The Internet is the name for computers all over the world that are inter-netted or interconnected. There is no one place or one computer that is the Internet.
Software is the name for programs on your computer.
A computer at home or work connects to the Internet with software （such as America Online or Earth-link） and a Modem/phone line. Newer computers usually come with this already installed.
Special computers called servers hold information that home computers can connect to. You can look at this information with browser software that usually is part of the Internet software.
Most people use their Internet connection to do one or more of the following：chat （type online messages to another person）， send/receive E-mail （electronic mail） or to use the Web （the World Wide Web）. There are other kinds of information on the net （Internet）， but when people say they are using the net， they usually mean they are looking at （surfing） Web pages.
Each Web page has an address （URL）. On your browser， you type in the address and go to that page. Each page has links （connected pages） that will take you to another page when you click on that link （usually underlined）. The beginning page is called the home page.
You can save the addresses of your favorite Web pages in a bookmark file on your browser， so that you don’t have to remember the address each time you use the net.
The Library of Congress has a Web page as do most libraries， stores and businesses， stock brokerages， government offices， many schools and churches. Individuals or families can publish Web sites with family photos， resumes or information important to them.
As a parent， you can buy filtering software that will stop your child from seeing most pornographic Web sites. Some libraries have filtering software on their computers /online catalogs.
REMEMBER！ Evaluate Web site information the same way you would print information. Ask yourself： who publishes the Web site， the information current， accurate？ Just because it’s on the Web or in print doesn’t mean it’s correct！
Internet Pieces Parts
The Internet is not the Information Superhighway that was praised in the early 1990s. It started out as a way for UNIX computers to communicate with each other， locally at first and then over the phone lines.
Internet isn’t a thing as much as it’s a collection of things. The following sections cover some of the more popular things.
Electronic Mail
Pine， mail and mailbox are tools that send and receive mail communications. When you have hallowed net address， you can get mail. One of the first things any Internet user does once they’re “on” is to check their mail. Different programs are used to read and send mail. Most of the major on-line services offer Internet mail， which is how they communicate with each other.
WideArea Information Service （WAIS）
WAIS accesses many databases that are distributed around the Internet. For example， you can use it to access ERIC （Education Resources Information Clearinghouse）. When you use WAIS， you can tell it what databases to search by specifying a list of keywords to use in the search.
Usenet
Usenet is an acronym for User Network， and a facility of the Internet that offers a wide variety of newsgroups， bulletin boards， and public forums. It runs on the UUCP （UNIX to UNIX copy） network， an international wide area network of all sorts of UNIX computers， all interconnected are the Tholian Web.
Telnet
Telnet is a software utility that lets you log on to a remote computer. Telnet converts domain names to Internet addresses and it uses these addresses to access the target computer.
Archie Server
Archie Server is a program used to help you locate files on the Internet. It’s an index that holds millions of entries， each one of which is a file buried somewhere in cyberspace.
Gopher
The Gopher is a necessary tool that lets you browse through the entire Internet to look for stuff.
Bulletin Board System （BBS）
BBS is an acronym that stands for Bulletin Board System， and a program that lets other people dial into a computer and copy flies， leave messages， and run up their phone bill.
【Vocabulary】
interconnect
vt. 使相互连接
modem
n. 调制解调器
browser
n. 浏览器，浏览书本的人
address
n. 地址，网址，演讲
bookmark
n. 书签
congress
n. 大会，国会，议会
brokerage
n. 回扣，经纪人业务
filtering
n. 过滤，滤除，滤清
Superhighway
n. 超级高速公路
hallowed
adj. 神圣化的，神圣的
bulletin
n. 公告，报告
acronym
n. 只取首字母的缩写词
forum
n. 论坛，法庭，讨论会
cyberspace
n. 电脑空间
dial
n. 刻度盘，钟面，转盘
【参考译文】
什么是因特网？
因特网是世界上相互成网、相互连接的计算机的总称。一个地方或一个计算机不能称为因特网。
软件是计算机中程序的名称。
家中或办公室的计算机软件（例如America Online或Earth-link）和一个调制解调器/一根电话线与因特网相连接。目前的计算机通常已经安装好了这些部件。
一种专用的计算机称为服务器，容纳了家用计算机可访问的信息。你可以通过浏览器软件（这通常是因特网软件的一部分）来阅读这些信息。
大多数人使用因特网连接来做以下事情：聊天（向另一个人发送在线信息）、发送/接收E-mail（电子邮件）或者阅读网页（万维网）。网（因特网）上也有其他信息，但是当人们说他们在上网时，通常是指在看网页（网上冲浪）。
每一个网页都有一个地址（URL）。在浏览器中可以输入网址并访问该页。每页都有链接（链接页），当点击这些链接（一般有下划线）时，可以访问其他页。最开始的页称为主页。
你可以在浏览器中将自己喜欢的网页地址存到一个书签文件中，这样每次访问该页时就不必记住其网址了。
国会图书馆有一个网页可以访问，大多数图书馆、商场和其他商业机构、证券经纪业务、政府机关、许多学校和教堂也都有自己的网页。个人或家庭可以公布带有家庭成员照片、个人简历或关于他们的重要信息的网站。
作为家长，你可以购买过滤软件以防止孩子看色情网站。一些图书馆在计算机/在线分类中包含此类过滤软件。
注意！要正确地评价网上信息（这些如同你自己发表的信息一样）。试问你自己：谁发布的网站？这些信息新吗？准确吗？不能因为是在网上或印刷的信息就认为一定是正确的。
因特网中的网络构件
因特网并不是20世纪90年代提出的信息高速公路，它起始于UNIX计算机之间相互通信的一种方法。最初是本地连接的，后来则是用电话线连接。
因特网并不是一件东西，而是一堆东西的集合。下面讲到一些比较流行的东西。
电子邮件
Pine、mail 和 mailbox 都是发送和接收电子邮件的工具。当你有了自己的网络地址时，你就可以接收电子邮件了！因特网用户进网后最先做的一件事就是查看邮件。人们可以用不同的软件来阅读和发送邮件，大多数大型联机服务网都提供因特网邮件，这是它们之间通信的手段。
广域信息服务系统（WAIS）
广域信息服务系统可以访问网络上所发布的许多数据库。例如，可以使用它访问教育资源信息情报交换站（ERIC）。使用 WAIS 系统时，可以通过指定一个用于查找的关键字列表，来告诉它你想查找的数据库。
网络新闻组（Usenet）
Usenet是User Network的缩略词。它是因特网的一种设施，提供各种新闻组、布告牌、公众论坛。它在UUP（UNIX对UNIX备份）网上运行。UUCP是一个全球各种UNIX机的广域网，按照Tholian蛛网方式互连。
远程登录（Telnet）
Telnet是一个软件使用程序，它允许你远程登陆一台计算机。Telnet把域名翻译成因特网地址并且使用这些访问目标计算机。
Archie服务器
Archie服务器是一个用于帮助你在因特网上查找文件的软件，是一个包含数以百万计条目的索引程序，其中每一条目都是隐藏在数据海洋中的一个文件。
网络工具（Gopher）