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What a difference four letters make! Intranet isn't just a misspelling of Internet. According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, the prefix "intra-" is Latin for "within." Which makes sense because an intranet works exactly like the Internet, except it's a network confined within a company, school, government or organization. HSWIntranet is hosted on a Web server located in the HowStuffWorks headquarters in Atlanta and is connected only to the company's local area network (LAN). Only employees connected to the LAN via a special network password can access the company intranet. Both the Internet and an intranet operate over a communications standard called TCP/IP (transmission control protocol/Internet protocol) that connects hosts to users over a network. Both the Internet and an intranet use Web pages to display information on users' computers. Therefore, they both use Web programming languages like HTML, Java, Flash and XML to build Web pages with text, images, audio and video.
Some companies and organizations allow business partners and clients to access their intranet sites from remote locations outside of the company LAN. These extensions of the intranet are called extranets. In this HowStuffWorks article, we'll go over the chief advantages of using an intranet, particularly for small and large businesses. Then we'll explain how to plan and develop an intranet. And finally we'll provide the technical specs for setting up an intranet. Let's start with the advantages of using an intranet. In the modern office, most computers are already equipped to connect to the Internet and browse the Web. With an intranet, there's no need to buy new equipment for the end user or significantly restructure the corporate network. The only thing that needs to be purchased and configured is a Web server (hardware and software) to host the intranet. And the most popular Web server software, Apache, is free.
Let's use the example of a sales department in a software company. Salesmen can post and share product pitch scripts, training videos and industry reports. Instead of sending hundreds of different group e-mails, all of the information lives at one central location. This saves time, which in turn saves money. Suddenly, all of the information on the corporate network is searchable and accessible through a simple Web interface. This can be another money saver for a company. Peoplesoft is a Web-based application that can be hosted on a corporate intranet. Human resources can maintain employee records and customer service reps can track help requests all through an intranet Web site. A small company can turn a simple desktop PC into a Web server, build some basic HTML Web pages and be up and running at practically no extra cost. As the company grows, it can invest in a more robust Web server, hire a Web developer to design more dynamic intranet Web pages and make more and more information and software available online.
Executives can maintain blogs on the company intranet site alerting employees to new and exciting developments. Employee relations specialists can post newsletters, maintain event calendars and organize volunteer groups through the intranet site. And employees themselves can start blogs and build Wikis that explain every facet of corporate life. Maybe a company is toying with the idea of launching its own online social network or Internet television channel. All of the technical quirks and usability issues can be worked out on the in-house intranet site so that everything runs smoothly when the new features are unveiled to the public. Now that we've covered some of the advantages of using an intranet, let's talk about how an organization plans for and develops its intranet. Depending on the organization's size, this could be one employee or a team of employees. This individual or intranet team will determine what content is published on the intranet and what technology will be used in the process.
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