At first, you need to know what HTTP stands for. It means Hypertext Transfer Protocol.
What is HTTP?
This is a protocol to extend, distribute, and share hypermedia information systems. Hypertext Transfer Protocol is the backbone of the World Wide Web (WWW) data communication, where hypertext documents include hyperlinks to other assets which the user can easily obtain. In 1989 Tim Berners-Lee initiated the development of Hypertext Transfer Protocol at CERN. It is a set of standards that allow WWW users to share information found on web pages. Every web page that enters http:/ in front of the address asks the user to connect through Hypertext Transfer Protocol as it accesses. Such as enter http://www.thewhatis.org/ this in your browser and it will take you to our website. Nowadays you have noticed that you don’t need to provide http:/ before any domain. You just enter the name of the domain in your browser such as ‘thewhatis.org’ and it will directly take you to the website. Because http:/ is now default protocol for today’s browsers. It’s kept in browsers as protocols such as FTP need to be independent. there is another extension https (more secure version) which we will cover in another article.
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Origin or History of Hypertext Transfer Protocol
Ted Nelson invented the word hypertext in 1965 in the Xanadu Project, which in turn was influenced by Vannevar Bush’s 1930s “memex” management method mentioned in his 1945 essay “As We Can Think” The protocol’s first version contained one path only, called GET, which would request a page from a browser. The server response has always been to an HTML tab.
The first recorded version of Hypertext Transfer Protocol came in 1991 with HTTP V0.9. In 1995, Dave Raggett led the Hypertext Transfer Protocol Working Group which decided to broaden the standard to include expanded procedures, broader communication, richer meta-information, tied to a security mechanism that was more effective by introducing new methods which header areas. In 1996 RFC 1945 formally released and accepted HTTP V1.0. What is Ethical Hacking? Is this type of Hacking Bad or Good
Another web hosting firm announced in March 1996 that over 40 percent of internet browsers were compatible with Hypertext Transfer Protocol 1.1 and 65 percent by June 1996. In January 1997 the Hypertext Transfer Protocol/1.1 standard as specified in RFC 2068 was officially released. It received major updates and improvements in 1999. HTTP/2 was released as RFC 7540 in May 2015. HTTP/3 was released as RFC 7540 in 2018.
How HTTP Works
HTTP connections are accessed by the Hypertext Transfer Protocol Client (user’s browser) by a user agent and the User Message link is transmitted to the Hypertext Transfer Protocol Server (Web Server). Often known as the ‘client request’ is the confirmation message. When the answer is given the connection is closed by the Web Server. Based on the availability or otherwise of the Resource Hypertext Transfer Protocol supplies a suitable status code often known as the protocol-determined ‘Server Response.’ The following are types of responses.
- 100: a pure info response.
- 200: Successful query (there is a Web page).
- 301: Permanently moved.
- 401: Request unauthorized.
- 403: Forbidden.
- 500: Internal server error.
Some Information or Trivia on HTTP
- Ted Nelson coined the term Hypertext Transfer Protocol.
- Port 80 is the main port for the Hypertext Transfer Protocol connections.
- The first version of the Hypertext Transfer Protocol was HTTP/0.9, which was implemented in 1991.
- HTTP/1.0 was developed in RFC 1945, and implemented in 1996.
- HTTP/1.1 is listed in RFC 2616, and was published officially in January 1997.
- HTTP/2 is listed in RFC 7540, and was published officially on 14 May 2015. Through compressing Hypertext Transfer Protocol headers it increases domain load times in the browser.
- In a proposed RFC, HTTP/3 is defined with the intention of reducing data congestion by distributing control messages through UDP.
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