INT RO DU CT ION. The Internet. Concepts and Terms

Transcription

1 INT RO DU CT ION The Internet Concepts and Terms What is the difference between the Internet and WWW? WWW is short for World Wide Web and it is just a part of the whole Internet. It includes the pictures and text written in HTTP language that we can view on a browser such as Internet Explorer or Netscape. On the other hand, the Internet is a massive network infrastructure. The internet includes WWW, , newsgroups, FTP, P2P programs and others. What is HTTP? HTTP is short for Hypertext Transfer Protocol and it is the language used by the browser to communicate with the server. In fact if you are using a browser, you can see that the address in the address bar starts with What is URL? URL is short for Uniform Resource Locator, and it is the web address. To access a website, you would type its URL into the browser address bar What is a Hyperlink? A hyperlink is a piece of text or a picture that when in an internet document, that when clicked it automatically take you to another webpage or another part of the internet document. What is ISP? ISP is short for Internet Service Provider, and it is a company that provides a service to the Internet normally through your telephone line. Examples of ISPs are maltanet, waldonet and many others. What is FTP? FTP is short for File Transfer Protocol, and it is a protocol for exchanging files over the internet. - Pg 1 of 53 -

2 The makeup and structure of a web address As already said before the web address is the URL for the webpage you need to access. A web address consists of the following components: Module 7 The first part of the URL denotes the protocol to be used, followed by ://, example or ftp:// The second part of the URL denotes the server the webpage is located on The third part of the URL denotes the domain that is a specific computer on the internet. The combination of the server and domain must be unique. The domain includes the last part called the extension, which denotes a particular zone that the web page corresponds to Eg..com commercial,.net network,.org organisational,.gov governmental.co.uk a commercial company with UK web address,.com.mt a commercial company with Maltese address,.gov.mt a governmental website with Maltese address. The fourth part is the path name, specifying the location of the host What is a web browser? A web browser is a program used to access the World Wide Web. Examples of a web browser are Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator, Opera and Mozilla. What is a search engine? A search engine is a special webpage used to find other webpages on the internet by using keywords. Examples of search engines are Pg 2 of 53 -

3 What is RSS? RSS (Rich Site Summary) is a format for delivering regularly changing web content. Many news-related sites, weblogs and other online publishers syndicate their content as an RSS Feed to whoever wants it. RSS solves a problem for people who regularly use the web. It allows you to easily stay informed by retrieving the latest content from the sites you are interested in. The purpose of subscribing to an RSS feed is to save time by not needing to visit each site individually. You ensure your privacy, by not needing to join each site's newsletter. The number of sites offering RSS feeds is growing rapidly and includes big names like Yahoo News. What is a podcast? A podcast is a digital audio file (usually MP3 or AAC) made available for download on the internet through an RSS feed. A podcast gives far more options in terms of content and programming than radio does. Through a podcast, listeners decide what programming they want to receive and when they want to listen to it. Podcasting is the syndication of audio files using RSS. Podcasting works the same as a standard RSS feed. The only difference is that the feed, you subscribe to, contains an audio file in it. Instead of reading content in your RSS feed reader, you can listen to the contents of your feed using a reader that supports podcasting, or you can listen to them on an ipod or similar device. While podcasting was named for the ipod, you do not have to have an ipod to listen to a podcast. Podcasts can be displayed on websites with clickable links to audio files and many of the standard RSS readers have begun supporting audio enclosures. What is a cookie? Cookies are text files that some websites attach to your computer. These can be useful in order for the website to identify you or make changes to the way your computer is functioning. They can also be dangerous since they may contain viruses or spams. What is a cache? Every time a new website is visited, a copy of its information is saved in the cache, so that when revisited it is loaded more rapidly through the cache. - Pg 3 of 53 -

4 Security Considerations What is a protected website? A protected website is a site that requires a username and a password to view its contents. As soon as you type the URL of the website, a dialogue box for entering the username and password will pop up as follows: What is a digital certificate? A digital certificate is an electronic document to prove the identity of the person sending an encrypted message. A digital certificate is issued by a certification authority (CA), and it will include to whom the digital certificate is issued, by which CA, its validity, a copy of the public key (used for encrypting and decrypting messages and digital signatures), and the digital signature of the CA. An example of a digital certificate is shown below: - Pg 4 of 53 -

