The Internet grew out of a network of computers created by DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The network was called DARPANET at first and then ARPANET. This new network allowed people to communicate with each other via their computer. E-mail was born! Over a span of years (1969-present) this network that is now called the Internet grew to include pictures, movies, and sound.
The part of the Internet most of us use is called the World Wide Web. When your teachers require you to go on-line for information you will be using the World Wide Web or WWW.
In order to view information on the WWW a browser must be installed on your computer. A browser is a program that allows you to view pages on the WWW. Netscape and Internet Explorer are two of the most widely used. At Wareham High School you will use either depending on the computer and your personal preference.
Begin by typing in the address of the site you wish to visit. For example, if you wish to see the news of the day you might type in the address line: http://www.cnn.com. The http indicates the part of the Internet you are using, the www refers to World Wide Web, cnn refers to the cable channel CNN and the com means is a business site. If you would like to learn more about how to read an address and other details about the Internet and the World Wide Web in particular go to Beginner's Central.
You will find just about anything on the WWW, both good, bad, and in between. You will find current news and data, government statistics, information about author's and famous people, history, science, and more. The key to using the WWW is knowing when to use it and how to evaluate the material you find there. To help you evaluate the sites you locate for research use the evaluation tool on the Wareham High School Library's Page. Print it out and keep it by the computer as you search.
A search engine is a program that locates information on the WWW. You will find many search engines available. Search engines use the words or phrases you give it and search for sites that match. Sometimes they work well, sometimes they provide sites that seem to have nothing to do with your request. That's why you should use more than one search engine and you should practice refining your search. The WHS Library Page has a list of search engines for you to try. All of the search engines have help pages if you get confused.
