What is the Internet?

The Internet (also called “the Net”) is a very large, decentralized network of computers and computer networks communicating with one another. This means that a document stored on a computer in California can be read on a computer in New York.

No person or organization owns the Internet and anyone with a computer and an Internet Service Provider (ISP) can access and put information onto the Internet. Begun as a project of the National Science Foundation and the Department of Defense, the Internet now has hundreds of millions of users around the world.

One component of the Internet is the World Wide Web. What makes the Web unique is that it can be used with graphics, sounds, and video in addition to text.

The Web is made up of electronic files called Web site that contain Web pages that hold text and multimedia information. These files live on computers connected to the Internet.