The first version of the Internet began in 1969. In an attempt to create a form of protection for the flow of information between military computers, a new system was underway. ARPAnet was the first network of computers used first by military personnel between the computers which were geographically spread out but needed to exchange information. In order to exchange information in this new manner they developed a new rule for computers to interact, a protocol called Network Control Protocol (NCP).

During the cold war an organization called Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) was created. This branch of the military was in charge of developing top secret weapons and systems for Cold War activities. Charles M. Herzfeld, a former director of ARPA, suggested an differing view of how ARPAnet came about, claiming that it was not the result of a need in the military, but that it was an outgrowth of a frustration that needed to be addressed. There were only a limited number of powerful, large research computers in the U.S. and those who needed access to them were separated by a geographical distance. ARPAnet sought to address this concern.

The system was tested for a data exchange using this new network between the computers at UCLA and those at the Stanford Research Institute. They began by attempting to log in onto a Stanford computer, which was to be accomplished by typing in “log win.” By the time the letter “g” was typed, the UCLA computers crashed.

There wree four original computers connected in the ARPAnet’s original configuration. Each was located in its own research labs, one located in UCLA, a Honeywell DDP 516; another located at the Stanford Research Institute, a SDS-940; an IBM 360/75 located at UC Santa Barbara; and the final one, a DEC PDP-10 located at the University of Utah. As they expanded their network other types of computers were connected which resulted in compatibility issues. In 1982, in order to overcome these problems they developed a new and better set of protocols called “Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol” or simply: TCP/IP. This allowed the computers to send data to each other by breaking it down into packets (IP) which the TCP made sure were delivered to the server and then reassembled correctly.

While the system remained under ARPAnet innovations like email were created as was the first remote connection: telnet; and file transfer protocol (FTP) allowing bulk information to flow directly from one computer to another. However, soon non-military uses for ARPAnet increased to the point that it was no longer a secure military operation. To combat this, the MILnet, a military only network was created in 1983. Soon after, almost all computers were loading Internet Protocol software. Shortly thereafter Local Area Networks (LANs) were invented, local in-house networks, also using Internet Protocol software so that they groups of computers could interact as well as groups of LANs.

By 1986 a new network of LANs formed the National Science Foundation Network, or NSFnet. This new network linked together five supercomputer centers, followed by all the major universities, slowly replacing the ARPAnet. It was NSFnet which eventually became the substructure to what is now commonly called the Internet today.