Sams Teach Yourself Internet and Web Basics All in One

Getting Connected

So you've chosen an ISP for dial-up access to the Internet. Whether that's an online service like AOL or a local or national ISP, your next step is to actually connect to them.

In most cases, the company you've chosen is going to make this as easy as possible for you. They'll either supply you with the software you need—which is often preinstalled on your computer, if you choose a national service—or they'll give you some type of brochure that walks you through the process, step-by-step.

Because the provider usually takes care of that type of thing and there are so many different ways of getting started, we're not going to spend much time on that type of stuff here. Instead, we'll just concentrate on the basics—things that you'll ...