To Harry, MaidenHead,
Putting it very simplistically, the internet is an interconnected network of computers while the www is one of the things that make use of that network called 'internet'.

Eg: email, ftp, p2p are all based on internet while www is only the web site pages.

Saurabh Singh, Delhi, India

Could anyone clarify the difference between the 'internet' and the 'world wide web'? Some of the previous comments seem to have hinted that they aren't the same thing, and I won't be able to sleep for worrying about it.

Harry, Maidenhead, Berkshire

After looking and thinking everything over, I've come to this conclusion.....I love eggs!! Boy, do I love eggs!!!

Thomas Whitfield, Hoboken, New Jersey

Robert,

Get you facts right. The internet was invented with the Aloha network. Not the www - i.e the HTML language, which was invented years later at CERN.

Justin, Brighton,

Robert,
the Internet was born out of the military project. The Internet is an interconnected network that encompasses different network types and protocols such as ftp, smtp, telnet, and later WWW. There are many more protocols that go into the making of the Internet.

From W3C http://www.w3.org/WWW/
I know this is Wikipedia, but http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Internet

Kevin, Brisbane, Australia

UH, Hello, I don't know who this Berners-Lee guy is but everybody knows Al Gore took the liberty to invent the internet back in the 90's. Shortly after he created global warming. Duh!

John, Salt Lake City, UT.

actually Robert that was not the world wide web (clue is in the title) it was the internet. The internet was actually invented in the 1940s.

m, UK,

In all fairness. WHO CARES WHO INVENTED IT !!! You guys seem to have too much time on your hands !!

Technology is a wonderful thing. I can't wait to see how the next generation internet will affect next generation games consoles !!! Could be very special. We have come a long way since the home computers of the 80's.

Gareth, UK,

In response to Robert Lafayette, I am afraid you are mistaken. The Aloha network was, a pioneering network and its connection to ARPANET in 1972 is one of the events which paved the way for the WWW. However, the connection of computer networks does not a WWW make! While Tim Berners-Lee, did not "invent" the World Wide Web (it is sensational at best to claim one person can be credited for this), he did bring the concept of hypertext into recognition using HTML, which in turn gave birth to the WWW. By 1993 almost 100 computers throughout the world were equipped to serve up HTML, with the resulting pages being dubbed the WWW.

James, Middlesbrough, England,

Really? You are correct about the confusion.

Jerry Keanse, Victoria, Texas

Sorry the WWW was fist know as the Aloha network, which was a connection between all US college's in the USA so that different Professor could remotely work on Military projects. That was back in the 60's and it grew in to what we now call the World Wide Web.

Get it right.

Robert, Lafayette, USA

In response to Markus from Saratoga Springs, NY, you're right about the internet, but you've confused the internet with the web. There was a time when the two weren't considered synonymous. The World Wide Web is only one of many ways of utilizing the internet.

Bob, Seattle, WA

Markus,
If you are referencing the article in your comment, it did not say Mr Berners-Lee invented the internet.

"Mr Berners-Lee, who invented the World Wide Web..."

The WWW is not the internet, rather, a component of it.

Kevin Sweeney, Poughkeepsie, NY

The internet was "invented" by DARPA (or ARPA), a dept. of the US DOD, as a secure means of sharing information between, at the time, 4 universities (Stamford, UCLA, UCSB, I forget the other). It was designed to be a decentralized command and control system system that could still function if most of it were destroyed by nuclear attack (today if a server goes down, packets find another route, same concept). That network became ARPANET (or DARPANET). The folks at DARPA also came up with NLS, which I believe was one of the earliest forms of a hypertext language (HTML in its current form).

The WWW as we see it today is simply a ridiculously commercialized "GUI" that runs on the internet. So if you'd all like to thank Berners-Lee for the Web in its current form, go right ahead.

py, Farmingdale, USA/NY

Good grief, you people confuse the web with the internet. The author of this piece is correct.

As was written in the first couple of comments, the internet was invented by DARPA back in the 60's...the World Wide Web was invented by Tim using a NeXTcube in 1989.

Dave Briggman, Keezletown, Virginia

Markus, Saratoga Springs, NY...

Is very uneducated on the origin of the Internet.
I invite everyone to view the real story,
as presented by Time magazine.

http://spottedowlstew.com/WhoInventedTheWeb

Gary J, Olympia, WA, USA

He is a genius, that is for certain. But he does not address the obvious security concerns of linking such random and sensitive data points. I would love to read the white papers on this semantic web.

Rod, San Francisco, CA

It's awfully cute to see all the Gore comments. You make America look stupid, and you'll likely be left behind in the global, networked economy. (And yet, you'll still have a vote...) Try some nuance once in a while.

Sir Tim and others in this field are tackling one of the great questions ahead. How do we take all of this data flowing everywhere and turn it into practicable information? The organization that answers that question then "just" has a marketing challenge.

Well done article, by the way.

Mike, California, USA (Proud, but sometimes embarrassed)

Thats all we need!

A new way to store readily accessable data on the private materials of humans.

Not only will our banks be having a peek at our busy schedules, but the ad men will be examining every facet of our lives and delivering us spam on the go.

