Internet, is a system architecture that has revolutionized communications and methods of commerce by allowing various computer networks around the world to interconnect. Sometimes referred to as a “network of networks,” the Internet emerged in the United States in the 1970s but did not become visible to the general public until the early 1990s. By 2020, approximately 4.5 billion people, or more than half of the world’s population, were estimated to have access to the Internet.

The Internet provides a capability so powerful and general that it can be used for almost any purpose that depends on information, and it is accessible by every individual who connects to one of its constituent networks. It supports human communication via social media, electronic mail (e-mail), “chat rooms,” newsgroups, and audio and video transmission and allows people to work collaboratively at many different locations. It supports access to digital information by many applications, including the world wide web The Internet has proved to be a spawning ground for a large and growing number of “e-businesses” (including subsidiaries of traditional “brick-and-mortar” companies) that carry out most of their sales and services over the Internet.

History of the Internet

The Internet started in the 1960s as a way for government researchers to share information. Computers in the ’60s were large and immobile and in order to make use of information stored in any one computer, one had to either travel to the site of the computer or have magnetic computer tapes sent through the conventional postal system.

Another catalyst in the formation of the Internet was the heating up of the Cold War. The Soviet Union’s launch of the Sputnik satellite spurred the U.S. Defense Department to consider ways information could still be disseminated even after a nuclear attack. This eventually led to the formation of the ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), the network that ultimately evolved into what we now know as the Internet. ARPANET was a great success but membership was limited to certain academic and research organizations who had contracts with the Defense Department. In response to this, other networks were created to provide information sharing.

January 1, 1983 is considered the official birthday of the Internet. Prior to this, the various computer networks did not have a standard way to communicate with each other. A new communications protocol was established called Transfer Control Protocol/Internetwork Protocol (TCP/IP). This allowed different kinds of computers on different networks to “talk” to each other. ARPANET and the Defense Data Network officially changed to the TCP/IP standard on January 1, 1983, hence the birth of the Internet. All networks could now be connected by a universal language.

The image above is a scale model of the UNIVAC I (the name stood for Universal Automatic Computer) which was delivered to the Census Bureau in 1951. It weighed some 16,000 pounds, used 5,000 vacuum tubes, and could perform about 1,000 calculations per second. It was the first American commercial computer, as well as the first computer designed for business use. (Business computers like the UNIVAC processed data more slowly than the IAS-type machines, but were designed for fast input and output.) The first few sales were to government agencies, the A.C. Nielsen Company, and the Prudential Insurance Company. The first UNIVAC for business applications was installed at the General Electric Appliance Division, to do payroll, in 1954. By 1957 Remington-Rand (which had purchased the Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation in 1950) had sold forty-six machines.

Who Invented the Internet?

As you might expect for a technology so expansive and ever-changing, it is impossible to credit the invention of the internet to a single person. The internet was the work of dozens of pioneering scientists, programmers and engineers who each developed new features and technologies that eventually merged to become the “information superhighway” we know today.

Long before the technology existed to actually build the internet, many scientists had already anticipated the existence of worldwide networks of information. Nikola Tesla toyed with the idea of a “world wireless system” in the early 1900s, and visionary thinkers like Paul Otlet and Vannevar Bush conceived of mechanized, searchable storage systems of books and media in the 1930s and 1940s. 

Still, the first practical schematics for the internet would not arrive until the early 1960s, when MIT’s J.C.R. Licklider popularized the idea of an “Intergalactic Network” of computers. Shortly thereafter, computer scientists developed the concept of “packet switching,” a method for effectively transmitting electronic data that would later become one of the major building blocks of the internet.

The first workable prototype of the Internet came in the late 1960s with the creation of ARPANET, or the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network. Originally funded by the U.S. Department of Defense, ARPANET used packet switching to allow multiple computers to communicate on a single network. 

On October 29, 1969, ARPAnet delivered its first message: a “node-to-node” communication from one computer to another. (The first computer was located in a research lab at UCLA and the second was at Stanford; each one was the size of a small house.) The message—“LOGIN”—was short and simple, but it crashed the fledgling ARPA network anyway: The Stanford computer only received the note’s first two letters.

The technology continued to grow in the 1970s after scientists Robert Kahn and Vinton Cerf developed Transmission Control Protocol and Internet Protocol, or TCP/IP, a communications model that set standards for how data could be transmitted between multiple networks. 

ARPANET adopted TCP/IP on January 1, 1983, and from there researchers began to assemble the “network of networks” that became the modern Internet. The online world then took on a more recognizable form in 1990, when computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web. While it’s often confused with the internet itself, the web is actually just the most common means of accessing data online in the form of websites and hyperlinks. 

