How Internet Data Transmission Works

The internet began as a government funded initiative whose ultimate goal was to link together military computers over long distances. After the government succeeded in its task of creating the first network, ARPANET, the technology eventually made its way to universities and big businesses and then down to the everyday consumer, providing limitless knowledge access. Today's internet uses a variety of hardware (the physical personal computer, for example) and layers of software that guide the transmission of data. The basic guiding standards behind the internet are known as TCP/IP, which stands for Transmission Control Protocol and Internet Protocol. These protocols, combined with the unique address identifiers given out by ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, make up the basis of the internet. It is important to note that without unique addresses given by ICANN, there is no way for the internet to route traffic because it does not know where to send the material. This is quite similar to the way a house address allows a postmaster to deliver mail.

To demonstrate how it is the internet actually allows the sending and receiving of data, we will follow a picture as it is sent from its point of origin (a personal computer) to its destination (another personal computer one hundred miles away). To start, when the picture has been digitally rendered and properly addressed with a destination IP address, the personal computer will break the picture down into smaller, more manageable "packets" of information. These packets contain the original data to be sent but each packet contains only a fraction of the overall information. It is the TCP portion of TCP/IP that describes how a computer should break down the information. When the packets are ready to go, the IP portion takes over and describes how to route the various packets through cyberspace to their destination. It is interesting to note that as the packets are sent out, they will not all follow the same route but they will converge at their destination to be reassembled through TCP, completing the transmission. Packets are dynamically routed and rerouted to account for disturbances in portions of the web which contributes to the overall robustness of the internet.

The internet has opened up the world to free knowledge and it now plays a pivotal role in everyday life from personal entertainment to business tasks. The internet is not without its drawbacks, though, and just as something can be used for the great benefit of mankind, it can also be exploited by those interested in personal gain. For example, identity theft has become a major issue as people can easily deceive one and other behind the veil of anonymity that the internet provides. Also, with a little technical knowledge, a person can disrupt the flow of information which can prove devastating for entities such as corporations who now rely heavily on the internet and its infrastructure for their day to day operations. As the internet continues to evolve and adapt to current situations we will see nuances such as these begin to phase out while new problems arise.