Chapter 3

Introduction to COMPUTER NETWORKING

[Link] to Computer Networking
3.1.1. Benefit of Network Computing
3.1.2. Types of Network
[Link] to The Internet
3.2.1. Technical Requirement of Internet
3.2.2. Importance of the Internet
[Link].Communication Service
[Link].Information Retrieval Service
[Link].The World Wide Web

3.1 Introduction to Computer Networking

Stand-alone personal computers, first introduced in 1970s, gave users the
ability to create documents, spreadsheets, and other types of data and save
them for future use. For a small business user or home computer, this was
great. For large companies and organizations, however, it was not enough.
The larger the company, the greater the need to share information between
offices.
The stand-alone computer was not enough for the following reasons:
 Their small hard drive capacities were inefficient.
 To print, each computer required a printer attached locally.
 Sharing documents was cumbersome. People grew tired of having
to save a diskette, then taking that diskette to the recipient.
 There was no e-mail. Instead, there was interoffice mail, which
was not reliable and frequently was not delivered in a timely
manner.
To address the above problems, Computer networking was born.
A computer network is a connection of two or more computers and other
devices that communicate to share data, hardware, and software.
Copying files onto removable medium and giving them to others to copy onto
their computers was sometimes referred to as the "sneakernet” as illustrated in
the figure below. This early form of computer networking is one that many of
us have used and perhaps still use today.
Note: A method of transmitting electronic information by carrying it physically
from one location to another, usually on removable medium is called
sneakernet.

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3.1.1 Benefit of Network Computing
Networks increase efficiency and reduce costs. Computer networks achieve these goals in
the following primary ways:
1. Sharing Information (Or Data)-- like, Company Data Base
2. Sharing Hardware(Peripheral Devices) Printers, Faxes, FDD,HDD,CD-
ROM-DRIVE etc
3. Sharing Internet Connection
4. Sharing Programs/Software
Expensive Professional Software
5. Centralizing Administration And Support
i. Centralized Software Update: like Antivirus
ii. Centralized Storage and Backup
iii. Centralized Processing and management of data, such as Airline
reservation.

The following figure illustrates the benefit of computer networking

Sharing Programs/Software
Application (software) sharing occurs when several users at different locations run
application programs that are installed centrally in one location (application server).
Software (applications) that are installed centrally can be managed and upgraded
centrally. Such systems are mostly common in financial system where the main

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application is stored centrally and users in different sections of the finance
department are able to run the system from the network.

It is effective for several reasons

 Less disk storage space is required because the program is stored only once on the
server, instead of being stored on the hard disk s of multiple stand alone computers
 When a new version of the software is released, it is easier to update on copy of the
program on the server than to update many copies stored on stand –alone computer.
 Purchasing a software license for a network can be less expensive than purchasing a
single- user license for every workstation on the network
In short sharing programs on a network
 Saves disk space
 Reduces maintenance cost
 Reduce licensing cost
Sharing Hardware (Peripheral devices)
Computer networks enable us to share expensive hardware resource among several
computers. A typical example of shared resource is printer. For example, a company
may prefer to acquire one expensive printer and connect it to the network to provide
high quality printing to users. This avoids the need to have separate printer for each
computer in the office.

Central Disk storage – Network system provide the possibility of using a dedicated file
server to store all the company data in one location. Users will be able to access their
data over the network from their workstations. Using central disk storage system
facilitates data backup operations from a central location guarantying complete data
recovery in case of system failures.

Sharing Information/data
 Sharing data – users in a certain network environment have the liberty of
sharing data and information across the network. Data sharing enables
different users to work on a certain file concurrently. Few examples of data
sharing are:
o Database: - databases are often managed centrally and several users
can have access to the database at same time. For example, in a
networked banking system, different bank branches can have access to
the central account database. This enables bank clients to carry their
transactions on any branch bank office.
o Email: email communication can be achieved over the network enabling
networked users in the company to communicate messages across the
network using email.

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Centralizing Administration And Support
The login (gain access to) Process:
Even if your computer is physically connected to a network, you cannot
typically use network resources until you log into the network. When you log
in , you formally identify yourself to the network by providing your ID and
password.
Your user ID and password are the basis for your user account. A user account
provides access to network resources and accumulates information about your
network use by tracking when you log in and log out.
A network administrator/supervisor is the person who is responsible for setting
up user accounts and maintain a network. The network administrator
provides each new user with a user ID and starter password. In this way
centralized administration and support can be achieved.
Note: Network administration tasks include:
 Managing users and security.
 Making resources available.
 Maintaining applications and data.
 Installing and upgrading application and operating system software.

