On 15 Jan 96  05:16:34, Graham Cotterell hammered his keyboard to tell All..



 GC> Tis computer iliterate I am.



So were we all, once.  Don't worry about it...



 GC> I think a statment like `roger{at}tgw.apana.org.au' is an address to send

 GC> something to a an certain person..



 GC> If it is is, how is it arrived at?



 GC> It looks a little confusing to me and it is so involved how does one

 GC> remember it?



Graham,

That is an Internet address.  Working through it backwards will take you from

the general to the specific: 'au' indicates Australia; 'org' indicates a 

non-commercial organization; 'apana' is the name of a specific organization, 

in this case APANA - a nonprofit Australian group who offer public access to 

Internet.  'tgw' is the specific computer within APANA (probably belongs to 

one of their members), and 'roger' is a person who is recognised by that 

computer.



The reason for the complexity is partly the sheer size of Internet, and 

partly its origins as a UNIX-based communications system designed to survive

nuclear warfare.  Messages don't travel along a fixed route or in a single

package.  Read one of the many Internet books available if you want to delve

into this.



As for remembering an Internet address, it's just like remembering any 

other kind of address - write it down in your 'little black book'...  :)



... INTERNET : The world's biggest and worst organised computer library.

--- Blue Wave/Max v2.12 [NR]