Internet Technology

Short for Really Simple Syndication, RSS is a way to subscribe to a source of information, such as a Web site, and get brief updates delivered to you. So what should you subscribe to, and what happens next?

By Chris Pollette

Imagine plugging your computer into any electrical outlet in your home and having high-speed Internet access instantly. Power line broadband is offered in a few U.S. cities, but there are groups and government agencies fighting to block further development. What's the controversy about?

By Robert Valdes

Under the impression that dial-up modems are out of style? Actually, tons of folks still use dial-up Internet access. Find out how high-speed dial-up makes the most of the original connection method.

By Robert Valdes

You block it, you filter it, you unsubscribe from lists you actually want to be on, and still it lands in your inbox. If you have an e-mail account, chances are you also have spam. Learn where spam comes from, who's doing the spamming and how to stop it.

By Marshall Brain

Blogs serve as online journals and communities, often linking to news stories and other sites. Learn the basics of blogging, explore the blogosphere and find out how to create your own.

By Marshall Brain

Most of us encounter Internet-based ads on a daily basis, and some of us have the misfortune of being utterly bombarded. Does anyone actually click on those things? Find out all about the world of Web advertising.

By Marshall Brain

The World Wide Web is known for its nearly unprecedented "free content." But can it stay that way? Learn how the penny-per-page revenue model might work.

By Marshall Brain

There are too many variables to make a generalization about whether Ethernet or USB is the better way to connect your home computer. Read this article to learn how to pick the right one for your system.

If you've been holding your breath for the next best thing in Internet connections, get ready to exhale. VDSL has five times the speed of regular broadband.

By Jeff Tyson

Wireless networks, or WiFi hot spots, are one of the most popular methods of internet connection on Earth. They're found in homes, coffee shops, airports and even vehicles. Let's look at the technology that makes WiFi such a reliable choice.

By Marshall Brain & Talon Homer

Imagine using a high-speed wireless Internet connection originating from an aircraft flying over your city. Learn about the airborne Internet and how you might use this technology in the near future.

By Kevin Bonsor

Social networking and e-commerce may be all the rage, but many internet pioneers originally used the Internet for sharing ideas among large groups of people. Newsgroups were fundamental to early internet communication, and they're still good sources of information today.

By Jeff Tyson

How do web pages, email and music move to and from your computer? It's thanks to the amazing global network we call the internet. Find out more about its infrastructure.

By Jeff Tyson & Chris Pollette

How do you access the Internet other than dial-up if you live too far from a phone company office for DSL and there is no cable TV on your street? Satellite Internet access may be worth considering.

Every day, billions of e-mail messages are sent. But sometimes even e-mail isn't fast enough. Learn about instant messaging and check out what you can do with real-time computer communication.

By Jeff Tyson & Alison Cooper

It can be truly frustrating -- one minute you're zipping along just fine, the next, you can't get one page to load. What's causing the backup? Cable modems are part of a loop that begins at the cable company's central office, goes through a certain neighborhood or area, and comes back to the central office.

Fiber-optic lines have revolutionized phone calls, cable TV and the internet. It's a really cool technology that enables the long-distance transmission of data in light signals, and is used in many more ways than you think.

By Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D. & Chris Pollette

Your IP address is one of 4.3 billion unique numbers that identifies your computer on the internet. Learn the different IP classes and discover how your computer gets its own address.

By Chris Pollette & Stephanie Crawford

Odor-producing peripherals will bring smell to the Internet, and are just around the corner. Find out how they will work!

How far will the Internet go? The next phase of the Internet will take us to far reaches of our solar system and lay the groundwork for a communications system for manned missions to Mars and planets beyond.

By Kevin Bonsor

These days, you can find animated figures all across the Internet! Ready to give life to your own creations? Learn about dynamic HTML, animated GIFs, Java, Shockwave and Flash animation techniques.

By Tom Harris

Do you get the shakes when you're offline for more than 10 minutes? The wireless Internet lets you browse Web pages from a cell phone or PDA. Learn about the Wireless Application Protocol that makes it possible to surf on the go.

By Jeff Tyson

The funny little "a" with its tail circling back around it is probably one of the most commonly used symbols today. So it is truly amazing to learn that there is no official, universal name for it.

To make it easier to pick out a particular link from your list of favorites, Internet Explorer versions 5.0 and higher include custom bookmark icons for some sites. Learn how they do it and how these icons make your web surfing easier.

Internet search engines are special sites on the Web that help people find information stored on other sites. There are differences in the ways various search engines work, but they all perform three basic tasks.

By Curt Franklin