Everyone has heard the term “Internet” and we use it every day to communicate with people worldwide and perform multiple other tasks. The world is pretty dependent on the Internet, but what in the devil’s sorcery is it?
In a nutshell, the Internet is a global network of billions of computers and other electronic devices. Due to this technology, it has become possible to access almost any information, communicate with anyone else in the world, and do much more. You can do all this by connecting a computer to the Internet, which is also called going online. When someone says a computer is online, it’s just another way of saying it’s connected to the Internet.
In this article, we will be learning about how the internet came into being because it surely did not fall out of the blue on some random day. There is a whole lore behind how the internet was made, and we? We will be uncovering this lore today, so fasten your seatbelts it’s about to be a bumpy ride fellas!
The Pre-Internet Era Pt.1 – Invention of the Telephone (1830 – 1890s)
An era where the internet did not exist yet, can you imagine that? You could not just hit enter on your keyboard and send a message across the world, sending any kind of message was quite a challenge back in the day, A message would travel for days and months before it reached its destination, The luxury of the internet came into being after a lot of struggles, you might be wondering, that how did communication work back in the days of the internet did not exist right? Well, let us uncover the truth.
Early Communication, a World Before Instant Messages
Ancient Times
Usage of Smoke Signals
Communication was pretty interesting back in the day, civilizations like China, Native Americans, and Ancient Greeks utilized smoke to communicate with each other.
The Great Wall of China had a system where smoke signals warned about enemy movements. One puff meant “small enemy force” and multiple puffs meant “large force”. They all used the same medium to communicate different types of messages, for example, the Greeks used smoke signals to send messages between cities, often in times of war.
Even other methods such as drums and beacon fire were used to communicate in the old times.
Usage of Animals
You probably are familiar with this method because I am sure all of you watch movies, so Yes, animals like horses were used to carry messages, civilizations like the Mongols (1200) and The Persian Empire (500 BC) utilized horses to make efficient relay system that allowed them to communicate fast.
In World War 1 and World War 2, pigeons were used to send messages when the radio signals failed to deliver messages. Even before the World War, civilizations like The Romans used them to deliver military messages and even news of gladiator fights.
Fun fact: A pigeon named Cher Ami saved 194 soldiers in WWI by delivering a message while being injured.
Written Communication Before the Internet
Handwritten Letters
By the 1800s Letters became the most common medium of communication before the invention of some technologies although it would take months or weeks to send letters to the destination still it was the best shot people had back in the day.
Civilizations like Ancient Rome used scrolls to write their messages on them and then they would send it to wherever they wanted to send it through their slaves.
Postal System
The first real postal system came from the Persians (500 BC), where riders switched horses at relay stations to ensure messages reached their destinations as quickly as possible. At that time, however, postal services were not available to an average Bashir, they were strictly reserved for rulers, empires, and governments. It was only later that such an invention became available to the common man back in the day.
These days, a message flies across the world in a blink. But for most of history? Anything that could run or fly was used to deliver the messages So next time you check your mailbox, remember you’re part of a system that’s been running for 5,000 years.
Telegraph and Telephone: How They Came Into Being
Before the Internet, there was always a need for long-distance communication, whatever medium was used to send messages, it did deliver the message but the ground it could cover was only so much and that was a major problem that led to the invention of the telegraph and later, the telephone. These technologies laid the foundation for modern communication networks.
Telegraph: The Birth of Long-Distance Communication (1830 – 1860s)
The idea of sending messages over long distances without physical transport existed for centuries. Early methods included smoke signals and drum beats but they had a lot of downsides, they were slow, unreliable, and much more.
Invention and Development of the Telegraph
In the 1700s, scientists were exploring electricity and its properties, but there was no practical technology yet that could use electrical signals for communication until the Telegraph was introduced, it was a machine that used electrical signals to send messages over long distances, It lore and it’s working let me shed some light over it for you folks.
1. In 1832 Samuel Morse, a professor at New York University, began developing his version of the telegraph.
2. In 1835 He succeeded in creating the Morse Code He developed a system of sounds (dots and dashes) that corresponded to letters of the alphabet, which became a key part of his telegraph invention.
3. In 1838, 62 people claimed that they made a telegraph but none of them were as successful as Morse’s telegraph, In addition, Morse not only made the telegraph but he also made the language that the machine used also known as the Morse code, so you can say Morse single-handedly just defeated everyone (in terms of creating a better telegraph).
