You've obvious discovered the Internet! But what is it, really? And how can you use it to start and run your small home-based business?

Good questions!

The Internet is an inter-network of computers that use data lines to “talk” (share data) with each other. Using hardware called modems (modulator-demodulators), computers contact other computers (per your instructions), then send and receive data. If the data is in the form called hyper-text markup language (HTML), the results are graphic with formatted text, images, and other useful structure. The HTML is read and translated by a browser software program (Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Internet Explorer) and displayed on the computer screen.

Internet web pages include links, specially formatted words and phrases that, when selected, automatically load another web page. For example, from the CNN web page (http://www.cnn.com), you can select a story headline and the link will load the page with the story’s full text.