Week 3 - Discussion 2

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Chapter 4

Productivity Applications

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Learning Objectives

After reading this chapter, you should be able to complete the following:

Summarize the development of word processing, the importance of Microsoft® Word, and its alternatives. Analyze the key features of PowerPoint® and presentation software. Describe the importance of Microsoft® Excel™ and spreadsheets. Explain how databases work and alternatives to Microsoft® Access®. Evaluate the different types of multimedia applications. Describe mobile applications and their importance.

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Chapter 5

The Web of Knowledge

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Learning Objectives

After reading this chapter, you should be able to complete the following:

Explain the key Internet basics. Describe the various aspects of a network and the key networking terms. Summarize the browser wars and the most common browsers. Describe how to build a Web page in six easy steps. List the Web accessibility standards.

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Introduction You are the Internet. While you might think the Internet—officially defined as a vast worldwide connection of computer networks that also link smaller networks—is more about computers than people, this is not necessarily true. Without people, all of these computer connections would be sitting silently, with little meaning or purpose to their existence. The essential ingredient that makes the Internet revolutionary is that people enter into it each day, and they leave a footprint of knowledge and of themselves as they travel through the Web. Each time you purchase a new computer (a desktop computer, a laptop, a cell phone, and so on) and get connected, you create a new link to this worldwide Internet community and become the newest member of the global population. This becomes a window for you to see and communicate with every other online computer user on the planet, and it allows you to make your own contribution to the vast web of knowledge that is now growing at an exponential pace (Okin, 2005, p. 21). This chapter will introduce you to the Internet, discuss the programs you can use to navigate through it on your desktop and mobile devices, and describe how to create your own content. Welcome to the Web of knowledge.

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5.1 Internet Basics Computers during the 1960s had a curious problem. Although the mainframes were growing ever larger and more powerful, and computer languages were enabling programmers to perform more complex computations, there was a significant limitation. It was completely impossible for one computer to talk to another. A message could not be sent between two computers in the same room, let alone two computers in different countries. A computer was an isolated machine, alone and separated from the rest of the world, as were the users. This situation would soon change so dramatically that in the coming decades, nearly every computer in the entire world would become connected to every other computer. This section will discuss how this network became a reality.

ARPAnet

The Internet had its beginnings as the ARPAnet during the 1960s, when the Cold War threat was at its peak. ARPA, the United States Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency, was focused on the nation's computer security. The ARPA network was designed as a way to link computers at laboratories across the country for the purpose of sharing computing resources (Hafner & Lyon, 1996). Once exclusively the domain of scientists at elite universities such as UCLA, MIT, and Stanford, this computer network has now gone mainstream.

While there is some debate about the reasons for developing the ARPAnet, it was first and foremost an excellent idea whose time had come. Computers simply needed to talk to each other, and the technology had advanced to the point where this became possible. But the ARPAnet also had a defense component. The 1960s was the heart of the Cold War period, an era when the Soviet Union and the United States were building massive arsenals of nuclear weapons and pointing them at each other. In a world where nuclear war could easily eliminate an entire city in the blink of an eye, how could a nation ensure communications were maintained in such a doomsday scenario? A communications network that was centralized in one place was vulnerable to attack. But if you could decentralize that network, spreading communications and content among the computers throughout the United States, then command and control could be preserved in a nuclear war (Rabinovitz, 2004, p. 10). We will see how this could happen later in this chapter when we discuss packet switching. Thus, ARPAnet solved a fundamental communications problem for computers, and helped guarantee a secure communications network for the United States during the Cold War. But it also paved the way for an even more revolutionary development.

A Web of Computers

Today, the ARPAnet has disappeared, officially becoming extinct in 1989 when the Internet—which has become a massive public and private web, connecting millions of people together and supplying them with an apparently limitless amount of information—replaced it. The best way to think about the Internet is to use the metaphor of a web. Just as a spider's web is both a random and a defined pattern (with its threads connecting and strengthening itself), the Internet is a connection of computer networks that link to each other all over the world. What are these connections? Instead of the spider's thread, standard copper telephone lines and coaxial cable (the type of wire typically used to receive a television signal) connect the Internet. Newer, faster, and more efficient ways of connecting computers have also been developed in recent years. This includes fiber optic cable and satellite connections. Connections to the Internet now also include the wireless kind, which we will discuss later in this chapter.

Packets

What is being sent through all of these connections? Packets of information. A packet is a small quantity of information represented in binary form as a series of zeros and ones. The way it finds its path from the sender's computer to its destination is through a technique called packet switching. Each message is essentially subdivided into smaller "packets" of data and then "routed" to the next relay point in a communication path, as shown in Figure 5.1. The idea of packet switching and routing actually dates back to the use of telegraphs during the 19th century. If you were on the East Coast and wanted to telegraph a message to the West Coast, there was no direct connection. Telephones did not yet exist. So, the telegraph operator on the East Coast sent the letter through Morse code (a series of dots and dashes, which is eerily similar to binary coding today) to an intermediary, which was the nearest direct connection. This intermediary might be located in Pennsylvania. The information at this switching center forwarded the message on to another center, and eventually the telegraph message found its way to the intended destination on the West Coast. The other interesting aspect of this communication system was that a copy of the message was kept at each of these centers, so if a problem occurred along the way, the operators could backtrack, find the message, and resend. This is technically called Store and Forward Packet Switching (Campbell-Kelly & Aspray, 1996, pp. 290–292).

Figure 5.1: Packet switching

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Data moves through the Internet with packet switching technology. This allows a message to be sent through the Internet by being broken up into different "packets," which are sent to the same destination via different routes (or nodes).

Nodes

The basis of the telegraph system is exactly the same principle that is used for the Internet. Each computer in the world is not directly connected to every other one. Not only would this be physically impractical, but it also would be impossible to easily add new computers to the system. That's why the ARPAnet designers decided to borrow the old telegraph packet switching principle. There was a backbone of nodes (a node is any device that is connected to the Internet) that acted as automatic packet switching centers. If one of these nodes became busy (or, for example, was eliminated during a disaster such as a nuclear war), then the packets could be easily rerouted along a different path. Sometimes, a long message was broken into several packets that actually traveled through different nodes to eventually reach the destination.

Protocols

This routing system is controlled through established protocols, which refers to the way computers talk to each other (Okin, 2005, p. 20). There are many different Internet protocols, such as those that define how an instant message or email is sent, or how a file is uploaded or downloaded to your computer. One example of this is HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol), which defines how Web content is transmitted. You can see the letters HTTP in front of every Internet browser address line. It is the destination computer's responsibility to receive all of these packets and put them together in the correct order. Users never realize this is happening, and the speed is incredible.

Modems

How do you send and receive these packets of information? By means of a computer modem. The U.S. military made the first modems in the 1950s to communicate data related to air defense. The word itself was a new one that combined the terms modulator and demodulator. Essentially, what a modem does is convert the data you create on your computer (in its digital form of ones and zeros) into sound (electrical impulses). These were originally carried or transmitted through standard telephone lines. The modem also works in the opposite way. It can receive these electrical impulses from the outside world and convert them into digital data that appears as images, text, or numbers on your computer. More recently, modems are being replaced by faster technology that is all digital. There are several types of Internet connections.

Cable Modem

A cable modem is typically the fastest connection, meaning it can transfer more data per second than almost any other type of home Internet connection. An Ethernet wire is connected to the cable modem box, which is then connected via a coaxial cable to the round jack in your wall. Once you set up and pay for an Internet plan through your cable provider, you are ready to access the Internet. This links you to the larger Internet grid that often transmits data through fiber optic cable. If you do not want the cable company involved, you could opt for a DSL or Digital Subscriber Line that connects you to the Internet through standard telephone lines. In a later section, we'll discuss the speed comparison between these options.

Wi-Fi

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Packet switching allows large amounts of data to travel from one point to another without clogging a network. Used with radio waves and then telephone lines, packet switching ultimately lead to the development of the World Wide Web.

