COMPUTER NETWORKS.

Computer network is a group of computers and other associated devices, connected to each other in such a way to enable significant communication such as exchange of data and information between them. To set up a computer network, an appropriate medium is necessary between the computers. These could be different types of network cables like co-axial cable, optical fibre cable, twisted pair cable, etc. Network cables are decided based on the size, topology and protocol of the computer network. Topology refers to the way in which the communicating devices are linked to each other.Nowadays, wireless media is gaining prominence over cable media. Wireless media could be bluetooth, infrared, radiowaves, micro-waves, etc.Thus; a computer network doesn’t necessarily require a direct connection.

 Computer network enables multiple users to share a single hardware device like a scanner or a printer, allow sharing of files amongst them, make accessing of information easier to users, enable communication via e-mail, instant messaging, etc. Networks are differentiated based on their characteristics. The different types of computer networks are Local area network (LAN), Metropolitan area networks (MAN), Wide area network (WAN), Global Area Network (GAN), Internet, etc. The best known and the largest network amongst them is the Internet. Most operating systems including Microsoft Windows, Linux, etc use TCP/IP for networking.