Office of Information Technology

The Web

Connecting to the Web

In order to use the Web, you must have access to an Internet connection. UT offers Internet connection options for all students. The campus is wireless. All you need is a laptop and a wireless card. The labs all have Internet connections. If you live on-campus, you can connect your computer directly to the Internet and the campus network. Because the campus network connection is supported by your student technology fee, your only cost is the possible purchase of a network interface card (NIC), if it is necessary for your specific machine. You will receive the software for the network card, as well as additional software packages you may want to use with an enhanced package. At the beginning of the term, the OIT staff will set up several temporary information service centers near the residence halls. Also, IT representatives at the Aconda Court Service Center will be able to advise you of your networking needs. If you are living off campus, you may wish to investigate an Enhanced Remote Access Account (ERA) that offers unlimited connection time. The cost is for $38.00 per semester, $22.00 for the summer semester (to be prorated if you apply for an account mid-semester).

Surfing

Launch a Web browser (Internet Explorer, Mozilla Foxfire). The Web is a collection of documents that can easily be linked to other documents. A huge amount of information is available on the Web. It is displayed in a format logical to the page owner, not necessarily to the person seeking the information. For that reason, surfing (arbitrarily jumping from one page to the next) and searching are ways to find what you want. To get the feel of surfing, select a page and continue clicking on page links until you get to the information you are seeking. A great way to get started is to use the Collegiate Surfing section included with this booklet.

Using Search Engines

Search engines are the key to finding out what information is available on the Web. There are many search engines. Each one is slightly different in the tasks it does well. To select a search engine, click on the “Search” button in your browser (at the top of the window). This will take you to a page where several search engines are listed. Choose more than one search engine to conduct your search, as each one prioritizes the searches differently. You will need to use key words to request specific information for the topic.

How Search Engines Work

Search engines use many different technologies. A search engine is a huge database committed to the task of tracking all of the information on all Web sites. Robots or spiders collect data about Web pages. Their job is to go out on the Internet every few weeks and record information about the pages they find. They run automatically and are constantly updating their findings. Additionally, sites can be submitted to a search engine. (You can tell them of the location of your site.) Site links are displayed when a request criterion contains the same words or phrases housed in the search engine.