The Steps to Mastering the Web

Before beginning to read this information, you may want to take the NET-TEST to determine your proficiency and also help us determine the proficiency level of the users who access this site.

The first step to learning the Internet is to know how to connect to it. The most common form to connect to the Internet is accessed through the Dial-Up Networking software that is included with Windows95 and above. However, it is different for every computer and also a daunting task to cover all the methods. Because you are viewing this page we assume you do know how to connect to the Internet and will move on.

The most common browsers are Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator. We recommend that you use the latest released versions  In both of these browsers there is a text box for inputting a URL. It is through this input that you tell your browser software what you want to access. The file you access may then also access other files and display them on your site. For example, on this page alone each image is accessed through the HTML file. You type in the location of the HTML file and when your browser downloads it, your browser goes through it and loads everything the file requests. Consider a file your "to do" list and the images "things to be done". If an image is inaccessible, your browser may place a in place of the file. If the HTML file is not found, then the server sends a file in place of the missing file to the client which usually says File Not Found.

Now that you know the basics to how the web works, you can browse the web. However, you may not know things such as "How to save a file" or "How to turn sound off". If you do not, please proceed to the Tips & Tricks page, found within the tutorials section.

©1999 Tak Bui / PC & Pixel comix