The World Wide Web (WWW, W3, or the Web) has become an
increasingly visible and
active part of the Internet in the past two years. The number of colleges, universities,
seminaries, museums, journals, organizations, and individuals who have Websites has grown
at an amazing rate. This article is an attempt to break the barrier for beginners who may feel
it is a waste of time or see no value in it for teaching or research. Issues addressed here
include: introducing the Web and why biblical scholars should care, levels of access, typical
problems in using the Web, a classified list of approximately 200 of the most useful Websites
I have located (including their URLs or addresses), suggestions for using the Web in teaching
biblical studies and the ancient world, and a glossary of terms.
What Is the World Wide Web and Why Should I
Care?
The Internet is the linking together of computers around the world through highspeed
telephone lines. The World Wide Web (a.k.a. WWW, W3, or the Web) is the Internet's way
of linking together the data on Websites (what an individual or a group gathers at one
address) located all over the world loaded on local computers. But because Websites share a
common (relatively simple) way of marking a document (called HTML), one can move
between these Websites with the click of the mouse or the typing of an address (known as a
URL); this is what makes it a "web" rather than simply a number of isolated computers. The
contents of these multitudinous Websites are as varied as the individuals, organizations, and
institutions who create them. But because of the ease and commonsense approach of the Web
(originally begun in Switzerland in 1992 to facilitate communication between scientists), by
1996 more than 3,000 schools had loaded their own Websites (Williams 1996:39). For all
that follows, note that I have included a brief glossary of technical terms at the conclusion of
this article.
Numerous Websites have appeared with information to benefit both scholars
and students in the form of text, graphics (photographs, line-drawings,
art work, etc.), audio and video. Almost all sites provide links to other related sites, creating a boundless web
of connections. Many Websites even include long menus of related sites,
called "hotlists" which allow the viewer to simply
click on a word or icon to move to another site. This interconnectivity
means that you can move quickly between materials loaded on computers all
over the world: an exhibit of art and artifacts in the Louvre Museum
(Paris), to a bibliography on women in the ancient world (Oriental
Institute, Chicago), to a chronology of Roman mints and mint marks
(University of Wyoming), to a virtual tour of the archaeological site at
Puteoli/Rione Terra (Italy), to a Hebrew keyword search in the Talmud
Yerushalmi (Israel), to a full-text book review in Ioudaios-Review
(Lehigh University), to a search for a colleague's telephone number (Emory
University).
While much of this material is also available in "hardcopy" (books and
journals), some of it is not. There are no concordances available, for
example, for the Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, the Nag Hammadi codices, or
the New Testament Apocrypha; but these are all searchable by keywords (in
English) on the WWW. The Babylonian Talmud is available on CD-ROM and it
is searchable; but many libraries (let alone individual scholars) do not
own copies. Archaeological discoveries have been posted on Websites far
in advance of their availability in journals. Museum collections which
are not available in print are on the Web. And journals are beginning to
appear which are only accessible electronically (e.g.,
Ioudaios-Review, TC: A Journal of Biblical Text Criticism,
and Bryn Mawr Classical Review). The rapidity of growth in the Web
is astounding. In June 1993 there were 130 Websites; by December 1995
there were over 40,000 (Williams 1996:39); today their are millions!
On a personal note, for years I saved in file folders the columns (mostly
written by Robert A. Kraft) called "Offline" from the Religious Studies
News. Some of them were torn and faded, and I could never seem to go
back and find the one I wanted. But now I can throw the entire file away
since all fifty-three of them are loaded on a Website. But more
than that, I can electronically search them for topics in which I am
interested.
Besides accessing what is already out there on the Web, both teachers and
students may want to create their own Websites to accompany courses, to
make works in progress available to a class or colleagues, or to create a
unique set of links relating to a particular interest or topic. Below I
will discuss several ways that having one's own Website(s) can facilitate
integrating students into the Internet process.
Douglas Oakman and I are currently constructing a Website to accompany a
textbook we have written; the book is titled Palestine in the Time of
Jesus: Social Institutions and Social Conflicts (Fortress Press,
1998). The Website will have links to numerous documents and graphics not
included in the book, for reasons of space, price, and availability. And
since textbooks normally include only black and white photos, the Website
can include color photos and audio. It can also be updated as new
Websites appear for additional links. Furthermore, new bibliographic
items can be added at any time.
