Surf the Web

Although many different browsers are available, Microsoft Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox are by far the most popular. (Many Mac users prefer the Safari browser.) The battle between the two browsers to dominate the market has led to continuous improvements to the software.

The World Wide Web is the most popular part of the Internet by far. Once you spend time on the Web you'll feel that there is no limit to what you can discover.

The World Wide Web was originally developed in 1990 at CERN, the European Laboratory for Particle Physics. The original idea came from a young computer scientist, Tim Berners-Lee. It's now managed by The World Wide Web Consortium.

A website has one or more related web pages, depending on how it's designed. Web pages on a site are linked together through a system of hyperlinks, enabling you to jump between them by clicking on a link.

When you think of the Internet, you probably think of ".com." Just what do those three letters at the end of a World Wide Web address mean? In order to locate online data, the web servers that host the information each have a unique numerical address.

Think of the World Wide Web as a vast collection of electronic files stored on millions of computers all around the world. Hypertext links these files together. Uniform Resource Locators or URLs are the addresses used to locate the files.

With hundreds of millions of websites and more coming online daily, you will undoubtedly find ones you want to revisit. Bookmarks and Favorites save Web addresses so you can return to them quickly, without having to retype them.

When you launch your web browser a predefined web page appears. This page is referred to as the home page or start page. The good news is that you're not stuck with any particular page--your free to choose any one you want.

One reason for the surge in popularity of smartphones is their ability to access information on-the-go. Connecting to the Net from a device that slips into your pocket instead of a hauling around a bulky laptop offers a lot of convenience.

As you surf the Net, you will undoubtedly discover that at times you can't access certain websites. Why, you may wonder? Error messages attempt to explain the reason for that and other problems.

Cloud computing refers to the next evolution of the Internet. Instead of buying software, installing it on your computer, upgrading it periodically and storing all your data on your hard drive, with cloud computing you use software applications online, as a service. All you need is your computing device and an Internet connection.

Almost everything you do online--whether it's searching for information, reading a news article, shopping for a gift or downloading music--is recorded. As you move through cyberspace you leave a trail of digital data in your wake. This trail, often referred to as a clickstream, contains a revealing record of your online activities.

If you thrive on information, there's an easy way to get it with RSS. You subscribe to data feeds and get up-to-the-minute information delivered to your desktop or mobile phone.

Finding a job once meant browsing the classifieds in the local paper and asking business owners if they were hiring. But the Internet has changed that. Online job boards, social networking sites, and employment sites have replaced pounding the pavement in the search for work.

E-commerce has become a fact of modern life, with millions of people now shopping regularly from the convenience of their computers. Retailers, from Amazon to Z Gallery, have websites where you can purchase any imaginable product online, including tonight's dinner.

As college costs spiral ever upward, cash-strappped students have to be resourceful. Often overlooked in calculating annual expenses is the price of textbooks, yet it can add up to more than $500 per semester. Planning ahead combined with some online shopping savvy will go a long way in saving a bundle of money.

Would you like to get a degree without setting foot in a classroom or hone your professional skills from the comfort of your desktop? You can now enroll in some of the tens of thousands of online classes available via the World Wide Web.

Traveling through cyberspace can be exciting, but it's no substitute for an adventure in the real world. That's where the Web can really help you research destinations, organize your itinerary and book reservations.

Despite the wide availability of high-speed, broadband Internet service, some people still access the Web with a dial-up account. Waiting for media clips and content rich web pages to download can be frustrating. To make Web surfing more satisfying and productive, we offer some tips.