The History of the Internet
In 1969, the first message was sent over the “Internet”. However, the actual term “Internet” was not coined until four years later, when ARPANET went global. The first message was sent between professors at UCLA and the Stanford Research Institute. It didn’t work on the first try, but soon they had sent a full word: LOGIN. The Internet sends messages by breaking them down into digital codes comprising 0s and 1s. These codes are sent through routers to nearby routers until they finally reach their destination, where they are decoded to be read by the recipient.
The main reason why the Internet was created, was because of the Department of Defense and its need for more effective wartime communications. The current system utilized telephones, but the lines could be knocked out by enemies. This first Internet was called ARPANET.
As ARPANET grew, the need for host-to-host protocols grew. As different computers spoke different languages, it was difficult for them to communicate and send messages back and forth. So, in 1972, the network control protocol was established: it outlined the steps for connecting different computers. ARPANET expanded steadily for years, adding nodes all around the United States, but it was still only available for nationalized institutions.
The act of commercializing the computer and Internet business cannot be accredited to just one company or person. It was through peer networks of computer enthusiasts that private Internet applications and companies were developed.
By the 1990s, personal computers had become accessible to individuals. This led to the need for Internet service providers. They have servers which connect the individual computers to the providers’ computers, so that the software on the computer can connect the user to the Internet. The rates for Internet started out as hourly, but as competition increased in the market, rates became monthly.
The most famous Internet application is the World Wide Web. Although many believe that the Internet and the web are the same, they are actually two different entities. The Internet is a structure of networks, while the web is an application that lets users share and search for information on the Internet. Users search for information on webpages, which are formatted using HTML. HTTP is used for controlling how servers respond to user commands. Users can give commands using a search engine, one of the first being Yahoo! founded in 1993. However, in the late 1990s, Google was introduced and it eventually swept the market. Its success came from cloud computing, which is done by using remote servers to process and store data, rather than local servers. This allows users to access their data anywhere, as long as they are connected to the Internet. However, with easy accessibility comes privacy concerns.
The next phase in the history of the Internet was social networking. One of the greatest inventions that fueled this trend is the cellphone. In 1983, the first mobile telephone was presented to the public, but for a while, because of their high price, they were mostly utilized in business. Then, in 1985, the FCC aided in the development of wireless local area networks, or Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi works by receiving Internet information, converting it into a radio signal, and sending it to a personal device. Soon, Wi-Fi was combined into cell phones, just as they are today. Moving on to social media, those sites are known as “one-to-many” communicators. Social networking sites grew almost right when the Internet began to grow, just as social media gained success with the development of the World Wide Web.
The future of the Internet has several problems that need to be taken care of, including privacy, as I mentioned earlier, cyberattacks, and net neutrality. Privacy of data and information is complicated, with people sharing their whole lives on the Internet. Also, as we saw with Facebook just a little while ago, users also have to worry about how companies are handling our private information. Cyberattacks have been a little less common, but have been done by foreign powers. Finally, net neutrality, which is a rule stating that Internet providers must “send all information through the Internet at equal speeds and quality”, has been a huge concern for the American public recently. The US government has considered repealing net neutrality, to benefit Internet providers, even though this change would be difficult for many users.
No one knows exactly how the Internet will change in the future, but based on its history, I’m sure we can all make some educated guesses.
Reference:
Hand, Carol. How the Internet Changed History. Essential Library, an Imprint of Abdo Publishing, 2016.