When the above notice appears ahead of a section of these classes, I invite you to ‘listen’ to the section while you follow the printed words. The notice suggests you ‘Press’ (select or touch) the universal symbol for ‘PLAY’ in the control section to the right of or just below the notice. Once you have done so, the control keys on your keyboard can be used to control the audio: play/pause, Mute, increase or decrease the volume.
If you are not familiar with the audio control keys on your computer, please select the ‘Tips & Shortcuts’ button in the left column, then read or print and read the PDF file ‘Controlling Your Computer’s Audio’.
Class 6
The Internet - a Super Telephone System
The Internet is a game changer for education. In High School, we learned how to find information. You may have thought you were being taught specific subjects, but in reality you were being exposed to those subjects in the expectation that one of them would ignite a passion in you to make you WANT to learn more about it. True you needed the ABC's to get along in this world, and socialization to get along with people, but the BEST teachers were looking for that passion in you.
Now we have the Internet and its information explosion. Instead of just your local library and 'required' reading from your teachers, you have access to a WORLD of literature, an OCEAN of videos, photos, tutorials ... multi-media presentations that can lure you off your intended path. Of course, you must always remember that along with all the good, we can be exposed to all the bad. Hopefully, your parents have instilled in you the understanding that many sources of information may not be truthful or accurate. That is VERY true on the Internet. Please evaluate the information you find, and its source! It can be easy to let 'the dark side' drag you down.
Be Pro-Active! If you hear something that doesn't sound quite right, or you view something on the Internet that doesn't quite ring true, USE the Internet to verify or discount what you are questioning. Just like on TV where there are Myth and Hoax buster programs, on the Internet there are Hoax busting websites; but ALWAYS check their 'credentials'!
The Class Synopsis follows this paragraph. You should notice that individual sections of this class are colored and underlined, indicating that they are LINKS to the appropriate sections. You may click or touch individual sections to jump to them, or simply scroll down (turn the mouse wheel, if it has one) to the section you wish to continue with.
- What is the Internet?
- Internet at home
- Internet away from home
- Connect to the Internet
- Find something on the Internet
- Internet Web Browsers
- Internet Search Engines
- Your Personal Privacy in our Digital World
- Internet Accounts and Account Verification
1) What is the Internet?
Please watch the following video at least once before moving on.
To most people roughly 55+, technology is a catchall term referring to anything we don’t understand. In a physical class, my first slide for Class 1 displayed the words: “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” - Arthur C Clark
This kindergarten series of classes is intended to show you that you actually know more about using a computer than you think you do. The reason is: most technology improvements in our world are not made by a huge, overnight development (some people overuse the term revolution), but rather gradual improvement in materials and manufacturing techniques, an evolution, if you prefer.
If you are startled by a new to you piece of technology, it is usually because you have missed the evolution part.
With that in mind, to understand what the Internet is, you need a little history.
A little history:
Many people credit the advent of the FAX machine (a form of instant communication) with the downfall of the Soviet Union. I, personally, like to think it was people like Alexander Graham Bell, and the invention of the telephone system that began the process.
In 1880, the American Bell Telephone Company was formed. Telephones became a world wide phenomenon that, with the exception of a few suppressed countries, would allow anyone to speak to anyone else in the world that had access to a telephone.
The huge network of wires and connections that made up the world wide telephone system made it possible for anyone with access to a telephone, to speak to another person with similar access, anywhere in the world.
Areas of the world with governments that felt threatened by the new form of communication, could limit access to telephones, and could otherwise prevent undesired information from being communicated. Information presented to the public via radio or TV can also be controlled.
Enter the invention of the device known as a Modem. Engineers had used the idea of modulation for years. For instance, we all remember AM radio. What you may have forgotten is, AM stands for Amplitude Modulation. You didn’t care WHAT it stood for, just so you could use it to listen to your favorite program or music. You also didn’t much care for the snaps, whistles and crackles that interrupted your music, but the engineers did. They continued thinking about modulation, and came up with a new form of radio called FM: Frequency Modulation, a noise free method of sending and receiving your programs.
Similarly, thanks to those engineers, Modem has become a word in our vocabulary, but most of us still don’t know what it means, even though we are happy to make use of it. The modem is a two way device that for our kindergarten purposes, MOdulates (converts) an outgoing signal form into another, and DEModulates (restores) any incoming signals back to their original form.
