To begin with the information on the Internet was completely text-borne; and there are still many web-site where this solution is all thats needed - textual archives, dictionaries, etc.
During the last few years it's become normal that a page is enhanced with pictures, first purely as ornament, now as an integrated part of the page's design and navigating; and now animations, music, and speech are being added.
You can send current pictures from a camera, with continuous updating, which makes videokonferences possible: even radio and TV can be enjoyed, and a new reality is internet telephony.
With this you can ring over the entire globe for the cost of a local call, provided the receiving computer is connected at the same time, and that one accepts a slightly lower technical standard.
basic 'language'
with plug-ins