# Anyone noticed that the first part of internet is intern? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 14, 2000, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-noticed-that-the-first-part-of-internet-is-intern/33242 "2000-09-14T22:16:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Ice\_Scream\_Cone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ice\_Scream\_Cone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ice_Scream_Cone)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2000, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-noticed-that-the-first-part-of-internet-is-intern/33242/1 "2000-09-14T22:16:06Z")
Anyone noticed that the first part of internet is intern? It may sound strange, but I’m wonderin. ---
**Author:** ![Giraffe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giraffe/32/129_2.png) [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2000, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-noticed-that-the-first-part-of-internet-is-intern/33242/2 "2000-09-14T22:39:55Z")
What is this “internet” of which you speak? Is this related to the “Information Superhighway” they had that article about in People? Man, I love that magazine People. They also had an article “Waldo: Where Is He Now?” I couldn’t really figure out what the conclusion was, though, because it was just a bunch of pictures. And all the people in the picture looked the same. It was very confusing. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-noticed-that-the-first-part-of-internet-is-intern/33242/3 "2000-09-15T02:14:05Z")
I’m moving this to MPSIMS. ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-noticed-that-the-first-part-of-internet-is-intern/33242/4 "2000-09-15T02:34:13Z")
I’m just waiting for the obligatory Monica reference to appear… Oops, sorry, spoiled it for Tracer… 😃 ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2000, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-noticed-that-the-first-part-of-internet-is-intern/33242/5 "2000-09-15T23:49:43Z")
Depending on who you ask, there is NO word ‘internet’ it is ‘Internet’ & stands for [okay so not every one, but most do, think so] INTERNATIONAL [COMPUTER] NETWORK Which doesn’t have anything to do with ‘intern’ right? ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2000, 10:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-noticed-that-the-first-part-of-internet-is-intern/33242/6 "2000-09-16T22:01:02Z")
Actually, it is quite simple. See, back when Al Gore was busy inventing the internet, he knew he had a great thing coming. The problem was he did not know what to call it. So he went to his good friend Bill for advice. > [@](#): > > “Bill” Al said, “I have just invented something great! Can you help me name it?” > > “Al, I feel your pain” said Bill. “This sounds like a real great thing you have coming. Whenever I hear about great things cuming, I think of interns.” > > “Interns? Great! But I can’t just name it ‘The Intern’. Is there anything you like better than interns?” > > “Well… the only thing better would be an intern in fish net stockings. Mmmmmmm. They get my heart pumping harder than a Big Mac with chili fries” > > “Bill, you’re a genious!! I will call it ‘The Internstocking’!” > > “Too long. How about ‘Internsucking’?” > > “No, too obvious. I don’t want people to know you helped me name it. I may have some wild idea to run for president one day, and I want people to think I have ideas of my own” > > “Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!! Boy you sure can make me laugh, Al. You run for president? Ha ha ha ha. You are more an Ed McMahn than a Johnny Carson… you know that. Anyway, why not call it the ‘Internet’? Short and sweet- Like an intern on her knees!” > > “INTERNET! Great! Thanks Bill, you’re the best!! And just your wait, I will run for President someday!! Even if only the damn idiots will vote for me, I am still going to run! > Now to get this IN…TER…NET up and running…” You heard it here first, folks. This is how it went down. Umm… errr, I mean this is how it happend. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2000, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-noticed-that-the-first-part-of-internet-is-intern/33242/7 "2000-09-17T00:37:31Z")
Handy, where do you get that internet stands for “International [computer] Network?” Are you making stuff up again? Or can you provide some support for that? I believe the inter-net means just that, inter-net and was originally the standard for linking several nets (Arpanet, Alohanet, etc) together. From: [http://www.pbs.org/internet/timeline/timeline-txt.html](http://www.pbs.org/internet/timeline/timeline-txt.html) > [@](#): > > 1972 - The InterNetworking Working Group becomes the first of several standards-setting entities to govern the growing network. Vinton Cerf is elected the first chairman of the INWG, and later becomes known as a “Father of the Internet.” ---
**Author:** ![Daniel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Daniel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daniel)\ **Post date:** [September 17, 2000, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-noticed-that-the-first-part-of-internet-is-intern/33242/8 "2000-09-17T00:47:50Z")
LOL, Bear.