Introduction
By definition the Internet is a worldwide,
publicly accessible series of interconnected computer networks that transmit
data by packet switching using the standard Internet Protocol. But, how did it
come to be this technology that is so popular and so widely used around the
world? Was it always so large and extensive, filled with information about just
about anything you could possibly think of accessible from almost anywhere,
anytime? The answer is no and its important to understand where it all came
from to understand how to utilize it to its fullest potential now.
Creation
The Internet origin comes from a military
project. The Semi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) program consisted of
networked country-wide radar systems together for the first time. This was
created around 1958 as part of an attempt to regain the lead in technology from
the Soviet Union who had recently launched Sputnik. J.C.R. Licklider was
selected to head the committee which controlled the SAGE project. He envisioned
universal networking as a unifying human revolution.
Growth
Although the basic applications and guidelines that make the Internet
possible had existed for almost a decade, the network did not gain public face
until the 1990s. On August 6, 1991, CERN, which straddles the border between
France and Switzerland, publicized the new World Wide Web project. The web was
invented by English scientist Tim Berners-Lee in 1989.
WWW Logo
An early popular web browser was Viola WWW. It was eventually replaced in
popularity by the Mosaic web browser. By 1996 usage of the word “Internet” had
become commonplace, and consequently, so had its use as a reference to the
World Wide Web. Over the course of the decade, the Internet successfully
accommodated the majority of previously existing public computer networks
(although some networks have remained seperate).
Today’s Internet
Aside from the complex physical connections that
make up its infrastructure, the Internet is facilitated by bi- or multi-lateral
commercial contrracts and technical specifications or protocols that describe
how to exchange data over the network. Indeed, the Internet has severely
matured since its birth many years ago. Today almost 1.5 billion people use the
Internet. That’s almost a quarter of the entire world (a lot of people).
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and
Numbers (ICANN) is the authority that coordinates the assignment of unique
identifiers on the Internet, including domain names, Internet Protocol (IP)
addresses, and protocol port and parameter numbers. A globally unified
namespace is essential for the Internet to function. Because the Internet is a distributed
network comprising many volunatirly interconnected networks, the Internet, as
such, has no governing body.