Once you select a cable or DSL connection in your home, you might want to also create a Wi-Fi connection. The name Wi-Fi means wireless fidelity and is intentionally similar to the term Hi-Fi or high fidelity that once described high-end home stereo systems. With a Wi-Fi connection in your home, you can connect multiple Internet devices (laptop, smartphone, tablet, or even a game system such as an Xbox® or a Wii™) wirelessly to your main Internet connection. Smartphones will typically connect to a Wi-Fi zone, as this will reduce their cell tower data usage, which is typically limited each month. More on the topic of wireless Internet connections will be covered later.

Packet Switching

Questions to Consider

1. Why is the Internet important? 2. Where is the Internet? 3. What is a definition of the Internet? 4. What does ARPA stand for, and what is its relationship to the modern Internet? 5. What are some of the ways that computers are connected to the Internet? 6. What is a packet? 7. What is the difference between a node and a protocol? 8. What does HTTP stand for? 9. What is the name of the computer device that is both a modulator and demodulator, and what is its function?

Packet Switching From Title:

Virtual World: Quirky Science (https://fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=100753&xtid=50332)

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In a client/server network, a powerful computer server controls the individual networked workstations, or clients. Network administrator positions involve working on both servers and clients. Does such a job appeal to you?

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5.2 Networks While in the past, connecting a personal computer to a network might have been a nice feature, today it is essential. Without a network connection, you would not be able to attend online school, chat with your friends, or successfully compete in the workplace. Networks are the lifeblood of computing in the 21st century. Most businesses find them essential for sharing files and information among employees, developing collaborative projects, and sharing the use of applications. The network enables computers to share hardware. For example, instead of having a printer connected to each computer, in a network all the computers can share the same printer. And after the workday is over, you can retreat to a friend's house with your laptop to engage in some multiplayer networked computer games.

In this section, we will look more closely at terms and configurations involving networks. While the Internet is most commonly thought of when people hear the word network, other types of networks also exist. In all forms, however, a network at its most basic level occurs anytime there are two or more computers that are linked together through either a wire (Ethernet) or a wireless connection (Odom, 2004).

Basic Network Terminology

If you have several computers at work or home that are connected together, this is called a local area network (LAN). Computers that are connected together through telephone lines, satellites, and so on, and that are not at the same location are called a wide area network (WAN). The Internet is an example of a WAN, and a group of friends bringing their computers over to your house to connect together and play a game is an example of a LAN. Between these two common types of networks is a metropolitan area network (MAN). These networks include a city, or at least part of it, and are often operated by the government. An intranet provides many of the same functions as the Internet (email, databases, documents, and so on), but is only available to a private group of people with passwords. A large business might have an intranet that is accessible to employees only. An extranet is a network with limited restrictions, such as requiring a user ID and password, but it is used for selected outsiders of a company. That same company might have a Web page that is accessible to everyone. A bus is another important network term. It is found in a LAN network in which every workstation is connected to a main cable. This cable is the bus that shuttles data back and forth. In comparison, a star network is one in which each workstation connects only to the main server.

Network Architecture

The way that computers interact within these networks is called the architecture. There are two main types of computer architecture. The first is called peer-to- peer. This means that each computer in the network has the same capabilities and privileges as any other computer. They are all equal in terms of what they can and cannot do. However, the second type is called client/server. You will often find this network architecture in businesses where there is one main computer—a very powerful one—called the server. The individual, less powerful, workstations are the clients. A dedicated server is a computer that does nothing but control the other networked computers, the clients. You might also have a printer server (for controlling how the network users share the printer), a Web server (for hosting your own Web page), or a file server (which specializes in managing all the users' data files). In other words, no one is using any of these servers on their own to run an application like Word or Excel®. The clients are the individual computers at the employees' workstations. These are also sometimes called the users. They will all have limited access to the server and have far less network privileges than the server (Institute for Career Research, 2008, p. 1).

Networking Terms

There are other important networking terms with which you should become familiar. The first is a hub, which is simply a device that shares data with all the other devices connected to it. Some hubs support only a couple of computers, while others might connect 50 or more. Workgroups are subsets of computers within a network that all share the same resources. These are often used today in the home environment. Second, a related device is a switch. This is more intelligent than a hub because it can discern what type of device is attached to it and only send relevant data. For example, in your home you might have a switch for your digital phone and television. The switch would know to send voice data to the telephone only, while the latest digital movie would route to the television. Switches are important because they can send only certain data to a particular node or workstation. This can improve network security because it prevents everyone from sharing the same information (Parsons & Oja, 2010, p. 261). Third, a router can send data from one network to another. You might also see a router and a switch combined together in one device.

Additional terms are associated with Internet networks. These include protocols like HTTP, discussed earlier in this chapter, which is the protocol for Web traffic. In general, the protocols define how one computer talks to another, including computers as different as Macs® and PCs. File Transfer Protocol (FTP) governs how files are shared on the Internet. Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) controls the flow of email traffic. Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) controls how data packets are split and then reconnected (recall our packet switching discussion from the previous section). Also, in order for any of the individual terminal computers or personal computers to connect to the Internet, they will need a network interface card. This card plugs into

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an open socket on the motherboard (the main circuit board on every computer that contains the memory and central processing unit, and controls the input and output devices), and is then connected to a hub or router (Habraken, 2004).

Finally, you should also be aware of network addressees. An IP address is the actual number that identifies a device (the node) connected to the Internet. This is the way that computers can locate and talk to each other (much like a telephone number). The IP address is assigned by the Internet Service Provider (ISP) that you select (more on this later). A static IP address is one that is unchanging, and every time you log on you have the same IP address. ISPs also issue dynamic IP addresses, which are temporary. This number is assigned to you when you log on, but when you disconnect, another computer is given the address. There are benefits and limitations with both. A static IP address is better for a company's main computer server because it enables faster file transfer. Another benefit of having your own IP address is that you do not risk having it shut down if someone who shared it with you barraged the Internet with spam email. The dynamic IP also has advantages in the security realm because the user has a different IP address every time they connect to the ISP.

Taken together, TCP and IP are known as the Internet protocol suite and identified as TCP/IP. A computer represents all IP addresses in four bytes, or four numbers from 0 to 255 each, separated by dots (this equals 32 bits of information).

A Look Further: Find Your IP Address

A fun way to try this out is to see what your own IP address is if you are connected to the Internet. Open your Web browser and type whatismyipaddress.com and you will see a number that looks like xx.xx.xx.xx (this is sometimes called a dotted quad). This Web page will also tell you the name of your ISP and your city and country. Try it out and see what your IP address is, and find out if the Internet really does know the city and state from which you are connecting.

Technology Today: Network Neutrality

The Internet is quickly evolving into the world's central communications platform. Many people already log onto the Internet not only to receive email but also to listen to music, watch their favorite television programs, download movies, and play video games.

Even as it takes on a central role in our personal lives, the Internet will remain the primary engine-driving business communication as well. Recognition of the increasingly important role the Internet is playing in society has spurred concern about who should control access to this vital communications pipeline.

Currently, most people gain access to the Internet by opening an account with an Internet Service Provider (ISP), which in most cases is a large cable television or telephone company. For the most part, the ISPs have been allowed to set their own rates for granting customers Internet access.

There were few complaints about this system when the primary means of accessing the Internet was via dial-up modems that connected strictly through telephone lines and could only transmit limited amounts and types of information. As we moved into the broadband era, and new methods of transmitting data—such as cable modems and DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) technology—allowed for easy transmission of more data, including photos and video, a whole new set of issues emerged.

These issues include the following:

Will ISPs begin to set prices that might prevent some people from being able to afford access to broadband Internet? Will ISPs—particularly cable television companies—block access to content created by companies they view as competitors?

The U.S. Congress was so concerned about these issues that in 2009, it directed the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to develop a National Broadband Plan to promote a concept known as Network Neutrality—or the idea that every American would have equal access to broadband Internet capabilities. The FCC was a logical choice for developing this plan because the agency oversees the telecommunications sector as well as the radio and television industries.

Content Discrimination or Prudent Network Management?

As the FCC set out to tackle this objective, however, it ran into some unexpected hurdles. The biggest of these hurdles surfaced when the FCC ordered Comcast, a major cable television company and ISP, to stop blocking its customers' access to files from BitTorrent, a popular file sharing site.