Working of Telegraph in a Nutshell
Morse Code was a system that converted letters into a series of electrical signals represented by dots (short signals) and dashes (long signals).
1. Transmission of Signals
These dots and dashes were sent as electrical pulses through the telegraph wire.
2. Reception and Interpretation
The receiver would interpret these signals and convert them back into letters or words, allowing messages to be sent efficiently over long distances.
3. Message
The Nasir Bhai-jaan at the receiving end would either decode the message by hand or use a machine to display the message.
How Did it Impact the World?
The introduction of the telegraph in the 1850s changed how communication worked. The messages that took days or months to travel from source to destination. Now were able to reach their destination in a matter of minutes.
Before the telegraph, politics and business were limited by geography, The news was mostly outdated by the time it reached regions that were far away.
The telegraph changed all this. Whether it was a message or some news, they were delivered almost everywhere easily. Communication seemed just like the flow of water.
This revolutionized business, politics, and global communication, just like how the internet changed everything when it launched, the Telegraph changed how communication worked when it was launched.
The telegraph was a big leap for humanity. It was not just a machine, it laid the foundation for future communication technologies, such as the telephone and the Internet.
Telephone: The Next Leap (1870 – 1940s)
So you might be wondering if the problem of communicating over long distances was solved then why was there a need for telephones right? Well our good old Telegraph did have a lot of downsides which included :
1. Messages had to be manually encoded and decoded.
2. It was slow for long conversations.
3. Only trained operators could use it.
Invention and Development of the Telephone
The idea of the telephone itself existed long before the telegraph but it was still in progress and the first ever person to bring this idea into reality was Antonio Meucci created a basic version of the telephone in 1849.
Graham Bell wasn’t the first guy who created the telephone, it was Antonio Meucci – his invention was not fully developed or widely recognized at the time. He was not able to secure a patent for his work due to financial constraints.
In 1876 Alexander Graham Bell was credited with inventing the telephone and receiving the first U.S. patent for it after years of research.
By the early 1900s, telephones became widely used. The telephone system continued to grow, and by 1915, the first transcontinental telephone line was in operation ehh what is the transcontinental telephone line?
The transcontinental telephone line was a telephone line that connected the eastern and western parts of the United States, allowing people to make telephone calls across the entire country for the first time.
By the mid-20th century (1940 – 1960), the telephone became a common household item, and just after some time mobile phones began to rise and started replacing landlines for many users. This was a big shift in how communication worked, Now everyone and their grandma was using digital and cellular phones.
Working of Telephone in a Nutshell
In a nutshell, the telephone works by converting your voice into electrical signals, which are then sent through wires or radio waves in the case of mobile phones to a receiver.
Here is the process in a bit of detail:
1. Sender’s end
When you speak into the telephone’s microphone, your voice creates sound waves, which are converted into electrical signals.
2. Transmission process
These electrical signals travel through wires (in landlines) or v radio waves (in mobile phones) to the receiver.
3. Receiver’s end
On the other end, the electrical signals are converted back into sound by the receiver’s speaker, allowing the person to hear your voice.
How did it impact the world?
Within 50 years of its invention, the telephone became essential in the U.S. It brought a lot of positive changes, such as improving communication, advancing democracy, and much more. However, As it is rightly said
Wherever there is light, there is dark.
Alongside the good things that came into being because of the telephone, bad things such as increased crime, loss of privacy, and similar problems came into being as well.
Early telephone systems had privacy issues, with eavesdropping on public phones, and switchboard operators sometimes putting their noses into other people’s business. As technology became more advanced, the bad guys also became more advanced, and problems such as wiretapping arose, similar to modern MITM (Man-in-the-Middle) attacks.
Despite these issues, the telephone was a big step for humans, especially for an average person, like a while back Bashir had to send birds to relay a message and now he is just sitting in his chair and talking with another person who is maybe on the other side of the world.
The Pre-Internet Era Pt.2 – Welcome to Broadcast (1890-1960)
While the telegraph and telephone did play a major role that led to the development of the internet, broadcasting devices such as radios and television were a big leap for the people as well.
The Rise of Radio
The good old radio which was developed in the late 19th century changed communication, it was the first device that allowed wireless transmission of audio signals, it was not only beneficial for the military and governments but it also benefitted the average person. People were able to listen to the news or use it for entertainment purposes.
