Networking
Networking doesn’t have to be limited to computers. It can also be a function of telephone systems, radio & TV systems and various industrial control processes.
However, today, the primary applications of networking are with data processing and that is the subject of this discussion.
Types of computer networks
A computer network is represented by the interconnection between individual computers with a system. Networks can be classified by what is referred to as a network layer where they operate based upon reference models that represent standards within the industry. This layer might be the four-layer Internet protocol suite or the seven-layer Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) reference model used in academic environments. The majority of networks currently in use, however, utilize the Internet Protocol Suite (IP) as their network standard. Networking systems can be classified by scale, which includes Personal Area Networks (PAN); Local Area Networks (LAN); Metro Area Networks (MAN) or Wide Area Networks (WAN). There are also Controller Area Networks (CAN), which represent special niches such as those that control a boat’s electronics, a vehicles engine or several factory robots.
Networking through hardware technology
Computer networks that feature individual devices connected by hardware are said to use the connection method. Individual devices within the network might include Ethernet, Wireless LAN, HomePNA or Power line communications. Wireless or WiFi is fast becoming the most popular type of networking.
Networking through functional relationship, network topology and protocol
In functional relationship or network architecture, classification is determined by the functional relationships which exist between the network elements such as active networking, client-server and peer-to-peer or workgroup architectures. Network topology classifies computers according to the topology the network is based upon including bus network, mesh network, ring network, star-bus network, and Tree or hierarchical network. When computer networks are classified under protocol, they are actually being classified according to the communications protocol the network uses.
Networking serves specific user needs
Personal area networks are used to communicate with various computer devices near one individual. These devices include printers; FAX machines, PDAs, scanners and telephones that are typically within 25-40 feet of the computer. They can also be utilized for connecting to a higher-level network and the Internet. PANs are generally wired with computer buses such as USB and FireWire and can also be made wireless with networking technologies such as IrDA and Bluetooth.
Local area networks are used for networking within a small area like a home, office or building and are usually based upon Ethernet technology. A school, for example can have a wired or a wireless LAN so that users may interconnect local devices like printers and servers. All the PCs within the school would be connected by Category 5 cable running an IEEE 802.3 protocol via a system of interconnection devices and then eventually connect to the Internet.
Wide area networks are data communications networks that cover a very-broad geographical area such as one city to another or even one country to another. They frequently operate on facilities provided by common carriers such as telephone companies and function at the lower-three layers of the OSI reference model called the physical, data link and network layers.
Other networking systems are variants of the above three that are specific to their applications in universities, cities, the military, mobile services and others.
