Windows 8 In Depth

Cabling for Ethernet Networks

If your computers are close together, you can use prebuilt patch cables to connect your computers to a switch or router. (The term patch cable originated in the telephone industry—in the old days, switchboard operators used patch cables to connect, or “patch,” one phone circuit to another.) You can run these cables through the habitable area of your home or office by routing them behind furniture, around partitions, and so on. Just don’t put them where they’ll be crushed, walked on, tripped over, run over by desk chair wheels, or chewed by pets.

Tip

As you install each network card and plug in the cables, you should ...