From its humble beginnings in a computer lab to the globe-spanning juggernaut we know today, the Internet has had a significant impact on nearly every aspect of human existence. Nobody can list every contributor to the growth of the Internet, but we'd like to thank a few individuals who played significant roles in getting the network up and running, and into usable condition.
Following that, we include several links to other web resources, including a couple from the source: UCLA. We hope you enjoy reliving this very cool moment in history with us.
Here is the totally incomplete list of individuals that we'd like to thank:
Architects:
Professor Leonard Kleinrock
Led the team at UCLA to connect two BBN Interface Message Processors and initiate electronic communications between them.
Click here to read Professor Kleinrock's version of how it began.
(from cs.UCLA.edu)
Vinton Cerf
With Bob Kahn, Vint developed the Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol suite that enables the vast array of tools and entertainment that we use every day to move through the network.
Click here to read about how Vint and Bob made it happen.
(from LivingInternet.com)
Jon B. Postel
The pioneering Editor of the Request for Comment document management system used for pretty much every Internet technology development project, and the creator and manager of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, which organized and managed the identities of the computers that connected to the Internet, including the "IP address" system.
Click here for the definitive remembrance of Mr. Postel.
(from Postel.org)
Application Developers:
Ray Tomlinson
Built on and extended existing electronic mail programming to prepare it for use on the Internet, and introduced the current addressing format that we all use, with the "@" symbol.
Sir Tim Berners-Lee
Developed the HTML subset of previous language specifications and described how documents could be interpreted by various "browser" programs within his new "World Wide Web"; a system for publishing documents using the Internet.
Mark Andreeson
Extended and reworked existing "browser" programming to create the HTML-specific Mosaic "web browser", optimized for use on the WWW.
Links to Anniversary Celebrations and Information:
UCLA : Archives of various live video streams from their celebration
UCLA : Press Release about their celebration
UCLA/LK : The IMP Log showing the first host-to-host communication
AFP/Google News : Article about Len Kleinrock with more links
National Geographic : Nice little 3-minute video and transcript
ISOC-LA News