
When I finished 6th grade in June 1991, my father had the idea to assign me a
summer term paper to write. He was curious about this newfangled "Internet"
thing that was clearly about to take over the world, and he wanted to know more
about it. In exchange for my efforts, he agreed to pay for a "local" ISP, called
VNet, in Charlotte, North Carolina, the nearest big city. It was still a long
distance call, which was not free in those days (ask your grandparents).

What is most interesting is that this was done before the actual game changing
protocol that would become what most of us think of when we say "Internet": the
World Wide Web, which was released to the public on August 23, 1991. I am also
amused by just how much of my life on the internet still revolves around the
terminal command line prompt.

What follows is that report. Enjoy!

---

## What is the Internet?

The Internet is a complex information highway composed of thousands of computers
around the world. The amount of information contained in the Internet system is
staggering. There are billions and billions of bytes of information on hundreds
of thousands of subjects.

## How do I get on the Internet?

There are only a few things you need to get on the Internet. First, you need a
computer. Second, you need a modem. Your modem can be of any speed, but usually
you want a modem that is at least 9600 baud. The faster your modem, the less
time you have to spend on the Internet waiting for the computer to display
information. For some people a call to an Internet access is a long distance
call. The faster you get the information, the less money you have to spend. Of
course, your modem is no good unless you have a telephone line. Finally, you
might need a little money. The Internet has gotten so big that most relatively
big cities have an Internet Access. If you live in an urban area, the call to an
Internet access computer is usually a local call. For many others, it is still a
long distance call to get to an Internet access. There are no free 800 accesses
to the Internet. If there were, all the others would be out of business. Another
reason for having money is to pay a membership fee. Most Internet access
services make members pay a joining fee and usually a monthly rate. Some access
services charge callers a certain amount per minute of their online time. The
Internet is not free, but the amount of information you can get is usually worth
the expenses.

There are almost as many Internet access services as there are networks on the
Internet. Everyone must search around until he finds the right one for him or
her. It is somewhat like finding your favorite route to work. You want the one
that is the quickest to get there but you also want to choose the one that has
the best roads, most scenery, fewest toll booths, and the least traffic.

In San Francisco there is an Internet Access service that is run by the Whole
Earth catalog company. It is called _The WELL_ ("The Whole Earth 'Lectronic
Link"). There are members of _The WELL_ from all over the world. _The WELL_ has
something called a conference. A conference is when people that are on _The
WELL_ at a certain time all converse about a topic at one time. _The WELL_ has
conferences on many topics from baseball to abortion. There are many other
services on _The WELL_ too, but _The WELL_ is famous for its conferences. To
become a member on _The WELL_ you must pay a monthly fee of $15 plus an online
charge of $2 an hour, which is billed by the minute. The first five hours of
your membership is absolutely free, so you have a chance to poke around a little
bit and get yourself oriented. _The WELL_ is a scenic way to work with lots of
traffic, but the other motorists are kind. To become a member on _The WELL_,
call, by modem, (415) 332-6106. At the login prompt type "newuser" (see Figure
1).

<p>
  <img
    src="/images/the-internet-figure-1.jpg"
    alt="Figure 1"
    width={1000}
    height={567}
  />

<caption>
  Figure 1
</caption>
</p>

There is an Internet access service in Charlotte, North Carolina called VNet
Internet Access. VNet provides a UNIX interface. The people that are members
there are very kind and willing to help on any subject. VNet has wonderful
menu-driven text and mail editors (see E-mail). VNet is a fast and user-friendly
system. If you aren't familiar with UNIX, you can find a book on UNIX commands
in most libraries and bookstores. For an individual account the cost is $25 per
month. Another account in the same family costs only $10 per month. This
includes two free hours every day during "peak" times. "Peak" times are from
2:00 PM to midnight. All other times are free. The monthly payment entitles you
to up to 2 megabytes of storage space in your area on the network. Any more than
2 megabytes and you will be charged 25¢ per megabyte per day. To become a member
on VNet Internet Access Service, call, by modem, (704) 347-8839. Type "new" at
the login prompt (see Figure 2). To set up an account by voice, call (704)
374-0779.

<p>
  <img
    src="/images/the-internet-figure-2.jpg"
    alt="Figure 2"
    width={1000}
    height={570}
  />

<caption>
  Figure 2
</caption>
</p>

## How do I find the information?

There are many ways of finding information on the Internet. Two of the best and
easiest ways are Gopher and Archie.