BitTorrent allows users to download exceptionally large data files, such as feature-length movies, and then share those files with other Internet users. Comcast argued that it was blocking BitTorrent downloads because they hogged bandwidth on its network, causing the network to work slower for other customers. It is also important to note that BitTorrent often violates copyright laws.

In ordering Comcast to stop blocking BitTorrent downloads, the FCC said the ISP's actions amounted to discrimination against a certain type of content. Comcast argued that it was practicing "prudent network management" rather than content discrimination. The company took the matter to court and ultimately prevailed when the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington, DC, ruled that the FCC does not have the

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Wireless networks have increased access to the Internet in cafés, shops, and public spaces around the globe. Where is the most remote place you've ever logged on?

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authority to tell Comcast how to manage traffic on its network. In essence, the court was saying the FCC does not have the same authority over ISPs that it has over telephone companies (Kang, 2010).

While it was a clear victory for Comcast, this ruling did nothing to resolve the other issues related to Network Neutrality. For instance, public interests groups have joined companies like Google and Amazon.com in arguing that this ruling handcuffs the FCC from stepping in if Comcast decides to prevent its customers from receiving content that doesn't slow network traffic. There is nothing in the ruling about setting prices for broadband access, either.

Meanwhile, the FCC has released its National Broadband Plan, a 376-page document that outlines its vision of an Internet on which all citizens will have easy access to all legal content. It's unlikely that the vision outlined in that document will become reality, however, unless Congress passes new laws that spell out exactly who has the authority to regulate ISPs.

Links for More Information

Net Neutrality Sparks Lots of Talk, Very Little Action http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/70181.html (http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/70181.html)

Connecting America: The National Broadband Plan https://www.fcc.gov/general/national-broadband-plan (https://www.fcc.gov/general/national-broadband-plan)

Wireless Networks

The dramatic expansion of wireless networks has significantly changed when and how we go online. When you walk into a bookstore or coffee shop, you will often notice that the establishment has a Wi-Fi network. This is a wireless Internet connection you can log onto with your laptop, smartphone, or tablet. You can also create a Wi-Fi network at home by using a wireless router. Then you can take your laptop to your backyard and surf the Internet, or log into your classroom. Make sure you set up passwords so neighbors or strangers passing by will not be able to see your private information or log onto your network for free.

To log into a network, each user will need a password. There are levels of password security that are known as strong and weak passwords. A weak password is something a hacker might easily guess, like the first name of your child. A strong password is something that has no relation to you, and that combines different character sets such as numbers, uppercase and lowercase letters, and also special characters such as #$%&. "David" is an example of a weak password. "DaVid39x" is an example of a strong password. A strong password is impossible to guess, making it extremely difficult for an automated hacking program to gain access to your network (Dale & Lewis, 2006, p. 490).

Bandwidth

How fast is your Internet connection speed, and how much data can you send and receive at one time? A high bandwidth means you can share larger amounts of information more quickly. The larger the bandwidth (sometimes called the pipeline), the better. Different types of network connections have different bandwidth capabilities. There are three main types: voiceband, medium band, and broadband (the largest). Just as we saw in regard to measuring the speed of a CPU, there are also measurements for the speed of the dataflow. Bits per second (bps) is the most basic number (Shinder, 2001). Remember, a single letter requires 8 bits to represent it. So, a modem that could transmit 80 bits per second has the capability to send or receive 10 letters each second. Thankfully, modem speeds have increased dramatically since the 1950s.

With increasing speed came new metric terms such as kilobits per second (Kbps, or thousands of bits per second), megabits per second (Mbps, or millions of bits per second), and gigabits per second (Gbps, or billions of bits per second). In the early 1990s, you would have been happy with a modem that enabled you to connect to the Internet at 2400 bps. This meant that it would have taken several minutes to download a single picture. You can check the speed of your current Internet connection at http://www.speedtest.net/ (http://www.speedtest.net/) . This site will test upload speed (how fast you can send data to the Internet) and download speed (how fast you can take data from the Internet to view or save on your computer).

It is not easy to assign a specific speed rate to these individual types of connections. Nevertheless, a cable modem is typically faster than DSL. Though average performances for cable modems are roughly 30 Mbps, this is not always reached. DSL typically cannot go faster than 10 Mbps.

A variety of factors play a role in achieving faster or experiencing slower upload and download speeds. For example, if lots of people that live near you are all accessing the Internet with the same cable modem provider, then speeds for all will decrease. This is called a "shared pipe conduit" for cable modems, and in contrast DSL is not. Your home network might not have the most efficient technology, so speed can bottleneck here. (For more on this, click here (http://compnetworking.about.com/od/dslvscablemodem/a/speedcompare.htm) .)

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The choice between cable and DSL is not always up to the consumer. Not all places in the United States, and certainly not the world, have equal coverage with both. Therefore, some people have to select one or the other, or in some cases neither.

A Look Further: Modems

To learn more about modems by reading about their history, visit:

https://www.techradar.com/news/internet/getting-connected-a-history-of-modems-657479 (https://www.techradar.com/news/internet/getting-connected-a-history-of-modems-657479)

Encryption

Now, you have a sense of the way information is shared online, but sending and receiving data is not the only problem. Few people would want to do this without a way of securing the data and enabling only those intended to access it. You should feel secure in knowing the data you send and receive online is encrypted to help prevent people from eavesdropping or hacking into your information. Encryption is something that people could do to send secret messages. They might establish a code in which 1=a, 2=b, 3=c, etc. So, an encrypted message reading "8, 9" and "13, 1, 18, 11" is decrypted as "Hi Mark." Computers do the same thing with information, though the encryption key is much more sophisticated.

Firewalls

One important concern with networks is access. Unless you are creating a Web page that you want everyone to see, most networks contain data that need to be shielded from the outside world. The main network server also must be protected from outside threats such as viruses, malware, and spam. One of the most important ways to do this is with a firewall. In everyday life, a firewall is a nonflammable wall material that prevents the spread of fires in a building. This is a perfect metaphor for the protection a network needs against the threats it faces from the real world. A computer firewall is a coordinated collection of hardware and software that prevents outsiders from gaining access to your private data and also shields your computer from threats.

A network firewall cannot provide absolute security, but it is one essential tool in helping to prevent the spread of viruses inside a network. The computer firewall achieves this in several ways. First, a firewall is a combination of hardware and software (although in personal computers it might be just software) that examines and filters all of the traffic coming into a server. Based on a series of ever-changing virus definitions and identified threats, the firewall might decide to block some messages completely. This is also achieved through antivirus appliances and software. Second, the firewall can be set up to prevent users inside the network from accessing certain types of websites (such as games at work). Third, a firewall is where access control policies for a network are defined.

There are both one-way and two-way firewalls. The first is a firewall that only allows outbound information. A two-way firewall can send and receive information. One example of a two-way firewall is when you are working on your computer and one of your programs alerts you that it needs an update. Instead of doing this without your knowledge (which is what a computer virus might do) the two-way firewall will ask your permission. This helps ensure that the update is intended and not malicious.

How to Set up a Home Wireless Network

Several decades ago, it was rare for even one home device to be connected to the Internet. Now, many homes have multiple devices that require access. Since it is inconvenient to run cables all over the house, an easier way is to set up a Wi-Fi network. Then, every device with Wi-Fi connectivity (and the password) can easily get online, including computers, smartphones, tablets, gaming systems, televisions, and Blu-ray players. Today, it is truly amazing how many different home devices impact our lives and are wirelessly driven.

Setting up a Wi-Fi network at home is relatively easy to accomplish and PC Magazine has outlined these 5 key steps (Lynn, 2012):

1. Connect the wireless router to the Internet. 2. Access the router's interface. This is done via the computer and a Web browser. 3. Configure security and IP address. This is done in the router's interface. It is important to have protection when you create a Wi-Fi network. The

firewall here is called Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA). For large businesses, this will include an authentication server, but for the home it might simply be a Pre-shared Key (PSK). This is a code, or a password, that authorizes and enables each device to work with the network. Without a security setting, then your neighbors can steal your Wi-Fi signal.

