The Invention That Made the Internet Possible
In 1978, Dr. Roger Billings invented Universal Networking — the foundational technology behind how the modern internet shares information.
In this episode of ScienceLive, he tells the complete story for the first time, in his own words. It starts with a problem. J. Willard Marriott, founder of the Marriott Hotels empire, had 12 of IBM’s largest mainframe computers — the biggest the company made — and they still couldn’t keep up with reservation demand. IBM told him a 13th machine would crash the entire system. He needed a solution that didn’t exist yet. Dr. Billings invented one.
His concept was elegantly simple: instead of every computer trying to talk to every other computer simultaneously, create a dedicated “library” computer — what we now call a server — that any number of users could query independently. The result was a system that could scale to an unlimited number of users without overloading. He called it Universal Networking, patented it as U.S. Patent No. 4,714,989, and proved it worked by installing it at real businesses around the world using the Billings Microcomputer — one of the earliest personal computers ever built.
Today, every website, every app, and every internet transaction runs on this same client-server principle.
This is the story of one of the most important and least-known inventions of the 20th century — told by the man who invented it.
About DrB
Read more about DrB »
About the Roger Billings Scholarship Program »
It’s interesting to hear the history of how computers advanced.
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The air oscillator is pretty cool. We should prioritize air related studies more often.
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cool robots
using air to power robots is cool and fascinating.
awesome!
Very interesting stuff!
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Mind blown! I always thought that the quartz had something to do with the glass on the front of the watch, I had no idea it had to do with the internal parts.
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these lives are super fun
How does an air powered robot work? Is it based off gusts or currents, or is it based off molecules in the air?
Another great science live!
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science is cool
It was really cool to learn about how the watch was created and how telling time has changed over the years.
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Internet is important for online things
Hi this is Lily from New Jersey! And I was wondering what is your most recent invention?
I never realized how impressive Dr. Billings scientific achievements are like the one about him helping the us millitary.
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How cool to see.
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Is that the same Marriott, from Marriott hotels?
It was not working before
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nice hair
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I love learning about computers.
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That 3d printed robot looked really cool. And the fact it’s powered by air is craaazyyy
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I thought quartz was just to be pretty lol turns out it has a good use it was fun to learn ^^
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Dr Tobias is my favorite!!!!!!!
thank you for this science live! The air pressure walking machine is super cool, and no electronics are need!
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i love science.
The air powered robot is so cool! I thought that you needed electricity to power it
wow so cool cant wait to watch!!!!
This is very interesting and cool!!!
great talk!
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So cool!
I’d love to study Civil Engineering in college !!!
Hello Acellus academy from Georgia Dr.Roger billings what is your favorite invention😄😄😄😄😄😄😄😄😄😄😄😄😄
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Great science live!
Comment This was so cool
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Love this idea
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Awesome,,,
The air powered robot is so cool! I thought that you needed electricity to power it.
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Hi from Kentucky! How would someone come up with the idea to power a robot with air?
This science live is amazing
Science Live always makes my Wednesday better!
Why are there specialized watches for people like pilots?
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What is you favorite invention ever made?
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This was very educational thank you so much.
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I wonder what it would be like if I was in a science fair.
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The air and 3D print is such an interesting project. The simplicity of it is quite impressive. Thank you for showing us science live! It’s always fun and educational.
heyyyyyy loved this live
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the internet has come such a long way in such a short time! hi from ny!
I love this, it’s very informative
It was very interesting to hear about how the creation of the watch came to life.
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This is a very good video .
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thank you for this info
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Amazing vid!
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Who had the original idea for the watch and why? And what did they do to make it into the real world?
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tech spotlight great as always.
I’m so ready
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I I love science
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I always wondered how people started measuring time, awesome to see it explained!
I found it interesting that a crystal could be used as a material to help tell time!
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Greetings from VA everyone. Hope you are enjoying this live as much as I am! 🙂🙂
What type of code do they put in the 3D Printer?
So cool!
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The internet has transformed everything in our society today. In what ways do you think it could potentially change the world in new and different ways in the next 10 years?
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Why was the IBM named that? Where is that name derived from?
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Are crystals used in electronics?
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cool
Good evening from North Carolina. Thank you for a great episode. I enjoyed the pneumatic powered robot, that could have great application in specific settings. Dr. Bulling’s lesson on the computer and Intel chips was wonderful.
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so awesome
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Crystal tuning forks and the creation of the watch?! That’s really cool! Also air powered robots sound super efficient!
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I am LOVING the new setup!
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