I'd like to see a slapper attached by law to every computer terminal so that we could have the chance to return to sender whenever we feel burdened by the rot!

pazz, London, UK

that kinda of information can be a very powerful tool in the worng hands, andgiven that we havent gotten our hands around securing this web, it sounds like both a potentially exciting and scary prospect at the same time.

Leron, miami, fl

to Ron, arlington, VA:
I thought the same thing at first but there is a difference between the Internet and the World Wide Web. The internet started out in 1958 with ARPANET but was not launched until 1969. The internet is a network of computers from Wikipedia:
The Internet is a collection of interconnected computer networks, linked by copper wires, fiber-optic cables, wireless connections, etc. In contrast, the Web is a collection of interconnected documents and other resources, linked by hyperlinks and URLs. The World Wide Web is one of the services accessible via the Internet.

Jef , Riverview, FL

The internet was created by DARPA in 1969.
the WWW (an application on the internet) was created by mr. lee at CERN in June 1989.

thank you
-The Management

The Management, Framingham, Ma, USA

After 20 years of watching how the Internet has evolved, you'd think over-priced academicians such as Berners-Lee would realize by now that every advance in the Internet has been driven by the people using it, not by what the big-brains dream up in their blackboard jungles.

Bill, Buffalo,

1989 is the correct year for WWW. That's using html and such. Around 1969 is when the Internet was invented.

Wes, Statesboro, GA, USA

Actually, on pondering the mass of responses here, I am going to relent, and say that he is partially right.
There will not be one giant Semantic web, but individual, personal semantic interfaces for each individual.
As you interact with the web, It will record your actions and filter them to generate prediction filters, to present you with near and common usage issues and relationships in the areas you frequent.
This, along with pre disposed Semantic Global presense, will be used as keys to better filter your needs by inter-relating them to the pre-related data globally.
And the more often this occurs, then the data will pre-relate in advance of your particular use, so that when you mash a calendar, theuses you have for a clendar will be predicted, and the Web will appear to respond uniquely to you.
All that is missing, is the unique identifier of "you" that will become imbedded in the Personal Semantic Interface you own, which is anonymously distributed through the Global Web.

Greg McBride, San antonio , TX

A preliminary struggle with implementing semantic web within a user-generated directory of biographies and businesses is underway at MyWikiBiz.com.

Gregory Kohs, West Chester, PA

God Bless America, world's biggest idea generator!

Tom Pappas, Toronto, Ontario

A program was designed to connect any type of data with any other type of data. For instance, connect your medical records to your bank statement , your bank statement to the invoices at the auto repair shop , the data of the auto repair shop employees to their individual medical records, etc.
This system was presented to major industry, government, CDC and even OHS.

The working model took the records from three separate EMR systems, all running on different database systems, clear down to different data structures within fields. It then let all three to link to their choice of three different billing systems - and all the data meshed perfectly.

But.. the cost to impliment it was 1/100th of the cost expected, so it was rejected as undoable - even though it worked in real time, with real data and real programs.

I recently read where millions were being spent to connect a couple hospitals in Maine. With those same millions, this program could connect the entire USA.

J Bradford, Tustin, CA

This technology could lead to growth of world-wide data bases relevant to the wellness of mankind. Imagine the potential of correlating wellness with the environmental factors that govern it. The factors could of course include the usual pollution issues. But it could include such environments as medical treatment histories, work-related factors, psychological and religious factors and in fact all environmental conditions of human existence.
Privacy issues will probably negate any movement in this direction, sad to say.

Random, Southampton, PA

Along with such innovative web advancements, could we possibly see some semantic web development geared towards the US military? I only ask because it seems as if their lives are somewhat bundled into numerous programs and only accessible through the web. Access by useful advancements described above in the article could make life somewhat easier as they move from place to place with and without their families.

Cat, Daytona Beach, US

The internet was built back in 50's / 60's. The World Wide Web, however, is something completely different. It uses the internet, to be sure, but you are talking about 2 different animals.

KM, Salem, UT

...and can you imagine what an extremely clever identity thief could do with this level of detail and this technology!

Leonard Henry, Atlanta, Ga

Markus you are incorrect. Mr Berners-Lee is indeed credited with developing the WWW which is what the article states. You confused this with the internet which is the network on which the WWW is based. The WWW is a separate entity, comprised of hypertext and markup language files (pages), stored on web servers and rendered by a browser both of which were designed by Tim Berners-Lee.

Lou, Durham, CT

Apeon, Seattle

Robert in Roseville, Ca.

Your problem is math, Check out the
AlgoreanRythm.null

m. Eiford, Seattle, USA

Lining up your bank statements and your calendar so their data seamlessly interacts? That's just great, till you drop over dead. Enthuse over it anyway.

Richard Warwick, Thornton Heath, UK

The "Al Gore invented the internet" jokes lost most of their funniness during the century they were originally told. Any residual humor certainly died somewhere in the preceding comments on this page.
As far as the actual content of this article is concerned, it's a no brainer. Nothing lasts forever. Google may or may not be uniquely positioned to respond to real innovative changes in how human/machine networks interact.
One of the areas of development from which innovations may emerge has been 'tagged' by many, 'the semantic web'. What we are talking about here, are the kinds of technology that can distinguish between what you say and what you mean. 'xerography machine' and copier would be equivalent 'search terms' on the semantic web. The 'tags' people will be using to describe these technologies, if and when they become ubiquitous, are irrelevant.

