|
... mparable to
those of the government system. In fact, by mid-1994, the U.S.
government will remove itself from any day-to-day control over the
workings of the Net, as regional and national providers continue to
expand.
1.6 HOW IT WORKS
The worldwide Net is actually a complex web of smaller callcenter agent regional
networks. To understand it, picture a modern road network of trans-
continental superhighways connecting large cities. From these large cities
come smaller freeways and parkways to link together small towns, whose
residents travel on slower, narrow residential ways.
The Net superhighway is the high-speed Internet. Connected to
this are computers that use a particular system of transferring data
at high speeds. In the U.S., the major Internet "backbone"
theoretically can move data at rates of 45 million bits per second
(compare this to the average home modem, which has a top speed of roughly
9,600 to 14,400 bits per second).
Connected to the backbone computers are smaller networks serving
particular geographic regions, which generally move data at speeds
around 1.5 million bits per second.
Feeding off these in turn are even smaller networks or individual
computers.
Unlike with commercial networks such as CompuServe or Prodigy, there
is no one central computer or computers running the Internet -- its
resources are to be found among thousands of individual computers. This
is both its greatest strength and its greatest weakness. The approach
means it is virtually impossible for the entire Net to crash at once --
even if one computer shuts down, the rest of the network stays up. The
design also reduces the costs for an individual or organization to get
onto the network. But thousands of connected computers can also make it
difficult to navigate the Net and find what you want -- especially as
different computers may have different commands for plumbing their
resources. It is only recently that Net users have begun to develop the
sorts of navigational tools and "maps" that will let neophytes get around
without getting lost.
Nobody callcenter agent really knows how many computers and networks actually make
up this Net. Some estimates say there are now as many as 5,000
networks connecting nearly 2 million computers and more than 15 million
people around the world. Whatever the actual numbers, however, it is
clear they are only increasing.
The Net is more than just a technological marvel. It is human
communication at its most fundamental level. The pace may be a little
quicker when the messages race around the world in a few seconds, but
it's not much different from a large and interesting party. You'll see
things in cyberspace that will make you laugh; you'll see things that
will anger you. You'll read silly little snippets and new ideas that
make you think. You'll make new friends and meet people you wish would
just go away.
Major network providers continue to work on ways to make it
easier for users of one network to communicate with those of another.
Work is underway on a system for providing a universal "white pages"
in which you could look up somebody's electronic-mail address, for
example.
This connectivity trend will likely speed up in coming years
as users begin to demand seamless network access, much as telephone
users can now dial almost anywhere in the world without worrying about
how many phone companies actually have to connect their calls.
And today, the links grow ever closer between the Internet and such
commercial networks as CompuServe callcenter agent and Prodigy, whose users can now
exchange electronic mail with their Internet friends. Some commercial
providers, such as Delphi and America Online, are working to bring their
subscribers direct access to Internet services.
And as it becomes easier to use, more and more people will join
this worldwide community we call the Net.
Being connected to the Net takes more than just reading
conferences and logging messages to your computer; it takes asking and
answering questions, exchanging opinions -- getting involved.
If you choose to go forward, to use and contribute, you will become
a citizen of Cyberspace. If you're reading these words for the first
time, this may seem like an amusing but unlikely notion -- that one
could "inhabit" a place without physical space. But put a mark beside
these callcenter agent words. Join the Net and actively participate for a year. Then
re-read this passage. It will no longer seem so strange to be a
"citizen of Cyberspace." It will seem like the most natural thing in
the world.
And that leads to another fundamental thing to remember:
You can't break the Net!
As you travel the Net, your computer may freeze, your screen may
erupt into a mass of gibberish. You may think you've just disabled a
million-dollar computer somewhere -- or even your own personal
computer. Sooner or later, this feeling happens to everyone -- and
likely more than once. But the Net and your computer are hardier than
you think, so relax. You can no more break the Net than you can the
phone system. If something goes wrong, try again. If nothing at all
happens, you can always disconnect. If worse comes to worse, you can
turn off your computer. Then take a deep breath. And dial right back
in. Leave a note for the person who runs the computer to which you've
connected to ask for advice. Try it again. Persistence pays.
Stay and contribute. The Net will be richer for it -- and so will
you.
1.7 WHEN THINGS GO WRONG
* Your computer connects with a public-access site and get gibberish
on your screen.
If you are using parameters of 8-1-N, try 7-1-e (or vice-versa). If
that doesn't work, try another modem speed.
* You have your computer dial a public-access site, but nothing
happens.
Check the phone number you typed in.
If correct, turn on your modem's
speaker (on Hayes-compatible modems, you can usually do this by typing ATM1
in your communications software's "terminal mode"). If the phone just
rings and rings, the public-access site could be down for maintenance or
due to a crash or some other problem. If you get a "connect" message, but
nothing else, try hitting enter or escape a couple of times.
* You try to log in, but after you type your password, nothing
happens, or you get a "timed out" message followed by a disconnect.
Re-dial the number and try it again.
* Always remember, if you have a problem that just doesn't go away,
ask! Ask your system administrator, ask a friend, but ask.
Somebody will
know what to do.
1.8 FYI
The Net grows so fast that even the best guide to its resources
would be somewhat outdated the day it was printed. At the end of each
chapter, however, you'll find FYI pointers to places on the Net where you
can go for more information or to keep updated on new resources and
services.
Peter Kaminski maintains a list of systems that provide public
access to Internet services. It's availble on the network itself, which
obviously does you little good if you currently have no access, but which
can prove invaluable should you move or want to find a new system. Look
for his "PDIAL" file in the alt.bbs.lists or news.answers newsgroups in
Usenet (for information on accessing Usenet, see Chapter 3).
Steven Levy's book, "Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution,"
(Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1984). describes the early culture and ethos
that ultimately resulted in the Internet and Usenet.
John Quarterman's "The Matrix: Computer Networks and Conferencing
Systems Worldwide" (Digital Press, 1990) is an exhaustive look at
computer networks and how they connect with each other.
You'll find numerous documents about the Internet, its history and
its resources in the pub/Net_info directory on the Electronic Frontier
Foundation's FTP server (see chapter 7 to decipher this).
Chapter 2: E-MAIL
2.1 THE BASICS
Electronic mail, or e-mail, is your personal connection to the
world of the Net.
All of the millions of people around the world who use the
Net have their own e-mail addresses. A growing number of "gateways" tie
more and more people to the Net every day. When you logged onto the host
system you are now using, it automatically generated an address for you,
as well.
The basic concepts behind e-mail parallel those of regular mail.
You send mail to people at their particular addresses. In turn, they
write to you at your e-mail address. You can subscribe to the
electronic equivalent of magazines and newspapers.
You might even get
electronic junk mail.
E-mail has two distinct advantages over regular mail. The most
obvious is speed. Instead of several days, your message can reach the
other side of the world in hours, minutes or even seconds (depending on
where you drop off your mail and the state of the connections between
there and your recipient).
The other advantage is that once you master
the basics, you'll be able to use e-mail to access databases and file
libraries. You'll see how to do this later, along with learning how to
transfer program and data files through e-mail.
E-mail also has advantages over the telephone. You send ... |
