Cambridge O Level Computer Science · Syllabus 2210 · The Internet and its Uses
World Wide Web
What is World Wide Web?
The world wide web is the collection of websites and web pages, stored on web servers and linked by hyperlinks, that is accessed over the internet using a web browser; it is one service that uses the internet rather than the internet itself.
This definition is part of the The Internet and its Uses chapter in Cambridge O Level Computer Science.
World Wide Web in context
The internet is the worldwide infrastructure of interconnected networks. The world wide web is the collection of websites and web pages that is accessed using that infrastructure. When you type a URL, the browser separates out the domain name, asks the domain name server (DNS) to turn it into an IP address, sends an HTTP or HTTPS request to the web server at that address, receives HTML and other resources back, and renders the page on your screen. Along the way the browser may store cookies. The same infrastructure carries digital currency transactions, which a blockchain records as time-stamped, hash-linked blocks so that a change to an old record is detectable. And because everything above is reachable from anywhere, Topic 5 finishes with the cyber security threats that exploit it and the layered solutions that reduce them.
The internet is the infrastructure: the worldwide network of interconnected computer networks, made up of the cables, fibre, routers, satellite and wireless links that carry data, together with the agreed protocols that make them work as one system. The world wide web is the collection of websites and web pages that are stored on web servers and accessed using the internet. The web is therefore one service that runs on the internet, not the internet itself.
Common mistakes with World Wide Web
- M1 — "The internet and the world wide web are the same thing." Why it is wrong The internet is the global infrastructure of interconnected networks. The world wide web is the collection of websites and web pages accessed using that infrastructure. Email, VoIP and file transfer all use the internet without being web pages. Say instead "The world wide web is one service that runs on the internet; the internet is the infrastructure that carries it."
Examiner tips on World Wide Web
- The three sentences most worth memorising word for word, because each one closes off a whole family of errors: "The world wide web is the collection of websites and web pages accessed using the internet." "The domain name server returns the IP address; the web server returns the page; the browser renders it." "Each measure reduces particular risks and leaves others open, so several complementary layers are used together."
Questions students ask about World Wide Web
What is the difference between the internet and the world wide web?
The internet is the global infrastructure of interconnected computer networks — the cables, routers and wireless links, together with the agreed protocols that make them work as one system. The world wide web is the collection of websites and web pages that is accessed using that infrastructure. The web is one service that runs on the internet; email and voice calls also use the internet without being part of the web, so the two terms must never be treated as interchangeable.