Home, Home on the 'Net

"For every problem, there is one solution which is simple, neat...and wrong." -- H.L. Mencken

I'm late! I'm late!

A wise philosopher once observed, "The longest journey begins with a single step. Unless, of course, you're going by plane. . . ."

All kidding aside, you have just made a giant stride toward the future by deciding to learn more about the Internet. Congratulations!

You probably haven't felt this intimidated since you started the First Grade! So much to learn and everyone else seems so far ahead that you just know you'll never catch up! Right?

Well, relax, Bunky, because it simply ain't so! Every single self-appointed Internet "guru" who's trying to impress you with Cyber-babble once started precisely where you are today.

What Is The Internet?

That is difficult to say. The Internet is a little like the "blind men and the elephant." It is something different to every user. At its most basic, it is a series of thousands of computer systems loosely tied together, giving the user the power to ac cess information, software, and electronic mail (e-mail), on a world-wide basis. Sound a little Twentyfirst-Century-Buck-Roger-ish?

Well, it is! Imagine comparing notes via e-mail with a fellow mynah-bird owner in Duisburg, Germany, downloading software from a computer in England that allows a diabetic to transfer the readings of his blood glucose meter into a spreadsheet, finalizing travel plans for an upcoming visit from a friend in another state, downloading the entire text of Martin Luther King's "I Had A Dream" speech, and checking upcoming events at the Smithsonian's Museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC -- all in the same evening, while sitting in front of your personal computer in your own home.

The primary resource of the Internet is information. In order to find that information, make sense of it and retrieve it, you need to be able to use certain tools and utilities.

To gain a greater insight into the Internet, we suggest you invest your time and dollars in a book about it. A few that we recommend are:

How To Use The Internet by Mark Butler
The Whole Internet Catalog by Ed Kroll
The Internet Complete Reference by Harley Hahn and Rick Stout
The Windows Internet Tour Guide by Michael Fraase
The Internet Navigator by Paul Gilster

How Can I Find What Is Available?

Unless you've been in a coma for the last few years, you know the Internet is the hottest topic around today. You’re behind the times in business anymore if you don't have that Internet e-mail address on your business card. There are new magazines devote d to nothing but the Internet, and traditional news magazines like Time and Newsweek slugs each story with the reporter's e-mail address at the bottom.

A few of the magazines about the Internet or which have regular features about it are:

Internet World
PC
PC Novice
Byte
PC Computing
Newsweek
Computer Shopper
Time
Wired

In addition, every lesson in this series has a section at the end called For More Information ..." where you can read and/or download more detailed information about the specific topic covered in that lesson.

Some Rules to Live By

The Internet is a new frontier, a wild and wooly place much like the Old West, and you are the pioneers who will help to inhabit and tame it. There's not much in the way of laws -- like the Old West, it's every person for himself or herself -- but there are a few simple rules right up front for each of us to remember:

It's the Internet, stupid, NOT real life!
It isn't a job or a college course. There's no deadline and there sure isn't any final exam.
It's for fun, so if you're not enjoying it, you're not doing it right.

Like any endeavor you undertake, whether it is school, a new job, or a marriage, the more you learn about it, the easier it becomes. AND, the more you practice, the better your performance. If you don't believe it, ask your second wife!

What Do I Need Now?

First, you need a firm working knowledge of what you already have. In order to drive, you need to know how a car works, what makes it go -- and most important -- what makes it stop. You need to know about the brake, the clutch, the acceler ator pedal, and where the gas goes in.

You don't necessarily have to know how to rebuild the engine in order to drive a car, but when you're doing 60 miles per hour down the highway it is vital to know that if the vehicle is going "WHUMPA-FLAP! WHUMPA-FLAP! WHUMPA-FLAP!" and weaving a ll over the road, it's probably not because the radio is out of tune!

Likewise, if you call the help desk at your new Internet Service Provider and say, "I just bought this shiny new MegaMother 2000 and don't know a thing about it. Can you tell me what I need to do to get on the Internet?" you are not likely to get much sy mpathy. Or much help!

Do Your Homework

When you buy a car, you don't expect the dealer to teach you how to drive it. Neither do you expect him to furnish directions if you wish to make a trip. There are some things you just have to do on your own. If you don't know the first th ing about computers, before trying to get on the Internet, you need to:

Read the (blank) manual! The term RTFM probably originated with the first query to a help desk for information contained on the first page of the documentation.
Consider taking a class in basic computing skills before advancing to something as complex as the Internet.
Consider taking a class on the Internet itself.
Visit your public library. They have many, many new books on the Internet.
Better yet, buy a book of your own. That way you can makes notes as you learn and have it available for future reference.
Ask for help. Find someone else who has already been through it.
As an absolute last resort, if there is a 12-year-old in the house, ask him or her to help. They usually know it ALL already!

Okay! Okay! I've Done All That! Now What?

Now you need to decide precisely how you plan to access the Internet on your new account. A lot of that depends on the computer you have, the type of account you sign up for, and the software you intend to use.

Let's continue to the next lesson and see what type of access is available and what you will need to utilize it.