Terminologies

 Stand-Alone Computer :A computer that is not connected to a network

• Peers are computers which use and provide network resources.
• Clients are computers that uses but do not provide network resources
• Serversare powerful computers that provide network resources
Note: The server has:-
• Powerful processors
• Large size memory (RAM)
• Hard disk with High storage capacity (RAID)
• Media—the communication channel (bounded or unbounded) that make the
physical connections.
• Network Resourcesany service or device, such as files, printers, or other
items, made available for use by members of the network.

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• Example: Shared data,Shared printers and other peripherals, & shared
applications
• Node: each device in the network

3.1.2 Types Of Network

Network can be grouped in two major categories depending on the geographical scope
they cover.

Local Area Network (LAN)

LAN refers to networks that have small geographical coverage usually within a
building or a campus.
LANs are found in most organizations, businesses, government offices, educational
institutions, and in home computing environment.

Wide Area Network (WAN)

Wide area networks are networks that cover very large geographical area such as a
country or the whole world. Typical WANs are the telephone networks operated by
most long distance telephone companies. Large companies having offices scattered
around the world use WAN to connect their computers. WAN usually use combination
of several types of communication media such as cables, satellites, Microwaves, fiber-
optics.
Because a WAN has no geographical limitations, it can connect computers and
other devices in separate cities or on opposite sides of the world. A multinational
corporation with linked computers in different countries is using a WAN. Probably
the ultimate WAN is the Internet.
Examples of WAN:
 Metropolitan Area Network( MAN): a network that transmits data and
information over citywide distance and at a greater speed than LAN.
 Internet It is a global collection of networks, both big and small. It is a
giant network.
 Intranet: Intranets are similar to World Wide Web (WWW) where
centrally stored hypertext documents can be accessed using the web.
Unlike the WWW, intranets are available only to user with in the
company network system. Intranet is a very common service in large
networked organizations.
 Extranet: Although similar to intranet, extranet provides selected users
from outside the organization to access data from the internal network.
Extranets are commonly used by suppliers to provide data to company
clients.

Types of LAN

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The three broad classification of LAN, based on how the computers in a network
are configured and how they access information, or simply based on the roles of the
computer found in the networkare:-
1. Peer-to-peer LAN/peer-based LAN/workgroups LAN
2. Client-server LAN/ server-based LAN
3. Hybrid LAN

• Note: Computers are categorized into three based on their role in LAN. These
are client, server and peer.
• Peers are computers which use and provide network resources.
• Clients are computers that uses but do not provide network resources
• Servers are powerful computers that provide network resources

[Link]-TO-PEER LAN
In such network configuration, all the connected systems (computers and
printers) can communicate directly with each other without relying on other
intermediary server. Implementation of Peer-to-Peer network is relatively
simple, cheap and can connect up to 10 computers. Although appropriate for
small networks, it lacks the ability to implement centralized management of
users, files, and security features and tends to slow down performance as the
number of connected computers increase.
Although a peer-to-peer network might meet the needs of small organizations,
it is not appropriate for all environments. In a typical peer-to-peer network, no
network manager oversees administration for the entire network. Instead,
individual users administer their own computers.
All users can share any of their resources in any manner they choose. These
resources include data in shared folder, printers, fax cards, and so on.
On a computer network, security (making computers and data stored on them
safe from harm or unauthorized access) consists of setting a password on a
resource, such as a folder, that is shared on the network. All peer-to-peer
network users set their own security, and shared resources can exist on any
computer rather than on a centralized server only; consequently, centralized
control is very difficult to maintain. This lack of control has a big impact on
network security because some users may not implement any security
measures at all. If security is an issue, a server-based network might be a
better choice.

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Advantages and disadvantages of Peer-to-peer
/workgroupsLAN
Advantage:
 Users can control resource sharing
 No reliance on other computers for their operation
 Computers in the network are connected by a simple, easily visible cabling
system.
 Low initial cost-(no need of server and network operating system (NOS)
software )
 Easy to setup-(use client/desktop operating system like windows 95,
98,me….)
Disadvantage
 It lacks the ability centralized management of users & files
 Lacks security features
 Hard to locate network resources
 Tends to slow down performance as the number of connected computers
increase.
 Additional load on computers because of resource sharing

Where a Peer-to-Peer Network Is Appropriate?