Getting Connected
So how does one make this vital connection to the Internet and the Web?
The most basic way to connect is by modem: that is,
an electronic hardware device which acts as an intermediary between the
personal computer and the telephone line. A modem allows the personal
computer to communi- cate with other computers via these telephone lines.
Modems come in two basic forms: as a separate box connecting the computer
and phone-jack with telephone cables (an "external modem"), or a "card"
mounted inside the computer (an "internal modem"). The speed at which a
modem transfers data is calculated in "baud rate";
and the maximum speed is determined when it is manufactured. Fifteen
years ago they were operating at 300, 900, and 1200 baud; today the
typical modems available operate at 9600; 14,400; or 28,800 baud (but note
that 9600 baud has become obsolete for effective Internet communication).
Those who work at home or who otherwise do not have direct access to a
main-frame computer linked to the Internet (e.g., at a university or
corporation) will need to use this form of access.
The second (and much easier) way to connect to the Web is through a more
direct connection at an Internet "node," such as those
available at most colleges, universities, and large corporations (many
seminaries have been able to take advantage of nodes at universities
in their locales). This type of connection means avoiding slow
telephone lines by having a direct hook-up to the school's mainframe
computer and its highspeed lines. But it also requires an "interface"
between the two computers, an "ethernet card" mounted internally in
the computer. The software required to make an ethernet connection
operational is called an "ethernet driver," and is usually provided by the
school; but they can also be purchased at computer stores.
Once the connection is made, a Web "browser" is
used to move around on the Web. A Web browser has numerous functions
(e.g., a place to type in the URLs of Websites, searching a Website by
keywords, retracing your path, and printing). Several browsers are
available, perhaps the best known being Netscape Navigator (just
"Netscape" for short); but Mosaic, HotJava, and Arena are also popular
browsers. Williams charts twenty browsers by: name; manufacturer;
Website address (to find out more); and whether it works with MacIntosh,
Windows, UNIX, or all three (Williams 1996:82). Netscape has maintained
its leadership because it works with all three of these computer platforms
and has kept up with improvements. The minimum configuration for
using Netscape on a personal computer is: 1) a 486SX computer; 2) 4 MB of
memory; 3) MacIntosh or Windows; and 4) a mouse.
But what about those who do not have the basic hardware? This is not the
end of the line. Computer access (and Web access) is now available at
numerous other venues: public libraries; college, university, seminary
libraries and computer centers; and lately even coffeehouses! Retail
locations (like coffeehouses) generally charge fees by time, while
libraries generally provide free access, but may charge for printing
files.
Levels of Access
Once connected, one discovers that there are still multiple levels of
access. The most basic form of access provides text only. This means
that what one sees on the computer screen is only the text portions of a
Web page, not the photographs, line-drawings, art work, backgrounds, or
other graphics. Where photographs and graphics should appear, one sees
only a notation. This level will be available no matter what sort of
computer, software, or connection is used. The next level is graphical:
not only the text, but also all the graphics loaded at a Website are
accessible. But the highest levels of access include audio and video.
Video access requires that one download video
software to access the video portions of a Website. Currently, very few
Websites incorporate video elements; but this will likely increase rapidly
in the near future.
Typical Problems
Despite the wonders of Web access, one often finds glitches in the
operation. Here are a few of the problems I have encountered; I suspect
that there are more that can occur.
The slowness of viewing, downloading, and printing can be very
irritating. There are several variables in the speed of these
processes:
Viewing and Downloading
the speed of your modem (when applicable)
the complexity of the data transfer (e.g., large, intricate
graphics)
the number of people accessing the same Website
the geographical location of the Website you are accessing
the speed of your computer
the speed of the computer where the Website is located
Printing
the speed of your printer
the size of your printer buffer
The quality of the photographs and other graphics also has several variables:
the quality of the originals loaded on the Website
the color range of your graphics card
the resolution of your monitor
the quality of your printer
Some Websites include small photographs or maps which are "clickable"
(linked): clicking the mouse on them activates a "link" to an enlargement
of the photograph. But note that the enlargement usually does not include
the identification or explanatory text. If you plan to print the graphic,
then you will need to print both pages. Many photos, however, are quite
small and do not have larger versions available.
