The INTERNET & Other

Stuff too
Janine Scott

Images of the Internet

Images of the Internet

Images of the Internet

 All very pretty and they do have their

uses but not very understandable or
easy to explain.
Definition of the internet
Wikipedia):

(according to

TheInternetis a global system of interconnectedcomputer

networksthat use the standardInternet protocol suite(TCP/IP) to
serve billions of users worldwide. It is anetwork of networksthat
consists of millions of private, public, academic, business, and
government networks, of local to global scope, that are linked by
a broad array of electronic, wireless and optical networking
technologies. The Internet carries an extensive range of
information resources and services, such as the interlinkedhypertextdocuments of theWorld Wide Web(WWW) and
theinfrastructureto support email.

How to visualise the

internet
The Internet is a worldwide network
(Internet stands for Interconnection of
Computer Networks) which connects
other smaller computer networks to
each other
Consider a network that is much more
familiar to us such as a railway network

A metro network

British Rail
Network
Maps like these are
much more
understandable
because we are
familiar with the
concept. Tracks
linking cities, towns,
ports and industrial
areas form a network
There are many
similarities between a
rail network and the

Assumptions
People tend to think of
the Internet and the
World Wide Web as the
same thing they are
not! The internet was
born way back in the
1960s as a military
project, the WWW wasnt
even thought about until
1980 ish and only came
into being in 1992.
Like having a railway
network but only using it
for passengers 30 years
after its built

Robert Cailliau, Jean-Franois

Abramatic and Tim Berners-Lee
at the 10th anniversary of the
WWW Consortium.

But we are thinking about

the Internet...
The internet is a collection of computers & in a
very real way when you connect to the internet,
you (or at least your computer) become a part of
it if the pictures at the start of the presentation
were fine enough wed be a dot at the end of line
even if you are not on the WWW!
How do you connect to and use it? Not quite how
most people imagine.
Going back to the rail network analogy it wouldnt
occur to you to have a railway track coming to the
house!

Connecting to the internet

By the same token we dont have an
internet connection zooming through
our house!
But we do expect to have a way to
catch a train.... We go to the station,
buy a ticket, get on a train, travel the
rails and get off at the right place,
hopefully.
That makes sense but we miss out some
important points because we take them

Connecting to the internet

train
1. To get out of the house we have to be mobile
ourselves
2. There must be a way out unlocked doors etc
3. There must be paths and open gates to the
road
4. There has to be a route and perhaps
transport to the station
5. You have to have the money for a ticket
6. You have to know where you are going!
And we havent even got to the station yet!

Connecting to the internet

To get out of the house we have
to be mobile ourselves i.e. We
have to be capable, mentally &
physically, of leaving the house
getting onto the network
Similarly for a computer to
connect to the internet it must
be capable of connecting to the
internet

Connecting to the Internet

The computer itself must be capable of connecting to the
internet in the same way that you must be mentally and
physically capable of catching a train.
A computer requires both hardware - e.g. an 'internet card
And software, i.e. a programme to tell it what to do. All modern
laptops and most PC's are equipped with both the necessary
hardware and software to connect to the internet
And a way of actually connecting either physically via a wire or
wirelessly - like having access to the door!

Belkin Fast Ethernet

Network RJ45 LAN PCI
Card Wired Internet
Adapter 100Mbps
approx 5

Connecting to the Internet

Ethernet cables they connect

computers together - colours
dont matter - connection is like a
fatter telephone connection. This
is what the helpline asks you to
use when you have problems with
your internet connection

Connecting to the Internet

Or a wireless connection

Built in
cards

Or widgets -you can

add if you havent got
an internal wireless
card - but you still
need a network card
to be able to link to
the internet

Connecting to the Internet

Connecting to the Internet

A Modem is needed..... daaaah

Stands for module demodulate
Modern modems

Connecting to the Internet

A Not so modern
modem

but they all do the same thing,

they are basically translators, they
translate computer speak which
is digital i.e. Numbers 0 & 1 into
phone line speak which is
analogue in this case frequency
dependent (?) (the moment you
use a telephone line you need a
modem)

Imagine not being able to

travel on the train unless you
can communicate in the
language of the rail operator
- a modem is your translator

