1. Internet Basics
A class for people who are just getting
started using the Internet

2. What We’ll Cover Today
• What is the Internet?
• How do I use the Internet?
• What is key word searching using
internet browsing software?
• What is e-mail & www?
• How do I evaluate the information I
find?
• Where can I learn more?
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3. What is the Internet?
• A large computer network linking
smaller computer networks
worldwide
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4. What do I Need to Connect to the
Internet ?
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Computer, Telephone,+ Internet
Mouse & Cable, DSL
Browser Service
Modem or or
Software Provider
network card Wireless…

5. Why Use the Internet?
• To search for Information on
the World Wide Web
• To use e-mail
• The World Wide Web (www) and
e-mail (user-name)@(provider) are two different
Internet services!
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6. What is E-mail?
• Electronically sending messages
from one computer to another.
• Many websites, like Yahoo and Google, offer
free Internet e-mail accounts.
• Want to learn more? Take E-mail Basics
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7. Websites and E-mail
Use Addresses:
E-mail addresses: Website addresses:
jdoe@hclib.org www.hclib.org
“at” sign for e-mail “World Wide Web” for
websites
Address that you
use to send Address that gets you
electronic messages to a website
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8. Avoid Mistakes
in the Address
• Check for typos.
• Include all periods, hyphens,
underscores & back-slashes (/)
• Leave no empty spaces.
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9. Pop-up are advertisements
Find either the X or area to
skip the pop-ups.
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10. Internet Search Engines
What are they?
• A search engine is programmed to search for
websites using keywords and web addresses.
• To do a search, you type in keywords that describe
your topic such as recipes, investments or travel
destinations.
• Google and Yahoo! are two popular search
engines
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11. Internet Search Engines
Descriptions of search engines and
web addresses are easy to find at
www.hclib.org
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12. Hands-On Practice!
Keyword Searching
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13. Security
Time for some good tips…
If you shop online:
• Look for the padlock.
• Look for https.www (website address) this
indicates a secure site.
• Don’t enter personal information if you don’t
know the site is secure.
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14. Important Internet Facts
• Anyone can publish information on the
Internet.
• You are responsible for evaluating the
information you find.
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15. “On the Internet, nobody knows you’re a dog”
Cartoon by Peter Steiner. The New Yorker, July 5, 1993 issue (Vol.69) p. 61.
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16. Tips for Evaluating Websites
Ask yourself these two questions:
3. Who wrote or published the information?
2. Is this author or publisher a reliable source
of information?
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17. Website Authors & Publishers
Websites should tell you:
• Who is the author or publisher
• The author or publisher’s credentials
Look for these kinds of links to find
information about the web page author
“Who we are” “Mission” “Contact us”
“Philosophy” “About us”
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18. Thanks for Attending
• Practice what you’ve learned.
• Have fun learning to use computers!
• We will be happy to assist you.
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