Windows NT TCP/IP Network Administration

Chapter 13. Information Resources

Now that our network is configured, debugged, and secure, how will we use it? The classic applications Telnet, FTP, and mail, are still popular. But increasingly the network is used not merely as a delivery link between two hosts, but as a path to information resources. Information servers, file repositories, databases, and information directories are available throughout the Internet.

An important application for these information resources is to keep you up-to-date about the latest developments in Windows NT and in TCP/IP network technologies. Computer technology changes very rapidly. The things that you read about in this book will surely change over time.^[46] Online information can help you keep your knowledge current.

This chapter explores various ways to avail yourself of this storehouse of information. We look at how information is retrieved from network servers, and some tools that make it easier to locate that information.

The World Wide Web

The primary method used to retrieve network information is the World Wide Web. The Web is an interlinked network of hypertext servers based on the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) that runs on top of TCP/IP. The Web is accessed via a browser, which is a program that provides a consistent graphical interface to the user. All of the popular browsers, including Microsoft Internet Explorer, are modeled after the original browser developed at the National Center for Supercomputer Applications (NCSA), and ...