The web helped popularize the internet among the public, and served as a crucial step in developing the vast trove of information that most of us now access on a daily basis.

What is Internet protocol?

The Internet Protocol (IP) is the principal communications protocol in the Internet protocol suite for relaying datagrams across network boundaries. … It also defines addressing methods that are used to label the datagram with source and destination information.

What is internet speed and why does it matter?

Internet speed refers to how much data and information can be transferred over the web on a single connection at any given time.

This is important for consumers because your internet speed determines what types of activities you can do on the internet, as well as how many devices you can connect at once. Understanding how you and your family use the internet at home will help you determine which internet speeds you need to get from your provider.

If your internet speed is too slow, you might run into trouble performing tasks on the web like streaming video, playing video games or uploading files. If it’s too fast, you could be overpaying for internet services.

Many internet service providers advertise their upload and download speeds. However, these numbers aren’t always accurate. It’s always a good idea to do your research and find out their internet speeds.

What determines Internet Speed?

Ever bought a wireless router for your laptop, printer, or other electronic devices? You might have noticed 54 Mbps advertised on the box. A standard Internet connection doesn’t usually reach that speed, though.

Several Internet service providers don’t offer a 50Mbps rate of speed. The majority of Internet providers offer speeds  closer to 15mbps.

Internet speed varies. It depends on factors such as:

YOUR LOCATION | Proximity to your provider’s home office, towers or satellites

NUMBER OF NETWORK USERS | User traffic affects cable Internet

INFRASTRUCTURE QUALITY | Providers with maintained and advanced networks yield best results

On a cellular type connection, the difference between 3G vs. 4G connectivity can affect your speed, as can signal quality. 4G speed averages 8-12Mbps. Expect speeds of 1-4Mbps on a 3G network.

How to optimize your Internet speed

Internet speed will differ from the bandwidth your Internet service provider “promised.” You can maintain an acceptable speed while you’re online by taking a basic, common-sense approach.

• Try a residential connection instead of a cellular connection for robust activity
• Avoid illegal file sharing
• Conduct Internet speed checks online

Focus on the speed of the bandwidth rather than the bandwidth itself. Bandwidth indicates potential for peak speed. To measure your Internet speed, conduct an Internet speed test online. You can check your ISP to determine if you get what you pay for.

WHAT IS INTERNET BANDWIIDTH

In computing, bandwidth is the maximum rate of data transfer across a given path. Bandwidth may be characterized as network bandwidth, data bandwidth, or digital bandwidth.

What is the meaning of internet bandwidth?

The maximum amount of data transmitted over an internet connection in a given amount of time. Bandwidth is often mistaken for internet speed when it’s actually the volume of information that can be sent over a connection in a measured amount of time – calculated in megabits per second (Mbps).

How does bandwidth work?

The more bandwidth a data connection has, the more data it can send and receive at one time. In concept, bandwidth can be compared to the volume of water that can flow through a pipe. The wider the pipe’s diameter, the more water can flow through it at one time. Bandwidth works on the same principle. The higher the capacity of the communication link, the more data can flow through it per second.

The cost of a network connection goes up as bandwidth increases. Thus, a 1 gigabit per second (Gbps) Dedicated Internet Access (DIA) link will be more expensive than one that can handle 250 megabits per second (Mbps)

What Does Internet Access Mean?

Internet access is the process of connecting to the internet using personal computers, laptops or mobile devices by users or enterprises. Internet access is subject to data signalling rates and users could be connected at different internet speeds. Internet access enables individuals or organizations to avail internet services/web-based services.Advertisement

Internet Access

Internet access is often provided at home, schools, workplaces, public places, internet cafes, libraries and other locations. The internet began to gain popularity with dial-up internet access. In a relatively short time, internet access technologies changed, providing faster and more reliable options. Currently, broadband technologies such as cable internet and ADSL are the most widely used methods for internet access. The speed, cost, reliability and availability of internet access depends on the region, internet service provider and type of connection.

There are many different ways to obtain internet access, including:

• Wireless connection
• Mobile connection
• Hotspots
• Dial-up
• Broadband
• DSL
• Satellite

Access to computers or smart devices is one of the important factors for understanding the level of internet access for a region. However, internet access is not uniformly distributed within or between countries. A digital divide exists between many countries and regions. Good internet access is associated with regions with high-income populations, a high development index and high technological development.

WHAT IS INTERNET SAFETY

nternet safety or online safety or cyber safety or E-Safety is trying to be safe on the internet and is the act of maximizing a user’s awareness of personal safety and security risks to private information and property associated with using the internet, and the self-protection from computer crime

What are the advantages of the Internet?

