Welcome to The Internet For Dummies, 12th Edition. The Internet has
become so interwoven in today’s life — work, school, politics, and
play — that ignoring it is no longer an option. This book describes what you
do to become an Internaut (someone who navigates the Internet with skill) —
how to get started, what you need to know, and where to go for help. And, we
describe it in plain old English.
When we first wrote The Internet For Dummies 16 years ago (yikes!), a typical
Internet user was a student who connected from college or a technical
worker who had access through work. The World Wide Web was so new that
it had only a few hundred pages. The Net has grown like crazy to include
a billion (dare we say it?) normal people, connecting from computers at
home or work, along with students ranging from elementary school to adult
education. This 12th edition focuses on the parts of the Net that are of the
most interest to typical users — how to find things on the World Wide Web,
download interesting things from the Net, send and receive electronic mail
(e-mail), and shop, invest, chat, and play games online.