BUILDING FOR THE WEB - INTRODUCTION

BUILDING FOR THE WEB - INTRODUCTION

Welcome back to this full stack development bootcamp, in our previous lessons we discussed full stack development in detail, requirements, roles and responsibilities of a full stack developer. 

In today's class we will be discussing building for the web which will consist of some very important concepts. This is a very important part of being a developer because you are expected to “build for the web” in your career. 

Let me give you an example with a builder, when you want to build a house, you have to be aware of the materials required, how much they cost and how to combine these elements to construct a house. This also applies to being a developer generally whether front-end or  back-end.

TOPICS

We are going to be looking at some very important concepts in this article:

1. What is the Internet?
2. What are Packets and how do they transfer data?
3. What is the difference between a  webpage, web server, web browser and search engine
4. What is a client?
5. What is a server?
6. What is an IP address?
7. What is a DNS server?
8. Difference between the web and the internet

Please note that it is important to take notes and observe carefully as a lot of technical concepts will be explained in this particular article.

WHAT IS THE INTERNET - HOW THE WEB WORKS

We have always been told that the internet is a global connection or network of computers that allow for sharing of resources worldwide through the computers. This definition is very accurate but lacks technicality, and since you are on track to become a developer you should understand how it literally works.

The connections of computers that make up the internet are made up of fiber-optic cables that are laid below the sea or underground across cities, special computers called servers are connected directly to this fiber optic wires and because of this connection the computers can communicate and share data. Webpages are files that are stored on that server's hard drive; you should bear in mind that a website is a collection of web pages.

Every server has an internet protocol address or an IP address, just like our houses have addresses, this address enables the resources to be found when searched on a web browser like when you search on websites. 

Example of an IP address : 72.14.205.100

To read more on IP addresses check this website “https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions/How_does_the_Internet_work”

The problem with IP addresses is that they are difficult to pronounce and remember so they are given domain names like : google.com, twitter.com, facebook.com etc. This simply means that behind every web address we know there is a real IP address that consists of numbers which computers understand.

The computers you and I use everyday are called “clients” ; they are smaller and less powerful than server computers that were earlier mentioned. The main difference between the clients we use everyday is that servers are connected directly to the internet fiber-optic cables underground, our client computers are connected to the servers by our internet service providers like MTN, Airtel, AT&T and so much more.Now let's say you want to send information to someone else like an email or picture over the internet, computers break these pieces of data into packets.

Packets are smaller segments of a large piece of data or message, these data packets are then reassembled at their final destination into information that can be understood.

Let me explain further with a regular example, when you want to travel or relocate not all items in your phone may fit into a transportation truck. Items like furniture can be dismantled and reassembled upon delivery, this is exactly how data packets work.

IP addresses are very important and every device that is connected to the internet has an IP address, every single one.

Now one may ask, if the internet is a global connection then information may get mixed up and sent to the wrong receivers with the number of people on the planet. The answer is no and this is made possible because of routers. Routers are simply special computers that have the ability to redirect data to the correct destination, with routers connections between client computers and the internet are more precise and secure, in the world today there are about a billion routers in use.

WHAT IS A WEB PAGE

A document can be displayed in a web browser such as chrome or firefox, these documents are called web pages. Please refer to "https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Learn/Common_questions/Pages_sites_servers_and_search_engines" for more information.

WHAT IS A WEBSITE?

A website is a collection of webpages under a single domain name, it is usually produced by a single person for an organization or establishment.

Examples : facebook.com, twitter.com

WHAT IS A WEB BROWSER?

A web browser also popularly referred to as an internet browser is a software application for accessing the world wide web. 

Examples: Chrome, firefox, safari etc.

WHAT IS A WEB SERVER?

A web server is a special computer that hosts a website on the internet.

Examples : Amazon web services, Microsoft Azure

WHAT IS A SEARCH ENGINE

A search engine is a web service that helps you find other webpages like google, bing, yahoo or DuckDuckGo. They are accessed through a web browser like chrome.

Now there are usually a lot of confusions with the differences between all these terms but reading this should make you understand properly.

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE INTERNET AND THE WEB

The internet is a connection infrastructure between computers whereas the web is a service built on the internet infrastructure. It is important to note that there are other services built on the internet like email and IRC, refer to learn more about the IRC.

WHAT IS A DNS

DNS stands for domain name system, it is an important part of the internet we all overlook. Basically the DNS is what translates the IP address from the digits to the domain name addresses we know.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU RUN A SEARCH ON GOOGLE

First of all your web browser (chrome) grants you access to search engine (google) whatever url (uniform resources locator) or domain name you search is then interpreted by the DNS to the internet and then your resource can be brought from the web server through a website, it is important to note that a website is a collection of web pages under a single domain name.

I hope this article has given you a good and technical look into how the internet works, it is important to check all the resources linked in the article and read more on topics.