This page has been compiled to help users gain familiarity with the basic tools available to utilise Internet resources. Most  people's needs are served by using an appropriate mix of  the tools discussed below. The Internet industry's response to this need is to assemble a range of tools together at a single site, called a Web Portal, affording each user quick access to a package of resources to choose from.

WEB PORTALS
You may choose a portal site as your home site for Internet sessions.  Select from free email access, discussion lists linking you with people worldwide who share your business or hobby interests, address finders and search tools.
No site ties excellent services together better than Yahoo!  with its calendar, free HTML-compliant email, MyYahoo! page, and instant messaging, news headlines, the most popular web content, chat rooms, message boards and multimedia resources,  all working together seamlessly.
ninemsn is Australia's number one website destination capturing the largest online audience in Australia.  Through the interests of its joint venture partners, ninemsn delivers recognised and respected content from the stable of Nine Network television programs and Australian Consolidated Press(ACP) magazines, while also providing the Australian online community access to world-recognised Microsoft services such as Hotmail, Messenger and MSN Search. Other features include online chats with celebrities, sports personalities and politicians,& a daily horoscope service, fact sheets and information from your favourite TV shows, and Chat.
Alta Vista  now includes Babel Fish Translation  enabling the translation of set blocks of text, or of web pages.
For additional information on Web Portals see the site Frequently Asked Questions About Portals from Traffic: the portal portal

EMAIL SERVICES
Make sure that you choose a free web-based  email service to make full use of web capabilities. Hotmail  and YahooMail as web-resident systems avoid the difficulty of sending a wide range of file types between systems of varying capability. Messages remain on the email providers system and are easily read/played/viewed using your web browser.
See Email Guide, The Animated Internet: How E-Mail Works  and Web-Based E-Mail Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

MAILING AND/OR DISCUSSION LISTS & NET MAIL
Internet lists and email provide useful ways of making contact with people who may be able to provide assistance or advice on
given subjects. Since the lists are often international, there is a bigger pool of participants and there are subscribers online, in one country or another, at all times. Responses are sometimes received within minutes of entering the message on the list.
Google Groups is a specialised database for searching Usenet newsgroups which tend to be for lay audiences rather than for academics but some academic disciplines prefer them over Listserv type email groups as a scholarly forum. Other mailing list providers and finding aids can be found at the following sites:
Delphi forums
Directory of Scholarly and Professional E-Conferences  No longer supported but still useful.
msn Groups
Ozlists: A list of Australian electronic mailing lists (academicially oriented lists mainly)
People and chat on ninemsn: Communities
Suite101: real people helping real people
Tile.net - discussion groups (mailing lists) using the Listserv software,  Listproc or Majordomo software
Yahoo!Groups

Newcomers to mailing lists can catch up at sites like the following:
Harness E-mail: Mailing lists
Internet Mailing Lists Guides and Resources
Sources for Information About Mailing Lists from PAML (Publically Available Mailing Lists)
 

NETWORKS/CONTACTS/REFERRALS
Mailing lists and newsgroups are usually self regulating,  i.e. not subject to any formal editorial control. When in doubt you should seek information from authoritative sources or agencies identifiable through web sites such as the following:

Allexperts.com free answers from thousands of volunteers, including top lawyers, doctors, engineers, and scientists
Australia's Cultural Network
Embassies and consulates in and from each country of the world
Governments worldwide
IPL Associations on the Net (AON) - a collection of over 300 Internet sites providing information about a wide variety of professional and trade associations, cultural and art organizations, political parties and advocacy groups, labor unions, academic societies, and research institutions. Abstracts summarising information about the association and its site are provided.
NGO global network Non Government Organisations
Pitsco's ask an expert
United Nations Homepage
Useful Australian organisations can be found here
 

ELECTRONIC JOURNALS
The Internet is growing and changing constantly, so it is important to keep up with new developments. Subscribing to electronic journals (also known as e-magazines, netzines, webzines, etc.) in your field of interest is a good way of doing this. Over time you will learn about some of these from friends and mailing list confederates and find others as adjuncts to sites devoted to your field of    interest. Collections of newsletters can be found at a number of sites including:
Australian journals online  The National Library's database of Australian electronic journals
dmoz: Open Directory Project category - Magazines and E-zines
Electronic Journals Resource Directory: Directories
Google Web Directory category News > Magazines & Ezines > Directories
John Labovitz's e-zine list - electronic 'zines around the world, accessible via the Web, FTP, email, and other services. The list was last updated on 17 Jun 2001 but despite no  longer being maintained it remains arguably the most comprehensive listing.
topica: learn more, surf less - email newsletters, tips and discussions