Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Try using tracert with
www.disney.com
as the target. As the request moves from
device to device, see if you can identify the cities through which your request travels
based on the names of the devices it passes.
TIP
Decoding URLs
When you visit a website, look at the complete path of the URL, including any folder names. Try
different pages on the site and see if you can map how the site is laid out based on the different
folder names you see.
Exploring DNS Name Resolution
DNS name resolution is a process that happens automatically whenever you type a URL into the
web browser. This exercise enables you to see which DNS server you are using:
1
Click the Start button, type
cmd
into the Search Programs and Files box, and press Enter. A
command prompt window opens.
2
At the command prompt, type
nslookup
, followed by a space and then the URL for the
website you want to visit (for example, type
nslookup
www.google.com
) and press Enter.
The command prompt window lists the name and address of the DNS server you are using,
followed by Google's IP address. If you see more than one address in this part of the results,
it means the DNS knows about five different Google servers. Your browser usually will go to
the first one in the list, but if it is not available, your browser will go to the second, and so on.
Think It Over
Evaluating Web Browsers
Imagine you are working for an organization that uses Windows computers and notebooks. Users
have been allowed to download any software they like onto these computers, including different
browsers. This creates a problem for the support department, so your supervisor has asked you to
evaluate possible web browsers so that all computers can be standardized with one program. What
browsers might you evaluate? What features might you consider most important?