Peer-to-peer networks are good choices for environments where:
 There are 10 users or fewer.
 Users share resources, such as files and printers, but no specialized servers
exist.
 Security is not an issue.
 The organization and the network will experience only limited growth within
the foreseeable future.
[Link]-SERVER LAN:
Client/Server architecture consists of client computers (workstations) that require a
network service and servers that provide the network service. Servers are usually
very powerful computers both in processing power and in their storage capacity.
Different dedicated servers can be configured depending on the need of the
organizations, such as:
 File servers – servers that provide centralized data storage which
will be shared among the LAN users.

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 Print server – servers that control one or more printers and provide
print service to LAN users.
 Database server – servers that centrally store database and provide
data to client application in the LAN.
 Web server – servers that store web pages that will be viewed using
browsers in the network.
 Email server – servers that are used to manage and control email
communications across the network.

Note:
A dedicated server is one that functions only as a server and is not used as a
client or workstation. Servers are described as "dedicated" because they are not
themselves clients, and because they are optimized to service requests from
network clients quickly and to ensure the security of files and folder. Server-
based networks have become the standard models for networking.
Advantages and disadvantages of Client-Server Network
Advantage
 Strong central Security
 Has central file storage, which allows all users to work from the same set
of data and provides easy backup of critical data
 Ability of servers to pool available hardware and software, lowering
overall costs
 Ability to share expensive equipment, such as laser printers and mass
storage
 Easy manageability of a large number of users (can support thousand of
users
 Freeing of users from the task of managing the sharing of resources
 Optimized dedicated servers, which are faster than peers at sharing
network resources

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Disadvantage
• Expense – Requires high initialinvestment in dedicated server and expensive
Network operating system software and client license
• Maintenance - Large networks will require a staff (a dedicated network
administrator) to ensure efficient operation.
• Dependence - When server goes down, operations will cease across the network.
• Complex to install, configure and manage

III. Hybrid LAN

In hybrid LAN while the basic network will be peer-to-peer, we will also install server.
Access to the file server requires an account and permissions, while access to other
computers on the network is shared equally.

Can you think about the advantage and disadvantage of this type of LAN?

Note:
The security advantage of peer-to-peer LAN is that each user controls access to their
own resources. The security disadvantage of peer-to-peer LAN is that you can not
differentiate among LAN users when you allow access to a resource. The security
advantage of server-base LAN is that each user is allowed accessto only those
resources that the user has the privilege to access. A disadvantage is that someone
must centrally administer the security on your LAN.

Note:
The type of LAN you choose to implement will depend on factors such as the:
 Size of the organization.
 Level of security required.
 Type of business.
 Level of administrative support available.
 Amount of network traffic.
 Needs of the network users.
 Network budget.

3.2 Introduction to Internet

By the turn of the century, information, including access to the Internet, will be the
basis for personal, economic, and political advancement. The popular name for the
Internet is the information superhighway. Whether you want to find the latest
financial news, browse through library catalogs, exchange information with
colleagues, or join in a lively political debate, the Internet is the tool that will take you
beyond telephones, faxes, and isolated computers to a growing networked information
frontier. The Internet supplements the traditional tools you use to gather information,
Data Graphics, News and correspond with other people. Used skillfully, the Internet

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shrinks the world and brings information, expertise, and knowledge on nearly every
subject imaginable straight to your computer.

Internet is computer-based global information system. The Internet is composed of

many interconnected computer networks. Each network may link tens, hundreds, or
even thousands of computers, enabling them to share information with one another
and to share computational resources such as powerful supercomputers and databases
of information.

The Internet has brought new opportunities to government, business, and education.
Governments use the Internet for internal communication, distribution of information,
and automated tax processing. In addition to offering goods and services online to
customers, businesses use the Internet to interact with other businesses. Educational
institutions use the Internet for research and to deliver courses and course material to
students. It has made it possible for people all over the world to communicate with one
another effectively and inexpensively.

Internet service providers (ISPs) provide Internet access to customers, usually for a
monthly fee. A customer who subscribes to an ISP’s service uses the ISP’s network to
access the Internet. Because ISPs offer their services to the general public, the
networks they operate are known as public access networks. In Ethiopia, there is only
one ISP – The Ethio telecom that also owns most of the public networks.

