The relevant quote is here When I first began tinkering with a software program that eventually gave rise to the idea of the World Wide Web I named it Enquire short for Enquire Within upon Everything a musty old book of Victorian advice I noticed as a child in my parents house outside London With its title suggestive of magic the book served as a portal to a world of information everything from how to remove clothing stains to tips on investing money Not a perfect analogy for the Web but a primitive starting point