INTRODUCTION
Internet, a collection of computer networks that operate to common standards and enable the computers and the programs they run to communicate directly. There are many small-scale, controlled-access “enterprise internets”, but the term is usually applied to the global, publicly accessible network, called simply the Internet or Net. By the end of 2002, more than 100,000 networks and around 120 million users were connected via the Internet.
Internet connection is usually accomplished using international standards collectively called TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol), which are issued by an organization called the Internet Engineering Task Force, combined with a network registration process, and with the aid of public providers of Internet access services, known as Internet Service Providers or ISPs.
Each connected computer—called an Internet host—is provided with a unique Internet Protocol (IP) address—198.105.232.1, for example. For obvious reasons, the IP address has become known as the “dot address” of a computer. Although very simple and effective for network operation, dot addresses are not very user-friendly. Hence the introduction of the Domain Name System (DNS) that allows for the assignment of meaningful or memorable names to numbers. DNS allows Internet hosts to be organized around domain names: for example, “microsoft.com” is a domain assigned to the Microsoft Corporation, with the suffix “com” signifying a commercial organization. “ftp.microsoft.com” is an Internet host within that domain. Each part of the domain still has an IP or dot address, which is used by the network elements to deliver information. From a user point of view, though, the IP address is translated (or “resolved”) by DNS into the now familiar format.
The suffix .com is called a generic top-level domain name, and before 2001 there were just three of these (.com, .net, and .org), with .edu and .gov restricted to educational institutions and government agencies respectively. As a result of the rapid growth in Internet use, seven new top-level domain names have been prepared for use, some by specific sectors (.aero, .coop, and .museum) and some for general use (.biz, .info, .pro, and .name).
Internets are constructed using virtually any kind of electronic transmission medium, such as optical-fibre or copper-wire telephone lines, or radio or microwave channels. They can also connect almost any kind of computer or operating system; and they are operated in such a way as to be “self-aware” of their capabilities.
The great scale and universality of the public Internet results in its use to connect many other kinds of computer networks and services—including online information and shopping services—via systems called gateways. As a result of all these features, internets are an ideal means of building a very robust universal information infrastructure throughout the world. The rapid growth of online shops, information services, and electronic business applications is testament to the inherent flexibility of the Net.
Internet, a collection of computer networks that operate to common standards and enable the computers and the programs they run to communicate directly. There are many small-scale, controlled-access “enterprise internets”, but the term is usually applied to the global, publicly accessible network, called simply the Internet or Net. By the end of 2002, more than 100,000 networks and around 120 million users were connected via the Internet.
Internet connection is usually accomplished using international standards collectively called TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol), which are issued by an organization called the Internet Engineering Task Force, combined with a network registration process, and with the aid of public providers of Internet access services, known as Internet Service Providers or ISPs.
Each connected computer—called an Internet host—is provided with a unique Internet Protocol (IP) address—198.105.232.1, for example. For obvious reasons, the IP address has become known as the “dot address” of a computer. Although very simple and effective for network operation, dot addresses are not very user-friendly. Hence the introduction of the Domain Name System (DNS) that allows for the assignment of meaningful or memorable names to numbers. DNS allows Internet hosts to be organized around domain names: for example, “microsoft.com” is a domain assigned to the Microsoft Corporation, with the suffix “com” signifying a commercial organization. “ftp.microsoft.com” is an Internet host within that domain. Each part of the domain still has an IP or dot address, which is used by the network elements to deliver information. From a user point of view, though, the IP address is translated (or “resolved”) by DNS into the now familiar format.
The suffix .com is called a generic top-level domain name, and before 2001 there were just three of these (.com, .net, and .org), with .edu and .gov restricted to educational institutions and government agencies respectively. As a result of the rapid growth in Internet use, seven new top-level domain names have been prepared for use, some by specific sectors (.aero, .coop, and .museum) and some for general use (.biz, .info, .pro, and .name).
Internets are constructed using virtually any kind of electronic transmission medium, such as optical-fibre or copper-wire telephone lines, or radio or microwave channels. They can also connect almost any kind of computer or operating system; and they are operated in such a way as to be “self-aware” of their capabilities.
The great scale and universality of the public Internet results in its use to connect many other kinds of computer networks and services—including online information and shopping services—via systems called gateways. As a result of all these features, internets are an ideal means of building a very robust universal information infrastructure throughout the world. The rapid growth of online shops, information services, and electronic business applications is testament to the inherent flexibility of the Net.
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