Computer networking is the engineering that creates communication between computers and other devices. Learn about ethernet, LAN, routers, modems and home networking.
How can your offices in Milan, Paris and San Francisco maintain fast, secure and reliable communications with the main office and each other? Virtual private networks give companies a way to extend their secure networks using regular Internet pathway See more »
Home networks are becoming common in homes that use more than one computer. With people using computers for shopping, home businesses and entertainment, it can be essential to link up not only PCs but also fax machines and TVs. What's going on behind this linked-up system?
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FireWire offers quite a few advantages, though it does cost a bit more than USB. Learn what makes FireWire different.
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Ethernet is one of the most common computer-networking components, and the standardization of this technology has created some of the easiest ways to connect a few computers with or without wires.
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Networking two or more home computers provides many conveniences, but how do you get started? Start here for the answer.
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If you're thinking of networking the computers in your home, you have several options to explore. Will you go wired or wireless? And what's the best way to ensure the safety of your network?
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We wouldn’t get very far without LAN switches -- bedlam would break loose at each network junction and most of us would be wondering what happened to that e-mail we sent two hours ago.
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Smart dust sounds like something out of a Disney movie, but it's definitely not. Also called a mote or a wireless sensing network, this new technology is intriguing everyone from military personnel to vineyard owners.
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If you're reading this via the Internet you're probably using Network Address Translation (NAT). NAT helps reuse IP addresses and improve security -- find out how it works.
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When information travels through a network, it follows certain guidelines to ensure compatibility. Find out about OSI and the protocol stacks that prepare your data for transfer.
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If your computers are in different rooms, phone-line networking may be a good way to connect them. Learn all about the pros and cons of using a phone-line network.
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No new wires! Power-line networking uses the wiring already in your house to connect your computers. Learn about the pros and cons of a power-line network and how to set one up.
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Routers are a vital component of the Internet -- they comprise an intricate network that delivers millions of e-mail messages every day. Find out how routers deliver packets of information to the right place.
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Think you know how routers work? These devices use intricate formulas to figure out exactly where to send a packet and how to get it there. Learn all about routing algorithms.
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As we move closer to intelligent computers, they may begin to follow us wherever we go. Learn how ubiquitous networking will allow our data and information to travel with us.
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How can your offices in Milan, Paris and San Francisco maintain fast, secure and reliable communications with the main office and each other? Virtual private networks give companies a way to extend their secure networks using regular Internet pathway
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When you type a Web site address into your browser, Web servers are doing the work of getting you the page you request. Put our servers to use right here . . .
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If you're reading these words, you've benefited from the operations of a router -- probably several in fact. Learn more about these mysterious mechanical manipulators that control network navigation by taking this quiz.
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Without web servers, there wouldn't be an Internet. Do you know how web servers work to get you online? Take this quiz and find out.
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It turns out that everything you do on the Internet involves packets. For example, every Web page that you receive comes as a series of packets, and every e-mail you send leaves as a series of packets. Find out what this term really means.
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