Windows 98 And The Internet

Forward And Back Toolbar Buttons.

The standard toolbar on windows in Windows 98 now has Forward and Back buttons. These work in the same way as the buttons on your web browser.

• Open My Computer.
• Open the C disk.
• Click on the Back button to go to the last folder you were looking at (My Computer).
• Click on the Forward button to return to where you came from (The C disk).

The Address Bar

You can use the address bar to access the Internet from anywhere in Windows 98.

• Open My Computer (as an example of any window).
• Click on the View menu and select Toolbars. Make sure the address bar is selected (has a tick next to it). If not, click on it. If it has a tick next to it, click anywhere on the window to exit the menu.
• Type the web address you want to go to in the Address field.
  

• Press ENTER. Your window will change to the web browser and show the web site you entered.
• Use the BACK button to return to the My Computer window.
• Close My Computer.

Finding Files On The Internet

Windows 98 provides a preset link to find things on the Internet.

• Click on the Start button, then on Find, then on On the Internet. The web browser will open at a preset search page as shown below.
  

• Select Explorer Bar from the View menu.
  

• Select the Search option.
• The screen will split into two parts. This allows you to view the preset search engines in one half and the search results in the other half.
• Close the window.

You can choose this option in any window. It will show the preset Internet search engines on the left hand side of your window. When you do this you are actually connecting to the Internet and all normal charges etc apply.

Other Explorer Bars

Choosing other Explorer Bar options will bring up other things on the left hand side of your window.

• Open My Computer.
• Select View/Explorer Bar/Favourites. This shows the contents of your Favourites folder on the left hand side of the window.
  

• Select View/Explorer Bar/Channels. This will show the Channel bar.
  

• Select View/Explorer Bar/None to remove the splitting of the window.
• Close My Computer.

Channels

A channel is a web site that gives you specific information. The company that creates the channel specifies what information you get and when you get it. Some channels are free and some you have to subscribe to.

In Windows 98 you can view the channels from any window using the Explorer Bar (as described above), the Channels option in the Favourites folder or through the Channel bar.

• To display the Channel bar, see Changing The Way Your Desktop Looks - Web Settings later in these notes.
• To hide the Channel bar, click on the Close button to remove the Channel bar from your desktop.

You can use the channel bar to see various available channels

• Click on any option in the Channel bar. A window like the following (from the News And Technology option) will appear.
  

• Click on any channel to subscribe to it on the Internet (Note: manage your subscriptions through the Favourites menu).
• Close the window to return to your desktop.