The Internet is a huge, international network made of smaller networks. There are over 2.2 million computers on the Internet (as of January 1994) with an estimated number of users near 15 million. Universities, government agencies, non-profit organizations and businesses are all part of the Internet.
All the computers on the Internet use a common protocol (TCP/IP) to communicate with one another. This allows computers running different operating systems to all be part of the network. Most of the machines on the Internet use the Unix operating system, but you will see DOS and Macintosh machines, machines running VMS, and others, too.
These networks offer all sorts of information and act as a communications medium.
The Internet is the largest network in the world. You can find information ranging from how to extract essential oils from herbs to how to compile a program for your Commodore-64. Read newspapers online; check the card catalog of the local library; read the latest Presidential press release. Check the weather forecast; read a book; check the latest movie reviews. Order flowers; visit an electronic bookstore; get information on the latest software.
Over half of the world's nations have sites on the Internet. Even more have access to e-mail gateways to exchange electronic mail with Internet sites. You can communicate with friends and colleagues in Russia, India, Mexico, Europe...even Antarctica!
In addition to being able to send e-mail all over the globe, you can communicate with people "live" via Internet Relay Chat (IRC) or through Usenet newsgroups (discussion forums).
With every major university in the United States and Europe connected to the Internet, you can be sure to find information that will help you with your research.
Using the Internet is a great learning experience. Not only will you learn things from the content of what you are reading, but you will become more proficient at navigating computer tools, forming searches for information. Your writing and typing skills will improve, too!
Fun and games abound. Enjoy talking with people? Try Internet Relay Chat! Do you like to play games? Connect to a Multi-User Dungeon, a chess match, backgammon or fantasy game. Read the humor newsgroups!
The Internet can be an effective medium for business communications. Services such as Gopher and the World Wide Web are excellent ways to distribute information about your product or service. E-mail is a great tool for communicating with business contacts and customers.
Do beware not to violate the established net etiquette. Sending unsolicited e-mail ("junk mail") to people, or posting your advertisement to every newsgroup will not only get you in trouble with us, it will earn you a very bad reputation among the Internet community.
Of course, if you take advantage of all the Internet has to offer, you will broaden your horizons. You will have the opportunity to learn about different cultures from the people who live in them; meet people from different walks of life; expose yourself to new ideas and opinions.
That depends upon what you want a computer service to do. If you want a consistent interface, a limited (though not necessarily limiting) number of co-customers and a bevy of shopping opportunities, a service like CompuServe or Prodigy is probably what you want.
However, if you like wild, untamed places that challenge you to learn and grow, the Internet is the place to be. The enormity of the resources on the Internet can be very difficult to comprehend, and sometimes tricky to navigate.
Many people believe that when they have access to the Internet, information will jump from the Internet to their computers. That may happen someday (even sooner than later) but for now, the Internet is still a frontier. Getting information takes some time and some brains. But it is certainly worth the effort and as you learn how the Internet works and you learn how to use the tools to navigate it, finding things takes less time and effort.
A Gentle Introduction to the Internet. Copyright 1994 by Kristen McQuillin, Luce McQuillin Corporation. This document is freely distributable so long as it is unmodified.