JB, Seattle, WA

This sounds great! Howvere, the facts are incorrect...the internet as we know it was developed as a defense network in the 50's and 60's and was called ARPA Net, by BN Technologies (but officially DARPA, which is part of the DOD). They are currently working on "Internet 2.0", called GENIe...

Markus, Saratoga Springs, NY

Patrick Calabro, Omaha, NE

The United Nations global warming meeting was canceled due to snow storms.

Mohammed, London, UK

Patrick Calabro's comment could be the funniest read in the history of the internet. Well done. You have me rolling. Really good use of sarcasm. Brilliant.

Matt, Chicago,

Patrick Calabro states that Al Gore "did more for Humanity than your so called Messiah, Jesus Christ, Ghandi, The Pope, any president, any inventor or artist, etc." Good luck with that. The only thing Al Gore invented is Al Gore.

Fred, Honolulu, HI

The world wide web 1989 ? I was using the web ? or was it known as something else then, in 1984 with a VX 5000 unit (connected to a zx spectrum) and then with various modems ( both acoustic and direct connection ) we used to transmit 75/300 baud the 75 was because the typing speed at that time wasn't much faster for the transmit chanel (no graphical user interfaces in those days)

michael higgins, stockton , UK

Genius!

The possibilities for data aggregation and, by extension, cheap and efficient ways of sharing information are limitless.

What is the hold up? Why isn't this happening right this second?

Carl Winfield, New York , New York

Why is it that every time I see a story that refers to the creation of the internet, Al Gore is never credited for his involvement?

Robert, Roseville, CA

Greg, the key is to eliminate ambiguity from chains of words by using ontological modeling. Essentially creating a model that teaches a computer to see words not as strings of text characters, but rather objects within a huge "map" that shows linguistic relationships, etc. I am currently working full time for the U.S. government on such a project. Granted, the scope is within a large organization, not the WWW, but never underestimate the power of innovation.

John Kabler, Alexandria, VA

All of you people dissing Al Gore are going to wake up one day after your dead and realize that he did more for Humanity than your so called Messiah, Jesus Christ, Ghandi, The Pope, any president, any inventor or artist, etc.

This man is only trying to improve our lives and you guys just continue to lie about him. What have you done for humankind?

If we don't elect Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton, you can just kiss this country goodbye as it burns up in a smoking heap of CO2!!!!

Patrick Calabro, Omaha, NE

I think what is needed is peer to peer connectivity between everything such as phones, household appliances etc.
Each appliance should be running web server and should be able to talk to each other.

Arun Gaikwad, Kendall Park, NJ, USA

Please remember that when you are talking technology, you are talking about a 2 edged sword.

Technology can be used for great benefit for humanity, or unparalled evil, and I mean eat your children evil.

So, the question must be asked...we know we can do it, but should we? Or we know that it can be done, but should it?

Just because you can do it, doesn't mean that you should do it.

I assure you, Von Neumann would lament his invention, as God, according to the Bible, lamented inventing Man (thus the reason for the flood).

Do you really want so much information to be available about yourself as mentioned in the article above -- to anyone and everyone?

There's an old saying, "Any power you give to government will eventually be used against you."

Although we aren't "necessarily" talking about the government, the Internet was invented not by Berners Lee, but the US Military as a cold war measure in the event of global Thermonuclear War.

Rob in NC, Shallotte,

Much needed Technology which will help educate people

Manmohan, Fairfax, VA

This author assumes that Google isn't already working on semantical web theory. I've got news for you- they ARE working on this and probably about a thousand others ways to access, link, and share information on the web that we haven't even considered yet.

Ben, Houston, TX

Sounds nice, but unlikely to have the same impact. It would be like looking for particular fish, by jumping into some part of the ocean and trying to use the local fish, to find your fish.

The issue here is not the technology, but the unspoken, hidden relationships that are undefined on the web, but defined by the searcher.

The web maybe able to provide every possible relationship, but that would be the same as Google returning 40 million hits on your Query.

Until people can learn to ask an intelligent question, it is unlikely the web will be able to predict your needs and filter through the Oceans of relationships.

This would simply be, More.....Not Better

Greg McBride, San antonio , TX

The work is already in process.

Bob Kiger
Videography Lab

Bob Kiger, Oceanside, California USA

Seems like it was 1969 as opposed to1989... creation of the WWW

Ron, arlington, VA

Google will just buy 'em out.

Mohammed, London, UK

Theres a lot of space between what could be and what will be.
But... Something like this will probably happen. Someone nees to ask Al Gore???

Ray Hoad, Forth Worth, Tx

Steve Lukasik invented the internet...he had a phone hook up to it in his house in the early 70's!!!! The defense departement is what was behind the technology! Google his name....you'll see!!

Nancy Christianson, Wash., DC

Honestly I though thought it was about William Gibson.

Allicette, New York,

I've read the internet, when is the next one due out?

Matthew, Southampton, Hampshire

Then; as soon as I can link people and places into the web; I'll take over.

