Getting Connected to the Internet

Before you can surf the Internet, you need to connect to it. If you’re a typical home user, you need three things to surf the Internet:

check.png A connection to the Internet, such as a Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), a cable modem, or a satellite Internet service.

remember_4c.eps If you use technology other than DSL or cable modem to connect your computer to the Internet, your network administrator (the person you run to at work when something goes wrong with your computer) or ISP might have to help you set up your Mac because setting up those other configurations is (sigh) beyond the scope of this book.

check.png An account with an ISP (an Internet service provider such as AT&T, Comcast, or RoadRunner).

tip_4c.eps The technical reviewer for this book reminds me that these days, that’s not necessarily true. All you really need is free Wi-Fi, which is available everywhere — in stores, restaurants, parks, libraries, and other places — and a free e-mail account from Apple’s iCloud, Microsoft’s Windows Live Hotmail, Google’s G-Mail, or Yahoo! Mail.

A Mac (preferably one running OS X 10.8 Mountain ...

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