Internet Beginner

What is Internet?

The Internet is a Computer Network made up of thousands of computers worldwide. It is basically a bunch of computers linked together through a network so computer users in different locations can have access to the same information. Modems are usually used to connect to Internet with the help of an Internet Service Provider (I S P).

The Internet is a client-server system. Your computer is the client, and the computer which stores the data is the server. When you click onto a Website, your computer requests the web page from the specific server storing that file. That server sends the data file that you have requested over the Internet to your computer. Your Web Browser interprets that data & displays it to your computer screen.

Originally designed as a way for government and academic researchers to share information, the net now connects universities, schools, corporations, non-profit organizations, and individuals. Therefore the Internet is a very robust tool both for sharing information and, more recently, for conducting electronic commerce.

What is the World Wide Web (WWW)?

The term "World Wide Web" refers to the Internet’s ability to display and link files containing text, images, and a variety of other information. For example, a person creates a web site containing a series of pages that describes a science project. These files can also contain links to other files located anywhere in the world. The links are typically based on content related to the page containing the reference. The result is an ability to continually branch from a single starting point to any number of pages of related content located at sites all over the world.

What is the difference between a web site and a web page?

A web site is made up of a web page(s).

A web site is similar to a file folder. A folder contains and organizes information and documents. These documents are similar to web pages.

For example - www.krishna.com is the main page of Krishna's web site. The links from this page are separate web pages. All of these pages together make up the web site.

What is a browser?

A browser is a software program/application which allows users to view and navigate the content of the World Wide Web. The two most popular browser programs are Netscape’s Navigator and Communicator, and Microsoft’s Internet Explorer.

Browsers do not have precisely the same features, but their basic capabilities are very similar. These capabilities are:

1. Viewing and navigating the Web. A browser displays web sites. As you move from one site to another you have the option to go back to the previous page as well as going forward to a page you just viewed if you have used the back key. These keys are very useful when viewing a web site that has not placed links to different pages on their site.

2. Marking favorite pages. Browsers can store a list of sites to which you want to return. Netscape calls these "bookmarks," and Explorer calls them "favorite places." Remember that these are links to web sites and are not stored copies of the files themselves. This means that when you click on a bookmark/favorite place, your browser will load the most recent version of that website.

3. Saving pages. Your browser has the ability to save the contents of a page to your computer.

What is a URL?

The acronym URL stands for "uniform resource locator," a fancy term for the unique location of a particular web file on the Internet. A typical URL looks like this:

http://www.krishna.com/home.html

Why is this important? If you know what a URL means, you can tell a lot about the source of the pages you are viewing. THIS IS IMPORTANT. Let us begin by breaking the URL into its component parts.

http:// is the protocol (a set of operating rules) by which computers on the Internet send files back and forth. The protocol for the Web "http" is called “hypertext transfer protocol."

www.krishna.com is the domain name. The domain name is the unique name for the network which contains the web site you are viewing.

/html/ is the pathname. A pathname is the location within the web site where a specific web page is located. This is similar to a subfolder or a folder within a folder. Also, this is not always part of a URL. Pathnames can be called anything that the web sites creator came up with. In most cases, the use of a tilde "~" in a pathname indicates a web site reserved for a given individuals personal use.

home.htm is the file name. It is the name of a single hypertext file, web page, located on the Internet.

All Internet addresses contain these components in varying combination.

What is e-mail?

In its simplest form, e-mail is an electronic message sent from one device to another. While most messages go from computer to computer, e-mail can also be sent and received by mobile phones and PDAs. With e-mail, you can send or receive personal and business-related messages with attachments, such as photos or formatted documents

Electronic mail, or e-mail, is the most frequently used service on the Internet for many reasons:

* You can send the same message to several people at the same time.

* You can send a message any time, any where and the recipient can read it at his or her convenience.

* You can forward information to co-workers without retyping it.

* You can save time. E-mail is fast, usually taking no more than a few minutes to be received.

* You can e-mail electronic documents and the recipients can then edit and return revised version.

