Two Technologies from the Earlier History of the Internet (Week 2)

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             As a daily user of the Internet, I have always thought that it is something that was created 2-3 decades ago and presumed that its origin was the creation of Tim Berners-Lee called World Wide Web (WWW).  However, I was wrong regarding the Internet’s early history after helpful research which made me realize that Internet has a quite long history than two or three decades. Additionally, I have noticed that some of the technologies that were created in the early history of the Internet are still in use, while some of them have become obsolete and been replaced by modern technology. In the following paragraphs, I will introduce those technologies and briefly discuss their history and use.

1. Finger

            Finger is one of the first computer networking tools which allowed a user to see some other user’s information while having the same computer system or by being in an identical network [1]. This technology was made by Les Earnest (American computer scientist) in 1971 and it was mostly used by Windows users [1].



[source: https://www.istockphoto.com/photo/human-finger-gm493569825-40763148]

This utility was a part of TCP/IP which was included in Windows NT and Windows 2000 [2]. In the modern world, it is still available, especially for UNIX-based servers; however, the majority of administrators prohibit the use of Finger Information Protocol because of privacy and security reasons [2]. This tool/protocol resembles today’s Twitter as one of its purposes was to send status information between two computers [3]. It looks as if computers were tweeting about each other in the 1970s which may lead to the understanding that Twitter could be a “successor” to the Finger but not entirely.

2. Transmission Control Protocol and Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)

            TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) is a protocol that allows various programs and computers to share information over a network [4]. It was introduced in 1974 and 4 years later after its creation, IP (Internet Protocol) was established which is a set of rules that enabled packets of data to be addressed in a way that they can go through several networks and eventually reach the designated destination [5]. Subsequently, both of these protocols formed the Internet Protocol Suite which is now generally known as TCP/IP.



[source: https://www.guru99.com/tcp-ip-model.html]

            As it can be seen from the picture above, TCP/IP consists of 4 layers: Application, Transport, Internet, and Network Interface (Network Access). The application layer assists to find the communication partners and synchronizes that communication between them [6]. On the other hand, the transport layer splits the message into multiple segments and assures that those segments reach the correct destination in the machine itself [6]. Following this, the Internet layer tries to make sure that the sent packets reach the targeted address in spite of the route [6]. Finally, the lowest layer in the TCP/IP model (network access layer) is responsible for carrying out data to other devices which are on a directly attached network [7].

Conclusion

         In conclusion, it can be said that the Internet has a deeper history than most of ever thought of since it started from ARPAnet (the 1960s) and yet remains to be developed daily. Some of the technologies from those early years of the Internet still exist and some have been replaced by other new technologies which lead to a better experience for Internet users in today's world.

References

[1]

"Finger," Technopedia, [Online]. Available: https://www.techopedia.com/definition/2403/finger. [Accessed 29 January 2022].

[2]

G. Shultz, "Everything you need to know about TCP/IP?s Finger utility," TechRepublic, [Online]. Available: https://www.techrepublic.com/article/everything-you-need-to-know-about-tcp-ips-finger-utility/. [Accessed 29 January 2022].

[3]

D. Love, "These Old-School Technologies Made Google, Twitter, And AOL What They Are Today," Insider, [Online]. Available: https://www.businessinsider.com/old-internet-technoligies-2011-9#this-1970s-technology-was-a-twitter-predecessor-7. [Accessed 29 January 2022].

[4]

"What is TCP?," Fortinet, [Online]. Available: https://www.fortinet.com/resources/cyberglossary/tcp-ip. [Accessed 29 January 2022].

[5]

"What is the Internet Protocol (IP)?," CloudFlare, [Online]. Available: https://www.cloudflare.com/learning/network-layer/internet-protocol/#:~:text=The%20Internet%20Protocol%20(IP)%20is%20a%20protocol%2C%20or%20set,arrive%20at%20the%20correct%20destination.&text=IP%20information%20is%20attached%20to,packets%20to%20the%20righ. [Accessed 29 January 2022].

[6]

L. Williams, "TCP/IP Model: What are Layers & Protocol? TCP/IP Stack," Guru99, [Online]. Available: https://www.guru99.com/tcp-ip-model.html#:~:text=TCP%2FIP%20is%20a%20layered,from%20one%20layer%20to%20another.. [Accessed 29 January 2022].

[7]

"Network Access Layer," O'Reilly, [Online]. Available: https://www.oreilly.com/library/view/windows-nt-tcpip/1565923774/ch01s04.html. [Accessed 29 January 2022].

 

 

 

 

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