Crew-served weapon systems

The Army employs various crew-served weapons (so named because they are operated by two or more soldiers in order to transport items such as spare barrels, tripods, base plates, and extra ammunition) to provide heavy firepower at ranges exceeding that of individual weapons. The M240 is the Army's standard medium general-purpose machine gun. The M240 (left-hand feed) and M240C (right-hand feed) variants are used as coaxial machine guns on the M1 Abrams tank and the M2 Bradley IFV, respectively; the M240B is the infantry variant and can be fired from a bipod or tripod if carried by hand, or employed from a pintle mount atop a vehicle. The M2 .50-caliber machine gun has been in use since 1932 in a variety of roles from infantry support to air defense. The M2 is also the primary weapon on most Stryker ACV variants and the secondary weapon system on the M1 Abrams tank. The MK 19 40mm grenade machine gun is mainly used by motorized units, such as Stryker Brigades, HMMWV-mounted cavalry scouts, and Military Police. It is commonly employed in a complementary role to the M2.

The Army uses three types of mortar for indirect fire support when heavier artillery may not be appropriate or available. The smallest of these is the 60 mm M224, normally assigned at the infantry company level. At the next higher echelon, infantry battalions are typically supported by a section of 81 mm M252 mortars. The largest mortar in the Army's inventory is the 120 mm M120/M121, usually employed by mechanized battalions, Stryker units, and cavalry troops because its size and weight require it to be transported in a tracked carrier or towed behind a truck.

Vehicles

Main article: List of armoured fighting vehicles by country#United States
The U.S. Army was the first in the world to achieve 100% automotive mobility, and spends a sizable portion of its military budget to maintain a diverse inventory of vehicles. The U.S. Army maintains the highest vehicle-to-soldier ratio in the world.

The Army's most common vehicle is the HMMWV (High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle), which is capable of serving as a cargo/troop carrier, weapons platform, and ambulance, among many other roles.[23] The M1A2 Abrams is the Army's primary main battle tank, while the M2A3 Bradley is the standard infantry fighting vehicle.[25] Other vehicles include the M3A3 cavalry fighting vehicle, the Stryker,[26] and the M113 armored personnel carrier.

Let me tell you about myself.

I am a retired US Army Sergeant First Class (E7). I served as a Military Intelligence Soldier. My Military career included assignments at US Army Field Station Augsburg, Germany, at a place called Eckstein, on the West German/Czechoslovakian Border ; at Fort Hood, Texas, Frankfurt, Hoechst, Germany; at Goodfellow Airforce Base, San Angelo, Texas; and at Fulda, GermanyMy military jobs include Squad Leader, Instructor, and Platoon Sergeant. I was the Platoon Sergeant for the Trailblazer and Elint Platoon, 533rd Combat Electronic Warfare and Intelligence (CEWI) Battalion. After a four year position as an Instructor at Goodfellow Airforce Base I went to Fulda Germany where I served half of my tour as the Platoon Sergeant of an Electronic Warfare Platoon and I spent the other half of my tour as the Platoon Seargent of an Electronic Warfare Helicopter Platoon. That was my most exciting job, I became Air Assault qualified and served as a cadre member of the Blackhorse Air Assault School. I loved to repel from the helicopters. I taught combat operations at the Air Assault School.
The units I served in were the 3rd Battalion, Field Station Augsburg; the 375th ASA Company, 3rd US Corp; the 856th ASA Company, 3rd Armored Division; US Army Training Detachment, Goodfellow Airforce Base; 511th MI Company, 11 Armored Cavalry Regiment, and S Troop, 4th Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment.
I loved my career in the US Army and when I hear a helicopter flying over head I often think back to my time in Fulda Germany.
I began using computers in 1977 when the US Army selected me to participate in an evaluation of a new Radio Direction Find System. I purchased my first computer, a Commodore 64 four years later. This computer was replaced by a Commodore 128 two years later.
After retiring from the US Army, I studied Electrical Engineering at the University of Texas at San Antonio. I purchased a 286 computer so I would not have to spend hours waiting for a free computer in the computer lab. I purchased a 486 computer, when I had finished my pre-engineering requirements and needed more power so I could remotely connect to the University's computers. My latest computer projects include two Athlon 1.4 GHz computers and a dual Tualatin 1.2 GHz processor server with raid 0,1 which I built for a friend starting his own business. I have built and upgraded many computers for my friends and family. Of course my own computers are all built by me. I love to build computers.
My past hobbies included motorcycling, model air planes, and fishing. My current hobbies are web site design, operating systems, building computers and helping people with computer problems.
I have been working in the field of computer technical support for since 1991. My experience includes hardware and software support, Novell 3.11 Network Administrator, Help Desk telephone support, Desktop computer support, Internet Service Provider Systems Administrator, Y2K project for the State of CT, Systems Engineer/Windows NT Domains Administrator for an insurance company in NYC, Desktop Support for Otis Engineering, and Deployment Manager for two projects with Compaq. I have been using the Internet for over 16 years.
My experience in education includes 4 years as an Army instructor (I even earned the Airforce Master Instructor Award); three years as a High Schools Physics and Chemistry Teacher at Saint Gerard Catholic High School, where I also served as the computer technician and Science Department Head; three years as assistant teacher while I was the Systems Engineer for the Ben Bronz Academy.

