On Monday, May 17, Spain will celebrate "Internet Day" coinciding with World Day for the Information Society. Its objectives are to disseminate and promote the use of Internet in society and make it increasingly accessible for people with disabilities. The first Internet connection was made in Galicia Supercomputing Centre of Galicia, CESGA, in the spring of 1993. Connected to the scientific community Galician RedIRIS, the Spanish Network for Interconnection of Computer Resources for Universities and Research Centres, with a maximum of 64Kbps. Seventeen years later, RECETGA, the Science and Technology of Galicia, outputs Internet to its users through RedIRIS, with 5 lines of 2.5 Gbps, providing access speed almost 200,000 times in 93.

First Connection
In 1993, CESGA was born to provide supercomputing and communications services to the scientific community of Galicia and universities located in Galicia. That settled, almost simultaneously, the first supercomputer (for calculation and computer services to the academic community) and a communications network that would link the CESGA and all campuses in Galicia and other research centers RedIRIS, it was Internet . "Before the connection to Madrid via RedIRIS, there was no Internet connection from Galicia, although in research settings and there were other communications networks," said Ignacio Lopez Cabido, the system adminstator who made the first connection.

Now deputy director of the center points out that "although they were complex lines with complex protocols, the installation was simple. We rode point to point lines 64Kbps with Madrid and with each campus on main lines, the secondary modems, with speeds of 14.400bps, enough at that time. " The connection was made with a Switch and a Router x.25 Cisco AGS + "that worked from the first time without failure for many years." Both are now part of the collection of old pieces from CESGA.

Best Connections, more research: from 64 Kbps to Fiber Optics
Internet speed depends on the bandwidth of the connection and the volume of information handled. Before the birth and expansion of "Web" (World Wide Web), most of the information was circulated text, so that lines of communications with the Internet, which opened in Galicia, were not as limited as it might seem today. As increasing numbers of users and current information was becoming more complex, including audiovisual archives, speed and network capacity were insufficient.

It was necessary to gradually increase the connection speed gradually to meet the needs of research in Galicia. The stake of the Xunta de Galicia to improve and expand links to the scientific network has been constant since then:

• 1993-1995 - The maximum capacity was used 64Kbps. Connection 14'4Kbps switched lines
• 1995 - With the help of Feder and co-financing funds from the Xunta de Galicia is implanted the first Science and Technology Network Broadband ATM of the Spanish State. Trunk lines up to 155Mbps and dynamic allocation of bandwidth. RECETGA born. 
• 1996 - In connection with Madrid in January increased to 2 Mbps 
• 2002 - Agreement for the establishment of Neutral Internet Exchange Internet in Galicia, GALNIX to improve and enhance the traffic information network in Galicia. Network infrastructure operated by a single entity, the CESGA, which facilitates the flow of information between different telecom operators. In 2007 the five members of GALNIX private operators agree to its dissolution as higher bandwidth made it unnecessary. 
• 2003 - With funding from the General Directorate of R & D projects and the support of the Department of Audiovisual Communication and the Ministry of Culture of the Xunta de Galicia is installed fiber optic Gigabit Ethernet between the seven cities of Galicia. Starts the implementation of a mesh network structure, keeping the existing core. 
• 2010 - Today RECETGA provides access to high bandwidth users (the Galician Universities CESGA and the centers of the CSIC in Galicia, the Spanish Institute of Oceanography, research centers of the regional government centers R & D, hospital complexes and in total, more than twenty institutions with research activity), releasing the Internet through RedIRIS, which joins the national network with five lines of 2.5 Gbps.

The next Internet
Internet is a decentralized set of interconnected communications networks that use the family of TCP / IP, ensuring that the physical networks that compose heterogeneous function as a single logical network, worldwide." Although its origins date back to 1969 when it established the first connection between computers of American Universities, ARPAnet was not until 1990 that showed the World Wide Web (or Web, a set of protocols that allows a simple way, the remote consultation hypertext files using Internet as a means of transmission). There are many other Internet services and protocols, apart from the Web, such as electronic mail (SMTP), file transfers (FTP and P2P), online chat (IRC), instant messaging, content delivery and multimedia,or online games. But throughout history, have been science networks that have set the standard for Internet.

"Most of the technologies that arise in computer science in general are things that are tried tested and mounted at an earlier stage. Virtualization, for example, already in the first computer installed in CESGA had no success until the universality of computers made it a useful tool in different fields." So issues like the need for download speed increased to obtain services and existing but higher quality, may have a solution for the moment with the possibilities offered by optical fiber. In this sense, Lopez Cabido notes that they are already being carried out on networks of science experiments such as exclusive lines for booking direct connections are not shared, for a particular purpose. With fiber optics "limit should never be bandwidth, but the ability to generate content," said Lopez Cabido.

THE ROLE OF ISOC-ES
The Internet Society, ISOC, is the independent international non-profit organization, founded in 1992 to provide leadership on issues of standards, education and Internet-related policies throughout the world. ISOC encourages, from a neutral point of view, debate and analysis on issues arising around the Internet.

As treasurer of the Spanish Chapter of the Internet Society ISOC-ES, which is based in CESGA, Ignacio Lopez Cabido recalled that the mission of ISOC is to raise awareness, discuss what will emerge, but without guiding opinion. They believe that the Internet is a free environment and freedom, that "like all free environments, involves risks. But these are not solved by banning or hiding, but educating."

Among the topics relevant to the development of the Internet, are particularly concerned about issues of trust, such as electronic signatures, Internet governance, access or ADSL connection offers telecommunications operators, which offer connections "reasonable speed, but designed to get lots of information and provide little. On the Internet it will be next for you to also generate content, and maybe that model is no connection."

One of the challenges they will face are Internet business models, such as news publications, music downloads or cloud computing (cloud computing) with payment services. It will be necessary to find new ways of understanding between users and companies and between companies themselves. But without forgetting the spirit of freedom and openness which the Internet is itself.

CESGA
The Supercomputing Center of Galicia is a foundation owned by the Xunta de Galicia and by the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC). Since its inception in 1993, the CESGA has the mission to contribute to the advancement of science and technology through research and application of computing and high performance communication, in collaboration with other institutions for the benefit of society. CESGA has a communications operator license class C given by the National Commission of Telecommunications Market.

More information:
http://www.cesga.es/File/comunicacions/RECETGA_evolucion_es.pdf
http://www.isoc-es.org