The World Wide Web, as a means of communication, differs from and yet is strikingly similar to using paper. Almost all of the rules for written communication apply to the web. Rules for visual communication apply as well. Where a book might have picture pages clumped together in one section, because of financial or book binding limitations, a web site allows for the pictures to appear, with less limitations, in their context. While creative forms of punctuation in writing can reflect pauses and inflections in a speaker's voice, the web allows for recorded audio and video to appear with a written transcript. 

Building a web site as a learning experience involves three activities that may be new to many students. First, they have to consider multiple relationships between pieces of information in order to create a web of information, as opposed to a linear paper. Second, if the sites are "published" on net, they have to consider how a general audience, as opposed to a content expert, will respond to their writing. Third, they have to consider how to use multiple media to inform their viewer. 

With these new experiences in mind, the following pages briefly outline some of the major considerations for effective use of the World Wide Web. The intention is to give some broad guidelines and ideas for the instructor or student to follow, not to teach the basics of HTML. First, some important concepts are provided for the reader. Pay close attention to the definition of a web site and page. Second, a brief guide to searching the Internet gives three important tips to help the reader find information. The tips involve choosing a search engine wisely, choosing search terms carefully, and knowing when to look elsewhere. Third, the web site review provides evaluation criteria for determining the informational value of  a web site. Because much of the material on the web is not "peer reviewed," every surfer must become a critical editor! Fourth, a guide to authoring on the web gives the reader a few pointers in designing content, designing a web page, designing a web site, and evaluating the product. The guide concludes with a brief outline of the activities of constructing a web site which may be profitable as learning experiences.