Downloading Made Easy
There are a gazillion places on the Internet where you can find free software (often called shareware or freeware), but they're useless if you don't know how to download software from the Web. Downloading software is one of those skills -- like using e-mail -- that you usually learn by trial and error.

Judging by the number of questions we get on the topic, there are plenty of
students out there who still haven't perfected this skill simply because no one has ever told them how to do it. Thus, we've put together a feature that should answer your basic questions about how to download software from the Internet.

Step-By-Step Downloading Guide
Here's a step-by-step mini-primer on downloading software from the Internet. It's not as hard as it seems.

Step 1: Preparing a File for Download
For purposes of this exercise, you've found a file you would like to download at Shareware.com, which is a popular place to download music on the Web. You’d like to download the free MP3 Player, (http://www.hitsquad.com/smm/cat/MP3/) which will enable you to play music on your computer from the Internet. This program is freeware, but if you download shareware, and if you intend use the complete program, you will eventually have to pay for it.When you have determined you have enough disk space to download the file, the first thing you need to do is select your operating system, and then follow the rest of the directions on the site. Once you click on the file, you will be prompted to save it to your hard disk. There are two things you absolutely must remember: where you saved the file and what the file name was (jot this information down if you have to). After you've chosen a place to save the file, your computer will begin downloading it, and you usually will be given an estimate of how much time it will take.

TIP: One of the simplest ways to find files that you’ve downloaded is to save them to the desktop. That way when you close your connection to the Internet and your web browser window, you will see the files right on top of your desktop.

Step 2: Don't Forget to Exit Out of Your Browser!
Many people don't realize that after they have downloaded the file, they must run through an installation process to make the software work. Once you have downloaded the file, close your browser and find the file you have just downloaded. It will be conveniently saved on your desktop.

Step 3: Running Through the Installation Process
Double-clicking on the name of the file you have just downloaded will get the installation process going. You usually will be prompted to answer a few questions, such as "What is your e-mail address?" and "What type of browser you are using?" When the installation is completed, you can begin enjoying your new software.

Things to Know
Worried about getting a virus from downloading a file from the Web? Well, it can't happen from actually downloading the file, but you could encounter a virus when running the file. Here is some good advice: After downloading the file, rerun your antivirus software. If it doesn't detect a virus in the new file, it should be safe to run. If you don’t have antivirus software, you really need to buy some. There is a free antivirus scan/clean web site that the Rio Hondo District computer labs use periodically to clean the computers. It’s called Housecall and is located at http://housecall.antivirus.com. You can use this until you get the software, but remember, if the phone lines are down, or the site itself is being updated, you may not be able to clean a virus in time.

Resources for Unzipping Files
If you’ve ever gone to download a file and have been scared off by the .zip extension, you aren’t alone. In theory, "zipping" is a great idea: it’s a way to archive and compress a group of files into one file for easier storage and a faster download. In practice, "unzipping" files can be a bit tricky. Hopefully, what we’ve put together in this manual will help educate you on what zipping is and will tell you what utilities you will need to download "zipped" files.

What is Zipping?
Most downloads come as a group of files, including such things as the executable file (usually called setup.exe), which will actually make the program run and the readme file, which typically has program instructions.

Often when you download from the Web, these compressed files are unzipped automatically (they are called self-extracting Zip files). They do not have the .zip extension (or for Mac users, the .bin or .hqx extensions) but instead the .exe extension. You download these files by clicking on the file name and they uncompress themselves, automatically creating a new directory and desktop icons.

WinZip’s “What is a Zip File, Anyhow?” http://www.winzip.com/aboutzip.htm page explains when and why Zip files are used. In addition, the site explains the difference between Zip files and other archive files like ARJ, LZH, Gzip, and TAR. Sometimes we have to extract the Zip files (easily recognized by their .zip extension) ourselves, in which case we need an unzipping utility.

Unzipping Utilities
To download a .zip file, you will need an unzipping utility. After you have an unzipping utility on your system, you simply download any .zip file and then use the utility to extract the group of files you need to run the program.

If you are a PC owner, you have several options when it comes to choosing an unzipping utility. Check out CNET's head-to-head comparison of WinZip and PKZip if you are deciding between these two utilities. While CNET liked PKZip's clean interface, it ultimately declared WinZip the champ, citing the product's ease-of-use and abundance of features as its strengths.

More recently, CNET reviewed the latest incarnation of the popular NetZip utility for the PC. One of the most attractive features of NetZip 6.5 is the Smart Download option, which enables you to pause in the midst of a download. This is especially nice if you get logged off of the Internet while downloading a file.

The unzipping and compression utility of choice for Mac users is StuffIt Deluxe. Download a fully functional trial version of WinZip, PKZip, or StuffIt from any of the above company websites.

Plug-ins
Plug-ins are small programs which are loaded together with a larger application, and which enhance or add capabilities to the larger program. Your browser can play sound and music, view movies, and display special files -- but you often need to download and configure the enhancement software before that can happen. Viewers using current browsers with "background sound" can enable it to hear music like King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band play a short excerpt from the Dipper Mouth Blues with Louis Armstrong on trumpet.