Basic Network Picture
The Internet Explained
Have
you ever wondered about how the internet actually works, but don't have
a great deal of technical knowledge? No problem, you've come to the
right place. I will attempt to explain the basics of how the internet
works without getting too technical. To do so, we will step through the
network diagram above. But first, it's important to understand the
following three points.
First of all, it is important to understand that the internet is nothing more than a term used to describe a massive world wide network of computers connected together for the purpose of sharing content. Every computer or network device connected to the internet has two things true about it, a physical connection is established via a physical cable or a wireless device and it has software necessary to interpret/send/receive the various internet protocols. The protocol refers to the way in which data is transferred from one device to the next. For instance, web page viewing uses a different protocol than sending email. Fortunately, software does all of this automatically for us, so we don't need to understand the underlying technology. But, we do need to understand the high level basics of what is going on.
Another thing to understand is that viewing websites may be what most people think about when they think of the internet, but it's not the only thing to do on the internet. However, since it's the most common thing to do, that's what we'll discuss here. It's also important to understand here that a webpage is nothing more than a collection of text files, stored somewhere on a web server. We'll talk more about that later.
The final point is that in order to understand the basics of the internet you really have to understand the basics of a computer network, because that's really all the internet is.
Important Terminology Referenced in This Article
Understanding What Happens When a Website is Opened
We will now step through what happens when someone opens a website in order to get a conceptual view of how the internet works. You can use the network diagram above for a pictorial reference.
1. The end user opens a web browser and types in a URL, which is the name of the website they are wanting to see.
2. The URL request is sent through their LAN to their internet service provider.
3. The internet service provider then sends the URL requested to an external DNS server, which is either hosted by them or by who ever provides their internet access.
4. The external DNS server then matches the URL up with the external IP Address assigned to the LAN hosting that website and the request is then sent on to that network.
5. The network hosting that website accepts the request and then sends it to its own internal DNS server.
6. The internal DNS server matches the URL requested to the internal IP address of the actual web server where the files making up the website are physically stored.
7. The request is then sent to the web server and the web server packages up the files that make up the website requested.
8. The website that is all packaged up now makes the return trip in reverse all the way back to the computer that originally made the request.
9. The web browser on that computer then interprets the text files full of computer code sent to it by the web server hosting the site and displays them as a graphic website.
This is a high level overview of how the internet works and each of these main steps can be broken down into hundreds of sub steps. But, that would get much too technical for this particular explanation.
1. Malicious Spy: Some unscrupulous individuals take advantage of internet lapses to spy and access the privacy of some well meaning users of facilities it provides. They have various means of achieving this nefarious act, most especially through Computer or electronic viruses.
Through this medium some persons has lost valuables too numerous to quantify. To forestall this act, a reliable anti- virus or anti-spyware should be installed on Computer systems and similar gadgets that are online.
2. Moral Decadence: The advent of internet has brought about a number of vices as a result of all manner of information that are allowed on online. For example there is unrestricted access to pornographic videos. This no doubt can corrupt Teenagers and even adults who lack discipline. Apart from pornography there are other movies that are not healthy for Children and Teenagers.
3. Distraction: It can cause distraction if not properly harnessed with discipline even among adults. Too much time is spent by youngsters on irrelevant browsing at the expense of other meaningful engagements such as studying their books.
4. Terrorism: Coordinated terrorist attacks are made possible in most cases via the internet. It easier for them to use this medium than any other means of communication for the sake of secrecy.
5. Fraud: Internet is one of the greatest avenue through which fraud has been committed. This most often is possible through deceit and false identity. As a result the unsuspecting public are prone to be victims. It is one of the biggest media for trading as indicated in the benefits of online transaction.
We have seen situation of impersonation and declaration of false identity and sometime one wonder why they sail through even with all these numerous warnings and awareness creation about this type of activities. This is a “Food for Thought”.
In my own opinion I think the reason why many fall prey is because of greed. An attempt to get rich “overnight” as a result they can’t exercise enough patience for proper investigation.
From the forgoing I think one can easily take position as per whether Internet is a Blessing or a Curse especially for this millennial generation. The benefits derivable from the use of the internet far outweigh the disadvantages.
More so, some of the disadvantages are manageable. It is a matter of discipline and curbing one’s will power. Teens phase of life are explorative in nature. If they are given proper foundation with respect to the consequences using the internet wrongly, they will abide. Sanity comes with good upbringing with parents and Guardians showing good example.
A lot have been done to curb the activities of hackers online and to a very high extent it has proved very effective. Employ the services of Virus protection Software and you can be sure you are secured online. There is also online Parental control and monitoring Software to guard against wards transcending their bound.