The first modem we need to be aware of was a device that connected to the Fax machine or computer, and had cradle of sorts you placed your telephone handset into after dialing or answering the phone. If you chanced to hear the resulting communication, it was a staccato series of squeaks and squeals. The digital data being transmitted and received, had been converted to sound, and like our voice, that sound could be sent to anyone on earth using the World Wide Web of wires known as the telephone system (WWW, Generation 1).
Digital information that can be converted into sound, then sent to remote points using common telephone lines was unheard of; now you could communicate via a method that was extremely difficult to suppress!
Todays’ modems no longer just convert digital signals to sound, but, as before, you shouldn’t care. All you need to be aware of is that it is the device that connects you to the new, high speed, telephone like network, called the Internet!
(About.com) The Internet is a massive public spiderweb of computer connections. It connects personal computers, mainframes, cell phones, GPS units, music players and automobile security systems. All of these computer connections exist for the sake of free information sharing. Anyone can use the Internet. As long as you have a computer, tablet, smartphone, or other internet-enabled device, you simply find a place to connect. Once you are connected, you can broadcast and receive all kinds of data. The data you can get includes informational text, email, music, videos, TV shows, etc. Anything that can be converted to a stream of digital data can be sent or received on the Internet.
2) How can I get the Internet at home?
For home use, you must get Internet service through your phone, cable TV or other provider. For unusually remote locations, you can get Internet service via satellite. Your provider (many times referred to as an ISP [Internet Service Provider]) usually will connect you to the Internet via a Modem, an electronic device similar to the TV cable box that translates electronic signals into TV channels your TV set can understand. The modem is the device that translates electronic signals into computer communication signals. It is this box, the modem, that connects your home to the Internet, and gives it an address that defines your connection as being unique on the Internet. The modem connects to your computer via a special cable. Some modems have built-in WiFi. WiFi is simply a name for a system that uses radio waves to communicate with WiFi enabled devices like TVs, game consoles, cell phones, tablets and computers. If the modem does not have WiFi, you can purchase another box (a wireless router) that provides WiFi and several cable connections for more than one computer or device.
3) How can I get the Internet away from home?
When traveling, many hotels now have free Internet. You can find WiFi HotSpots in many public locations such as restaurants (esp.: McDonalds and Burger King), train stations, airports, libraries, hotels, hospitals, coffee shops, bookstores, department stores, supermarkets and RV parks. Many cities world-wide have Internet Cafes. Some city parks even have WiFi available.
Laptop, Smartphone and Tablet applications can locate WiFi hotspots for you. Current Smartphones link to the Internet via Cellular Data. If you compare a smartphone to the analog TV we all grew up with (the one with a click stop tuner that had channels 2-13, or 12 channels) a smartphone has as least 4 communication channels, one for voice, one for data, one for WiFi and one called Bluetooth, a multipurpose short range radio channel.
4) How do I connect to the Internet?
One of the things you have learned about using a personal computer, is what an application is and how to start one. There are many categories of applications that are usually named for the function they perform. Think of them as jobs you would like to get done.
A category of applications for Internet use includes Browsers or Web Browsers. How many times have you been quietly shopping on your own (just looking at new things and daydreaming about them), when your thoughts are interrupted by a clerk asking “May I help you find something?”. Your gut reaction is usually “No thanks, I'M JUST BROWSING”. On a computer, it is the Web Browser that connects you to the Internet, so you can 'browse' to your hearts content, no matter what you are looking for.
PLEASE NOTE: When you are using ANY web based application such as a Browser, you are NOT viewing anything stored ON your computer; you are using your computer to view files on some other computer using the Internet!!! It is EXACTLY like using your TV to view a program that is taking place somewhere else!
The physical (or wireless) connection to the computer may require some small effort on the part of the user, to get the computer to connect to the Internet the first time, for each hot-spot you visit.
There are two popular methods for the connection: Ethernet (wired) and WiFi (wireless):
Ethernet is a special cable that looks similar to a telephone cable, but the connector has eight conductors instead of two or four. It is simply plugged into the computer ‘Ethernet port’, and into an available port on the modem or router.
WiFi, the wireless connection, does need to be told which radio signal, in your current location, to connect to. WiFi is a short range radio signal (50 to 100 feet) and is usually limited to a single building.