"Omigish! He wants us to March!? He Wants Everybody To March!??!" - Catch-22 .

"That's Some Catch." That Web-Catch-22". "It's the Best There Is!". - Web-Catch-22.

DIlberter, Washington, D.C.

Wait a minute! This story must be a fraud! We all know that Al Gore invented the WEB.

Micahel Williams, Murray, UTAH

Stupid me!! I thought this was an article about Al Gore!!!

Luke, Fairfax, VA

Is Berners-Lee Al Gore's Computer Genious AKA? Maybe he'll assume the name "Greenman McTreehugger" for his environmental accolades.

Anyway, if Al Gore, AKA Berners-Lee, AKA Greenman McTreehugger, says it's gonna happen; we can bank on it.

Ray Garrett, Chesterfield,

It amazes me that some can't differentiate between the internet and the World Wide Web. Imagine a world without hypertext-linked documents, and that would be the backbone internet. Virtually no one imagined how transformative the WWW would be; don't let a failure of imagination blind you to the potential of the semantic web.

Steve, Washington, DC

Most people here know more than the inventor of the internet.

Rufus, Mayberry, Ohio

John, you are trying to sound smart but you failed. DNS resolution has nothing to do with the web. You could just as well use naked IP addresses. The WWW is all about the http protocol and it's cousin, the hypertext markup language. It has nothing to do with resolving an easy to remember alphabetic mnemonic. Besides, your comment has very little bearing on the topic of the article.

ba has it right though. The first few iterations of the 'Semantic Web' will be painfully slow.

Tom E, Pittsburgh, USA

John Bull, youre wrong on one point: translating www.websitename.com into 243.56.162.14 is done by DNS, an internet, not web, component.

Arthur, Cambridge,

While the semantic web is the future of the internet, the first few generations of the SW will be mind-numbingly slow. It is one thing to data mine a 10 exabyte database on site, it is another thing to mine that information ubiquitously. The data pipelines to transmit that earth shattering amount of data will have to increase exponentially to accommodate all this decentralized information.

ba, Pittsburgh, PA

So, if I understand correctly, one could "mash" the target site lat/long on a cruise missile with Osama Bin Ladin's cell-phone number?

Les, SWFlorida, USA

Gore didn't even invent carbon dating.

The internet and the web aren't the same thing. The first is all about connecting computers and was around long before the web, the second came later and is about translating www.websitename.com into 243.56.162.14 , plus the html display language and browsers that can display it.

John Bull, Gloucester, uk

I thought that Al Gore invented the Internet! Mike, from South Bend and I are both positive that Al invented it, much like he invented the Global Warming hysteria.

Chris, Ft. Pierce, FL

Jonathan,

You're excited about 'the semantic web'? Are you new to this stuff?

The semantic Web is a dead duck - John C. Dvorak (2005)

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1819101,00.asp
http://www.bookmarksync.com/press/041207_1

Jack, Brighton, Colorado

Yea, this isn't any big improvement over what we have now. Why would you want it to be more invasive than the current system? I smell security issues...

jon, austin, tx

This is nothing but the logical next step for an evolving Google, which is already underway...it's a keyword world and that idea is already being refined and expaned and applied.

troymasters, New York, USA

We all know Al Gore invented the internet, and global warming for that matter. Who does this guy think he is cutting in on Pontius Gore and his creatively brilliant mind? Next this Berners-Lee character will promote his carbon offset policy of planting trees in 3rd world countries. Way to go, Tim!

derek, knoxville, tn

Tim B-L wrote the code for the Web, but did not anticipate spam. His problem is that like most rational academics, he views humans in the same way as do traditional economists: as rational people maximizing value and utility. In other words, all users of the Web and email will be keen, alert, enthusiastic scholars motivated solely by a desire to share knowledge and improve the world.

Criminals disagree.

Tim B-L did a great job, but like other dome brains he has a tendency to project his own talents and values onto the rest of us. It's a sort of high IQ amiable idiocy.

Lamar Carnes (above) is correct. Security is the most important need..

Rodney Wade, Vancouver, Canada

Mr. Berners-Lee is just talking about object-oriented programming. Real object-oriented programming.

tbirdey, Sugar Hill, USA Georgia

I'd like to clear up a misunderstanding. Al Gore invented the lie that Al Gore invented the internet.

keith crosby, Green Bay, WI

Great article.

I think Sir Tim Berners -Lee & MIT could take it a step further.
Me and my brother have been tinkering with robotics over about 30 years. He a machinist and I a programmer.

He had an idea where in a household bot, rather than sensing each object's attributes in real-time would catalog them, but accourding to location in a cloud of probable movements and then fill in trivial atrributes.
Each physical object, once identified will keep its ID forever. Using IP6 and/or UIN, every object in bot-existance can be linked to every other via these absolute ID numbers.
Anyway, not just network data.

Mark, Salem, OR

The World Wide Web and the Internet are two different things. The World Wide Web (WWW) is an application that runs on the Internet. Tim Berner's Lee invented the WWW, DARPA invented the Internet. Al Gore claimed to have taken the initiative in creating the Internet.

Blake, New Haven, CT

I thought Al Gore invented the internet...maybe he just made up global warming too...

