Entire books are written nowadays on this subject, but I’ll try to get you started.
To get your computer online, you must first have a modem. It’s a device that connects your computer to the phone line. It can be housed in your computer’s case (internal), or sit in its own little box (external). Modems, like computers, operate at various speeds, and of course, the faster the better. Modem speed is measured in bits per second, or bps. The fastest modems currently available operate at 28,800 bps (28.8 K) and start at about $150 mailorder. The most common modems operate at half that rate, or 14,400 bps (14.4 K), and can cost as little as $50 mailorder. Most computers that come with a modem already installed internally have 14.4 modems. This is the minimum speed required for adequate access to online services. In addition to sending and receiving computer data, virtually all of today’s modems have fax capabilities as well.
As to the type of connection, there are currently two alternatives. One is to subscribe to a commercial online service, the one-stop information shops along the infohighway. The most popular are America Online, Prodigy, CompuServe, Delphi, GEnie, and the newcomer Microsoft Network (MSN). The charges for these services are similar to cable TV charges: a monthly fee for basic service and additional fees for "premium" services. Commercial online services’ offerings typically include electronic mail (email), user forums or discussion groups on a wide variety of topics, software libraries containing programs that can be copied (downloaded) to your computer over the phone line, news and publications, business and financial information, hardware and software support and information, special interest resources, and Internet access. The services differ in such areas as ease of use, costs, and target audience. For example, America Online tends to be most popular with home users, whereas CompuServe caters to the business user, and Prodigy is a hit with kids. Since the access software for MSN is included in Windows 95, this up-and-coming service is expected to give the more established services some stiff competition, as evidenced by the hundreds of content providers signing up with Microsoft to offer their wares.
Most of these commercial online services offer free trial start-up periods with free access software and online time. The best way to find out which, if any, commercial service is right for you is to take advantage of these offers and try them out. The main drawback for us in the Northern Hills is the fact that the closest local access telephone numbers to these services are in Rapid City, and making a long distance call on top of the normal fees is pretty expensive. Of course, if the Extended Area Service proposal is approved by the Public Utilities Commission allowing toll-free calling to Rapid City, trying the commercial online services will be practical. Any computer magazine will contain ads telling you how to take advantage of these free offers.
The second alternative to going online is a direct connection to the Internet.
The Internet began in the late 1960s. Computer scientists were asked by the Pentagon to determine the best way for an unlimited number of computers to communicate without relying on any single computer for central control. They figured such a decentralized setup would better be able to survive a nuclear attack. Thus what was called the Arpanet was launched, initially linking just four research labs to let scientists and engineers test networking technology. As the Arpanet quickly expanded to include dozens of universities and corporations, programs were developed to help people exchange electronic mail (e-mail), as well as tap into remote databases, run computers from a distance, and exchange ideas via electronic bulletin boards. By the late 1980s there were millions of computers and thousands of networks using the Internet protocol, or digital communications scheme, and it’s from their interconnections that the modern Internet has emerged. Today the Internet comprises 48,000 different networks around the world, all acting as one global virtual computer.
To tap into this global computer, just as with commercial online services, you need a connection via modem through a service provider coupled with the proper software for your type of computer. Access charge plans vary from unlimited monthly access for a flat fee, to hourly charges, to some combination of the two. Dozens of programs are available to enable PCs or Macs to navigate the information superhighway, or "i-way" as it’s now being called, and they can be found in any computer store or mailorder catalog. The proper programs can also be supplied by an Internet service provider such as Spearfish Computing Center, whose main computer is physically wired to the Internet, allowing you to connect to it by calling a local phone number. This is how I transmit my columns to the Pioneer every week via e-mail.
There are a number of functions available on the Internet besides e-mail, such as the ability to acquire programs (ftp, or file transfer protocol), participate in newsgroups and discussion forums, and operate remote computers from your own, such as researching by tapping into the computer of a distant university’s library. But by far the most popular aspect of the Internet is the World Wide Web, which allows you to navigate colorful and graphically-oriented screens of information with the click of a mouse. Among many other things, the World Wide Web allows you to instantaneously access news, weather, and sports; shop electronically in virtual malls; search for information on almost any subject imaginable; and obtain product information from thousands of companies.
So whether you choose to subscribe to a commercial online service, most of which provide some kind of Internet access, or you decide to establish a direct Internet connection through an Internet service provider, there is an almost unlimited world of information waiting to be explored with your computer.
K.O.P.C.Online home > table of contents > internet