4. Establish sharing and control. 5. Set up accounts. This is simply giving people user names and passwords.

You do not need a degree in computer networking to achieve this, but these careers are open for those who enjoy the advanced aspects of networking.

Careers in Networking

Exciting careers are available in many aspects of computing. Networking is one example. If you are interested in this field, you could become a network administrator. This is someone who manages a network for an organization, including all of the client computers and the main server. Someone who manages 200 or less computers is a small-to-medium administrator, while large administrators control bigger networks. Network administrators must be able to understand the various database applications that run on the server, such as Oracle and SQL, and email servers, such as Microsoft® Exchange.

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As the number of devices that use Wi-Fi to access the Internet increases, it often makes sense to set up a home wireless network. How many wireless-enabled devices do you have in your home?

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Their duties include restricting or granting access to data on the server, as well as protecting the entire network from outside threats.

An Internet administrator is another career option in networking. These jobs include building Web pages, or managing application protocols for working online. Finally, you might also consider going into end user support, where you would specialize in working on the client side of the computers and determining how they interact with the network (Hallberg, 2005, p. xxii). Often, you will see that those with networking credentials have certifications. Examples are Microsoft® Certified Professional, or Cisco Certified Network Associate. The CISSP, which is the Certified Information Systems Security Professional, and the GIAC, which is the Global Information Assurance Certification, are also in demand.

CompTIA provides vendor-neutral certifications. It offers many certification exams (for more information click here (https://www.comptia.org/certifications) ). Some of these certifications include:

CompTIA A+ Certification CompTIA Network + CompTIA Server + CompTIA Security + CompTIA Linux® +

One of the purposes of this section is to give you a better idea about what goes on behind the scenes at your place of business or when you are connected to the Internet. Unless you are one of these professionals, you as a user will rarely notice these activities.

But these are not the only careers available in computing. The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) is a professional organization that promotes computing. It has a website that lists various careers in fields such as computer engineering, computer science, information systems, information technology, software engineering, and gaming. To learn about what you can do with a background in computing, visit https://www.acm.org/ (https://www.acm.org/) .

Interviews from the Field: Software Architect

What are your primary responsibilities?

To design, develop, and implement software applications.

What are the most important skills needed for your job?

An analytical mind, an aptitude for solving problems, and the ability to think abstractly and to break down complex problems into simple units of code. Though somewhat understated, a key component is having the patience and ability to learn from other people's code, as well as an open mind toward suggestions provided by fellow developers.

What do you like best about your job?

It never becomes stale. It is a fast-moving industry and you are solving new problems every day. To be a good software developer, you constantly need to learn new technologies and find ways to solve hard problems for your customers.

What got you interested in entering this field?

I started programming when I was a kid. I was thrilled to learn that I could create new games when I was tired of the ones I had.

What is your educational background, and how did it prepare you for your job?

I have a bachelor's degree in engineering and a master's degree in business administration and computer science.

Programming is one area where you'd find a lot of well-respected experts who do not have a formal college degree. You will also see music majors and literature majors doing extremely well in this industry. Partly, it is because there is no other subject that has been so widely discussed and written about on the Web. Having said that, a math or computer science degree definitely helps.

Can you give an example of a project you are working on now?

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I am currently working on a project focused on making online textbook publishing easy as well as making reading and learning easy for students.

Questions to Consider

1. Why would you want to connect your computer to other people's computers? 2. Why is a network important? 3. What are three types of networks, and where would you find them? 4. What are the differences between peer-to-peer and client/server network architecture? 5. What is the difference between a printer server and a file server? 6. Why would a workgroup be used in a network? 7. What is the function of a router? 8. What are some network protocols and the types of data they control? 9. What is an IP address?

10. Which speed is faster: Kbps or Mbps? Why is a large bandwidth important? 11. What is a firewall? What are some of the important functions it performs? 12. What is the difference between a strong and a weak password?

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When it was released in 2004, Mozilla's® open-source browser Firefox® was expected to be the first browser that could compete with Internet Explorer™. Which Web browser do you prefer today, and why?

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5.3 The Browser Wars Now that you have a much better understanding of what a network is, in this section we will look at the largest and most well-known and used network— the Internet. The main way that the Internet is accessed is through an application called the browser. Typically a free program, the browser is the gateway to everything you might want to do online, and as more things are available online to do, the browser is fast becoming the application that is most likely to be on top of your computer. As a result, this is an area that is highly fought over, with some of the largest companies in the world (such as Microsoft® and Google) striving to create the winning browser. These are the browser wars, and they have been fought for the past two decades.

Before Browsers

In the beginning, graphical browsers for the Internet did not exist. The connection speeds were simply too slow, and as a result, everything was simple text. During this period, before the 1990s, people used the Internet in a variety of ways. First, they sent email, but these were all text based, along with emoticons for expressing emotion. Emoticon examples were :) for happy, :( for sad, and :0 for surprised. Combining text characters like this was about as graphically sophisticated as the Internet became. Ironically, these emoticons have returned today as a shorthand way to communicate emotions while texting.

However, there were other ways to use the Internet. People used Telnet to log into other computers and access files and data. Another tool called FTP (File Transfer Protocol), which we saw in an earlier section, allowed people to send files and programs from one computer to another. Usenet was a place where people gathered to exchange information on shared interests, such as dogs, computers, sports, and so on. Listservs were similar, but these were groups people subscribed to, and the information and discussions were emailed to all members.

The final main use of the Internet before the browser was a tool called Gopher. This was an early search-and-retrieval aid that navigated computer files to try to find what a user was looking for. But with the invention of the World Wide Web in 1990, the Web browser was on the horizon, and the Gopher would die a relatively quick death.

The First Browsers

As modem speeds began to increase in the early 1990s, many people began to realize there could be a graphical browser that brought images and colors to the Web. The first was Mosaic, developed at the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) in 1993. Several of the people who developed Mosaic formed their own company, called Mosaic Netscape. Because of a trademark violation, the name Mosaic was dropped, and the browser became Netscape Navigator®.

Then came Netscape's biggest competitor—a browser called Internet Explorer™. This competitor was significant because Microsoft® developed it. Since Microsoft® had virtual control of the desktop with its Windows® operating system, its browser had a leg up on all its competitors. Its strategy was to simply include Internet Explorer™ with every copy of its operating system, thus placing it on the desktop of every new computer. The "big blue e," which was the icon that launched Internet Explorer™, began appearing on all new computers. This was Microsoft®'s frontal assault in the browser wars. Some companies fought back. Compaq, for example, in August 1995, removed the Internet Explorer™ icon and replaced it with Netscape Navigator®. In response, Microsoft® reduced the price of its software to Compaq with the assurance that Internet Explorer™ would be restored.

Firefox®

Microsoft®'s dominance has not dissuaded other companies from attempting to win a loyal following. Scott Granneman (2005), in a book cleverly titled Don't Click on the Blue e!, discussed many of these efforts. One of the companies with the greatest success has been Mozilla® (it created its name by combining Mosaic- killer and Godzilla). Mozilla® created an open-source browser, meaning that its source code was opened to developers and users for free, in the hope that they would write new updates for it and improve it. It was released in June 2002. At the time, it included an email program, an address book, and a Web page editor. But what began to get the most notice was its Web browser. In November 2004, Mozilla released Firefox®, the browser that many thought would be able to compete with Internet Explorer™. In one month's time, 10 million people downloaded Firefox® for free. This represented 5% of the Microsoft® Internet Explorer™ market (Granneman, 2005).

Safari®

In 2003, Apple® joined the browser wars with the release of its application called Safari®. This is the default browser that ships with every Macintosh® computer. Versions for it can also be found on Apple® handheld computing devices such as the iPhone® (which is a phone, Web browser, and music player). Safari®, like Firefox®, is an open-source program, and it also can run on PCs. Mac® users

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often install Firefox® even if they like Safari®, because some websites do not work with the Apple® browser, and therefore a backup browser is needed. Safari® is the default browser for the iPad® and the iPhone®, though it also runs on Windows®.

