Lesson 11- The internet

What is the internet?
The internet is the largest WAN in the world. What started off as 3 computers(2 in California and 1 in Boston) ended up being used by over 2 billion people on a regular basis. The internet is made up of many other smaller networks all combined into one. There are many different protocols on the internet though however that are key to it's proper function, some of them are FTP, TCP, and IP these are all used daily. IP is how computers communicate on the internet. A computer's IP is like and address that they have and a DNS server ill help you look for it.

What is a protocol?network protocols are the rules that were established in order to better the internet. These Protocols helped computers transfer data but also communicate and enable or control the connection between them. This however could be used on more than 2 computers however and this led to more efficient network.TCP is a type of protocol and they use a set of rules to exchange message with other internet points on the information packet level. IP is also one and is the address of a computer and is the most common protocol to this day.

What is DNS?
DNS stand for Domain Name Service and helps the IP to find a computer by translating it. DNS is like a phone book because it looks up the name and returns an IP address. Without DNS there would be no communication whatsoever on the internet. There are DNS servers that do this and they take only the domain name.They don't look up anything about the first or second part of a URL.

Explain what an ISP is and what it does?ISP stands for an internet service provider. These are the companies that provide their customers the internet. They popped up around the late 1980's. When you use your computer the domain name that is sent to the DNS is from your ISP's server usually. Although you could create your own connection ISP companies make it cheaper and safer. They connect to your router then make it so your LAN can then connect to a WAN which would be the internet.

What is a PING and Firewall?

PING is a tool that you can use to determine how stable your connection from your computer is to another one. It is useful if you want to see if your messages to a computer you want to talk to is sent or not and if the other computer receives them. A firewall is a sort of protection that you can use as software or hardware to keep you safe online. Most schools and business however customize their firewalls in order to ensure that their students and or employees are safe online. They also add rules to the firewall which determine what type of traffic is allowed on the network.

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How Networks Link to the internet

This section told you what make up the internet, the Largest WAN in the world. Which is smaller networks all combined into one and they create the internet instead of networks linked to the internet. The smallest networks are ones that individuals set up in their own homes and they connect to larger ones run by their ISP. Then all of those on the ISP server connect at network access points to other networks which allows them to communicate freely. This also tells you about backbones and routers which handle data at the highest level. Backbones are large fiber optic cables and routers are responsible for moving  data between networks or section of a network.

What is an internet service provider

This part talks about Internet Service Providers otherwise known as ISP's. They are the people that help other individuals and companies connect to the internet. When you sign up you are given an email, access to storage space on the ISP's server, and sometimes web hosting services to run your website. They also let customers use Digital Subscriber Lines and cable internet which are the most common type of connections. These are made through copper wire telephone lines, cable TV lines, or other wirings such as fiber optic lines.

Connecting your computer to the internet

This talks about how your computer is connected to the internet. There are many ways it can do this though by getting a modem and ISP, plug your computer into the modem, and then turn the modem on. When you do that and you have a broad band connection you connect your computer to the modem but you don't need to connect to your ISP's server every time you want to use the internet. DSL connections are an alternative option that you can use. T1 lines are similar in that they are a dedicated line no one else can use. They are connected by using a pair of copper wires. You can also connect wireless since most wireless device connect to the internet you can use a wireless network instead your computer can then connect to a router or hub.