5 What is encryption? Module 7 Encryption is the scrambling of the sender s information so that if it is intercepted by a third party, the data would not be understandable. The sender will encrypt the message using a private key, once it is encrypted it can only be deciphered using a private key, and the receiver will decrypt the message using a public key that is sent to him through a digital certificate. Security Threats from web sites What is malware? Malware is short for malicious software. It includes any hostile or harmful software or program code. Examples include viruses, Trojans, worms, rootkits, adware, and spyware. How does a computer get malware? - By visiting a website that has been deliberately constructed by criminals to introduce malware through hidden scripts that form a part of the web pages you view. - By visiting a website that is legitimate but that has been hacked and corrupted unbeknownst to the owner of the site. - By clicking on links inside of s you receive that have malware inside them. - By downloading anything on the Internet that has malware inside such as some music, games, and pictures. - By downloading or updating utilities such as flash players that have malware inside. - By inserting an infected USB drive into your PC. - By being connected to a network that contains malware. What is a virus? In computers, a virus is a program or programming code that replicates by being copied or initiating its copying to another program, computer boot sector or document. Viruses can be transmitted as attachments to an note or in a downloaded file, or be present on a diskette, CD, pen drive or any other storage device. Some viruses wreak their effect as soon as their code is executed; other viruses lie dormant until circumstances cause their code to be executed by the computer. Some viruses are benign but some can be quite harmful, erasing data or causing your hard disk to require reformatting. - Pg 5 of 53 -

6 What are worms? Module 7 In a computer, a worm is a self-replicating virus that does not alter files but resides in active memory and duplicates itself. Worms use parts of an operating system that are automatic and usually invisible to the user. It is common for worms to be noticed only when their uncontrolled replication consumes system resources, slowing or halting other tasks. What are trojan horses? In computers, a Trojan horse is a program in which malicious or harmful code is contained inside apparently harmless programming or data in such a way that it can get control and do its chosen form of damage, such as ruining the file allocation table on your hard disk. In one celebrated case, a Trojan horse was a program that was supposed to find and destroy computer viruses. A Trojan horse may be widely redistributed as part of a computer virus. What is spyware? Spyware is any technology that aids in gathering information about a person or organization without their knowledge. Spyware can get in a computer as a software virus or as the result of installing a new program. Data collecting programs that are installed with the user's knowledge are not spyware, if the user fully understands what data is being collected and with whom it is being shared. However, spyware is often installed without the user's consent, as a drive-by download, or as the result of clicking some option in a deceptive pop-up window. Software designed to serve advertising, known as adware, can usually be thought of as spyware as well because it almost invariably includes components for tracking and reporting user information. However, marketing firms object to having their products called "spyware." As a result, McAfee (the Internet security company) and others now refer to such applications as "potentially unwanted programs" (PUP). The cookie is a well-known mechanism for storing information about an Internet user on their own computer. If a Web site stores information about you in a cookie that you don't know about, the cookie can be considered a form of spyware. Spyware is part of an overall public concern about privacy on the Internet. - Pg 6 of 53 -

7 What are the dangers of downloading software from the internet? Module 7 When surfing the internet you are experiencing an interface with an incredible source of information, but beware, it s not always safe! When downloading from the internet, there is the possibility of viruses being attached to the software you are downloading. Before downloading any software be sure that you thrust the site that you are downloading from. What are the dangers of using your credit card on the internet? Being a very good source of information, the internet is now loaded with business sites where you can buy any goods you want with the use of credit card. This process has brought with it a new fraudulent attack, where the hackers will know your credit card details and fraud. When using your credit card details it is important to check that the site begins with that means Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure, and has this icon in the webpage status bar An example of a secure site where you can use your credit card safely: URL starts with https Secure icon - Pg 7 of 53 -

8 What is a firewall? Module 7 A firewall is a program installed on a computer or server which is programmed to follow certain rules which enable it to decide whether or not to allow a packet of information to pass or not. If a packet does not pass, it is seen as a threat by the firewall, and therefore rejected. Parental Control Parental controls help parents to protect their children and set restrictions for their children's computer use. To start with, the computer should be placed in a common area of the house, e.g. the dining room, where the parent/guardian can supervise the child s usage of the computer. Other than that, parental controls fall into roughly four categories: - Time Limits: setting specific time limits that will prevent logging on during certain times of the day - Game Content: controls to access games where you can set an appropriate age level and content type you want to block - Web Access: Allows you to restrict the Web sites that children visit and choose if you want to allow file transfers - Program-specific Controls: allows you to keep your children from running specific programs on the computer First Steps with the Browser Opening a web browser application If you are using Internet Explorer as a web browser, double click on the following icon: Internet Explorer icons Once you open the Internet Explorer, the following icons will be displayed: - Pg 8 of 53 -

9 Closing Internet Explorer To close the Internet Explorer just click on the close button Changing the Internet Explorer home page The Home Page is the web site that is located and displayed by the web browser when it is loaded by the user. To change the Home Page of the internet explorer: Click on Tools drop down menu Choose Internet Options In the home page section, change the home page address to the one you prefer Click Apply and OK after making the changes Display a web page To display a specific web page in the Internet Explorer, enter the URL in the address bar and press enter or go button as follows: - Pg 9 of 53 -