The first time you visit a location that has WiFi, or a ‘WiFi Hotspot’, you must select the wireless icon at the clock end of the taskbar on your computers' screen. The wireless icon looks a lot like a series of radio or sound waves coming from a point (the implied radio antenna). This will open a dialog box that shows all the radio signals available at the current location. Individual radio signals may be ‘open’ or ‘locked’, usually represented by a padlock icon, either open or locked. ‘Guest’ signals are usually ‘open’, so just selecting an open signal will usually connect. If the signals are ‘locked’, selecting that signal will also require a password. Once you enter the proper password, the computer will connect, and you are done. Computers remember the WiFi signals they connect to, and will automatically reconnect whenever you have the computer in that location.
5) How do I find something on the Internet?
The average person can only access a small part of the Internet, and probably wouldn't be interested in the remaining part. The part we do access, and with great gusto, is normally referred to as the World Wide Web.
All locations on the Internet have an address. Addresses on the World Wide Web portion of the Internet have been given human readable addresses making them easier to remember. World Wide Web address are known as the Uniform Resource Locater (URL), and most begin with 'WWW.' (World Wide Web ‘dot’), although most modern browsers do not require you to type that part in. The part of the web address you type into the address bar of a browser must contain no spaces. The addresses end with a .com ('dot' com) for a commercial website (also associated with the 'dot com' stock market problems of the 90's), .edu for educational, .gov for government, etc. You may capitalize letters for clarity, but case does not matter in an Internet address. To use an Internet address, you must type it into the address text box in your browser window, not the search engine text box! An example of a web address is "BillsComputerKindergarten.com", leaving off the double quotes.
6) What is a Browser?
A category of applications for Internet use includes Browsers or Web Browsers.
How many times have you been quietly shopping on your own (just looking at new things and daydreaming about them), when your thoughts are interrupted by a clerk asking “May I help you find something?”. Your gut reaction is usually “No thanks, I'M JUST BROWSING”. The Web Browser is the application that you start to gain access to the Internet, IF YOU ARE IN AN AREA WITH INTERNET SERVICE!
In a manner of speaking, a browser application (just like any other category of application!) is similar to an automobile; there are MANY manufacturers of autos, but they all get you where you want to go. There are many creators of browsers (and applications in general), and all the browsers do the same thing; let you ‘browse’ the Internet. Each ‘flavor’ of browser just has different bells and whistles.
Some of the most popular browsers are:
- Chrome (by Google)
- Firefox (by Mozilla)
- Edge (by Microsoft)
- Internet Explorer (by Microsoft)
- Safari (by Apple)
As with every other application on your computer, you should be paying attention to the shape of your cursor as you are browsing the Internet.
In particular, as you point to objects in the workspace of a browser, many of the groups of underlined words, and many words or icons in a website heading are links (or hotlinks) to another page or paragraph. If this is the case, when you move your cursor over it, the cursor shape changes to that of a hand with an extended index or pointing finger (link select). When you see the extended index finger, check the status bar (bottom bar of the browser window) to see where the link will take you BEFORE you decide whether or not to click the mouse button under your index finger. A click when you see the cursor change to link select will take you to the new page or paragraph.
Web Browsers have settings that let the user choose ANY website as their home web page. Your home web page is the web page that opens when you start your browser application. The FIRST time you start your browser, you will get a default home page, usually the browser manufacturer’s own web page. Most people choose their favorite search engine as their home page (change yours in the browser settings menu).
A useful browser convention is a house icon that, when clicked, returns you to your home page! You may need to choose to display the icon in the browser settings.
Another useful convention is being able to ‘bookmark’ the address of a desirable website. Avid book readers usually have either an 'official' book mark or just a random piece of paper handy while reading a book, in case they need to leave for a while. In that case, the bookmark is used to 'mark' the page in the 'book' the reader wants to return to. A Browser bookmark is used for exactly the same reason. Each browser has its own icons or menus you can select to generate a 'bookmark', but by far the quickest way to bookmark a webpage when using ANY browser, is to use the computer keyboard shortcut: CTRL+D (press and hold the CTRL key while you poke the D key). This will open the bookmark dialog box which will let you choose where to keep your bookmark and what to call it.
Yet one more convention for those of us over retirement age, a method to quickly enlarge or reduce the information we are looking at in the Browser workspace. Hold down the CTRL key on the computer keyboard while you tap the '+' key to enlarge the information. If you go too far and need to reduce the size of the information, hold down the CTRL key and tap the '-' key.