### GOPHER

Gopher really has nothing to do with rodents. Gopher is a coined phrase that is
short for go-fer or go-for, because it goes for things. Gopher is a huge web of
menus. Most computers attached to the Internet have a Gopher system. The menus
start out at very broad topics and get more and more detailed as you choose
items that better represent the topic you are interested in. If the information
that you requests gets too detailed for the computer Gopher system that you are
on to handle, then you get transferred to another Gopher system that specializes
in that topic.

#### SYNTAX

On most computers, you can just type "gopher" at your prompt. This will run the
Gopher system that is on the computer that you are using. Another helpful syntax
of Gopher is like the Telnet command (see Telnet). Unlike Telnet, you don't need
to have a password or a login name at that certain computer. If a computer has a
Gopher system, and you know its telnet address, you can go ot that computer's
Gopher system by typing "gopher &lt;telnet address&gt;". This command is the
equivalent of logging in to that machine and typing "gopher".

### ARCHIE

Archie is a command that is used to find the location of information. The Archie
command searches over 600 computers to find out if each one has any information
on the topic. Archie is the quickest and easiest way to find a file on a certain
subiect. Archie is easy to understand too. If you just type "archie" at your
command prompt, the computer will display a list of other commands and switches
that can be used with the archie command (see Figure 3).

<p>
  <img
    src="/images/the-internet-figure-3.jpg"
    alt="Figure 3"
    width={1000}
    height={619}
  />

<caption>
  Figure 3
</caption>
</p>

To search for a specific string, type "archie &lt;strings&gt;". For example, to
search for any information on baseball and have the computer display each
location of information on its own line, you would type "archie -l baseball"
(see Figure 4).

<p>
  <img
    src="/images/the-internet-figure-4.jpg"
    alt="Figure 4"
    width={1000}
    height={533}
  />

<caption>
  Figure 4
</caption>
</p>

Once you find out the location of the information, you are ready to go get it.
Let's go get it!

## How do I get the information?

There are two main ways to go places on the Internet. You can either go by
Telnet or FTP. There are four things you need to be able to "telnet" or "FTP" to
another computer. You need an Internet access. You have to know the Telnet
address or IP address of a host computer. Most of the time you need a valid
login name and password for Telnet, and sometimes for FTP.

### TELNET

Telnet is a way of moving your control from one computer to another on the
Internet. Telnet is easy to use once you understand the Telnet address system.

#### TELNET ADDRESSES

The telnet address for the internet access called _The WELL_ that we talked
about earlier is well.sf.ca.us. To the average person this is just a bunch of
letters and periods, but to the experienced Internet user, this means a lot.
Let's decipher this thing.

> `well.sf.ca.us`

Okay. From the first part, _well_, we can tell what the name of the computer or
organization that this is the address is for: _The WELL_. From the last part,
_us_, we can tell what country the computer is located: the United States. From
the third part, _ca_, we can tell what state, the computer is in: California.
Finally, from the second part, _sf_, we can guess that it is located in San
Francisco. Not all Internet addresses are this simple. Most, in fact, are
nothing but letters and periods, unless you have some idea of what or where they
are. For example, can you tell what this is the address to?

> `locis.loc.gov`

Let's take it apart. The _gov_ at the end must mean that it is a government
organization. _Locis_ might be the name of the computer, but that doesn't help
us much. Hmmm. What could _loc_ mean? Could it mean Library of Congress?
**Yes!** This is the address of the Library of Congress in Washington, DC!

The address of the VNet Internet Access that we have talked about earlier is
_char.vnet.net_. The _net_ at the end stands for network. The vet stands for the
name of the organization. And the _char_ stands for Charlotte, because the
location of the network is in Charlotte, NC. Now, we have gone from a bunch of
letters and periods to a detailed description of the computer. _char.vnet.net_
is a network named VNet in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Some other standard Telnet address suffixes are:

<table>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <th>com</th>
      <td>Commercial</td>
      <td>A company or other commercial organization.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>edu</th>
      <td>Education</td>
      <td>A college, university, or other educational institution.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>gov</th>
      <td>Government</td>
      <td>A federal, state, or local government site.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>net</th>
      <td>Military</td>
      <td>A military site such as the U.S. Army.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>mil</th>
      <td>Network</td>
      <td>Gateways or other hosts in a network.</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>org</th>
      <td>Organization</td>
      <td>
        A private organization such as a non-profit group, a foundation, or
        other association.
      </td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

