"Chapter Seven "Internet

Chapter Seven
Internet
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Internet is an international wide area computer network.
7-1 The Telephone Network
Although the network concepts of the Internet may appear complex, it
helps to Demystify it by looking at the telephone network first. We are familiar
with using the telephone and never give the technical concepts a second thought.
For example, if you would like to talk to someone in another city or even another
country, you simply key in the appropriate number, wait for the phone to ring,
and then start talking when the other party answers.
There are only two requirements to communicate successfully:
1) you need to know the number of the other person
2) you must speak the same language.
Each country has an organization that is responsible for the telephone
network in that country and they ensure that the network conforms to the
international telephony protocols or standards. The network is a multifunction
network and is used for transmitting voice, fax and data information over the
same network.
7-2 The Computer Network
The same principles for telephones apply to the international computer
network, or the Internet. Each country has a computer network that conforms to
the international standards and these computer networks are interconnected
forming an interconnected network or Internet.
Any computer connected to the Internet can “talk” to any other computer
connected to the Internet provided that:
1) you know the number of the other computer.
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2) the computers speak the same language (called protocol in networking
terminology).
The set of protocols used by the Internet is called TCP/IP (transfer control
protocol/Internet protocol).
Multifunctional
As with the telephone network, the Internet can be used for different
functions. There are millions of computers connected to the Internet worldwide.
They typically fall into two groups:
1) servers that provide the services
2) clients or users who make use of those services.