Internet Explorer History

In the early 90s—the dawn of history as far as the World Wide Web is concerned—relatively few users were communicating across this global network. They used an assortment of shareware and other software for Microsoft Windows® operating system.
In 1995, Microsoft hosted an Internet Strategy Day and announced its commitment to adding Internet capabilities to all its products. In fulfillment of that announcement, Microsoft Internet Explorer arrived as both a graphical Web browser and the name for a set of technologies.
1995: Internet Explorer 1.0
In July 1995, Microsoft released the Windows 95 operating system, which included built-in support for dial-up networking and TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol), key technologies for connecting to the Internet. In response to the growing public interest in the Internet, Microsoft created an add-on to the operating system called Internet Explorer 1.0. When Windows 95 with Internet Explorer debuted, the Internet became much more accessible for many more people.
Internet Explorer technology originally shipped as the Internet Jumpstart Kit in Microsoft Plus! For Windows 95. Internet Explorer replaced the need for cumbersome, manual installation steps required by many of the existing shareware browsers.

1995: Internet Explorer 2.0
In November 1995, Microsoft released its first cross-platform browser, Internet Explorer 2.0, which supported both Macintosh and 32-bit Windows users.
With Internet Explorer 2.0 came a new set of fledgling Internet technologies that offered Web developers and designers the power to design secure, media-rich Web sites with tracking capabilities. Internet Explorer 2.0 technology introduced Secure Socket Layer (SSL) protocol as well as support for HTTP cookies, Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML), and Internet newsgroups.

1996: Internet Explorer 3.0
In August 1996, Microsoft released its completely rebuilt Internet Explorer technology, which included features that were revolutionary for the time. Designed for Windows 95, Internet Explorer 3.0 technology offered useful components that immediately appealed to users, including Internet Mail and News 1.0 and Windows Address Book. Later, Microsoft NetMeeting® and Windows Media Player were added. Now the Internet Explorer browser could display GIF and JPG files, play MIDI sound files, and play streaming audio files without the assistance of helper applications.
For Web developers, Internet Explorer 3.0 technology delivered a flexible programming model with a choice of scripting languages. Web designers also received more predictable results, thanks to Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). Moreoever, Internet Explorer 3.0 was designed to allow Web developers to extend it easily at a time when Internet standards were quickly evolving.

1997: Internet Explorer 4.0
Designed for Windows 95, Windows 98, and Windows NT®, Internet Explorer 4.0 technology was a significant move forward. For Web developers, the addition of Dynamic HTML (DHTML) heralded the next step in Web design. DHTML gave Web developers more control over content and style and created opportunities that previously had been possible only with software applications.
Suddenly Web pages became much more interactive—users could expand menus with a click or drag images and objects around. The Web started to look more like the applications and games that people were accustomed to and less like a static series of pages.
With Internet Explorer 4.0, Microsoft Outlook® Express 4.0 was also installed for the first time as an upgrade to Internet Mail and News. This built-in component improved the way users sent, received, and organized their e-mail and address book.

1998: Internet Explorer 5.0
With the September 1998 release of Internet Explorer 5.0 technology, developers gained the ability to design richer Web applications. DHTML capabilities were expanded, giving Web developers more flexibility and power to create interactive Web sites.
Now personalization became a key focus as Web applications based on DHTML emerged. Users encountered rich applications on the Web—for example, an expense report could automatically configure itself based on a user's personalized settings. With expanded programming capabilities such as these, Internet Explorer 5.0 technologies helped usher in a new era of e-commerce.

2001: Internet Explorer 6
Internet Explorer 6 technology was released with Windows XP in 2001 as a more private, reliable, and flexible technology than previous versions. Because privacy and security had become customer priorities, Microsoft implemented tools that support Platform for Privacy Preferences (P3P), a technology under development by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).
From the home user simply browsing content on the Web, to the IT administrator deploying and maintaining a rich set of Windows Internet technologies, to the Web developer creating rich Web content, Internet Explorer 6 technologies provide the freedom to experience the best of the Internet.