The Impact of Television
Television, which was also an invention in the late 19th century, combined radio’s audio capabilities with moving images, making it one of the most amusing devices at the time. People were crazy for it, seeing actual videos on a screen for the first time. It was magical for them.
It became a quickly adopted device, almost everyone had a television in their house by the 1950s.
Downside of These Technologies
The broadcasting devices did change how stuff worked in the context of communication, but the issue was that these devices offered a one-way communication system, you could only listen to the news or watch videos on television but it did not allow people to perform any kind of interaction, So people enjoyed it for a bit and then they got tired from it and ultimately felt the need for something engaging, something faster.
Need for Faster Communication
After the whole Tele-era and the broadcast era, the way that communication worked changed significantly but despite the problems that were solved, there were still lots of downsides that these technologies had. As we all know it is human nature to never feel satisfied due to which there were so many advancements in technologies in the first place. It is a good thing, however, because if we aren’t as we are, you wouldn’t be able to read this, the downsides? I listed some major ones:
1. Telegraph required trained operators to use it because of the use of Morse code which requires encoding and decoding, an average person was not skilled enough to use it.
2. Telephones relied on being set up which required a lot of wires and infrastructure, it was also limited to point-to-point connections.
3. Television and radio both only offer one-way communication systems.
Over time, technology started getting better, and with that different industries and the government started demanding even faster communication, everyone just wanted to get rid of all the wires and they wanted to somehow send information to wherever they wanted in the blink of an eye, due to all this the concept of digital networking started to rise.
The Concept of Networking (1950 – 1960s)
With the rise of computers in the 1950s and 1960s, scientists began thinking about connecting multiple machines to share information, they wanted to create something like a Digital village in which everything was somehow connected, they just did not know how, but as time passed things started getting clearer and clearer, the vision people had, It started coming to life.
Visionaries Who Imagined a Global Network
Many people had a vision for how different technologies would function which will ultimately contribute to making the Internet itself, let me shed some light on the important visionaries and their achievements.
J.C.R. Licklider
This guy played a very important role in the internet becoming a reality, he had a vision for interconnected computers, and more specifically he introduced the idea of an Intergalactic computer network I hope you didn’t get scared by the name it doesn’t mean some space computer, according to him, this machine should be able to share data and other resources over long distances if it works correctly.
He viewed each standalone computer as a part of something larger and because of his ideas being so unique It ended up influencing ARPA (Advanced Research Projects Agency) to invest in networking technology.
Paul Baran and Donald Davies
Believe it or not, they are the unsung heroes who singlehandedly developed the idea of packet switching, a method that later became the foundation of the Internet.
What is packet switching? In a nutshell, it just sends data in smaller chunks instead of sending a really large amount of data at once, and finally, when it reaches its destination it gets reassembled – (just like the Avengers assembled).
The Birth of the Internet as we know it (1960 – 1990s)
Before the internet existed, scientists and other smart people with big brains (engineers) were thinking about ways to connect computers so they could share information which led to the creation of ARPANET, which was the first real version of the internet, you might have heard these terms ARPA | DARPA a lot, but what are these? Let’s get into it.
What is ARPA and DARPA?
All about ARPA (DARPA) & ARPANET (1960s)
Sorry to disappoint you fellas, But No, ARPA was not an Alien agency instead ARPA (Advanced Research Projects Agency) was primarily a funding institution created by the U.S. Department of Defense in 1958 to support technologies and potential cutting-edge technologies too, just like the Intergalactic computer network.
In 1972, For some reason ARPA was renamed DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), so whenever you hear the term ARPA|DARPA think of it as if Bashir’s name got changed into Nashir.
What is ARPANET and how it came to be
In 1969, ARPANET was the first real version of the internet, built by the U.S. Department of Defense’s ARPA (Advanced Research Projects Agency), since it was built by ARPA it makes sense that it was called ARPANET. This ARPANET, how did it work you might be wondering that right? It used the technology that I previously explained, the technology called packet switching which made sending data a hell lot faster and more reliable.
The First ARPANET Connection and the Role of Universities
In 1969, ARPANET conducted its first-ever test to check whether things were working or not. The test took place between two very famous institutes UCLA and the Stanford Research Institute.
The goal was to send the word “LOGIN”, but the system crashed after just “LO” was transmitted so technically the first ever message sent over the internet was LO, hilarious isn’t it?
Role of Universities
UCLA
(University of California, Los Angeles) was responsible for sending the first ever message on the internet LOGIN Apart from sending the first message, UCLA also developed the Interface Message Processor (IMP) allowing computers to connect and talk with each other.