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3.2.1 Technical Requirement of the Internet
The basic building blocks to the Internet are

1) Clients
2) Hosts/internet servers
3) IP Routers and
4) Connections/internet access
• Dialup connection
• Direct/leased line connection
Note: internet is based on the concept of client/server computing

The Clients

The client refers to a computer or any device that connects to the Internet temporarily
to get one of the services. Usually, a user runs a client application, such as a Web
browser, that contacts one server at a time to obtain information. Because it only
needs to access one server at a time, client software can run on almost any computer,
including smallhandheld devices such as personal organizers and cellular telephones
(these devices are sometimes called Web appliances). Client get temporary IP
addresses when connected. For instance when you try to establish a dial-up connection
your computer – the clients is assigned a temporary IP address from a pool
maintained by your ISP. When it is disconnected, IP address goes back into the pool
and it is available for use by other dialup users.

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Host/internet servers

Host / Internet sever refers to computers with a permanent link to the Internet and
always connected and on-line. To supply information to others, an internet server
computer must run a server application. Although server software can run on any
computer, most companies choose large, powerful computers to run server software
because the company expects many clients to be in contact with its server at any given
time. A faster computer enables the server program to return information with less
delay.

The internet hosts can be found with ISP, commercial business, Universities,
Governmental agencies, International organizations, Military organizations,
Professional and non-profit organizations more that avail their services on the
Internet.

IP Router
IP Router is a special device, which basically sit at key points on the Internet and act
like traffic police at an intersection of hundreds of streets. Data is sent from your
computer in the form of a "packet". You can think of a packet to be similar to an
envelope; it surrounds your data and contains both a return and destination address.
Your computer handles the packets for you; it's all done in the background, without
your knowledge. This technique is called packet switching. The Router basically
reads the destination address on the packets being sent by your computer and then
forwards the packet to the appropriate destination. The IP router finds the best path
to your packets, based on current traffic and quality of transmission paths. In some
cases your data will travel through several routers before reaching its ultimate
destination as illustrated in the figure below.

How IP routers are connected forming a complex network

Software on the sending computer divides a large document into many packets for
transmission; software on the receiving computer regroups incoming packets into the
original document. A series of rules known as computer communication protocols
specify how packet are assembled in the sending computers and re-assembled to

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original messages in the receiving computers. The TCP/IP protocol handles such
packet management on the Internet.

In addition to handling packets the TCP/IP protocols enable the Internet to

automatically detect and correct transmission problems. For example, if any network
or device malfunctions, protocols detect the failure and automatically find an
alternative path for packets to avoid the malfunction. Protocol software also ensures
that data arrives complete and intact. If any packets are missing or damaged, protocol
software on the receiving computer requests that the source resend them. Only when
the data has arrived correctly does the protocol software make it available to the
receiving application program, and therefore to the user.

Connections/internet access

The access to these networks is provided by Internet Service Providers (ISPs) that let
you subscribe for either of the two modes of connections: dial-up and high-
speed/dedicated connections

The Dialup connection: sometimes referred to as on-demand connection is a

temporary connection that is established using modem though a telephone line. To use
a dialup connection you need a computer, modem, telephone line and a subscription
/registrations to ISP. The subscription usually contains a username and password
to be used by the user when dialling to the ISP. The username is used to uniquely
identify you as a user and also be part of your e-mail address. The password is like a
key – which should be kept secret so that no one gets connected using the account you
have bought from the ISP. The ISP charges you per connection time just like telephone
bills.

The modem is a device that converts digital signal produced by the computer to
analogue signal transmitted through telephone networks. This is because computers
represent data in digital form and the telephone system transmits data using
continuous, or analog, wave forms, their combination must include equipment that
converts signals from one to another. The unit that does this is the modem, short for
modulator-demodulator. Modulation converts digital signal into analog wave
pattern. Demodulation reverses the process.

For example In the figure below a sending modem MOdulates digital signals into
analog signals, and a receiving modem DEModulatesanalog signals back into digital
signals

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The process of converting digital signal to analogue signal and v.v.

Dialup connection is the cheaper and least convenient connection. It is also called a
narrowband connection where the maximum speed that can be attained over a
dialup connection is 56.6kbps (kilo bits per-second). As a result dialup connection
cannot be used for advanced applications on the Internet that involve transmission of
audio and video data.

High-Speed / dedicated connection: also know by different names as leased line /

direct/ broadband connection is a connection that does not require dialing to the ISP
server but once setup, it is connected at all times. The connectivity is given through a
high speed media such as Fiber optics, wireless (radio signals) or telephone lines with
special device called ADSL modem.

