The purpose of the Web is to allow users the ability to communicate with others all over the world. The Web was launched in1989 as an experiment by the Department of Defense to come up with something that would enable secure communications between various military units. However, once this technology was out, there was no stopping it. It has become a huge part of many people’s lives; enabling them to communicate, work, and play in a global context. The Web has made relationships possible between individuals, groups, and communities where they wouldn’t have been otherwise. This Web is a community without borders, limits, or even rules; and has become a true world of its own. The Web is so fluid, we never know what we’re going to find. Originally, the Web was created to be part of a military strategy, not for private use to find out about the world by surfing sites, checking email, instant-messenging. As in many experiments, theories, and plans, this didn’t actually happen.
The Web has made people realize that communicating just by phone or mail is going to be a dinosaur. Nowadays, we think nothing of emailing our aunts in Germany (and getting an answer back within minutes), or seeing the latest streaming video full of up to the minute news. The Internet and the Web have revolutionized the way we communicate; not only with individuals, but with the world as well. Could you imagine your life without the Web? No email, access to breaking news, up to the minute weather reports, shopping online, etc.? We have grown to be dependent on this technology as it has transformed the way that we conduct our lives. The Web is a continual, ongoing process. It has never stopped replicating itself or progressing since the day it began, and it probably will keep evolving as long as people are around to keep developing it.
The growth of the Web has been explosive, to say the least. Google, a popular search engine, indexes over 8 billion pages at this point in time. More people use the Web to shop than at any other time in history. And online retailers have seen tremendous jumps in their online earning potential. This rapid growth and development of the Web is the result of many innovative advances in technology. Approximately 605 million people have access to the Web. For a technology that has already united so many people it has the potential to unite so many more. We’ve come a long ways from regular mail. We’re able to be more flexible and have more options available to us. With literally millions of sites on the Web, no real governance, and more sites popping up all the time, added to the fact that Web technology has become more intrinsically woven into our lives every day, the Web is its own organism.