Chapter 6 The Internet and the World Wide Web

Objectives:
In this chapter we will discuss the following topics:
 Internet History
 Concepts of the Internet
 Functions of the Internet
 Hardware and Software of the Internet

Learning outcomes:
At the end of the chapter, students will be able to:
1. Appreciate how the Internet has reached the stage of where it is today
2. Explain common concepts related to the Internet
3. Describe the functions of the Internet
4. Identify the hardware and software of the Internet

6.1 Internet History

Internet is a public communications network once used primarily by businesses, governments,
and academic institutions but now also used by individuals via various access methods. The
Internet, sometimes called simply “the ‘Net,” is the largest and most far-flung network system
of them all, connecting user worldwide. Surprisingly, the Internet is not really a network at all
but a loosely organized collection of about 25,000 networks. Many people are astonished no
central headquarters, no centrally offered services, and no comprehensive index to tell you
what information are available.

Originally develop and still subsidized by the United Stage government, the Internet connects
libraries, college campuses, research labs, business, and any other organization or individual
who has the capacity to hook up.
To access the Internet, a user’s computer must connect to another computer called server.
Each server uses the same special software called TCP/IP (for Transmission Control
Protocol/Internet Protocol); it is this consistency that that allows different types of computer to
communicate. The supplier of server computer, often called an Internet service provider (ISP),
charges a fee, usually monthly, base on the amount of service provider.

Since the Internet did not begin as a commercial costumer-pleasing package, it did not initially
offer attractive options for finding information. The arcane commands were invoked only by a
hardy and determined few. Furthermore, the vast sea of information, including news and trivia,
can seem an overwhelming challenge to navigate. As both the Internet user population and the
available information grow, new ways were developed to tour the Internet.

The most attractive method used to move around the Internet is called browsing. Using a
program called a browser; you can use a mouse to point and click on the screen icons to
explore the Internet, particularly the World Wide Web (www or the Web), an Internet subset of
text, images and sounds linked together to allow users to perused related topics. Each different
location on the Web is called a web site or, more commonly just as site. Home page is the first
page of a web site.

6.2 Concepts of the Internet

When computers are networked, computing applications become available for business-to-
business coordination and commerce, and for small as well as large organizations. The global
Internet creates a public place without geographic boundaries – cyberspace – where ordinary
citizens can interact, publish their ideas, and engage in the purchase of goods and services.

Thus telecommunications and network technologies are internetworking and revolutionizing

business and society. Businesses have become internetworked enterprises. The Internet, the
Web, and intranets and extranets are networking business processes and employees together,
and connecting them to their customers, suppliers, and other business stakeholders.
Companies and workgroups can more effectively, and compete successfully in today’s fast-
changing global economy.

Telecommunications is the exchange of information in any form (voice, data, text, images,
audio, and video) over computer-based networks.

The Web combines text, hypermedia, graphics and sound. It can handle all types of digital
communication and makes it easy to link resources that are half-a-world apart. The Web uses
graphical user interfaces for easy viewing. It is based on a standard hypertext language called
Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), which formats documents and incorporates dynamic links
to other documents and pictures stored in the same or remote computers. Using the links, the
user need only to point at a highlighted key word or graphic, click on it, and immediately be
transported to another document, probably on another computer somewhere else in the
world. Users are free to jump from place to place following their own logic and interest.

Web browser.
The most important software component for many computer users today is the once simple
and limited, but now powerful and feature-rich Web browser. A browser like Netscape
Navigator or Microsoft Explorer is the key software interface use to point and click through the
hyperlinked resources of the World Wide Web and the rest of the Internet, as well as intranets
and extranets. Browser are becoming the universal software platform on which end users
launch into information searches, e-mails, multimedia file transfer, discussion groups, and many
other Internet, intranet and extranet applications. Industry experts are predicting that the Web
browser will be the model for how most people will use networked computers in the future.
That is why browser is called the universal client, that is, the software component installed on
all of the networked computing and communications devices of the clients (users) throughout
an enterprise. The browser also includes an arrow or back button to enable the user to retrace
users’ steps, navigating back, site and site.
Hypertext. This is text in electronic form that has been indexed and linked (hyperlinks) by
software in a variety of ways so that it can be randomly and interactively searched by a user.
HTML, XML and Java are three programming languages that are important tools for building
multimedia Web pages, websites, and Web-based applications.