This connection is more quality connection that can provide a speed as a multiple of
64kbps. The ISP charges such a connection a fixed fee per month based on the speed
you want to buy. Using this connection advanced applications that involve audio and
video data can be used.

3.2.2Importance of internet

IP Address Vs Domain Name

To be connected to the Internet, every computer must be assigned a unique number,
known as its IP (Internet Protocol) address. As discussed above ach packet sent over
the Internet contains the IP address of the computer to which it is being sent.
Intermediate IP routers use the address to determine how to forward the packet. That
means to request a service from an Internet host, you should know the IP address of
the host where the service you want is provided.
IP address is difficult to remember for people. It is made up of four 8-bit numbers
separated by periods, something like [Link].

Because of this many host computers also have an easy to remember name like coca-
[Link], [Link], etc. Such a name is called Domain Name. Domain name is a
natural language translation of IP address. It is maintained by Domain Name Servers
(DNS) that translates the domain name to IP address. Hence DNS is one important
service for the proper functioning of the Internet. By convention you should type

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domain names using all lower case letters. A domain name ends with a three letter
extension that indicates its top level domain. For example, in the domain name
[Link], the .com indicates that the computer is maintained by a commercial
business.
Table that shows common First-Level Domain Name extenstions and their description
First-level domain Organization Type/description
.com Commercial Business
.edu Educational institutes
.org Organization/Association
.net Internet administrative organizations
.gov Government
.mil Military organizations
.int Organizations established by
international
After the three letter extension, some treaties
domain names (residing outside of the United
States) also end with two letter country code such as uk, fr, et, za, etc. This country
codes also serve as a top level
Example: [Link], [Link], [Link]
The domain name is widely used in Internet addresses that indicate Internet sites
round the world that provide different Internet services. A computer with domain
name is referred to as a Site.

Activity

If you are using a computer that has access to the Internet, you can find out the
IP addresses of any host using a simple step
1. Click on Start button and select Run
2. Type in cmd on the Run box
3. Click Ok button on the Run box
4. Type ping domainName,
Then the first thing you will see is a line of text that starts with
"Pinging domainName [IP address] ...."
Find out the IP addresses of commonly used hosts such as [Link],
[Link], and [Link]

Internet services/applications can be classified in to three categories:

1. World Wide Web
2. Communication and
3. Information Retrieval services.

1. The World Wide Web (WWW)

The World Wide Web, or just the Web is an internet service that links documents and
information from the host computers distributed all over the world. WWW enables
peoples around the world to share and exchange information. It represents billions of
electronic documents called web pages from a verity of servers maintained by government

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organizations, educational institutions, science research centers, private businesses etc.
Currently the web pages present information in a graphical user interface that includes text,
graphics, animations, and most importantly hyperlinks. Hyperlink is a special type of
formatting used in web pages to link one page to the other. Once you start to view a web
page from the web, the hyperlinks will take you to other pages / documents as you select
(press button on) them using your mouse. It is the hyperlink that makes up the web – a
complex link among the different nodes, in this case the web pages.
WWW began in the late 1980's when physicist Dr. Timothy Berners-Lee wrote a small
computer program for his own personal use. This program allowed pages, within his
computer, to be linked together using keywords. It soon became possible to link
documents in different computers, as long as they were connected to the Internet. The
document formatting language used to link documents is called Hypertext Markup
Language (HTML).

The www, just like most of other internet services is based on the client
server model. The web pages are stored in host computers called web
servers round the world. These hosts are referred by a web site address
that serves to locate the host computer. Web site address has a format
that specifies the service and the host computer providing the service.
The generic format for a web site address is:

www.domain_name.[Link]
Where the first three letters (www) indicate the service followed after a
period is domain name (with extension and country code) to identify the
host computer. A web site is a collection of related web pages.
Examples: www. [Link], [Link], [Link],

On the other hand, there has to be client computers that run one of the
web browser software such as Netscape Navigator,Internet Explorer, Fire
Fox, Opera etc. A browser is a computer program that resides on your computer
enabling you to use the computer to view WWW documents and access the Internet taking
advantage of text formatting, hypertext links, images, sounds, motion, and other features.
The browser requests web pages form the web servers. The web server responds by
transmitting the web page to the requesting client computer where the web browser views
the content of the web page. This exchange of hypertext documents is done by the use of a
standard protocol called HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP). Today’s browsers made it
easier to access the different web sites that had started to appear, containing more than just
text. They also had sound and video files. They are also versatile in that the browsers also
give you additional services such as e-mail, ftp etc.
As it was discussed above a web site is composed of a series of web
pages that contain information. Each page is stored as a separate file
and referred to by a unique Uniform Resource Locator (URL). A URL is the
address of a document on a computer. The components of URL include the
web protocol, the web server name, the folder in which the page is
stored, and the filename of the page as illustrated in the figure below.

