"I basically wrote the code and the specs and documentation for how the client and server talked to each other"
About this Quote
The line also telegraphs an ethic. Berners-Lee frames the Web not as proprietary magic but as a conversation protocol, a way for “client and server” to talk. That emphasis on interoperability is the moral center of early web culture: openness over lock-in, permissionless publishing over gatekeeping. It’s why HTTP and HTML weren’t just technical artifacts; they were a political choice disguised as engineering.
Context matters: he built the first browser/editor and server at CERN, an institution designed for international collaboration, where knowledge-sharing isn’t a buzzword but the job description. The subtext is a quiet rebuke to today’s platform era. If the foundational act was writing down how machines should communicate so anyone could join, then enclosure, walled gardens, and “black box” algorithms read like betrayals of the original bargain.
Quote Details
| Topic | Coding & Programming |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite | Cite this Quote |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Berners-Lee, Tim. (n.d.). I basically wrote the code and the specs and documentation for how the client and server talked to each other. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-basically-wrote-the-code-and-the-specs-and-3304/
Chicago Style
Berners-Lee, Tim. "I basically wrote the code and the specs and documentation for how the client and server talked to each other." FixQuotes. Accessed February 2, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-basically-wrote-the-code-and-the-specs-and-3304/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"I basically wrote the code and the specs and documentation for how the client and server talked to each other." FixQuotes, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-basically-wrote-the-code-and-the-specs-and-3304/. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
