April 29, 2024
TCP/IP and the growth of the Internet
The Creation of the Internet
The TCP/IP model met with competition from the International Standards Organization protocols, OSI (Open Systems Interconnection). The OSI model gained the support of the US government, but, as a testament to its versatility, TCP/IP was widely adopted by networks across the globe. A fundamental shift had taken place. The DoD had been the custodian of ARPANET, overseeing the growth of a network that was the preserve of an exclusive grouping of government, computer scientists and academics. Although the number of users had increased, the opportunity to gain access to this network was limited. TCP/IP removed this barrier and made a global network a reality.
As access grew, so did the reasons for using it. From strictly governmental and academic project work, Internet traffic became increasingly subjected to personal communications via e-mail. People began to turn their minds to other applications for the networks. National governments now found that they could no longer legislate for what could, or could not be carried on these international networks.
The 1980s witnessed the arrival of PCs into the offices and homes of America. Businesses, seeing opportunities for new markets, wanted connection to this global network. Many of the engineers who had overseen ARPANET's creation formed their own companies to meet this demand. The conservative culture of ARPANET had been irrevocably changed and was replaced by the multicultural nature of the "global village" network that we now call the Internet.
Go to http://www.cybergeography.org/atlas/historical.html for a map of the Internet in 1987.
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