Internet Access

Internet Access

by john york

It would be helpful to provide a brief historical summary of the
Internet before jumping into the different means of accessing "The Net".

The Internet was developed primarily by Vinton Cerf, an American
computer scientist, in 1973 as a part of a United States Department of Defense
Advanced Research Projects Agency project managed by American Engineer, Robert
Kahn.   In 1984, the project was turned over to the private sector and to
government research and scientific agencies for further development.   In 1993,
the Internet was turned over to the public and by early 1995 access was
available in over 180 countries and there were over 30 million users.   It is
expected that 100 million computers will be connected to the public Internet by
the year 2000.

The public Internet can be accessed in several different ways:   through
a LAN, by a host, terminal access or gateway access.   A LAN is a Local Access
Network where there are a group of computers and other devices that are spread
over a relatively limited area and connected by a communications link.   This
also allows you to communicate with any other computer on the network.   If you
access by a host, it is usually done through a LAN or with telephone lines and
modems combined with Internet software on a personal computer.   Terminal access
is usually done by a telephone line and a modem and it is used with terminal-
emulation software on a personal computer.   This also allows you to interact
with another computer that is an Internet host (explained later).   Gateway
access is similar to terminal access, but it is provided through on-line or
similar services or other networks such as Bitnet, Fidonets, or UUCP nets that
allow users to minimally exchange e-mail with the Internet.

The Internet is made by using different kinds of electronic transport
media including optical fiber, telephone lines, satellite systems, and LAN's.
Most computers that are connected to the Internet are called... [continues]

Read full essay