NetCore

We’ve all heard of the Internet, World Wide Web and the Cloud, the magical genie lamps of the 21st century which serve their masters within milliseconds with answers of unmatched precision, unbothered by the complexities, chaos and unending error logs. Along this abstraction comes the new AI technology boom, stealing the show and raising the question: “Why bother learning something from scratch when I can just ask ChatGPT to do it ?”. The general trend of the industry also tends to instill the idea of heavy automation instead of developing human skills and field-specific problem solving, leading the average user on the path of technological independence through AI-mediated interactions with it. So, how does the computer networking field fight back ? How does it keep its relevance in this turbulent era of innovation, where machines think like humans and scientifical advancements become lifestyle commodities overnight ? Well, read along…

Most experts working in the field can either describe networks as a form of chaotical art expressed in the language of computers, stating that achieving as little as creating a well-made protocol is an ageless success. However, what isn’t said represents the key to understanding the beauty of this discipline: a mix of endless flickering text in a terminal, coffee and weird header diagrams. Everything starts with the basics, the OSI network stack – the beginner-friendly model which tells you exactly how your data is transmitted through the Internet. In the same manner that children build towers from Lego bricks, your computer builds the message level by level, computing checksums, decrypting data, reordering it and sending it to your screen, either as graphical notifiers or (even more) command-line text. From here, the complexities start to show through stack-dependent protocols and feature-specific behaviors, ranging from simple transmission terminology and debugging and ending in large-scale, automated infrastructure. You might wonder at this point about the importance of such things in the vast landscape of IT and tech in general – you’re on the right track. As the great figures of networking once envisioned the ideal of interconnected systems, the modern society has a responsability towards understanding and developing the idea that brought us closer in the digital realm: every commodity served digitally is essentially a computer running diligently in the background of a nicely formatted application. The Cloud is just a big provider’s leasing of computer resources through a proprietary architecture, the Internet is formed of names mapped to IP addresses of different servers scattered around the Globe, and your favorite apps manage to deliver information updated every second by relying on specialized networking equipment. Now, instead of panicking because the connection is down, try to understand the fixes done by your service provider. Invest time in demistifying the framework of the modern, fully digital world.

Felt motivated ? Are you keen on learning more ? Then jump right in: google your greatest mysteries regarding the Internet, search for simple terms, or even watch some YouTube playlists on the topic (start with NetworkChuck; he has great videos for any audience). If you feel a little more adventurous, try our academy courses on CCNA-like topics and build your zero-to-hero networking journey; we can’t wait for you to join us !

In the end, remember to stay open, curious and motivated ! Have a good one, and see you next time on NetCore Blog !