History of the Internet

While the Internet Revolution took place in the 1990's it was 30 years prior, in the 1960's, that the foundation was being laid. The technologies and ideas we now take for granted are a culmination of several interesting factors, amongst them fears during the Cold War.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has put together a presentation on the History of the Internet. It includes photos and video from the following periods as well as some predictions for the years to come.

History of the Internet: 1960's

• Cold War Fears: The Need for a Computer Network
• The Challenges of a Computer Network
• Creation of ARPANET
• Interview with Vint Cerf

History of the Internet: 1970's

• Business Adoption of Computers
• First Email
• The Need For An Open Network
• Advances in Computing

History of the Internet: 1980's

• Introduction of Personal Computer
• Communication protocols go standard and non-proprietary-- TCP/IP
• First cross-nation network connected with TCP/IP
• Innovation Moves from Public to Private Enterprise
• Internet Grows a Backbone

History of the Internet: 1990's

• The Industrial Revolution Begins
• The World Wide Web (WWW) is Introduced (8/6/1991)
• Private-Public Partnership Pays Off
• WWW introduces new markets and industries (like Sherpa!)
• Public Sector decommissioned NSFNET in 1997; Network Solutions given contract to manage domain names

History of the Internet: 2000's

• Web 2.0 - The Social Web
• Internet 2.0 - Innovations in speed and bandwidth
• The Future? Quantum computing, cloud computing, interconnected electronics, immersible digital environments, interplanetary networking

What do you think the Internet will look like in another 30 years?