Contents
Technology has evolved so much through the years that almost everything you need to know and do is just a few taps or clicks away. It’s hard to imagine life without the internet. Who would have thought that this bountiful source of information began with a simple idea?
In this article, find out exactly how the internet came to be.
Galactic Network
In 1962, MIT computer scientist J. C. R. Licklider discussed the concept of globally interconnected computers in his memos. His idea proposed the possibility of computers communicating among one another despite being separated. He called this connection the Galactic Network. This was the first time the concept of the internet was introduced.
Although Licklider didn’t end up inventing the internet at that time, his ideas became the backbone of what people now call the World Wide Web.
ARPANET
Seven years after Licklider’s breakthrough concept, the US Department of Defense used packet communication to let two computers communicate for the first time. The two computers were part of the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET). Unlike modern computers, each one is as big as a small house. One of them was located at UCLA, while the other was at Stanford.
ARPANET scientists planned on sending the message “LOGIN,” but at that time, the data was big enough to crash both computers. Hence, only the first two letters were successfully transmitted. Not bad for a first try, though!
Birth of the Email
Computer engineer Ray Tomlinson developed a system to send messages from one computer to another in 1971. He created the project on the side as he was working with controls for ARPANET. He used the @ symbol to separate the name of the electronic mail recipient to the destination address. He chose the symbol because it wasn’t used in writing names or in the programing language of time-sharing computers.
Tomlinson’s small project became the first email system in history, and the @ symbol in email addresses is still widely used until today.
Fathers of the Internet
In 1973, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) colleagues Robert E. Kahn and Vinton Cerf worked together in creating a new protocol for ARPANET. Their collaboration led to the development of the Transmission Control Protocol and Internet Protocol, or TCP/IP. This system became the standard for how data should be transmitted among multiple networks. Kahn and Cerf were named the Fathers of the Internet because of their breakthrough invention.
It wasn’t long before the ARPANET adopted the TCP/IP and developed a network of networks that eventually became the framework of the modern internet.
Dial-up Services and Beyond
In the early 1990s, several internet providing companies were made public. AOL and CompuServe provided dial-up internet access to both homes and businesses. At that time, connecting to the internet meant not being able to use the phone. Through dial-up, users can connect to the internet via a telephone line, which was plugged into a modem while the other end was plugged into the phone jack.
Around that time, Cisco became the world’s most valuable corporation at that time with a stock market value of more than $224 million. Between 1992 and 1994, it acquired Kalpana, the first company that introduced network switches. Cisco later on developed modern gigabit switches in the early 20’s and completed the 100 Gigabit Ethernet standards in 2010.
By 2020, the Terabit Optical Ethernet Center is set to enable the 1 Terabit Ethernet, which has a capacity of transmitting data at a speed of 1 trillion bits per second. Buying network switches remains essential to managing data.
World Wide Web
Computer scientists Tim Berners Lee created the World Wide Web in 1991. Unlike its predecessors, access to the World Wide Web wasn’t limited to scientists. Instead, Berners Lee made sure that this network of information is accessible to anyone as long as they have an internet connection. This introduced the internet to the public and led to it being the biggest source of information available.
The Internet: The New Way of Business
A few years after the birth of the World Wide Web, many innovations surrounding the internet gained popularity. Erwise, the first internet browser to have a graphical interface, was created in 1992.
A year later, the Mosaic navigator was created. This browser was what made surfing a popular activity and has influenced many others that followed. In 1994, Netscape became the most popular web browser at that time. The following year, its popularity skyrocketed, accounting for 90 percent of web usage.
Since the rise of the internet, many businesses have taken advantage of the instant communication it offers. Companies use the internet not only to connect to their different locations all over the world but also to keep their internal systems in synch.
With the help of network tools, many computers in a company are able to connect to the internet and with one another without compromising the quality of their connection. Ethernet Gigabit switches allow them to communicate with one another through Voice over Internet Protocol (VOIP) and get data connectivity and video over the internet.
Multiple computers can have access to a stable connection, and employees can communicate with one another easily. Likewise, the internet has become a place of commerce where many companies are able to grow by selling their products and services online.
Indeed, the internet is a treasure trove of information, and people are lucky to have lived knowing. Experts predict that more users will fully adapt to smart automation for homes and offices as the world becomes more dependent to the internet of things. With all the innovations sprouting from technology, one can only imagine what’s in store for the internet that can make a mark with humanity.