Understanding The World Wide Web

Everyday we log on and get into this strange onlinecontent becomes available to the user. Almost
world called the web. Now many of us believe that theimmediately the html or hypertext markup language
Internet and web are the same, but though they arecode is sent back and the text and graphics are
related, they are not quite the same thing. The Internetavailable to the browser. This happens fairly quickly,
or the Net as we all call it now, is a worldwide systemtaking just a few seconds, helping us make the most
of interconnected computer networks. It transmits dataoptimum use of the web.
using the Internet protocol. The net has manyIf things do not go as planned, the viewer will get an
networks all tied together, carrying out many functions.error message stating 'the page cannot be displayed'.
These functions may be as different as email orThis could mean that there is an error in the server
pages of information, or even online chat. The Web isname or the page being searched for does not exist.
a read-write information space. It has resources likeSometimes the server could be busy or the page
text documents, images and multimedia.being searched has moved. It is best to follow the
It is interesting to see how the web works. Anyoneinstructions given and continue.
accessing the web will use a web browser like theAll this sounds very simple, but today there is high
Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox and the hypertextdegree of sophistication in the programming and
link to the page or resource is typed in. The addresssolutions offered by a web page. The credit for
would read like this ' This address is given by thedesigning the concept of the web goes to Tim
global, distributed Internet database known as theBerners-Lee, when he built the "ENQUIRE". On August
Domain Name System or DNS. To make this sound6, 1991, he posted a short summary of the World Wide
easier, in the above example, the address of theWeb project on the alt.hypertext newsgroup, using the
server is and there, a request to view "mypage" isconcept of HTML. This was the debut of the Web as
being made. HTTP or Hypertext Transfer Protocola service on the Internet. He applied the idea of links to
helps in accessing the server. The DNS then turns allthe Internet. This meant that the web became an
this into an individualized IP or Internet Protocol address.accumulation of pages that could be accessed by
This will look like a phone number with four numbersclicking on links. Today we have benefited so much
between 0 and 255. The IP is a procedure set up byfrom this new communication system which makes
the Internet to find a server anywhere in the world. Inthe world so much smaller than before and has linked
fact once the IP address is known, the server can beits many peoples as no other means could have ever
located through the ISP or Internet Service Provider.done.
Once the IP address is reached, the web site and all its