Connecting to the Internet

A Router : - Routers are brilliant!
They are the unsung heroes that
guard our homes.
And if this looks like
your modem its
because nowadays
modems and routers
and our wireless
systems are all built
together in
combined units and
you dont even know
youve got them

Connecting to the Internet

So what does a router do?
Routers route! i.e. They direct
the traffic and send it to the right
place. If you have several
different devises connected to the
internet it is the router that sends
the right information to the right
devise. e.g. If you use 2
computers maybe one is
downloading e-mail, the other
showing football it is the router
that makes sure the signals dont

Connecting to the Internet

Routers
They also deal with all the
wireless connections
from laptops, phones etc
and sort them out too.
Both outgoing and
incoming so e.g. A query
sent out from a phone
doesnt have the answer
sent back to the laptop!
Look at the picture again -

The aerials allow the

wireless communications,
the Ethernet ports (a port
is just another name for a
connection socket) allow
you to also connect
Ethernet cables you can

Connecting to the Internet

But where does the guarding come in?
Your router is the gateway that anything from the
internet has to get through before it can reach your
computers or other devises its like having your
front door locked and nothing can get in or out
without the key or password.
If youve asked for something, is it allowed to get
through perhaps youve typed a web pages
address in the address bar or youve gone to get
it yourself e.g. Downloading a video from YouTube.
But if you havent asked for something it is blocked.

Connecting to the Internet

Even if youve only got one
computer and dont need any
traffic directing you should still
use a router the original set
ups with just a modem allowed
anything lurking on the internet
to just waltz right in once you
connected to the net
If you have a router between
your computer and the world
you have a big hefty bouncer
checking the credentials of
everything coming in and
making sure it has been sent
for - its not the same as a virus
checker thats on guard in your
computer itself for stuff that you
have let through the router -

Connecting to the Internet

This lot should
start to make
sense

Connecting to the Internet

But you havent got out of the door yet more is
needed before connecting to anything
whether it is the internet or a rail network!
So how to get further...
You need a road or some other way to get to a station
where you can connect with the rail network!
Similarly you need a telephone line or wireless connection
to get to your ISP who connects you with the internet

ISP stands for Internet Service

Provider these are companies who
connect you to the Internet the
Internet is free but the ISPs and
phone lines arent - Cytanet, Holitech
and Primetel are all ISPs in Paphos

Connecting to the Internet

So you are now stood in the station does that
mean you are going anywhere?
So far weve covered the requirements for us to
link to the internet
a computer with the correct Hardware and Software
a router to send the signals to the right place
a modem to translate the signals
the cables or wireless signals to connect everything
together
and power connections to make them run

Connecting to the Internet

Then we need an ISP to actually link
us to the internet.
Whew it seems a lot to get us to the
station! And this is a simplified version
now we need to wait for a train !? But do
we get on???

What is the Internet

Now were going to go back a step
and understand what it is we are
actually connecting to....!
Wikipedia definition was its an
interconnection of computer networks
What is a network we are surrounded by
networks - phone networks, social networks,
power supply networks the connection is
connection! Especially when it is with
multiple things in a complex way

What is the Internet

There are other words that relate to
connected computers
Home network
Public network
WAN wide area network
LAN local area network
Intranet
Extranet

What is the Internet

The Internet is similar to all these other
networks but the main differences are
size , it is seriously huge
Accessibility - it is open access to anything
with an IP address and not subject to any
private ownership or rules
But is it still a connection of computers so
where are the computers

What is the Internet

At the lowest level the
computers are here!
At the top level there
enormously powerful
computers that store,
transmit and protect
huge amounts of
information these are
called servers

What is the Internet

Servers powerful computers
connected to a network that respond
to requests hence the name
server!
Servers can be multifunctional but most
are dedicated to a specific use Web
servers host web pages, e-mail servers
host, file servers, database servers,
proxy servers and DNSs
DNS Domain Name Server

E-Mail?
Client i.e. You
SMTP server (simple mail transfer
protocol) server looks at the
address and sends your e-mail out
onto the internet in packets
DNS server finds the address
location
Delivered to Addressees server
When the Addressee checks they can
download their mail

E-mail

Enough
The End......