The Internet

Peter H. Lewis

The 1990s have brought on a revolution in the electronic media. This revolution is the result of the computer, telephone, fax, and television. These technologies can be combined to bring many conveniences into the school, home, and office. People talk about "information superhighways" that will soon offer services such as movies on demand, shopping without leaving your living room, picture phones, conversations with friends via computer, a push-button choice of 500 TV programs, bill payments from home, and access to databases (computerized collections of information) from around the world.

The following questions and answers center on the Internet, a new electronic tool for communication and research used by millions of people around the world.

Q: What is the Internet?

A: When two or more computers are linked together to share files and electronic mail (e-mail), they form a network. Some individual networks consist of thousands of computers. The Internet is a network of thousands of networks, linking schools, universities, businesses, government agencies, libraries, nonprofit organizations and millions of individuals. The Internet is much smaller in size than the worldwide telephone network, but because the Internet links computers instead of telephones it has vastly more power.

Q: Is the Internet the same thing as the "information superhighway" everyone is talking about?

A: The Internet is a sort of early model for the data highway. Originally designed as a high-speed communications network for universities and military research, the Internet has now expanded to include private and commercial clients. It may eventually be a backbone for the so-called data superhighway, or it may become the equivalent of Route 66 in American highway history, bypassed by newer and wider roads. The highway will probably consist of computer networks, cable TV, interactive phone services and other technologies.

Q: What can I find on the Internet?

A: If you can imagine it, you can probably find it. You can check the card catalogue of the Library of Congress retrieve free software, get the latest news, send and receive electronic mail, complain about the Mets with fellow sufferers, view NASA satellite images, reach the world's leading authorities on pandas, and so on. There are literally thousands of "interest groups" on the net.

Finding things in such a vast supply of data, however, is not easy. There is no complete road map or directory. Part of the fun is exploring.

Q: What do I need to get onto the Internet?

A: For now, the requirements are a personal computer, a device called a modem, a communications program, access to a telephone line and an account with an Internet service provider. The computer does not have to be too fancy, although the ability to use Windows software or the Macintosh operating system is a definite plus. The modem should be as fast as possible. A speed of 14,400 bits is OK but a faster one—28.8 or 56 KBPS—is better.

Q: What is my first step in getting onto the Internet?

A: Go to the bookstore and get an Internet introductory guide. There are at least two dozen of them out there now. Or ask a computer-literate friend to show you how to use the "net".

Q: Who owns the Internet?

A: Nobody owns it. It is a cooperative but often chaotic federation of independent networks. Some regulatory groups set standards for the way the information flows over the Internet, but they are not too effective at present.