The Internet is everywhere these days, being accessed on phones and tablets, tied into our cameras and our TV’s. Wi-Fi is accessible from everywhere these days, from city buses to your neighborhood McDonald’s, and the world grows smaller every day as a result.
Internet Day is a celebration of this culmination of computing and communication technology, and the way it has brought all our lives together.
The first letters ever transmitted across the prodigal internet, which consisted of two computers, were “L” and “O”. This was as far as they got before the ‘Net crashed, and they had to reboot to get things in running order. We’ve been resetting our routers ever since, just to keep our beloved lifeline running ever since.
At the Summit of the Information Society celebrated in Tunisia in November 2005, it was decided to propose to the UN the designation of October 29 as the Worldwide Day of the Information Society, which resulted in Internet Day is celebrated on that day.
Internet Day celebrates the origin of the very first internet transmission ever sent, and from it the utterly world-changing series of events that followed. People are able to video conference from around the world, and the information is stored and transmitted at unbelievable rates between computers and friends and family. Enhanced Reality is becoming a reality, with Digital Overlays available for real-world things, seamlessly combining the world of the internet with the one we walk around in every day.
Hard to believe that the first internet transmission was sent just months after Neil Armstrong walked on the moon. The internet is already slightly extra-terrestrial, with video and communication available to the astronauts and space stations circling in low-earth orbit.
All the world is invited to participate in Internet Day. There are many ways to participate and contribute. In many cities events are created that commemorate said day, organized by companies, administrations, and organizations of any type and size, that have to fulfill the following condition.
Additionally, the organizers carry out statements to which individuals or groups can subscribe and grant Internet Day Awards, which aim to recognize the efforts of individuals and institutions to incorporate citizens to the Information Society, promote web accessibility, stimulate open participation of individuals and institutions and contribute to the dissemination of the event.