consists of one or more related web pages stored on a web server.
Web servers are computers that host websites.
One of the things that makes the World Wide Web so great is the ability to move from one
website to another, or jump from a web server, say in Hawaii, to another server in Paris
by just clicking your mouse.
The best part is, there are no long-distance telephone charges.
In order to visit any web page, your browser needs an address.
Just like every house on your block has an address, so does every web page on the World
Wide Web.
So let's talk about addresses for a moment.
A web address is also known as a URL, or Uniform Resource Locator.
The first part of the URL, HTTP, stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol, and it's the
computer language that allows us to navigate the web with just a click of the mouse.
The second part of the URL, www.wolfpark.org, is called the domain name, and it represents
the actual address of the Internet computer that contains the web page.
.org, known as the top-level domain, indicates this site belongs to a non-profit organization.
You will also see.com signifying a commercial enterprise,.edu for educational institution,
.gov for a government agency,.mil for a military site, and.net for an Internet access provider.
The word separated by slashes is the path pointing to the directory on the Internet
computer that stores a particular page.
This one, for instance, points to a picture of a beautiful wolf called Socrates at Wolf
Park's website.
Here's a tip.
Any time you see a picture or graphic that you like, you can save it to your hard drive
by putting the pointer over the picture, then right-click your mouse.
Click Save Picture As, then choose the folder you want to save the picture in, and click
Save.
Now you can print the picture or look at it any time you like.
Getting back to URLs, countries other than the United States will have addresses that
end with a two-letter country code.
This website is for North Shore City in New Zealand, so its country code is NZ.
And for all the sailboat enthusiasts out there, you know this is the country where our America's
Cup currently resides.
Hopefully after the next regatta, it'll be back in the USA where it belongs.
This is a partial list of country codes.
Here's a tip.
If you know where you want to go, and you have the URL, using your keyboard, press the
Control and the L key.
Now type the address and hit Enter.
If you noticed, I didn't have to type in HTTP.
That's because the browser fills it in for you, and it also helps you to complete the
address.
This shortcut can save you time if you're a slow typer like me.
And if you want to find an address, then you'll need to use a search engine.
What is a search engine?
A search engine is a tool used by a search site like this one that retrieves all the
web documents in its database containing the keywords you asked it to look for.
Here is a list of some popular search engines you can use.
Search engines are continually combing the web, indexing the pages they find, and adding
them to their database.
It's best to use a search engine when you're looking for specific information.
And try different search engines, because each one creates its database differently,
so your search results will differ from site to site.
A directory site is another type of search site that can help you get around.
Directory sites license the use of search engines, but also use people to categorize
sites by subject.
This is a list of sites you can try out.
Directory sites are useful to find general information, for instance, if you want to
find a computer or health-related website.
But if you want as much information as possible on a specific topic, then use a search engine.
When you want to start a search, just click the search button.
You can assign any search site to your search button by clicking Choose a search engine,
list of all search engines.
From here, simply click on the search site to automatically assign it to your search
button.
Let's say I want to learn about El Nino.
I can search from this window, but for illustration purposes, I'll use the full window.
Using Yahoo, I'll type in El Nino and hit Enter.
Yahoo gives me a list of over 50 sites that match my request.
Here's a tip.
If you want to go to the top of a web page quickly, hit the Home key on the keyboard.
If you want to jump to the bottom of the page, hit the N key.
At the bottom of the page, the nice people at Yahoo provide a list of other search sites
you can use to search on keywords you entered earlier.
Let's click on WebCrawler.
As you can see, it gives us thousands of more sites.
Again, this is because each search site uses a different method of compiling web pages.
Just click on What is El Nino?
It looks like this website offers a lot of information on El Nino.
As you've noticed, all I have to do is click my mouse to jump from one website to another.
That's because I've been using hyperlinks, and they come in two forms.
Text links, which appear as underlined colored text, and graphical links, which are embedded
in a picture, a button, or a graphic.
You will know you've found a hyperlink because when you put your pointer over the link, it
changes to a pointing hand.
Once you've used a text link, it will change color.
That way, if you see it again later, you'll know you've already clicked on it.
If I want to go back to Yahoo's web page, I'll click on the Back button.
If I want to revisit the El Nino page, I'll use the Forward button.
The Refresh button makes another call to a web page.
For instance, you may want to see all the graphics a web page has to offer if before
you only asked for text.
I'll hit the Refresh button to illustrate my point.