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An example of URL of a document on the world wide web

Web page URLs begin with http:// the protocol, communication system that allows web
clients to communicate with web servers. Many of today’s web browsers assume that all
web address begin with [Link] If you are using such a browser, you can omit http:// when
you type a URL.
The next part of URL is the web server name. A web server is a computer that uses
special software to transmit web pages over the internet. Many web server names are
domain name prefixed with www as in the case of web site address. The web server names
for your favorite university might be something like [Link]. Suppose you
indicate to your web browser that you want to access [Link] by entering the web
server name, you access the site’s home page. A home page is similar to the title page in a
book. It is the introductory page of a website that normally has a master menu of
documents on that site. It identifies the site and contains links to other pages at the site.
The URL of a web page reflects the name of any folder in which it is stored. For example,
suppose that the university has a page listing degree programs. The listing is stored in a file
called [Link] in a folder called information. The URL for this page would be:
[Link]/information/[Link].
File name extension for web pages are typically htm or html. This is because as mentioned
earlier, web pages are written using a document formatting language called HTML.

Surfing / web browsing

Once you've made your first connection to your Internet Service provider, you are ready to
begin surfing. Surfing is the process of reading web pages and moving from one web site to
another. When you are surfing the web, you can choose from millions of websites to visit.
Your browser has several ways of allowing you to do this. Web users are sometimes called
web surfers. You may need to surf the web looking for information on a particular topic, or
you may want to compile some data from the www. The problem with surfing is that, you
have to know URL of every a web page containing information you need in order to get
access to it. However, locating such a page among the billions of pages is not imaginable
without a search engine or search directories.

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Home page of The AAU's Official Web site

Activity

Go to any Internet cafe or where you can get an Internet access. Open the
browser and type in the url "[Link] You must get the page
shown in the figure above. Surf through it selecting the links listed at the left
corner of the page and top of the page. Learn as much as you can about the
University just be visiting the website.

Search engine / Web Crawler/

A search engine is a database system designed to index Internet addresses (urls, usenet, ftp,
image locations etc). The typical search engine contains a special program often called a
spider (also sometimes called a "bot" or "crawler" or robots). The spider goes though the
Internet, crawling page to page collecting keywords of web pages. The search engine
indexes the pages with their keywords and url in a big database. When you want to look for
a web page on a particular topic, all you need to do is give your keyword to the search
engine. The search engine database will provide you with urls of pages indexed and contain
the keyword you have requested.
Examples of search engines / crawlers are:
 Infoseek ([Link]

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 AltaVista ([Link]
 Google ([Link]
 Lycos([Link]
 Yahoo[[Link]
 Excite[[Link]
Search directories

Creates directories of web sites and their address. Directories are collection of resources.
People or organization submit sites of interest to search service provider like:
 Yahoo [[Link]
 Linkstar [[Link]
 LookSmart [[Link]
 Librarian's Index to the Internet [[Link]
During submission process, the people or organizations should supply the following
information about their web sites such as URL, Title, Short summery. The search service
provider will classify these directories according to the rules of a particular search service.
A web directory lists resources, organized by subject area. To Search the directory,
you just click / select the subject you want under the categorized list
of topics rather than entering keyword. Or you can also enter one or more
keywords and see a list of categories and sites displayed with those
keywords in the title.
However, the distinction between search engines and directories is not as clear cut as it
used to be. All the major search directories will feed you results from a search engine if
they cannot find what you are looking for in their own directory. On the other hand, some
of the search engines will serve information from search directories before giving you data
from the search engine's database. Search engines should be your first choice when you
know exactly what you are looking for. They also cover a much larger part of the Web than
the search directories.

Comparison of Search engines and Web directories

Activity

[Link] is both a search engine and a web directory. Visit [Link] and see
information about Ethiopian tourist attractions from search engines and web
directories listed above. Search for "Ethiopian tourism" in [Link], then

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search for Ethiopia - tourism" in [Link]. Compare the resulted list sites for
the two search and write what it means by adding minus sign in keywords.