Once again, I will remind you, everything on your computer is customizable! You get to choose what you want to see! Different browsers will have different locations to make settings. Make use of the Internet to find out how to change settings in your browser. The next subject is search engines. We will discuss HOW to find settings for you browser in that section.
7) What is a Search Engine?
An Internet Search Engine is a software system that behaves like the reference librarian of your local library. If you want to find information ON ANY SUBJECT in your local library, you ask the reference librarian for help. If you want to find information on the Internet, you ask a search engine. There are MANY search engines on the Internet (www.TheSearchEngineList.com). Most people find one they like and feel they can trust, so stick with it. Some popular search engines are:
- Google (by Google)
- Yahoo (by Yahoo)
- Bing (by Microsoft)
- DuckDuckGo (by Duck Duck Go, Inc)
The web page you open at a search engine website has a text box in which you pose your question or enter an item you are searching for.
After a very brief interval, the search engine returns the search results to you in the form of links to other websites and a partial description of what you will find there. The links are arranged in order of most likely results first. Be aware: the web connects so many information sources that a second search using the same keywords, may result in a different list of links.
The Search Engine will return the number of Hits (search results) it found for your question. You can scroll down through ALL of them if you desire.
One excellent example of something to search for would be the settings for your particular browser. In the search text box, type something on the order of: “where are chrome browser settings” (without the quotes), or “change chrome browser settings” (again, without the quotes).
Internet exercise
A computer user typically will open a browser application for one of two reasons. 1) Look up something on the Internet. 2) Have a web address to go to a website. Where you type the web address (has a .com, .edu, etc. at the end), can make a huge difference!
A browser application, when first opened, will usually point to a search engine. For instance: If your browser opens to the Google search engine, you may see the address text box display: "https://www.google.com/" without the double quotes
--OR--
the address text box may display: "search or type address". Type a website address (URL) in THAT text box.
Please open a browser now, then return here to continue.
If your browser did indeed open to a search engine, you will probably have seen a very inviting text box to type something into. That is likely NOT the address text box, that is the search text box.
Let me try to describe the difference between typing a website address into an address text box and typing it into a search text box:
-
When you type a web address into a browser address text box, you are telling the browser to go to the web address (website).
- When you type a web address into a search engine text box, you are telling the search engine to search for information about the web address.
Most modern browsers let you skip entering the “www.” part of the web address, but, if you do NOT include the last "DOT" part (.com, .org, .edu, etc.), that same browser will assume you intended to search for information on what you typed instead of going to the website!
The exercise:
Checking out the difference in where you type an address. If the browser you have opened does NOT point to Google, locate the first text box near the top left of the browser window. In that text box type: “google.com” without the quotes. You should now be able to find the address text box as in the second paragraph of this section. Of course, if that worked, you already found the browser address text box.
Type this address into the address text box: oregonstate.edu
Don’t click anything when you are done typing, just poke enter on the keyboard to tell the computer you are done typing. You should now be looking at the Oregon State University website. If you are NOT at the website, you typed the address into the wrong text box!
Now return to the Google website (there is a left pointing arrow just below the left end of the title bar or tab in the browser window, select it to back up a page). Type the oregonstate.edu address into the search text box, the big obvious one near the center of the Google page. Again, when you are done typing, just poke enter on the keyboard. You should now see MANY search results. The search engine looked for information on oregonstate.edu!
8) Your personal privacy in our Digital World
Before our digital world, with the accompanying instant communication, most of us didn’t concern ourselves with things like identify theft.
When really young, our circle of family was small and everyone in the family knew who we were. If your family was large enough for multiple persons with the same first name, we began using a nickname to differentiate between family members with the same name. When old enough for school, our circle of friends and acquaintances became our class, then our school, friends’ families, etc. As we grew, so did our circle. You began to need personal identification to prove who you were, and/or how old you were.
Credit was something a local store owner gave you if you didn’t have enough cash on you, or you needed a few months to pay for larger items.
Checking accounts with your bank became popular, as a way to permit you to carry only small amounts of cash, and pay for larger items by check; using only your signature as a promise the bank would pay the indicated amount out of your bank account.
As your world continued to expand, you began dealing with people that had no idea who you were, so you needed to carry some sort of personal identification. Now we were beginning to expose ourselves to fraud. If you misplaced your checkbook, and an unscrupulous person found it, that person found they could pretend to be you and spend money that didn’t belong to them. Business countered by requiring you carry photographic identification.
