Tips for those wanting to try the Internet

Tips for those wanting to try the Internet

JAKARTA (JP): You have heard a lot in praise of the Internet:
it is fun, it allows people all over the world to communicate
easily and it provides you with all kinds of information. You are
interested but you don't know where to begin.

The first thing you need is a computer. Those with pentium
processors would be nice, but a 486 would suffice. An IBM
compatible or a Macintosh will do, but it must be equipped with a
modem. The higher the modem speed, the better. The minimum is
14.4Kbps (kilobytes per second).

You need a telephone line. If you don't have one at home, you
might be able to use the one at the office (naturally with the
permission of your boss). This will be your connection to
Cyberspace.

After you have all of the equipment, you need to contact an
Internet Service Provider (ISP). Since 1994, the government has
issued business licenses for 40 ISPs in Indonesia, according to
Onno W. Purbo from the Computer Network Research at the Institute
of Technology Bandung. Some of them, like the ones operated by
IPTEK-NET and Institute of Technology Bandung, are not for
commercial use.

Most of the ISPs operate in Jakarta but some offer the service
in several other cities. PT Pos Indonesia, the state company
which runs mail offices nationwide, provides the service in 31
cities in the country's 27 provinces. If you can't find an ISP in
your town, this does not necessarily mean that you can't get
connected to the Internet. You will still be able to venture into
Cyberspace, but you will have to pay more for the phone bills.
This depends not only on how long you use the phone, but also how
far the closest ISP office is from your place.

When selecting the ISP, the first thing to consider is the
ratio between the telephone lines and the subscribers. Ideally,
the ratio is not more than 1:10. If there are many users and few
phone lines, it will be difficult for you to get connected to the
Internet -- more than likely you'll get a busy signal when you
dial.

The transmission speed, or the bandwidth of the ISP, is also
important. Once again, the higher, the better. If the speed is
low and many subscribers use the Internet at the same time, you
will be frustrated because it will take you hours to download a
file.

If you don't know much about computers and its technical
matters, you might want to make sure the provider guarantees
after-sale services or technical support.

The registration fee is between Rp 25,000 and Rp 65,000. ISP
monthly fees differ, starting from Rp 25,000 for five connecting
hours. There will be additional payments if you use the Internet
more than the permitted time. For an additional one hour
connecting time you will be charged between Rp 2,000 and Rp
4,500. Before making your selection of the ISP, you should
consider how you will make use of the Internet.

If your main purpose is to communicate -- to send and receive
e-mails -- this will take you a few minutes a day, so you might
want to take a package for the shortest time. But if you plan to
surf the Net for hours every night, a better option may be a
package for 20 or 30 hours or more per month.

If you travel a lot throughout the country, a provider which
operates in several towns may be the best choice. If you often
travel abroad, an international provider which offers the service
in many countries may suit your needs.

The Internet allows you not only to send and receive messages
via the e-mail, but also to participate in chatting rooms. You
can also have access to the news group, reading the latest news
and discussing issues. There are countless news groups on the
Internet and the number is increasing daily. The ones about
Indonesia can be found in soc.culture.indonesia or
alt.culture.indonesia. But the most popular part of the Internet
is its World Wide Web.

Surfing the WWW is fun. There are so many things on offer here
that you run the risk of getting lost or trapped on particular
sites. You can easily go to the right place if you know the
location. The program that brings you to web sites, such as the
Netscape, has search engines which are very useful. Just enter
the key word, click the button called "search" and it will show
you the way to your destination. (team)