For those of us who still have to explain to some people what Internet is, Doc Searls and David Weinberger created an excellent website – “World of Ends“, or “What the Internet Is and How to Stop Mistaking It for Something Else.”. Now, instead of hours of explanations, we can just direct the poor souls to this website and expect them to start to get an idea. If they don’t – they are pretty much hopeless. Just kidding. :)
Simple language, no technical details, and broad overview make it an excellent starting point. Good job.
Those getting too interested, can be directed to “A Brief History of the Internet” page from Internet Society.