HELP! I don't understand the internet!
Jim Coggins
Computers can seem (and be) very complex. Are you confused? Do you have trouble
understanding what it is all about? You are not alone. For those who don't understand computers,
we offer this basic explanation.
The Computer
The heart of a computer is a small piece of plastic (called a "hard drive" on which you
can write many words and draw or store many pictures. It thus stores a lot of information in a
very small space. You can read the words stored on a computer by looking at a TV screen (called
a "monitor" or "screen"
"printer" (which prints them out onto a piece of paper) or onto a
"floppy disk". A floppy disk is a 3-inch or 5-inch-square of plastic which works
something like a hard drive; it can be inserted into a slot in your computer, copied on and then
taken out and put into a box for storage or inserted into another computer.
Electronic Communication
Electronic communication happens when you hook up a computer to a regular telephone line
(through a small piece of hardware called a "modem"). Whatever information is on your
computer (a letter, an article or a book) can then be sent through the phone line to another
computer which is also hooked up to a phone line. In effect, you "copy" your words from your
computer to another computer, just as you can copy your words onto a printer or onto a floppy
disk.
The Internet
The "internet" goes a step beyond basic electronic communication to allow your
computer to read and display (on your monitor) the words that are in another computer. For
example, information about the Canadian MB Conference is on a computer in Winnipeg.
Someone in Moose Jaw, Sask. can turn on his computer, connect his computer (through a
modem) to the computer in Winnipeg and read the information.
Basic electronic communication allows one computer to communicate with only one other
computer at a time, and then only if both computers have their modems turned on (one set to send
and the other set to receive). However, with the internet, there are thousands of computers (called
"servers" or "internet providers") whose modems are always turned on. A
server allows many other computers to connect to it at the same time and read the information
that is stored in it.
Domains, Home Pages
The "server" is usually owned and operated by a private company. (These companies are often
small companies based in one city, but some are multinational corporations with a network of
hundreds of computers around the world.) Other organizations rent space (called a "site"
or "address" on the server computer, where they can display their information.
Organizations can organize their information on one internet address or name called a
"domain", with its name listed in directories around the world. A "home page"
is the table of contents or introduction to an organization's information.
For instance, there is a server in Winnipeg called Infobahn. The Canadian MB Conference owns a
domain on this server called "mbconf.ca", and that domain's address is Infobahn's server. The
Canadian MB Conference home page lists all of the Canadian MB Conference agencies, including
the Mennonite Brethren Herald, which has its own home page called "mbherald". The
reader in Moose Jaw can look at the Canadian MB Conference home page, see that one of the
listings is for the Mennonite Brethren Herald and with a flick of a finger (with a gadget
attached to his computer called a "mouse") indicate that he wants to look at the
Herald home page. The Herald home page immediately appears on his monitor.
The Herald home page has a further table of contents, which includes a listing for
"current issue". With another flick of a finger, the person in Moose Jaw can indicate that line in
the table of contents and then start reading the latest issue of the Herald on his computer
monitor.
The World Wide Web
The "World Wide Web" is a further development of the internet. It allows computers to
send not only words back and forth, but also pictures, drawings (often called "graphics"), sound
and video (moving pictures). This is slower because pictures take a lot more space on a computer
than words do. (In this case, one picture is worth about half a million words.)
One reason this development is called a "web" is because it inter-connects computers in complex
ways. For instance, the person in Moose Jaw could connect his computer to the Canadian MB
Conference server in Winnipeg. On the Canadian MB Conference home page is not only a list of
Canadian MB Conference agencies, but also other MB agencies, such as MB Missions/Services in
Fresno, CA. By indicating that item with a flick of a finger, the person in Moose Jaw will then be
looking at the MBM/S home page on a computer in California. The computer in California in turn
lists Mennonite Brethren missionaries around the world. With another flick of the finger, he can
be looking at the home page of a missionary in Germany.
The internet has a number of programs called "search engines" which act like an index to
help users find things on the Web. For instance, the person in Moose Jaw can type the words
"Mennonite Brethren" into his search program and get a list of all of the home pages in the world
which have the words "Mennonite Brethen" on them (at least, when the system works perfectly).
E-mail
The basic electronic communication which was first in use allowed computers to send information
to each other only as long as both computers had their modems turned on, which was
inconvenient and tied up phone lines. Therefore, a more convenient method called "electronic
mail" or "e-mail" was developed, in which local "servers" serve as post offices.
Individuals and organizations rent space on the server computer which is called an
"address" and acts like a mailbox. This mailbox can be part of a home page or can simply
be a mailbox. If the person in Moose Jaw wants to sent a letter to the MB Herald, he can
send it to the Herald's mailbox on the server computer in Winnipeg. (The person can send
the message through the Herald's home page, or he can bypass the home page and send
the letter directly to the Herald mailbox.) The letter stays in the mailbox until a
Herald employee tells the Herald computer to copy the letter out of the server's
computer into the Herald computer. This mailbox is open 24 hours a day.
The uses
The internet and e-mail can be very useful. Through the internet, one can send information, even
large amounts of information, anywhere in the world almost instantaneously, at almost no cost
(other than the original cost of the computer and a small monthly charge for having an internet
account). Because the information is sent over the phone lines in compressed form, hundreds of
messages can travel at the same time down the same phone line. This means that there are no long
distance charges (these small amounts are included in the monthly rental fee).
Business has not been slow to get onto the internet. For instance, you can now read airline
schedules over the internet and, if you find a flight and price you like, make a reservation. You
can read a Bible college catalogue the same way and register for the fall term. You can read the
online catalogue of a library (or a bookstore) and reserve a book. You can buy a house, rent a car,
make a hotel reservation or research a school essay--the uses seem endless. However, because
computers are expensive and somewhat complex to use, no one knows for sure just how much the
internet will actually be used.