History of The Internet

The history of the Internet began with the development of electronic computers in the 1950s. This began with point-to-point communication between mainframe computers and terminals, expanded to point-to-point connections between computers and then early research into packet switching. Packet switched networks such as ARPANET, Mark I at NPL in the UK, CYCLADES, Merit Network, Tymnet, and Telenet, were developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s using a variety of protocols. The ARPANET in particular led to the development of protocols for internetworking, where multiple separate networks could be joined together into a network of networks.

In 1982 the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) was standardized and the concept of a world-wide network of fully interconnected TCP/IP networks called the Internet was introduced. Access to the ARPANET was expanded in 1981 when the National Science Foundation (NSF) developed the Computer Science Network (CSNET) and again in 1986 when NSFNET provided access to supercomputer sites in the United States from research and education organizations. Commercial Internet service providers (ISPs) began to emerge in the late 1980s and 1990s. The ARPANET was decommissioned in 1990. The Internet was commercialized in 1995 when NSFNET was decommissioned, removing the last restrictions on the use of the Internet to carry commercial traffic.

Since the mid-1990s the Internet has had a drastic impact on culture and commerce, including the rise of near-instant communication by electronic mail, instant messaging, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) "phone calls", two-way interactive video calls, and the World Wide Web with its discussion forums, blogs, social networking, and online shopping sites. The research and education community continues to develop and use advanced networks such as NSF's very high speed Backbone Network Service (vBNS), Internet2, and National LambdaRail. Increasing amounts of data are transmitted at higher and higher speeds over fiber optic networks operating at 1-Gbit/s, 10-Gbit/s, or more. The Internet continues to grow, driven by ever greater amounts of online information and knowledge, commerce, entertainment and social networking.

History of computing
Hardware
  • Hardware before 1960
  • Hardware 1960s to present
  • Hardware in Soviet Bloc countries
Computer science
  • Artificial intelligence
  • Compiler construction
  • Computer science
  • Operating systems
  • Programming languages
  • Software engineering
Modern concepts
  • Graphical user interface
  • Internet
  • Personal computers
  • Laptops
  • Video games
  • World Wide Web
Timeline of computing
  • 2400 BC–1949
  • 1950–1979
  • 1980–1989
  • 1990–1999
  • 2000–2009
  • More timelines...
More...
Internet
An Opte Project visualization of routing
paths through a portion of the Internet.
General
  • Access · Censorship · Democracy
  • Digital divide · Digital rights
  • Freedom of information
  • History · Internet phenomenon
  • Network neutrality
  • Pioneers · Privacy
  • Sociology · Usage
Governance
  • Internet Corporation for Assigned
    Names and Numbers (ICANN)
  • Internet Engineering
    Task Force (IETF)
  • Internet Governance
    Forum (IGF)
  • Internet Society (ISOC)
Protocols · Infrastructure
  • Domain Name System (DNS)
  • Hypertext Transfer
    Protocol (HTTP)
  • IP address
  • Internet exchange point
  • Internet Protocol (IP)
  • Internet Protocol Suite (TCP/IP)
  • Internet service provider (ISP)
  • POP3 email protocol
  • Simple Mail Transfer
    Protocol (SMTP)
Services
  • Blogs
  • E-mail · Fax
  • File sharing · File transfer
  • Instant messaging · Gaming
  • Podcasts · Shopping · Television
  • Voice over IP (VoIP)
  • World Wide Web
Guides
  • Outline
Internet portal
Internet history timeline

Read more about History Of The Internet:  Precursors, Three Terminals and An ARPA, Packet Switching, Futurology: Beyond Earth and TCP/IP (2010 and Beyond), Internet Governance, Online Population Forecast, Historiography

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