Do you know various ways to surf the net?

    New to the Internet? My Little Buddy can help.
Don't get shipwrecked! Be smart. Be safe. Be a responsible cyber citizen.  

Anybody knows that before you can set sail, you have to have a vessel, a boat or something to get you out there. The same goes for sailing the cyber seas. Your computer has to have a special kind of program to get you out there on the Internet. Programs like that are called "browsers".
We have used these three browsers at school:

BrowserInternet Explorer IE_example_thumbnail.png (92944 bytes)
What's a browser?Safari safari_example_thumbnail.png (92944 bytes)
What browser do you use?FireFox firefox_example_thumbnail.png (92944 bytes)

You could say we have a three browser tour!
Any of those fine browsers will let you get online. They’re basically the same, just a few minor differences. What browser do you use?  Google Chrome is another browser worth trying--ultra neat and tidy, no clutter.

GoogleChrome_examplethumbnail.png (46116 bytes)

Click each of the thumbnail views above to take a close look at the diferences in each browser. Can you spot the Home and Back buttons?

Browsers always begin at their home page. Our home page is our school site. What’s your browser’s home page?

You can change your computer’s home page. The Professor will tell you how at the end of our tour.
Get permission from your Skipper first.
(That’d be your Teacher or Parents.)

Ahead lies a vast ocean of web sites. How can we navigate to the good places out there on the Internet?  Click any of the signs below to see how those ways can lead you there.

URL stands for what?

A web site designed to search out other sites is called a ...?

How are sites added to the Favorites or Bookmark menu?

Why would this be helpful?

Links - a wonderful thing! What a time saver.

 
 

Check out these web sites to learn more about the Internet:

Intro to the Internet for Kids online class.Can you use the Internet to search out information on palm trees?

Learn the Net

 Welcome to the Web

 Class Zone Web Research Guide

NEW! Common Sense with Phineas & Ferb

Disney's Surf Swell Island

Disney's Online Safety

Net Smartz Kids

I Keep Safe*

Cyber Smart*

Kid Smart

Rabbit Brush Tutorial*

Mousercize*

Looney Tunes Teach About the Internet

 

 

 

--- Safety ---
     Never give personal information to anyone on the Internet. 
Personal information includes your last name, birthday, address, and phone number. 
Be safe!  Be smart!

 

Arrange the Browser
Drag and Drop each bar and section below to the correct place
to complete the picture of this browser.
(must use Internet Explorer)
Do you know how to use each of the bars?

 
Title Bar
Location or Address Bar
Menu Bar
Favorites Bar
Tabs Command Bar
Security Bar
Web Page Content

Address or Location Bar - Will you always type www or .com? Can you refresh the page from this toolbar?

Task Bar - How many programs are open? Can you locate the Quick Launch Tool Bar here?

Title Bar - What titles are shown here? 3 buttons appear on the far right. What do they do?

Tabbed Browsing Bar - How many tabs are used here. What web sites are they? Which one is the active page?Command Bar - Can you print from this toolbar? What commands can you run from this toolbar?

Menu Bar - Why is it called the Menu Bar? Because every item on it brings a menu. Which menu would you use to see what version your browser is?

Favorites Bar - Is this the only place to access a favorites menu?

AVG Security Bar - AVG is an anti-virus program. What security programs do you use?

Status Bar - Rest your cursor over a link and notice what appears in the status bar. Click a link and watch the status bar. What does it show?

Scroll Bar

 
Status Bar
Task Bar
 

Can you go to this web site? What kind of site is it?

 

 

 
 

The example used here is Internet Explorer 8.
What version do you have?
Click Help, About to check.

 

 

 

Setting a Home Page

To change the home page on your computer you need to find the Internet Options or Internet Properties area. It can differ slightly from one browser to another.
Look for it in the Tool Bar of your browser.
In our version of Internet Explorer we can find it in the Tools Menu. Click "Tools" in the Menu Bar, then click Internet Options.

What site is specified as the home page for this computer?

 In the Internet Options window
look for the Home Page section.
There you'll see a field with a URL.
Click in that white field to remove the existing home page
and type the URL of the homepage you want.
Finish by clicking the Apply button, then OK.

Remember a URL must be typed correctly or it won't work. It is after all an address. Give it the correct address and it will take you to the correct place. It's a good idea to copy and paste here if you are familiar with that skill.

Please ask permission before changing the home page on any computer you share with others.

 
 

www.computerlabkids.com
© COPYRIGHT 2001-2009 Mrs. Cannon
All Rights Reserved
original text created by Mrs. Cannon
You're welcome to link, print to use with your classes, but
Please do not copy to your own site.

 

 

 

 

 

 

URL:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

URL:

A URL is an address to a web site, such as www.computerlabkids.com.

If you know the URL type it in the location box, NOT the search box.

You are giving the computer directions to the location of that site.
It will follow your directions exactly, so the URL must be typed correctly to take you there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

search

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Search:

If you're looking for a web site about a certain topic or can't remember an exact URL, you can search.

Go to a web site designed for that purpose - a search engine - such as Yahooligans.

Find the search box - a blank box with a search button. 

Type a word that describes your topic and click search.
Be as specific as you can to limit the matching sites.

Search engines you might want to try are:

 

 

 

 

 

 

bookmarks

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Favorites (also called Bookmarks):

You can keep a list of sites you want to go back to later.  It's called a list of "bookmarks" in Netscape or "favorites" in Internet Explorer. Which browser do you use?

To add a site to your list of favorites, first go to that site; then click "Favorites". You can find it in the menu bar at the top of the screen.  Then click "Add to Favorites".  It's as simple as that.

To visit a site you previously bookmarked, click Favorites in the menu bar.  Find the site you want listed there and click it.

 
History  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

History:

Your browser's history includes a list of recently visited web sites. The recent history can be found in a drop down menu at the end of the Address or Location bar. Just click the drop down arrow to see the list. If you want to go back to one of the sites in the history list simply click it.

You can see a more complete history by clicking the History Button in the tool bar of your browser. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Links

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

Links:

Sometimes clicking a picture or text will take you to another site, page or document.  Those "clickable" things are links.  You don't have to type any address, just click.
If the link is text only (no picture) it can also be called "hypertext".