Opera

One other Web browser that dates back to the mid-1990s is Opera. It is a Norwegian company that continues to excel in creating powerful Web browsers for nearly any type of device. This includes PC, Macintosh® and it is also considered the world's most popular browser for mobile phones. To learn more about this company, visit http://www.opera.com/ (http://www.opera.com/) .

Dolphin

With the rise of mobile computing, companies are focusing their browser efforts on these platforms. One example is MoboTap, established in 2010. Its first product was the Dolphin Browser, which uses Gesture and voice control (what MoboTap calls Sonar) to enable people to interact with the Web, and even "train" their Dolphin to deliver content in a way that adapts to the user. To learn more about the Dolphin Browser, go to http://dolphin-browser.com/about/ (http://dolphin-browser.com/about/) .

Chrome™

The latest combatant in the browser wars comes from another well-known company—Google. We will be talking about Google in Chapter 6, but for now, all you need to know is that this company built a strong and profitable reputation with a website that made searching the Internet very effective. Since that time, Google has been expanding its operations into other Internet-based products, and its Web browser called Chrome™ is one example. Many people have wondered why Google decided to create its own browser (released in 2008), when Firefox®, Internet Explorer™, and Safari® had such devoted followings. Looking to the future, some suggest that what was really behind Google's release of Chrome™ was the company's desire to create a Web- based operating system. If they could achieve this goal, then there would essentially be no need for Microsoft®. The concept that applications of the future will not reside on your computer but will be located on the Internet is called cloud computing. We will discuss this topic in more detail in the final chapter of this book. Clearly, there may be more to Chrome™ in the coming years than just another browser. When you look at how Google's programmers put Chrome™ together, it is clear that its powerful features may best be realized with its ability to work seamlessly with Web-based operating systems and applications (Ledford & Davis, 2009).

Common Features of all Browsers

No matter what browser you select, it will have certain features in common with other browsers. The first thing you should notice is the address bar, which begins with the letters http://. This is where you will enter the name of the website you want to visit. Most browsers have what is known as a tabbed browsing feature. This means you can open up several browsing windows at the same time without having to relaunch the program. These tabs are usually found toward the top of the page, just under the address bar. You will likely find a small tab with a + sign on it. This will open a new tab for you, and will let you have, for example, one tab where you link to CNN.com for news, a second for your email, and a third tab to connect to your school. The other common feature of all Web browsers is Bookmarks (called Favorites in Internet Explorer™). If you visit a website you like and want to come back to in the future, you should bookmark it so you do not have to remember its address. You can set your home page to your favorite website so it appears first when you open your browser (select Tools, Options, and Home Page to do this). When you visit other Web pages and enter personal information such as passwords, this information will be stored in your computer's memory.

This information is stored in the memory of the Web page that you visit and your computer, and is called a cookie. A cookie stores information about the client and a website on the person's computer. Having this information helps the server provide user-specific information on the site or bring up information from one website visit to the next.

The browser history will remember the addresses of all the Web pages you visit to help you track down sites you want to return to in the future. You might want to delete this browsing history, and also wipe clean your cookies. All browsers have the ability to do this, too, typically through the tools and settings options.

Another common feature to browsers is the plug-in (sometimes called the add-on or extensions). The plug-in can install a smaller software program into a larger application. Some browser-based programs need this extra software to properly run. Programs by Adobe® are one example. Therefore, you will sometimes need to install, and then periodically update your plug-ins.

A final feature common to Web pages is something called a Web widget. This is programming code that can be embedded into a Web page that you have access to. One example might be the local weather report from the Weather Channel. Instead of actually going to its website, you could embed the Weather Channel widget on your smartphone or tablet home page, or you could even put the widget on your Facebook profile.

You should now have a better understanding of the wars that are going on among Web browser applications. In the next section, we will look at how to create the content that all of these browsers are fighting to display. To put all of this development in perspective, you can watch the following short video from StatCounter, which shows the "Evolution of the Worldwide Browser Landscape" from 2008 to 2012: http://youtu.be/jtBlvutR9cU (http://youtu.be/jtBlvutR9cU) .

Questions to Consider

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1. Why does the Internet need Web browsers? Can you surf the Web without one? 2. What were some of the tools used to explore the Internet before the browser was invented? 3. When was the first Web browser invented, and what was it called? 4. What are some of the competing companies in the browser wars? 5. What is Firefox®? 6. What is the name of the default Apple® browser? 7. What may be Google's future plans with its browser? 8. What are some common features of all Web browsers?

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HTML is the coded programming language that indicates to computers how to display a Web page's information. Have you ever used HTML before?

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5.4 How to Build a Web Page One of the most powerful features of the Internet is that anyone can build a Web page and put it online. You do not have to possess the skills of a computer programmer or a network administrator. If you have a computer, some software, and an Internet connection, you can design a Web page that is accessible to every other Web-connected computer in the world. If you possess these skills, your ideas can be just clicks away for anyone to access from the United States to Zimbabwe and all countries in between. Building a Web page can be simpler than you might think, and in this section we will go through the steps required to create one.

Step One: Internet Service Provider

We will assume that you already have a computer and modem if you are reading this section, but it goes without saying that if you want a Web page, you will need both of these. The first step is to find an Internet Service Provider (ISP). An ISP is a company that you choose to provide your connection to the Web. It could be a national provider such as Time Warner Cable, AT&T, Verizon, DirectTV, or you might prefer a local Internet service provider. Various providers offer vastly different connection speeds (a topic we discussed earlier). Other differences between the hosting companies include storage restrictions, access restrictions, support options, and database and email address restrictions. It is important to explore the options and select the ISP that best fits your needs.

Step Two: Web Hosting

Now that you have an ISP, you will need to find a company to host your Web page. You will most likely have to pay the company a hosting fee, and again, there are many companies that offer this service. Your ISP may also provide this service. One popular and low-cost host is called godaddy.com, and others include Yahoo!®, justhost.com, ipage.com, and hostmonster.com. After you set up an account with a hosting company, this is where you will upload your Web pages. No one who accesses your Web page will know who is actually hosting it, because this information is invisible to the user.

Step Three: Domain Name

What do you want to call your website? You can pick any name you want, but you will need to be creative because you cannot duplicate a name that anyone else has chosen. Website names are like snowflakes; no two are the same. The first thing you will want to do is decide on a Web extension. This is what appears at the very end of the name, after a period. Some common extensions include .com, .edu, .net, .org, .gov, .biz, .info, .name, and .us. You may recognize .com as the best known of these top-level domains. These extensions have loosely defined meanings: .com and .biz are for businesses, .edu is for educational institutions, .org is often for nonprofit organizations (though this does not always mean that the .org sites are to be trusted), and .us is for the United States. There are hundreds of additional extensions, but these are the most common. In total, the Domain Name System (DNS) represents the system for naming all of the devices that are connected to the Internet.

Now, you will need to secure your Web page name, which is called your domain. To obtain a name, you have to register one. If you were doing this through http://www.godaddy.com/ (http://www.godaddy.com/) (other options are http://doteasy.com (http://doteasy.com) , http://www.register.com (http://www.register.com) , http://www.bluehost.com (http://www.bluehost.com) , and http://www.hostgator.com (http://www.hostgator.com) ), you would select Domains and then Register Domains on its website. Enter the name you would like into the search box, select the preferred extension, and see if it is available. If no one has registered it, you can make it your own by reserving it for a given length of time. Remember, when this time is up, you will have to renew it, or someone else can claim the name. For example, if you selected "digitalliteracyatschool.com," this would become your unique domain name. When you start uploading documents and other HTML pages, such as computerliteracyatschool.com/week1/test.doc, this becomes a URL (uniform resource locator). To find that specific page, users would type this name into the address box of the browsers (you can find it because it starts with http://).

Step Four: Basic HTML

Now the hard work begins. You need to figure out what you want to put online. In this example, we will insert some simple text, but as your skills become more advanced, you can use images, video, data entry screens, and other objects to communicate your vision (or commercial product) to the world. The Web programming language is known at HTML, or Hypertext Markup language. This is the code that tells each computer that is browsing the Web how to display the information on a Web page.

