How Does The Internet Work?

In this article, I will be walking you through the world of the internet. I will be discussing with you what the Internet is and how the Internet works. 

So, I urge you to stay back and read through this piece carefully and keenly. 

Let us get straight into business.

➣ First things first;

What is the internet?

Well, to REALLY simplify it, the internet is basically a wire. it is a worldwide system of computer networks. 

The internet can also be seen as a globally connected network system architecture that facilitates worldwide communication and access to data resources through a vast collection of private or public networks.

We can imagine the internet as this giant wire that connects all the phones and computers in the entire world.

Today, hundreds of millions of people worldwide have access to the Internet, which is a public, cooperative, and self-sustaining resource. It is widely used as the main information source, and through social media and content sharing, it has spurred the development and expansion of its own social ecosystem. E-commerce, or online shopping, has grown to be one of the most ubiquitous uses of the Internet.

You can in fact, look at the map of the internet cables and how it looks in the photo provided below:

So the internet is a giant wire connecting different types of devices. 

➣ But what kinds of devices?

Well, there are only two kinds of devices:

1. Client-side devices, and

2. Server-side devices

But what are these device categories and how do they differ?

Actually, they differ in their functionality.

Their functionalities are as follows:

➣ Client-side devices can be thought of as consumer devices.

They are at the receiving end of information.

These are the devices on which we can watch funny cat videos, watch YouTube tutorials about any field interest etc.

For example, the device you're using right now to read this piece of article is a client-side device.

➣ Server-side devices, on the other hand, are devices that supply that information.

So, things that 'serve' up the information to users, are server-side devices.

➣ But wait, my phone isn't connected to a wire. How am I able to connect to the internet?

That's where ISPs comes in to play a role.

Now, What are ISPs?

ISPs stand for Internet Service Providers.

They are companies that ensure wireless connectivity to the last mile & connect phones to wires. In other words, An Internet service provider (ISP) is a company that provides customers with Internet access. 

➣ And where does the browser fit into all this?

A browser is basically a piece of software that we use to browse the web. Or, A computer program with a graphical user interface (GUI) for displaying and navigating through or between web pages. Or better still, A browser is an application program that provides ways to look at and interact with all the information available on the World Wide Web (WWW).

When we do that, we keep requesting files (HTML, CSS, JS) from server-side devices to see on our client-side devices.

There has been so much controversy about the Internet and the World Wide Web (WWW). Let me demystify the controversy for you in few simple words.

The Difference between the World Wide Web and the Internet

The World Wide Web (WWW or the Web) and the Internet are fundamentally different from one another since the Internet is a global network of networks and the World Wide Web is a collection of data that can be accessed via the Internet. In other words, the World Wide Web is a service built on top of the Internet's infrastructure.

So, that's the brief, simple, and precise story of the internet.

➣ We as users of the internet have client-side devices which we use to request information from the server-side devices.

➣ Server-side devices serve up that information.

➣ That information travels in the form of files (HTML, CSS, and JS).

➣ We see the rendered version of HTML using software called the browser.

That's a wrap for now folks!

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Thank you!