The Internet is one of the powerful creations that offer people endless knowledge and entertainment. Today the Internet plays a critical role in many areas. There are multiple advantages of the Internet, below is given a list of benefits of the Internet.

Connectivity, communication, and sharing

In the past days, if you sent a letter or someone sent you, it could take days and sometimes even months to a reach letter at the destination. In modern times, you can send a letter or important information to anyone in the e-mail all over the world through the Internet. And, it often will be delivered to the destination in less than a minute.

You can also use other forms of communication, such as VOIP and chat, they also enable you to send any information instantly to anyone in the world. With the internet, online forums also allow people to connect with each other where they can share common interests and talk about what they enjoy. Furthermore, you can share your ideas or views with anyone by making an online video call through applications like skype, line, etc.

Information, knowledge, and learning

The Internet allows people to learn information about any topic and offers an answer to any type of question, as it contains endless knowledge and information. Using a search engine like Google chrome,Mozilla firefox and more, they all allow users to ask any question and find a web page with an answer about that question. You can also watch videos about any topic on sites like YouTube, which contain millions of videos of several topics. Also, you can learn online courses in many different subjects.

Address, mapping, and contact information

The Internet can help users to provide information almost every place in the world on the map with the help of GPS  technology. You can find businesses in your area or the quickest route to your location. Although, today’s search engines are most powerful to know the user’s location and help offer the relevant searches for your area. Also, it can provide you the contact information or address of any showroom or other services man. For example, if you want to get the address of an electrician, you can search for an electrician and get a list of local electricians in your area with their address.

Selling and making money

If you want to sell products and services or run a business, the Internet is the best place to sell goods. Because anyone can find and access your website all over the world with the help of the Internet. With online business, you are able to sell goods every day at all times as the Internet is always on and always available. Also, the Internet provides the advantage to promote your business online in the world through advertising. Additionally, there are several ways to earn money online by performing other online services.

Banking, bills, and shopping

If you want to view your bank balance without leaving your home, the Internet offers you the benefit to access your bank account to view the balance. Also, you can send money, pay bills electronically, or many other services can complete through the Internet.

Another advantage of the Internet is online shopping, which allows people to find products of interest and buy them without having to visit a store. You can compare prices between companies for any product through the Internet. Also, you can get help to make better purchasing decisions by online reviews, which describes what others think about a product.

Donations and funding

With the help of an Internet connection, anyone can help fund projects and ideas that interest them or quickly donate to their favorite charity. Also, if you want to donate and looking for charity services, you can find many online services on the Internet that help make it easier to support their causes or help donate.

Entertainment

The Internet provides people to access endless entertainment. With the Internet, you can watch movies, videos, play games online, listen to music, etc. There are many sites available on the Internet, which contain different entertainment material like music, videos, and more. Also, you can watch online videos on a platform like YouTube. Furthermore, you can download any movies, videos, or other entertainment material via the Internet on devices like computers or mobile phones that can be played anytime without an Internet connection.

Work from home, collaboration, and access to a global workforce

The Internet offers people benefit to connect with others around the world. There are various online services that help you to communicate and work with other people all over the world. Also, it can make services and producing new products faster.

An Internet connection offers many people an option to create a virtual office by allowing them to work from home. Sometime, there could be a condition for any organization to allow their employees to work from home using their computer. In this condition, the Internet plays the most important role as it provides connectivity between all employees, through which they all can communicate and discuss with each other regarding any project.

For example, many offices needed their employees to work from home in the 2020 COVID-19 outbreak. To allow work from home can help organization owners to save money by not paying money rent for offices and also help for employees to save them time and money by eliminating the daily travel to and from work every day. Furthermore, if you are running a business and you want to hire employees, there are many online services that can give you access to people looking for a job in the world.

Internet of Things

The Internet makes smarter your device in your home and giving them access to the Internet. For instance, to control the heating and cooling in your home, the Nest thermostat can connect to the Internet. When devices have been connected to the Internet, they can be controlled remotely with the help of your smartphone or computer. The devices can become smarter and more efficient and help save time, money, and energy by connecting Iot (Internet of things). The main benefit to connect devices to the Internet of Things is that if you are far from your home, you can control your device remotely.

Cloud computing and cloud storage

One of the biggest advantages of the Internet offers connectivity to your computer and Internet-enabled devices to connect with cloud services, such as cloud storage and cloud computing A device can have access to more powerful computers to perform complex tasks with cloud computing whereas your business work on other tasks.

With cloud computing, you can access your data anywhere as cloud storage synchronizes data across any of your Internet-connected devices. It makes your data more secure because your files are stored in a professionally-maintained server. Therefore, if you are using a cloud storage backup service, you will not lose all your valuable data even if your home or office burned down.

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