INTRODUCTION

TO THE
INTERNET
SOME COMMON TERMS
• The Internet is a network of computers spanning the globe. It is
also called the World Wide Web.

• An Internet Browser is a software program that enables you to

view Web pages on your computer. Browsers connect computers to
the Internet, and allow people to “surf the Web.”

• Internet Explorer is one of the browsers most commonly used.

There are other browsers available as well, including FireFox,
Chrom etc.
• Webpage: a hypertext document connected to the World Wide Web
• A site or area on the World Wide Web that is accessed by its own
Internet address is called a Website.
• A Web Page is like a page in a book. Websites often have several
pages that you can access by clicking on links. A Web site can be a
collection of related Web pages.
• Each Website contains a home page (this is the original starting
page) and may also contain additional pages.
• Different computers will have different home pages. You can set your
own webpage.
 LAYOUT OF A WEB PAGE

1. Title bar – tells you the name of the web page

2. Menu bar – has commands for moving around the webpage, printing, etc
3. Tool bar – short cuts to commands. Each picture represents a command
4. Address bar – webpage address. If you want to go directly to a web page, you will
need to know the address.
URL - UNIFORM RESOURCE
LOCATORS
• http://w w w. P U. E D U. P K / a d m i s s i o n s / m a i n . h t m l

Protocol

a system

• IP – Internet Protocol
• 173.194.45.64
– Can’t exceed 255

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PARTS OF A WEB ADDRESS
• A web address is typically composed of four parts:
• For example, the address http://www.google.ca is made up of the
following areas:
• http://
– This Web server uses Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP). This is the
most common protocol on the Internet.
• www
– This site is on the World Wide Web.
• Google
– The Web server and site maintainer.
• com
– This tells us it is a commercial site.
ADDRESSES ON THE WEB:
IP ADDRESSING
• Each computer on the internet does have a unique identification
number, called an IP (Internet Protocol) address.
• The IP addressing system currently in use on the Internet uses a four-
part number.
• Each part of the address is a number ranging from 0 to 255, and each
part is separated from the previous part by period,
• For example, 106.29.242.17
• Endings of web pages tells us a bit about the page. Some common endings to
web addresses are:
– com (commercial)
– edu (educational institution)
– gov (government)
– net (network)
– org (organization)
• You might also see addresses that add a country code as the last part of the
address such as:
– ca (Canada)
– uk (United Kingdom)
– fr (France)
– us (United States of America)
– au (Australia)
TYPES OF WEBSITES
• Portal
• News
• Informational
• Business/ Marketing
• Educational
• Entertainment
• Advocacy
• Blog
• Wiki
• Social Network
• Personal
HYPERTEXT MARKUP
LANGUAGE
• Hypertext Markup Language (HTML): helps developer create Web
pages
– Determines look and location of content
• The public files on the web servers are ordinary text files, much like
the files used by word-processing software.
• To allow Web browser software to read them, the text must be
formatted according to a generally accepted standard.
• The standard used on the web is Hypertext markup language
(HTML).
HYPERTEXT MARKUP
LANGUAGE
• HTML uses codes, or tags, to tell the Web browser software how to
display the text contained in the document.
• For example, a Web browser reading the following line of text:
• <B> A Review of the Book<I>Wind Instruments of the
18th Century</I></B>
• recognizes the <B> and </B> tags as instructions to display the entire
line of text in bold and the <I> and </I> tags as instructions to display
the text enclosed by those tags in italics.