Multi-paged documents, extra-large graphics, or series of photographs
often break at irregular points when printed. This sometimes results in
separating a photo from its label, or even breaking the photo in two.
Sometimes a Website is moved to a new URL or closed down altogether.
When they move from one location to another, an error message will often
appear with the new address. The most considerate owners provide a "link"
to the new address from that error message. But the viewer needs to keep
in mind that in this sense Websites are not like books or journals which
may go out of print: if Websites are not maintained, they may be shutdown,
analogous to burning all the copies of a book!
Printing graphics (e.g., photos, charts, graphs, drawings) may be
accomplished with laser, bubblejet, or inkjet printers. Dot-matrix and
daisywheel type printers are not likely to produce satisfying results.
What Is Available?
An excellent place to start on the Web when interested in the ancient
world is at ABZU, the Website for ancient materials at the Oriental
Institute (University of Chicago) maintained by Charles E. Jones, the OI's
bibliographer (reference librarian). ABZU is located at the following URL
(the address of a Website); note that all Websites begin with http:// and are often "case
sensitive" (viz. you need to distinguish between lower case and upper
case spellings):
Jones has organized a fine site with links to numerous other sites
relating to the ancient world, primarily focused on Mesopotamia and Egypt.
Many of the sites listed below I discovered first on ABZU. But keep in
mind that Websites routinely expand or change their holdings, and new
sites are loaded daily; so this is an rapidly evolving medium.
For the most part, the Websites in the following classified list have
numerous pages of text and graphics. Because of their special value, I
have listed a few individual images from larger Websites; those listings
which locate a single image are identified as such (e.g., photo, sketch,
map). The Geopolitical sub-headings (e.g., Ancient Near East) are
organized from general to specific; the others (e.g., Museums, Ancient
Documents, and Professional Societies) are organized alphabetically. The
Websites are organized in the following sequence:
Museums with Significant Ancient Art and Artifact Collections
Archaeology
Ancient Document Collections (searchable)
Papyrology and Epigraphy
Ancient Near East
Egypt
Canaan, Israel & Judah, and the Hebrew Bible
Greece and Hellenistic Empires
Roman Empire
Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls
Roman-era Palestine, the New Testament, and Early Christianity
General Religion
Miscellaneous
Getting More Help
I have only provided the barest necessities in this article for how to
connect to the Web, how to browse, and where to find key Websites. But
you may be ready for more specific definitions and fuller explanations, or
you may want to go on and create your own Website. This entails much more
than I can deliver here. For more information, refer to one of the basic
handbooks listed here (full references in the bibliography). I do not
list multiple resources to overwhelm you, but to identify multiple
possibilities, given the limitations of any library or bookstore.
Modems
Rathbone (1996)
The Internet (General)
Burke (1996)
Campbell & Campbell (1995)
Krol & Klopfenstein (1996)
Levine & Baroudi (1996)
Levine & Young (1996)
Seiter (1996)
Williams (1995)
The World Wide Web
Kent (1995)
Minatel (1995)
Pfaffenburger (1996a; 1996b)
Williams (1996)
Writing HTML and Creating Websites
Graham (1995)
Karpinski (1996)
Lemay (1995)
Taylor (1995)
Wilson (1995)
Graphics
Rimmer (1996)
Teaching and the WWW
So you want to get beyond browsing on the Web and actually use this
material in the classroom. What might be done with it? That is partially
a function of each teacher's imagination, creativity, and teaching
abilities. But I can offer a few suggestions. To begin with, one might
take a look at the Website constructed by James J. O'Donnell (University
of Pennsylvania) which introduces the use of Internet resources in the
classroom: "New Tools for Teaching" located at the URL:
Note also the articles by Blurton (1994) and Bruce (1995) on the use of
the Internet in teaching and research, and Backer & Yabu (1994) on the use
of hypermedia for instructional purposes. The article by one of my
Theology Department colleagues, John O'Keefe (1996), on using
electronic discussion groups in teaching theological courses you will also
find helpful. For the use of the Web in other Humanities disciplines,
see the paper by Bob Whipple (1996), as well as articles by Manrique (1993),
and Pask and Snow (1995) and McIlhone (1996).
