World Wide Web - WWW

The World Wide Web (WWW) is like a massive library of information that you can explore using the internet. Imagine millions of web pages filled with text, images, videos, and other content—all connected like a giant spider web. These web pages are stored on servers worldwide and can be accessed from any device, like a computer or smartphone, through a web browser (like Chrome or Safari).

The World Wide Web (WWW) is a system that allows users to access and share information over the internet:

How it works
The WWW is based on hypertext, which uses hyperlinks to connect documents and other resources. Users can click on hyperlinks to access information in different formats, such as text, images, audio, and video.

How it's used

The WWW is the primary way to access internet resources. It provides access to a wide range of content, including mass media, through the surface web, deep web, and dark web.

How it was created

British scientist Tim Berners-Lee invented the WWW in 1989 while working at CERN, an international scientific organization in Geneva, Switzerland. The first website was hosted on Berners-Lee's NeXT computer.

How it became popular

The WWW gained popularity after the release of the Mosaic browser in 1993. Mosaic was developed by Marc Andreessen and others at the University of Illinois.

How it's governed

The WWW is an open standard that anyone can use. The International World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) was founded by Berners-Lee in 1994 to define standards and guidelines for the WWW

The World Wide Web has several major components that work together to make browsing possible. Here’s an overview of each component and its role:

1. Web Browser: The software (like Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Edge) that you use to access the web. It retrieves information from servers and displays it as web pages.
2. Web Server: A computer that stores websites and their content (like text, images, and videos). When you request a page, the server sends the data to your browser to display.
3. Web Pages: Each webpage is like a "book page" with information on a particular topic.
4. Hyperlinks: Web pages are linked to each other using hyperlinks (clickable text or images). Clicking on a link takes you to another web page, creating a connected "web" of information.
5. HTML (HyperText Markup Language): The standard language used to create web pages. HTML provides the structure of a web page, organizing content like text, images, and links.
6. HTTP/HTTPS (HyperText Transfer Protocol/Secure): The protocol used for transferring data between your browser and the server. HTTP sends data in plain text, while HTTPS is the secure version that encrypts data for privacy and security.
7. URLs (Uniform Resource Locators): These are the web addresses you type in your browser to find a specific web page (for example, https://www.example.com). URLs identify and locate resources on the web.
8. DNS (Domain Name System): A system that translates human-friendly domain names (like www.google.com) into IP addresses, which computers use to locate each other on the internet.
9. CSS (Cascading Style Sheets): A language used to style HTML elements, giving web pages their design, layout, and colors.
10. JavaScript: A programming language that adds interactivity to web pages, like animations, forms, and interactive content.

Each component plays a unique role in making the web functional and interactive for users. Together, they enable the browsing experience we have today.