* You can send messages around the world as easily as to co-workers in the next office.

How Email Works on the Internet?

Like a postal address, an e-mail address specifies the destination of an electronic message.

* An Internet e-mail address looks like this: user name@domain name

* The user name is a unique name that identifies the recipient.

* The domain name is the address. Many people can share the same domain name.

* Some companies use a different naming system for internal e-mail.

Just as a letter makes stops at different postal stations along the way to its final destination, e-mail passes from one computer, known as a mail server, to another as it travels over the Internet. Once it arrives at the destination mail server, it's stored in an electronic mailbox until the recipient retrieves it. This whole process can take seconds, allowing you to quickly communicate with people around the world at any time of the day or night.

* E-mail is sent and received through electronic "post offices" known as mail servers.

* To read your e-mail, you must retrieve it from the mail server.

* Once you enter the address of the recipient, compose your message, and click Send, your e-mail software handles the delivery.

* If the message isn't delivered, because of an incorrect address, for example, you typically receive an e-mail message explaining why.If the message doesn't reach its destination the first time, the mail server sends it again.

* If the message is not delivered, you usually receive a message explaining the problem, along with the full text of the original message. You can correct the problem-usually an incorrect e-mail address--and resend it

What is an E-mail Client?

The software you use to send, receive, and manage electronic messages is called an e-mail client. (Most web browsers have with this software.) To send an e-mail, you enter information similar to the heading of a typical interoffice memo.

To contains the e-mail addresses of the recipients. This is a mandatory entry.

CC, short for Carbon Copy, contains the e-mail addresses for people other than the primary recipients. This is optional.

BCC:, short for Blind Carbon Copy, contains the e-mail addresses of other recipients who receive copies, but their names and addresses are hidden from the other recipients. This is optional.

Subject contains the main topic of the message. Keep this brief. Recipients see this in their summary of incoming e-mails.

Attachment contains the names of files that you may be sending, for example, a word-processing document or a spreadsheet.

Body contains the message itself, which can be of any length.

Internet E-mail Address

Here is how to interpret the parts of an e-mail address:

1.kris.junnikar@gmail.com

kris.junnikar--The user name of the e-mail account holder is a unique, assigned name that can be a real name, initials, a nickname, or a descriptive word such as "information."

@--The axon sign is required in all Internet e-mail addresses. It allows the e-mail software to distinguish between the user name and the domain name.

gmail.com--The domain name identifies the company or organization of the account holder.

Signatures

E-mail can include a signature at the end of the message. An e-mail signature is not your hand-written signature, but it can provide useful information about you.

Like a business card, an e-mail signature can include your name, title, telephone and fax numbers, street address, and e-mail address.

Using the signature feature saves time, since you don't have to retype the information each time you send a message. Clicking the feature automatically adds it to the message

Some e-mail software lets you store more than one signature.

In the future, the signature may contain passcodes that verify the sender of the message, authenticating an e-mail the way a hand-written signature authenticates a paper document.

E-mail Etiquette

To improve the impact of your messages and avoid trouble, there are a few unwritten rules, called netiquette (networking etiquette) you should be aware of:

* Include your name at the bottom of a message.

* Clearly summarize your message in the subject line.

* Keep your messages short and focused. Recipients tend to ignore long messages.

* Don't write in all CAPITAL LETTERS. Capital letters are used for emphasis, and are considered equivalent to SHOUTING.

In a corporate environment, certain rules of netiquette are especially important to follow.

Send e-mail only to those people who need the information. Don't waste people's time with unrelated e-mail.

When replying to a message sent to several people, reply only to those who need to see your response. The Reply to All feature on many e-mail programs may be convenient, but it creates unnecessary e-mail.

Avoid sending messages like jokes and personal announcements. They may be inappropriate in a business situation.

Don't make disparaging remarks about co-workers in an e-mail message, even when joking. These written remarks can be easily sent around the company.

Corresponding Outside Your Company

* Remember that messages sent via company e-mail are no different than one sent on company letterhead. It represents not only you, but your company.

