Transcript The internet: A nursing resource

THE INTERNET:
A NURSING RESOURCE
History of the Internet
The history of the Internet began with the
development of computers in the 1950s. This
began with point-to-point communication
between mainframe computers and terminals,
expanded to point-to-point connections between
computers and then early research into packet
switching. Packet switched networks such as
ARPANET, Mark I at NPL in the UK, CYCLADES,
Merit Network, Tymnet, and Telenet, were
developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s using
a variety of protocols. The ARPANET in particular
led to the development of protocols for
internetworking, where multiple separate
networks could be joined together into a network
of networks.
Since the mid-1990s the Internet has
had a drastic impact on culture and
commerce, including the rise of nearinstant communication by electronic
mail, instant messaging, Voice over
Internet Protocol (VoIP) "phone calls",
two-way interactive video calls, and the
World Wide Web with its discussion
forums, blogs, social networking, and
online shopping sites. The research and
education community continues to
develop and use advanced networks such
as NSF's very high speed Backbone
Network Service (vBNS), Internet2, and
National LambdaRail.
Increasing amounts of data are
transmitted at higher and higher speeds
over fiber optic networks operating at 1Gbit/s, 10-Gbit/s, or more. The Internet
continues to grow, driven by ever
greater amounts of online information
and knowledge, commerce,
entertainment and social networking.
It is estimated that in 1993 the Internet
carried only 1% of the information
flowing through two-way
telecommunication. By 2000 this figure
had grown to 51%, and by 2007 more
than 97% of all telecommunicated
information was carried over the
Internet.
In order for computers to communicate with one another,
standard methods of information transfer and processing have
been devised. These are referred to as "protocols" and some of
the more common ones such as TCP, IP, UDP, POP, SMTP, HTTP,
and FTP.
TCP/IP
TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) and IP (Internet Protocol) are
two different procedures that are often linked together. The linking
of several protocols is common since the functions of different
protocols can be complementary so that together they carry out
some complete task. The combination of several protocols to carry
out a particular task is often called a "stack" because it has layers of
operations. In fact, the term "TCP/IP" is normally used to refer to a
whole suite of protocols, each with different functions. This suite of
protocols is what carries out the basic operations of the Web. TCP/IP
is also used on many local area networks. The details of how the Web
works are beyond the scope of this article but I will briefly describe
some of the basics of this very important group of protocols.
 UDP PROTOCOL
UDP is used for things like FINGER and other
programs which prioritize speed over reliability,
and whose data is not worth the overhead that
establishing a TCP connection demands. UDP is
neither intelligent enough to compensate for
congestion and receiver's speed, nor is it complex
enough to care. There is no guarantee that the
segments will arrive in order, or at all. It's also
possible, if a long enough delay causes a re-send,
to receive duplicate segments.
 Post Office Protocol
In computing, the Post Office Protocol (POP) is
an application-layer Internet standard protocol
used by local e-mail clients to retrieve e-mail
from a remote server over a TCP/IP
connection. POP and IMAP (Internet Message
Access Protocol) are the two most prevalent
Internet standard protocols for e-mail
retrieval.[2] Virtually all modern e-mail clients
and servers support both. The POP protocol
has been developed through several versions,
with version 3 (POP3) being the current
standard. Most webmail service providers such
as Hotmail, Gmail and Yahoo! Mail also provide
IMAP and POP3 service.
 Simple Mail Transfer Protocol
Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) is an Internet
standard for electronic mail (e-mail) transmission
across Internet Protocol (IP) networks. SMTP was
first defined by RFC 821 (1982, eventually declared
STD 10), and last updated by RFC 5321 (2008) which
includes the extended SMTP (ESMTP) additions, and
is the protocol in widespread use today. SMTP uses
TCP port 25. The protocol for new submissions (MSA)
is effectively the same as SMTP, but it uses port 587
instead. SMTP connections secured by SSL are known
by the shorthand SMTPS, though SMTPS is not a
protocol in its own right.
 Hypertext Transfer Protocol
The Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is an
application protocol for distributed,
collaborative, hypermedia information
systems. HTTP is the foundation of data
communication for the World Wide Web.
