1.1. What Is a Network?
Put simply, a network is a collection of devices that share a common communication protocol and a common communication medium (such as network cables, dial-up connections, and wireless links). We use the term devices in this definition rather than computers, even though most people think of a network as being a collection of computers; certainly the basic concept of a network in most peoples' mind is of an assembly of network servers and desktop machines.
However, to say that networks are merely a collection of computers is to limit the range of hardware that can use them. For example, printers may be shared across a network, allowing more than one machine to gain access to their services. Other types of devices can also ...
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