Williams identifies eight reasons he thinks that the Web (and the
"Information Superhighway" in general) is ultimately an asset for
education rather than a liablity (1996:33-38). I list his main points;
but he discusses each of these in more detail and provides interesting
anecdotes:
The Internet presents real-world examples of integrated knowledge
The Internet facilitates collaborative learning
The Internet offers opportunities for telementoring
The Internet is all about communicating
The Internet can cater to different learners in different ways
The Internet is a culturally, racially, physically, sexually blind medium
Exploring the Internet can rekindle a teacher's interest in learning
We have an obligation to society [viz. get the word out so that the
economically disadvantaged do not get left behind]
Before swallowing Williams' (or my) advocacy for the Internet and the
Web, it may be appropriate for you to reflect on caveats to each of these
points. For example, number 4 glosses over things the Internet may also
entail: economics (e.g., the Web as a sales medium), politics (who has
access; government regulation; censorship), and gender division (Williams
notes that only 15% of Web-users are female, 1996:39). For a more
extensive critique of the Internet's social and educational implications,
see Silicon Snake Oil: Second Thoughts on the Information Highway
(Stoll 1995).
Consider the following as some basic ideas for integrating the Web into
instructional and departmental development.
Create a Website of your own for each course (note that this saves
much paper), which could include:
a brief statement of your educational philosophy and goals
your own research interests
course syllabus
bibliographies (simple or annotated)
maps, charts, photos, and other graphics augmenting lectures and discussion
links to important Websites on the course topic
For an example of such a course-Website, see the one prepared by James J.
O'Donnell (for "Cultures of the Book") at the University of
Pennsylvania:
His colleague at the Univerisity of Pennsylvania, Robert A. Kraft, has
been one of the real pioneers in employing electronic media in scholarly
pursuits of all kinds. For years he wrote the column "Offline" in the
Religious Studies News, and he was one of the founders of the computerized
discussion group IOUDIAOS-L. Kraft uses his homepage
in a somewhat different way than O'Donnell; he links his homepage to "gopher sites" (locations with long text files, which
are not "hypertext") where he keeps articles he has
written, papers by colleagues, lists of assignments, etc. His homepage is
located at:
Invite someone skilled in the use of the Internet and the Web (an
instructor from the school's academic computing center, a reference
librarian, a colleague, or a talented student) to spend a session with the
class to teach the basics of searching on the Web using "search engines" (e.g., Yahoo!, Magellan, Excite,
Lycos, and WebCrawler).
Provide the students with a starting point on one the "meta-sites"
(Websites with large master menus leading the browser to numerous other
locations; e.g., ABZU or the Vatican Museums) and ask them to track down
different sets of resources relevant to the course (e.g., documentary
data, art work, archaeological sites, photographs) and have them integrate
these resources into a class presentation.
Encourage (require?) students to use Web materials as a resource for
their research papers.
Have students search the documents from the Ancient Near East (on
ANET), classical Greece (on Perseus), or early Christianity (on
Noncanonical Homepage, or Christian Classics Ethereal Library) for
material relating to one of your upcoming lectures (e.g., ANE laws on
homicide; healing in Greek writings; the archaeology of Caesarea; the
sacred sites of Corinth).
If you do not already know the basics of HTML or Web-design,
coordinate with a Web instructor to teach them to the class in order to
encourage their own Website construction.
Break the class into small groups and have each group (or
individual?) construct a Webpage which might
include:
links to important Websites and graphics on their assigned topic
their own brief introductions to (or analyses of) key topics
an interview with an expert in the field
a basic chronology of the subject
discussion questions for the rest of the class
a quiz over assigned reading
a bibliography (simple or annotated).
Williams suggests having students evaluate some of the best Websites
they discovered while browsing. This entails both data-gathering as well
as critical thinking (even if it is not deeply philosophical). Keep in
mind that he is addressing teachers from elementary through
university-level. Issues he suggests the students address are:
What was the name of the Web page?
What was the Internet address (URL)?
List four positive things about this page.
How might the content of this page be improved?
What topic/subject area might this page be most useful for?
The best thing about this Web site is? (Williams 1996:203)
Create an on-line (e-mail) discussion group for the class (see
O'Keefe, 1996).
