Question | Answer |
Internet service provider (ISP) | A commercial group
that provides Internet access for a monthly fee;
AOL, Earthlink, and Comcast are large ISPs. |
intranet | A private network that uses the TCP/IP
protocols. |
IP address LAN (local area network) | A 32-bit address consisting of four
numbers separated by periods, used to uniquely
identify a device on a network that uses TCP/IP
protocols. The first numbers identify the network;
the last numbers identify a host. |
MAC (Media Access Control) address | A 48-bit
hardware address unique to each NIC card or
onboard network controller and assigned by the
manufacturer. The address is often printed on the
adapter as hexadecimal numbers. |
multicasting | A process in which a message is sent by
one host to multiple hosts, such as when a video
conference is broadcast to several hosts on the
Internet. |
name resolution | The process of associating a
character-based computer name to an IP address |
NAT (Network Address Translation) | A protocol used
to convert private IP addresses on a LAN to a
public IP address before a data packet is sent over
the Internet. |
NetBEUI (NetBIOS Extended User Interface) | A fast,
proprietary, and outdated Microsoft networking
protocol used only by Windows-based systems,
and limited to LANs because it does not support
routing. |
NetBIOS (Network Basic Input/Output System) | An
API protocol used by some applications to
communicate over a NetBEUI network. NetBIOS
has been replaced by Windows Sockets over a
TCP/IP network. |
network adapter | An expansion card
that plugs into a computer’s motherboard and
provides a port on the back of the card to connect
a PC to a network. |
network drive map: | Mounting a drive to a computer,
such as drive E, that is actually hard drive space on
another host computer on the network. |
network interface card (NIC) | Also called a network adapter. |
network printer | A printer that any user on the
network can access, through its own network card. |
node | Any computer or other device on a network that
has been assigned an IP address. |
octet | Term for each of the four 8-bit numbers that
make up an IP address. For example, the IP
address 206.96.103.114 has four octets. |
Packet | Segment of network data that also includes
header, destination address, and trailer
information that is sent as a unit. Also called data
packet or datagram. |
patch cable | A network cable that is used to connect a
PC to a hub, switch, or router. |
peer-to-peer network | As applied to networking, a
network of computers that are all equals, or peers.
Each computer has the same amount of authority,
and each can act as a server to the other
computers. |
physical address | Also called an adapter address, or a hardware
address. |
Ping (Packet Internet Groper) | A Windows and
Unix command used to troubleshoot network
connections. It verifies that the host can
communicate with another host on the
network. |