There are two main ways to create an HTML page. You can code it yourself or you can use an HTML editor. Let's discuss the first approach. To code an HTML page yourself, you have to learn a new way to communicate with the computer. Let's look at the Hello World! example from our discussion of programming languages. The HTML for this would be:

<html> <head> </head>

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<body> Hello World! </body> </html>

This code tells the computer that you want to display Hello World! in the body of the Web page. If you replaced <body>Hello World!</body> in the example above with <h1>Hello World!</h1> (which is nested between the body tags), then the message would be displayed in a heading style in a different and larger font. There are numerous HTML codes you could use. To put the text in bold, you would use <b>Hello World!</b>. For italics, the HTML tag would be <i>Hello World!</i>. You will notice that each tag appears twice. In the bolding example, the first tag in angled brackets (called a tag), <b>, turns on bold, and the second tag, which is typed with a slash, </b>, turns off the bold.

If you wanted to put a link on your Web page to your school's website, you would enter this in HTML: <a href="http://">Click here to visit my school's site<a/>. Insert the website after the http://. This would show "Click here to visit my school's site" on your Web page, and when someone clicked it with their mouse, they would be taken to the designated Web page. This should give you an example of what the raw Web page codes look like. Of course, using an HTML editor can make this process much easier.

A Look Further: HTML Coding

If you want to see the HTML for any of the Web pages you visit, your Web browser has a "view page source" option, which shows the HTML code. For more on this, see the following.

Learn to create websites by visiting: http://w3schools.com/ (http://w3schools.com/) The governing body of the Internet: http://www.w3.org/ (http://www.w3.org/) The "ultimate" HTML resource: http://www.htmlgoodies.com/ (http://www.htmlgoodies.com/)

Step Five: HTML Editors

The easiest way for beginners to create Web pages is to use an HTML editor. Many of these are WYSIWYG (recall that this is an acronym for What You See Is What You Get), which means they have an interface that is much like a word processor. You start with a blank screen and type text wherever you want it, add images, or insert video. Then the computer translates the page into HTML code for you. Microsoft® Word has a basic HTML editor, but it sometimes creates pages that are only compatible with the Internet Explorer™ browser. To overcome this limitation, it is usually better to download your own HTML editor. An excellent—and free—HTML editor is called KompoZer, which is available at http://kompozer.net/ (http://kompozer.net/) .

Once you download and install your HTML editor, you will notice three tabs at the bottom of the screen along with a dropdown box. The dropdown box on the right enables several views such as Normal, HTML Tags, and preview. The Design tab shows whatever option is selected in the dropdown box. The Source tab shows the HTML source code. The Split tab literally splits the screen with the top replicating the design view and the bottom the source code. You enter and edit text just as you would do in Word, using many of the same icons and menu options. Use these when you want to change fonts or make your text bold, italic, underlined, or justified.

Now, let's look at how to insert an image and add a Web link. (Remember, if you want text, just type it in, and what you see is what you get!) First, click on the Image link on the top menu bar. If the image is on your computer, then select the open folder icon to the right of the Image Properties dialog box. Double-click the image when you find it. Select OK, and then you are done. To enter a Web link, the process is similar. Select the Link option on the top menu bar. In the Link Text section, enter the words you want to display on your Web page, such as "Click here to visit my school's site." Then in the Link Location, enter the actual URL. When you are viewing the Web page online, clicking on the text will take you to your school's site.

After you have finished editing your Web page, save your changes. If you want this to be the home page of the website you are creating, be sure to name the file index.html (or index.htm). This is the first page that will show when someone logs onto your site. It is the landing site, the home page, and the entry point into a website.

It is also worth mentioning that if you are creating basic Web pages, you do not need a dedicated HTML editor. You can also create this code with common text editors like notepad, textpad, and also Word.

The Final Step: FTP Your Website

For the final step, you will use an FTP tool to move the files you created from your computer to the server of the Web host that you selected in step two. It seems that every Web host has a different process for doing this, but all require the same basic steps. First, log onto your account at your Web host. If your host is godaddy.com, you will then select the Hosting Option and click on Manage Account. The Hosting Control Center then opens up, and you should select Your Files. This opens up the File Manager. Select Content and then FTP Client. This FTP Client is for moving files from your computer to the GoDaddy computers. On the left side of the screen, you will see a file listing called Local System. These are the files in your computer right now. On the right side, you will see another file listing called Remote System. These are all the files currently on your Web page. To move the file you just created in

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KompoZer from your computer to your website, find it in the Local System and single-click on the file name. At the bottom of the screen, you will see an arrow pointing to the right. If you hover your mouse pointer over it, the arrow says Upload. Select it to move the file to your Web page. Now your index.htm file is on the host server. It is important to remember that if you included any images on your Web page, you will also have to upload these files to your Web host. To make sure everything has been loaded, open your Web browser and visit your domain name. You, and the rest of the world, should now be able to see what you uploaded.

So, now that you have built your website, will people come? Sometimes they need a little help, and if you are selling a product, you might want to pay for advertising. At the very least, you should add your site to the Google database. Likely, Google would find you eventually, but to facilitate this process go to http://www.google.com/addurl (http://www.google.com/addurl) . Enter your website address and some brief comments, and then you will be part of the Google world. To see how the site is doing as far as Web traffic, you will need something called analytics, which are website statistics on the amount of traffic or visitors you are getting. Google has its own product to assist, called Google Analytics™, available at http://www.google.com/analytics (http://www.google.com/analytics) . Other options exist such as Analytics SEO (http://www.analyticsseo.com/ (http://www.analyticsseo.com/) ), which is a toolkit of options for monitoring website performance. Another option is Alexa (http://www.alexa.com (http://www.alexa.com) ), which provides information about websites, including who owns them and how popular they are.

Since you have completed the tutorial for the Internet and the World Wide Web, you should have a much better understanding of where the Internet came from, how to connect to it, and the significance of a network. You should also be familiar with the various application programs for browsing the Web, along with the basic steps required to develop your own Web page.

WordPress and Blogger

If building a website from scratch is beyond what you want to do, you can also create a Web presence much more easily with Web applications like WordPress. An excellent step-by-step guide can be found here: http://codex.wordpress.org/New_To_WordPress_-_Where_to_Start (http://codex.wordpress.org/New_To_WordPress_-_Where_to_Start) . As of August 2012, it was the home of 421,000 bloggers, and one of the best features is that it is a free service. WordPress is supported by ads in the free versions, but it is a simple way to build Web pages and publish content for the world to see.

Another option is blogger.com. This is a Web-based tool that lets users publish blogs quickly and efficiently. Users get control of the location of a blog, and full editorial features, without having to learn how to program in HTML or other scripting code. See http://www.blogger.com/home (http://www.blogger.com/home) .

Questions to Consider

1. What are the basic steps involved in building a Web page? 2. What is an ISP? 3. What services does a Web host provide? 4. What are some examples of Web extensions? 5. What is a Web domain? 6. What does URL stand for, and what purpose does a URL serve? 7. What basic HTML codes would you use to make the words Hello World! appear on a Web page? 8. What is the value of an HTML editor? 9. How do you send your Web page files from your computer to the Web host?

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5.5 Accessibility and Usability We often take our own health and well-being for granted. And, we are sometimes unaware of the struggles and difficulties others face in performing simple daily tasks that we accomplish without even thinking. If you are fortunate to have a strong body, with all your senses working in peak condition, then you can essentially go anywhere, do what you want, and learn anything you like. But not everyone has this luxury, and as a society, we are now helping those with disabilities to overcome their limitations. Certainly, you have noticed examples of this as you go about your life. There are handicapped parking spaces located close to buildings. Crosswalks have both audio and video signals to tell pedestrians when they can walk. Television programs have Closed Caption options for those who are hearing impaired. Office buildings often post their signs with a Braille translation underneath (patterns of raised bumps that correspond to letters of the alphabet) for those who are visually impaired. Ramps now let those in wheelchairs easily enter and exit buildings and public spaces.

