One of the more frustrating problems with the Internet is that you always have to be connected to a network to take advantage of its vast resources. This limits when users can use Internet content. Browsing is also slow when connected, as the browser must traverse from the client to the Web server, and then back to the client to refresh the content on their screen. Users should be able to view Internet or intranet content even though they are nowhere near a network connection.

Key Features of "Take the Web with You" Offline

• Offline reading. Each time a user subscribes to a site or page, Internet Explorer 4.0 downloads the page based on the user’s scheduling preference and then notifies the user of changes to the page. Users can then disconnect from the Internet and still work with the cached information.
  
  
• Maximizing Internet connect time. By downloading the subscribed Web site in the background at the scheduled time, users can connect to the Internet, quickly download subscribed contents, and then disconnect from the Internet.

What are the Benefits of Offline Reading?

• Taking the Web with you. Offline reading lets users take portions of the Web wherever they go. They can view favorite Web sites while travelling, or whenever it is inconvenient to be connected to the Web.
  
  
• Optimizing Internet connect time. Today, users must be connected at all times to view a Web site and read its contents. By setting up the favorite Web sites to automatically download, users can get the information they need without being connected to the Internet. Users can choose the depth of information they want to read offline and even specify when to download the information. Internet Explorer downloads the Web site at a convenient time and then automatically disconnects from the Internet when completed.

How does Offline Reading Work?

Offline reading works with the Internet Explorer’s Subscription feature described previously. Offline Reading is easy to set up:

1. Select a Web site, and add it to the Favorites list. You can make an offline folder for easy storage and retrieval.
   
   
2. Check the Subscribe box and then select the schedule, delivery, and notification options to suit your needs.

Offline reading uses a pull technology WebCheck, which, in conjunction with the Internet Explorer 4.0 scheduling agent, checks the date and time of the subscribed Web pages. If it detects a change, it pulls the updated information down to the local cache, and then uses the notification agent to tell a user that the site has changed.

When Internet Explorer 4.0 is installed, it configures a new scheduling agent called Scheduled Tasks which replaces the Microsoft Plus! System Agent for Windows 95 and is a new component for Windows NT 4.0. It has been greatly enhanced to accept not only Internet tasks, but also any other task (like scheduling a financial spreadsheet to be printed each day at a specified time) with drag-and-drop ease.