Part 1 - Communication Through Layers

The words you are reading on this web page passed through many different layers of communication. First, I conceived them in my mind and put them in the form of words. Then I transferred them onto my computer by passing them from my fingertips, through the keyboard, into the computer. Then my computer saved the words in a digital format on the hard disk. My computer then sent the words over an Internet connection to a web server. When you requested this web page from the server, the words were transferred to your computer, and temprorarily stored on your computer before being displayed on your monitor. Finally, the light emitting from your monitor entered through your eyes and your brain processed this information, telling you the words you see on the screen. These words were then formed into thoughts in your head.

As you can see, the ideas you are receiving passed through many different layers. They started from my mind, were translated into words, and then transferred to the computer. To reach you, they went through the reverse process: from a computer, into words on a screen, and then into ideas in your mind. Figure 1-1 illustrates this process.


Figure 1-1: Layered communication in the real world
Although we are only physically directly connected through the Internet, the information passes through many different layers to go from my mind to yours. The arrow indicated the direction of the flow of information. Likewise, if you wanted to send a message back to me, you could do so in the reverse direction.


Part 2 - Communication over the Internet: The OSI Reference Model | Back to the Index