Week 4 - Keyboarding - Internet/The Net/WWW/World Wide Web

Internet/The Net/WWW/World Wide Web:

All the same term for the same concept--computers linked to computers throughout the world. When you are "on the Intenet" or "online" your computer is communicating with
other/another computer which also is "online".

I compare the Internet to the telephone system on which it relies. All kids know that they could pick up a phone and dial "C-A-L-L A-T-T" to talk to ANYONE, ANYWHERE, ANY TIME--and they also realize that they can't call anyone UNLESS the person also has a telephone. The Internet uses the phone lines to connect computers. Anyone with the proper equipment can get on the Internet and connect with any one of millions of computers (called Internet servers) to "visit our website at www.whatever.com. If you're online you already know that you can email anyone else in the world who is also online.

When the kids visit the "WebLouvre" site I explain to them that the Louvre is the most famous art museum in the world and that it is located in Paris. I also explain that this website is "housed" in different computers all around the world--the visitor has the option to choose the nearest location for optimum speed of access (we use the computer server at the University of North Carolina). By the same token the "Washington Monument" website, as well as the "White House for Kids" website (all of which are listed in our "Recommended Websites") are not necessarily located on computers which are located in Washington, D.C. But all of these websites are certainly located on a COMPUTER somewhere in the world.

In order to be a part of all this you must have 5 things:

1. a COMPUTER which is able to go online -- that is it is powerful enough to do so.

2. a MODEM or DIRECT CONNECTION (equipment which allows your computer to transmit and receive data over the "phone" lines).

3. a "PHONE" LINE in order to connect to other computers which are online

4. a SERVICE PROVIDER -- a company you pay for Internet Service (such as "America Online" or "BellSouth.Net").

5. a WEB BROWSER -- a software program which allows you to SEE what your doing while you're online. "America Online" provides you with its own web Browser. The other two most popular browsers are "Netscape" and "Internet Explorer".

The INTERNET, in my opinion, is the greatest technological breakthrough for the decemination of knowledge since the printing press. At no other time has a person been able
to sit in their own home or school and have immediate access to so much information.

Schools, families, and individuals who use this tool wisely have unlimited opportunities for learning and sharing of knowledge. The Internet, no doubt, can also be (and is) a means for distributing unsavory, immoral, and Unchristian viewpoints.

You found out last week that your children are taught--from the very first computer class of each year--how to use the Internet safely. You should also know that your children are protected, at St. Philip Neri School, from accessing inappropriate information via the Archdiocese Internet Services site filter.

Monitor your children's use of the Internet at home and they will have opportunities for learning unimagined by you or your parents. Allow your children to use the Internet without your supervision and they may learn things you would never want them to know.
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