New to the Internet?
Here's Some Suggestions
(revised 12/28/03)

I don't claim to be an online expert. But I have been surfing the Net since Al Gore invented it and I used the old CompuServe, Q-Links, and many local BBSs going back to 1985—when transfer rates were 300 bps. I've learned, and continue to learn, mostly the hard way, through trial and error. Here's some advice for what it's worth.—Bill Onasch, webmaster.

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
If you're reading this online you've obviously got one. If you bought a computer package that includes ISP service you're probably going to use it at least until the prepaid service runs out. If you're using a trial offer, included with most new computers, from America On Line, Microsoft Network, Prodigy, AT&T, etc., you've got a chance to evaluate services before locking yourself in.

Some ISPs are bare bones offering only access to the Internet and an e-mail box. Others, such as AOL, and MSN, have many of their own proprietary features, custom start pages, chat rooms and support groups. Most will offer a small amount of space to host a web site.

For a while there were also a number of free ISPs. They tried to make money by constantly displaying advertising on your screen. But these operations have now either folded completely or have put strict limits on free use, charging after so many hours per month.

I know of only one nation-wide unionized ISP:

Dial-Up/Broadband
Conventional phone lines have a maximum capacity—seldom actually realized—of around 50,000 bps. Much faster speeds can be obtained by using broadband connections through Cable TV or phone company digital subscriber lines (DSL). If you plan to spend a lot of time on the Net  you should consider this option. 

But this service is not cheap. Expect to pay at least twice as much as AOL. And such service is not yet available everywhere. I use  RoadRunner, from Time-Warner Cable, as my primary ISP while also retaining a dial-up connection as a backup. Cable is faster than DSL—unless your neighbors are competing for access at the same time. Although downtime is inevitable with any system outages are pretty minimal these days.

Be advised though: there are many factors in loading time. Some sites will still take a while to access because of factors on the other end of the connection and having a super-fast line can't compensate for everything.

Browsers
You need browser software to navigate and decipher the Internet. The pioneer in this field was Netscape. Their Navigator program was a big breakthrough in utilizing the power of the World Wide Web. This program usually came as part of a suite of programs called Communicator  which also included an e-mail program and Composer for creating web pages. 

Battered by ruthless competitive practices of Microsoft—which forced Internet Explorer into default position on every Windows machine—Netscape eventually agreed to be acquired by AOL. As a parting act of defiance the Netscape techies made Netscape an “open source” program—Mozilla—inviting programmers large and small to build on it. The result has been a browser superior, in my humble opinion, to Microsft's browser. You can stay on the cutting edge by downloading the latest build from the Mozilla site or you can now also get it on a low cost CD if you don't want to spend the time downloading on a dial-up connection. Netscape 7.is built on Mozilla.

Another excellent browser was developed by a small Norwegian company—Opera.

Stuck With Microsoft Office or Works?
Many computers come bundled with a “suite” of Microsoft Office programs. Others provide a cheaper—and worthless—set called Microsoft Works. Office are not bad programs but there are better alternatives. Some are free, others low cost.

I think WordPerfect continues to be the best word processor available for Windows. The latest version of WordPerfect is priced just slightly less than Microsoft's Word. However, you can generally find last year's version in the thirty dollar range.

The open source code upon which Sun's StarOffice full-featured suite is based is available for free download in ready to use form, from   OpenOffice.org. It will do virtually any thing Microsoft Office can do—and often better.

Viruses
Everybody's heard about computer viruses. They can make your computer do annoying things; sometimes they can effectively wipe out your computer. It's important to take reasonable precautions without living in terror.

You can't get a virus by simply viewing a web page or reading an e-mail message. The virus has to be downloaded in the form of a file on your computer. Be wary of sites that offer you Active X. Don't download  files attached to e-mail messages if you weren't expecting them and/or don't know the sender. Resist the temptation to download cool games or naughty pictures from sites that you can't vouch for as reliable.

Your computer probably came bundled with antivirus software such as McAfee or Norton. If you've got it use it and keep it updated.

E-Mail
Some ISPs have their own proprietary e-mail systems; with others you will need to have an e-mail program. There have been an unacceptable number of security breaches in Microsoft's Outlook software. I'd stay away from it. You can get a safer, and more powerful program for free from Eudora:

Firewalls, Utilities
If you have an “always on” broadband connection you must have a firewall, particularly if you are using Windows XP.  Otherwise you are vulnerable to hacker and spammer intrusions.

I use Norton Internet Security and it has done an excellent job. The version I have also includes Norton's outstanding antivirus protection and some useful utilities.

Looking Things Up: Directories and Search Engines
You've got a question and you're convinced the answer can be found on the Internet. How can you find that answer? The two principal tools are directories and search engines.

Directories, such as the Open Directory, are organized sort of like libraries keep track of their books. Web sites are filed by topics. 

With a search engine you enter the person, place, or topic that you want to find and ask it to go search. The search engines have indexed millions of web sites and will start fetching any and all references that seem to relate to your query. Sometimes the responses are overwhelming. There are many different search engines out there with several different methods of searching and displaying search results. I've had the best luck with Google.

Chat Rooms, Message Boards, Discussion Groups
Chat rooms are live, ongoing, interactive discussions. Some are special events, featuring celebrities. Others are constantly open to who ever drops by. You can just listen or participate. You should show the same courtesy and caution in a chat room as you would in any group setting.

Message boards can be very useful. If you have a problem post it and others will respond. AOL has an exceptionally good collection of these on a very wide variety of topics.

There are also groups that exchange discussion and announcements by e-mail. There are thousands of such groups on every topic under the sun. This site has a group you are welcome to join:

Getting a Feel of What's Out There
The volume of information, commercial, and entertainment resources available online is mind-boggling. A couple of simple tips: don't forget to bookmark right away for any site you may want to come back to; always check out any “links” available that may lead you to additional wonders.