Internaut is a term for a designer, operator, or technically capable user of the Internet.[1] Beginning with participants in the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), it gradually expanded to members of the Internet Society (ISoc) and the larger community.
An internaut is cyber-slang for an online veteran who is familiar with the Internet as an entity, and with cyberspace in general. The word is a portmanteau of Internet and astronaut. Other terms roughly analogous with internaut are cybernaut and netizen, though each has its own connotation. The common thread among them, however, is an implication of experience and knowledge of the Internet or cyberspace that goes beyond the casual user.
An internaut is online savvy, normally through years of online experience, with a thorough knowledge of how to use search engines and search strings, Internet resources, forums, newsgroups and chat rooms to find information. The more someone knows about the Internet, its history and politics, the more likely the term internaut fits them. The less he or she knows the more likely a different term would be more fitting.