Graphics Programs Reference
In-Depth Information
Discussion fora such as the blogs of today fill a
similar function.
until 1984; prior to that, computers just used a
numbered addressing system. NSF ran InterNIC,
which registered all the names and addresses on
the internet so that data could be properly routed
(Clark, 1996; Engst, 1994; Leiner, 1997; Shelley et
al., 1998). Domain name registry and 'ownership'
is now quite simple, with some services allowing a
'lease' on a domain name for as little as $2 a year.
Recollection: In high school, we had a computer
lab, and a computer club. We had 4 old teletype
terminals, a couple of 50 baud acoustic modems,
and not a whole lot of supervision. Every afternoon,
some of us would go into the lab, dial a number,
and after the horrid squeaks of the modems con-
necting, we could log on to some government
computer (or that of a vendor) and we had access
to all kinds of cool things. My favorite two games
were “Lunar Landing”, a simulator used to prac-
tice controlling the LEM as it hurtled towards the
moon, and “Basketball” where we would use text
commands to play against another live person.
eVOLUTION OF
INFORmATION SHARINg
The developments noted above did indeed promote
a considerable amount of information sharing, but
the internet as we know it was still a long way off.
In the 1970s, few people outside research univer-
sities, the military and some large corporations
had even the slightest inkling about the potential
of the internet. As computers shrank in size and
became more common 'appliances' that even a
single person could own, things began to change
as many people started to experiment with com-
puter programming and hardware development.
Today, with the near ubiquity of email, and
the ease with which malicious persons can cre-
ate viruses and exploit security leaks in home
and business computer systems, internet virus
hoaxes force otherwise well-meaning people
to flood the internet with false warnings of the
dire consequences of a new virus threat. In some
cases, they hoaxes are so well thought out that
they become urban legends.
Some USENET 'newsgroups', as they are
called, also support the use of anonymous mail
servers, which protect an identity. Newsgroups still
have many users, and it is estimated that there are
over 50,000 different ones. Many former USENET
denizens have switched to more modern means of
group communications such as BLOGS, Forums
and other social networking websites.
In 1985, the National Science Foundation,
NSF, created NSFNET or a series of networks for
the exclusive use of the educational and research
communities. Its services were free to qualifying
institutions. NSF created the backbone, or hard-
ware infrastructure, and ran it based on ARPAnet
protocols. In 1995, SPRINT and MCI began to
build their own backbones, which they linked into
NSFNET, which also controlled the domain name
services online. Domain names weren't even used
Bulletin Board Services
Some of the enthusiasm in this new field prompted
many amateurs to explore computer connectivity.
Some set up private, subscription-based services
known as Electronic Bulletin Board Services
(BBS). These small WANs stood alone, and only a
few of the earliest ones were connected to the in-
ternet. Eventually, most of them simply shut down
or were absorbed into larger services. Many of the
earliest home-based BBSs could run on a machine
such as a Commodore C64, were connected via
300 baud modems, and had no CD-ROM drives.
Essentially, they served as places to swap files and
sometimes connect in real time with other users.
Larger networks allowed for better messaging, but
still, slow connection speeds hampered growth.
Many allowed for only a few concurrent users,
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