HTTP has undergone significant evolution since its inception. HTTP/0.9 was a simple one-line protocol, while HTTP/1.0 introduced headers and status codes. HTTP/1.1 brought persistent connections and chunked transfer encoding. HTTP/2 introduced multiplexing and server push, dramatically improving performance. The latest, HTTP/3, uses QUIC over UDP for reduced latency and better reliability. Understanding this evolution helps developers optimize web applications and choose appropriate technologies. This article provides a clear timeline and technical comparisons, making it a valuable reference for anyone working with web infrastructure.
A comprehensive overview of HTTP protocol versions from 0.9 to 3.0, explaining key features and improvements.