The Internet

Now that you know how to use a search engine, you should probably learn a little bit more about the Internet itself. So here goes nothing. We will begin with learning what the Internet is. The Internet is a network of computers whose primary goal is to allow multiple users to send and receive information simultaneously over the same communications paths (such as phone lines, etc.).

This network operates using what is known as TCP/IP. You ask, what is TCP/IP, and the answer is...TCP is the Transmission Control Protocol, and IP is the Internetworking Protocol. Ok, I know, what is a protocol. That answer is really simple, a protocol is a set of rules to follow.

The Internet works using a technique that is called packet-switching. What this does, is it takes information being sent from one location, and breaks it down into small pieces to be transferred quickly, called packets. These packets contain data address, error control, and sequencing information. The TCP breaks down the information into the small packets that is being sent to another computer, and the IP on the receiving end will pull all of the packets back together again to be display in the users browser or email program.

After the TCP breaks the message into packets and routes them off to the receiving computer, they do not have to follow the same path to get to their final destination, therefore they do not always arrive at the receiving computer in the proper order. That is why the IP is so important. It pulls all of the packets together as they arrive, and places them in the proper order so that the information is displayed properly.

When the Internet first began, it was called the ARPA - Advanced Research Projects Agency of the Department of Defense. It was designed by Graduate Students of several well-known colleges to allow for Universities and Research Institutes to communicate and share data and ideas quickly. Since the Government allowed access to "the Net" for commercial purposes, it became saturated with all types of users. For a while the issue of bandwidth (i.e., the information carrying capacity) was a concern, however businesses soon realize the income potential, and invested large amounts of money to improve the bandwidths. The costs of bandwidth has decreased tremendously due to vast amounts of investments into it by businesses, that now even individuals are "buying into the Net." The result of course is what we see today on "the Net".