Hypertext Markup Language (HTML). This is a popular page description language for creating
hypertext and hypermedia documents for World Wide Web and intranet websites. HTML
inserts control codes within a document at point the user can specify that create links
(hyperlinks) to other parts of the document or to other documents anywhere on the World
Wide Web. HTML embeds control codes in the ASCII text of a document that designate titles,
headings, graphics, and multimedia components, as well as hyperlinks within a document.
Several program such as Web browsers, word processing and spreadsheet programs, database
managers and presentation graphics packages can automatically convert documents into HTML
formats. These and other specialized Web publishing programs like Microsoft FrontPage and
Lotus FastSite provide a range of features to help user design and create multimedia Web
pages without formal HTML programming.

XML (eXtensible Markup Language). This is not a Web page format description language like
HTML. Instead XML describes the contents of Web pages by applying identifying tags or
contextual labels to the data in Web documents. For example, a travel agency Web page with
airline names and flight times would use hidden XML tags like ‘ airline name’ and ‘flight time’ to
categorize each of the airline flight times on that page. Or product inventory data available at a
website could be labeled with tags like ‘brand’, ‘price’, and ‘size’. By classifying data in this way.
XML makes website information a lot more searchable, sortable, and easier to analyze.

Homepage. Is the first page of a web site. Those who offer information through the Web must
establish a home page – a text and graphical screen display that usually welcomes the user and
explains the organization that has established the page. For most organization, the homepage
leads users to other pages, and all the pages of a company are known as its Web site.
Webmaster. Individual in-charge of an organization’s Web site.
Uniform resource locator (URL). The user must specify URL to access a Web site. URL points to
the address of a specific resource on the Web. For instance, the URL for Prentice Hall is:
http://www.prenhall.com

IP Addresses
An Internet Protocol (IP) address is a numerical identification (logical address) that is assigned
to devices participating in a computer network utilizing the Internet Protocol for
communication between its nodes. Although IP addresses are stored as binary numbers, they
are usually displayed in human-readable notations, such as 192.168.100.1 (for IPv4), and
2001:db8:0:1234:0:567:1:1 (for IPv6).

Domain Names
Domain is the name of the Internet service provider as it appears in the Uniform Resource
Locator (URL). URL is the unique address of a web page or file on the Internet. A web page URL
begins with the protocol http, which stands for Hypertext Transfer Protocol. This protocol is the
means of communicating by using links, the clickable text or image that transport a user to the
desired site.

6.3 Functions of the Internet

 3.5 1.3
2.9
9.5 Asia
Europe
39.5 N. America
Latin America/
17 Carribean
Africa
Middle East
Oceana/Australia

26.3

Figure 6.3: World Internet Users 1

Source: www.internetworldstats.com/stats.htm

Reasons why people use the Internet

 To find general information about a subject - The Web is like a huge encyclopedia of
information - in some ways it's even better. The volume of information you'll find on the
Web is amazing. For every topic that you've ever wondered about, there's bound to be
someone who's written a Web page about it. The Web offers many different
perspectives on a single topic. In fact you can even find online encyclopedias. Many of
these are now offering a subscription service which lets you search through the
complete text of the encyclopedia. There are also many free encyclopedias that may
give you a cut-down version of what you would find in a complete encyclopedia.

 To access information not easily available elsewhere - One of the great things about
the Web is that it puts information into your hands that you might otherwise have to
pay for or find out by less convenient means.
The World Clock - current local times for cities all over the world - even knows about
daylight savings.
Foreign Exchange Rates - get a table with exchange rates to and from any other
currency.
 To correspond with faraway friends - Email offers a cheap and easy alternative to
traditional methods of correspondence. It's faster and easier than writing snail mail and
cheaper than using the telephone. Of course, there are disadvantages too. It's not as
personal as a handwritten letter - and not as reliable either. If you spell the name of the
street wrong in a conventional address, it's not too difficult for the post office to work
out what you mean. However if you spell anything wrong in an email address, your mail
won't be delivered (you might get it sent back to you or you might never realize).

