To view webpages on the Internet or World Wide Web, you need to have a web browser. Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer are the two most popular web browsers. All web browsers work practically the same, once you learn how to use one, you will be able to use other web browsers. This handout describes how to use the Internet using Netscape Navigator 4.0.

Important Features of Netscape

• The "Back" button allows you to go to the previous web page you were viewing. You can hit the back button multiple times. If the button gray's out, that means you can go back no further.
• The "Home" button allows you to go to the first web page your browser starts at. Most allcom.net customers and computers used in the Allendale Telephone Company demo room go to allcom.net's home page when you click on home. You will return to this page when you click on home, no matter how far you are into browsing the Internet.
• The vertical scroll bar, up & down arrows, are an essential feature in using the web browser. These buttons allow you to look through the information on the web page you are looking at.
• When your cursor turns into a hand, that means that spot contains a location (or link). If you click on that spot you will go to that location. The cursor will frequently turn into a hand when you put your cursor over underlined words. Many pictures also contain locations (or links).

allcom.net Waterfall City

Most beginners don't know where to start when they get connected to the Internet. For these customers we have created Waterfall City. It contains over 200 links to entertain and inform. Some of the categories include cars, computer sites, education & family, financial links, Grand Rapids area attractions, health & medical, hotels & airlines, kids stuff, local government, Michigan colleges, museums, music, online magazines, online phone books, online restaurants, online safety tips, online stores, search devices, sports, travel, tv channels, utilities, weather, and more.

Search Devices

Search devices are one of the most common ways to find what you are looking for on the Internet. You can choose from a variety of search devices by visiting http://www.allcom.net and clicking on Waterfall City, then select Search Devices.

A search device is made up of two parts on a webpage. A long skinny box, in which you type words of what you are looking for, and a submit button.

To do a search on the Internet:

1. Go to your favorite search device.
2. Click inside the white, long, narrow box. A blinking cursor will appear.
3. Using the keyboard, type in the key words (or article) you are searching for.
4. Click on the "Submit" or "Search" button.

Note: The white box you are typing into for a search device should be located on the web page itself, not in the location bar of the web browser.

In a matter of moments a new screen should appear. From there, you can scroll down to look at what the search has found. Click on any colored word to go to that location. Remember: You can always click on the "BACK" button to get to a previous selection.

Note: When you click on a colored word, an hour glass will temporarily replace your mouse's arrow. Don't worry. The computer is looking for the new location. It takes a few moments for a new location to usually appear. Don't be impatient. Once in a while you will find that it will not be able to find the new location. If this happens, try to get to that location later in the day - it might just be temporarily down.

Typing in an http address:

If you know the address of a location, you can click inside the Netsite or Location box located towards the top of your screen below the menu, and type in the address. For example, to get to Davenport College's home page, type http://www.davenport.edu.

Most addresses start with http://www.

This is followed by the name of the company. For example, davenport.

The address is finished off with an extension. Here are some common extensions:

    .edu        =>  Education
    .gov        =>  Government
    .com        =>  Company
    .org        =>  Organization

Note: All web addresses are case sensitive. They must be typed exactly as they would appear in the location box. If you know a 'www' address, then you don't have to type 'http://' before it when using Netscape (any version) or Microsoft Explorer 3.0, due to the fact that the web browsers assume that 'http://' is going to appear before the 'www'.

Using Bookmarks:

While Waterfall City contains many great links, we can not have links made for every website on the Internet. That is impossible! Chances our that you will find websites not on Waterfall City which you will want to go back to. Netscape makes it easy to get back to these websites using a feature called bookmarks.

To create a bookmark:

1. In Netscape 4.0, click on the Bookmarks button. In Netscape 3.0, click on Bookmarks from the menu.
2. Click on Add Bookmark.

To go to a bookmarked website:

1. In Netscape 4.0, click on the Bookmarks button. In Netscape 3.0, click on Bookmarks from the menu.
2. Choose the bookmark that you want to go back to.

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