Today the internet is a ubiquitous piece of technology which is intertwined in every aspect of our lives. But in the 1960’s it was little more than a high-level concept thought of by Joseph Carl Robnett Licklider. Licklider had the idea that computers could be networked together to share resources and information. Although a brilliant idea, with the technology of the time, it was an impossible feat to accomplish. It took a lot of time, effort, and a massive amount of ingenuity for a computer network to become a reality.
One of the cornerstones of the internet is Queueing Theory. Queueing Theory is a model where by information being transferred is held in a line waiting to be communicated to its destination. Using Queueing Theory, network engineers were able to develop ways to break information down into small packets that could then be distributed through a network to its final destination. In order for the networks to effectively communicate a process needed to be created for the networks to work together. Demand Access allowed the networks to work together by only providing the necessary recourses to the computer that needed it. To this, the standard of Distributed Control was applied to share control of the network to all connected devices.
Local Area Networks, or LANs were developed for communicating within a small area typically an office building. Wide Area Networks, or WANs were developed for communication between buildings and even locations. In order to connect different networks together, they needed to develop a way for the networks to speak the same language. 1973 the Transmission Control Protocol, or TCP standardized the communication standards using a Gateway to monitor and manage the traffic. TCP/IP allowed networks to communicate with each other regardless of the standards of any one local network.
June 9th 1992 congress passed the Scientific and Advanced-Technology Act which granted access to the network to everyone, not just ARPA consultants. The opened the doors for creating the Internet as we know it today. The last piece of the internet puzzle was the creation of the World Wide Web, or WWW. The World Wide Web allowed users to connect pieces of information from around using hyperlinks. Once implemented, it made the research and sharing of data easier allowing for more user acceptance.