Internet Nuts and Bolts

Placement

This section is intended to be read in its entirety only by those students who are unfamiliar with the Internet and need some basic information about the media. We feel that it is important for students to get acquainted with the Internet early on, whether through their own previous experience or by reading the materials in the Internet Nuts and Bolts section. You may also want to assign this section in parts to accompany Internet exercises so that students get their introduction to a media reinforced by an activity.

Authors' Suggestions

You may want to highlight this section so students can use it as a reference guide whenever they become confused about an Internet medium or when they find an unfamiliar reference. Most importantly, make sure that you cover Internet media based upon your own pedagogical needs and goals. Be sure you devote enough time to a medium that students can become familiar with it and use it effectively to learn the skills and concepts you want to teach them.

Where are the How-to Instructions?

There isn't specific instruction in Connections about how your students actually get on-line and use any of these media because those instructions change from institution to institution and from application to application. As an instructor, supplement the Nuts and Bolts section with more detailed instructions about the specific setup at your institution. You'll want to provide clear instructions and give students enough time to develop a familiarity with the technologies you'll be using in the classroom. You should be able to obtain information about setting up accounts and applications from your institution, and you'll want to make sure that your system is setup to handle these operations before getting your students started. It's always a good idea to walk through the instructions yourself to double-check their accuracy.

For More Information

Introduction to the Net

If you want to present a more detailed introduction to the Internet to your students, there are plenty of resources on-line. You can either introduce these materials early in the semester as students are learning about the media, or use them to supplement particular students' needs as they arise. Some of the most useful general Internet resources on-line are,

There are specific on-line resources for each Internet medium in Appendix One and on the Resources node of the Connections Web site. Remember that if you need help with a particular problem or need specific information you can always search the Web.

Netiquette

There are a number of different versions of Netiquette around, and different rules for different situations. You may want to give your students additional or to different guidelines to handle any problems that arise or develop rules of conduct as a group. Also see,

  •  Netiquette: Core Rules of Netiquette (http://www.in.on.ca/tutorial/netiquette.html)
  •  Netropolitan Life's Information on Netiquette and Nethics (http://www-home.calumet.yorku.ca/pkelly/www/nquette.htm)

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    Clients

    As we say in the textbook, we recommend using the latest and best client software you can find for gaining access to the Internet. Though your school may have set up software for you to use, you may have to obtain some of it yourself, or you may want to experiment with other compatible software. Using an FTP client or Web browser, you can find many shareware and freeware applications at sites like http://ftp.the.net, http://www.winsite.com (Windows), ftp.utexas.edu (Mac) or Apple's list of Macintosh Internet software http://www.macsoftware.apple.com/categories/networking.html. Above is a list of basic client software along with Internet addresses where you can download the application.

     FTP

     Usenet

     IRC

     MU*

    E-mail

     WWW