Some Telnet addresses have suffixes that tell what country the computer is
located in. Some example suffixes are:

<table>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <th>au</th>
      <td>Australia</td>
      <th>il</th>
      <td>Israel</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>ca</th>
      <td>Canada</td>
      <th>nl</th>
      <td>Netherlands</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>de</th>
      <td>Germany</td>
      <th>fi</th>
      <td>New Zealand</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>fi</th>
      <td>Finland</td>
      <th>se</th>
      <td>Sweden</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>fr</th>
      <td>France</td>
      <th>tw</th>
      <td>Taiwan</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>jp</th>
      <td>Japan</td>
      <th>uk</th>
      <td>United Kingdom</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <th>kr</th>
      <td>Korea</td>
      <th>us</th>
      <td>United States</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

#### SYNTAX

To actually go to and control a computer using the Telnet command, type "telnet
&lt;telnet address&gt;". To "telnet" to _The WELL_, for example, from another
computer on the Internet, type "telnet well.sf.ca.us" (see Figure 5).

<p>
  <img
    src="/images/the-internet-figure-5.jpg"
    alt="Figure 5"
    width={1000}
    height={570}
  />

<caption>
  Figure 5
</caption>
</p>

## IP ADDRESSES

Sometimes you are only given a set of numbers to contact a system. Then what?
The computer doesn't actually use the Telnet address. It uses something called
an IP address. The IP address really is a set of numbers and periods. Each
computer on the Internet is numbered. Its number is its IP address. To make the
addresses easier for humans to understand and remember, the computer translates
it to what we know as the Telnet address. If you know the IP address of a
computer and you don't know the Telnet address, you can "telnet" to a computer
by typing "telnet &lt;IP address&gt;". For example, "telnet 198.93.4.10". The
WELL's IP Address is 198.93.4.10. So typing "telnet 198.93.4.10" is the same as
typing "telnet well.sf.ca.us". Another example of an IP address is
140.147.254.3. This is the IP address of Library of Congress. As we mentioned
earlier, the Telnet address of the Library of Congress is _locis.loc.gov_. The
IP address and Telnet address of a computer can usually be used interchangeably.

## FTP

FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. FTP is a way of transferring files from
one computer to another. Telnet is to FTP what a sports car is to a U-Haul
truck. Every once and a while, while using Telnet, a computer will offer to let
you download a file. With FTP, you go to a computer and can download almost any
file.

#### SYNTAX

FTP is used like Telnet. To go to a computer via FTP, simply type "ftp
&lt;telnet address&gt;" (see Figure 6). If you have an account on the computer
that you are "FTP"ing to then you can get rights to more files at that system.
If you don't have an account there then you have to use a technique called
Anonymous FTPS. With most FTP hosts, you can type "?" at the FTP prompt and get
a list of commands (see Figure 6). For more information on a certain command,
type "? &lt;command&gt;" (i.e. "? get").

<p>
  <img
    src="/images/the-internet-figure-6.jpg"
    alt="Figure 6"
    width={1000}
    height={557}
  />

<caption>
  Figure 6
</caption>
</p>

The _dir_ command tells you what is in the directory that you are in. The
command _cd_ changes directories. The _get_ command is used to get files. For
example, if you wanted a file called _b.clinton_, you would type "get
b.clinton". To upload a file, or send a file to the host computer, you would
have to go to the directory with the file on the remote computer, before using
the FTP command. Once you had logged on to the host computer, you would use the
_send_ command. For example, you could type "send b.clinton". To disconnect from
a host computer, type "close". To disconnect and leave the FTP prompt type
"quit" or "bye".

## ANONYMOUS FTP

There are several things that you need to have before you can use the technique
called Anonymous FTP. You need an Internet access with FTP, a valid E-mail
address (see E-mail) and a host computer that will let you use Anonymous FTP.
With Anonymous FTP, you don't need a login or password at a host FTP computer.
The syntax for the FTP command is the same ("ftp &lt;telnet address&gt;"). When
you have connected to the host computer, and it asks you for a login name, type
"anonymous". When it asks you for a password, type in your E-mail address. When
you type in your E-mail address, it wil not echo on the screen, so you have to
be careful when typing in in. This technique lets you download public files. The
computer wants to know your E-mail address so that if there is a problem with a
download or something, then it can send you E-mail about it. Usually there is no
use for any more rights than the basic "anonymous" rights. Anonymous FTP is
probably the most popular form of downloading files.

