1. What is needed to get access to the Internet?

2. What is an Internet Service Provider?

The Internet Service Provider (ISP) is a company that distributes the access to th Internet Network after the relevant subscription fee has been paid to them. We can define the ISP as the gateway between the user and the Internet network.

3. What is a browser?

The browser is a software program that allows one to locate the real time or the web site located in the web. There are several commercial types of browsers and the most popular one is the Netscape Communicator (manufactured by Netscape) and Internet Explorer (manufactured by Microsoft).

4. How much does Internet cost?

Presently in Nigeria, Internet subscription fee (Full Internet Access covering e-mail) is at an average of N85,000 per annum. With this fee, one is entitled to a flat rate, which means that the person can use the system for 365 days without limitation. The cost of all e-mail subscription is at an average of N20,000 per annum as flat rate. With this price, the user is entitled to send and receive unlimited number of messages through a period of 365 days. To this sum, the subscriber must add the cost of the NITEL bill. The closer the location of the user to the ISP, the cheaper the telephone bill is.

For instance, if the user's location is Lagos and the ISP is also in Lagos, the telephone bill will be N1.80K every three minutes, on the other hand if the users location is Port Harcourt while the ISP is in Lagos, the telephone bill will be N1.80K every nine seconds. Anyway the big advantage of sending and receiving e-mail mes- sages is that one can send and receive message to and from anywhere in the world but pays only for the local calls.

 

5. What is the speed of Internet?

We can consider different levels of speed at which the Internet operates. There are different elements that constitute the final speed:
the speed of the ISP, the route that the data that is sent/received is passing through, the level of the traffic congestion, the quality of the telephone line and finally, the speed of our modem through a telephone line. We can easily prepare our messages and attach files at our convenience anytime we require, and when we are off-line. Whenever we want to send and receive a message and check our virtual mail box, we must first link with our provider through a telephone line, send the message we have already prepared and receive the one (if any) standing by in our mail box.

Anytime we are not connected to our provider, any message sent to us will not be lost because it will be parked/stored in an appropriate space in our ISP till the time we are ready to be linked to our ISP so that we can collect it. At the same time, all the messages we send to recipients that are not linked at that moment, will be parked in their own ISP till the recipient is connected.

However, anytime an ISP opens an e-mail account with a subscriber, along with other benefits that are part of the contract, there will be a reserved space that varies from contract to contract to allow incoming messages to be stored till the subscriber is ready to retrieve it. For instance, if for any reason, we are not connected for sometime and our reserved space is 4Mbytes, all the incoming messages will be stored up to the maximum space reserved.

If by the time the space is exhausted, we have not retrieved any message and a new message comes in, the first message stored in reserved space will be deleted to give space for the new one. It will act according to the rule of first in, first out (FIFO).

 

6. NO NEED TO BE CONTINUOUSLY CONNECTED BY THE TELEPHONE LINE TO OUR ISP

Another big advantage of the e-mail is the fact that we need not be connected 24 hours to our ISP through a telephone line. We can easily prepare our messages and attach files at our convenience anytime we require, and when we are off-line. Whenever we want to send and receive a message and check our virtual mail box, we must first link with our provider through a telephone line, send the message we have already prepared and receive the one (if any) standing by in our mail box.

Anytime we are not connected to our provider, any message sent to us will not be lost because it will be parked/stored in an appropriate space in our ISP till the time we are ready to be linked to our ISP so that we can collect it. At the same time, all the messages we send to recipients that are not linked at that moment, will be parked in their own ISP till the recipient is connected.

However, anytime an ISP opens an e-mail account with a subscriber, along with other benefits that are part of the contract, there will be a reserved space that varies from contract to contract to allow incoming messages to be stored till the subscriber is ready to retrieve it. For instance, if for any reason, we are not connected for sometime and our reserved space is 4Mbytes, all the incoming messages will be stored up to the maximum space reserved.

7. POSSIBILITY TO RECEIVE YOUR OWN E-MAIL WITH DIFFERENT TELEPHONE LINES AND COMPUTERS.