By telling your browser to only display text, you can speed up the transmission of web pages.
The Stop button stops your request for a web page, or stops its transmission.
To skip the graphics, click View, Internet Options, the Advanced tab, and deselect Show
Pictures, Play Animations, Play Videos, and Play Sounds.
Since websites come and go and occasionally switch servers, don't worry when you see
this message, Air 404 Site Not Found.
If you know the site exists, use a search engine to find its current address.
The Font button allows you to change the size of the text.
Try out different sizes to see which one suits your eyes.
Any time I'm surfing and I want to go home, I just press the Home button.
I have made my Excite Channel my home page because I can customize this page to display
only the information I want.
So every time I get online, I start at this page, where I can get news, stock quotes,
sports scores, local weather, and even TV listings.
I can choose any web page as my home page by clicking View, Internet Options, and typing
the address of the website here.
Any time you want to know how to customize your browser, just click Help, Contents and
Index and you can find the answer to your question.
If you'd like your own customized home page, check out some of these sites.
OK, now you know how to use a search engine to find thousands of sites, but how do you
find the best ones?
Well, to help you sort through the good ones and the not so good ones, here are a few websites
that review and rank other websites.
This is Microsoft's best of the web.
Let's say I'm going on vacation and I want to find a good travel site, so I'll click
on Travel.
Now I'm at the travel page, and after I page down, I have a hand-picked list of travel
sites that Microsoft thinks are the best.
Here are some other sites you might find useful.
Just like we use bookmarks to save our place in a book, your browser can save addresses
of your favorite websites.
To bookmark this website, click Favorites, Add to Favorites, and OK.
Now when you want to go back to this site again, you don't have to type in a long web
address or search for it again.
Simply click Favorites, and you're back with just a click.
One of the things you will encounter while surfing is a cookie, and I'm not talking about
the edible kind.
A cookie is a small text file that is sent to your computer's hard drive by website
operators.
Some cookies are useful, like the one that remembers how to customize your homepage,
while others are useless, like the cookies that tell advertisers how many times you've
seen their ad while surfing the web.
Some people don't like the idea of cookies, and if you're one of them, there's a couple
of things you can do.
First, you can set your browser to prompt you before accepting cookies.
On the menu bar, click View, Internet Options, and the Advanced tab.
Now mark Prompt before accepting cookies.
You don't want to disable all cookie use, because then your browser will reject all
cookies and some cookies you do want.
Click Apply and OK.
Now you'll get a message like this, asking you to accept or reject every cookie.
The second thing you can do is get a program that runs in the background rejecting unknown
cookies or accepting the ones you want.
To find a cookie program at download.com, just type in cookie and hit Enter.
These programs are nice, because cookies won't be constantly soliciting you, and your hard
drive won't be getting any unwanted data files.
I'm sure some of you remember how long it took to send a letter when you first had to
type it, then rely upon the U.S. Post Office to deliver it.
Thanks to email, now it only takes seconds to send a message.
Email or electronic mail is simply type messages sent from one computer to another.
You can send an electronic message anywhere, any time of day, to a friend across town or
to a business contact around the globe.
You can also send along files with your messages like pictures, reports, programs, and even
webpages.
In order for your email to get to the right place, you need the right address.
It's easy to recognize email addresses because they always contain the at symbol.
The part of the address to the left of the at symbol is your username.
It could be part of your real name or a nickname you like.
The part to the right of the at symbol will be the name of your internet service provider
or email service.
Now the easiest way to get someone's email address is to ask, but what if you can't?
Then you'll want to use an email directory.
Here is a list of directories you can use.
411 will help us today to look up President Clinton's email address.
Type in Bill Clinton and hit enter.
It looks like there are a lot of Bill Clintons out there, so how do I know which address
is really President Clinton's?
Since the White House is part of the government, President Clinton's email address will have
.gov as its top level domain, and here it is.
Click on his name, and now you have the President's address.
Click on his address link, and the email program starts automatically.
Sending email is really easy.
Just fill in the boxes.
The two boxes already filled in with the President's address.
So now give the message a name in the subject box, and then type in the message.
Let's say you want to send a file along with this message.
How about a picture?
Click on the insert file button, and use the look in drop down list to display the folder
containing the file you want to send.
Select the folder, and then attach the file to be sent.
In the attachments window, you'll see the name of the file that you've attached.
When you attach a file to an email message, you're sending an exact copy of the file,
not the file itself.
