What is the Internet and the World Wide Web?
This section includes a brief history of the Internet, the TCP/IP communications protocols, the World Wide Web (WWW or ‘Web’) and of Mosaic, a tool for accessing the Web. The Internet The Internet is not a single computer network, such as one that might interconnect the computers in an office or building. Rather it is a network of networks – a network that spans much of the earth. All of these networks have in common their use of the Internet protocols which are described below. Computers, acting as smart switches, serve as gateways connecting the various networks together. They can also translate messages to and from computers that use different communications protocols. The gateways use the Internet addressing scheme to move packets of information (text, graphics, audio) back and forth. Packets are passed from one computer (or node) to another until the final destination is reached. If a pathway is unavailable, the packet is rerouted automatically by the switches. Upon arriving at th