10 To display a web page in a new window To display a web page in a new window in the Internet Explorer: Right click on a particular hyperlink From the pop up menu choose Open in New Window Choose Open in New Window OR Depress the Shift key and click on the hyperlink To display a web page in a new tab The Internet Explorer browser windows have a feature called tabbed browsing. With tabbed browsing you can open several websites in one browser window. By default, when you open a new tab in Internet Explorer, that tab will contain a blank page. However, you can adjust your Internet Explorer settings so that when you open a new tab it will display your home page. Here is how to display your home page on new tabs. - Open Internet Explorer by clicking the IE icon on your desktop. Alternatively, you can click the Start button, clicking Programs or All Programs," and choosing Internet Explorer from the list of installed programs. - Click Tools on the Internet Explorer toolbar. - Click Internet Options." The Internet Options dialog box will open. - Click the General tab. Under Tabs click Settings. The Tabbed Browsing Settings dialog box will open. - Select the checkbox for Open Home Page for New Tabs Instead of a Blank Page. - Click OK and then click OK again. The next time you start Internet Explorer, any new tabs you open will show your home page. - Pg 10 of 53 -

11 Stop a Web page from downloading Module 7 Sometimes a web page is very slow to download and you may wish to stop the download. To stop a Web page from downloading click on the Stop button: Refresh a Web page In order to speed up, Internet Explorer stores copies of pages in a cache or temporary memory area so that they can be recalled more quickly than if they had to be reloaded across the Internet. You can get the most up-to-date version of the page by using the refresh function: Using available Help functions From the Help drop down menu, click on Contents and Index Click on the Search tab in the Help dialogue box and enter what you want to search for - Pg 11 of 53 -

12 Adjust Settings Display, hide built in toolbars To display or hide a toolbar, click on the View drop down menu Choose toolbars from the drop down menu A list of toolbars will be displayed. The toolbars that are ticked are those that are currently displayed To display a hidden toolbar or hide a displayed toolbar, click the appropriate item OR Right click on any existing toolbar and this will display the Toolbars drop down menu, from which you can select (display) or de-select (hide) toolbars. Display, hide images in a Web page The loading of graphic images can slow down the display of web sites very drastically. Often these images are of little use when the user is after information. One way of speeding up access is to hide the display of images. To display or hide the images on a Web page, click on Tools drop down menu Choose Internet Options from the drop down menu From the dialogue box that appears, click on the Advanced tab From the Multimedia section, tick the Show Pictures option if you want to display the images, and untick the Show Pictures option if you want to hide the images Click on Apply and OK - Pg 12 of 53 -

13 The next 2 screens show the difference between displaying the pictures and hiding the pictures in the same Web page: - Pg 13 of 53 -

14 Display previously visited URLs using the browser address bar Module 7 When you access a Web site, Internet Explorer, records this in the History. To access the History from the address bar, simply click on the down arrow to the right of the address bar and click on one of the URL addresses displayed. The History Trail Cache The History Trail Cache is a list where you can review your recent browsing activities. To view the History just click on the History button And the History will show as follows: - Pg 14 of 53 -

15 To delete the browsing History To delete the history, click on Tools drop down menu Choose Internet Options from the drop down menu From the dialogue box that appears, click on the General tab In the History section, click on the Clear History button Allow, block pop-ups With Pop-up Guard turned on, you can allow a one-time pop-up window to open, or you add a site to your website allow list. You can modify the list at any time. If you are using Internet Explorer: - Go to the Tools menu. - Select Pop-up Blocker. - Click Po-up Blocker Settings. - In the Pop-up Blocker Settings window, type mybama.ua.edu as the "Address of Web site to allow" and click the Add button. - Close the Pop-up Blocker Settings window and all Internet Explorer windows. - Pg 15 of 53 -

16 Allow, block cookies - Click the Tools menu and select Internet Options. - Click the Privacy tab, and select Advanced. - Click Override automatic cookie handling. Specify how you want Internet Explorer to handle cookies from first-party Web sites and third-party Web sites (a Web site other than the one you are currently viewing). To always allow cookies to be saved on your computer, click Accept. To never allow cookies to be saved on your computer, click Block. To be asked whether or not you want to allow a cookie to be saved on your computer, click Prompt. To always allow session cookies (cookies that will be deleted from your computer when you close Internet Explorer) to be saved on your computer, click Always allow session cookies. - Pg 16 of 53 -

