Just You and Me and the Whole WorldThe Internet

Just You and Me and the Whole WorldThe Internet

The Internetand yes, that's a capital "I" in "Internet"has significantly changed the way people live. It has flattened the earth and allowed the free exchange of ideas worldwideamong billions of people.

The Internet is yet another computer network, but it is unique. The uniqueness comes in that almost all enterprise networks connect to the Internet. Also, individual users can connect to the Internet. To make it all work, companies called Internet service providers (ISPs) provide service to companies and individuals to connect them to the Internet. The result? Almost all computers on the planet can communicate with each other. The cultural implications of the Internet far outweigh the coolness of the technology, and the technology is pretty cool! Figure 1-7 shows the basic idea of the Internet.

Once again, clouds show that parts of a network exist, but the details are hidden. The idea is simple: If we create a core network called the Internet, and all companies and individuals connect to it, then everyone can communicate with everyone else. The Internet is so pervasive today that you can almost take it for granted!