Domain Names Part I Continued

Wrapup and Resources

Even with growing commercialization, the Internet is a rather anarchic network, in terms of content and control. Because of this, people often say that nobody is in charge of it. Nobody is in charge of the Internet; but there are people in charge of the physical networks that data travels over, and the points where these networks connect. There are also people in charge of the addressing system computers use to communicate with each other.

We've already seen responsibility for the physical networks leave government hands and enter the private sector. It seems almost certain at this point that ICANN will manage the addressing system - IP addresses, domain names, and protocol parameters - for the Internet. It remains to be seen how efficient and fair (to both commercial and non-commercial interests) their management is. Whatever the outcome, they are creating a unique organization - a multinational organization, ostensibly not beholden to any government, controlling a medium that some have said will destroy the notion of governments and nations.

More information on the early history of the Internet is available in our Web Index. You can also find a number of DNS-related resources at the DNS Resources Directory.

In our second article on DNS, we'll look at how DNS actually works, and how some companies are bypassing or sidestepping the domain name system. To be notified when the next article comes out, sign up for our newsletter.

Edward Piou is an ahref.com producer and runs ep Productions, Incorporated, a Washington, D.C.-based development company.

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