17 WEB N AV IG AT ION Accessing Web pages Activate a hyperlink / image link As already said before, a hyperlink is a piece of text or a picture that when in an internet document, that when clicked it automatically take you to another webpage or another part of the internet document. When you put your mouse pointer on a hyperlink or an image link the mouse pointer transforms itself into a hand pointing upwards to show you that there is a hyperlink. Sometimes when you put your mouse pointer on an image link a popup will appear showing what the image link is Text hyperlinks are normally written in a blue text colour and underlined. Hyperlink Navigate backwards and forwards To go back to the last page visited you can click on the Back button If you click the drop down menu next to the Back button you can also see a list of the most recent visited sites, which you can click on to revisit If after clicking on the back button, you want to revisit the forward page just click on the forward button - Pg 17 of 53 -

18 Completing a web based form and carrying out a transaction If you want to purchase something from the internet, you have to complete a web based form in order for the vendor to know who are you, your address, your payment details, what item do you want to purchase and how much of that item. An example of these websites is amazon.com. Let s try it out on First we have to click on what are we going to book, in this case Book Order Form Then, we are going to type in the book order form the title of the book and the quantity we want. We can use the TAB key to move from field to field in the form - Pg 18 of 53 -

19 When the title and quantity of the book order form are entered, the Order button has to be clicked and a number will be generated for the purchaser to know your purchase order. Using Bookmarks What are bookmarks? Bookmark is the same term as Favourites. When we have found a webpage that is of great interest to us, it is a good idea to add it to the Favourites, or bookmark it, the same as we bookmark an interesting page on a book. When bookmarking a webpage, we are storing links to individual web pages or web locations on the computer. This is done so that next time we can visit that webpage just by clicking on the name of the webpage - Pg 19 of 53 -

20 Bookmark a web page If you wish to add a web page to your favourites: Click on the Favourites drop down menu and choose Add to favourites Module 7 The following dialogue box will appear, click OK to add the web page to the favourites Display a Bookmarked web page If you wish to revisit a web page that was added to your favourites: Click on the favourite s icon and the favourite s toolbar will appear Click on the link you like to open its web page - Pg 20 of 53 -

21 Organising Bookmarks Create a bookmark folder Module 7 As the number of bookmarks increases, so is the need for a system to organise them. To organise bookmarks we use bookmark folders. To create a bookmark folder: Click on the Favourites drop down menu and choose Organize Favourites From the dialogue box that appears, choose Create Folder Enter the name for your new folder and press the Enter key Add web pages to bookmark folder Click on the Favourites drop down menu and choose Organize Favourites From the dialogue box that appears, click on the link you want to move to a folder and choose Move to folder Choose the folder you require and click OK Delete a bookmark Click on the Favourites drop down menu and choose Organize Favourites From the dialogue box that appears, click on the link you want to delete and choose Delete Rename a bookmark Click on the Favourites drop down menu and choose Organize Favourites From the dialogue box that appears, click on the link you want to rename and choose Rename Type the new name - Pg 21 of 53 -

22 WEB SE AR CH IN G Using a Search Engine Selecting a Search Engine Sometimes you might need some information from the Internet, but you don t know where to look. In this case you might need a Search Engine to help you find the right webpage. A search engine is a special webpage used to find other webpages on the internet by using keywords. Examples of search engines are Carry out a search for specific information using a keyword, phrase A Search Engine needs keywords to perform its searching. It only searches through sites that are registered with it and gives you the results in a certain order according to its ranking criteria. To search with keywords: Think of a very ideal keyword for your search Enter it in the text box and press Search or Go Remember that the secret of Search Engines lies in choosing the most ideal keyword. - Pg 22 of 53 -

23 Combine Selection criteria in a search It is best not to type only one keyword, but it s very wise to enter 2 or more words when using a search engine. For example instead of writing mountain, it s better to write mountain and Africa Or instead of writing holiday, it s better to write holiday, England and Lake District Sometimes it is even better to use the following symbols: + To find web pages using all the keywords entered To find the exact phrase enclosed in the inverted commas Duplicate text from a Web page to a document Highlight the text you want to copy Right click on the text and choose copy from the pop up menu If you want to paste it in a document, open the document and from the Edit drop down menu choose Paste Duplicate image from a Web page to a document Right click on an image from your web page From the pop up menu choose Save Picture As.. Browse the folders to save it in your computer If you want to paste it in a document, open the document, from the Insert drop down menu choose Pictures and from file, browse the folders to find your image - Pg 23 of 53 -

