1. What is an URL?
   URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator - It is something like a method of receiving a certain file, tells the browser where the file is located and what to do with it. It has a form like so:
   protocol://<domain name>/~username/<requested file>
   protocols can be of these forms : HTTP, FTP, TELNET or NEWS
   domain names are actually the server addresses or the virtual domain names that gets forwarded to a web server.
2. What is an ABSOLUTE URL?
   When I use the term ABSOLUTE URL it usually means that it is of the form http://<domain>/~username/<filename>. This is a sure fire way of getting things referenced correctly. Do remember that you need the http:// form in order for a URL to be ABSOLUTE.
3. What is a RELATIVE URL?
   Relative URLs are different than ABSOLUTE URLs, a web server can have directory structures and if you have a huge web site (or plan to have one) it is often advisable to dump things where an easy reference can be made when updating or changing files. For example, now you should be at http://www.oocities.org/~mitzrah and you are currently viewing a file in my parent directory this file name is tutorial.html. The ABSOLUTE URL for this file is http://www.oocities.org/~mitzrah/tutorial.html but I store all my images in a directory called gifs. See the picture on the top right hand corner of this page? It resides in that gifs directory. So I can call it up via a RELATIVE URL like so <img src="gifs/get_it_right.gif"> or I can use the ultra long ABSOLUTE URL method to call it up <img src="http://www.oocities.org/~mitzrah/gifs/get_it_right.gif"> If however I am somewhere up in the ~mitzrah/tutorials directory, my relative URL would then be <img src="../gifs/get_it_right.gif">
4. What's this filename.extension thing?
   When I use filename.extension it usually means "depends on what file and its name is." If it is a picture, it could be in the form of .gif or .jpg (.bmp files cannot be rendered by Netscape users so, let's forget using .bmps besides, they are HUGE in size.) If it is a web document, it could be in the form of .html .htm or .shtml or .txt. In short, it depends on what I am talking on and if your filename is nice.jpg then it is nice.jpg and NOT filename.extension.

Notes from Alex:

If you found my guidance helpful, please drop a note by my guestbook! So I know that you have dropped by and benefitted from my efforts, it took me quite sometime to get these tutorial up! Click on home and then SIGN GUESTBOOK! I will also visit your homepage and will sign your guestbook too.