The World Wide Web (WWW), known as “the web”, was developed in the 1990s by Tim Berners-Lee. Originally designed for the exchange of information between scientists, it is now a global information system.
Using standards such as HTTP and HTTPS, it enables access to extensive Internet information. Access requires an internet-enabled computer or device with a web browser, URLs serve as unique web page addresses. The foundations of the WWW, including HTML and HTTP, were developed and later published by Tim Berners-Lee at CERN in 1989. It is important to emphasize that the World Wide Web and the Internet are different concepts. Decentralization and accessibility are fundamental principles of the WWW, which enables active interaction through hyperlinks. Technologies such as HTTP, HTML and URLs form the basic framework. The development of the WWW took place in various phases, from the static Web 1.0 to the dynamic Web 2.0. Future developments, such as the intelligent and decentralized Web 3.0, are imminent.
The WWW offers applications such as information research, communication, online shopping and entertainment. Search engines such as Google make it easier to search for information. Tim Berners-Lee is striving for an improved vision of the Internet that is accessible to all, privacy-oriented and free of misinformation. The future of the WWW depends on cooperative efforts to seize opportunities and overcome challenges.