24 Duplicate URL from a Web page to a document Highlight the URL you want to copy Right click on the URL and choose Copy Shortcut from the pop up menu Module 7 If you want to paste it in a document, open the document and from the Edit drop down menu choose Paste Save a Web page to a location on a drive as a txt file or html file After displaying the web page you want to save, choose File drop down menu Choose Save As.. In the Save As Type choose any of the following: Web page, complete Web page, HTML only Text Files. The entire webpage including pictures will be saved. Since the pictures are usually themselves files, a directory for these will be created The web page is saved without pictures. HTML only will be saved This will save the file as text which can be viewed in a text editor or word processor ECDL Downloading files from a web page to a location on a drive Right click on the object you want to download From the pop up menu choose Save Target As.. From the dialogue box that appears browse to a folder on your computer And click Save Be aware of legal and ethical issues!!! - Pg 24 of 53 -

25 Preparation Preview a web page Before printing you should preview a web page, to do so: From the File drop down menu, select Print Preview View through the pages and when finished click on Close Change web page orientation and size, and web page margins From the File drop down menu, select Page Setup From the Paper section choose the Size from the drop down menu From the Orientation section choose either Portrait or Landscape Change the margins as required from the Margins Section Click OK when ready - Pg 25 of 53 -

26 Printing Web page print options Module 7 From the File drop down menu choose Print and the print dialogue box will appear From the General tab you can: From the Options tab you can: Frames are sometimes used in a web page, these are units normally used for menu options When ready click on Print - Pg 26 of 53 -

27 ELE CT RO NI C MAI L Concepts and Terms The make up and structure of an address An address can be recognised since it always contains the following An example of an address is: test@gmail.com sac@waldonet.net.mt An address consists of the following components: The first part denotes the name of the mailbox, such as sac test test The second part of is the gmail.com The third part is the domain to which it is attached such as symbol test@gmail.com sac@waldonet.net.mt What is SMS? name of mailbox domain Short Message Service (SMS) is a communication service component of the GSM mobile communication system, using standardized communications protocols that allow the exchange of short text messages between mobile phone devices. What is VoIP? VoIP (voice over IP) is an IP telephony term for a set of facilities used to manage the delivery of voice information over the Internet. VoIP involves sending voice information in digital form in discrete packets rather than by using the traditional circuit-committed protocols of the public switched telephone network (PSTN). A major advantage of VoIP and Internet telephony is that it avoids the tolls charged by ordinary telephone service. - Pg 27 of 53 -

28 What is IM? Module 7 Instant messaging, often shortened to simply "IM" or "IMing," is the exchange of text messages through a a software application in real-time. Generally included in the IM software is the ability to easily see whether a chosen friend, co-worker or "buddy" is online and connected through the selected service. Instant messaging differs from ordinary in the immediacy of the message exchange and also makes a continued exchange simpler than sending back and forth. Most exchanges are text-only, though popular services, such as AOL, MSN Messenger, Yahoo! For IMing to work, both users must be online at the same time and the intended recipient must be willing to accept instant messages, as it is possible to configure the IM client to reject chat sessions. An attempt to send an IM to someone who is not online, or who is not willing to accept IMs, will result in notification that the transmission cannot be completed. What is a virtual community? Virtual community is a term commonly used to describe various forms of computer-mediated communication, particularly long-term, textually mediated conversations among large groups. It is a group of people who may or may not meet one another face-to-face, and who exchange words and ideas through the mediation of computer networks and bulletin boards. People chat. They argue. They exchange property, ideas and gossip. They plan and make friends. They do everything people do when they meet face-to-face, but by using computers. They do it separated in space and time. Electronic interactions in which people don't know each other make new kinds of communities possible. The improved communication of virtual interaction allows people to seek out more easily those who espouse similar beliefs than can be done in a physical world. - Pg 28 of 53 -

29 The advantages of s Module 7 1. Fast: s are very fast, one can send a message to a recipient and it is delivered within seconds 2. Low cost: There are only line costs when sending s, and it is only a fraction of the cost when using traditional mail, where there are stationary costs and stamp costs 3. World-wide: When using s, one can send an to all the countries in the world. Not only, but you can also access your s from anywhere in the world. 4. Time-zone: You can send an at any time you want and the recipient will read that e- mail at any time he/she wants. Imagine making a phone call to America at 10am, in America, because of the time zone it will be 3am. 5. Attachments: All the files you can imagine can be attached to an and sent wherever you want 6. Reliability: Through requesting a received confirmation the sender can know that the receiver has received the message 7. Security: One can encrypt the s for security reasons What is Netiquette? Netiquette is short for Network etiquette and it includes rules on how to send a proper . Sometimes we tend to think of an as a less formal means of communication, but a poorly written and structured can cause offence especially in the business world. Here are some rules for sending a good 1. Subject header: Insert a meaningful subject header. Don t forget that in the business world a person can have hundreds of s sent to him/her. The subject header will help the person decide the importance of that particular Formality: Address the person in a formal way, for example do not greet him as Hi Cens or Aw xbin unless you are sending the to a very close friend of yours. Remember that many people may regard the casual mode of address as disrespectful. 3. Spell-check: Before sending an spell check it for spelling mistakes. A person that sees spelling mistakes in an may start to have a bad impression about your organisation 4. Grammar: Check the grammar of your 5. Letter case: Do not write all the in upper case or lower case, it is an untidy and lazy construction. - Pg 29 of 53 -

