Learn about AOL,
Internet, WWW
What is the
difference between the World Wide Web, the
Internet, a Bulletin Board, and on-line services
such as America On Line, Compuserve, Prodigy, and
Microsoft Network?
The
Internet
The Internet consists of
computers connected world-wide, similar to the
telephone system. Although companies and
individuals own the computers and the connecting
lines that the information is sent on, no one
owns the Internet. It is governed by an
international body, but is not regulated. It is
self - regulating -- other people will tell you
if they don't like what you are doing.
The Internet has many different types of
services:
- Gophers
- FTP
- Newsgroups
- Archies
- E-mail
- World Wide Web
The World Wide
Web
The World Wide Web (WWW) displays graphics,
not just text, and provides for easy navigation
from page to page. When you are on the World Wide
Web you are also on the Internet.
The World Wide Web consists of web sites
created by individuals and companies. A web site,
a group of pages containing text and graphics,
has an unique address, similar to your telephone
number. It is a string of numbers separated by
periods. However, a web site is typically
referred to by its registered name - for example:
www.empoweringyou.com.
Bulletin Boards
A bulletin board is not part of the Internet.
You must dial the bulletin board directly,
without connecting through an ISP, to access it.
It usually displays text only, not graphics, and
is typically on a specific subject.
Online Services
Compuserve, America Online, Prodigy, and
Microsoft Network are examples of Online
Services.
These services are not directly on the Internet. It requires an extra
step to connect to the service and then connect to the Internet.
They include extra services such as special interest forums
and chat groups.
Online services also have rules,
whereas the Internet does not have any formal
rules. Online services are good for families wanting to
limit the content children will see. However, for
this reason the online service may block access
to a news group or web site because a portion has inappropriate material for family
viewing.
We suggest that you use an ISP (Internet Service Provider), instead of an online service such as AOL, to connect to the Internet for business use. An online service may install extra software on your computer that is probably not needed for business and may be hard to remove. An online service may also provide a slower connection to the web, disconnect you more often, use an older browser with less features, or cost more.
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