COMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS - BASIC LAYOUTS

     The beginning of this chapter described a few applications of computer networks and data communications that you encounter in everyday life. From that sampling, you can see that setting out all the different types of jobs and services that use some sort of computer network and data communications would generate an enormous list. Instead, let us examine basic network systems and their layouts to see how extensive the uses of data communications and computer networks are. The basic layouts that we will examine include:



■ Microcomputer-to-local area network
■ Microcomputer-to-Internet
■ Local area network-to-local area network
■ Personal area network-to-workstation
■ Local area network-to-metropolitan area network
■ Local area network-to-wide area network
■ Wide area network-to-wide area network
■ Sensor-to-local area network
■ Satellite and microwave
■ Cell phones
■ Terminal/microcomputer-to-mainframe computer