STEP NINETEEN (Using Wireless Internet Access)

If you have a PowerBook or iBook, you're going to want to know how to jump on a Wireless network, since they're popping up everywhere, from McDonald's to Starbucks, from most every airport departure gate to Internet cafes. All you need is an Apple AirPort card. (Note: AirPort is Apple's name for their wireless Internet connection device. Your PowerBook or iBook may have come with an AirPort card built right in. To find out if yours has a built-in AirPort card, go under the Apple menu and choose About This Mac. When the About This Mac window appears, click on the More Info button. In a few seconds another window will appear with info about your particular Macintosh model. On the left side you'll see a list of contents. Look in the Network section, and if you see the words "AirPort Card," you're in luck. If it's not listed there, you don't have one, but you can buy one from Apple.com or your local Apple store in the mall.) To jump on a wireless network, first click on any empty space on your desktop (or click on the Finder icon in your Dock). Then, up in the menu bar at the top of your screen, you'll see a tiny icon that looks like a pie slice along the right side (it's supposed to be a radar icon, but face itit's a pie slice). Click once on that icon, then with your mouse move down to Turn AirPort On and click on it once. If it finds a nearby wireless network, you'll see the pie slice fill with bands (now it looks more like radar), and if you click once on the radar (pie slice) icon, you'll see a list of the wireless networks it has found. To join one, just click on it, then launch the Safari Web browser, and you're on the Web.