Draft:Outline of computer networks

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to computer networks:

In computer science, computer engineering, and telecommunications, a network is a group of communicating computers and peripherals known as hosts, which communicate data to other hosts via communication protocols, as facilitated by networking hardware.

What type of things are computer networks?

Computer networking can be described as all of the following:

• Information theory

Types of computer networks

• Personal area network
• Local area network
• Campus network
• Metropolitan area network
• Wide area network
• Storage area network
• Virtual private network

History of computer networks

History of computer networks

Data transmission

Data transmission

Wired transmission

• Public switched telephone network
  • Modems and dialup
• Dedicated lines — leased lines
• ISDN
• DSL
• Time-division multiplexing(TDM)
• Packet switching
• Frame relay
• PDH
• Ethernet
• RS-232
• RS-485
• Optical fiber transmission
  • Synchronous optical networking(SONET)
  • Fiber distributed data interface

Wireless transmission

Wireless

Extreme Short range

• • ZigBee
• Short range
  • Bluetooth
  • InfraRed(IrDA)
• Medium range
  • WiFi(IEEE 802.11)
  • WiMax(IEEE 802.16)
• Long range
  • Satellite
  • MMDS
  • SMDS
  • Mobile phone data transmission (channel access methods)
    • CDMA
    • CDPD
    • GSM
    • TDMA
  • Paging networks
    • DataTAC
    • Mobitex
    • Motient

See also

• Unsolved problems in computer science