The department of Education's site for Irish schools (with help from Intel) underwent a major revamp a couple of weeks ago and it would now not be unreasonable to recommend that it should be the homepage on your school's computers.

As well as a much brighter, more colourful design and generally fun appearance, which defies its ownership by a Government department, there is now a breadth and depth of content that was lacking before.

Scoilnet is divided into six sections - four under-18 age categories, plus parents and teachers - so you can immediately start browsing under the category relevant to you. For senior cycle secondary school students, there's a guide to the CAO, career advice, tips on working abroad and the opportunity to have an article published on the site. For parents there is advice on teaching your child to use the Internet, including safe surfing, a searchable database of schools where you can compare facilities and a section on special needs. There's a good search engine for the site, a facility to send electronic greeting cards and an online shopping section.

Schools issues can be discussed in the chat room, which gives students a sense of how to use the newsgroup-style interface - though as always young people should be made aware of the importance of not revealing personal details to someone they don't know.

Unfortunately there are still several broken links since the revamp, and the news sections are thin, but Scoilnet can continue to build on its position as the most comprehensive site for schools in this State.