TCP/IP Guide

Types and Sizes of Networks

One of the reasons that understanding networks can be difficult at times is that there are so many different types! When someone talks about a network, she can mean anything from two computers hooked together in an apartment to a globe-spanning entity with millions of nodes. Every network is unique, and each one has an important role to play in filling the communication and data-sharing needs of different individuals and organizations. In fact, the great diversity and flexibility of networking is one of its most important strengths.

Two of the most basic ways that you can distinguish and contrast various networks are the relative distances between the devices that they connect and the general mechanisms used to communicate ...