2. Communication services

Communication refers to the process of transferring messages from one network to

another over the internet. Some of communication service on the internet includes:
Electronic mail,Usenet (newsgroup),Keyboard chat (IRC), Video
conferencing and Internet telephone. Using these services you will be able to
keep in touch and send and receive messages to colleagues and friends.

a. Electronic mail

Electronic mail is a method for sending and receiving textual messages from one user to another
through the internet. It is the electronic equivalent of sending a letter through the mail, but a more
efficient means of communication than ground or air mail. Although email is mostly used to
transfer text based messages, users can attach other files (such as graphics, audio, video…) with
their emails.

Email is also provided through the client server model. Email users have electronic
mailboxes on e-mail servers that provide the email service. Each mailbox is identified
by an email account composed of a username and password. An email address has two
major components, the username and the domain name separated by the special
character @ (username@domain-name). The username is the name assigned to the
person or organization using the email, and the domain name is a unique name that
identifies the name of the network system connected on the internet, usually called
email server. For example, the domains name for an email address provided by
Ethiopian Internet Center is [Link]. If you subscribe for an email using your
name (such as Abebe) your email address will be abebe@[Link]

On client side email users use email client application programs to connect to the
email server to enable them to compose, send and receive electronic messages. There
are several client applications supplied by different software developers, such as
Eudora, Pegasus, Ms-Outlook, Lotus CC:Mail etc. Most of these programs also have
different features more than sending and receiving mails such as saving the address
for future reference in an address book, reply to the original message, forward the
message to a third party, check spelling, and few more features of word processors.

E-mail server software uses a store-and-forward technology. Your workstation does

not need to be turned on when someone sends e-mail to you. The e-mail server found
in ISP provides e-mail services to the general public with monthly fee. Free e-mail
accounts are also provided by advertiser-supported internet sites such as Yahoo,
hotmail, gmail, and many more.

Email Attachments
An attachment is a computer file or files place inside an email message. Email was
originally designed to handle only plain text (no formatting, ie. bold, centering, etc.) which
was transferred from one computer to another in a format called ASCII. ASCII is a
standard across all computer types which makes e-mail universal. Today many modern
email programs allow HTML (hypertext markup language) to be included in email

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messages which allow you to format your email messages with font sizes, bold, centre and
such. The recipient must have an HTML capable email reader to see the formatting
otherwise they will get a document marked up with HTML tags that looks garbage data
unreadable to users as seen below in the figure .
To attach a document to an email message drag the file attachment to the body of the
message and drop it. An attachment can also be added by choosing File Attachment from
the menu. Most modern email programs place a button on the Toolbar usually in the shape
of a paper clip that you can click. A dialog box will open that allows you to browse and
select the file that you want to attach. You can attach more than one file to a single email
message.

Activity

Register for a free e-mail address from two sites. You can try from
[Link], [Link], and [Link] data for your self from one
mail to another. Attach files, to your message by dragging and dropping it to the
message and using the attach buttons.

b. Usenet (newsgroup)
Newsgroups are discussion groups that are going on all the time. You can write a message
and post it to a newsgroup in the morning and come back to read a reply to the message in
the afternoon. You can also reply to other's messages. The popular sites such as yahoo and
google enable you to start a group and have a community of your interest

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A typical interface of a Usenet where you can start your own discussion group
There are thousands of news groups covering as many topics. Some are moderated,
meaning that a person who has knowledge or an interest in a certain topic will receive the
message and read it before posting it. This keeps the discussion on topic. Most are not
moderated and the discussion can go anywhere but it can be a great way to get a quick
reply to your questions.
As well as the public newsgroups many organizations and companies will provide
discussion groups of bulletin boards that focus on areas related to their own topics. This can
be a great spot to find out more about an organization, find a solution to a problem you are
having and participate in the discussions related to that company or organization.
One problem with posting a message to a discussion or newsgroup is that unscrupulous
companies mine the newsgroups for email addresses and then send unsolicited email
(spam) to the poster. It is recommended that you disguise your email address using your
email software preferences or the bulletin board settings.
Many newsgroups have a publicly accessible faq. A faq is a collection of frequently asked
questions that have been posted many times to a newsgroup. You may get a gentle
reminder or a completely rude and insulting comment if you post a question that is on the
faq. It is acceptable to post a question as where the faq is located and you may find that
frequent posters will mention the faq in their message.
Example of Usenet site: [Link]

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Activity

Search for a USNET / discussion group site and read peoples, comments on
technology issues. To start with this, you can just type in a problem such as
virus problems, or technology problems you have faced on the search engines.
The result usually takes you to discussions group pages where similar questions
are [Link] your own questions and collect answers for your questions. This
may require you to get registered first.

