1. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 1 Creativity and Coincidence: CERN, the Web and the Internet Ben Segal / CERN, Geneva b.segal@cern.ch Originally delivered at the: 3rd International Festival of Science, Gothenburg, May 2-9, 1999

2. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 2 Creativity and Coincidence Speed of Change Computer & Network Standards Some Prehistory & Coincidences Some Ancient History Inside CERN Some Paradoxes Some Accidents Birth of the Web Recommended Reading

3. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 3 Speed of Change 3 YEARS = 1 GENERATION... so: 30 years ago is PREHISTORIC 20 years ago is ANCIENT HISTORY 15 years ago is START OF CIVILIZATION And the process is ACCELERATING: the generation time used to be around 5 years but will soon be closer to 2 years !

4. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 4 Computer Standards 20-30 years ago we had: USER CHAOS and: PROPRIETARY PARADISE Many Companies (+ own Operating Systems): IBM, DEC, CDC, Cray, HP, GE, DG, Burroughs, Univac, Norsk Data, ICL, Bull, GEC, etc.... Only 15 years ago: The UNIX Operating System just began to appear from the research environment...... and the UNIX vs Proprietary Operating System battles began.

5. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 5 Network Standards 20-30 years ago we had: USER CHAOS and: PROPRIETARY PARADISE Many Network Standards: Each company had (at least) one ! CERN had its own ("CERNET"). ARPANET was very little known. Only 15 years ago: TCP/IP (Internet Protocols) just began to appear from the research environment…... and the ISO/OSI Protocol Wars began.

6. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 6 Some Prehistory (& Coincidences) 1968: "Packet Switching" invented simultaneously in the UK, France and USA. 1969: "ARPANET" (1st Packet Switched Network) and "UNIX" (first open source Operating System) invented simultaneously in the USA...... but did not come together for ten more years...

7. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 7 Some Ancient History 1970: "Email" invented (Ray Tomlinson) ==> LISTS and GROUPS: + with "RFC's" (1969) created the DYNAMIC DESIGN STYLE of the Internet. 1974: Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn: first paper on "TCP/IP". 1978: UUCP added to UNIX ==> "USENET" worldwide email & news network. 1979: UNIX and ARPANET combined, leading to rapid spread of UUCP and Internet Protocols on WAN's and LAN's!

8. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 8 Inside CERN The Political Order: PHYSICS ACCELERATORS THE REST (includes computing) Order in Computing (1985-95): BIG MAINFRAMES (IBM, etc) BIG HARDWARE (Tape robots, etc) THE REST (includes desktop, networking, etc) Order in Networking (1980's): EXTERNAL (ISO-X.25, DECnet, SNA) INTERNAL (CERNET, Ethernet) TCP/IP: "special" + illegal outside!

9. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 9 Some Paradoxes A very hard problem… To connect heterogeneous INFORMATION on heterogeneous COMPUTERS via heterogeneous NETWORKS all over the world......was solved by a: Small, Non-official, Open approach, by a team with: "No Resources"

10. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 10 More Paradoxes CERN created the Web: but from its weakest part and using "underground" resources. Probably a good thing: Had to be kept Simple and: Had to use outside resources (so went faster)

11. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 11 Some Accidents RPC Project@CERN (from 1984): Tim Berners-Lee ("TBL") learned the tools he needed to solve a difficult heterogeneous networking problem. NeXT Project@CERN (from 1987): TBL in 1989 was able to use "NeXT Step" to prototype WWW in just 3 months ! (The NeXT was "unauthorized" at CERN...) Cisco@CERN (from 1987): This "nonstandard" IP router was used to increase security of a Cray supercomputer. Visiting CERN, D. Karrenberg of EUNet learned that a Cisco could run IP over X.25 This led to the European IP network, which TBL could use at CERN from 1989.

12. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 12 Birth of the Web What is WWW?: "HTML": Hypertext Markup Language "HTTP": Hypertext Transport Protocol "URL": Uniform Resource Locator + a Client ("Browser") and a Server. ALL INVENTED AND PROTOTYPED by Tim Berners-Lee (1989-91). 1993: Mosaic browser written at NCSA, USA: causes "explosion" on the Internet - but for two years "the Web" is called "Mosaic"! 1995: Tim B-L leaves CERN: Founds W3C to guide the worldwide development of Web technologies.

13. Ben M. Segal / CERN: Linkoping University, Sweden. October 24, 2001 13 Recommended Reading Published 1999: "WEAVING THE WEB" Tim Berners-Lee. (Orion Business Books) The Past, Present and Future of the World Wide Web by its Inventor. Published 2000: "HOW THE WEB WAS BORN" James Gillies / Robert Cailliau. (Oxford University Press) History of the Internet, History of CERN, and the Politics and the People behind the WWW.