• A Review of the Book Wind Instruments of the 18th Century

ISP
• An ISP (Internet Service Provider) is a regional or national access
provider. A regional ISP usually provides Internet access to a specific
geographic area. A national ISP is a business that provides Internet
access in cities and towns nationwide.
BANDWIDTH
• Bandwidth: speed at which data is communicated
– Also called transmission rate or bit rate
• Bits per second (bps): unit of measure for bandwidth
• Baseband: communications medium that can carry only one
transmission at a time
• Broadband: communications medium that can carry multiple
transmissions simultaneously

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MEDIA
• Twisted pair cable: pairs of insulated copper wires twisted together
– Twisting reduces electromagnetic interference (EMI)
– Flexible, reliable, and low cost
– Connects devices with RJ-45 connector plug
• Coaxial cable: for cable television transmission
– Used for Internet connections via cable
• Optical fiber: uses light to represent bits
– Not susceptible to interference
– Can carry signals for longer distances

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MEDIA (CONTINUED)
• Radio frequency (RF) technologies: use radio waves to carry bits
– Popular examples: Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
• Microwaves: high-frequency radio waves that can carry signals with
high accuracy over long distances
– For outside transmission, weather conditions may degrade the quality
• Microwave signals can be transmitted by satellite links

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NETWORKS
• Network: combination of devices (or nodes) connected through a
communication media
• Any compatible device that can transmit and receive on a network
can be part of a network

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TYPES OF NETWORKS
• Computer networks are classified by reach and complexity
• Three basic types of networks: LANs, MANs, and WANs

• Local area network (LAN): established by a single organization and

shared among employees
– Server-based LAN: a single computer controls the network
– Peer-to-peer LAN: no central device controls communications

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TYPES OF NETWORKS
(CONTINUED)
• Wireless LANs (WLANs) offer advantages:
– Easier installation
– More scalable
– More flexible: equipment is easily moved
• WLAN drawback: wireless networks are less secure

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TYPES OF NETWORKS
(CONTINUED)
• Metropolitan area network (MAN):
– Links multiple LANs within a large city
– Typically uses fiber optic or wireless broadband connections between
LANs
• Wide area network (WAN):
– Far-reaching system of networks composed of LANs or MANs
– May be public or private

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NETWORKING HARDWARE
• Networks use a variety of devices to connect computers and
peripheral devices
• Network interface card (NIC): connects a device to a hub, switch,
bridge, or router, which connects to a LAN or WAN
• Hub: central location to connect devices to LAN; broadcasts all
communications to all devices
• Switch: a hub that sends communications only to designated devices
on the network

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NETWORKING HARDWARE
(CONTINUED)
• Bridge: connects two networks
• Router: routes data packets to the next node on the path to the final
destination
• Repeater: amplifies or regenerates signals
• Modem: translates communication signals from analog to digital and
vice versa
• Dial-up connection: slower type of connection through modem,
usually no faster than 56 Kbps

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PROTOCOLS
• Protocol:
– set of rules governing communication between computers
– Data Carriers
• Some protocols are designed for WANs, LANs, and wireless
communications
• Most important set of protocols for telecommunications and
networks is called TCP/IP

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TCP/IP
• TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/ Internet Protocol): a set of
related protocols
– TCP ensures packets arrive accurately and in proper order
– IP ensures efficient delivery of packets from node to node
• Internet backbone: highest speed channels
• IP number: unique numerical identification for a network device

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TCP/IP (CONTINUED)
• Static IP address: a permanent address assigned to a device
• Dynamic IP address: temporary IP number assigned to a device for
the duration of the connection
– Provides flexibility when the number of IP addresses is limited

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HTTP
• Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP): transfer and download Web
information
• HTTPS: HTTP secure for confidential data exchange
• Domain name: unique name for a Web site, constructed with letters
– URL also refers to the domain name

• File Transfer Protocol (FTP): used to transmit whole files

• POP
• SMTP

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GENERATIONS IN MOBILE
COMMUNICATIONS
• Networking professionals refer to generations of mobile
communication technologies
– First generation (1G): analog
– Second generation (2G): used digital voice encoding
– Third generation (3G): increased speeds that support video,
videoconferencing, Internet access
– Fourth Generation (4G): digital only, with packet switching and tighter
security

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DIGITAL SUBSCRIBER LINE
(DSL)
• Digital subscriber line (DSL): data remains digital through entire
transmission
• Uses telephone lines connected to DSL bridge (DSL modem)

• Downstream: speed of receiving from network

• Upstream: speed of transmitting to network

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E-COMMERCE
THAT’S ALL