One of the most common misconceptions in IB Computer Science is treating the Internet and the World Wide Web as the same thing. In everyday language, people often use these terms interchangeably, but in IB exams this leads to lost marks.
Students are expected to clearly explain what each one is, how they are related, and how they are different.
What Is the Internet?
The Internet is a global network of networks.
It is the underlying infrastructure that:
- Connects millions of devices worldwide
- Uses standard communication protocols
- Allows data to be transmitted between networks
Key points about the Internet:
- It is hardware-based and protocol-driven
- It includes physical components such as cables, routers, and servers
- It enables many different services, not just websites
In IB Computer Science, the Internet is often described as the communication backbone that makes global data transfer possible.
What Is the World Wide Web?
The World Wide Web (WWW) is a service that runs on top of the Internet.
It allows users to:
- Access web pages
- Navigate between documents using hyperlinks
- View multimedia content in browsers
Key points about the World Wide Web:
- It uses the Internet to function
- It relies on protocols such as HTTP and HTTPS
- It uses web browsers as the main access tool
