Internet has all sorts of articles on “Surfing the Web.”
But, what good is this information if you have to be adept at finding information on the
Web to find the article? For example, I found a wonderful article on “Surfing the
Web... Ten Easy Steps,” buried deep within a large web site under several
directories, with a very long URL (which means web address). So, I downloaded it, added
some of my own tips, so you can have ten easy steps to “Surfing” when you need
it most - that is, BEFORE you have ever surfed at all!
1. If you are approaching a computer that has Internet for the first time in a public
library, or college or university, ask for some help. There are plenty of people on staff
that can help you get started. That is what they are there for.
2. If you have decided to set up Internet on your home computer, and do not know how to
get started, you will need the following items: 1) a computer with a fax modem, 2) a
service provider such as AOL or Flashnet, and
3) “browser” software. A “browser” is software that accesses the World
Wide Web, like Netscape Navigator, and Microsoft Internet Explorer. AOL has its own type
of browser, and they have an 800 help number if you sign up with them.
3. At home, you must connect with your internet service provider first. Load its software,
and then configure your system to dial the appropriate phone number to connect you. The
service provider links your computer to the telephone system, the signal travels to
someone’s remote server over the same lines which you talk on the phone, just in a
different form.
4. Once you are connected, you can, with the computer mouse, point to the name of
the browser on the computer screen with the little picture attached (known as
“icons”). The browser will start up, and you will see a Web page.
5. When you first click on the browser’s “icon”, you will pull up an
initial web page, that is either the “home page” for the browser (Netscape or
Microsoft Explorer). Above the page itself you will find a row of buttons. Notice the one
named “Home.” This button will get you back to your browser’s home page no
matter where you go.
6. Other browser buttons to pay attention to are “Forward,” which will advance
you to the next web page, if it is not grayed out, and “Backward,” which will
take you back where you came from.
7. The “Search” button will take you to the “Search Engine” area. From
there you can choose from a variety of “Search Engines” (Lycos, Webcrawler,
Excite, and others) that will search the web for whatever key word or words you type in.
In a short time, a list of web site choices will appear. To choose a particular web site,
slide the pointer over the name of the site (it is usually in blue type and has an
underline). If a little hand icon appears you know you have an active link. Click on the
link and you are off surfing!
8. The “Search Engine” will get you to the address of the web site. In
both Netscape and Internet Explorer, the web address is displayed in a bar near the top of
the window. A Web address looks something like this: “http://www.indigosun.com”.
If you want to go to another web site, click once on the address. It will become
highlighted, and you can simply type in another address over it, and press
“Enter.”
9. Important! If you find a site you like it is easy to lose it! To save a site location,
click on the "Bookmarks" or "Favorites" button at the top of the
screen. A menu will appear and you will have a choice of “Add Bookmark”, or
“Add to Favorites,’ depending on the browser. Click on this and it will add the
web site to your list.
If you want to get back to a web site you already visited, simply click on the
“Bookmarks” or “Favorites” icons, and the sites you chose will be
there waiting for you to visit again.
10. Saving information to a floppy or printing out information you have found is as easy
as it is in any other applications program. Simply click on “File, Save As” or
“File, Print,” and the file will print out for you or be saved to your disk as
easily as any file that you typed in yourself on your home computer!
And most of all have a great time “Surfing the Web”!
URL to check out: http://www.cec.sped.org.
Home | Archives | Contact
Us | Advertising Rates | Writers
Guidelines | Mission Statement
Index by Author | Index by Topic | Service Directory | Calendar of Events | Horoscopes
Email: Phone: 713.526.8822 or 1.800.640.5191
Mail: P. O. Box 540444, Houston, TX 77254