If you teach at a college or university with an Internet node, ask
the academic computing center for the names of professors who are
currently utilizing the Web in their teaching. If you teach in a school
that uses a local university's Internet system, call that university's
academic computing center for local contacts. Ask these other professors
for suggestions on what has worked for them in the classroom. Reference
librarians are also good resources for contacts and are often knowledgable
about what is happening on campus.
Get your department to work together in various ways:
create a department Website which could include:
faculty descriptions:
credentials
teaching and research interests
office location and office hours
phone numbers and e-mail addresses
when they will be on sabbatical or leave
course offerings for the upcoming semester/s
requirements for majors
links to Websites relevant to your department's foci
share newly discovered Websites regularly at departmental meetings
share teaching strategies using the Web and e-mail discussion groups
For an example of a departmental Website, see the one John O'Keefe
constructed for the Theology Department at Creighton University:
The WWW is another tool for the reseacher and teacher. It is not a
substitute for anything, but an additional mode of communication,
data-gathering, and creative presentation. It is simply to our advantage
as scholars to broaden our access, present our material more
imaginatively, and provide alternative media for learning.
Glossary of Terms*
[* My thanks to Jim Boyce for help on technical matters throughout this
article]
baud rate: the speed of transmitting computer
data from one computer to another over telephone lines (see modem
below)
bookmark: a file with a URL name; browsers can create a whole list
of files with URLs to which you want to return repeatedly; clicking your
mouse on a bookmark means not having to type the URL each time
browser: software (e.g., Netscape Navigator,
HotJava, Mosaic, Arena, MacWeb) that facilitates moving around the Web
with numerous functions (e.g., a place to type in the URLs of Websites,
searching a Website by keywords, creating and deleting bookmarks, retracing
your path, printing, stopping data transfers)
case sensitive: the need to distinguish between
lower case and upper case spellings; many URLs are case sensitive
download: to transfer data from of one computer
onto another
FAQ: "Frequently Asked Questions"; a heading on many Website
menus
gif: "Graphics Interchange Format"; a type of
file for graphic images which may be used on a Website; photos and other
graphics have to be scanned and converted into a gif-file or a jpg-file in
order to be loaded on a Webpage
gopher: an Internet program that locates
document sites (gopher sites) displayed as "tree-style" menu; gopher sites
are accessible through the Web, but they are not hypertexts
homepage: the initial page at a Website, often
with a menu to other parts of the Website
html: "HyperText Mark-up Language"; the coding
language used for creating Websites
http: "HyperText Transfer Protocol"; the way
Web pages are transferred over the Internet; every Web URL begins with
http://
hypertext: a document with links to other
Websites, or activations of audio, video, or photo-enlargement features
within the Website
jpg or jpeg: a form of compressed graphic image
file which may be loaded on a Website
link: a place on a Website (identified by
underlining, highlighting, coloring, or a button) to click the mouse to go
to: 1) an enlargement of a graphic; 2) another part of the Webpage
(including footnotes); or 3) to another Website; it is this series of
links which make a Website a hypertext document
modem: a piece of electronic hardware which
allows two computers to communicate through phone lines; they are either
"external modems" (a box plugged into the computer) or "internal modems"
(a card plugged into the central board inside the computer); they are
rated by how fast they communicate data, calculated as "baud rate" (e.g.,
14,400 baud)
node: a local mainframe computer at a school or
company which acts as a connecting point for personal computers to the
Internet
scan: to electronically convert text or
graphics into a computer file; this is accomplished with either a "hand
scanner" which is rolled over the material, or with a "flatbed scanner" on
which the material is placed like a photocopier; scanning requires a
combination of hardware and software
search engine: a software program which
allows searches of the entire Web (e.g., Yahoo!, Magellan, Excite, Lycos,
and WebCrawler)
upload: to move data from your computer onto another computer,
including a Website (see download)
URL: "Universal Resource Locator"; the address
of a Website; every Website's URL begins with http://
Webpage: an entire Website or any particular
section or division of a Website
Website: a location of data files (text, graphics, video, or a
combination of these) on a computer node accessible through the Web
World Wide Web (WWW, W3, or the Web): a media system of
interconnected Websites on the Internet; the Web allows the user to move
from site to site (or section to section within a site) with the click of
the mouse on a series of links
Bibliography
Adair, James R. and Patrick Durusau
1995 "Offline 49." Religious Studies News (May).