address

A series of letters, numbers, and/or symbols by which you identify yourself and by which the Internet identifies you (actually, your computer). It is also a location where information is stored. Through the use of addresses, people can send e-mail, look at Web sites, and send or receive files and documents.

An e-mail address takes the form of username@hostname.com, where the username"> is a name you have chosen and the host name is that of your ISP or e-mail provider. The symbol in the middle is the "at" symbol (@). Your e-mail address is verbalized as "username at hostname dot com."

A Web address is the same as a URL. Think of it as a telephone number, where every one is different. A WWW address usually starts with "http://www" followed by a "dot" and then a domain name. The Internet is global, and most companies outside the United States use their country's abbreviation instead of the popular "dot com." (For a list of country code abbreviations, see: country codes.)

An Internet address refers to both of the above, as well as to an IP address, which is a number given to a computer terminal where a user logs on to the Internet. If you've ever seen a set of numbers in place of a domain name (for example, http://66.201.69.207), you've seen that Web site's IP address. For network address, see: node.