The Internet was born in 1968 when the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), of the U.S. Department of Defense, began funding a research project to develop a decentralized computer network (ARPANET) for military computer security. The goal was to provide a means for diverse users in remote locations to share common computer resources. By 1969, four host computers were connected, but by the 1980's the network had expanded to support hundreds of hosts spanning the globe.

While its initial purpose was military computer security, the technology was quickly valued as a means to provide common data and resources to academic researchers and commercial contractors — initially those involved in contracted research and manufacturing with the Department of Defense. Known as MILNET, the military defense counterpart separated from ARPANET as an independent entity.

Important beyond the Internet itself, are its vital components:

• e-mail and
• the World Wide Web.

The invention of electronic mail, more commonly referred to as e-mail, came in 1971, and in 1983, we saw the development of the World Wide Web.

Today, our existing Internet is comprised of more than 100,000 commercial, academic and government computer networks based in over 100 countries. More than 170 million people in over 150 countries access the Internet.

The World Wide Web and e-mail are, by far, the most significant and widely used components of the Internet. Other major components of the Internet include mailing lists, newsgroups and chat.

In one broadband or dial-up connection, the World Wide Web provides point and click interface to the largest collection of online information in the world, and the amount of information is increasing at a staggering rate. "The Web" has dramatically changed the manner in which information is organized, presented and accessed. The Web is rapidly becoming a multimedia delivery system.

Web sites and pages are developed for many purposes. Businesses are being forced to rethink their strategies, and many are faced with extinction if they fail to establish an effective Internet presence on the Web.

Electronic mail has revolutionized communication. E-mail provides speed, convenience and cost advantages compared to other forms of communicating at a distance. Messages can be sent almost instanteously at any time of the day or night. The recipient has a written message that can be responded to at any convenient time. Once an Internet service provider is paid for a connection to the Internet, there is no charge for sending and receiving e-mail.

Mailing Lists are discussion groups that use e-mail to communicate. There are more than 10,000 mailing lists, each relating to a specific subject. Subscribers to a mailing list may post messages that are automatically sent to all other subscribers.

Newsgroups, also known as Internet discussion groups, are message boards on the Internet, and newsgroups, some of which are moderated, number in excess of 50,000. Newsgroups are organized into topical hierarchies with main topic categories including:

• alt (general interest),
• biz (business),
• comp (computer),
• rec (recreation and hobbies),
• sci (science),
• soc (social, culture and politics),
• misc (miscellaneous) and
• talk (debate).

The topics are further narrowed by additional words following the main topic category.

Chat enables you to converse with one or more people anywhere in the world by typing back and forth. The Internet is famous for chat rooms--places where people meet and discuss topics of any nature. With the emerging availability of web cam technology and the Flash Communications Server, it is highly likely that video chat and web conferencing will become the next iteration of this technology.

There are many types of Web sites, but, for simplicity, most Web sites may be classified as one of the following types:

• business,

• organizational,

• government, or

• personal

Business Web Sites

ebusiness refers to the utilization of a Web site in conducting business. Its potential purposes include but are not limited to:

• eCommerce
• advertising,
• collecting information,
• enhancing a corporate image,
• customer relations and
• communicating with customers, suppliers and/or employees.

eCommerce involves a Web site with financial transactions, such as "shopping cart" technology. See References for some insightful publications on starting an e-business:

Organizational Web Sites

A wide variety of non-business organizations may benefit greatly from a Web site. Examples are non-profit organizations, religious institutions, environmental groups, trade associations, recreation centers, health societies, and clubs. Many of the purposes and considerations applicable to business Web sites also apply to organizational Web sites.

Government Web Sites

Numerous government agencies have a Web site. Many provide vast information resources, often with forms and publications available for download.

Personal Web Sites

There is a virtually unlimited list of possible uses for personal Web sites. Examples are described in the following brief scenarios:

• A hobbyist may display a collection to solicit comments, trade, sale or purchase from others with similar interest.

• A genealogist may present an evolving family tree, openly seek out potential relatives and invite known relatives to contribute family history data.

• A traveler may display photographs and narratives of interesting trips for family and friends, thereby sharing virtual photo albums when in-person sharing might be impossible due to the scattered phyical locations of those accessing the site.

The following recent books are insightful guides to starting an e-business:

Bennet P. Lientz and Kathryn P. Rea, Start Right in E-Business, Academic Press, San Diego, 2001

Peter Weill and Michael R. Vitale, Place to Space: Migrating to eBusiness Models, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, 2001

Michel Robert and Bernard Recine, e-Strategy Pure & Simple, McGraw Hill, New York, 2001

Amri Hartman & John Sifonis, Net Ready: Strategies for Success in the E-conomy, McGraw Hill, New York, 2000

Patricia Seybold, customers.com, Crown Business, New York, New York, 1998

See Domain Names to determine the availability of any web address in which you are interested.