Some on-line tips for those new to browsing

Minimising time on-line

For the next few years most people, apart from those in North America, will be paying for a phone line while they are online, in addition to the charges levied by the service provider (ISP). Even if you don't have to pay, there might be stiff competition for the domestic phone line. There are ways to reduce the amount of time you spend connected. Saving money

Download now, read later

There is no need to read everything you download while you are online. Once you have captured what you want, you can log off and then study the material. Just follow all the links you want to download the pages you want to read.

There are a few possible hitches. Some sites have parts that are 'dynamic', so they are only visible when actually connected. You can ignore most of these as they are normally adverts. WritersServices does not rely on advertising so this should not be a problem on this site.

The advertiser does not send the actual advert to the site you are viewing, just a link to the advertising space they have paid for. This allows the advertiser to change the advert whenever they want. The drawback is that your system will try to log on to establish this link. Just press cancel each time this happens until you get the page you want, this time free of adverts.

You do not have to do this immediately. You can trawl back days or weeks later. But a few pages refuse to re-load if you go away and return later. This is normally because they want you to interact with them.

If you do try to read online, there is a chance that your computer, or your server, will log you off. This can happen even if you have an 'always on' connection. Phone companies, service providers and computers all check for inactivity and stop work if they think you are not active. So while you are studying a page, the modem might drop the connection after a period as it is not needed. (You can adjust this delay inside the modem settings).

Browser 'History' - you can look back at previously visited sites.

There are a few things that can go wrong here.  Some sites manage to block this type of off-line viewing to make you exchange some information. Some sites do not actually exist but are just a link to another web page. However that site might be stored somewhere else on your computer. Sounds complex? It isn't. It is just confusing because of the way things are linked together. You do not see all these links so have no way of knowing if the site will reappear without you logging on to it directly.

You can set the amount of space for history in absolute or percentage terms to stop it taking over your hard disk. It is also possible to set the number of days' worth of history your system will retain. 

Just remember, not only can you check back to previously visited sites, but so can anyone else with access to your computer. You will have no secrets. If you dump the entire history you can do this and cover your tracks! But...

Secrecy

Unless you have decided to encrypt the content of your computer, it can be viewed by anyone who can switch it on. It is pathetically simple to bypass most computer security. When it comes to the Internet, things are transparent.

The computer helpfully maintains a list of all the files you have downloaded. These are not just the text files and emails but all the little pictures and code that creates the individual pages. If you want to inspect this on a PC go to Windows/Temporary Internet files and wait for up to a minute while the system assembles the thousands of components that make up the web pages you view.

You will see that there are dozens of 'cookies' which allow sites you have visited to identify you. The reasons for doing this are mostly honourable, but if you want to know more, read up on cookies and our privacy policy.

Cookies

A 'cookie' is a small text file that a website places on your computer's hard drive when you first visit it. They can collect information about the pages you look at on that site, make it possible to use online shopping or store login information. The cookie transmits some information to the website, but it is normally only their computer that can read it.

Cookies are placed on computers automatically when you visit many websites. You can monitor or prevent your computer accepting them by setting your browser either to warn you when a website attempts to place a 'cookie' on your computer or to refuse them altogether. However, when used responsibly, they are nothing to be afraid of.

WritersServices has chosen not to use cookies for the moment. Once an enforceable regulatory system is in place we will review this policy with a view to using them. The downside is that site users will need to re-enter information when sending manuscripts to us, as we have not told your computer to store this for future use by the site.

Don't wait

If a link does not exist the system can spend some time hunting for it. At the bottom of the screen you can see a little message telling you that it is looking for the site. It might even report that it has found the site. If not, after a few seconds you should look elsewhere.

What is happening when a site is 'found', but still nothing appears?  As a rule, if the screen remains blank after the count of 5, move on. There are many reasons for the delay. One part of the amazing electronics that should link you to the site might be temporarily overloaded or having a bad day. Just click back and try again later. It is not unknown for a link to fail for reasons that are no fault of the website itself. To help avoid these problems with our site, WritersServices has wired their computer straight into the backbone of a worldwide communications system via a specialist hosting service, Xhost.

A good site design will show something on your screen quickly and leave all the images until the text is in place, but if someone has sent you something visually complex, such as a link to the latest image from the Hubble telescope, you will need to be patient while it loads.

WritersServices has very few images and no fancy code, so the pages should be complete in a few seconds. When everybody has reliable, fast, cheap connections we will unleash on the site cartoons of writers pulling their hair out and showing the other emotions that accompany the flow of rejection notes!

Some more Web Do's and Don'ts

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