30 6. Be brief: Be clear and brief in your s. If you write long s, the chances are that the person reading the might miss some important messages. 7. Privacy: Respect privacy and confidentiality in an . Never quote other persons e- mails without their permission or read other recipients s 8. Signature: Include your full name, your address, phone and fax number and the name and address if the company (or your own) at the end of your s. 9. Spams: Never reply to spasm, unless you want to receive a whole bunch of rubbish in your mail box Security Considerations Be aware of receiving unsolicited mail (spam) Spam is the bulk sending of unsolicited mail, normally to sell products. These are done through distribution lists that are a list of addresses to whom the spam is sent to. This has lead to a whole business affair of people creating distribution lists and selling them to companies or persons who want to send spams. This is becoming a very serious problem, it is wasting valuable bandwidth and causes deterioration in Internet performance, it causes irritation and fills up mail boxes. Some countries are introducing legislations to stop spams. Some ISPs make use of anti-spam software, anti-spam software can also be installed on PCs. What is phishing? Phishing is the act of sending an to a user falsely claiming to be an established legitimate enterprise in an attempt to scam the user into surrendering private information that will be used for identity theft. The directs the user to visit a Web site where they are asked to update personal information, such as passwords and credit card, social security, and bank account numbers, that the legitimate organization already has. The Web site, however, is bogus and set up only to steal the user s information. Be aware of infecting your computer with a virus by opening an Unfortunately s are the easiest way of sending a virus, especially through the use of attachments, where one can hide viruses in the form of macros. To try and overcome this problem: 1. Check the address to see if it is a known source. 2. If you do not know the sender, check the domain. Be particularly wary of unknown senders using web based mail. 3. Check the subject heading of the . - Pg 30 of 53 -

31 4. Check if there are attachments. Be very careful of from unknown sources which have attachments. 5. As we are all becoming increasingly dependent on , we are often force to take certain chances. In order to deal with possible loss, make regular backups on removable media such as CD. What is a digital signature? A digital signature is a proof that the is sent from the person is who he/she claims to be. When using a digital signature you would need a public and a private key. You will have to give the public key to the persons who are going to read your mail, and keep the private key to yourself. First Steps with (Using Outlook Express) Opening and closing an application (Outlook Express) If you are using outlook express, double click on the following icon: The following Outlook Express screen will open: - Pg 31 of 53 -

32 To close the Outlook Express application click on the Close button Opening the Inbox To open the Outlook Express Inbox, click on the Outlook Express drop down menu and select Inbox as follows: Once opened, the Inbox will look as follows: TEST Checking for new messages Click on the Send/Receive button or press F5 - Pg 32 of 53 -

33 Opening messages If you want to open a message: Double click on the message If you want to open several mail messages: Click on the several mail messages you want to open leaving the CTRL button depressed From the File drop down menu, choose Open Switch between open messages To switch between open messages, simple click on the message in the task bar Close a mail message Select the mail message you want to close From the File drop down menu choose Close OR Select ALT + F4 from the keyboard Using available Help functions From the Help drop down menu, choose Contents and Index OR Press F1 from the keyboard The following dialogue box will be displayed Search for a keyword, and choose the topic that best suites your needs. - Pg 33 of 53 -

34 Adjust Settings Add, remove message inbox headings Right click on the inbox headings and choose Columns Tick near the appropriate inbox heading if you want to display it, or untick it if you want to remove it Click OK when ready Display, hide built-in toolbars Right click on any existing toolbar and this will display the Toolbars drop down menu, from which you can select (display) or de-select (hide) toolbars. - Pg 34 of 53 -

35 MES SA GI NG Read a Message Flagging a message A flag is used to mark a message as important or for further follow up. The flag icon is the following: To flag or unflag a message: Click on the message you want to flag or unflag to select it From the Message drop down menu, choose Flag Message, if it is ticked, it means that it is flagged. OR Click just underneath the flag heading near the message you want flagged Mark message as Read or Unread Click on the message you want to change to Read or Unread From the Edit drop down menu, choose Mark as Read or Mark as Unread OR Right click on the message and from the drop down menu choose Mark as Read or Mark as Unread A read message will look as this: An unread message will look as this: - Pg 35 of 53 -

