Fundamentals of Communications and Networking, 3rd Edition

Internet and IP Connectivity Are Pervasive

The global network we know as the Internet grew from a network created in the 1960s by the U.S. Department of Defense. In the early days, only military facilities and some academic research labs could access the network. Users began to rely on the network resources and often suggested adding more organizations to the growing network. Each time new groups of computers and users joined the network, the nature of the network changed to meet their needs. By the mid-1990s, the Internet had grown to include many businesses and private users. The World Wide Web, commonly referred to as the “web,” was brand new, and it was clear this new phenomenon had staggering potential to change the way we understand ...