Somewhere around the 1950s and 60s, larger companies decided they could make more money by offering people credit that could be payed off monthly, with a small interest attached. You did, however, have to apply for, and pass requirements, to gain an account. Many, laughingly called it “signing you life away”, because of all the important personal information you needed to register. You were given a credit card, that identified you as the owner of the account, and carried other official documents that had a copy of your signature to be compared with the signature you inscribed on the purchase document.
As is typical with fraud, the perpetrators learned how to modify or copy such credit cards, so it looked like it was their card rather than yours. There goes your money, again!
Now, in the 21st century, times continue to change. As we age we become more reluctant to change, but we are now the minority! Youth makes for vibrant and active people committed to change. Remember when you couldn’t wait to leave home?
Our children and their children are driving this digital world. It is up to us to be pro-active in order to participate. Remember the way it used to be, but learn to live NOW.
I believe the biggest threat to the aging population is; we believe most people are honest, and we refuse to put any energy into keeping what belongs to us. We must challenge ANYONE we don’t know, that asks for or requires money or information from us. It is the attitude of: “Ok, if you say so..”, that encourages all the scams that currently are running rampant.
Many of us still can’t understand how someone could steal our identity. Everyone leaves a trail on our journey through life. Consider it like dropping bread crumbs as we go, that a hungry critter can find and eat. Current technology is making it relatively simple to recover those crumbs using the high speed communication available via the Internet, and the rush to make public records everywhere available on the Internet.
All an unscrupulous person needs to do, is to collect enough of those crumbs to put together a reasonable description of your life, and they can become YOU!
Privacy seems to have gone the way of the Dodo! On the other hand, as we learn to use technology to our advantage, we are learning how to protect our identity.
Hiding our real identity
The word Avatar has pushed its way into our vocabulary. As with much of computer terminology, the term is not new, we just don’t recognize it as being something we have long been familiar with. For instance: have you ever played a board game like Monopoly? Each player picked their own symbol, a car, goat, pyramid or some other such small trinket to represent him or her on the board! It was our avatar!
Later, as game playing moved to computers and make believe worlds on the screen, it became popular to pick an avatar you could relate to and personalize to represent yourself in the game. The name of the avatar became your user name in the game.
Step one: User Name
Now that we use the Internet for communication, we can choose to identify ourselves to other game (or?) players (and hide our real identity at the same time) by using a nickname from our childhood, or one we have chosen for ourselves (most people do NOT use any part of their real name as their user name). This name is now our User Name when using the Internet. It hides our identity the same way signing Mom or Dad to a card, letter or eMail would. Family and friends know who it is, but anyone else won’t have a clue.
Step two: Setting up an on-line account
It is no longer possible to walk into an (Internet) store and ask to setup an account. You must use a computer application known as a Browser to connect your device to the Internet. If you know the Internet address of the company’s website, you enter the address into the address text box in the browser’s window. When you are done typing the address, you poke the enter key on your keyboard. This action will take you the the company’s website.
If you do not know the company’s website address, you need to ask a Search Engine for help. If you have not changed the website that your browser takes you to when you start the browser, it will probably take you to a search engine website upon starting. Find the search engine’s search text box near the center of the screen, and type the name of the company you wish to contact. The search engine will return quite a few results that contain the name of the company. Select the one you think best matches what you want.
When you finally reach the website you are looking for, you probably see an account login dialog. IF YOU HAVE NOT YET SUCCESSFULLY FILLED OUT AN ACCOUNT APPLICATION, DO NOT ‘LOGIN’! Before you can login to an account, you must have CREATED an account! Find the Create an Account button and select it.
You will then fill out the account application, using your REAL name when asked for it. It may also provide a text box for your USER name. Depending on the company, you may be asked for your eMail address rather than or instead of a user name. This is usually done by a retail company such as WalMart or Amazon. This allows them to contact you directly in case of fraud, or to notify you of shipments, etc.
To complete the account application, you will be asked for a Password. The next section (9. Internet Accounts and Account Verification) will talk at length about creating yourself both a user name and a password.
Section 10 (eMail) of this class has a good example of applying for an account. The actual account being applied for is at Google.com for the purpose of setting up an eMail account. The PROCESS of setting up the Google account is a good example for any account application. You can open a new tab to that section by clicking HERE, then return to this section by deleting the open tab under the menu bar of your Browser.
