The internet is a huge network of networks. Several computer networks across the world connect seamlessly with each other using a protocol known as the "IP Protocol". The connection is made possible through various telecommunication mechanisms such as telephone wires, cable lines or satellite signals. Sitting before your computer, any information that you want which is located in some remote computer on the far corner of the earth - is pipelined from server computer to server computer, until it lands on your screen, in a lightning fast speed. Chris Freville is an expert in this particular field, and throughout this article we shall dwell on some of his notes on internet history.
The Internet Society, also known popularly as ISOC, governs the internet. The mission of the ISOC is to promote global information exchange through internet technology. The governance of the protocol standards - that is, the practical details of how communication happens between computers and software applications - comes under the purview of another body called Internet Architecture Board (IAB). The IAB board also decides on the tracking mechanisms of the 32-bit address number that uniquely identifies every single device hooked onto the internet. There is a third governing body known as the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), whose responsibility it is to regulate operational and near-term technical issues facing the internet.
Just like there is somebody who builds, owns and operates the roads which our cars drive on, and to whom we have to pay toll for their usage, in the same way, we as customers pay for the elaborate infrastructure that has been built to run the internet. This payment is by way of the rentals to the internet service providers and the telephone companies.
The first vision of the internet was outlined by J.C.R. Licklider, an MIT researcher who in August 1962 wrote about a "galactic network" of interconnected computers that will be capable of providing access to information and programs from any site to any point of consumption. A paper published by Leonard Kleinrock, as noted by Chris Freville, concurrently followed this that dwelt on how to make communication on the internet practically feasible.
An outcome of this vision was the development of ARPANET in September 1969. This network of computers was first assembled at the Network Measurement Center at UCLA; and gradually roped in the computer networks at Stanford Research Institute, UC Santa Barbara and the University of Utah. Three years later, a stable version of the ARPANET was successfully demonstrated at the International Computer Communication Conference (ICCC). Over a period, other computer networks from the region, across the country, and later from around the world joined the ARPANET, to become what we know today as the internet.
Chris Freville also writes how from academic environs, the internet moved towards commercialization in 1990, when "The World" became the first internet service provider, offering internet service using dial-up. Companies such as CompuServe, Prodigy, America Online soon followed. Within two years, by the end of 1991, the internet had grown to include three dozen countries, 5,000 networks, 700,000 host computers, all serving over 4 million people.
The Internet Society, also known popularly as ISOC, governs the internet. The mission of the ISOC is to promote global information exchange through internet technology. The governance of the protocol standards - that is, the practical details of how communication happens between computers and software applications - comes under the purview of another body called Internet Architecture Board (IAB). The IAB board also decides on the tracking mechanisms of the 32-bit address number that uniquely identifies every single device hooked onto the internet. There is a third governing body known as the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), whose responsibility it is to regulate operational and near-term technical issues facing the internet.
Just like there is somebody who builds, owns and operates the roads which our cars drive on, and to whom we have to pay toll for their usage, in the same way, we as customers pay for the elaborate infrastructure that has been built to run the internet. This payment is by way of the rentals to the internet service providers and the telephone companies.
The first vision of the internet was outlined by J.C.R. Licklider, an MIT researcher who in August 1962 wrote about a "galactic network" of interconnected computers that will be capable of providing access to information and programs from any site to any point of consumption. A paper published by Leonard Kleinrock, as noted by Chris Freville, concurrently followed this that dwelt on how to make communication on the internet practically feasible.
An outcome of this vision was the development of ARPANET in September 1969. This network of computers was first assembled at the Network Measurement Center at UCLA; and gradually roped in the computer networks at Stanford Research Institute, UC Santa Barbara and the University of Utah. Three years later, a stable version of the ARPANET was successfully demonstrated at the International Computer Communication Conference (ICCC). Over a period, other computer networks from the region, across the country, and later from around the world joined the ARPANET, to become what we know today as the internet.
Chris Freville also writes how from academic environs, the internet moved towards commercialization in 1990, when "The World" became the first internet service provider, offering internet service using dial-up. Companies such as CompuServe, Prodigy, America Online soon followed. Within two years, by the end of 1991, the internet had grown to include three dozen countries, 5,000 networks, 700,000 host computers, all serving over 4 million people.
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