c. Internet Relay Chat (IRC)

IRC allows users to participate in real-time discussions with other users through
the Internet. A user logs on to an IRC site and then types messages and replies to
others messages as they are written. Often an IRC discussion has a topic arranged in
rooms or virtual places and users will join to room to discuss the topic. Other IRC
discussions are free flowing and regardless of how centred the discussion is it can take
some time to sort out the different threads of discussion in a busy IRC. There is no
restriction to the number of people that can participate in a given discussion room, or
the number of rooms that can be formed on IRC. They are also used for online
conferences with a famous or knowledgeable person contributing their time to answer
questions and present information.
Along the same theme are online game sites where Internet users can compete against
other users on the Net.
You can find free services of IRC on the following site

 [Link]
 [Link]
 [Link]
 [Link] (web broadcasting services)

d. Instant Messaging (IM)

IM is a software, such as YahooMessanger and MSN allows users to find friends and
contacts through the Internet and communicate with them in real time. Users
maintain a list of contacts which the software will notify when they are online and
contact is available. To use an instant messaging service it is necessary to have and
register software available on the Internet. Instant messaging allows you to chat, send
messages and files and various other features but only with people you choose. Often
the software and registration is free.

Some services also provide the ability to connect a microphone to your computer and
talk to your contact. Your contact can talk back using their account and software
which you can hear using the computer's speakers or an ear attachment. These days
people are using the same IM software to have a live conversation using voice chat and
video chat.

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Activity

Use the MSN messenger program to chat with your colleague / classmate. You
must have a hotmail e-mail account to do [Link] a web based
messenger service for free at [Link] If you have
yahoo email address, you can sign in and chat with it. Try [Link] to add your
yahoo email address to your contacts in MSN messenger and v.v

e. Video Conferencing

Video conferencing is a communications technology that integrates video and voice to

connect remote users with each other as if they were in the same room. Users see and
hear each other in real-time.

Video conferencing means making a conference on the Internet by individuals who live
in different location. This takes place at the same time in different location. It is
similar to conference in a hall except they are at distant.

For participation in video conferencing (receive and send), each user needs

 computer( with Sound video card )

 Webcam
 Headphone set with microphone
 broadband (high speed multi-channel) internet connection
 Client software program

Video conferencing involves the visual communication of parties around the world.
You can use Video conferencing to link up with specific parties or you can join Video
conferencing communities that operate in the same way as Internet Chat does.

f. Internet telephone

The Internet can also be used to transfer telephone calls using an application known
as IP-telephony. This application requires a special phone that digitizes voice and
sends it over the Internet to a second IP telephone.

You need special client software called audio conferencing programs. Newer software
operates in full duplex conversation (i.e you can speak and hear the other person at
the same time). In half duplex conversation only one person can speak at a time.

3. Information Retrieval Services

Information retrieval service refers to the process of transferring large volume of data
across the internet. Examples of information retrieval application on the internet
include FTP and Telnet.

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a. File Transfer Protocol

FTP is method for transferring files from one internet site to another internet sites.
FTP enables user to download or retrieve files from ftp sites and to upload files to ftp
server. Like many internet applications, FTP is a client server system where there is
FTP server that provides the service and users use FTP client programs to access
resources from the FTP server.

FTP service is a popular internet service which is widely used to download exciting
games, large documents, program upgrades and other resources from the internet.

Although some FTP sites have restricted access where only authenticated users are
given access to the FTP server, there are still several anonymous FTP sites that allow
anyone to transfer files without prior permission.

The FTP application is often automatically invoked when a user downloads an

updated version of a piece of software. Applications such as FTP have been integrated
with the World Wide Web, making them transparent so that they run automatically
without requiring users to open them. When a Web browser encounters a URL that
begins with ftp:// it automatically uses FTP to access the item.

Activity

Find FTP sites on the Internet. You can use the search engines.
Try to download files form the ftp service if you get a free one.

b. Telnet (Terminal Networking)

Telnet is an internet application and protocol that allows users to log onto a remote
computer. Once connected to a remote computer using telnet application, users can
access their files and document, work on their files and save their work on the remote
computer as if they are directly connected to the server on the local area network.

Telnet gives the appearance that the user’s keyboard and monitor are connected
directly to the remote computer. For example, a businessperson who is visiting a
location/ working at home that has Internet access can use Telnet to contact their
office computer.

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