The standards development of HTTP was
coordinated by the Internet Engineering Task
Force (IETF) and the World Wide Web
Consortium (W3C), culminating in the
publication of a series of Requests for
Comments (RFCs), most notably RFC 2616
(June 1999), which defines HTTP/1.1, the
version of HTTP in common use.
 File Transfer Protocol
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a standard network
protocol used to transfer files from one host to
another host over a TCP-based network, such as the
Internet. It is often used to upload web pages and
other documents from a private development
machine to a public web-hosting server. FTP is built
on a client-server architecture and uses separate
control and data connections between the client and
the server. FTP users may authenticate themselves
using a clear-text sign-in protocol, normally in the
form of a username and password, but can connect
anonymously if the server is configured to allow it.
For secure transmission that hides (encrypts) your
username and password, as well as encrypts the
content, you can try using a client that uses SSH File
Transfer Protocol.
STEPS IN EVALUATING INFORMATION
OBTAINED ON THE INTERNET:
Step 1: Understand and State the Need
Don’t just jump right in and type a few
words in Google. Take time before
starting your search to clearly identify
the user’s (or your own) information
needs. Be clear about: what is and is
not needed, how much information, of
what quality, and by when. This means
asking questions.
Step 2: Develop a Search Worksheet:
Before you begin to search the
Internet, develop a worksheet on the
question you are researching. Include
on this worksheet any specific search
requirements you must meet. You will
probably want to update the
worksheet after you perform a
preliminary search.
Step 3: Develop the Search Strategy.
You develop the search strategy in three,
sequential actions.
First: Conceptualize Your Query.
To develop a successful search strategy, you
need to conceptualize the query. [This means
thinking through how you will ask the question on
various search engines and/or databases.] Consider
what you want (for example, documents, images, or
videos). Think out both explicit and implicit
concepts (and their synonyms) for your search.
Pregnancy prevention is an explicit concept of this
search while contraceptive education and sex
education are implicit concepts.
Second: Select and Sequence Your Sources.
If you do not know much about your topic, it may be most
useful to begin your search in the “visible Web,” using a Web
directory (such as Yahoo! Search Directory,
http://dir.yahoo.com/) or a Web search engine (such as Google,
http://www.google.com/, or Scirus, http://www.scirus.com/).
These may assist you in identifying appropriate terminology for
your search as well as prominent and reputable publishers,
organizations, and individuals working in the field you are
researching.
Third: Translate the Conceptual Query Formulation.
Read the “help, “tips,” or “how-to” page for each chosen
search directory (such as the Yahoo! Help Directory
http://help.yahoo.com/help/us/dir/), search engine (such as the
Scirus Search Tips, http://www.scirus.com/srsapp/tips/), and
Web-based searchable database (such as Advocates for Youth’s
How to Search Online,
http://www.advocatesforyouth.org/factsfigures/help.htm).
These pages will help you figure out how best to execute your
search.
Step 4: Execute Your Search Strategy.
Execute your search in at least two
different search systems. Results will vary
greatly across search directories, search
engines, and Web-based searchable databases.
Earlier, you selected and sequenced your
sources. Now, it is time to execute the search in
the order you selected. Don’t get discouraged if
at first you don’t find the results you are looking
for. Review at least the first 100 results
retrieved by a search engine. You might be
surprised at how many times that perfect piece
of information is found, not on the first, but on
the eighth or later page of results! The engine
tries to sort by relevance, but remember that its
criteria for relevance aren’t the same as yours.
Step 5: Evaluate Your Search Results.
Not everything you find on the Internet is
good information. Points to consider in
evaluating any information resource, print or
electronic, include:
 Authorship
 Publisher
 Objectivity
 Referral to and/or acknowledgment of the
literature
 Accuracy or verifiability of details
 Currency
Step 6: Provide Search Results to the User.
When presenting the search results
to the user (including yourself), return to
the original search request. Review the
initial search requirements worksheet and
be sure that you’ve met the requirements.