* Keep in mind that some cases, an e-mail message may be considered a legal document.

* Include a signature at the bottom of the message. This helps the recipient identify you and your company.

* Include your telephone number, so the recipient can follow up with a call. A telephone conversation may be the most effective way to get more information or clarify of what you wrote.

Understanding/Deciphering Error Messages

If an e-mail is returned to you, most likely it will contain an explanation.

* User unknown: The message arrived at the mail server, but the server couldn't find the recipient. Check the user name part of the e-mail address for errors and try sending the message again. Also, double check the domain name to ensure that you are sending it to the right organization/domain.

* Host unknown: Your mail server could not find out the server's computer address based on the domain name. Check the domain name in the e-mail address for errors and try again.

* Message hasn't been delivered, but will try again. Your mail server failed to deliver the message, but will continue to resend it. This error message indicates a temporary communications problem that may clear up by itself. For example, this message is generated when the recipient's mail server is not functioning or is disconnected from the Internet.

Sending Files as Attachments

In addition to sending text messages, most e-mail programs allow you to attach word-processing documents, spreadsheets, graphics, audio, video, and other electronic files to your message.

To attach a file:

* Click on the Attachment or Include File icon, often represented by a paper clip. This feature is often located on the toolbar or on a pull-down menu.

* Locate the file on your computer's hard drive or other storage device from the window that typically opens requesting the name of the file.

* Select the file you want from the file attachment window. An icon representing the file may appear in the body of your message, or the name of the file appears in the Attachment line of your message window.

Opening Attachments

To view an attached file, you can often click on the file icon or save the file to your hard drive, and then use the appropriate software application to open it.

With some e-mail software, you open or save an attached file by double-clicking on the icon for the file. This typically brings up a dialog box allowing you to decide how you want to process the file.

Should you open an attachment that looks like random characters and symbols, it probably has not been decoded correctly. Alternatively, you may be viewing it with the wrong software application.

Tips for Avoiding Common Email Pitfalls

File Attachments

Files attached to email messages have the potential to cause a variety of problems, including:

* Size: Attachments can be large and fill the recipient's inbox, blocking the receipt of future messages. To prevent users from filling another person's account, we limit the size of file attachments to 2MB or less.

* Readability: Some attachments can't be opened and used by the recipient. Before sending a file as an attachment, contact the recipient to see if he or she can handle that type of document. Avoid sending attachments to large mailing lists (see "Mailing lists" below). A possible solution: cut and paste just the contents of the file into the body of the email message itself.

* Mailing lists: Sending a large attachment to a large number of recipients, either through a private list or through a listserv, can cause network delays or failures as the server attempts to process the data.

* Computer viruses: If your computer is infected with a virus, you may infect those who open email attachments you send. To avoid this problem, don't send files as attachments and use antivirus software.

Common mail receipt problems

Over quota

The most likely reason the recipient is having trouble receiving email is that he must have exceeded his email account quota. This happens if the mails are not downloaded regularly.

You may receive a delivery failure message stating that the delivery failed due to user over quota. This means that the recipient has not downloaded the messages in his mailbox.

Messages with blocked attachments

Mail server maintains mail filters that block attachments that commonly contain viruses.

For example if files with .jpeg attachement are blocked on our mail server, no one will receive messages which are having .jpeg attachment.

host unknown --The host name (the part of the e-mail address after the @ sign) can not be translated into the name of a computer connected to the Internet. The most common cause is typographical errors. For example, sending mail to dc.varroc@varrocgroupe.com would cause an error because krishna.com is misspelled.

user unknown --The host to which you sent the mail, (the part of the e-mail address after the @ sign) does not have an e-mail account for the user you specified. The most common cause is typographical errors. For example, sending mail to dc.varoc@varrocgroup.com would cause an error because dc.krishna is misspelled.

Recipient address rejected: need fully-qualified address -- This is also caused by sending email to an invalid email address, however instead of not having a correct domain (as above), it is caused by not having a domain at all. All To: and CC: addresses must have a @ in them.