David has over 40 years of industry experience in software development and information technology and a bachelor of computer science
We live in an interconnected world. If you don't agree, just think about some of your day-to-day activities. We conduct business transactions with colleagues and vendors through email, we surf the web for information and entertainment that interest us, and we use our smartphones to text our friends about things that are important to us. Clearly, these connections form a significant part of our lives. You may not realize it, but there is a common technology at work here. This technology forms the basis for these interactions and many more just like them. It is called a network.
A network is a set of interconnected computers whose purpose is to send and receive information from each other and to share resources like file servers and printers. You've likely used a network, perhaps at school, work, or even within your home. Networks provide an information connection to the Internet and the outside world.
If you work with networks for any length of time, you will come across a few related terms that are worth defining:
A collision domain is a domain where the information sent from one device could collide with the information sent out from another. This occurs when the interconnection point for the network is a hub. Since information from only one computer can pass through a hub at a time, there is the possibility for the information to collide. For example, say you have three people that want to leave a room with only one door. If they leave at different times everything is fine. They simply walk through the door. But if they all leave at the same time, a collision may occur.
A broadcast domain is a domain where the information sent to one device is kept separate from the information sent to another. This occurs when the interconnection point for the network is a switch or a router. Let's go back to the three people in the room. This time, however, the room has three doors instead of one. When a person wants to leave, whenever they want to leave, they simply use their own door.
There are two types broadcast domains:
To recap, a network is a set of interconnected computers whose purpose is to exchange information and share resources. There are a number of terms commonly used with networks including LAN, Domain, Hub, Switch, and Router. In a collision domain, the information sent from one device could collide with the information sent from another. In a broadcast domain, the information sent to one device is kept separate from the information sent to another. There are two types of broadcast domains, Directed and Limited/Local.
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DSST Computing and Information Technology: Study Guide & Test Prep11 chapters | 113 lessons | 8 flashcard sets
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