The Internet › how it works how it worksIn its simplest form, the Internet is a collection of connected documents orobjects. Hyperlinks are what connect these documents. noteA hyperlink is a virtual link from one document on the World Wide Web to The Internet is a worldanother. It includes the Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of the linked-to wide network which allows for information todocument which describes where on the Internet a document is. It is what be shared between usersyou enter in the address bar of the browser, because it is the address of that (also known as nodes).document on the Internet. The World Wide Web is a sub-set of this whichA URL provides information to both browsers and people. URLs include caters specifically for websites.domain names which translate to Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. Everywebsite corresponds to an IP address, which is a structured series of dots andnumbers indicating where it is physically located. In fact, every device on thenetwork has an IP address. noteWhen you enter a URL into the address bar of a browser, the Domain Name New IP addresses areSystem (DNS) record indicates where the document is that you are linking to. running out in the current IPv4 version, and so IPv6 is in the process of beingConfused? Look at the domain name and IP address for Quirk’s website: deployed. Domain name: www.quirk.biz IP address: 212.100.243.204A domain name looks something like this: www.domainname.comBut a lot more information can be included in this. URLs can carry the followinginformation: subdomain.domain.tld/directory • Domain - the registered domain name of the website. • Subdomain - a domain that is part of a larger domain. • TLD– the top level domain, uppermost in the hierarchy of domain names. • Directory – a folder to organise content.The TLD can indicate the country in which a domain is registered, and can alsogive information about the nature of the domain. • .com – is the most common TLD. • .co.za, .co.uk, .com.au – these TLDs give country information. • .org – used by non-profit organisations. • .gov – used by governments. • .ac – used by academic institutions. 7