Chapter 4

Client/Server Basics and Theory

• Mainframes
• PCs
• Bulletin Board Systems
• The First Online Services
• The Internet
• Client/Server Relationship
• Servers and Their Functions
  • Server Hardware 
• Clients and Their Functions
  • Client Hardware 
• The Future of Clients
• Middleware: The Next Step
• Summary

Because most of the Internet technology and concepts we will be talking about are based on Internet applications and how they can be used to develop an intranet, you must first understand client/server technology-the basis on which the Internet is built. When you understand client/server technology, you will understand better many of the concepts and ideas discussed here and how to expand on them. Let's begin by discussing how computers first became connected to each other and how client/server technology grew from there.