Return to Table of ContentsBy Michael Valliant
One copy of Home Pages comes to you on paper, but that's only part of the story. Home Pages, while partly paper, is also electronic -- on the WorldWide Web. You've noticed that most articles in Home Pages also include URLS -- the addresses on the Web that point you to the rest of the story. In today's world of on-line information, when you read or do research, many of your sources will come to you in the form of URLs. We find them in advertising, on television and on the radio.
Suppose you had to give directions to your house so that anyone in the world could get there. You wouldn't just give your house number -- you would explain how to get to your country, state, city, neighborhood and street. And you'd give landmarks along the way to make the trip smoother.
A URL gives directions to a Web page so anyone in the world can reach it.
The basic structure of a URL is: protocol://server/~directory_information
"Protocol" refers to the type of information transfer. HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) is the most widely used protocol for today's Web pages. Other protocols include ftp (file transfer protocol), gopher, news and telnet.
"Server" gives the address of the computer storing the Web page. Address elements include the name of the computer (e.g.: www), name of the organization (e.g.: Indiana, for IU), and code for organization type (e.g."edu" for "educational") or the home country of the computer. You'll see such extensions as "gov" (US government), "com" (commercial), "org" (for non-commercial organizations) and country codes, such as "jpn" for Japan or "fi" for Finland.
"Directory_information" gives the exact location of the Web page on the server.
URLs can be your greatest ally in navigating the Web.