The importance of the internet in our daily life is beyond explanations. To book a train ticket, to order something online, or to chat with our friends, the internet is a must. So, what does it actually mean by the term “internet”? If you don’t know the answer, this article is for you. Here we will provide the definition of the internet with proper examples and types. So you will no longer have to scratch your head wondering the working of one of the best technological inventions of the century.
What is Internet?
Internet is a worldwide system of computer networks. The internet is also simply called “the Net.” It is a network of networks where the users will be able to access information from another computer with their permission. Users can upload or download information from any of the devices connected to this network with a speed determined by the quality of their connection, internet type, and the internet service provider. The whole idea of the internet is based on TCP/IP protocols. The intranet and the extranet are two recent adaptations of internet technology.
Internet is Free to use for any of the individuals on the earth. But to enjoy the power of the internet, the ISPs (Internet service providers) charge users. To connect to this huge network of millions of devices, you just have to own an internet-enabled device such as a computer, laptop, or smartphone and internet connection equipment such as routers, modems, SIM cards, etc. It varies based on the type of internet connection you have and the ISP you choose for the service.
How Does Internet Work?
Internet works by sending packets (small segments of larger messages) containing data and the information regarding the data (headers). The receiving device then gets both data and information about what to do with the data in the form of a computer recognizable format split into bits. Protocols such as HTTP implemented in the front will standardize the difference in hardware and software of different devices on the internet, making it possible to send and receive data over the internet.
The internet can be accessed using a web browser such as Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera Mini, etc. that can decode the web page formats such as HTML (HyperText Markup Language.) WWW or World Wide Web is one of the most important portions of the internet. It is widely used to cross-reference between websites in order to determine what it is about. You might already come across some website URLs with WWW in it. For example, it is even in our site address, www.techquintal.com.
Who Founded the Internet?
The inventor of the internet is not a single person. The internet was evolved from numerous inventions and experiments conducted by genius minds in technology. So the internet was founded by:
- Paul Otlet – One of the several people who worked on the invention of the internet, who also considered the father of information technology.
- J.C.R. Licklider – Described the “Intergalactic Computer Network” and later became the director of the U.S. Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA or DARPA where the ARPANET, the precursor to today’s Internet was created.)
- Elizabeth Feinler – Founded the domain names such as .com, .gov, .edu, .mil, etc.
- Leonard Kleinrock – Invented packet switching.
- Vinton Cerf and Robert Kahn – Invented TCP/IP protocol.
- Ray Tomlinson – Introduced network email.
- Tim Berners-Lee – Founded the World Wide Web (WWW).
There are still numerous names to be included in this list of internet founders. So, it is not a person but a lot of minds who worked hard on it.
Uses of Internet
Internet is everywhere, from our tiny smartphones to the supercomputers in the technology labs. Uses of the internet in our daily life is beyond descriptions. Here are the uses of the internet:
- Communication
- Education
- Entertainment
- Shopping
- Job finding
- Stay connected
- Transactions
- Collaboration
- File transfer
- Research
There is no need to explain each and every use of it because you already know, what the internet is and its history. However, looking at some of the advantages and disadvantages of the internet will help you to determine how it impacted the modern tech world and the human. So, have a look.
Is the internet speed the same everywhere?
No. Internet speed is not the same everywhere. It varies based on different factors, including your internet service provider (ISP), the data plan you are subscribed to, the quality of the connection, and many more. To have a better internet speed, you should choose a good ISP. And of course a speedy internet plan fitting your needs. Once you have them, you can test your internet speed and make sure that you have the expected outcomes.
Internet Advantages
As we discussed in the above sections, there is no question over the use of the internet for enhancing human life by opening a much wider connected world. Here we listed some of the advantages of the internet for letting you know more about it.
- A huge opportunity to share information you have and grab it from others
- The emergence of search engines such as Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc. which has the answer for almost any of our queries. For example, when you searched “What is Internet” on Google, you got thousands of results instantly.
- The opportunity to stay connected all the time with the whole world.
- Ability to keep in contact with the community through social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc.
- Widen the educational system by providing resources to the whole world instead of keeping it under a desk.
- Communication made a lot easier using apps like WhatsApp and Skype.
- Helped sellers and customers to easily sell and buy items, respectively.
- Increased the overall productivity of the businesses through online conferences and deals.
- Opened a wide area for charity organizations to collect money and spend it on the poor. Crowdfunding helped small startups to introduce big ideas to the world with different technologies.
- People stay up to date with any important incident in the world. It helps organizations to collect funds and services to help the affected people.
- The entertainment industry got a lot of opportunities in various forms such as online trades.
- Everything including, flights, trains, ships, huge businesses, taxation system, certification, etc. came under control from a single computer.
Internet Disadvantages
Everything has two sides. So the internet also got few disadvantages. We handpicked some of the most important disadvantages of the internet to make you aware of them. Have a look at them to grab the complete idea.
- Even most of the information is trustworthy, internet is a warehouse of a lot of garbage which mislead users.
- The theft just got improved. Everything is being stolen such as the money in our bank, our personal details, documents, etc. through various methods such as email spamming, phishing, etc.
- The dangerous programs such as Virus, Trojan, Malware, etc. got better transportation all over the computers.
- The social life got badly affected due to the over usage of the internet.
- Bad videos got spread all over the world which exploit the children.
- Decreased the productivity of the younger generation by online multiplayer games and chatting platforms.
- Caused serious health problems such as eyestrain, obesity, etc. due to the over usage of the internet by sitting all the time.
- Numerous startups started exploiting customers by promising fake details.
- The hacking got a huge playground where almost anything connected. So they can reach almost any connected devices in the world by exploiting the loopholes.
Now, the above-listed items are the most noticeable internet benefits and demerits.
Improving day by day with the help of the advancements in the technology and human capabilities, internet is something that we will probably never stop being dependent on. Like it or not, it is going to be around for a while.
Frequently asked questions about Internet
Even though this article gave you the basic understanding about the internet, you might still have a lot of questions. Here are some of the most frequently asked internet related questions with their answers.
1. Is internet important?
Yes. In the time period we live in, internet is very important. If you don’t use it, you will be outdated with the information available, hence failing yourself to progress with the world. When used in the right way and for the right purpose, internet is the best thing that happened recently in the tech world.
2. What are the countries with the fastest internet?
Countries such as Liechtenstein, Hong Kong, Denmark, and Switzerland have the fastest internet speeds on average. While it is hard to measure the exact amount, these countries have around 150+ Mbps connections on a large scale.
3. How to learn internet?
There is no specific method that will walk you through the process of learning internet. Internet is a vast collection of information that can be gathered progressively over time. At any point of time, it will be hard to imagine that you have covered the entire knowledge spectrum of the web.