Steve, Champaign, IL

Can I google where I lost my keys? Or can I google what that fleeting thought was that just left my head? Or what you're thinking?

Chris, shingletown,

I look forward to the day when I can go into the local post office and get an implant update. Isn't that the direction everything is going? Smaller, lighter and closer - until the computer is connected directly inside - attached to the auditory nerve perhaps. Ray Kurzweil has written about that kind of future -and the Governator has starred in movies based on that kind of future. Mr.Berners-Lee's prediction does seem very likely - though I am wondering whether new hardware will make it obsolete even before it starts up. Which one comes first applications or the technology to run them? Another point,
I know that there are thousands if not millions of inventions that have been patented or pending, and only few are taken up,
based not on the brilliance of the design, but on whether it suits the current business market.

Stephen Pain, Odense, Denmark

"Mr?" it's Sir Tim Berners-Lee, folks. Have a little respect and cultural awareness. It makes you look smart.

And all you that feel it necessary to comment on Sir Tim's ideas about Internet technologies who don't know the difference between a GET and a PUT, please, spare us your wisdom.

John, Fullerton, CA

Why does someone have to dumb this down by mentioning
Al Gore, oops sorry their from CA, and probably believe the
phoney global warning story as well. *SIGH* !!

Steve, Manchester,

Rumour has it that Paul Allen is very interested in the Semantic Web, but isn't everyone?

BillyG, Medina, USA

the delight of internet and the web -- and this new evolution -- allows people everywhere to do things they may never do, such as read excerpts from a book such as "hello my big big honey!" for free and then surf elsewhere to check out spitzer's kristen, and then, clicking away from there, find out the latest on world peace.

sheila, san francisco, california

Al Gore and the Internet - By Robert Kahn and Vinton Cerf

Al Gore was the first political leader to recognize the importance of the Internet and to promote and support its development.

No one person or even small group of persons exclusively "invented" the Internet. It is the result of many years of ongoing collaboration among people in government and the university community. But as the two people who designed the basic architecture and the core protocols that make the Internet work, we would like to acknowledge VP Gore's contributions as a Congressman, Senator and as Vice President. No other elected official, to our knowledge, has made a greater contribution over a longer period of time.

Stop the lies and read the rest here:

http://www.firstmonday.org/issues/issue5_10/wiggins/

We need another Al Gore in the government to make Berners-Lee's vision happen. I'm afraid the idiot/thieves currently in charge are not up to the challenge.

Rich, Los Angeles, CA

I read an article about Tim Berners-Lee about 15+ years ago, describing hyper-text, and thought 'What a mess that would be. While reading something, you could click to something else, and on, and on? How confusing!' Now, it's... well, everything. We take it for granted.
I'll pay attention to his predictions.

Jes, Richmond, VA

Robert from Palominas, your argument supporting your belief that TBL didn't invent the Web shows your ignorance about what the Web really is.

The Internet was created by DARPA. The Web - which uses the Internet - came later. and TBL did invent it. Or, to quote the man himself....

"I just had to take the hypertext idea and connect it to the TCP and DNS ideas and — ta-da! — the World Wide Web."

Jeff, Austin, TX

Speaking of firsts:
Everybody forgets that France had the MINITEL years before the World Wide Web came about. Unfortunately because of their "closed loop" attitude they never evolved it passed Frances doors.
That's too bad. It was great when it came out.
The MINITEL is all but useless now.
Most likely it's demise was due to greed. That same greed may kill the net some day.

Alphonso Alvarez, Vancouver, BC Canada

You are all confusing the internet with the world wide web. They are not the same. The internet is much older the the www.

Max, Raleigh,

This high falootin', fancy talkin' debate about the internet is akin to teachin' me how to suck eggs. Don't you know that the internet is a series of tubes?

Ted Stevens, Anchorage, Alaska

this stuff will probably drive the development of AI.

Rick Hepner, Salt Lake City, USA

No "one man" invented the WRB, it was done as a communication device between government units by ARPA!

Robert Lynch, Palominas, USA/AZ

TBL has been saying this for a long time now. He has to – his street cred is riding on the Semantic Web actually working. The reality is nowhere close to that and, aside from a few trivial applications and a lot of hyped up research in academia, it's not gaining traction even in the enterprise, where it ought to work a whole lot better than out in the cold cruel world of the web.

Iwan Sukri, Baltimore, USA

I just upgraded to a newer computer and like my previous, i declined the use of the email services of the internet provider. I have used the same yahoo email address for 7 years and since the website i visit, cannot possibly know my email address by sending me a cookie, then i get virtually no spam or junk mail.
It was obvious years ago that if you accept the offers for free goodies on the net, then it is like giving them your home phone number. It just proves how stupid people really are. Can you sing the words to "LOVE POTION # NINE"?

MARK, WILMINGTON, DE

Time flies like an arrow.
Fruit flies like a banana.

Paul, Valencia, USA, Pennsylvania

Is there any point to this, outside the geeks in their computer labs ?

We already have a web that gives a better than 50 percent chance of getting ripped off, using a site that's run by criminals, mascerading as a legitimate site.

