Network Typologies
CHAPTER TWO
NETWORKING SYSTEMS AND LOCAL AREA NETWORKS (LAN)
A network is a system of two or more computers that are connected in some manner. Each computer on the network has access to the files and peripheral equipment (such as printers or modems) on all the other computers on the network.
The origin of local area networks can be traced, in part, to IBM terminal equipment introduced in 1974. At that time, IBM introduced a series of terminal devices designed for use in transaction-processing applications for banking and retailing. What was unique about those terminals was their method of connection: a common cable that formed a loop provided a communications path within a localized geographical area. Unfortunately, limitations in the data transfer rate, incompatibility between individual IBM loop systems, and other problems precluded the widespread adoption of this method of networking.
The economics of media sharing and the ability to provide common access to a centralized resource were, however, key advantages, and they resulted in IBM and other vendors investigating the use of different techniques to provide a localized communications capability between different devices. However, Datapoint Corporation began selling its Attached Resource Computer Network (ARCNet), considered by most people to be the first commercial local area networking product. Since then, hundreds of companies have developed local area networking products, and the installed base of terminal devices connected to such networks has increased exponentially. They now number in the hundreds of millions.
Designing a manageable network
One of the most important considerations in designing a network to be manageable is deciding how and where to connect the network-management equipment. Is there a separate network-management center to accommodate? Do nonoperational staff members like the network designer sit in a different area? Do they require access to the network-management center 's
NETWORKING SYSTEMS AND LOCAL AREA NETWORKS (LAN)
A network is a system of two or more computers that are connected in some manner. Each computer on the network has access to the files and peripheral equipment (such as printers or modems) on all the other computers on the network.
The origin of local area networks can be traced, in part, to IBM terminal equipment introduced in 1974. At that time, IBM introduced a series of terminal devices designed for use in transaction-processing applications for banking and retailing. What was unique about those terminals was their method of connection: a common cable that formed a loop provided a communications path within a localized geographical area. Unfortunately, limitations in the data transfer rate, incompatibility between individual IBM loop systems, and other problems precluded the widespread adoption of this method of networking.
The economics of media sharing and the ability to provide common access to a centralized resource were, however, key advantages, and they resulted in IBM and other vendors investigating the use of different techniques to provide a localized communications capability between different devices. However, Datapoint Corporation began selling its Attached Resource Computer Network (ARCNet), considered by most people to be the first commercial local area networking product. Since then, hundreds of companies have developed local area networking products, and the installed base of terminal devices connected to such networks has increased exponentially. They now number in the hundreds of millions.
Designing a manageable network
One of the most important considerations in designing a network to be manageable is deciding how and where to connect the network-management equipment. Is there a separate network-management center to accommodate? Do nonoperational staff members like the network designer sit in a different area? Do they require access to the network-management center 's
Links: Manually Configuring Network Adapters in Windows XP, 2000, or NT 1 2. Double-click on the “Network and dial-up connections” icon (Windows 2000) or the “Network” icon (Windows XP).