Your User Name and Password are now the keys that unlock your private information. Private information you provided to open the account. Do NOT give your User Name and Password to anyone you wouldn’t want to spend your money!!!
9) Internet Accounts and Account Verification
When you become an avid user of the Internet, you may choose to apply for an account with a website you find useful. On-line banking, for instance, or a shopping website like Amazon.
In the good old days, you could go into an establishment (a bank or department store, for instance) to cash a check or to pay by check. If the clerk recognized you, no problem. Otherwise, you had to present identification, preferably with a photo.
Now you are not face to face with a representative of the people you want to set up an account with. In fact, you are dealing with an account computer! The computer cannot see you, therefore, visual identification will do you no good. A different method of identification that does not use vision has been implemented.
You are now required to have, at a minimum, a unique user name, and a password that only you (of the billions of people in the world) would know. You might consider this to be an annoyance, but it is for your safety (think ID theft!) as well as that of the company you are asking to deal with. The first time you are asked, you must create an account with the user name and password YOU choose! Just entering a random name and password will NOT give you access to an account.
NOTE: Consider your user name and password to be the 'key' to your Internet Safety Deposit Box! Do NOT give them to anyone but your most trusted family member!
Internet Security
Speaking of Internet security, when browsing the Internet, pay attention to the beginning of the address line in the browser window. Generally, preceding the actual address starting with www., you will see HTTP:// or HTTPS://. When the S appears in the header, your computer is using a secure form of communication called encryption, the same kind of thing the military uses to send secure messages around the world. When you are entering something as important as your user name, your password or a credit card number, be sure you see the S in the address header!
Choosing a User Name
The time to choose both a user name and a password is before you apply for an account. Frequently you will be asked for your email address as a user name. If you are applying for an account at a shopping website, such as Amazon.com, your email address is used to both identify you and to inform you of shipments, delays, etc. If you don't already have an email address you may not be able to create an account at some websites.
Many people choose a general purpose user name they can use on the web without showing their real name. As an example: a web user name could be OregonWineLover (note the lack of spaces!). This would be the name used on social media like Facebook and Twitter so the user's real name can be kept confidential. Also, his or her email address might be: OregonWineLover@comcast.net. OregonWineLover is the user name, @ means at, and comcast.net is the domain name of an email provider. User names are almost always not case sensitive, so you can use capitals to separate full words, as spaces are NOT allowed. Avoid using any personally identifiable information when creating your user name. This includes your first and last name or your birth date.
In the case of a user name, if you choose a name that is not unique for yourself, the account computer you are working with may suggest a variation of it. A choice of JohnDoe for example, might prompt the account computer to suggest JohnDoe93847, or something else difficult to remember. It is likely the 93847 means there are 93846 John Doe’s ahead of you.
Choosing a Password
Passwords are slightly different than user names in that they CAN be case sensitive. For the safety of your identity, you should NOT use the same password everywhere! Passwords should be something you can remember, but someone else could not guess. Passwords usually should have both letters and numbers, and certainly not things like your telephone number, house number, 12345678, etc. They should be at least 8 characters long.
One method of choosing a password, is to pick a base (sequence of characters) that is to be the same in all your passwords, and adding a few letters or numbers to help remember the account it is being used with.
The following example shows three variations of using a base and adding a couple of letters to specifically identify which account the password belongs to. Pick only ONE of the possibilities, or make up your own. This method is to prevent confusion, not add to it.
User's mother was born in 1908, dad was born in 1902. People outside the family rarely know your parents birth year. The account being applied for is at Citizens Bank.
- Cmom08Bdad02
- CBdad02mom08
- Dad02CBmom08
Secret Answer
To assist you in remembering your password, many websites will ask you to pick from a list of questions, and supply a secret answer. In the event you forget your password, this secret answer would help them reset your password. Account passwords are NOT kept in readable form. The company cannot tell you, or send you your password. All they can do is reset it to something else. You then must log into your account using the new password and change it back to something only you know.
Two Step Verification
The latest and more secure system of account security is a two step verification scheme. You must have TWO Internet devices, or at least your computer and a cell phone capable of receiving SMS (text) type messages. The first step is to sign into an account on your computer, then receive a 'pin' code via the SMS device, then type the code into your account log-in screen. It is the most secure log-in yet.
