Origins of the Internet
The appearance of the internet was due to a fact of the absolute necessity of this technology while the plenty of inventions were discovered because of the same reason. Regarding the significance of the internet, it went down in the history not only as a new achievement of science, but also as the key of strong influence in the international arena. According to Abbate (1999), the stimulus to invent the particular technology was the launching of the first automated satellite from the side of the USSR (p. 8). Surely, this action cannot help provoking the USA to make the equal response not losing the advanced position in technology development and defending against the possible USSR attack. Thus, the USA government decided to create the early warning system, preventing from the rocket attack. There was invented the NORAD (North American Aerospace Defense Command). This system aimed to provide the connection between observation posts because they were located in different parts of the country.
According to Internet Society, this case proved to give reasons Licklider for elaboration of a new concept (Brief History of the Internet, para. 5). In August 1962, Licklider of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology presented the series of notes that included the description of a social interaction. The first network - aimed for this task fulfillment – was the “Galactic Network”. The sense was that the global network could connect the computers providing faster access to the data and programs installed on every computer. Undoubtedly, this concept resembles the modern internet.
Licklider was appointed the first head of the computer research project in the Department of Advanced Research and Development. He could reassure the colleges in this idea significance. The next vital point relates to the new invention that could increase the speed of data transmitting among the computers. At that, a necessity arises to make a new network ARPANet. From the outset, there was simple network the researchers focused on. As for the network complexity, it was expected nothing more than to connect four computers among each other in 1969. This network aimed to connect computers of educational, military and research institutions. Surely, ARPANet was growing very fast giving good matters for new network development.
ARPANet was performed as the full-fledged network due to many attempts of researches. In general, this network included the concept of RAND military network, National Physical Laboratory (NPL) and scientific network CYCLADES. More simply, these major keys became the vital points of internet development. Taking into account that many institutions did not put computers on open access, there was invented Interface Message Processor (IMP) aimed to control the network activity while the major computer conducts operations. Thus, the IMPNet could combine the computers of this particular group. The modern protocol TCP exist thanks to the created NCP 50 years ago – this protocol was the main tool for network management.
As the NPL network worked on the commercial background, the quantity of users was being constantly increased. According to Internet Society, this aspect became the cause of network overload (Brief History of the Internet, para. 8). Therefore, the decrease of sent files may help to avoid the network overload, but it was impossible. In this way, the switching packages had its start that meant the file division into smaller parts, packages. Knowing the main requirements for the ARPANet, DARPA decided to design the IMP. In December 1968, a group from the company Heart Bolt Beranek and Newman (BBN) were lucky to achieve this goal.
According to Internet Society, In October 1972, the audience could familiarize itself with advanced network ARPA at the big conference (Brief History of the Internet, para. 12). The most expressive performance was the e-mail. This service had the similar functions to our modern programs. This step was considered as the final step towards the World Wide Web that we use nowadays.
Formation of a Community
The case of ARPANET creation became the significant example of satisfaction of needs, even on the assumption of politic interests. Thus, this network is considered as a significant achievement of humanity. It is evident that the community could organize the work in the most efficient way. The mentioned before package switching was the result of one working group effort. The same principle formed the basis of other projects of DARPA. In so many words, these joint actions resulted in a new community. Surely, the creation of such significant service as e-mail required the efficient coordination mechanisms the community was trying to implement. With the lapse of time, it had been giving greater attention to these mechanisms.
According to Internet Society, in 1970, the concern of the research community with projects developed by DARPA was being increased (“The Brief History of the Internet,” n.d.). Therefore, the execution of DARPA felt the strong need for the efficient coordination of different research groups. Before this, the coordination had the character of spontaneous process. While working groups were striving for the self-control, some of them decided to discuss different achievement by means of articles – Request for comments (“Request For Comments (RFC's) History,” n.d.). Definitely due to these articles, scientists could analyze the new approaches in networking. This aspect became the key in new research group formation – network Workgroup ARPANET – it became the work group of the Internet.
This self-control approach proved to be successful, but it became a so-called barrier in network control from the side of DARPA. According to National Academy (1995), Vint Cerf – the leader of Network Interconnection Program – founded the International Cooperation Board (ICB), Internet Research Group (IRG) and Internet Configuration Control Board (ICCB) (p. 211). The first group was responsible for the deals with foreign countries. ICCB aimed to control and to coordinate the growing number of network users. The new approaches in the coordination mechanisms had the formal performance because in practice the process the researches were the successor of was constant.
The international scientific cooperation played the vital role in the Internet development, and there were the particular reasons of its existence – the constant development of technology, strong necessity to manage and control a large infrastructure, commercialization. Definitely, these points became the background for scientific cooperation development. The development of network technology and its expansion dignified the direction and forms of that community.
The World Wide Web turned out as the fast developed technology that by-turn formed the special community because many employees involved in the big network were not considered neither researches nor programmers. Among different discoveries it should be noted the hypertext. Tim Berners-Lee was not only the inventor of hypertext, but also the father of WWB. According to McPherson (2010), “It would be a person who speaks only English asking the directions from a person who speaks only Japanese. Tim had an answer to this problem too. Tim wrote a new computer language called Hypertext Markup Language (HTML)” (p. 48).
