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Last Updated: Thursday, 23 August 2007, 08:20 GMT 09:20 UK

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Timeline: The history of the internet

14 January, 1969

First network connection links The University of California Los Angeles and The Stanford Research Institute
Arpanet was created by the US Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Darpa. The first connection on 14th January 1969 was between The University of California Los Angeles and The Stanford Research Institute. By the end of the year connections had also been added to The University of California Santa Barbara and the University of Utah.

25 July, 1973

The first international network connection links the US with University College London
University College London is linked into Arpanet.

1973

Language to communicate between networks in development
TCPIP or Transmission Control Protocol and the Internet Protocol was developed by Robert Kahn and Vinton Cerf at Arpanet. In the 1980s it was to become the common 'language' of the internet.

1973

users connected to Arpanet the earliest network

December, 1975

Network language tested in a linkup between networks at Stanford and University College London
In 1975 the new TCPIP protocols were tested in a twonetwork link up between Stanford University and University College London.

November, 1977

Tests using network language continue with a threenetwork linkup
TCPIP is tested with a linkup between three networks in the USA UK and Norway.

May, 1981

More networks appear from companies such as IBM. Rival network languages appear
Bitnet introduced a generation of students to the power of networking. It used IBM RSCS protocols an alternative to TCPIP to connect the City University New York and Yale University in May 1981. At its peak Bitnet linked over a thousand organisations in 49 countries.

July, 1981

The National Science Foundation launches its own network for US universities
Most universities had no connection with the US Department of Defense and so could not access Arpanet. As the advantages of computer networking became clear universities built a network to link nonArpanet institutions. CSNET initially linked the University of Delaware Purdue University the University of Wisconsin the Rand Corporation and BBN.

December, 1981

users connected to Arpanet

December, 1982

Arpanet only accepts traffic using TCPIP network language by the end of 1982
There were a number of rival network languages in the early 1980s. TCPIP eventually emerged as the common standard. A key moment was the conversion of Arpanet to TCPIP in 1982.

July, 1986

NSF launches NSFNET a network of networks. It is the earliest version of the internet
Following on from CSNET the US National Science Foundation created a network to link existing supercomputer networks. The new NSFNET could send data at 56 kilobits per second kbps and connected supercomputing centres at Princeton University the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center the University of Californian at San Diego University of Illinois and Cornell University.

December, 1986

TCPIP network language becoming increasingly common in the US
By the end of 1986 Bitnet had converted to TCPIP protocols. All US networks were beginning to 'speak' a common language

December, 1986

users connected to the early internet

September, 1987

More networks coalesce as the early internet continues to grow
The NSF funded regional networks to link into the NSFNET backbone. The first was MIDnet operating in the central states of the USA. It was soon followed by SURAnet operating in the southern states and NYSERnet operating in New York State. More regional networks were added later.

November, 1987

Early internet upgraded from 56kbps to 1.544Mbps
The NSFNET upgraded to 1.544 Mbps T1 standard in November 1987. The upgrade marked the point at which the internet became powerful enough to attract commercial investors.

December, 1988

Early internet goes international
By the end of 1988 NFSNET connections had been added in Canada Denmark France Ireland Norway and Sweden.

June, 1990

Arpanet decommissioned
By 1990 NFSNET and its local networks had taken the place of Arpanet. The architecture of the internet had grown to the point that when Arpanet was switched off network staff alone were aware of the fact.

1990

users connected to the internet

6 August, 1991

World Wide Web released by Cern
Tim BernersLee introduces the world wide web project to the world. It used hypertext to link between documents. Hypertext made it easier for users to share detrmation.

December, 1991

users connected to the internet

June, 1992

Internet upgrades to 45 Mbps

22 September, 1992

European internet backbone goes online
Ebone a panEuropean internet backbone was the European equivalent of NSFNET and also used the TCPIP protocols.

22 April, 1993

Mosaic web browser for Windows released
Mosaic was the first graphical web browser to run on the Windows operating system. It offered the general public a userfriendly interface for navigating the internet.