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Pc Communications

My Computer

In this lesson, you will learn:

• Introduction to Communications
• The Basics
• Modems
• LANS and WANS

Introduction to Internet Communications

PC Communications includes the use of modems, routers and switches to communicate with Wide Area Networks (WANS), Local Area Networks (LANS) and On-Line services (Internet). This includes either internal networks, as in this school, or International networks, as in the Internet. Help Desk is included here.

The basics

Data communications is the transfer of coded data from one point to another. The coded data might represent news and weather information, stock prices, an address book or database of names and addresses, E-Mail, or another computer program. Any data that can be saved on your PC can be communicated by telephone line or cable connection to another computer. Computers store and retrieve their own data and execute programs that segment raw data into small packets and monitor the state of the data communication itself.

Modems

Until recently, the modem was the most widely used device for communicating programs and data between computers, but now there are both land line devices such as Cable modems, Ethernet and DSL Modems, as well as wireless devices utilizing Microwave and Satellites. Early modems were almost all external, with cradles for the telephone receiver to lay in. The faster modems were internal cards that boosted speeds to 56k. Most recent modems up until now have been internal, but now there are outside devices that plug into the existing computer hardware through Cable TV and USB.

LANS and WANS

LAN (Local area network) and WAN (Wide area network) are other communication technologies. Local area networks, such as this school, use intranets that have all of the computers connected to several central locations within the organization, while Wide area networks, like the Internet, have computers connected outside of the organization. The Internet is governed by different organizations on the International level, whereas the LAN intranets are governed by the rules of the organization that created it.