Computer question.

gris

gris

Member
Apr 12, 2007
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#1
:confused1:What exactly is the IP address? is that like a number issued by the computer company giving to each computer to id them or is it has to do with internet? TIA ...
 
#2
An IP address (Internet Protocol address) is a unique address that certain electronic devices use in order to identify and communicate with each other on a computer network utilizing the Internet Protocol standard (IP)—in simpler terms, a computer address. Any participating network device—including routers, computers, time-servers, printers, Internet fax machines, and some telephones—can have their own unique address.
An IP address can also be thought of as the equivalent of a street address or a phone number
Click to expand...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IP_address
 
#4
If you change internet service providers, it will change, and if you change the kind of internet connection you have, it will change.

Probably the best thing for you is to call your internet service provider. They will have people there who can explain exactly what will happen in your situation.
 
#6
It is the number that ID's your computer, doesn't really have anything to do with the internet. I guess I would compare it to our social security number. It's also a number you don't want to tell anybody and everybody.
 
#7
purplekitty said:
It is the number that ID's your computer, doesn't really have anything to do with the internet. I guess I would compare it to our social security number. It's also a number you don't want to tell anybody and everybody.
Click to expand...
Well, anybody and everybody that she sends email to can see it, unless she has taken some very specific and not very simple steps to cause them to see something else.

gris, your internet service provider can explain to you the kind of connection you have now, as well as any others available.

For instance, I have what is called a dial up. That means I use a telephone line to connect to the internet, and my IP address changes every time I log on.

But not all connections use telephone lines, like the newer, faster kind. They don't. And with those, your IP stays the same all the time.

Give your internet service provider a call. Operators are standing by now to help you with all your questions!
 
#10
Depending on how your internet service provider sets you up, your Internet Protocol address is either dynamic or static. It is most likely dynamic, so it changes every time you log onto the internet.
 
#11
gris, your IP number is used to route the traffic you requested to your machine.

layman's rundown:
- I log into a network on my PC. I am assigned an IP address by whatever is controlling that particular network.
- I open a browser and type in http://www.google.com
- A request is sent from my PC into the network for google's page to be sent to my IP
- I receive the page and it becomes visible on my screen.
(I left out steps to simplify the explanation.)

So basically: just like physical mail requires an address to get to you, internet traffic requires an address as well.

It's usually a temporary address, and logging out of a network and logging back in will reset it to something else.
 
#13
i went to see a couple of email emailed to me and none have an IP address.....

so the IP address changes all the time? I noticed this IP thing because I change my ebay password a few times and they send me an email giving me my IP address, and is always the same....
 
#14
This is what I heard this summer (from my bf who I think heard it on a tech program) - so facts are scrappy at best and need to be confirmed - but I understood that most emails (hotmail, sbc, yahoo etc) do contain the IP address - you just need to know how to retrieve them. An exception, apparently, is Gmail - and this is what I could dig up from their site

Why don't you reveal users' IP addresses? Doesn't this encourage spammers?


Protecting our users' privacy is something we take very seriously. Personal information, including someone's exact location, can be gathered from someone's IP address, so Gmail doesn't reveal this information in outgoing mail headers. This prevents recipients from being able to track our users, or uncover what may be potentially sensitive personal information.

In the context in which it was originally discussed - say, for example, you say that you are working from home - but you are really in another state / on a desert island beach - if you send an email - one can tell from your IP address that all is not as it appears....

Love to hear how this thread progresses and get more info...
 
#15
Yeah, it's like a temporary address for your computer. Each internet provider has a block of addresses that begin with the same few numbers. The last few change to be specific to each PC that uses their service. They used to be static, in that your internet acct, with whatever provider you had, would assign one to you and every time you dialed in, with your modem to theirs, the same IP was assigned to your computer based on your login info. However, this meant that an specific IP was always being used and as more and more people began using the net, IP addresses would dwindle. So more had to be purchased. Providers went to dynamic IP's. It means that over the year you might have 5 different IP addresses, depending on your usage. If someone doesn't use their internet often, that IP address that would have been static and occupied with that acct, now can be freed up for others to use. Then when that person does finally decide to logon, they'll get a different IP...one that someone else isn't using at the moment. So now providers don't need as many addresses as they used to.
Anyhow...IP's used to be displayed everywhere, but as spammers and hackers have become more prevalent, there are ways to hide this info so it's not floating out there for anyone to grab and use for devious purposes.
An IP uses this format: xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx (ie 163.245.996.112, or 146.54.2.135)
 
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