Computer Network - A group of computers connected together in a way that allows information to be exchanged between the computers.

Packet - A piece of a message transmitted over a packet-switching network, One of the key features of a packet is that it contains the destination address in addition to the data,

Local Area Network (LAN) - Technologies connect many devices that are relatively close to each other, usually in the same building.

Wide Area Network (WAN) - Technologies connect a smaller number of devices that can be many kilometers apart.

Node - Anything that is connected to the network> While a node is typically a computer, it can also be something like a printer of a CD-ROM tower.

Media Access Control (MAC) - The physical address of any device, such as the NIC in a computer on the network.

IP Address - Standing for Internet Protocol Address, an IP address is an identifier for a a computer of device on a TCP/IP network.

Bus Topology - Each node is daisy-chained (connected one right after the other) along the same backbone, similar to Christmas lights.

Ring Topology - Rings have nodes daisy-chained, but have the end of the network coming back around to the first node, creating a complete circuit.

Network Token - a special series of bits that travels around a token-ring network. The is only one token for each network, so there is no possibility that two computers will attempt to transmit messages at the same time.

Star Topology - In a star network, each node is connected to a central device called a hub, The hub takes a signal that comes from any node and passes it along to all the other nodes in the network.

Tree Topology - Combines characteristics of linear bus and star topologies. It consists of a groups of star- configured workstations connected to a linear backbone cable.

Protocol - An agreed-upon format for transmitting data between two devices.

Peer to Peer Architecture - A type of network in which each workstation has equivalent capabilities and responsibilities. .

Client-Server Architecture - A network architecture in which each computer or process on the network is either a client or a server. Servers are powerful computers and CLients are PCs or workstations that rely on servers.