But how accessible are the Internet and computers? Have they been designed with inclusivity in mind, or are those who have physical handicaps prevented from accessing information and using computers for other tasks? Fortunately, over the past decade, important strides have been made to open up the World Wide Web to larger numbers of people and to make computers easier for everyone to use. In this section, we will explore some of these developments that are designed to improve accessibility, which means increasing the number of disabled and able-bodied people who can use computers and the Internet, and also usability, which means improving the efficiency and value of what these people find when they use computers and go online.

The Web and the Visually Impaired

In the mid-1990s, when the visual Internet began evolving from its all-text-based past with new graphical browsers, most people were thrilled with the new opportunities. However, for the visually impaired it was a different story. They had been using email for years with a text reader that converted the words to sounds with a voice synthesizer. But when the Web began including pictures instead of text, many of their sources for information went blank. One visually impaired person described how cumbersome it was. To begin with, this person would hear the computer say, "Welcome to. . .," followed by the name of the website. This was fine, but as soon as a picture appeared on the screen, the synthesizer would say something cryptic like, "image. . .link. . .link. . .link" (Sreenivasan, 1996). With more websites becoming image-based by the late 1990s, it became clear that something had to be done.

Web Accessibility Standards

Advocacy groups such as the Web Standard Project's Accessibility Task Force and the World Wide Web Consortium have been instrumental in the development of solutions for these problems. They have strongly argued that the HTML code itself should have embedded in it the information that makes the Internet available to all. This does not detract from the Web experience for those without visual impairments, because the markup, or descriptive text, is hidden from them. Websites that are in compliance with these accessibility standards do not sacrifice any of the flash and visual excitement of other sites. They simply are enhanced with information that is available for those who need it. Since the Internet is inherently a democratic storehouse of information, ensuring that it is accessible for all is essential to attaining its full potential. The Web Accessibility Initiative developed the first set of fourteen standards in 1999 that include the following guidelines from http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-WEBCONTENT/ (http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-WEBCONTENT/) :

1. Provide equivalent alternatives to auditory and visual content. 2. Don't rely on color alone. If color is the only way to define a piece of information, those who are blind will be at a disadvantage. 3. Use markup and style sheets and do so properly. 4. Clarify natural language usage. 5. Create simplified tables that can be easily described with text. 6. Ensure that pages featuring new technologies transform gracefully. 7. Ensure user control of time-sensitive content changes. 8. Ensure direct accessibility of embedded user interfaces. 9. Design for device-independence.

10. Use interim accessibility solutions so that technologies that assist a disadvantaged reader and older browsers will operate correctly. One example is that some of the older screen readers interpret a list of consecutive links as one link.

11. Use W3C technologies and guidelines. 12. Provide context and orientation information. 13. Provide clear navigation mechanisms. 14. Ensure that documents are clear and simple.

The eleven authors of a book published in 2007 called Web Accessibility, Web Standards and Regulatory Compliance simplified what these 14 points meant for the Web designer and the disabled user (Thatcher et al., 2007). Ultimately, the goal was for all pictures to have text equivalents so that visually impaired people could access them; all audio on a website to be subtitled, with a transcription available for those who have difficulty hearing; all links to be organized so as to make them navigable by those with motor disabilities; and all sites to be organized so that they could be understood by those with learning disabilities (Thatcher et al., 2007, p. xxxvi).

Mobile Websites

In terms of accessibility, mobile websites are also gaining significant popularity. Since smartphones typically have very small screens, often Web pages designed for large computer monitors are difficult to interact with. As a result, Web designers redesign these pages and optimize them for smaller screens.

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There are thousands of these and if you are looking for them, a good place to start is eboogie.com, which lists movie-friendly websites.

The eboogie.com site breaks mobile websites into the following categories: news, weather, sports, search, entertainment, social media, travel, financial, technology, reference, pest control, and food and drink.

The Technology of Accessibility

In addition to accessibility standards, technological development has expanded the learning frontiers for those who are disabled. One example is the Kurzweil readers and educational systems. Raymond Kurzweil is a brilliant engineer who invented the first OCR (optical character recognition) software and the first print-to-speech software for the visually impaired. Kurzweil's technology goes well beyond assisting only visually impaired people, to helping anyone who is considered a "struggling reader" for any number of reasons, including not having English as a first language. Since the Internet is mostly in English, this can be a significant barrier to usability. Other issues involve those who have ADD, dyslexia, arthritis, or other physical or learning disorders. The Kurzweil system overcomes these difficulties by reading the Web content to the user and even creating audio files that can be sent to an iPod® or other music player.

This technology has made rapid gains. Kurzweil himself noted that in the 1980s, the musician Stevie Wonder paid more than $100,000 for an early version of a Kurzweil reading system that was about the size of a small spaceship. Today, these devices have shrunk in size to versions that can be held in your hand, with prices between $1,000 and $2,000 (Reiff, 2007, p. 134). The latest version is the Kurzweil National Federation of the Blind Reader. This handheld device is placed over any type of print, ranging from a business card to a restaurant menu to a document from a computer.

Other recent software packages have a voice feature. For example, Adobe® has what it calls the Read Out Loud PDF. Microsoft® includes Narrator with its Windows® operating system to access this. Table 5.1 lists some common keyboard shortcuts that will read aloud information.

Table 5.1: Common keyboard shortcut functions

Keyboard shortcut Function

Ctrl+Shift+Enter Get information about the current item.

Ctrl+Shift+Spacebar Read the entire selected window.

Ctrl+Alt+Spacebar Read the items that are selected in the current window.

Insert+Ctrl+G Read a description of the items that appear next to the currently selected element.

Ctrl Stop Narrator from reading text.

Insert+Q Move the cursor backward to the beginning of any preceding text that has different formatting. For example, the cursor moves from a bold word to the beginning of a non-bold word that precedes it.

Insert+W Move the cursor to the beginning of any text that follows it that has different formatting. For example, the cursor moves from a bold word to the beginning of a non-bold word that follows it.

Insert+E Move the cursor back to the beginning of any text that has the same formatting. For example, the cursor moves from the middle of a bold word to the beginning of that word.

Insert+R Move the cursor to the end of any text that has the same formatting. For example, the cursor moves from the middle of a bold word to the end of that word.

Insert+F2 Select all of the text that has the same formatting as the character at the cursor.

Insert+F3 Read the current character.

Insert+F4 Read the current word.

Insert+F5 Read the current line.

Insert+F6 Read the current paragraph.

Insert+F7 Read the current page.

Insert+F8 Read the current document.

Source: http://windows.microsoft.com/is-IS/Windows7/Hear-text-read-aloud-with-Narrator (http://windows.microsoft.com/is-IS/Windows7/Hear-text-read-aloud-with-Narrator)

The iPad® and the iPhone® also have special VoiceOver features for the visually impaired. Apple® describes it as the "world's first gesture-based screen reader, enabling you to enjoy the fun and simplicity of iPhone® even if you can't see the screen." It works like this. By touching any part of the screen the VoiceOver (available in many languages) will tell you what is there. As you drag your finger, you will hear exactly what is nearby to gain an audible and physical sense of the information. Once it is activated, you would tap a button to hear a description of it, and double-tap to carry out the command (http://www.apple.com/asia/accessibility/ios/voiceover/ (http://www.apple.com/asia/accessibility/ios/voiceover/) ).

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Many Web browsers include options to read text out loud. For example, Google's Chrome™ has a feature called ChromeVox, which is a screen reader that lets visually impaired people use the Chrome™ browser (https://chrome.google.com/webstore/search/chromevox (https://chrome.google.com/webstore/search/chromevox) ).

Privacy

There is an implicit trust that users have when browsing the Internet and engaging in interactions that their communications are private (unless made with your real name in a social network). For example, if you purchase a book with your credit card from Amazon.com you trust that no one else will eavesdrop on the transaction and use your credit card numbers for their gain.

The most basic element of privacy is to not leave a trace of where you go on the computer you use every day. Of course in many instances you will want the computer to know where you have been so it can remember your user name and password. But, for example, what if you were shopping for a gift for a loved one on a shared PC? Then you would want to hide your activity.

