LitMasters

A Twentieth Century Gift

By : Namratha M S

Born as a humble counting machine
The age old computers were elephantine

Charles Babbage is considered the father of computer
And Lady Ada love Lace the first lady programmer

Advancements in computing today has no bounds
It definitely leaves every individual spellbound

Computers today mimic human intelligence
And have become an integral part of our existence

Internet is a large network of such machines
Allowing communication at speeds hard to imagine

Packet switching networks like ARPANet heralded the advent of Internet
Which now like a giant spider web has connected our entire planet

Bedrock of Internet is the TCP/IP Internet protocol suite
Modularity within layers is its prime attribute

Every host on the net has a 32 bit IPv4 address
The shortcomings of which, 128 bit IPv6 will redress

ATM , IP ,TCP & HTTP are protocols that operate at different layers
Building context on top of one another like a bricklayer

Together these protocols get the message across to the destination
Thereby aiding in quick information dissemination

World Wide Web, a brain child of Tim Berners Lee
Has brought wealth of benefits to the masses almost for free

Internet holds a treasure trove of information
Available to everyone without any discrimination

Email , Blogs and Social networks are few Internet applications
Which have connected people and reduced distances between nations

Internet is clearly a 20th century gift
Which triggered a world wide economic shift

Internet today is controlled by none
yet it is being shaped by everyone

The latest internet buzz word has been cloud
Would its impact on the world be profound ???