Computer Networking

Computer Networking.  The thought of it sends the average user into thinking of having a home pc, and a laptop with a wireless connection.  It can also send them screaming, and shivering, into a corner of their closet in hopes that it shall pass like hoop skirts did.  Kind of an odd thing to consider now, and uterly alien in the 80s and 90s for the average home user.  Honestly, why would you need it?  You had a PC, an internet connection, and all was good... assuming you had an antivirus. ;)

Now?  You have the XBOX (in nostalgic homes), the XBOX 360, the Wii, the PS3, your PC, the significant others PC, the kids had a PC or 2.  Then you have the laptops, and wi-fi enabled smart phones.  It can get... overwhelming?  Is that the word on your mind while reading this blog?  I'll do my best to help you along the dark and winding road that is home networking, and hopefully, into the magical land of enterprise networking concepts.  First stop, your broadband connection.

Broadband connections, are by definition, any connection faster than dial-up in my book.  It can be as simple as a DSL connection from your local telephone provider, to cable internet, to FIOS (Me loves me some FIOS).  It's really similar to an ethernet network connection, and bridges your home network to your providers network, and then to the internet.  Here is the wiki on it.  https://secure.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/wiki/Broadband

Broadband internet is really your onramp to the information super highway.  You have tons of information through Google, Wikipedia, and scads of other sites.  They range from vast technical knowledge sites, to your grandmothers blog about her azalea planting antics.  What more could you ask for?  You get information, movies, and games.  All from one source.  I'll go from the point of the cable modem.

The cable modem makes it's connection to the internet by way of an RG grade cable, with a screw-on F-Type connector.  Everyone has seen these, I bet.  We all know and love cable TV, after all.  From the other end of the cable modem, you ahve (hopefully) an Ethernet connection that looks like a large phone connector.  From ther, it either goes to your computer, or... the ROUTER :O 

*cues ominous music*

The router is a device that takes your internet connection, and acts like a splitter.  It basically allows you to connect multiple computers to one internet connection, just like a cable TV splitter allows you to hook more than 1 TV to an incoming cable TV connection.  My current favorite company for routers is Buffalo Technologies, and I have an nFinity Series Router from them.  It offers 4 ethernet network connections, 1 broadband incoming connection, and a USB port for sharing a standard USB drive which is formatted using the FAT32 windows filing system.  The nice thing about it is that I can also use my laptop over the wireless connection.

Routers can be fickle daemons, and sometimes lose all sense and purpose, for seemingly no reason.  Of course... that is a post for next time :)

To be continued...