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT!
When you plan to open an account; decide on a user name and a password, then WRITE THEM DOWN EXACTLY THE WAY YOU WANT THEM! Only after you have written them down, using upper case and lower case the way you intend that it be written, should you type it into the account form EXACTLY THE WAY YOU WROTE IT! Too many people I have tried to help had NOT paid attention to case, or thought they could remember what they had typed several days ago (some, even minutes ago!), and so forth! In ALL cases, they could not remember the exact user name or password, and could not access the account.
Keeping Track of User Names and Passwords
One last thing about Internet security practices. We have an example form to keeping track of all your accounts, user names and passwords. If you are in a class at Center 50+, we will pass out copies. If you are on-line, there is a PDF of the document (Internet Password Keeper.pdf) on the ‘Tips and Shortcuts’ page you can download and print. The form is only a suggestion. If you have a better way, go for it, but do it NOW!
Keep the list of accounts and passwords in a safe place, away from your computer. If you were a millionaire, you would probably want it in a safe. How secure you make your list is a matter of how many people are just dying to get it. The list is EXTREMELY important to you! A burglar probably wouldn't take time to search through a file cabinet, or a folder of computer manuals, or even a family bible with a folded sheet of paper in it. Just don't forget where you keep it.
As with mailing a physical letter using the US Postal Service, electronic mail does not magically disappear from your mailbox and reappear in the addressee's mailbox. The mail you are sending does NOT go directly to the computer you are sending it to. It passes through numerous electronic 'hands' on the way. The last temporary stop it makes is at the Server of your eMail provider. A server 'farm' is a HUGE collection of computers with massive amounts of storage, that holds the mail until you are ready to access it from your computer. The major difference is: mail via USPS, now commonly referred to as Snail Mail, takes days to get to its destination, while eMail usually takes less than a second!
A couple of terms that are regularly used in the computer industry are nothing more than an adaptation of a relationship you are already familiar with. If you go to a restaurant for dinner, you are a Client of the restaurant. After you are seated, your Server comes to your table to take your order and deliver your dinner. He or she may also provide cashier service at the table, etc. This Client/Server relationship is necessary so you do NOT have to know everything required to properly prepare and deliver food in a manner pleasing to you. In the computer world, Client/Server relationships take the effort out of communication between systems.
eMail details
Electronic mail (eMail) is mail you send and recieve using the Internet. There are two basic methods of dealing with your eMail: 1) Browser based (you must use an Internet browser to access it), and 2) Client based. For the purposes of this class, the difference is: for browser based service, all you need is to get to a computer with Internet access while for Client service you need to have your own computer with an eMail client application on it (like Mail in Windows). Conveniently, the client application can access more than one eMail account for you and 'remembers' the user name and password for all the accounts.
Client/server based service uses an application (the eMail client) that saves you the effort of opening a browser application and logging into an eMail website with your user name and password; you simply start the client application, and your eMail is on the screen! The client application also adds the capability of automatically downloading new eMails to your computer for reading and filing for later use. The eMail thus downloaded to your computer can be reviewed anytime, even if the computer is disconnected from the Internet.
Your eMail address will consist of three parts, all typed smashed together with no spaces!
1) User name: - A name that is uniquely yours among millions...
2) @ - A symbol that means 'at', but NOT the word at!
3) A 'domain' - eMail service domain name, such as: gmail.com or hotmail.com
Therefore, your complete eMail address would look like:
MyUserName@MyMailServiceDomain
Setting up a personal eMail account
PLEASE NOTE: Even if you intend using an eMail client on your computer, you must set up an eMail account BEFORE you try setting up the client.
At a minimum, to set up an eMail account you need a User Name and a Password.
If you have had time to think about a user name, write it and an alternate user name (in case the first one has already been used) on a piece of paper. If you have NOT had time to think about it, enter your first name initial and last name (such as: jdoe), followed by todays' date such as July 11, 2018, but written as numbers: 071118. At least that will help you remember the day you signed up for the account. Upper and lower case usually doesn't matter in a user name but SPACES ARE NOT ALLOWED! So: write it down exactly the way you want it before you use it the first time, and always use it the way it is written! The User Name for this example would look like: jdoe071118.
