Origins of Internet (1960s-1980s)

The origins of the internet trace back to the 1960s, with efforts aimed at building functionality for time-sharing of computers. One of the objectives was to increase access to high-powered research computers and, consequently, reduce the amount of time such computers were idle. These computer resources were often geographically distant, and continuously traveling to use them was not a feasible long-term solution.

One of the results of these efforts was ARPANET, a packet-switching network that became a predecessor of the internet. ARPANET provided an opportunity to connect computers that were geographically far from each other. A key feature of this network was that computers connecting to one another did not need a direct connection; instead, connections could be formed through a network of intermediary computers designed to pass messages forward.

As part of this process — or perhaps as a consequence, — a protocol-combination called TCP/IP was developed. The protocol specified how data should be packaged, addressed, transmitted, routed, and received. The protocol was later standardized, and it became the foundation of the internet.

Partially due to the standardization of TCP/IP, adding new networks to the existing group of networks became easier, increasing access to the internet. In the 1980s, most points for accessing the internet were still tied to universities. However, commercial companies — called internet service provides — that offered access to the internet started to emerge in the late 1980s.

At that time, the internet was primarily used for text-based communication and running remote processes. Similarly, the internet service providers typically provided access to limited services, such as email. By the late 1980s, the internet as we know it today had not yet come into existence.