36 Open a file attachment Double click on the message to open the message Double click on the attachment to open the attachment Save a file attachment to a location on the drive Double click on the message to open the message Double click on the attachment to open the attachment From the File drop down menu, select Save Attachment, and the following dialogue box will appear: test Select the Attachment/s to be saved Browse to a location on the drive Click on Save Reply to a Message Using the Reply button Click on the message you want to reply Click on the Reply button This will open a message dialogue box with the original message that was sent by the sender. You can place the reply where you want, but its best to type the reply on the top of the message. Type the reply and click on send - Pg 36 of 53 -

37 Using the Reply All button Sometimes a sender sends a message to many people, and you want to reply to the sender of the original message together to all the people that the message was sent to. To do this you have to use the Reply all button Click on the message you want to reply to all Click on the Reply all button This will open a message dialogue box with the original message that was sent by the sender. Type the reply and click on send Reply with or without the original message insertion In the previous example, the original message was included in the reply. You may customise this option as follows: From the Tools drop down menu, choose Options Click on the Send tab If you want to include the original message in the reply, tick Include message in reply, if you want to send a reply without the original message, untick Include message in reply Click Apply and OK - Pg 37 of 53 -

38 Send a Message Create a New Message Click on the Create Mail button to create a new mail message If you want to type something special try to select the drop down menu near the Create Mail and select one of the templates. Type your message in the message area Insert a mail address into the To field Insert the address of the person you are sending the message into the To field If you are sending the message to more than 1 person separate the addresses with a semi-colon test@gmail.com To send a copy Cc of the message Cc means carbon copy. You may send a carbon copy of the to one or more people as follows: Insert the address of the person you are sending a copy to into the Cc field If you are sending a copy of the message to more than 1 person separate the addresses with a semi-colon test@gmail.com joe@gmail.com;rob@gmail.com To send a blind copy Bcc of the message Bcc means Blind Carbon Copy. If you send a Blind copy to a person, the other recipients will not know that the person has received the message. If the Bcc is not displayed, from the View drop down menu click on All Headers Insert the address of the person you are sending a copy to into the Bcc field If you are sending a blind copy of the message to more than 1 person separate the addresses with a semi-colon test@gmail.com joe@gmail.com;rob@gmail.com jack@gmail.com;james@gmail.com - Pg 38 of 53 -

39 Inserting a title in the Subject field Enter a valid title in the Subject area test@gmail.com joe@gmail.com;rob@gmail.com jack@gmail.com;james@gmail.com Use a spell-check to correct spelling errors and delete repeated words After writing the message click on the spelling button A dialogue will appear with the words that are not in the dictionary Choose the following options Ignore: Ignores that particular word only Ignore All: Ignores all the occurrences of that particular word Change: Changes the word to the suggestion in the Change to: box Change All: Changes all the occurrences of that particular word Add: Adds the word to the dictionary in use AutoCorrect: Enables the Autocorrect feature for further occurrences - Pg 39 of 53 -

40 A dialogue box will appear if there are repeated words Choose the following options Ignore: Ignores that particular word only Delete: Deletes the repeated word When the spell-check is ready, it will prompt you with a dialog box Attach a file to a message After writing your message click on the Attach button An Insert Attachment dialogue box will appear, browse to find the file you want to attach to your message Click on the file and click attach - Pg 40 of 53 -

41 The file will attach itself with the Set a message with high or low priority The priority of the message refers to the importance of the message After writing the message click on the drop down menu near the Priority button Choose between High Priority or Low Priority The following message is high priority test@gmail.com The following message is low priority test@gmail.com - Pg 41 of 53 -

42 Send a message using a distribution list Module 7 A distribution list is a list of addresses grouped together so as to send them the same at the same time. To create a distribution list: From the Inbox dialogue box click on Addresses button From the Address dialogue box click on New button Choose New Group from the New button drop down menu Enter Group Name Click on Select Members and from the address book choose any members you like to add to your distribution list or add a name and an address to the group Click OK when ready To send a message to distribution list: In the To: bar insert the name of the Group from the address book and click Send - Pg 42 of 53 -

43 Forward a message Click on the message you want to forward Click on the Forward button This will open a message dialogue box with the original message that was sent by the sender. Type the reply and click on send Duplicate, Move and Delete Duplicate (Copy & Paste) text within an message Select the text to be duplicated From the Edit drop down menu, choose the Copy command OR Press CTRL + C from the keyboard OR Choose the Copy icon from the toolbar Go to the different location where you want the duplicate the text by clicking at this position and From the Edit drop down menu, choose the Paste command OR Press CTRL + V from the keyboard OR Choose the Paste icon from the toolbar If the different location where you want to duplicate the object is in another message, open the other message by clicking it from the task bar and duplicate the text where you want. Move (Cut & Paste) text within an message Select the text to be moved From the Edit drop down menu, choose the Cut command OR Press CTRL + X from the keyboard OR Choose the Cut icon from the toolbar Go to the different location where you want the duplicate the text by clicking at this position and From the Edit drop down menu, choose the Paste command - Pg 43 of 53 -