## How do I communicate with others on the Internet?

Communication is an important feature of the Internet. Not only can you get
information from computers around the world, but you can send information to
people around the world. Many companies that do business internationally and
nationally use the Internet system to send information to their clients. Others
use the Internet as a huge social structure. Some people have dozens of friends
that they write little short messages to every day. You can even send mail to
the President or the Vice President of the United States. The system that is
used to send mail around the Internet is called E-mail.

### E-MAIL (ELECTRONIC MAIL)

Imagine having the U.S. Mail service, UPS, or Federal Express being able to send
things at the speed of light. You could do all of your Christmas shopping on the
23rd! Using a technology called fiber optics, the Internet system can send
E-mail at the speed of light. One computer sends a set code of quick, little
flashes of light through a piece of glass thinner than a human hair, and another
computer on another continent reads those flashes of light and translates the
flashes into letters and numbers for a human to read. Fifty pages of information
or a long letter could be sent in about a second using this technology.

#### SYNTAX

There is no syntax of E-mail that will work on every system. You really have to
learn the mail system on the computer that you will be mailing from. Most mail
systems are compatible. For example, if I use my mail system and send a message
via Internet to you at your mailing system, you should receive the message
exactly as I sent it even if your mail system is completely different from mine.
Most mail programs ask you for an E-mail address (see E-mail Addresses), and a
subject of the message. Some ask you more (i.e. carbon copies, etc.). Messages
can be written in any form; sometimes a business style is more appropriate, and
for other purposes a more personal style may be better.

There are several mail-reading techniques that can be used. A quick way, and one
that saves time, is to copy each message to a file and then download the file to
your own computer. After reading or printing the message, you can write your
reply in a word processor or simple text editor. Then you can upload the message
to your Internet access computer and read the file into your reply through the
mail system. Some mail services won't let users use this method, but most will.
This is an easy and money-saving technique that is highly recommended. Of
course, you can also just read and reply to your messages while you are on-line.

### E-MAIL ADDRESSES

E-mail addresses are really very simple to understand. An E-mail address is a
person's login name combined with the Telnet address of the computer that they
are a member on. The login name and the Telnet address are separated by an _at
sign_ ("@"). For example, say you know someone at _The WELL_ named George (this
name is not real). His E-mail address would be:

> `george@well.sf.ca.us`

This system is used with all Internet addresses all around the world. There are
several ways to find out someone's Internet address. The easiest and most
obvious way to find the address of someone you know is to call them by voice or
mail them and ask them. Unfortunately we can't do that for everyone. Most Gopher
systems have some kind of Address Finder. With these systems, you give the
computer all the information you know about a person, and it tries to locate the
person's E-mail address.

The Internet is a vast network of networks of information. The Internet can be
used in many ways, from finding information on past micro-biology experiments to
writing a letter to your best friend in Australia. Almost anyone can use the
Internet. It all comes down to Telnet Addresses. If you understand Telnet
addresses, then you can understand almost al parts ofthe Internet.

---

<div style={{ textAlign: "center" }}>
  <a href="/guide-to-the-internet.pdf" target="_blank">
    View Original PDF
  </a>
</div>


Guide to the Internet


Due to exhaustion and the offer of a ride, I arrived to the Alicante airport
four hours before my flight. I mostly spent it sitting around with my eyes half
closed, half listening to podcasts. When it was getting close to boarding time,
I checked the monitor and it said that my flight was delayed. This was not good
news for me because I had a very tight 50 minute layover in Madrid to catch my
next flight. The monitor said it would be 15 minutes until the next information
about my flight, so I sat back down, read some tweets, and, for some reason, put
my phone between suitcase and my backpack on top of the suitcase. A few minutes
later, got up, leaving my bags within sight to glance at the monitor again. My
flight was boarding!

I went and grabbed my suitcase and backpack and rolled it towards the gate.
After about 15 meters, the podcast audio stopped in my AirPods. Ironically, I
was listening to a podcast about the new models of iPhone that were released
last week, none of which I’d rather have than the $1,500 in my bank account. I
reached down to my pocket to grab my phone to start the podcast again, only to
find my pocket empty! Then I remembered that I had put my phone between the
bags, and I looked, and it was not there. I walked back to where I had been
sitting, checking the floor along the entire 15 meters, but the phone could not
be seen! I retraced these 15 meters about five times before I was convinced that
it was not on the floor.

