by Curtis Carmichael

The Internet is an excellent form of communication. Practically millions of people worldwide connect to the Internet every day. From its origin in the late 1960’s from US Department of Defense studies, the Internet has experienced incredible technological advances.

Basically, the way the Internet started is when people discovered an incompatibility issue between two different types of computer networks, called Local Area Networks (LANs) and Wide Area Networks (WANs). Although these networks were beneficial in a variety of aspects, they could not share information with each other. So a method of interconnecting these computer networks was developed, which became the Internet. This became possible through routers (special computers that connected LANs and WANs). A protocol termed "TCP/IP" instructed these networks how to send information. The Internet is now a global network of inter-connected computers.

The Internet as we know it today has virtually unlimited uses. Businesses use it to promote their services and products and conduct commerce on the Internet, collectively termed "e-commerce." Individuals regularly use the Internet for downloading software, playing multi-player computer games, buying products, or just having fun "surfing the Net." Communicating via e-mail and instant messengers are also very popular.