 To meet people - The Web is generally a very friendly place. People love getting email
from strangers, and friendships are quick to form from casual correspondence. The
"impersonal" aspect of email tends to encourage people to reveal surprisingly personal
things about themselves. When you know you will never have to meet someone face-to-
face, you may find it easier to tell them your darkest secrets. Cyber-friendships have
often developed into real life ones too. Many people have even found love on the Net,
and have gone on to marry their cyber-partner.

 To discuss their interests with like-minded people - Did you think you were alone in
your obsession with a singer, TV program, author, and hobby? Chances are there's and
Internet group for people like you, discussing every little detail of your obsession right
now.

 To have fun - There's no doubt that the Internet is a fun place to be. There's plenty to
keep you occupied on a rainy day.

 To learn - Online distance education courses can give you an opportunity to gain a
qualification over the Internet.

 To read the news

 To find software - The Internet contains a wealth of useful downloadable shareware.

Some pieces of shareware are limited versions of the full piece of software, other are
 time limited trials (you should pay once the time limit is up). Other shareware is free for
educational institutes, or for non-commercial purposes.

 To buy things - The security of on-line shopping is still questionable, but as long as you
are dealing with a reputable company or Web Site the risks are minimal.

Why do people put things on the Web?

 To advertise a product - Most company Web sites start up as a big advertisement for
their products and services. It may be hard to see why anyone would willingly visit a 10
page ad - but these advertisements are very useful to anyone genuinely interested in
finding out about their products. Companies may also give away some information for
free as an incentive for people to visit their pages.

 To sell a product - Internet shopping (e-commerce) is still in its infancy - it takes a very
good marketing strategy to actually make money out of selling items over the Web, but
that doesn't stop lots of people from trying.

 To make money - A popular way to make money out of the Web is from advertising
revenue. Popular sites have banners at the top of the page enticing people to click them
and be taken to the advertiser's Web site. These banners are generally animated and
very appealing, with mysterious messages to make users wonder where they will be
taken. For each person that clicks the ad, the host site gets commission. Making money
this way is only successful if the site gets lots of visitors (thousands a day); so the sites
must be very useful and offer something of real value to their visitors.

 To share their knowledge with the world - Many individuals write Web pages to share
information about their interests or hobbies. They don't expect to make any money out
of it - they just feel that the Web has given them so much information that the least
they can do is put something into it that may be useful for others. Other rewards come
 from the prestige of having their site recognized as something good and the contact
inspired by their pages with others sharing the same interest.

6.4 Hardware and Software of the Internet

A computer produces digital signals, which are simply the presence or absence of an electric
pulse. The state of being on or off represents the binary number 1 or 0, respectively. Some
communications lines accept digital transmission directly, and trend in the communications
industry is toward digital signals. However, most telephone lines through which these digital
signals are sent were originally built for voice transmission, and voice transmission requires
analog signals.

Communications Link
The cost for linking widely scattered computer is substantial, so it is worthwhile to examine the
communications options. Telephone lines are the most convenient communication channel
because an extensive system is already in place, but there are many other options. A
communications link is the physical medium used for transmission. Data can be sent from one
computer to another via a fibre optic medium, microwaves and even via satellite transmission.

Fiber optics technology eliminates this requirement. Instead of using electricity to send data,
fiber optics uses light. The cable are made of glass fibers, each thinner than a human hair, that
can guide light beams for miles. Fiber optics transmits data faster than some technology, yet
the materials are substantially lighter and less expensive than wire cables. It can also send and
receive a wider assortment of data frequencies at one time. The range of frequencies that a
device can handle is known as its bandwidth; bandwidth is measure of the capacity of the link.

A microwave transmission uses what is called line-of-sight transmission of data signal through
the atmosphere. Since these signals cannot bend to follow the curvature of the earth, relay
stations-often antennas in high place such as the tops of mountains and building-are positioned
at points approximately, in major metropolitan areas tall building may interfere with microwave
transmission.

