Abstract

Synopsis

The Internet was born about 40 years ago out of early attempts to switch and route data. The first of two talks will look at those early steps, covering the evolution of the various elements such as packet switching, the ISO 7 layer model, Internet Protocols and the world wide web. The second talk will describe the Internet we know today, and conclude with some ideas on its future direction.

Roger Scantlebury – Consultant

From 1966 to 1977 Roger Scantlebury was in charge of the NPL Data Communication research team, reporting initially to DLA Barber and later directly to D W Davies, Superintendent of Computer Science Division. D W Davies is generally regarded as the father of Packet Switching, and Roger’s team built the pioneering network at the NPL . Their ideas were adopted (and expanded upon) by the ARPA network project (Department of Defence, USA ). The ARPA network expanded to cover the USA during the 1970s, and ultimately connected to other research networks internationally (including the NPL network). It was during this period that the idea of connecting together computers, attached to different networks, was pioneered, and the term ‘an inter-network’ was coined.

Paul Shreve – Cisco

Having been in the Internet business for 20 years, Paul joined Cisco in 1994 as a consultant to Cisco’s European organisation. In this role Paul was responsible for designing major European Internets and the supervision of Systems Engineering on a project basis. Currently Paul is on the University of Texas Engineering Advisory Board (EAB). The council meets twice a year to review Engineering curriculum and advice the University on technology trends and developments.

Prior to joining Cisco Paul spent nine years with Advanced Computer Communications (ACC) whom he joined in 1984. Initially holding the role of Principle Systems Engineer working on a number of projects ranging from IP and IBM implementation to IP satellite technology, Paul became Director of Marketing before leaving in 1994. Paul graduated from the University of California Santa Barbara in 1978, becoming the Technical Manager for the University working with the implementation of IP protocols throughout the campus.