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In
October 1993 there were 2.2 million host computers offering access
to the internet. By the end of March 1997 there were an estimated
12.5 million host computers. Each host has the capability of
serving thousands of users. Some of whom are interested in what
you have to offer.
The
research firm Hambreccht & Quist estimates there are currently
at least 332+ million Internet users, with over 300 million
expected by the year 2000. It is estimated that at least 145,000
people get hooked up to an on-line service every day.
Over
85% of the Internet has the commercial (.com) designation. In
other words, 85% of the 332+ million people currently using the
Internet are using it commercially. The growth of the commercial
sector is estimated at 10-13 percent a month.
A
Web server is the computer that serves an HTML document (like this
one) to the Internet. Each Web server can host from dozens to
hundreds of Web sites. In June 1993, there were approximately 130
Web servers. By November 1996, the number had grown to an
estimated 28,000 servers; that's a 21,000% increase! Analysts
estimate up to 100 new Web servers go online daily. The total is
expected to reach well over two hundred thousand by the year 2000.
The
Lycos index has indexed more than 100 million unique Web
addresses! Each Web address represents a unique document serving
information to the Internet community. The volume of data
transmitted over the Web in 1992 was around 500 megabytes. During
a single 6-hour period in mid-September of 1996, the amount of
data transferred was 130 gigabytes! Those figures
are expected to more than quadruple by 2000.
Below
are visual representations of the incredible size and growth of
the Internet and its World Wide Web.
 The
Web, more than any other area of the Internet, has really shown a
large increase in the number of users and hosts. This graph
reflects this incredible growth.
 This
graph shows a comparison between the old Internet services and the
new. The Web has taken an incredible leap ahead of Gopher
services, and it continues to grow.
 Even
though this chart was compiled from last year's data, one can see
the vast world wide area the Internet reaches. The purple area
shows places the Internet has a presence. Click on image
for larger map.
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