HIT191 - Basics

Internet

Now that you have the essential skills you need to use a computer, it is time to learn about the Internet environment. In this topic, you will learn how to find information on the World Wide Web. In the last topic of this module you will learn how to send and receive emails.

Develop your Skills - The Internet Environment

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YOUR
SKILLS

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Skills
This section will give you a brief explanation of how the Internet works and how to surf the Web.

PRINT READING
#4
The Internet, an introduction

Please read, Reading #4 The Internet, an introduction. This is quite a long reading so you can do it in two parts.

Part 1, pp. 1-13 deals with some of the technical aspects of the Internet and the Internet Explorer Browser
Part 2, pp. 13-26 looks at how to search the Internet and how to download files.

Evaluating Internet
Information

For an overview of the first part of the reading - download the powerpoint opposite from the CDU library that introduces the Internet.

When you have completed the reading you will understand:

how pages are retrieved over the Internet
the difference between the Web and the Internet
using URLs to find web pages
how to search and download information
bookmarking and using the History to return to sites.

TASK: Complete the Develop Your Skills exercises 1, 3 and 4, pp. 27 - 32.

Tips & Tricks

Setting your homepage (p. 11)

Everytime you start up the browser it will open up at your homepage. At the university, the default homepage is CDU's homepage. You should consider setting your homepage to a page that you use frequently (and one that loads reasonably quickly).

Google

Google (p. 20)

This is currently one of the most popular search engines on the Web. Be careful not to confuse www.google.com.au (the search engine) with an annoying advertising site with a very similar URL. If you haven't already done so, we recommend that you bookmark the site.

Putting it to work

If you understand how URLs are constructed it can give you quite a lot of information about a site. Information on the Web changes rapidly and addresses can go out of date. Knowing about URLs can help you explore the site and possibly still find the information you were after.

Addressing on
the Internet

Understanding URL's

Read the short extract about the basics of Internet addressing.

Compare Ideas

Put it to work:
Telstra's ISP is Bigpond and its address is bigpond.com. A page on this site has the URL bigpond.com/internet-plans/broadband/adsl/
whatis/default.asp
Discuss what each component tells you.

Now that you understand URLs, use this to find information. If a link no longer works, try typing in just the first part of the address. It is amazing what you can retrieve if you explore!

Internet Information Sources

The Internet has provided a range of resources that you can use when researching a topic. But is that the only source you can use? Brainstorm a list of possible digital and analogue sources you could use. How many did you identify? Compare your list with the information given in the following skill builders:

Are there any sources listed in these two resources that you did not consider? How could these additional resources be of use when researching?

Evaluating Internet Information

Can you trust or believe everything you find on the Internet? Is the Internet a reliable information source? Make up your own mind after you have worked through one or more of the following resources:

Evaluating
Information

Evaluating Information
This resource is one page series of activities that will help you understand what information is credible.

Evaluating
Internet
Information

Evaluating Internet Information
This powerpoint provides 4 quick aspects to check on a website to ensure its authority.

Use these resources to evaluate the websites you use in your first assignment.

What have I learned?

In this topic, you have learned the basics of using the internet to find information.

Next section --> Email