– In short, UCLA was responsible for sending the first Internet message and played a major role in building the foundation for Internet communication.
Stanford
Stanford Research Institute (SRI) worked on the protocols that allowed computers to communicate over ARPANET. One of their most important contributions was the Network Control Protocol (NCP), which was the first set of rules that allowed different computers to send and receive data over the network which later evolved into TCP/IP, which is the foundation of the internet being used today.
– In short, Stanford dealt with managing all the network protocols.
MIT
MIT researchers focused on how computers could interact with each other in a networked environment. They were responsible for uncovering how ideas like packet switching worked and this is just one of the ideas they explored.
– In short MIT’s work helped shape how computers “talk” to each other.
Development & Expansion of Internet (1970 – 1990s)
The 1970s: Introduction of Protocols
After the success of ARPANET in the late 1960s, In the next couple of years (1970s) scientists started focusing on making the internet better which was done by introducing protocols but why was the need for such protocols needed? Let’s first discuss about that.
The Problem with NCP
In the starting (network control protocol) NCP was the set of rules that were used by computers to communicate with each other but as the network started to grow and more & more computers were added to the network, NCP started hitting its limit, it could not handle more computers in its network and because of that a better and a faster protocol was needed.
The Birth of TCP/IP
If you are a geek like me, you must be familiar with the good old TCP/IP, Computer scientists Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn introduced TCP/IP so that computers can communicate much more efficiently, you might be wondering why what in the world is this protocol, well In a nutshell:
TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)
It ensured data was broken down into smaller chunks and then later was reassembled after reaching its destination, it’s a concept you are familiar with – packet switching.
IP (Internet Protocol)
Now our boy IP made sure packets were sent to the right address and reached their destination.
TCP/IP was tested and people worked on improving it more and more throughout the 1970s ultimately In 1983 became the standard protocol for ARPANET.
OSI Model
Some of you folks would be shouting that what about the OSI model? Well, OSI model was made based on TCP/IP researchers who just wanted to create a more structured approach to networking which led to the development of OSI.
It was introduced in the 1980s, the OSI Model divided networking into seven layers, making it much easier to understand and overall it’s just a less-complex version of TCP/IP.
Although OSI was designed to replace TCP/IP, it never fully did, TCP/IP remained the king but OSI was not a waste, up to this date this model is used to teach beginners about how networking works If a person can grasp the concept of OSI then he ultimately ends up understanding how TCP/IP works, it’s used in the industries for many other purposes as well but more on that maybe some day later.
The 1980s: The Internet Takes Shape
This era was the point where the internet began to expand beyond ARPANET and it started to grow beyond ARPANET.
The Adoption of TCP/IP
By January 1, 1983, ARPANET officially transitioned to TCP/IP, it became the standard protocol for communication. This allowed various networks to connect, bringing the idea of a Global network alive. Due to this day being quite an important day in history, it is also referred to as Flag Day of the Internet.
The Creation of Domain Names and the First Servers
In 1983 invention of domain names and the different domain servers took place, the interesting thing is it is the same year in which the transition from NCP to TCP/IP took place, the Domain name system also referred to as DNS was introduced to simplify internet services navigation, now I used the term internet services and not web because web did not exist at that time, They were invented later on.
Before DNS, computers used numeric IP addresses to identify each other. With DNS, users were able to access different services such as email, file transfer, and other applications using human-readable names, like example.com.
To simplify even further, DNS mapped IP addresses to names, let’s just suppose you have a brother and whenever you wanted to call him you shouted 111.1114.1111 that would be pretty hard to remember and not good at all, but what if you just named him Bashir, now you can just shout Bashir and he would come running to you – From a very high-level view that is exactly how DNS works.
Creation of Top-Level Domains (TLDs)
In 1985, the first Top-Level Domains (TLDs) were created which categorized websites into different types such as:
1. .com for commercial entities
2. .edu for educational institutions
3. .gov for government sites
4. .org for organizations
5. .net for network infrastructure
These domains provided a more organized structure for the internet, making it much easier to understand which website is for what purpose.
The 1990s: The World Wide Web & HTTP
In 1991, Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web (WWW) at CERN which allowed the sharing of information through hyperlinks. This was a very big leap, it just changed everything, and people were able to access documents and data online.
During this time, HTTP (hypertext transfer protocol) was also introduced. This protocol was used for transferring data on different web pages. This protocol allowed communication between different web browsers and web servers which ultimately allowed users to interact with different websites and access their content.