44 OR Press CTRL + X from the keyboard OR Choose the Paste icon from the toolbar Module 7 If the different location where you want to move the object is in another message, open the other message by clicking it from the task bar and move the text where you want. Delete text Highlight the text you want to delete Use either the Backspace key or Delete key from your keyboard. Backspace will delete text to the left of the cursor and Delete will erase text to the right. Deleting the file attachment from an outgoing message Open the message that contains the file attachment/s you want to delete Click on the attachment in the Attach area Use the Delete key from your keyboard - Pg 44 of 53 -

45 MAI L MAN AG EM EN T Techniques s are a part of everyday life especially if one works in an office, so it is important that one has to manage s effectively. To manage your s effectively: Delete unwanted s: It is important that we delete s that are unwanted, especially if the subject header is irrelevant to you. You should delete all mail that comes from suspicious sources without opening them, since they may contain viruses. If you are receiving spams you can consider installing anti-spam software to block the spams. Use Mail folders Create folders with meaningful names to store the s according to their category by dragging the e- mails in the appropriate folder. Use address / distribution lists This is used instead of having to type lists of addresses. Using Address Books Add a member in a distribution list From the Inbox dialogue box click on Addresses button Double click on the distribution list you require - Pg 45 of 53 -

46 TEST The distribution list properties dialogue box will open TEST TEST - Pg 46 of 53 -

47 To add a new contact that is not in your address book click New Contact, enter the information needed together with the address and click on Add TEST joe joeblack joeblack@gmail.com To add a member that is already entered in the address book, click on Select Member and choose the members you want from the address book Delete a mail address from an address list From the Inbox dialogue box click on Addresses button Double click on the distribution list you require The distribution list properties dialogue box will open Click on a group member you want to delete Click on Remove - Pg 47 of 53 -

48 TEST TEST Update an address book from incoming messages Instead of having to type a new contact in the address book, it can be done automatically from incoming messages. From the Inbox dialogue box, right click on any message you want to add the sender s address Choose Add Sender to Address Book - Pg 48 of 53 -

49 Organising Messages Searching for messages To search for messages we use the Find button from the toolbar The find message dialogue box will appear To search for a message by sender, enter the address in the Form: box To search for a message by subject, enter the subject header in the Subject: box To search for a message by content, enter the word/s in the Message: box Click on Find Now to search for the message Create a new folder for mail From the Inbox dialogue box, click on the File drop down menu Choose Folder and New from the drop down menu The Create Folder dialogue box will appear Enter the folder name in the Folder name box Select the folder in which you want to create the new folder Click OK - Pg 49 of 53 -

50 test work tennis important payments Move messages to a folder Open the folder where the message you want to move resides Right click on the message and choose Move to folder The move dialogue box will appear Select the folder you want and click OK. N.B. you can also create a new folder by clicking on New Folder - Pg 50 of 53 -

51 TEST work tennis important payments Sort mail messages Open the folder where the messages you want to sort reside Click on the different Column headers as follows to sort as required: Delete a message Select a message you want to delete Click on the Delete button in the toolbar Restore a message from the deleted items folder Open the Deleted Items folder Select a message you want to restore To restore it move it to a folder you desire - Pg 51 of 53 -

52 Empty the deleted items folder Right click on the Deleted Items folder Choose Empty Deleted Items Folder from the drop down menu Module 7 Outlook Express will ask you if you are sure you want to delete the deleted items folder Click yes if you want to delete the items Printing Open a message you want to print and click on the Print button The following print dialogue box will appear: - Pg 52 of 53 -

53 To print entire document: o From the Page range section select All button To print the current page: o From the Page range section select Current Page button To print particular pages: o From the Page range section select Pages: button o Enter the slide number in the box near Pages: button o For example: 1 Page No will be printed 2-6 Page No 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 will be printed To print multiple copies: o From the Number of Copies: section, use the up and down arrows to enter the number of copies to be printed To print a document to file: This is useful when a printer is not available and you wish to print to file for copying to a printer at a later stage o Tick on the Print to file check box To select a printer: You can use the default settings, and do not change the printer, but in many situations, you are able to print your work on various printers. You need to make a selection of the most appropriate printer. o From the Select Printer section, choose the name of the printer When you have made all your print choices, click the Print button * Pg 53 of 53 -