I looked at my Apple Watch, and it was showing the “not connected to phone”
icon, so the Watch could not see the phone either. I cursed under my breath. My
iPhone had fallen from its precarious place between my bags, and someone had
taken it.

> My flight was boarding.

I walked towards my gate and saw a line of about 25 people scanning their
boarding passes. I looked down at my watch to see the time to get an idea of if
I would make my next flight, and…

_My watch was connected to my phone!!_

One of the most useful features on the Apple Watch is the ability to make the
iPhone it’s paired with emit a loud beeping sound, even if it is in silent mode.
I’ve lost count of the number of times it has helped me locate my phone between
the couch cushions. I quickly swiped up and hit the “Ping” button. Ears wide
open, amidst the airport bustle…

I heard nothing. _Shit!_

Then it occurred to me that my iPad might have a better Bluetooth range than the
Watch, so I pulled out my iPad (wifi only, not cellular), which I had recently
had attached to the phone’s Personal HotSpot. After a moment of searching, push
notifications started rolling in. It was connected!!

I opened up the _Find iPhone_ app, which was ironically using the wifi hotspot
of the iPhone I was searching for to hit iCloud to ask the iPhone for it’s GPS
location to pass back to me through iCloud and then through the phone’s wifi to
me. There it was, on the map, very close to me. Before searching, I tapped the
“Lost Mode” button, and it asked me to enter a phone number to display on the
device. I struggled to remember my home landline phone and typed it in.

> The search was on!

To try to orient myself on the map, I walked 10 meters in one direction, but
both the little dots were bouncing around in unpredictable ways. I turned 90º
and walked another 10 meters. The dots seemed to be closer!

I kept walking, frantically searching the crowd of anonymous faces. In the movie
version of this story, the camera would be whirling around the protagonist as he
searched the crowd for a person he couldn’t identify. You know the trope.

As I was walking in the direction that made the dots closer, an airline employee
stopped me. “Sir, you can’t go past this security checkpoint.” I explained that
I had lost my phone, but that I knew it was around here somewhere. She asked if
I’d like to report it to the police, and I expressed some doubt that I had time
for that, since I was about to board a flight, but it turned out the police had
a little kiosk very close by.

I explained the situation to the cops, and they said, have you tried to make it
ping? I said yes, but that I hadn’t heard it. They said, “Do it again.” I did,
this time via the _Find Phone_ app, which I think emits a louder ping.

> WE HEARD IT!!

The three police officers jumped out of their little kiosk and said, “Again!” I
tapped it again. It was coming from the other side of the security barrier! The
cops raced through a door through the barrier not open to the public, and I
followed.

> PING!

We turned to see a man at the front of a long queue about to board a flight,
holding my phone. “Is that it?”, asked the cop. “Yes!”, I said, as I swiped it
from the man’s hand. “I called the number it said to call!”, shrugged the
British man, in English. (I did later confirm that I had a missed call on my
landline phone from my phone at that time)

I thanked the police profusely and ran off towards my gate. I grabbed my bags
and fumbled for my boarding pass and walked down the corridor towards my plane.
_So relieved!_

But of course the corridor was full of passengers waiting to get on the bus to
take us to the plane. I started up my podcast again and breathed a long sigh.

And
[tweeted about the incident](https://twitter.com/erikras/status/1041391205542711296),
of course. 🙄

<s>1041391205542711296</s>

A few minutes later, the airline employee that had just scanned my boarding pass
came down the corridor and said the police wanted to talk to me. My face must
have expressed my concern of not making the flight, and she told me that I
needn’t worry, that the bus wasn’t leaving until she told the driver it was
okay. The cop wanted my name, address, and info, so I gave in my ID card to copy
it from. He then requested the IMEI number from the phone. Weird, but I guess he
had to write it up for his report. I didn’t quite understand if they had
detained the other guy or not, but I’m sure they pulled him out of the line to
get his details as well.

I guess the guy at least made an effort to call the owner of the phone, but he
did not do the responsible thing of turning it in to the police, like I have
done on several occasions, much to my own personal inconvenience, with phones
and wallets. I’m sure he was hoping to walk/fly away with it.

---

After some serious sprinting through the Madrid airport, my iPhone, Apple Watch,
iPad, MacBook Pro, and I _barely_ caught our next flight and made it home
safely.

---

Thank you, Apple, for adding features like these to your operating systems.

And _muchas gracias_ to the Alicante Airport police for your quick action. 🙏


Technology

Posted in Technology