In the 1960s, the U.S. government funded ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network) to link geographically distanced computers. By 1970, it had developed the method of “packet switching” to transfer data which led to the first message sent between two computers in UCLA and Stanford. They were quickly able to connect 4 computers in 4 different Universities in California and Utah.
What is a Network?
By definition, a network is simply a group of interconnected nodes. Like a social network where friends know friends who in turn know other mutual friends. Or a trade network where different ports, cities, and people are interconnected through goods and services provided. Each point in the connection whether a person, a business, a computer is a node.
A computer network is a group of 2 or more interconnected devices, like computers, cell phones, and gaming consoles, all across the world that can communicate with each other.
Computer networks have made the world much smaller. Chatting, texting , sharing pictures with friends, fans, miles away or in different countries, streaming live video or gaming with your buddies from different locations have brought us all much closer.
What were some of the ways people communicated before computers and emails became popular?
The global pandemic in 2020 brought physical interaction to a halt. What were some of the technologies that helped kids continue to learn? What were the challenges in using them?
Network Components
In order to connect two or more devices, there are several network components that play a role. Here are some of the main ones:
1. Sending and receiving device: This one is easy. If you are connecting your computer to either another computer, a printer, to your TV, etc., there are two devices one of which is sending a signal to connect and the other is receiving and accepts the connection.
2. Transmission: Data needs some channel, a way to get to the receiving device. This medium can be wired or wireless. Some of the options for a wired connection is a Coaxial Cable or Fiber optics. To send data wirelessly, some of the medium used are infrared, microwaves, bluetooth, etc.
3. Network Protocol: How does data move through the channel? Data is broken down into small bits called packets. There is a header with every packet that identifies the source, destination and other info that will help to put them back to whole once it reaches its destination. The rules that define these standards is called a Protocol. When there is a protocol defined and all systems follow it, data transmission is successful.
4. Communication devices: To be able move data from point A to B, there are several components and devices that enable the successful communication . A router to route data to the right device, a modem that converts signals, a switch to connect multiple devices are some of them.