In satellite transmission, the basic component is the transponder, which receives the
transmission from an earth station, amplifies the signal, changes the frequency, and retransmits
the data to receiving earth station. This entire process takes only a few seconds. If a signal must
travel thousands of miles, satellites are usually part of the link. A message being sent around
the world probably travels by cable or some other physical link only as far as the nearest
satellite earth transmission station. From there it is beamed to a satellite, which sends it back to
earth to another transmission station near the data destination. Communications satellites are
launched into space, where they are suspended about 22 300 miles above the earth. That is
where satellites reach geosynchronous orbit-the orbit that allows them to remain positioned
over the same spot on the earth.

Modem
A modem is a device that converts a digital signal to an analog signal and vice versa. Modem is
short for modulate/demodulate. Notebook and laptop computers often use modem that come
in the form of PC cards, originally known as PCMCIA cards, names of the Personal Computer
Memory Card International Association. The credit card-sized PC card slides into a slot in the
computer. A cable runs from the PC card to the phone jack in the wall. PC card have given
portable computers full connectivity capability outside the constraints of an office.

The World Wide Web has given users an insatiable appetite for fast communications. This, and
costs based on time use of services, provide strong incentives to transmit as quickly as possible.
The old-some very old-standard modem speed of 1200, 2400, 9600, 14 400, and 28 800 bits per
seconds (bps) have now been superseded by modem that transmit 33 600 bps. Most people
today measure modem speed bits per second, but another measure is baud rate, the number
of times that the signal being used to transmit data changes. At lower modem speed, each
signal change represents one bit being sent, so bits per second and baud are the same. At
higher speeds, more than one bit may be sent per signal change, so bits per second will greater
than the baud rate.

Protocols
Two devices must be able to ask each other question and to keep each other informed. In
addition, the two devices must agree on how data is to be transferred, including data
transmission speed and duplex setting. But this must be done in formal way. This is where the
role of protocols comes in. A protocol is set of rule for the exchange of data between a terminal
and a computer or between two computers. A protocol is embedded in the network software.
Think of protocol as a sort of pre-communication to make sure everything is in order before a
message or data is sent. Protocols are handled by software related to the networks, so that
users need only worry about their own data.

Summary

The World Wide Web (the Web) is at the heart of the explosion in the business use of the Net.
The Web is a system of universally accepted standards for storing, retrieving, formatting, and
displaying information using a client/server architecture. It was developed to allow
collaborators in remote sites to share their ideas on all aspects of a common project. If the Web
was used for two independent projects and later relationships were found between the
projects, information could flow smoothly between the projects without making major changes.
Internet is a public communications connecting user worldwide. To access the Internet, a user’s
computer must connect to another computer called server. Each server uses the same special
software called TCP/IP.

The global Internet creates a public place without geographic boundaries – cyberspace – where
ordinary citizens can interact, publish their ideas, and engage in the purchase of goods and
services. Thus telecommunications and network technologies are internetworking and
revolutionizing business and society.
Exercise:

True or False.

1. A protocol is set of rule for the exchange of data between a terminal and a computer or
between two computers.
2. Notebook, handheld devices and laptop computers often use modem that come in the form
of PC cards, originally known as PCMCIA cards.
3. In wireless transmission, the basic component is the transponder, which receives the
transmission from an earth station, amplifies the signal, changes the frequency, and
retransmits the data to receiving earth station.
4. Fiber optics transmits data faster than wired pairs, yet the materials are substantially lighter
and less expensive than wire cables.
5. One of the reasons why people use the Internet is to get more customers.
6. URL is the unique address of a computer on the Internet.
7. HTML describes the contents of Web pages by applying identifying tags or contextual labels
to the data in Web documents.
8. Browser is the key software interface use to point and click through the hyperlinked
resources of the World Wide Web and the rest of the Internet
9. Internet began as a commercial costumer-pleasing package
10. C++, XML and Java are three programming languages that are important tools for building
multimedia Web pages, websites, and Web-based applications.

Answers:
1. True
2. False
3. False
4. True
5. True
6. False
7. False
8. True
9. False
10. False

Reference:
James O’Brien, Introduction to Information Systems, McGraw-Hill, 2003.
H.L. Capron, Computers Tools for an Information Age, Addision Wesley, 1997.
Loudon and Loudon, Essentials of Management Information Systems, Prentice Hall, 2001.
www.csm.ornl.gov/~dunigan/vpn.html
cisco-elearning-sjdc.digisle.net/cmn/pec/cim