Internet Lessons--Prologue

Prologue--Some Important Things You Should Know!

Welcome to the Technology Preparation Internet Lessons! This series of on-line lessons will give participants a current awareness of the Internet and its potential applications to a variety of fields, particularly teaching and research. The primary purpose of these lessons is to introduce major Internet concepts and to demonstrate worthwhile resources. This will also be an opportunity for participants to gain confidence and ability with using this medium.

Some parts of these lessons were originally developed by John J. Burke, Librarian/Instructor/Internet Trainer, Ruth Ann Musick Library at Fairmont State College in Fairmont, West Virginia (jjb@fscvax.wvnet.edu), and adapted for use at Augsburg College by Joseph A. Erickson (erickson@augsburg.edu). Permission has been granted by the original author to adapt these lessons for use at Augsburg College. Questions and comments regarding specific Augsburg resources and this course should be directed to Dr. Erickson. Compliments regarding the concept and overall design of these on-line Internet lessons should be directed to Mr. Burke.

IMPORTANT SUGGESTIONS FOLLOW!!!!!

I have four strong suggestions regarding these Internet Lessons. If you follow them you will be almost guaranteed to live a long and happy life (well, maybe not). But I can guarantee that the lessons will go a lot smoother if you follow these four tips:

Read the lessons. Read them all the way through. Read the entire lesson from beginning to end and make sure you understand it before you attempt the assignments.
Really--read the lesson! Take notes, write questions in the margins (after you print it out of course), and carefully sift through all of the key points.
Follow the directions in the lessons step-by-step. Most of the homework activities assigned at the end of the lesson are explained step-by-step in the lesson. But of course you know this because you have followed steps 1 & 2, right?
Then, if you have diligently tried to complete the lesson and it still won't work after an hour or so of hard work (what? hard work!), then call me or drop me an email message. If you are having trouble, I will help! On the other hand, if you just haven't tried and you want me to do the lesson for you, you are selling yourself short and stealing valuable time from other students who really need help!

These Internet Lessons are crafted to give you a thorough introduction to the Internet, but they will require a good deal of effort on your part. On average, I estimate each lesson will take 30-60 minutes. If you are a computer novice, these lessons may take more than an hour to complete. If an assignment doesn't work out the first time, re-read the lesson to see if you left out a step. The key point: don't be surprised if a lesson takes time to complete. Good work is often hard work...and hard work takes time to do well!

If you have the inclination and skill, the activities in the lessons may be adapted to better suit your individual taste or needs at a particular time. For example, if a lesson suggests you find a discussion group web site such as www.deja.com in order for you to demonstrate your ability to work with discussion groups, you are certainly free to substitute another similar web site if you feel you need to; for variety, because of technical difficulties, etc. The main objective of these lessons is to provide you with an oppurtunity to demonstrate the skill(s) for that lesson. Often the particular Internet resource at which you demonstrate the skill is arbitrary. When in doubt, you probably should stick to the suggested activities.

If you have problems or questions involving the lessons, Internet navigation in general, technical questions about your email account, communications software, etc., please send them to me at: erickson@augsburg.edu. I may need to forward your question(s) to the folks at the Augsburg Information Technology (IT) Center if I cannot answer them, but I will serve as the coordinator for any questions you may have. If you have any problems receiving email, be sure to contact me right away and I will assist you in getting the problem straightened out.

If you have not already done so, you should apply for and start using your email account immediately! To apply for an email account, stop by the Information Technology (IT) Service Desk in the Lindell Library and get an application form.

Internet Access From Home

Many students in this class have computers of their own and would like to access their email and do these lessons from their home or work computers. Believe it or not, this is possible! Of course, I will assume you already have a relatively up-to-date computer (MacOS: running System 7 or newer; PC/Compatible: running MS Windows 3.1 or newer) and a modem.

The first step--choose an Internet Service Provider (ISP). There are many of them, from big ones like AT&T and US WEST, to small mom-and-pop operations. Most ISPs will offer 20 or more hours of Internet access for about $20.00 a month--some a bit more, some a bit less.

Through your ISP you will be able to access these Internet Lessons from home using your favorite web browser (e.g., Netscape Communicator, Netscape Navigator, or Microsoft Internet Explorer). You should also be able to access your Augsburg email account using standard email software such as Eudora or Microsoft Outlook and via WebMail using a standard web browser. Special instructions as to how to set-up your email program to fetch your Augsburg email is available from the Augsburg Information Technology Office (in the Lindell Library), or online at the Augsburg Web Site. Technical support for accessing the Internet is provided by your ISP (that's what the 20-bucks is for!).

Also note that AmericaOnline and CompuServe (the world's two largest ISPs) will not allow you to access your regular Augsburg email account through their service using traditional email software (note this is their problem, not Augsburg's). You will be able to access your Augsburg email via WebMail <http://webmail.augsburg.edu/>. You will also be able to access the Internet Lessons from home using your favorite web browser via these ISPs.

While this all appears easy, appearances can be deceiving. In the real world, Murphy's Law applies and it may take many hours to get your access running smoothly. I don't want to dissuade anyone from connecting to the Internet, but make sure you are prepared for a few "bumps" on your personal Information Superhighway. When it works right it is great--you can even do your homework in your pajamas (or do you do that already?).

Please feel free to contact me with any questions you might have.

If you plan to distribute multiple copies of this work, please contact the author.

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