What is the Web?
The Web (abbreviated as WWW or World Wide Web) is a large library of information that can be searched and accessed anywhere in the world. It consists of millions of interconnected documents (called pages) that you can read using a piece of software called a Web browser. You are probably using a Web browser now, either on your computer or a mobile device such as a smartphone or tablet.
The three key innovations that form the Web are HTTP (hypertext transfer protocol); URLs (universal resource locators, originally referred to as URIs); and HTML (hypertext markup language). The first two allow computers to connect to each other by giving each document a unique address, which is like a street name or telephone number. The last allows for the creation of links that link one document to another. These are what give the Web its library structure and enable it to be navigated by clicking on links from one document to another.
Unlike previous hypertext systems, the Web's links are unidirectional (rather than bidirectional), which simplifies the technical implementation of the system by requiring that only one machine be involved in the linking process. These features, combined with a host of other smaller innovations, make the Web a global, open communication system unlike any other.
Tim Berners-Lee designed the first Web server and Web browser on a NeXT computer in October and December of 1990, at CERN, which is part of the European Organization for Nuclear Research. He also developed the HTML markup language, enabling him to create and view the first Web page in April of 1991. The Web was not publicly released until March 12, 1993.
The early Web grew rapidly, spurring competition in server and browser software (known as the Browser Wars) that eventually led to the emergence of Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer. These factors, along with commercialization of the Internet amidst macroeconomic factors, helped fuel the dot-com boom and bust of the late 1990s and early 2000s.
For the first decade or so of الوبت, most sites simply served up information for people to read. This is known as the read-only Web or Web 1.0. In 2004, the Web began to move into a new phase, characterized by social networking and other user-generated content. This is sometimes referred to as the "Write-Read-Edit" or "Web 2.0."
Tim's dream was for the Web to allow people not just to read and share, but to also write and publish. The ability to do this was made possible by the development of blogging tools, social networks such as Facebook, and other online publishing platforms. The current phase of the Web is often referred to as the "Write-Edit-Publish" or "Web 3.0." The next phase will likely focus on improving personalization and security.