Networking For Dummies. Doug Lowe

Introduction

      Welcome to the 12th edition of Networking For Dummies, the book that’s written especially for people who have this nagging feeling in the back of their minds that they should network their computers but haven’t a clue about how to start or where to begin.

      Do you often copy a spreadsheet to a flash drive just so you can give it to someone else in your office? Are you frustrated because you can’t use the fancy color laser printer that’s on the financial secretary’s computer? Do you wait in line to use the computer that has the customer database? You need a network!

      Or maybe you already have a network, but you have just one problem: Someone promised that a network would make your life easier, but it’s instead turned your computing life upside down. Just when you had this computer thing figured out, someone popped into your office, hooked up a cable, and said, “Happy networking!” Makes you want to scream.

      Regardless, you’ve found the right book. Help is here, within these humble pages.

      This book talks about networks in everyday (and often irreverent) terms. The language is friendly; you don’t need a graduate education to get through it. And the occasional potshot helps unseat the hallowed and sacred traditions of networkdom, bringing just a bit of fun to an otherwise dry subject. The goal is to bring the lofty precepts of networking down to earth, where you can touch them and squeeze them and say, “What’s the big deal? I can do this!”

About This Book

      This isn’t the kind of book you pick up and read from start to finish, as if it were a cheap novel. If I ever see you reading it at the beach, I’ll kick sand in your face. This book is more like a reference, the kind of book you can pick up, turn to just about any page, and start reading. Each chapter covers a specific aspect of networking, such as printing from the network, hooking up network cables, or setting up security so that bad guys can’t break in. Just turn to the chapter you’re interested in and start reading.

Each chapter is divided into self-contained chunks, all related to the major theme of the chapter. For example, the chapter on hooking up the network cable contains nuggets like these:

      You don’t have to memorize anything in this book. It’s a need-to-know book: You pick it up when you need to know something. Need to know what 100BaseT is? Pick up the book. Need to know how to create good passwords? Pick up the book. Otherwise, put it down and get on with your life.

      Feel free to skip the sidebars that appear throughout the book; these shaded gray boxes contain

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