When exploring the Web, you can view pages stored on computers around the world.
A web browser keeps track of the pages you have viewed during your journey and lets you easily return to any of these pages (Cache is used to accomplish this task).
A Home page is the first page you see when you start your Web browser. You can choose any page around the world as your home page.
The history list displays a list of all pages you have viewed since the last time you started your Web browser. The history list lets you instantly go to any of the pages listed.
Bookmarks (or favorite places) lets you keep a list of all your favorite Web pages or sites. This lets you quickly return to these pages at any time. Each Web browser has a different name for this feature.
- Netscape calls this feature bookmarks.
- NCSA Mosaic calls this feature hotlists.
- Microsofts Internet Explorer calls this feature favorites.
URL is a Universal (or Uniform) Resource Locator or a unique address of a Web page.
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Here is a URL and its parts: http:// home.attbi.com /~teachcte /comp-rel / internet / explore1.htm
- http:// home.attbi.com means - Connect to this computer.
- ~teachcte /comp-rel/intenet means - Look in these folders.
- explore1.htm means - Get this document (which is the one your viewing now).
Graphics - You can view graphics such as album covers, pictures of celebrities and famous paintings on the Web. Most browsers give you the option of viewing pages with or without graphics (for speed considerations).
- Most common graphics - The most common types of graphics files are:
- GIF - Graphics Interchange Format ( pronounced like gift without the t , although most people pronounce it like the peanut butter JIF).
- JPG (or JPEG) - Joint Photographics Expert Group.
Sound - You can hear sound such as television theme songs, movie soundtracks, sound effects and historical speeches on the Web. Sound takes a little time to download (transfer) to your computer before you hear it.
To listen to sound, you need a sound card and speakers (standard computer equipment now). A sound card is a special circuit board that enables a computer to produce high-quality sound.
The most common types of sound files on the Web are:
- Audio Player (AU)
- Real Audio (RA)
- Wave (WAV)
- MIDI (MID)
- Note: Your browser needs special helper programs (called plug-ins or viewer) to work with certain types of sound, video, animation, and graphics that are found on the Web. These programs help your browser perform tasks that iot cannot itself perform.
Video and Animation You can display video and animation such as movie clips, cartoons and interviews with celebrities on the Web. Video and animation take along time to transfer to your computer. For example, a four minute video may take approimately one hour to transfer using a 56,000 bps MODEM. Be prepared to wait.
The most common types of video and animation files on the Web are:
- Audio Video Interleaved (AVI)
- Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG)
- Quick Time ( MOV)
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