Plus, lots of people, and that certainly includes me, don't trust how companies view security on their website. It's often along the lines of "well, you had a userid/password, so if a transaction was made using them, it MUST have been you that did it". i.e. if your account gets hacked on the company's poorly secured website, the company puts the blame on YOU.

The idea of "let's track everything, it'll make you more secure" shows what a dreamer this guy is.

Here in the UK, we have the New Stalinist - oops, sorry, New Labour - government trying to get everybodys DNA, fingerprints, phone numbers, email address, actual address all on a central database. For our own good we understand.

Yeah, right.

Clive, Surrey,

jColes. Yes Arpanet was the first "internet", when they say the world wide web they're referring to only what we consider as "www" ie webpages. Yes it's very confusing and ultimately useless since the "world wide web" is only a very very tiny portion of what makes up the internet.

Fal, Tucson, AZ

This is the same kind of irrational exuberance that caused the first tech bubble to pop. People will never want their coffee or their bathwater prepared by the internet - no matter how much pointy-headed protractor champions may wish otherwise. Ubiquity for the internet is a pipe dream.

Michael, Santa Clara, CA

Has anyone heard of P.Bio? (www.pbio.com). It sounds a lot like what Mr. Berners-Lee is talking about.

Ryan Arnett, Oakley, California

Hey! That ain't Al Gore!!

Rodney, ann Arbor, usa/michigan

The whole notion of a semantic web is dependant upon making meaningful connections between objects on the net. It doesnt really matter whether you specify them a priori as per rdf triplets for example or through a search engine of some sort a bit later.....oh my God I'm bored.............................................

Andrew, Santiago, Chile

Ben: Consider the possibilities that big data mining organizations have already with a Facebook, MySpace, or other page.... It's insanely easy to scrape together a picture of your life, and it's getting easier all the time. RDF is just as innocent as HTML in this regard. It's all in how the info is protected, not its form.

John: The thing that's 'impossible' is happening today. Computers have gotten a heck of a lot more powerful in the past 30 years, and there will always be software engineers willing to hack and create the 'new pathways.'

Solomon: Google is anticipating some semantic data, and riding it as it comes, but hasn't taken a strong role in some of the more specific infrastructures that've come up. Tagging is just the beginning of the semantic web. Imagine using your iPhone to find flickr photos of nearby landmarks, and then jumping to the Wikipedia page about them. Google hasn't done this yet. The Semantic Web can do this seamlessly though, with some hacking...

Ian, Troy, NY

This seems to be a little over optimistic. While technology and standards are continually shifting and moving in new unforeseen directions there is still a hard limit on where this can all go. Namely; Any piece of technology is only as good as the person using it. While a 'semantic' web sounds romantic and desirable there is no way to give anything semantic content unless a person gives it that e.g. through keywords. In short I think technologies like this dont adequately take into account the human element and personally I dont want to have to go tagging every piece of information i place on the web nor would I trust any kind of automatic way of doing it.

Paul, Colchester, Essex

That's all great by the ontology based engine already exist:
http://hakia.com/
Based on work of prof. Victor Raskin, a linguist from Purdue University.
Greg, Saint Louis.

Greg Goldberg, Saint Louis, US of A

"spent 30 years in software development, and the dreams this man has remind me of the days when 'object oriented' computer languages were going to take over the world."

hmmmm don't you think java is this object oriented language that HAS taken over the world. I just can off a project for a Major back to develop a SOA system and yup we used java along with all it's Object oriented JARs and i've just moved to another project where yup, we're using Object oriented JARS. so just becuase it's taken 30+ years to get here dosebn't mean it won't

Beside we can already do half of this, this is what XML is for. A common internet langauge that can be shared acrossed platforms and programs.

peter, london, UK

"Likewise, there isn't any logical way to universally relate a calendar to a bank statement. One person might want to see where they spent their money, while another might want to check their schedule to see when they'll have time to go to the bank. The two are not related in a single way. "

I don't think your getting the concept, the concept is that you as the user will control how you want to see the data and by draggin and droping these various data the system will automatically create a new view tailored for you.

peter, london, UK

"not as easy as it sounds. It would require the development of ontologies that classify,group, and describe objects and their relationships with other objects. Not only that, but another problem lies with the fact that developers may create ontologies that already exist, with differences. It would be, however, the next step to something great."

I think a dynamic SOA will the solution to this problem. a system that automatically creates an integration between two various data source by making educated gues as to what the data contains and then create a inteface between the two to allow the program to see the source as a single data representation.

peter, london, UK

I thought Al Gore invented the web. Oh, wait. That's right. He invented global warming.

Peter, Joplin,

jColes from Elba AL - no one is saying Tim Berners-Lee invented the Internet. He thought up some of the key technology of the World Wide Web, and proposed how it would work, originally to allow the sharing of academic work. The World Wide Web and the Internet are different. The Internet was in use for many years before the Web, for email and ftp for instance.

Martin, Birmingham,

not as easy as it sounds. It would require the development of ontologies that classify,group, and describe objects and their relationships with other objects. Not only that, but another problem lies with the fact that developers may create ontologies that already exist, with differences. It would be, however, the next step to something great.

Garrett, Lincoln, NE

Surely "Mr" Berners-Lee is a KBE and a member of the Order of Merit?