Now click send, and you're done.
It's that easy.
To read your mail, simply click on the mail button, and read mail.
Click on the header, and the message appears in the window below.
If your message has a file attached to it, you'll see an icon that looks like a paper
clip to the left.
Your messages can be sent in either plain text, like this one that happens to have a
picture sent along with it, or in an HTML format.
An HTML formatted message can look just like a web page.
Once you've read the message, you can reply to the author, forward it to someone else,
save it, print it, or delete it.
To start writing a new message, just click on the compose message button.
There are many places on the web that offer free email, and this list of sites is provided
by Yahoo.
Companies can provide free email because their services are paid for by advertising revenue.
Most internet service providers will only offer one email address, which can be inconvenient
for a family.
With web-based email, you don't need to have an internet account or even a computer.
You can check your mail from any place that has a web connection.
This way, each family member can have his or her own private email account with a password.
If looking around for internet access to check your email doesn't sound like fun, you can
still get free email through Juno.
With Juno, you don't need access to the web, but you do need a computer, a modem, and the
company's free software.
If you're not at home, you can still access your mail from any computer that has Juno's
software installed on it.
You can download a copy of Juno's software from their website, or you can call 1-800-654-JUNO
to order a diskette.
As soon as you get an email address, you may want to join a mailing list.
A mailing list is made up of a group of people who exchange ideas and views about a particular
topic that interests them via email.
There are thousands of mailing lists focusing on topics from politics to television, and
you're sure to find one that interests you.
Mailing lists can either be public or private.
Public lists are open to anyone who wants to join, while private lists usually have
requirements for participation, for example, like being in a certain occupation.
If you think you'd like to join a list, the first thing you need to do is find one.
LIST, a mailing list directory, makes things easy.
LIST not only helps you to find a mailing list, but also gives you information on each
list and explains how to join it.
You can either search LIST's main directory of over 84,000 mailing lists, or you can browse
by topic.
So let's browse by topic.
If you're a fan of the television show, The X-Files, there are several mailing lists about
The X-Files where people discuss the latest episodes.
Let me show you how easy it is to find a list and join it.
I'll click on Television, then Shows, and towards the bottom of this page, I see a list
about The X-Files.
To find out how to join, I'll click on List Commands.
A few clicks later, I see the command to subscribe to the list.
Scrolling down a little, I see the commands used to unsubscribe, get info, and get help.
Now, I simply click on the Administrative Address link that will start the email program.
The email address is automatically entered, and I leave the subject line blank.
Next, I type the command Subscribe X-Files and click Send.
It's that easy.
Soon, a confirmation message will be sent confirming that I've been added to the list.
This message should be saved because it will contain the email address you will be sending
your messages to called the list address.
There are two things that are sure to get you kicked off a mailing list.
They are flaming and spamming.
Flaming is sending rude and crude messages, and spamming is sending the same message to
a large number of mailing lists usually to advertise something.
Many lists are moderated, meaning that the list administrator screens the messages to
make sure the content is appropriate for the list.
He also reserves the right to remove you from the list at any time.
This leads us to newsgroups.
What is a newsgroup?
Newsgroups have nothing to do about news as we know it.
A newsgroup is a collection of email messages called articles, which are on public display
for anyone to read.
Newsgroups can cover subjects from alien visitors to Zen philosophy, and unlike mailing lists,
there is no need to join anything.
Anyone can read, reply, and post messages right away.
To start reading articles, click on the Mail and News button, then Read News.
When prompted, click Yes to view a list of the newsgroups carried by your service provider.
The list will be in the thousands, so type the subject you are interested in, and the
related newsgroups will be displayed.
Let's say I want to go camping, and I'd like some tips before I go.
Look in Camping, pick a newsgroup, and click Go To.
As you can see, there are many articles about camping where people have posted a question
and got a reply, while others share stories about their latest trips.
To read an article, simply click on it.
If you want to post a message to the newsgroup, click New Message.
The New Message window appears with the name of the newsgroup already entered for you.
Type a subject for the message, then type the body, and click Post.
Shortly, you'll see your message posted to the group.
If you like this group, and you want to come back to it again, you can subscribe to it.
Think of subscribing as bookmarking your favorite newsgroups.
You can subscribe or unsubscribe to any newsgroup anytime.
To subscribe to this newsgroup, click Tools and subscribe to this newsgroup.
To see the newsgroups you've subscribed to, click Newsgroups and the Subscribe tab.
