Technology has revolutionized every industry and taken the world’s future on a different road. This also includes the Internet and the world wide web, which have helped millions of people across the globe.
However, people confuse the terms ‘internet’ and ‘worldwide web’ to be interchangeable. It is true that each of them is related to one other.
However, there are very different.
Key Takeaways
- The Internet is a global network of interconnected devices, whereas the World Wide Web is a collection of web pages and multimedia content accessed via the Internet.
- Internet protocols, such as IP and TCP, form the foundation of the Internet, while the World Wide Web relies on HTTP and other web-specific protocols.
- The Internet encompasses various services like email, file sharing, and online gaming, while the World Wide Web consists solely of websites and web applications.
Internet and World Wide Web
The Internet is a vast network that connects computers all over the world, allowing them to communicate with each other. The World Wide Web, simply termed ‘web,’ is a way of accessing information over the internet, using the HTTP protocol to view web pages that are linked to each other via hyperlinks.
The internet is a large network that is spread globally. It consists of millions of smaller networks connected to each other, which further allows people from different parts of the world to connect and communicate.
The network also allows users to access data and information from a huge collection of public, academic, business, personal, and even government resources.
Meanwhile, the world wide web is only a service that is present on the Internet. It stores large amounts of data and information in the form of documents.
These are connected to each other through hypertext, which ultimately allows users to look up information faster. An example of this is when a person looks up for a word, and all the documents containing that particular word show up.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Internet | World Wide Web |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | It was founded in the late 60s. | It was founded in 1989. |
| Meaning | It is a large global network formed by millions of smaller networks. | It is an information system where data is stored for people to access. |
| Nature | It is an entire infrastructure. | It is a particular service inside an infrastructure. |
| Type | It is hardware-oriented. | It is software oriented. |
| Dependency | It is independent of the world wide web. | It is dependent on the internet. |
| Functioning | It functions using an IP address. | It functions using HTTP. |
| Use | It has various uses in entertainment, education, research, navigation, advertising, and even banking. | It is used for accessing resources throughout the world. |
What is Internet?
The internet was founded sometime in the late 1960s. Essentially, it is a very large system of networks that are spread globally.
This system of networks is made up of other smaller networks that are connected to each other. Through this, different computers that are connected to the network can communicate with each other and share data.
The entire network contains loads of information from public, private, business, academic, and even private resources.
This information can be accessed by any person who connects their computer to the Internet. It can further be used for various purposes in numerous industries.
Some of the uses of the Internet are entertainment, education, research, navigation, advertising, and even banking. Using the internet, these jobs can be done quickly and hassle-free.
The best part about this infrastructure is that it can be accessed from any part of the world at any time. Various devices, including mobile phones, gaming consoles, cellular routers, and even data cards, can support the Internet.
Moreover, all of this is done without using any wires.
Regardless, the internet has influenced the entire world in a huge way. It has been used in almost every industry, from entertainment to education.
What is World Wide Web?
The world wide web is only a service that is available on the Internet. It allows people to look up information at any time from anywhere.
This information is already stored in the system and can be accessed only by connecting to the internet. The service was founded in 1989 and has gained massive popularity since then.
The world wide web can essentially be looked at as a system of information. This information is stored in the form of documents that are linked to each other in the form of networks.
When a person looks for something on the world wide web, the necessary document matches the words used.
For example, if a person enters a particular word in the search bar, all documents containing that word will be shown.
Interestingly, the world wide web has methods through which disabled people can use it without hassle. Not everything on the internet has this facility.
This is done through accessibility features that can be used for various aspects.
Furthermore, the internet is hardware-based. On the other hand, the world wide web is more software-oriented in comparison.
It can be looked at as a subset of the internet.
Main Differences Between Internet and World Wide Web
- The Internet was founded in the late 60s, whereas the world wide web was founded in 1989.
- The Internet is a large global network formed by millions of smaller networks, whereas the world wide web is an information system where data is stored for people to access.
- The Internet is an entire infrastructure, whereas the world wide web is a particular service inside an infrastructure.
- The Internet is hardware-oriented, whereas the world wide web is software oriented.
- The Internet is independent of the world wide web, whereas the world wide web is dependent on the Internet.
- Internet functions use IP addresses, whereas the world wide web functions use HTTP.
- The Internet has various uses in entertainment, education, research, navigation, advertising, and even banking, whereas the world wide web is used for accessing resources throughout the world.
- https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/755618/
- https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=iCMCwXLLdscC&oi=fnd&pg=PA3&dq=internet+&ots=sX3kzw8gAT&sig=u7tX_myCgY1bm1hzHD1kc42FSpo
Last Updated : 13 July, 2023
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Sandeep Bhandari holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Computers from Thapar University (2006). He has 20 years of experience in the technology field. He has a keen interest in various technical fields, including database systems, computer networks, and programming. You can read more about him on his bio page.
The internet has vastly changed the world in a matter of decades. The comparison table is very useful to understand the differences between the Internet and the World Wide Web.
Exactly, the table is very clear to understand the main differences between the two.
Thank you for providing such an in-depth comparison of two very important entities on which the modern world depends.
The internet connects the world and the world wide web connects the information. Two different concepts, one common confusion.
A good point. The difference should be clear by now, but it is still an issue for many people.
It is interesting to see how much the world depends on this idea of the internet. It has changed everything and changed so much in such a short period.
It is interesting the point that the World Wide Web has been adapted to assist disabled people. Such a important info.
It’s crazy to think how much the internet has made the world so much smaller and interconnected.
I cannot believe people still confuse the terms ‘internet’ and ‘worldwide web’. It is almost like talking about two different worlds.
I know, the difference is massive. It is intriguing how it is still not clear for some people.
It is very surprising indeed. The information provided in this article should clarify any doubts.
The clear explanation and detailed comparison are perfect for clearing up the misunderstandings that most people have about these two concepts.
The article effectively outlines the differences between the two, but it is astonishing how people still confuse them.
I completely agree, it is very important to make the differences as clear as possible.