The Gopher protocol /ˈɡoʊfər/ is a TCP/IP application layer protocol designed for distributing, searching, and retrieving documents over the Internet. Strongly oriented towards a menu-document design, the Gopher protocol was a predecessor of (and later, an alternative to) the World Wide Web.
The protocol offers some features not natively supported by the Web and imposes a much stronger hierarchy on information stored on it. Its text menu interface is well-suited to computing environments that rely heavily on remote text-oriented computer terminals, which were still common at the time of its creation in 1991, and the simplicity of its protocol facilitated a wide variety of client implementations.
(found at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gopher_(protocol) )
Wide Area Information Servers or WAIS is a client–server text searching system that uses the ANSI Standard Z39.50 Information Retrieval Service Definition and Protocol Specifications for Library Applications" (Z39.50:1988) to search index databases on remote computers. It was developed in the late 1980s as a project of Thinking Machines, Apple Computer, Dow Jones, and KPMG Peat Marwick. WAIS did not adhere to either the standard or its OSI framework (adopting instead TCP/IP) but created a unique protocol inspired by Z39.50:1988.
I found it interesting that I had no idea what these terms were! I’m well into my thirties and ‘from’ that era, a young adult in ’91 and ‘94 when those conferences took place. I was getting into computing, everybody was. I paid attention to tech stuff because I was into the stock market, everybody did. I knew what Linux was, got the just of html…but WAIS and Gopher? And I giggled when the article called them “real competitors” to the web, really?! I guess that just further proves another point of the article, the web wasn’t the best available technology, it was just good enough (and the most widely used and accessible : ).
Hope everyone’s paper is going well, I know I’m having fun with mine…signing off, Sharxjay
Sharxjay!
ReplyDeleteThanks for defining those terms. They were roughly defined in the article, but your more indepth definitions that you’ve found cleared them up much more. However, I know I’m a youngin’, but some of this was new to me too. There are so many different avenues and processes involved in the internet it amazes me. Technology amazes me period. How can data be transmitted without any wires or anything to connect it to? Wireless technology does not make sense to me at all.
I especially enjoyed the last part about your post, about how there were other competitors to the world wide web. But I guess that can be applied to anything. Microsoft was dominating the PC industry for a while and Apple dominated the smart phone market. Competition helps the growth of all industries. But its hard to imagine what could have competed with the web. Nowadays I wonder who can compete with Facebook.
-Jossshhuaa