ARPANET Protocol

ARPANET was the first practical implementation of a packet-switching network, developed in the late 1960s to connect computers across research institutions. Its protocol, primarily the Network Control Protocol (NCP) then later TCP/IP, defined how data was formatted, addressed, and transmitted between different computers, enabling reliable communication despite different hardware and locations. This foundational system allowed computers to exchange information seamlessly over a network, laying the groundwork for the modern internet. Essentially, ARPANET’s protocol set the standards that made shared, interconnected computer communication possible.