Internet Service providers (ISP) are also on their heels monitoring the activities of those who uses their services maliciously such as terrorism. Such accounts can be monitored and closed down though it takes a lot to do so.
From all these analysis we can draw conclusion that internet is rather a blessing than a curse. In other words internet is a Blessing and not a Curse and its full potential is yet to be fully harness positively.
First of all, it is important to understand that the internet is nothing more than a term used to describe a massive world wide network of computers connected together for the purpose of sharing content. Every computer or network device connected to the internet has two things true about it, a physical connection is established via a physical cable or a wireless device and it has software necessary to interpret/send/receive the various internet protocols. The protocol refers to the way in which data is transferred from one device to the next. For instance, web page viewing uses a different protocol than sending email. Fortunately, software does all of this automatically for us, so we don't need to understand the underlying technology. But, we do need to understand the high level basics of what is going on.
Another thing to understand is that viewing websites may be what most people think about when they think of the internet, but it's not the only thing to do on the internet. However, since it's the most common thing to do, that's what we'll discuss here. It's also important to understand here that a webpage is nothing more than a collection of text files, stored somewhere on a web server. We'll talk more about that later.
The final point is that in order to understand the basics of the internet you really have to understand the basics of a computer network, because that's really all the internet is.
Important Terminology Referenced in This Article
- LAN -Local Area Network - A localized internal collection of devices all connected together inside one home or one building of an organization.
- Internet - or World Wide Web - The collection and connection of all internal networks together to form one huge world wide network for sharing information across all homes and organizations connected.
- Switches/Routers/Modems/Wireless Access Points - Devices on a computer network that perform various functions related to physically connecting computers together and routing traffic in between one computer and another.
- IP Address - Internet Protocol Address - A unique set of numbers assigned to every single device on a network that functions much like a street address on a house. It lets every other device on the network know where to find the device assigned that number.
- Server - A powerful computer that is used to serve some function on a computer network. Servers perform various functions, such as hosting web pages, hosting network printers, hosting file shares, handing out IP address, and much more.
- DNS - Domain Name Service - A service, typically running from a server that matches and translates names to IP addresses.
- DHCP - Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol - A service, typically running from a server that assigns each network device its own unique IP address.
- Web Browser - A piece of software used to access websites. The most common browsers include IE (Internet Explorer), Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
- URL - Uniform Resource Locator - Name used to point to a website. This is what you type in to get to a website or what pops up when you search for a website. A URL looks something like "www.website.com".
Understanding What Happens When a Website is Opened
We will now step through what happens when someone opens a website in order to get a conceptual view of how the internet works. You can use the network diagram above for a pictorial reference.
1. The end user opens a web browser and types in a URL, which is the name of the website they are wanting to see.
2. The URL request is sent through their LAN to their internet service provider.
3. The internet service provider then sends the URL requested to an external DNS server, which is either hosted by them or by who ever provides their internet access.
4. The external DNS server then matches the URL up with the external IP Address assigned to the LAN hosting that website and the request is then sent on to that network.
5. The network hosting that website accepts the request and then sends it to its own internal DNS server.
6. The internal DNS server matches the URL requested to the internal IP address of the actual web server where the files making up the website are physically stored.
7. The request is then sent to the web server and the web server packages up the files that make up the website requested.
8. The website that is all packaged up now makes the return trip in reverse all the way back to the computer that originally made the request.
9. The web browser on that computer then interprets the text files full of computer code sent to it by the web server hosting the site and displays them as a graphic website.
This is a high level overview of how the internet works and each of these main steps can be broken down into hundreds of sub steps. But, that would get much too technical for this particular explanation.
Is Internet a Blessing or a Curse?
The
question as per whether the internet is a blessing or a curse for this
millennial generation is attracting a global discourse. As a topic of
global debate one just have to take a position but with an unbiased
sense of judgment. The advent of internet has brought unprecedented
breakthrough in every sphere of human endeavour and perhaps also some
negative impact.
Internet simply put, is a cloud based medium that enable dissemination of information internationally among millions of users through a network connecting computers and other compatible gadgets. The information could be accessed in a written form through electronic mail, recorded videos, instant messaging, video chat, pictorially etc.
From every sense of fairness, Internet has turned the Universe to one global village and has done more good than evil. Can we say that internet is both a blessing and a curse? We should be able to take a position at the end of this discourse.
Internet simply put, is a cloud based medium that enable dissemination of information internationally among millions of users through a network connecting computers and other compatible gadgets. The information could be accessed in a written form through electronic mail, recorded videos, instant messaging, video chat, pictorially etc.