To unsubscribe from any newsgroup, highlight it and click Unsubscribe, or simply double
click on it.
You can also read newsgroup messages on the web by going to Dege News.
At this site, you can search for a topic like camping using the Quick Search, or you can
browse through the categories.
Let's find some camping articles using Quick Search.
Dege News will present a list of all the related articles along with the name of the newsgroup
they were posted to.
When you click on an article, you're taken to a new webpage where you can read the message.
From here, once you've read the message, you have a number of options like reading the
next message, replying to this one, or posting a new message of your own.
Mailing lists and newsgroups are a great place to exchange ideas and views, but you have
to wait before you get a response.
Not with chat.
With chat, enter a channel and you can have real-time conversations over the internet
by exchanging typed messages that are seen instantly on everyone's screen.
What is a channel, you're asking?
A channel, also called a chat room, is what you enter to chat with other people.
Normally, chat rooms are titled, so you can look for a room where people are chatting
about a subject that interests you.
For example, you'll find a football room in the sports category.
Chat rooms can be moderated, meaning a host is assigned to keep the conversation going,
introduce a special guest, or look out for troublemakers and kick them out.
You can join and leave a chat room anytime you want.
If you're using an online service such as AOL, the easiest way to start chatting is
to use the chat rooms they offer their members.
If you're using an ISP, then you can go to the web where there are many chat sites to
choose from.
YAC, a chat directory, can tell you what events are happening right now or any time of the
day.
Also, you can get the chat schedule for many different chat sites, including online services.
In addition, YAC tells you what software you'll need, if any, to participate in the chat session
along with a link to where you can get it.
Let's get some information on this chat session.
Okay, here we find out where the session is being held, and we're provided with a link
directly to the site.
We're also told when it starts, and the only software we need is our browser Internet Explorer.
Just click on the link to visit TalkCity.
Once we're at TalkCity, and we've chosen the channel we want to chat in, we need to choose
a nickname so we can enter the room.
Now that we're in the chat room, all we have to do to start chatting is simply type a sentence
and hit enter.
Hi everyone.
Now, if you see Internet Relay Chat, that means you're going to need a program that
uses the Internet Relay Chat Protocol.
IRC is the most popular chat protocol in the net.
A program you can download for free that uses the IRC protocol is Microsoft Chat 2.1.
A fun feature of this program is the Comic Mode.
Select Comic Mode, and your online conversations come alive as a comic strip.
Each person in the room will be automatically assigned a cartoon character, and you can
switch between text and comic modes anytime you like.
How would you like to chat with your friends or family on the Internet, but you don't know
when they're going to be online?
Well, there are a few services like America Online's Instant Messenger that lets you set
up BuddyList.
With a BuddyList program, when someone on your BuddyList goes online, his or her name
appears in a small window.
Click on their name to send them an instant message.
If they answer you, a new window opens up and you can start a private chat session.
America Online offers this program free to anyone on the Internet.
You don't have to be an AOL member to use it.
Check out these other BuddyList programs to see which one you like the best, or find out
which one most of your friends are using.
For everyone out there who has kids, I'm sure you're concerned about what our children are
exposed to on the Net.
We all know there is a lot of great information out there and neat places to visit, but there
are also some sites that aren't so good for kids.
Fortunately, there are a few things we can do to protect our children.
The first thing you can do right away is to enable your web browser's Content Advisor.
Click View, Options, Content, and Enable.
The Content Advisor is password protected, so you'll need to choose a password and keep
it someplace where the kids can't find it.
To set what sites users are allowed to visit, click on Settings.
Click on a topic and use the slide bar to set the level of rating.
Zero offers the highest protection, and four offers the least.
Internet Explorer uses the Recreational Software Advisory Council Rating Service for the Internet,
so the browser's ability to block offensive material depends on each website using this
rating service.
Since not all websites are rated, the second thing you can do is get blocking or filtering
software.
Cyber Patrol, CyberSitter, NetNanny, and SurfWatch are all filtering programs that let you block
out offensive websites that contain material which can include drugs, pornography, profanity,
and violence.
Another option, especially for parents who are uncomfortable with the thought of censorship,
is to install a monitoring program that runs automatically and invisibly in the computer's
background.
NetSnitch and CyberSnoop will provide you with a password-protected record of all the
URLs your child visits while they're online.
What you do with this information is obviously up to you.
Visit their websites to find out more.
