What’s the Difference Between the Internet and the World Wide Web?

What is the Internet?

It is hard to believe the internet has only been around for the past fifty years. Mowery and Simcoe (2001) described the internet as the world’s largest computer network communicating with one another using a set of standards and protocols in a shared environment. Without two forms of key network technologies, Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP), the internet would not be possible.

The way these networks are physically connected is via a process called packet switching. Packet switching is essentially breaking down and distributing data to the relevant destination computer. The development of an improved data-networking communications protocol via governing the movement of packets and simplified routing was made possible in 1973 by Robert Kahn and Vinton Cerf. (Mowery and Simcoe, 2001, p. 1373). Whilst TCP is responsible for disassembling and reassembling completed packets, IP is responsible for directing and ensuring the information is delivered to the right place. 

Reference:

Mowery, D. C. and Simcoe, T. (2002). Is the Internet a US invention? - an economic and technological history of computer networking. Research Policy, 31, pp. 1369 - 1387.

What is the World Wide Web?

The very first browser, as well as the system itself, are both known and referred to as the World Wide Web, or simply, the Web. A. Johnson (1995) describes what the World Wide Web has done for users on computer networks, is provide consistent access to a variety of media in a simplified fashion. This relies mainly on documents viewed on popular browsing software such as Netscape or Mosaic through popular browsers like Safari or Google Chrome with a user-friendly interface written in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML).

The inventor of the Web, Tim Berners-Lee, was the first to see the opportunity for people to share information in this way. In interview footage courtesy of the Virtual Revolution, Mr Berners Lee shared that he started the Web “because I needed it, just because it was so frustrating it didn’t exist”. This frustration set Berners-Lee on a journey to find the solution that changed the way we share and ingest information forever.

Reference:

Johnson, A. (1995). The Internet and the World Wide Web Explained. Journal of Audio-visual Media in Medicine, 18(3), pp. 109 - 113, http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/17453059509021634

What is the relationship between the World Wide Web and the Internet?

The relationship between the World Wide Web and the internet is significant. Without the Internet, the World Wide Web cannot exist. The internet, however, can work independently of the Web. An excellent summation of the relationship between the two is described by Gillies and Calliau (2000) that although to many, the World Wide Web is synonymous with the Internet, the two are very different. Ηe goes on to explain that the Web is more like an encyclopedia, phone directory or video library. The Internet, on the other hand, “is like a network of electronic roads criss-crossing the planet - the much-hyped information super-highway.” (Gillies and Calliau 2000, p. 1)

The Web is just one of the many services using the network. Other common internet applications using the same network include sending and receiving email, conducting financial transactions, navigating maps and music streaming.

Reference:

Gillies, M. and Calliau, R. (2000) How the Web was Born: The Story of the World Wide Web. Oxford University Press.

What are three purported differences between the World Wide Web as it first emerged and the more recent Web 2.0?

The early days of Web 1.0 were during an era of low bandwidth and predominantly static pages. Fast forward to the introduction of Web 2.0, we now have more opportunities to share, create, remix and contribute online.

Key differences to achieving a greater online interaction include Really Simple Syndication (RSS). As O’Reilly (2005) describes, ​​RSS is the most significant advance in the fundamental architecture of the web, not only allowing someone to link to a page but to subscribe to it, with a notification every time that page changes. Participating technologies, where the user is also the creator, like Blogs, Wikis and Social Networks such as YouTube, Facebook and Instagram, also have significant differences in the way conversations are facilitated, where anyone can share and contribute on the Web 2.0 landscape. In addition, we now have Application Programming Interfaces (API) that allow other sites to display their content or use their services.

Reference:

O’Reilly, T. (2005) What Is Web 2.0. O’Reilly Media, Inc.

What are APIs, and why are they significant to Web 2.0?

An API stands for Application Programming Interface. APIs are significant to Web 2.0 because it allows other sites to display their content and use their services. Through the wide use of APIs across Web 2.0 that programs can talk to one another. The use of APIs makes it much easier for developers because they have available to them many ways to use information or services from external applications. 

As Proffitt (2013) described, APIs are especially important because they dictate how developers can create new apps that tap into big Web services—social networks like Facebook or Pinterest, for instance, or utilities like Google Maps or Dropbox.

Working in the travel industry, I have developed many applications using API to integrate information and accessibility to real-time booking functionality. An example is booking.com which wildly uses APIs to connect thousands of other accommodation providers and help their customers easily book and confirm via their network.

Reference:

Proffitt, B. (2013) What APIs Are And Why They’re Important. ReadWrite