subject: Basics Of The Word Wide Web [print this page] World Wide Web World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a worldwide information service delivered via Internet. The World Wide Web or the Web, as it is popularly called, uses a Browser (i.e. the client), TCP/IP (i.e. the language of networks), and HTTP the natural language of and a Web Server to function smoothly.
TCP/IP is the natural communication protocol used by the Internet. It is a must for the World Wide Web to function.
HyperText Transfer Protocol or HTTP is the protocol used by the WWW service to make communication possible between a Web Server and a Web Browser.
A Web Server is special software, which runs on a computer and responds to requests made by other computers on the network. A Web Browser is simply an application program, which sends a request to a Web Server and accepts its response to that request.
FTP
File Transfer Protocol or FTP is not just a protocol but also a service and an application. FTP is especially useful for transferring files between different computers. FTP provides the facility to transfer files between two computers running different operating systems such as UNIX, MS-DOS and Windows.
FTP As An Application
For two computers to actually make use of the FTP service, both computers require special application software, which understands this service. FTP is an application for copying files. A client application can be run on the local computer to contact the FTP server application on the remote computer. Depending upon what the user wants to do, instructions can be given to the client application, which works with the server application to execute those instructions.
CuteFTP and Filezilla are two very popular FTP applications, which provide excellent user interfaces and a wide range of FTP commands and functions.
CuteFTP and Filezilla permit users to log onto a remote computer offering the FTP service, upload or download files between the client computer and the remote computer, perform various operations on the files such as delete, rename, change file permissions, and so on and finally logout from the remote computer when done.
FTP As A Service
FTP is a service for copying files from one computer to another. A connection can be made from one computer (client) to another computer (server) offering this service and files can be sent or received.
FTP As a Protocol
FTP is a protocol for copying files between two computers. The client and the server applications both use it for communication to ensure that the new copy of the file is identical to the original.
TELNET
Telnet is both a TCP/IP application and a protocol for connecting a local computer to a remote computer. The Telnet application acts as a terminal emulator. Whatever commands are typed into the local computer are sent across the network and executed at the remote computer.
To use Telnet, the Telnet application must be given the IP address of the computer to connect to. Once the connection is established with the remote computer, a username and a password must be supplied to access the resources of the remote computer.
In Conclusion
The Internet is a worldwide collection of interconnected computer networks that use TCP/IP and its related services. TCP/IP provides the flexibility to add new protocols and services to the already existing ones.
This led to the advent of protocols such as Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP) and its associated World Wide Web (WWW) service, the File Transfer Protocol (FTP) and its associated FTP services, and so on. The Internet gained popularity primarily due to the advent of the World Wide Web or the Web, as it is popularly known.
Once the Internet's addressing system is understood it is quite simple to link to an Internet Server anywhere on the Internet. Once linked to the appropriate Internet Server, a Client can access all that the Server has to offer with complete freedom.
The Internet really is a rich resource for information and data. Never ending, always changing and completely dynamic.