David, Croydon, UK

Google is already anticipating the semantic web (e.g. providing a tag system free to websites) and will be well-placed for future developments.

PS
The web is part of the internet. Years before Berners-Lee made the web possible, the US military developed the net to enable communications to survive WW3 and them academia moved in.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Internet

Solomon, Broadstairs, UK

About the Gore comments: someone should point out to you guys that "the web" and "the internet" are two quite different things.

Jerry, San Jose, CA

The concept is beautiful and astounding - a seamless data thread linking the entire the world community that makes web sites as quaint as the typewriter. And all it requires is a "smart tag" to make it happen.

Wavy Gravy, RIDGECREST, CA

Colossus:The Forbin Project Lives
Could be Kronos,Colossus or Hal.
If we can dream it ,it will be.
All data in a semantic web connecting to other data with instructions to search for mutual interest,with great speed,computers talking to other computers deciding which humans if any should have access to data other than computers.
So all the computers need is a logic when and how data should be used for what and for who's benefit.
Since humans can not be trusted with the data or parameters need to be written to control the decisions of evil humans, the computer intelligence will decide what actions will be taken with data.
We will all stand by and wait.

David S .Johnson, Saint Louis, USA

It won't happen.

I spent 30 years in software development, and the dreams this man has remind me of the days when 'object oriented' computer languages were going to take over the world. The idea was that a company would build a database of software objects, each of which performed a task. Then applications would be built using the objects, and the objects would be reusable by other applications. The idea made sense in a simplistic world, but the complexity of the computer applications made it impossible to develop reusable objects, so the revolution failed.

Likewise, there isn't any logical way to universally relate a calendar to a bank statement. One person might want to see where they spent their money, while another might want to check their schedule to see when they'll have time to go to the bank. The two are not related in a single way.

This is why our brains continue to create new pathways every day - because the way we see and use data is always changing.

John S., Friendsville, MD

"During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet" Gore said when asked to cite accomplishments that separate him from another Democratic presidential hopeful, former Sen. Bill Bradley of New Jersey, during an interview with Wolf Blitzer on CNN on March 9, 1999.
Gore supported technological advances related to the advancement of the Internet, but to say that HE took the initiative in creating the Internet is a bit much.
(Sources: Transcript http://www.wired.com/news/news/politics/story/18390.html )

Mark, Norwood, NY

Remarkable that Mr Berners-Lee should bring up the subject of security, because in this semantic web of his, it's the programmers and webdesigners who decide which information can and will be accessed where and by whom.

His own RDF language for representing data is much more opaque, arbitrary and open to misuse and abuse than plain old HTML. In the latter, information is merely represented, subject to interpretation by browsers and ultimately, everyone. In the former, an obscure caste of programmers decides by their own discretion how information is handled and filed.

Be warned. The semantic web is a dangerous scam.

Ben Wasker, Amsterdam, Holland

"Mr Berners-Lee, who invented the World Wide Web in 1989 while a fellow at CERN, the European Organsation for Nuclear Research in Switzerland..."

Gosh, and I thought that the form and structure of what has become the Internet was postulated and designed by the Defense Advanced Research Agency (DARPA), and I thought the decentralized, multi-channel connectivity in the Internet was built in as a safety net...Oh, wait, it is a matter of historical fact that DARPA and the US Department of Defense, using the minds & imaginations of a whole bunch of really smart folks, actually did create the worldwide web...Perhaps Mr. Berners-Lee was one of those bright minds but as there are no patents on the structure of the Internet itself, I doubt that he's the actual 'inventor.' There are a bazillion patents on Internet tools & improvements, but none that I know of on the basic structure...So, who is this guy exactly?

jColes, Elba, AL

Gore never claimed to have invented the internet, that is just political postering.

See http://www.snopes.com/quotes/internet.asp
for the full scoop.

Mark, eden prarie, MN

"During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet"
From Al Gore interview with Wolf Blitzer on CNN on March 9, 1999.
We all know that everything Al Gore says is true so who is this impostor??! Think about it- if he would exaggerate about his personal initiative as creator of the internet, he might exaggerate about global warming and we all KNOW man made global warming is true. Well, at least everyone except those idiots who think the sun is more powerful than an SUV. Who cares about them anyway?

JC, Orlando, Florida

It sounds conceptually like geographic information systems taken to a new level, i.e. all data, not just that with a geographic component, will "overlay" and new unconceived data relationships will be realized.

David, St Louis, USA

If this new web design can be kept out of the government, then I am for it. Especially when the IRS gets their hands on this stuff.

Don, Fitchburg, U.S.A. Ma

Can someone please identify a quote where Al Gore claims to have invented the internet because I'm pretty sure it doesn't exist.

Steve, Los Angeles, California

Al Gore did not invent the internet, he was the first political leader to recognize the importance of the Internet and to promote and support its development. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_gore#Internet_and_technology

His is however, largely responsible for promoting the Global Warming myth.

Lisa, Albany, NY

Wow, Bob in Monterey is definitely a Democrat. Maybe we should throw those technology advances away and just dance on the beach.

Todd, Aliso Viejo, California

I don't see this as a particularly important improvement.

