What is the Internet?
The Internet is a short form for an interconnected network. It has become a vital part of our lives, helping us connect with people worldwide. The Internet is made of a large number of independently operated networks. It is fully distributed with no central control. Each independently-operated system is motivated to ensure that there is end-to-end connectivity of every part of the network.
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The Internet is simply a wire that runs underground and allows two computers to communicate with each other. A server is a particular computer that is connected directly to the Internet. When we talk about specific web pages, they are simply files that are stored on the server’s hard drive. Every server has a unique protocol address or an IP address. IP addresses are essential for computers to find each other.
A short note of the history of the Internet will help you understand when, where, and how the Internet was developed.
History of the Internet
The first question that pops into your mind is probably, “Who started the internet?”. The Internet was developed by Bob Kahn and Vint Cerf in the 1970s. They began the design of what we today know as the ‘internet.’ It was the result of another research experiment which was called ARPANET, which stands for Advanced Research Projects Agency Network. This was initially supposed to be a communications system for the Defense Team of the United States of America - a network that would also survive a nuclear attack. It eventually became a successful nationwide experimental packet network. But when was the first Internet started? It is believed that on 6 August 1991, when the World Wide Web opened to the public.
How Does the Internet Work?
Computers that we use every day are called clients because they are indirectly connected to the Internet through an internet service provider. When you open a webpage on your computer, you connect to the webpage, and then you can access it. Computers break the information into smaller pieces called packets, which are reassembled in their original order.
If we put the right address on a packet and send it to any computer which is connected as part of the internet, each computer would figure out which cable to send it down next so that it would get to its destination. With several computers on a network, it may create confusion even with unique addresses. This transfer of messages is handled by the Packet Routing Network, and hence a router is required to set up.
The Transfer Control Protocol is another system that makes sure no packet is lost or left behind because it might create a disrupted message at the receiving end.
The below are the steps for how the message is transferred.
First, Computer1 sends a message by IP address to Computer2
The message sent by Computer1 is broken into small pieces- packets.
These small pieces- packets are transferred concerning Transfer Protocol so that the quality is maintained.
Finally, these small pieces- packets reach Computer2 and are reassembled at their IP address.
The Internet works in a more complex manner than these above-given steps, but this might give a basic idea of how the internet works.
Father of the Internet: Tim Berners-Lee
Tim Berners-Lee was the man, who led the development of the World Wide Web, the defining of HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol), HTML (hypertext markup language) used to create web pages, and URLs (Universal Resource Locators). The development of WWW, HTTP, HTML and URLs took place between 1989 and 1991. Tim Berners-Lee was born in London and he graduated in Physics from Oxford University in 1976. Currently, Tim Berners-Lee is the Director of the World Wide Web Consortium, the group that sets technical standards for the web.
Tim Berners-Lee, Vinton Cerf is also named as an internet daddy other than Tim Berners-Lee. After being out for 10 years from high school, he began co-designing and co-developing the protocols and structure of what became the internet.
History of HTML
In 1945, Vannevar Bush first introduced the basics of hypertext. In 1990, Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web, HTML (hypertext markup language), HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) and URLs (Universal Resource Locators. Along with his colleagues at CERN (an international scientific organization based in Geneva, Switzerland), Tim Berners-Lee was the primary author of HTML (hypertext markup language).
Evolution of the Internet
Although the Internet was developed much earlier, it only became popular in households in the 1990s. The emergence of the Internet can be tracked by how many businesses and homes started changing the way they worked and started connecting their laptops and other devices to the Internet. However, the concept of hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP) as we know it today, was created only during this time. This meant that people could access the same web pages on their devices now and share information.
There has been a dramatic growth in the number of internet users since its inception. As a result, the number of computer networks that are connected has grown exponentially too. It started with only connecting less than ten computers initially. Today, 440 million computers can be connected directly, making life easier for people across the globe. Sharing information and knowledge has become extremely easy for those that have access to the Internet. The country with the highest number of internet users is China, with 1.4 billion users, followed by India with 1.3 billion and the United States of America with a little over 0.3 billion users.
The Two Main Types of Computer Networks
There are different computer network types, depending on how large they are and how much geographical area they cover. The most common types are Local Area Network (LAN) and Wireless Local Area Network (WAN).
Local Area Network: This is a group of devices such as computers, servers, switches, and printers that are located in the same building. These are near each other. The most common use of LAN is in houses or offices. A common type of LAN is an Ethernet LAN, where two or more computers are connected to the Internet through switches.
Wireless Local Area Network: This is a local area network that uses wireless communication instead of wired communication. In WLAN, two computers use wireless communication to form a local area network. A wifi router is very common in this case. There are no cables involved in this case.
Advantages of Internet
The internet has become a popular name since the introduction of its easy installation and setup. The Internet was first invented for only military and government uses. But now, it is found in every house across the world. The following are the advantages of the internet.
It is a great medium of sharing and has increased connectivity.
With the internet, banking has now become easier. Long tiresome waiting lines have been eliminated since the introduction of e-banking platforms.
E-commerce websites are one of the great advantages of the internet. One can buy groceries, clothes, household items, and much more with the internet.
The Internet is also a great source of entertainment. One can watch videos and movies, listen to music, and play games, without any hassle.
Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter have brought the world closer.
The education system has also transformed. With the internet, any student across the world can attend online classes.
The most powerful motivator for the Internet to work is the fact that knowledge and information have to be shared amongst people. The article provided useful information about the internet such as its history, working and evolution etc.
FAQs on History of Internet
1. Are there Other Types of Computer Networks?
There are other computer networks like Personal Area Network (PAN) and Metropolitan Area Network (MAN). Personal Area Network is the smallest network of computers, made up of a wireless router. It might be restricted to only one single building and is the most basic network. A metropolitan area network or MAN is a kind of computer network that connects computers that are present within a geographical area that is the size of a metropolitan area. It is generally more prominent than the Local Area Network. Another common type of computer network is a Wide Area Network that connects computers located within the radius of a kilometer.
2. What is the Difference Between the World Wide Web and the Internet?
We might hear the Internet and the World Wide Web being used interchangeably, but both are not the same thing. While the Internet is a global network of computers, the World Wide Web or WWW is only some information that can be accessed through the Internet. So the Internet is a more significant entity and a prerequisite for WWW. We can also consider the Internet to be the infrastructure while WWW is only the service. WWW is the online content that is made available to us through HTML format and the HTTP protocol.
3. Is the Internet dangerous?
With the emergence of the Internet, new forms of exploitation have existed, including spam e-mail and malware, and harmful social behaviour, such as cyberbullying and doxxing. Many organizations collect extensive information from users, which is a violation of privacy. If you are associated with some organization or you have a big account balance, there is always a risk of being attacked by cybercriminals. The possibility of being attacked by cybercriminals can be avoided by being aware of these cyber traps laid by these cybercriminals.
4. Who controls the Internet?
The Internet is theoretically decentralized and hence controlled by no single entity, many argue that tech companies like Google, Facebook, and Amazon represent a small concentration of organizations that have extraordinary influence over the information and money on the Internet. Some parts of the Internet are blocked through censorship in some countries. No one controls the internet in its entirety. Like the global telephone network, no one can lay claim to the whole thing nor individual, company or government. Although, lots of individuals, companies and governments own certain bits of it.
