Computer history | A web of linked documents

The World Wide Web makes information linkable

The Internet connects networks and computers. The World Wide Web is a system for sharing linked resources over that network. In 1989, Tim Berners-Lee proposed a way for researchers to link documents; the first website and browser followed at CERN. The web's open standards helped it grow into a global publishing and application platform.

Period: 1989 onwardTopic: The World Wide Web

A proposal for sharing research

At CERN, scientists and engineers worked across institutions and needed ways to organize and access information. Berners-Lee proposed a system based on hypertext: documents could contain links to other documents, and a user could follow those links rather than navigating a fixed hierarchy.

The design combined several pieces. A URL identifies a resource, HTTP describes how a client requests resources from a server, and HTML marks up the structure and links in a document. A browser displays the result, while web servers provide documents and other data.

The Web and the Internet are different

The Internet is the underlying system of interconnected networks and protocols that moves data between devices. The Web is one service built on top of it. Email, file transfer, and other systems can use the Internet without being web pages. This distinction helps explain why web technologies can evolve while the Internet remains a broader communications infrastructure.

Open standards and rapid growth

In 1993, CERN made the Web software available without royalties, helping others build servers and browsers. The Mosaic browser and later commercial browsers made the Web easier for more people to use. As organizations and individuals published pages, hyperlinks connected information across institutions and countries.

The Web expanded beyond static documents. JavaScript enabled richer interactions in browsers, CSS gave authors control over visual presentation, and server-side software connected pages to databases and applications. Today, web services support commerce, communication, education, entertainment, and public services.

New capabilities, continuing responsibilities

The Web's reach brings challenges: accessibility, privacy, security, misinformation, and control over online platforms. Open standards allow different systems to interoperate, but the quality of a web experience still depends on design, governance, and responsible software development.