What the hell's a 'URL'? A website 'address' - like any other address, if you are on the internet and you simply type it into the box near the top of the screen and press 'enter' it will take you there. Usually it begins with 'http://www.' and ends with 'dot something' written like this: '.com' [dot com], .co.uk' [dot co dot uk], '.net'[dot net], etc. '.com' is usually used for global sites, '.co.uk' for UK sites, etc.

Internet - the 'Wide Area Network' consisting of millions of linked computers all over the world.

WWW - World Wide Web - the graphical parts of the internet.

Cyberspace - a general term for the virtual world of the internet.

Home page - the main, or first, page of a website.

Domain name - the title of a website, usually ending in 'dot something', e.g. 'SocialWorkStuff.com'. Global or US sites usually end in '.com' (but these were originally for commercial organizations - now become 'the thing' to have), '.org' for organizations, '.net' for networks or organizations, '.co.uk' for UK sites, '.au' for Australian sites (each country has its own), 'edu' for US universities, and '.ac.uk' for UK universities. There are lots of others, too numerous to mention here.

Hyperlink, hot link or anchor - a hidden link with another website, page, or part of page. It usually appears in blue text and when you move your cursor over it a hand appears. When you click on it, it takes you to this other place.

E-mail - electronic mail. The internet version of sending letters.

Attachment - a file that you attach to an e-mail. It can be a written file or an image or picture.

Spam - junk e-mail. Some people try to market a site or product by sending out thousands of emails at a time, uninvited by the receivers. Usually frowned upon - if you get any, and you don't want more, send one back asking them to remove you from their list.

Download - moving a file from another computer/website to your own computer.

Search Engine - software that enables users to find information about any subject. To see more info about their use you can go to my guide by clicking here.

Bookmarks or Favorites - a URL that you have stored in your computer's memory so that you can get to it easily if you ant it in the future. To do this click on the 'Bookmarks' or 'Favorites' button when you are in a site that you want to keep, and then click on 'Add to favorites' [or similar].

FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions.

Browser - the software that enables you to view web pages. Internet Explorer and Netscape are the most common.

HTML - HyperText Markup Language - used by web designers to tell the browser what the page should look like. You can see this for any page you access - just put the cursor over the page and click on the right-hand mouse button, then click on 'View source'.

ISP - Internet Service Provider - the company that provides you with access to the internet.

Chat - a special site that allows people to chat to each other 'live' by typing in messages and reading others' messages as they are typing them.

LAN - Local Area Network - a small self-contained network, for instance a company's or university's network.

Netiquette - internet version of etiquette, describing acceptable behaviour on the internet.

Emoticon - a way of representing emotions using buttons on the keyboard. For instance 'smile' is ':)', laughing is 'LOL' [laughing out loud], a kiss is ':-*'.

Freeware - free software that you can download.

GIF and JPEG - the formats used to identify an image file. When you write something in 'Word' it is saved as a '.doc' file. If you save a photo on your computer - for instance one that you want to send as an attachment to an e-mail to a friend - save it with '.gif' or '.jpeg'. The computer will then recognise it as an image.

Usenet news - internet news network, separate from the www, allowing access to different interest groups.

Zipped file - a file that has been compressed into a smaller space to save disk memory. To unzip a file you need to download software - usually free.

ADSL - Asymetrical Digital Subscriber Loop. The new connection technology that will enable us to have faster access, with more things coming down our phone lines.

Cookie - a small file sent to your computer by a website you have visited. The next time you visit it will remember you and may respond, for instance by highlighting areas of interest to you, or by remembering a password. There is a sinister side to this 'helpfulness' - they can be used by marketers to track your surfing habits and they may then sell this information to other companies.

Plug-ins - an extra bit of software that you can download into your computer [usually free], that enables you to do something clever like listen to sounds or view a sophisticated image or film clip.

TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE INTERNET TRY THESE SITES:

1001 Best Internet Tips - to help you become an internet expert!

Netlingo - an on-line dictionary of web terminology. There's even a downloadable version.

Internet Help Desk for both beginners and advanced users.

Learn the Net - a web-based tutorial for novices and lots of other useful stuff.

WEB SECURITY: Whenever you are logged on your computer is liable to be accessed by outsiders trying to get information about you. There is plenty of security software, some of which is free. One place is www.zonelab.com.

Help to free the world from hunger - go to the UN Hunger Site and give a meal every day!

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