Before Internet usage became so commonplace, you'd see angle brackets used only in a mathematical context, with > being the symbol for greater than and < being the symbol for less than.

Today, however, angle brackets are often used before and after URLs (Internet addresses). Using angle brackets helps eliminate a problem that occurs with URLs. Many URLs contain miscellaneous marks of punctuation, including hyphens and periods, so readers have trouble determining whether a particular punctuation mark is part of the URL. Look at this sentence:

Be sure to check out the information about this book and lots of our other fine publications at <www.-i-love-angle-brackets.net/~angle.brackets>.

By putting the URL inside brackets this way, readers can tell that the closing period is the end of the sentence and isn't part of the URL. If you've ever typed a URL incorrectly, you'll know how frustrating it can be to try to find one little mistake. Using angle brackets can help eliminate that.