The Internet

The Internet, a global computer network which embraces millions of users all over the world, began in the United States in 1969 as a mil­itary experiment. It was designed to survive a nuclear war. Information sent over the Internet takes the shortest path available from one com­puter to another. Because of this, any two computers on the Internet will be able to stay in touch with each other as long as there is a single route between them. This technology is called packet swithing. Owing to this technology, if some computers on the network are knocked out (by a nuclear explosion, for example), information will just route around them. One such packet swithing network which has already survived a war is the Iraqi computer network which was not knocked out during the Gulf War.

Most of the Internet host computers (more than 50 %) are in the United States, while the rest are located in more than 100 other coun­tries. Although the number of host computers can be counted fairly accurately, nobody knows exactly how many people use the Internet, there are millions worldwide, and their number is growing by thou­sands each month.

The most popular Internet service is e-mail. Most of the people, who have access to the Internet, use the network only for sending and receiving e-mail messages. However, other popular ser\ ices are avail­able on the Internet: reading USENET News, using the World-Wide Web, telnet, FTP, and Gopher.

In many developing countries the Internet may provide business­men with a reliable alternative to the expensive and unreliable telecom­munications systems of these countries. Commercial users can com­municate cheaply over the internet with the rest of the world. When they send e-mail messages, they only have to pay for phone calls to their local service providers, not for calls across their countries or around the world. But who actually pays for sending e-mail messages over the Internet long distances, around the world? The answer is very simple: users pay their service provider a monthly or hourly fee. Part of this fee goes towards its costs to connect to a larger service provider, and part of the fee received by the larger provider goes to cover its cost of running a worldwide network of wires and wireless stations.

But saving money is only the first step. If people see that they can make money from the Internet, commercial use of this network will drastically increase. For example, some western architecture compa­nies and garment centers already transmit their basic designs and con­cepts over the Internet into China, where they are reworked and refined by skilled — but inexpensive — Chinese computer-aided-design spe­cialists.

However, some problems remain. The most important is security. When you send an e-mail message to somebody, this message can travel through many different networks and computers. The data is constantly being directed towards its destination by special comput­ers called routers. However, because of this, it is possible to get into any of the computers along the route, intercept and even change the data being sent over the Internet. In spite of the fact that there are many good encoding programs available, nearly all the information being sent over the Internet is transmitted without any form of encod­ing, i.e. " in the clear". But when it becomes necessary to send impor­tant information over the network, these encoding programs may be useful. Some American banks and companies even conduct transac­tions over the Internet. However, there are still both commercial and technical problems which will take time to be resolved.

Travelling

(the best way to travel)

There is no simple answer to the question, “Which is the best way to travel? ” It depends on several factors: the distance, the available, what you can afford and so on. Air travel has advantages, in the case of long distance journeys. No other means of transport is a fast. It can be expensive, of course. Some disadvantages of air travel are the difficulty of getting to the airport, long wait to check in, and an even longer wait if your flight is delayed because of bad weather.

Sea voyages were much to most common form of long distance travel. However, for some people, the slow pace of large ships makes them particularly attractive and popular for certain kinds of holidays, such as cruises. Ferries can offer a cheaper and more convenient way of travelling to an island than flying.

Trains are ideal for shorter overland journeys. Unlike airports, stations are generally located in city centres, making it easier for people to get to them. This is especially useful for sightseers and also makes rail transport the most convenient way for many people to get to work. In many countries trains are a very economic way of travelling.

For local travel there are buses (or, in some places, trams, which are returning to our streets after decades). Travelling by coach may be almost as fast as rail transport, since they use the motorway and a lot cheaper.

The most popular form of transport for daily use is the private car. However, we still continue to use it for the shortest trip to the local, supermarket as well as for long trans-European journeys. Because of poor public transport in many smaller towns we often find the car the most convenient way of travelling. For longer journeys the car is slow, uncomfortable and tiring but it permits you to carry more luggage and to travel when you wish.

Many people are campaigning for a return to the bicycle. It is certainly better for your health, is saves you money and it enables you to sweep past traffic jams during and rush hour. You don’t pollute the atmosphere, damage people’s health or the ozone layer. Cycling is an ideal way, too, of enjoying the countryside.