Client Basics

The following set of notes corresponds to the Client Hardware module of the Internet Design course, providing students an outline of the information they are expected to understand. The corresponding reading for this module is chapter five of i-Net+ Study Guide by David Groth, et. al., pages 166-189.

Hardware

• You computer's hardware must meet the software manufacturer's minimum specifications for processor, RAM, and hard disk space in order to load and run the required client software.
• Internet software may be run on a traditional computer, an Internet appliance (such as WebTV), or other device designed with Internet capabilities (i.e. cellular phone, handheld PC, etc.).
• Any hardware device connecting to the Internet must have hardware designed specifically for such connections.
• A modem is required to connect to the Internet through conventional phone lines. The modem will be used to dial into an Internet service provider (ISP).
• A NIC (Network Interface Card) is required to connect to the Internet through a LAN.

Software

• On a traditional PC, you must have an operating system installed and running in order to use Internet software. Furthermore, the software you choose must be compatible with the operating system you are using.
• Along with the operating system, a computer must have the TCP/IP protocol stack installed. The protocol stack is the set of software required to support the TCP/IP protocol suite.
• In Microsoft Windows, the WINSOCK.DLL file supplies TCP/IP support.
• A web browser, such as Netscape Navigator, Microsoft Internet Explorer, or Opera, is required to view HTML files and their associated graphics.
• HTML files may also be viewed without the associated graphics from text-only web browsers, such as Lynx.
• An FTP utility is required to upload and download files using the File Transfer Protocol. These utilities may be standard command line interfaces (text only) or graphical utilities that provide more user friendly interfaces. Both Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator provide basic FTP download capabilities.
• A telnet utility is required to interact using the telnet protocol. Microsoft Windows 95 and higher operating systems come with the telnet feature preinstalled.
• A news client program is required for subscribing to, reading, and posting to Usenet news groups. Netscape Communicator and Microsoft Outlook Newsreader (a feature of Microsoft's Internet Explorer) both provide this capability.
• An e-mail program is required to send and receive e-mail over the Internet. Both Microsoft Internet Explorer and Netscape Communicator have integrated e-mail programs. Microsoft Internet Explorer supplies e-mail services through the Microsoft Outlook program, which has become a popular target for viruses. Othe e-mail programs, such as Eudora, are also available.