Complete ownership by a single organization. Most local area networks use a broadcasting architecture. In a broadcast network, the key issue is how to determine who gets to use the channel when there is competition for it. The hosts are connected by the subnet . The job of the subnet is to carry messages from host to host.
Transmission lines move bits between machines.
The switching elements are specialised computers used to connect two or more transmission lines. The network contains numerous cables or leased telephone lines, each one connecting a pair of IMPs. If two IMPs that do not share a cable nevertheless wish to communicate, they must do this indirectly, via other IMPs. Broadcast Broadcast systems have a single communication channel that is shared by all the machines on the network. Packets sent by any machine are received by all the others.