We'll start the guide with an introduction to networking, a run-through of networking terms and lingo, and descriptions of networking hardware. A network is simply a group of two or more Personal Computers linked together. Topology specifies the geometric arrangement of the network.
Common topologies are a bus, ring, and star.
You can check out a figure showing the three common types of network topologies here . Protocol specifies a common set of rules and signals the computers on the network use to communicate. Most networks use Ethernet, but some networks may use IBM's Token Ring protocol. We recommend Ethernet for both home and office networking. This is most commonly found in home configurations, and is only practical for workgroups of a dozen or less computers.