World Wide Web (WWW)

World Wide Web vs. Internet

Many people think that the Internet and the World Wide Web are the same, but they are distinct systems that work closely together:

  • The Internet is a global network of interconnected computers and devices, using various protocols to communicate and share data.
  • The World Wide Web (often referred to as the "web" or "www") is a collection of information, organized in the form of webpages, which are accessible through the internet. Your web browser uses the internet to retrieve and display these pages.


History of the World Wide Web

The World Wide Web was invented in 1989 by Sir Tim Berners-Lee as a tool to help scientists easily share and access experiment data. At that time, both hypertext and the internet existed, but there was no way to link one document to another across the internet. The web enabled this linking through a combination of hypertext and internet technologies, opening up the internet to the general public and allowing people to connect, share, and communicate in unprecedented ways. Today, people use the web to share content through social networks, blogs, and video platforms.

Key Components of the Web

  1. HyperText Markup Language (HTML)
    HTML is the standard markup language used to create webpages. It allows for formatting documents, embedding multimedia, and linking to other resources. While web browsers don’t display HTML code itself, they use it to render the content of each page.

  2. Uniform Resource Locator (URL)
    A URL is the unique "address" for each resource on the web. It identifies the location of files, webpages, and other resources, enabling browsers to open websites and download files like images, videos, or software hosted on servers.

  3. Web Server
    A web server is a program that uses HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) to serve files that make up a website to users, responding to requests from browsers. Common web server software includes Apache and Microsoft IIS.

  4. HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)
    HTTP is the protocol used to transfer data across the web. It operates in a client-server model, where the client (like a computer or mobile device) sends requests, and the server responds by delivering the requested webpage or resource.

  5. Secure Websites: HTTPS (HyperText Transfer Protocol Secure)
    HTTPS is an extension of HTTP, designed to provide secure data transmission through an SSL/TLS (Secure Sockets Layer/Transport Layer Security) encryption. Websites that handle sensitive information, like banking or e-commerce sites, use HTTPS. A web address starting with https:// indicates a secure connection, often accompanied by a lock icon in the browser.

  6. Web Browsers
    A web browser, or simply "browser," is a software application used to access and view websites. Popular browsers include Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Opera, and Apple Safari. Browsers interpret HTML and other web technologies to render content, which includes text, images, and multimedia elements on the webpage.

  7. Search Engines
    Search engines are tools that index and categorize millions of websites, allowing users to search for information using keywords. They scan documents and files on the web and return results based on relevance to the search terms. Well-known search engines include Google, Bing, and Yahoo.

These components work together to enable the functionality of the World Wide Web and make accessing, sharing, and creating information online straightforward and convenient.