Kind of reeks of the cash registers at McDonalds. Big pictures for people who can't think for themselves.

Jim, NYC,

Tim Berners-Lee? Who's that? Al Gore invented the internet.

Mike, south bend, indiana

Who is this "Tim Berners-Lee" you speak of? Al Gore invented the Internet. I know this because he said so, and Al Gore never lies... and has a Nobel Prize to prove it.

Craig, Minneapolis, MN

So this guy is an imposter? Everyone knows Al Gore invented the internet...and he would never make something up just to get elected....

GrammyAnn, High Point, NC

The biggest need in the development of the internet and its uses is security! Having such personal information and national security information on the internet is a dangerous matter today. Along with the new development of "semantic web" I would hope the matter of security leaks would be a primary objective!

Lamar Carnes, San Antonio, USA Texas

Bob, Monterey, CA

But give the man his due Bob, it was a very big hit, huh?

Steve R, NE, Ohio

This idea isn't new -- Read Kurzweil's "The Age of Spiritual Machines" or Neal Stephenson novels. Once nano-tech really gets rolling, we'll have nano-sites in our heads and should be able to be walking around permanently logged on. I may not live to see it, but it's coming.

Beth, Miami, FL

The scenario Mr. Berners-Lee describes, with bills automagically displaying on one's calendar, would still require some degree of coding. This sort of thing is already happening in the form of web services - which Google maintains quite a few of.

Bill, Tampa, FL,

This is already being done to a degree in groceries and retail stores.

Mia, phoenix,

He invented. The intenet. The man is already a God.
And why do you Americans always have to think that the best things were invented by one of you?

Jessica, Sheffield, UK

No, you got it wrong.
Excessive sunspot activity invented al gore, who invented carbon taxes to fund "one world order".
Berners-Leee tripped along with the above to consolidate knowledge so that the one-worlders solidify their control.

And the Mad Hatter said to Alice.............

David Rockefeller, New York USA,

"One example frequently given is of typing a street address which, if it had "semantic data" built into it, would link directly to a map showing its location, dispensing with the need to go to a site like Google `maps, type in the address, get the link and paste it into a document or e-mail."

This already exists on my iPhone.

hugh, Lindenhurst, USA

Maybe he is a one-hit-wonder - but that was big hit. Have you changed the world Bob?

Keith, Irvine, CA

The semantic web is has been vaporware for years. There should at least be a working prototype by this point. Until then I refuse to listen to the babble.

Ray, Los Angeles, CA

So, they're gonna find a way to connect some of the different tubes together? w00t!!1

Darth Brooks, TEXAS, USA

This is too scary. A slip up from service provider such as a bank and your open prey to identity thieves.

I don't want Google or the next big internet company to have access to my banking records or any other personal sensitive records. Next thing you know, they will have your medical records and will be selling that info to insurance companies.

Besides, a smartphone can easily help accomplish the tasks described in the article by the owner with little more than 15 minutes of work a week tops.

Neal, Montreal,

One hit wonder? No, he is quite brilliant and I am confident that he is again right. Perhaps he should have been more clear; however, since Google is incredibly well positioned to be the ones that pioneer the technology that he is advocating. I think what he really meant was that the Google technology of today will become a thing of the past once people start integrating content based on semantics rather than just literals.

Ed, Orlando, Florida

Will it still be a system of tubes, or will it be more like a truck?

Andrew, Lincoln, NE

Berniers-Lee is certainly right that the current search technologies will be supplanted by semantically driven fine-grain linking systems, but it is at least as likely that Google will be the one to deliver the market leading solutions as it is that an upstart can strategically outwit the reigning oligarchs. I think some of the commentary on this topic is under-informed regarding the nature and import of semantic linking systems, which have a history going back to Fahlman's NETL system in 1984, and beyond. Berniers-Lee, in true visionary fashion, has been working the Semantic Web issue for many years now, and we can all thank him for his efforts, but it remains to be seen when they will become commercially and socially important. Progress is consistent, however, and the technological trend has a present appearance of inevitability.

Anthony Kimball, Fergus Falls, Minnesota

How about we arrest people before they commit the crime?
We could use this cool 3d holographic display with full motion video fed by these three kids with shaved heads hanging out in a swimming pool spitting out balls with numbers on them.

Frank Roberts, Boston, USA

Yes but what does Al Gore say?

dd, Islamabad, Pakistan

I'm confused now...I thought Gore invented the internets?

Tom, Washington, DC

So basically he is just saying that Google could be replaced in the future by someone who just does A, B, and C. Well, duh. Google could also do A, B, and C themselves. This is all just talk. I'm sure at some point Google could be replaced and someone will say, "see, Tim said so!" Ok, well then everyone should remember that Bob said "there will be a big earthquake in California one day, and the media will cover it." I'm a god.

Then he goes on to say that to prevent criminals from committing crimes, all of our online activities should be tracked so that when a crime is committed, they'll know exactly who did it and what actions online led to it. Wow. If people freak out about privacy when Google shows them ads, imagine their horror if Tim has his way. It's a good thing speaking out publicly against the President isn't "illegal"... yet.

Sounds like Tim was a one-hit-wonder.

Bob, Monterey, CA