Customer Services

What is Telnet ?

Telnet programs allow you to access certain computers around the world in a non-graphical (i.e., text-only) manner. Although the Telnet method of accessing computers is quickly being replaced by the Web, there are still many Telnet sites available.

If you have Windows 95 or 98, a telnet client is included. If you have Windows 3.11 or a Mac, telnetting requires you to download a separate program (called a Telnet "client"). You can do this by visiting www.shareware.com and searching for "telnet," then download the file to your hard drive. Be sure to note the location that you're saving the file to.

The next step is to tell your Web browser (i.e., Internet Explorer) where your Telnet client is located. This is necessary because most browsers don't have any built-in Telnet capabilities. If you try to go to a Telnet site (by entering, for example "telnet://telnet.somewhere.com"), your browser will attempt to use your Telnet client. It can't do this if it can't find the client.

The process of configuring your browser varies depending on which one you're using. If you're using Netscape, you should click on "Options" and then "Preferences". Look under "Applications and Directories" for the section that reads "Telnet Application". In this box, you must type the full path to your Telnet client (i.e., "c:\wherever\trmptel.exe").

If you are using Windows 95 or 98, the telnet option is built into Internet Explorer. All you need to do is to enter the address telnet://hostname where you normally enter the location (http://) for the web site. If you wish to configure another telnet program instead of the default one, visit http://helpdesk.uvic.ca/hownote/1996/ht96073.php.

To see if your browser supports telnet, try clicking on this link as a test. A Telnet window should appear on your screen and bring up the text based menu system for the Library of Congress.