From every sense of fairness, Internet has turned the Universe to one global village and has done more good than evil. Can we say that internet is both a blessing and a curse? We should be able to take a position at the end of this discourse.
Benefits of the Internet
The benefits of the internet have to do with the blessings associated with its usage. They are discussed below:
- Knowledge Pool: There is hardly any topic that has no definition online. Scholars gladly research into any area of interest and make their findings available for the benefits of all seekers of knowledge on the internet.
- Fastest medium of information dissemination: It is the fastest medium of information dissemination especially if it is bulky. I remember waiting for the news vendor (print media) several hours to catch a glimpse of the latest news several years ago. But now, just get online, and you are current and abreast with latest news even before the news paper seller.
- An instructional media for Teachers: Students can learn and be taught at the comfort of their homes online (e-learning). They can attend classes even when they are thousands of Miles away from the school or learning centres. This is achieved via the aid of a projector connected to the internet. With other supportive accessories and gadgets, they can even have student-teacher interaction,a two way channel that consummate the learning process.
- Source of Income: It is a veritable source of income for millions of persons around the globe. Internet Service Provision in itself is a business whether at the multinational or local level. Today we have several online publishers and freelancers getting their livelihood through this medium.
- Medium for Data Storage: Data and information that need easy and quick retrieval can be better stored online. Though this may have some side effects but it is better. We live in a world prone to all forms of disasters such as fire occurrence, flood and theft just to mention a few. Documents stored online are safe in case of such occurrences.
- Business Transactions: Today we hear of e-commerce. This is made possible through the internet. Buying and selling with ease online is becoming the best practice and it has proved to be safer and more convenient.
- Entertainment Media: It has assumed the widest spectrum for the entertainment media. Easy access to audio and video streaming with variety of choices especially with a very strong network. In most cases you pay data connection fee only while the movies are free.
- Medium of Advertisement: Online advertisement is one of fastest growing advertising media. There is hardly any site one visit without seeing one form of advert or the other. The fastest means of letting the World know what your business is and any other important information is to advertise it online.
The Dark Side of the Internet
The internet has some disadvantages. They are as follows:1. Malicious Spy: Some unscrupulous individuals take advantage of internet lapses to spy and access the privacy of some well meaning users of facilities it provides. They have various means of achieving this nefarious act, most especially through Computer or electronic viruses.
Through this medium some persons has lost valuables too numerous to quantify. To forestall this act, a reliable anti- virus or anti-spyware should be installed on Computer systems and similar gadgets that are online.
2. Moral Decadence: The advent of internet has brought about a number of vices as a result of all manner of information that are allowed on online. For example there is unrestricted access to pornographic videos. This no doubt can corrupt Teenagers and even adults who lack discipline. Apart from pornography there are other movies that are not healthy for Children and Teenagers.
3. Distraction: It can cause distraction if not properly harnessed with discipline even among adults. Too much time is spent by youngsters on irrelevant browsing at the expense of other meaningful engagements such as studying their books.
4. Terrorism: Coordinated terrorist attacks are made possible in most cases via the internet. It easier for them to use this medium than any other means of communication for the sake of secrecy.
5. Fraud: Internet is one of the greatest avenue through which fraud has been committed. This most often is possible through deceit and false identity. As a result the unsuspecting public are prone to be victims. It is one of the biggest media for trading as indicated in the benefits of online transaction.
We have seen situation of impersonation and declaration of false identity and sometime one wonder why they sail through even with all these numerous warnings and awareness creation about this type of activities. This is a “Food for Thought”.
In my own opinion I think the reason why many fall prey is because of greed. An attempt to get rich “overnight” as a result they can’t exercise enough patience for proper investigation.
From the forgoing I think one can easily take position as per whether Internet is a Blessing or a Curse especially for this millennial generation. The benefits derivable from the use of the internet far outweigh the disadvantages.
More so, some of the disadvantages are manageable. It is a matter of discipline and curbing one’s will power. Teens phase of life are explorative in nature. If they are given proper foundation with respect to the consequences using the internet wrongly, they will abide. Sanity comes with good upbringing with parents and Guardians showing good example.
A lot have been done to curb the activities of hackers online and to a very high extent it has proved very effective. Employ the services of Virus protection Software and you can be sure you are secured online. There is also online Parental control and monitoring Software to guard against wards transcending their bound.
Internet Service providers (ISP) are also on their heels monitoring the activities of those who uses their services maliciously such as terrorism. Such accounts can be monitored and closed down though it takes a lot to do so.
From all these analysis we can draw conclusion that internet is rather a blessing than a curse. In other words internet is a Blessing and not a Curse and its full potential is yet to be fully harness positively.
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