Internet History, Technology, and Security

The impact of technology and networks on our lives, culture, and society continues to increase. The very fact that you can take this course from anywhere in the world requires a technological infrastructure that was designed, engineered, and built over the past sixty years. To function in an information-centric world, we need to understand the workings of network technology. This course will open up the Internet and show you how it was created, who created it and how it works. Along the way we will meet many of the innovators who developed the Internet and Web technologies that we use today. What You Will Learn: After this course you will not take the Internet and Web for granted. You will be better informed about important technological issues currently facing society. You will realize that the Internet and Web are spaces for innovation and you will get a better understanding of how you might fit into that innovation. If you get excited about the material in this course, it is a great lead-in to taking a course in Web design, Web development, programming, or even network administration. At a minimum, you will be a much wiser network citizen.

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Syllabus

Syllabus - What you will learn from this course
Week 1
Getting Started
History: Dawn of Electronic Computing
Week 2
History: The First Internet - NSFNet
Week 3
History: The Web Makes it Easy to Use
Week 4
History: Commercialization and Growth
Week 5
Technology: Internets and Packets
Week 6
Technology: Transport Control Protocol (TCP)
Week 7
Technology: Application Protocols
Week 8
Security: Encrypting and Signing
Week 9
Security: Web Security
Week 10
Final Exam

FAQ

When will I have access to the lectures and assignments?

Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:

What will I get if I purchase the Certificate?

When you purchase a Certificate you get access to all course materials, including graded assignments. Upon completing the course, your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.

What is the refund policy?

You will be eligible for a full refund until two weeks after your payment date, or (for courses that have just launched) until two weeks after the first session of the course begins, whichever is later. You cannot receive a refund once you’ve earned a Course Certificate, even if you complete the course within the two-week refund period. See our full refund policy.

Is financial aid available?

Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.

Reviews

The course is a very good startup course for those interested in the ins and outs of the Internet. The instructor (Dr. Chuck) is very good in teaching the course and very knowledgeable.

This is an extremely important course. I would love to see it taught in high schools or in the first year of university. We should all understand how the Internet was developed and how it functions.

The video collection in the course is so awesome and is overall so well structured, that once you start watching , you are going to stop only when you are done with the complete course.

Very interesting course. The instructor is really helpful and knowledgeable person. Someone interested in internet should take this course. It's awesome and fun to learn.

Best of luck!!!