BENEFITS AND DRAWBACKS TO INTERNET USE
Internet Advantages
 Faster Communication
The foremost target of Internet has always been speedy
communication and it has excelled way beyond the
expectations. Newer innovations are only going to make it
faster and more reliable. Now, you can communicate in a
fraction of second with a person who is sitting in the other
part of the world. For more personal and interactive
communication, you can avail the facilities of chat services,
video conferencing and so on. Besides, there are plenty of
messenger services in offering. With the help of such
services, it has become very easy to establish a kind of
global friendship where you can share your thoughts and
explore other cultures.
 Information Resources
Information is probably the biggest advantage that
Internet offers. Internet is a virtual treasure trove of
information. Any kind of information on any topic under
the sun is available on the Internet. The search engines
like Google, Yahoo are at your service on the Internet.
There is a huge amount of information available on the
Internet for just about every subject known to man,
ranging from government law and services, trade fairs and
conferences, market information, new ideas and technical
support, the list is simply endless.
 Entertainment
Entertainment is another popular raison d'être why many people
prefer to surf the Internet. In fact, Internet has become quite
successful in trapping the multifaceted entertainment industry.
Downloading games or just surfing the celebrity websites are
some of the uses people have discovered. Even celebrities are
using Internet effectively for promotional campaigns. Besides,
there are numerous games that can be downloaded from the
Internet for free. The industry of online gaming has tasted
dramatic and phenomenal attention by game lovers.
 Social Networking
One cannot imagine an online life without Facebook or
Twitter. Social networking has become so popular amongst
youth that it might one day replace physical networking. It
has evolved as a great medium to connect with millions of
people with similar interests. Apart from finding long-lost
friends, you can also look for job, business opportunities on
forums, communities etc. Besides, there are chat rooms
where users can meet new and interesting people. Some of
them may even end up finding their life partners.
 Online Services
Internet has made life very convenient. With numerous
online services you can now perform all your transactions
online. You can book tickets for a movie, transfer funds, pay
utility bills, taxes etc., right from your home. Some travel
websites even plan an Itinerary as per your preferences and
take care of airline tickets, hotel reservations etc.
 e-commerce
The concept of e-commerce is used for any type of
commercial maneuvering or business deals that involves
the transfer of information across the globe via Internet. It
has become a phenomenon associated with any kind of
shopping, business deal etc. You name a service, and ecommerce with its giant tentacles engulfing every single
product and service will make it available at your
doorstep. Websites such as eBay allow you to even bid for
homes, buy, sell or auction stuff online.
 Theft of Personal Information
If you use the Internet for online banking, social
networking or other services, you may risk a theft to your
personal information such as name, address, credit card
number etc. Unscrupulous people can access this
information through unsecured connections or by planting
software and then use your personal details for their
benefit. Needless to say, this may land you in serious
trouble.
 Spamming
Spamming refers to sending unwanted e-mails in bulk,
which provide no purpose and needlessly obstruct the
entire system. Such illegal activities can be very frustrating
for you as it makes your Internet slower and less reliable.
 Virus Threat
Internet users are often plagued by virus attacks on their
systems. Virus programs are inconspicuous and may get
activated if you click a seemingly harmless link. Computers
connected to Internet are very prone to targeted virus attacks
and may end up crashing.
 Pornography
Pornography is perhaps the biggest disadvantage of
Internet. Internet allows you to access and download
millions of pornographic photos, videos and other X-rated
stuff. Such unrestricted access to porn can be detrimental for
children and teenagers. It can even play a havoc in marital
and social lives of adults.
Social Disconnect
Thanks to Internet, people now only
meet on social networks. More and more
people are getting engulfed in virtual
world and drifting apart from their
friends and family. Even children prefer
to play online games rather than going
out and mingling with other kids. This
may hamper a healthy social
development in children.
Social Networking Strategies for Personal and
Professional Use
The increasing adoption of social networking sites like
Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn presents an interesting
quandary for people who want to use social media for both
personal (keep in touch with family and friends) and
professional (network with colleagues) purposes. Do you juggle
separate personal and business profiles for each of these
networks? Or should you use one account that merges both
your professional "brand" image and your personal life? How
you should use these social networks depends on your
objectives and comfort with mixing business and personal
information. The most important thing to remember is that even
if you maintain separate personal and professional identities
online, any information you share online can be made public or
accessible to others.