One way to do this is InPrivate Browsing, which blocks the browser from remembering browsing history, temporary Internet files, form data, cookies, and user names and passwords. InPrivate Browsing is initiated by pressing Ctrl+Shift+P. To end the session, simply close the browser. The Chrome™ Web browser calls this function Incognito, which can be started by clicking the wrench icon in the corner and selecting "New incognito window." A new window with an icon of a man in glasses, trench coat, and hat (a stereotypical spy) appears while the incognito mode is on. Mobile phones also have this option and in 2011, Firefox® was the first mobile Web browser to offer a Do Not Track feature. It is important to remember that even if you turn on one of these modes, the websites you visit know you were there. Finally, a key point about security is in the website URL name itself. While sometimes you will see HTTP, often you will see HTTPS. The "S" stands for "Secure" and this prevents a third party from hacking into transactions on the Web. This was initially popular for Web payments, but has since expanded into other areas.

Questions to Consider

1. Can everyone use the Internet? Why is it important that everyone, regardless of his or her physical ability or disability, be able to use the Internet?

2. What is the difference between accessibility and usability? 3. What were some of the early problems visually impaired people faced when using a graphical Web browser? 4. What are some advocacy groups that have pushed for Web accessibility standards? 5. Why is Web page markup information important? 6. What are some suggestions made by the Web Accessibility Initiative? 7. Who is Raymond Kurzweil?

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Summary In this chapter, our goal was to focus on the World Wide Web and the millions of computers that are connected together to form the Internet. You learned some important Internet basics, such as how all of these computers are networked together and the way data is shared between them. These connections take place behind the scenes, so to speak, as users access the Internet through their browsers. We looked at the main types of browser software that can be used to access the wealth of online knowledge. Access is an important theme, and equality of access, made possible through the Web Accessibility Standards, attempts to ensure that everyone has an equal opportunity to get online and use what is there. Finally, we provided step-by-step guidance on how to build your own Web page, should you want to make your presence felt online.

Evolution of Networking and the Internet

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Key Ideas

In a remarkably short period of time—from the 1960s to the early 21st century—computers went from isolated machines to nearly all of them being connected to each other. Networks are the lifeblood of computing in the 21st century because they enable computer users to share data and applications, interact with friends and colleagues, and collaborate with employers, teachers, and other students. The main way users access the Internet is through a program called a browser. Web pages contain the content on the Internet, and one of their most powerful features is that anyone can build one. It is essential that the Internet is accessible to everyone, including those with sight, hearing, and mobility disabilities.

Critical Thinking Questions

1. Think about the different places where you access the Internet (school, work, home, library, coffee shop, etc.). What types of technology do you use to connect in each of these places? How is speed different? Do you change the way you use the Internet depending on the location, such as more social applications in a coffee shop?

2. What are the various network architectures you encounter in a typical day? How often are you "wired" versus "wirelessly" connecting to data? 3. If you were given a free network certification class, which one would you sign up for and why? 4. What browser do you use? As an experiment, after reading the chapter, try downloading one of the browsers mentioned with which you have the

least experience. Use it exclusively for a couple of days. What features do you like most and least about it compared to your current browser? 5. If you were given the time, equipment, and the knowledge for how to build a Web page, what would you choose to design? Who would use it? 6. Have you ever considered how difficult it might be to explore the Internet if you were blind? Think for a moment how you might perform your

favorite online task if you were blind, deaf, or physically disabled. Would it change the frequency or ways that you interact?

Key Terms

Click on each key term to see the definition.

accessibility (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Ensuring the capacity of disabled and able-bodied people to use computers and the Internet.

analytics (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Statistics on the amount of traffic and visitors to a website.

bandwidth (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

The amount of information that can be transferred on a network at any given time (also called the pipeline).

bits per second (bps) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Basic term for transmission speed.

browser (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Program that serves as the gateway to everything you might want to do online.

bus (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A cable that shuttles data back and forth in a LAN network where every workstation is connected to a central computer.

cable modem (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A modem that uses a cable Ethernet wire to transfer data.

client/server (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Network architecture in which a powerful computer is the server, and the individual, less powerful workstations are the clients.

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cookie (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A piece of information or text that is stored on a computer by the Web browser.

dedicated server (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A computer that does nothing but control the other computers, or clients, in the network.

domain (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

The name of a website.

dotted quad (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

The four numbers, separated by periods, that are found in every IP address.

download speed (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Speed with which you can take data from the Internet and view or save it on your computer.

dynamic IP address (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Temporary IP address.

emoticons (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Text characters that are used to express emotion, such as :) for happy.

extranet (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A public network with limited restrictions.

File Transfer Protocol (FTP) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Protocol that governs the ways files are shared on the Internet.

firewall (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A coordinated collection of both hardware and software that prevents access to private data and also shields computers from threats.

HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Code that tells a computer how to display the information from a website.

HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Protocol that defines how information is displayed on a Web page.

hub (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A device that connects at least two nodes (or workstations) to a network.

Internet (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A vast worldwide collection of computer networks.

intranet (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

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Internal network that provides many of the same functions as the Internet (email, databases, documents, and so on) but is available only to a private group of people with passwords.

IP address (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

The actual number that identifies a device (node) connected to the Internet.

local area network (LAN) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Several computers at work or at home that are connected together.

markup (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Hidden descriptive Web text.

metropolitan area network (MAN) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Network that includes a city, or at least part of it, and is often operated by the government.

modem (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Device that converts the data you create on your computer (in its digital form of ones and zeros) into sound (electrical impulses).

motherboard (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

The main circuit board on every computer that contains the memory and central processing unit, and also controls the input and output devices.

network (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Anytime there are two or more computers that are linked together through either a wire (such as an Ethernet) or a wireless connection.

network interface card (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Circuit board that enables individual terminal computers or personal computers to connect to the Internet.

node (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Any device that is connected to the Internet.

packet (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A small quantity of information represented by binary information (zeros and ones).

packet switching (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

The way that data finds its path from the sender's computer to its destination (also known as store and forward packet switching).

peer-to-peer (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Network in which each computer has the same capabilities and privileges as any other computer.

plug-in (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Software that can be added to a larger system to increase its capabilities.

protocols (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

The way that computers talk to each other.

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router (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Sends data from one network to another.

Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Protocol that controls the flow of email traffic.

star network (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A network configuration in which each workstation connects only to the main server.

static IP address (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Unchanging IP address.

strong password (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A password unlikely to be discovered by a hacker.

switches (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Controls that allow only certain data to be sent to a particular node or workstation; this can improve network security by preventing everyone from sharing the same information.

Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Protocol that controls how data packets are split and then reconnected.

upload speed (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Speed with which you can send data to the Internet.

URL (Uniform Resource Locator) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Address of a website.

usability (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Efficiency and value of what people find when they use computers and go online.

weak password (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

A password that might be easily guessed by a hacker.

Web extension (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Letters that appear at the very end of a Web address after the period; examples of extensions are .com, .edu, .net, .org, .gov, .biz, .info, .name, and .us.

wide area network (WAN) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Computers that are connected through telephone lines, satellite, and so on, and are not at the same location.

Wi-Fi (wireless fidelity) (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Technology for connecting computers to the Internet without wires.

9/13/2021 Print

https://content.ashford.edu/print/Bowles.0854.13.1?sections=ch04,ch05,ch05introduction,sec5.1,sec5.2,sec5.3,sec5.4,sec5.5,ch05summary,ch05learning&content=… 27/27

workgroups (http://content.thuzelearning.com/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.0854.13.1/sections/cover/books/Bowles.08

Subsets of computers within a network that all share the same resources.

Web Resources

Learn more about The Wi-Fi Alliance® by visiting: http://www.wi-fi.org/ (http://www.wi-fi.org/)

For additional information about firewalls, link to: http://www.howstuffworks.com/firewall.htm (http://www.howstuffworks.com/firewall.htm)

For more information about wireless security, go to: http://compnetworking.about.com/od/wirelesssecurity/tp/wifisecurity.htm (http://compnetworking.about.com/od/wirelesssecurity/tp/wifisecurity.htm)

To learn more about the difference between circuit and packet switching, visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dq1zpiDN9k4 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dq1zpiDN9k4)