Centrex1

Introduction

The internet was originally conceived for the U.S. military as a means of allowing a community of computers to share information over distance. It's generally accepted that its later development was spurred on as much for research purposes as for military applications.

The body in charge of setting up the network was the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA). In 1967, ARPA enlisted the help of the Stanford Research Institute in Menlo Park, Calif., to design the system. Within a year, Stanford researchers had designed a framework, which ARPA contracted out for implementation.

The first two nodes were installed at UCLA and Stanford Research Institute in August of 1969, but it wasn't until two months later that the machines made first contact.

On October 29, 1969, at 10:30 p.m., UCLA engineering professor Leonard Kleinrock and student Charley Kline attempted to send a message from one Honeywell computer to a similar unit 600 kilometres away at Stanford Research Institute in Palo Alto. The connection speed was 50 kb/s.

The first message was supposed to be the word "login," but the system crashed as they typed in the letter "g." The first message, then, was "lo." Although it was a bumpy – if not prophetic – beginning, the researchers were able to complete the message one hour later.

And so the ARPANET (the term internet was not coined until 1982) was born.

Shopping Online

From the number of television advertisements for Internet shopping sites today, we all know that shopping is becoming a strong enterprise on the Internet. By selling items over the Internet, companies can save money on employing shop assistants, buying shops and land, administration costs and a many other things. The advantage for us - the shoppers - is that the shops then sell their goods at lower prices and are able to buy many more of the 'embarrassing' items without being starred at in a busy shopping centre.

However, because it is cheaper to run Internet sites, and less staff are needed, the workforce suffers. If a company went into complete Net integration, hundreds of jobs would be lost because a small team of people can run an Internet site. Another bad factor is that people will not leave their homes to go out shopping, so they will not socialise in or around shops, get needed exercise, or help their local economy. Many shopping sites are international so their profits may not be going into your country's economy at all.

Working from Home

The workplace is becoming increasingly stressful for many people, with longer hours, polluted air in big cities, and so on. The Internet offers an alternative. Some businesses are starting to allow their employees to work at home for two to four days a week, sending their work in via e-mail or a direct connection to their company's Intranet. Working from home has many advantages:

• You can take short breaks for snacks and relaxation
• You don't need to pay for childcare
• You save money on fuel by avoiding driving to work every day
• You can start when you like - early or late

However, this system only works for computer-oriented jobs and it can also result in people not doing the work at all and just staying at home and watching TV, and even increasing their stress by leaving work until the last minute.

Freedom of Speech

The Internet allows anyone who may not have the courage, or in whose locale it may not be acceptable, to reach out to others with their beliefs and ideas. This means that people who have a certain view can promote it without being worried about others laughing or holding prejudice against them: the Net provides places where they can find other people who agree with them. The only adverse effect is that beliefs that are illegal or socially unacceptable such as child pornography, neo-Nazism, racism, etc, can be broadcast through the Net with little or no censorship.

Conclusion

The Internet is here to stay, and it's really up to us how it affects society. It has allowed people from all over the world to express their ideas, communicate and have fun. It has allowed minority groups much more power than they have in real life. There are many changes to society because of the Internet; whether they enhance or ruin our life is up to us.