Finally, you might consider using a proxy like BESS.
With BESS, you don't need to install any software.
To use BESS, you subscribe to their service, which then routes all communication between
your computer and the Internet through its site.
BESS also provides a large set of links to resources for children and parents on the
web.
When your child tries to access a blocked site, BESS displays a page saying, BESS won't
retrieve that.
For more information, visit the BESS website.
We all know viruses can make us sick.
Well, they also can make our computers sick.
A virus is a program that can replicate itself and spread from one computer to the next.
A virus can be programmed to do anything from displaying silly messages to deleting files
to crashing your computer.
To keep your computer healthy while online, the first thing to remember is only download
software from reliable sites.
The second thing is to install antivirus software.
Antivirus programs load automatically every time you start your computer and run in the
background scanning your files for viruses.
This software can help you detect viruses, clean them off your system, and repair any
damage.
Here is a list of some of the more popular programs you can download or buy at your local
computer retailer.
The third thing you want to do is backup your hard drive.
If a virus causes a major crash and data gets damaged, you'll have a chance of restoring
your important files.
Now, the chances of you being infected by a virus are low, but if you do encounter one
and you follow the steps I gave you, you'll be fine.
Downloading.
It sounds like a complicated computer task, but it is really rather simple and people
do it constantly.
Downloading means copying a file or multiple files from an internet computer to your computer.
What kind of files can you download?
You can download text files, pictures and graphics, and all sorts of programs like games,
utilities, upgrades, and patches to programs you already have, software for the home or
business.
You name it and you can probably download it.
Shareware is the most common software downloaded.
Shareware is software you can download for a free trial, usually 30 days.
If the program hasn't stopped running after 30 days, you'll still be able to use it, but
some of its features might be disabled.
If you decide to purchase the program, you're given a registration code which then makes
the program fully functional.
Beta software is software that is still in the development stage.
It's usually fairly functional, but often times it contains bugs and time limits like
trial versions.
You benefit from using betas because you get a test run at new software, and developers
benefit because they get feedback and bug reports from the users.
Freeware software is just that, free, and there are many sites to go for free software
like this one.
Software developers occasionally give away their programs for free in order to develop
a user base, and some developers give it away just because they're nice and giving people.
To find free software, just visit a software site like this one at www.hotfiles.com and
search on the word freeware.
Now you're given pages and pages of all the freeware your hard drive can handle.
Here is a list of some popular software sites.
Often times, when you download files from the net, they will be zipped.
What is a zip file?
A zip file is a file that has been compressed to reduce its size to make it faster to download.
A file that has been zipped will have a ZIP extension.
You will need a decompression program to unzip this file before you can use it.
Winzip is a popular program which allows you to easily unzip compressed files and extract
them to a folder you choose.
You can download Winzip at their website and most software sites, or buy a copy at your
local computer store.
Here's a tip before you start downloading.
Make a new folder in your main directory and name it download.
Place all the files you download from the net in this folder so you can easily locate
them when you're ready to install.
If you don't do this, make sure you write down the file name exactly so you can find
it later.
Also, make sure you read any instructions in case you have to do anything specific for
the installation.
Today, we'll be downloading update files for the antivirus program.
It's important that you update your antivirus program monthly so you'll be protected from
the latest viruses.
Go to the software supplier's website and find the link to download the update files.
Click on the link and the browser displays the file download box.
Click OK to save this file to your disk.
Then the Save As screen appears where you can make sure the file is going to the folder
you want.
Leave the file name as it is and click Save.
The download screen reappears and you start receiving the file.
You can still browse the web while downloading, but your modem will be doing double duty so
you might notice it takes a little longer to get from one website to another.
When the download is finished, click OK.
Then close your browser and any other programs before you start any installation process.
Now you're ready to install the new files.
Go to the download folder and find the file you downloaded.
If the file has an.exe extension, like this one for Microsoft's chat program, then simply
double click on it and it will start the installation process automatically.
If it's zipped, like the update files are, then WinZip will unzip it when I double click
on the file.
The installation instructions said to replace the existing antivirus files with the new
updated ones.
So locate the folder that contains the existing files and make sure to overwrite them with
the new ones.
Close WinZip and Windows Explorer, then restart Windows for the new changes to take effect.
In the last hour, we've covered the basics of the Internet.
A good supplement to this video would be a book or two about the Net.
This will help fill in the gaps.
I want to thank you for watching, and I'll see you in cyberspace.