As for the coordination mechanism, there was created the World Wide Web Consortium, headed by Tim Berners-Lee. According to McPherson (2010), the 1991 is considered the WWB birth. Regardless the low quantity of users (600 000 people) this number was increased to 40 million in 1996 (p. 82). The creation of network environment has been expanding double quick. Every day people develop the World Web by operating new pages. This manner changes the way we play, communicate and learn. Thus, the community turns out the integral part working on the internet improvement turn by turn.
Commercialization of the Internet
Shane Greenstein (2001) stated that the development and expansion of the Internet were instantly passing because of the particular reasons (p. 5). Entrepreneurs turned out the pioneers striving for the fast commercialization. Undoubtedly, they could see own profit as the transfer of business in the online environment may bring benefits. The second point relates the appropriate understanding of the Internet as the economic unit. Privatization played the vital role as well. Due to this process, new market became available for the Internet expansion; besides, there were considered a new application of this technology. The last reason dignifies the successful moment of commercialization because at the same time world web was at the height of development.
It should be noted the strong motivation of commercialization. As Shane Greenstein (2001) stated, “The commercialization of the Internet is shorthand for three nearly simultaneous events” (p. 5). Among these events, we cannot help drawing much attention to the National Science Foundation, in particular, this organization enabled an opportunity for the commercialization. At the same time, the plenty of firms were trying to enrich the services and products with new technology – the suite of TCP/IP protocol. From the other hand, they had no idea about the sense of this additional component, so what else they should expect from the clients. This situation proved to be uncertain because of the shortage of knowledge.
Thus, due to the IAB efforts Dan Lynch decided to lead the 3 day conference aimed to clarify some issue regarding the TCP/IP protocol in new products (“The Brief History of Internet,” n.d.). This event seemed to be useful because many vendors could attend the conference. Obviously, no one but the representative of DARPA could organize this meeting and explain the main principles of TCP/IP application. The quantity of attendees was amazing – 250 vendors, but the result expresses more significantly. Vendors and researchers arrived at common concerns; open talking about this technology impressed the first ones, and researchers by turn could find new issues. Thus, this meeting foresaw benefits for both sides. And afterward the similar meetings were being organized relatively often. Probably, people arrived at a common understanding that the development of this technology is feasible on the assumption of cooperation of researchers and vendors.
Speaking about the first state of commercialization could not start without the involvement of vendors. Therefore, we cannot help drawing much attention to these pioneers, which focused on the network services. The fast expansion of WWW played the vital role in the Internet commercialization in particular thanks to the aspect this technology became widely used worldwide (“The Brief History of Internet,” n.d.). Especially the access to web pages and opportunity to create own ones was the background for Internet popularization in the commercial sphere. This case resulted in the formation of new relations between individuals and corporate users. Thanks to this key, there was created the new electronic environment characterized by the accessible and relevant data. Internet turned out the unique phenomenon because it was the result and cause of a new economy at the same time. Besides, this technology was the result of economic and technological changes.
Nowadays Internet had come up the hard way beginning from the elementary application to the everyday use. Entering the active phase of commercialization, this environment became the background of new commercial services. As the information was in the accessible form, there were designed new products intended to change the way of interaction, but at the same time, there were created more complicated services.
As it was mentioned above, the Internet created the first social groups. People could communicate among each other sharing the common interests. This tendency exists nowadays, but use to develop against the background of the commercialization. The economic part turns out as the integral component of the world network. The commercial sphere goes with nonprofit one that stimulates the fast Internet development.
Conclusion
The computer technologies direct the humanity at the new global system. The vast amount of information causes unexpected consequences in our community. Information penetrated into political and economic processes that makes it difficult to imagine the future. The information revolution breaks up the barriers between folks and countries.
Bill Gates (2010) could predict the prompt Internet development, “Worldwide, many thousands of companies and governments are committed to the same vision – of being able interconnect every home and office to a high-speed network which can access a vast amount of information.”
The future impact of the Internet may be considered as the bad and good performance at once. From the point of easy way of communication, the most of companies have own landing pages or usual web pages. Even the politic structures have the own resources. Nowadays, many hacker companies are dealing with big businesses. The idea is that many firms apply for penetration for the purpose of security improvement. However, it has nothing with modern attacks from the side of hackers.
The internet has positioned itself as the environment of the dissemination of information related to terrorism, weapons, espionage, drugs, and pornography. Thus, Internet make a great impact on our mind; and the decision is up to us. We may calculate about this only on the assumption of web pages existence.
Nobody regrets the case of web pages disappearance. Some pages may join the social media. There are no doubts that this aspect will influence on the most of people. The world's leading publishers and magazines may write articles and reviews only in the social sphere. Probably, this turn will simplify the way of information exchange. The prominent authors will join big companies or lead own projects. We cannot predict these actions, but obviously, the Internet prepared unexpected way of our development.
References
Abbate, J. (1999). Inventing the Internet. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press.
Gates, B. (2010). The road ahead how the emerging technologies of the digital age will transform everyone's lives. Hamilton, N.Z.: Summaries.Com.
Internet Society. (n.d.). Retrieved July 10, 2015.
McPherson, S. (2010). Tim Berners-Lee: Inventor of the World Wide Web. Minneapolis, MN: Twenty-First Century Books.
Request For Comments (RFC's) History. (n.d.). Retrieved July 10, 2015.
Shane, G. (2001). Commercialization of the Internet: The Interaction of Public Policy and Private Choices or Why Introducing the Market Worked So Well. Cambridge, Mass.: The MIT Press.
The changing nature of telecommunications/information infrastructure. (1995). Washington, DC: National Academy Press.
