Catanduanes State University
COLLEGE OF INFORMATION AND
COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY
Virac, Catanduanes
LEARNING MATERIALS AND COMPILATION OF
LECTURES/ACTIVITIES
GEC3
LIVING IN THE I.T. ERA
D ISC LA IM ER
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approach, espoused by CHED in response to the pandemic that has globally affected
educational institutions. Authors and publishers of the contents are well acknowledged. Such
as, the college and its faculty do not claim ownership of all sourced information. This learning
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College of Information and Communications Technolog
C HA PTER 1 : AN OVERVIEW OF INF OR MAT ION
TECHN OL OGY
LEARNING OUTCOMES
1. Understand the basic concepts of computer and mobile devices;
2. Differentiate the web from the Internet,
3. and describe the relationship among web, webpages, websites, and web servers;
4. Understand network technologies and identify reasons individuals and businesses use
networks;
5. Discuss how society uses technology in education, government, finance, retail, entertainment,
health care, science, travel, publishing, and manufacturing and;
6. Identify technology used by home users, small/home office users, mobile users, power users,
and enterprise users.
KEY TERMS
1. Computer
2. Laptop
3. Tablets
4. Desktop
5. Server
6. Mobile device
7. Smartphone
8. Digital Camera
9. Portable Media Player
10. E-book reader
11. Wearable device
12. Game console
13. The Web
14. Internet
15. Webpage
16. Browser
17. Search engine
18. Online social network
19. Communication device
20. Network
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L ESSON 2: T HE WEB
The World Wide Web (or web, for short) is a global
library of information available to anyone connected to
the Internet. The Internet is a worldwide collection of
computer networks that connects millions of
businesses, government agencies, educational
institutions and individuals.
People around the world access the web to
accomplish the following types of online tasks:
• Search for Information • Participate in online training
• Conduct Research • Shop for goods and services
• Communicate with and meet other people • Play games with others
• Watch videos
• Share information, photos, and videos with others • Download or listen to music
• Download or read books
• Access news, weather and sports • Make reservations
The web consists of a worldwide collection of electronic documents. Each electronic document on the
web is called a webpage, which can contain text, graphics, audio and video.
A website is a collection of related webpages, which
are stored on a web server. A web server is a
computer that delivers requested webpages to your
computer or mobile device.
Webpages often contain links. A link, short for
hyperlink, is a built-in connection to other
documents, graphics, audio files, videos, webpages
or websites. To activate an item associated with a
link, you tap or click the link. A text link often changes
color after you tap or click it to remind you visually
that you previously have visited the webpage or
downloaded the content associated with the link.
Links allow you to obtain information in a nonlinear way. That is, instead of accessing topics in a
specified order, you move directly to a topic of interest. Some people use the phrase surfing the web to
refer to the activity of using links to explore the web.
2.2 Browsers
A browser is software that enables users with an Internet connection to access and view webpages on
a computer or mobile device. Some widely used browsers include Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, and
Google Chrome.
Specific Browsers:
• Chrome: Google’s Chrome is one of the newer browser offerings, first released in 2008. The
free browser is available for Windows and Mac OS and must be downloaded and installed. It
includes a large number of security features. Chrome has independent tabbed browsing: if one
tab develops a problem, the other tabs continue to function.
• Firefox: Developed by the Mozilla Corporation for computers running Windows, Mac, OS, and
Linux, Firefox is recognized for its extensive array of plug-ins. This free general-purpose
browser was first released in 2004 and must be downloaded and installed. It has enhanced
privacy and security features, a spelling checker, tabbed browsing, and a password manager.
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• Opera: This second-oldest browser is free, fast, and small. Used on both computers and mobile
devices, Opera must be downloaded and installed. It began as a research project in Norway in
1994 and introduced several features found on most of today’s browsers.
• Safari: Preinstalled on Apple computers and mobile devices, Safari has been the default
browser for Mac OS since 2003 and is relatively new to Windows. The browser is recognized
for its sleek design, built-in sharing with online social networks, fast performance, parental
controls and ease of use.
• Microsoft Edge: This internet browser made by Microsoft, which is installed by default on all
new Windows computers. It can hundreds of extensions that were originally meant for Google
Chrome users. This includes screen readers, in-browser games, productivity tools, and more.
2.3 Mobile Browsers
Many browsers are included by default with some mobile
devices and smartphones. Their features vary greatly. Some
allow users to zoom and use keyboard shortcuts with most
websites, while others display only websites optimized for
mobile devices. The more popular mobile browsers are
Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Opera Mini.
2.4 Web Searching
A primary reason that people use the web is to search for
specific information, including text, photos, music, and
videos. The first step in successful searching is to identify
the main idea or concept in the topic about which you are
seeking information. Determine any synonyms, alternate
spellings, or variant word forms for the topic. Then, use a
search engine, such as Google, to help you locate the
information. A search engine is software that finds
websites, webpages, images, videos, news, maps, and
other information related to a specific topic.
2.5 Online Social Networks
An online social network, also called social networking site,
is a website that encourages members in its online community
to share their interests, ideas, stories, photos, music and videos
with other registered users. Popular online social networks
include Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Some online social
networks have no specialized audience; others are more
focused. A photo sharing site, for example, is a specific type of
online social network that allows users to create an online
photo album and store and share their digital photos. Similarly,
a video sharing site is a type of online social network that enables users to store and share their personal
videos.
2.6 Internet Communications
As mentioned earlier, the web is only one of the services on the Internet. Other services on the Internet
facilitate communications among users, including the following:
• Email allows you to send
messages to and receive
messages and files from other
users via a computer network.
• With messaging services, you
can have a real-time typed
conversation with another
connected user (real-time means
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that both of you are online at the
same time).
• VoIP (Voice over Internet
Protocol) enables users to speak
Supplementary Resources:
Goodwill Community Foundation, Inc. (n.d.). Internet Basics: What is the Internet? GCFGlobal.Org.
https://edu.gcfglobal.org/en/internetbasics/what-is-the-internet/1/
Lee, T. B. (2015, May 14). The internet, explained. Vox. https://www.vox.com/2014/6/16/18076282/the-
internet
Hudson, M. (2020). What Is Social Media? The Balance Small Business.
