the.index.is.out.there

Where is the very best place to start? Why, at the beginning of course - after all you have popped into the astrolab for a pre-flight briefing, haven't you? Haven't you? Hmmm .... go on then, we'll wait until you get back.

Back so soon? First things first - we're sorry, but you just have to have an index.html file or you cannot have a page at all. Why? Because Mr Internet said so, that's why. If you punch an URL such as www.bigpond.com into your browser (Uniform Resource Locater: web address to you buddy!) it sends a sonic beep out into cyberspace, automatically searching for the specific index.html of that address. It's the default file that web servers use - you'd get the same result if you typed in www.bigpond.com/index.html. Once this file has been located, the browser follows the instructions held within and, hopefully, loads the page.

• Just as Mulder cannot convince Scully to believe in little green men, neither will you convince the web boffins to change this convention, and so ReTroGrrl says, 'just become a believer and accept the true faith'.

If the little grey cells are working, you will realise that this index file is therefore very important. King of the hill, in fact. It will be the first page - the front door - or it may be the only page.

• Secondary pages will have other names... content.html, myphotos.html, imanidiot.html... anything that calls to mind why you actually bothered to write them in the first place: 6 months down the track you might be a little lost if dealing with page1, page2 ... page999.

How then, do visitors to this newly created, amazing, whizz-bang site, turn the page? (move on to the next thrilling chapter of your personal memoirs entitled, 'I was a teenage amiga 64 addict') Through the magic of links! Pages can be 'linked', like a chain. But more about that later. Astro Lesson #1 is about to come to a timely end.