Now for the password. It is not terribly important to have a super password at this time, as you can (and should) change it anytime you want. If you have not had time to pick one, use your first name initial followed by todays' date as above, and end it with your last name initial. In a password letter case does matter but SPACES ARE NOT ALLOWED! Write it down exactly the way you want it before you use it the first time, and always use it the way it is written! The password for John Doe would look like: j071118d. Some accounts you may apply for may have additional rules for passwords such as: minimum of 8 characters, and, must have letters and numbers. As you are not dealing directly with a human, you must read the rules for yourself as you fill out the application. The computer you are dealing with will not accept anything that doesn't follow the rules.
I cannot over stress the importance of following the ‘write it down exactly the way you want it before you apply for an account’ rule. Too many people for whom these classes are intended, are over confident in their own memory, and will loose access to their account because of it.
Set up an account with Google
If you already have an email account, and just want to set up a mail client, click HERE to jump ahead to 'Set up an eMail Client'.
One account with Google is all you need for ALL their services including eMail (Gmail)!
Open a Browser. If it doesn't open to the Google home page, find the address line (has: http:// or the words 'enter address'), click in the text box and type google.com, then poke enter.
Find the word Gmail near the top right area of the workspace and select it.
Notice that the page that opens may have the words 'create an account' highlighted, and the words 'sign in' may NOT be highlighted (or vice versa). The first time we want to select 'create an account', but after this, you will select 'sign in'.
Complete the account application by filling in all the blanks. Use your real name where requested, and your User Name and the Password you chose for this exercise in the appropriate places.
Sending and receiving eMail
Starting from 'scratch', open a Browser to the Google website (Google.com). Find and click on Gmail in the upper right corner of the Browser workspace.
NOTE: Please remember that as eMail services improve, and more options become available, what you see on a website WILL change. The following instructions may need to change also.
You should now be looking at the Gmail webpage where you can choose ‘Create an Account’ or ‘Sign In’. This time you will select ‘Sign In’.
Type your User Name in the appropriate box, then select ‘Next’.
Type your Password in the appropriate box. In or near any text box that you will type a password into, you will see an eyeball icon or a checkbox that will let you view your password as you type it. Normally, as you type your password, it will appear on the screen as a series of dots, so anyone looking ‘over your shoulder’ cannot SEE the actual password. Be safe. Don’t choose to view your password if someone you don’t know can see it. If you didn't poke 'Enter' after you typed your password, you may need to select 'next' again to go on.
If the print is too small (or large) for you to see easily, remember: you are using a Browser application to look at something on the Internet. The Browser responds to CTRL+ to magnify what you are looking at, and CTRL- to reduce the size. Hold CTRL down and repeatedly type + to enlarge (or - to reduce) the print on the Gmail page.
You should now be looking at the Gmail service main page. In the left column you should find at least 3 useful links and/or buttons to click on. As you move your pointer cursor around, various links and buttons will be highlighted by the computer to confirm to you that it is following your pointer.
The Inbox is where you find incoming mail.
You click on the Compose button to compose an eMail to someone. The Compose window will have a Send button to send the eMail you have worked on. Other eMail providers will use similarly named links for similar purposes. For example: links to generate new mail could be New, Create, Write and Compose. They all mean the same thing. Don't expect different applications to look exactly the same, or use the same words for a function. Remember; a common user interface just means you know what the application is capable of, so you know what to look for. So look for a button or link that sounds like it may do what you want and try it! You can always think 'Oops! That's not what I wanted to do.', and try something else. That's just human nature when exploring the possibilities.
Sent Mail is where you can read the eMail after you have sent it.
You can test your eMail skills by sending and receiving with friends or family in the room with smart phones, tablets or computers and eMail accounts.
An operating system email Client will ask for your providers email settings when you first start the client application.
A non operating system email Client must be 'installed' to be used. Part of the install process is to request information from you, the user. In some cases the client will ask you which email service you plan to use in order to automatically apply the proper settings for you to send/receive email. Others will expect you to know the proper settings.
It would be wise for you to obtain the proper settings before you start a provided client, or install a new client in case the automatic settings are outdated, or the client requires manual setup. Begin your search by 'Googling' a phrase like: Xfinity email settings for Thunderbird. During the installation process, you will be 'walked' through the setup with dialog boxes where you enter the proper values. Your email provider will usually have Frequenly Asked Questions (FAQ's) under the 'Support' heading on their home page to aid you in the installation or setup process.