Request for Comments (RFCs) is a set of documents that serve as the foundation for communicating and conducting business online. They provide guidance, best practices, and technical specifications to ensure interoperability between different systems.

The RFC process was created in 1969 by Steve Crocker at UCLA’s Network Working Group to document early protocols used in ARPANET – an experimental packet-switched network funded by DARPA (the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). The first RFC described the File Transfer Protocol (FTP), which is still widely used today.

Since then, thousands of additional RFCs have been published, defining everything from email standards like SMTP and IMAP to web technologies such as HTML5 and HTTP/2.0. These documents also cover topics related to security, privacy, networking architecture, routing algorithms, and more – all focusing on creating open standards that can be adopted universally across platforms or organizations without proprietary lock-in or vendor dependencies.

By following these guidelines, developers can create software applications that work together seamlessly regardless of their underlying technology stack — allowing users worldwide to access information securely over any connection. This ability has enabled global collaboration among businesses, government agencies, educational institutions, non-profits, research centers & individuals alike — driving innovation & progress forward faster than ever!

While many commercial vendors may choose not to implement certain parts or features defined within an RFC due to cost considerations etc., it is essential for companies who develop products with public interfaces to adhere closely to them so they remain compatible with other solutions out there; failure do so could lead costly rework down the road when trying to comply industry norms later time!