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Are We Out There?
Russia launches Sputnik I and creates "Humanity's first artificial satellite" to successfully enter space. This sends the United States Department of Defense into a flurry of research focused on the space race and long ranged communications as this occurs during the Cold War era ("Sputnik I"). -
ARPA is born
The Advanced Research Projects Agency is formed in 1958 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower to expand science and technology beyond their known boundaries for militaristic advancements during the Cold War. -
J.C.R Licklider begins work at ARPA
Jack Ruina, the third director at ARPA, hires Licklider in 1962 as the first director of the Information Processing Techniques Office (IPTO). He funds Project Mac, "designed to be shared by up to 30 simultaneous users" with separate terminals for each person ("ARPA"). Licklider goes on to become a prominent influence for similar reasons in the creation of ARPANET because of his idea for an Intergalactic Computer Network. -
Intergalactic Computer Network
The internet is prophesized by Licklider although by a slightly different name, he called it the Intergalactic Computer Network. This idea encompassed a networking system that created communication between all institutions and individuals ("ICN"). This 'primitive' concept goes on to inspire ARPANET in the 60's and then in the 70's, becomes the internet. -
Hot-Potato Routing
Otherwise well known as "Packet Switching" is theorized by Paul Baran: a paper in 1964 explains that data can travel in infinitesimally small bites similar to drops of water in a stream: they will take the path of least resistance, and formulate back together at the other terminal as if never separated ("ARPANET"). -
A Little Convincing
Licklider convinces Ivan Sutherland and Bob Taylor that a networking system of computers was worth developing (Wiki: "Licklider"). Later, and after Licklider has retired, Taylor convinces ARPA's Director Charles M. Herzfeld to fund a million dollars into his idea: ARPANET (Wiki: "ARPANET"). -
"Linking Computers and Researchers Together"
Bob Taylor applies Lickliders dream of linking computers and researchers in a vast networking system without a central core or location to be discovered in military application. Thus allowing a single terminal to control functions on multiple machines from a decentralized location. Charles Herzfeld, director of ARPA and Taylors boss, invested a million dollars from ballistic missile testing straight into Taylors budget, although he felt it was a gamble to do so at the time ("ARPANET"). -
"LO"
Charley Kline sent the first successful message via the ARPANET at 10:30pm. From UCLA to Stanford, the letters "Lo" were sent, due to the fact the computer crashed before the word "login" could be finished ("ARPANET"). -
ARPANET declared "Operational"
Because ARPANET was designed for advanced research and could be used for militaristic purposes, upon being declared 'Operational' control is handed over to the DCA: Defense Communications Agency ("ARPANET"). Now known as DISA: Defense Information Systems Agency, their mission is “provides, operates, and assures command and control, information sharing capabilities, and a globally accessible enterprise information infrastructure... Information superiority in defense of our Nation” ("DISA"). -
Internet Protocol Power
The messenger that carries information in the form of data packets from Host to Client is called Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, or, TCP/IP ("TCP/IP"). An IP address is the individual social security number of a computer, enabling fast and efficient communication over long distances between specific individuals. The internet relies on TCP/IP in order to "link devices together worldwide" ("Internet"). -
Acronym Heaven: TCP/IP & UNIX OS
TCP/IP are built into a version of UNIX Operating System: This is important because it puts Internet Protocol in the hands of Sun Microsystems ("Internet Protocol"). Vinton Cerf observed that "the history of the Net is the history of protocols” ("ARPANET"). -
The World Wide Web is Born
WWW.WelcomeToTheInternet.Com! [This is a fictitious website]. Billions are plugged in every day thanks to Tim Berners-Lee and his crew, a science organization called CERN in Switzerland ("WWW"). They created HTTP: Hypertext Transfer Protocol, HTML: Hyper-Text Markup Language, and other key pieces for the World Wide Web to come into existence. Lee's crew created a standard mode of communication when the first text-based web browser was released in 1992 ("WWW"). -
Goodbye, Sweet ARPANET
A previous attempt to divide ARPANET into military and civilian networks failed. "In the wake of the decommissioning of the ARPANET, Vinton Cerf wrote the following lamentation entitled, "Requiem of the ARPANET": 'It was the first, and being first, was best,
but now we lay it down to ever rest.
Now pause with me a moment, shed some tears.
For auld lang syne, for love, for years and years
of faithful service, duty done, I weep.
Lay down thy packet, now, O friend, and sleep.'
-Cerf (ARPANET)" -
Netscape Communications
By December of 1994, Netscape Navigator becomes the dominant web browser. In '97, Navigator pairs with companion program [Netscape] Composer giving the average user access to website/HTML creation. The following year, Netscape gets bought out by AOL as the browser for their platform. By the late 90's, millions of people have become active users of the World Wide Web ("WWW"). Update: Netscape Composer has been updated by the Mozilla Foundation and grow into Mozilla Firefox ("Netscape Composer"). -
The Internet is Everywhere!
Today the internet is used in many different aspects of our lives across the globe. As America stands to be the melting pot of the world: many people coming together as countrymen, the internet is the web that links us all together as human beings on the same planet. We use the internet to formulate and share new ideas and create projects to better ourselves and the world around us due to its advanced methods of communication.