Introduction of Mosaic Browser
One of the most important developments during this time was the introduction of the Mosaic web browser in 1993. It was a graphical web browser that enabled the users to view images and text together on a single page, which made the web so much more interactive and visually appealing. Before Mosaic, different browsers were mostly text-based, and it was difficult to view multimedia content and overall everything just looked ugly.
After the invention of the Mosaic browser, the popularization of WWW (World Wide Web) took place which led to the rapid growth of different websites, e-commerce, online services, and much more.
The Growth of the Web
By the mid-1990s, the web was growing at a very fast pace. Different Companies and individuals started creating their own websites for all kinds of purposes. Some websites were made for sharing information while others were made so that people can buy different things using the web.
The introduction of different search engines in the mid-90s, such as Yahoo! made life even easier. People were able to type anything in the search engine, and guess what? Boom they found what they were searching for OR They didn’t if it was not available.
In summary, (1960s-1990s) was an important period, we saw how ARPANET Came into being and then how it had some problems so TCP/IP was introduced which solved them, Later we saw how DNS and TLDs were introduced which made the internet so much better and on top of Our boy Tim then went on and made WWW which made the internet even more awesome, isn’t it fascinating? How things just started from a mere telegraph (thanks to Morse) and now we are here.
Internet in the Modern Era: From Boom to Present (1900s – Present)
The Internet’s Growth and Evolution
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the Internet really started booming due to the rise of Internet Service Providers (ISPs) & also thanks to the dot-com which helped many companies commercialize their services.
With each passing day, everyone and their mother started getting familiar with using the internet, unlike the Telegraph where only trained operators were able to use it.
Usage of the Internet did not require any of this, you just needed 1 brain cell to be able to use the Internet and just like televisions intrigued everyone so much that they could not resist the urge to make it a household device. The same thing happened in the case of the Internet too.
As the 2000s progressed, the growth of smart devices and the Internet of Things (IoT) further became a part of everyone’s life, creating a literal Global village.
Today, nearly every device and service is online, from smartphones to home appliances. The present world is so heavily dependent on this technology with which you are surely aware.
In fact: what was the last time you spent a whole day without the internet?
Impact on Society
The internet didn’t just change how we connect — it completely transformed our lives. Email and messages are now the primary way to talk to friends and our family, now when we think about the ancient communication systems such as using pigeons to send messages which is not even that old a thing, it feels unrealistic.
Similarly, shopping online? Imagine you somehow teleport to the past using a time machine and tell some guy over there that we can shop online, he would not even believe it, On top of that you might even get hanged or burned for being a sorcerer | witch by just even saying stuff like this.
Although Our boy’s internet didn’t stop there. Education took off online, we literally can learn anything we want to use the internet just by sitting on our chair. Entertainment changed too. Different streaming platforms provide the service of streaming, we can binge-watch any TV show, or movie we want to from our House, All thanks to the Internet.
So whether it is education, entertainment, or anything you can think about, the Invention of the Internet changed everything
The Road Ahead for a Digital World
From the telegraph’s first beeps to the internet’s constant buzz, we have come a long way. It’s almost impossible to even imagine that just a few decades ago, we relied on wires, horses, hell anything that could carry messages and now, we’re living in a world where everything happens in the blink of an eye.
We don’t just use the internet; we live it. From ordering burgers at midnight to learning about anything we want to and anywhere we want to, the internet has become part of the air we breathe.
So, the next time you send someone a message or watch a show, Do keep one thing in mind you’re not just using some technology, you’re part of a revolution.
Lastly, If you think you found any value in this, I encourage you to join the Wandering Pro Discord server. If you found any error or have any feedback, please share it at admin@sknexus.com
Further Learning
- https://www.elon.edu/u/imagining/time-capsule/150-years/back-1830-1860/
- https://www.elon.edu/u/imagining/time-capsule/150-years/back-1870-1940/
- https://www.gemcable.co.uk/the-evolution-of-communication-technology-from-telegraph-to-5g-and-beyond/
- https://medium.com/@justpixelperks/exploring-the-pre-internet-days-a-personal-account-of-life-before-the-digital-revolution-185432503e68
- https://youtu.be/wVyu7NB7W6Y?si=0SqRh-kmFOgCCHlc
- https://youtu.be/bC9LOAoGUI4?si=SegazZ0FnmFX__Jq
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