Computer Networks: Transmission Media

Transmission media carries the information or data from sender to receiver. When choosing the transmission media, the factors to be considered are:

1. Transmission Rate
2. Distances
3. Cost and Ease of Installation
4. Resistance to Environmental Conditions

Various physical media can be used to transport a stream of bits from one device to another. Each has its own characteristics in terms of bandwidth, propagation delay, cost, and ease of installation and maintenance. Media can be generally classified as:

1. Wired or Guided Media or Bound Transmission Media: like Copper and Fiber cable
2. Wireless or Unguided Media or Unbound Transmission Media: like Wireless Radio Transmissions

Switching Techniques

In large networks there might be multiple paths linking sender and receiver. Information may be switched as it travels through various communication channels. Hence for transmitting data across networks, Switching Techniques are used. These are:

1. Circuit Switching
2. Message Switching
3. Packet Switching

Hence lets study them in detail.

MATLAB: Operators, Constants, Variables and Expressions

An M-File contains a set of instructions written by the user using certain words and symbols according to the syntax rules specified in MATLAB. Any MATLAB command given in the command window can be used in an M-File. MATLAB contains various features and commands that make it a widely used and preferred language. This is because

Ø  It has incredibly powerful matrix and vector notations that make the coding compact.

Ø  It invisibly handles all memory allocations and supports file input/output, and string manipulation.

Ø  It contains a large set of functions that are available

Ø  It is equipped with powerful debugging features to locate and remove errors in M-Files

Network Classification by Specialised Functions

Welcome everyone!
If you have been following my recent blog posts, you'd know that we have studied networks of various kinds by classifying them on the basis of:

1. The respective ranges those networks have and the areas they cover. These include PAN, LAN, WLAN, MAN and WAN.
2. The functional relationships those networks share. These include Client-Server Networks and Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Networks.
3. The way the nodes of the network are arranged to form the network. In other words, on the basis of the network topology. These include Bus, Star, Ring, Mesh and Tree Networks.

After we have studied all these types of network, we can be confident of possessing a basic fundamental idea of the organization of the networks around us. However, some types of networks have come up with advancements in technology which are so diverse in features and so important in today's world, that it is almost imperative that we must study about them. They perform a variety of roles in a variety of fields serving a variety of people with a variety of interests. We can hence classify networks based on specialised functions. While studying these networks, a basic thing to be kept in mind is that these are very complex and differentiated networks, possibly utilizing a number of technologies which are complex as well. These are a lot different than the basic networks we have studied till now. We'll be covering a particular number of them in this post.
Hence lets get started!

Network Classification by Network Topology

Welcome everyone!
Following my last blog post on Network Classification based on Functional Relationships of Networks around us, is today's blog over Network Classification on the basis of their topology.

To classify networks on the basis of topology, first we have to understand what topology is.  
Topology is "the way in which constituent parts are interrelated or arranged". 

Computer Networks can be arranged in a variety of ways, each way presenting its own advantages and disadvantages. These arrangements form the basis of classification of networks on the basis of topology as we'll see now. 

Network Classification by Functional Relationships

Networks can also be classified according to their respective functions and structure hierarchy. The classification that forms hence is:

Networks Classified by Functional Relationship

1. Client-Server Networks
2. Peer-to-Peer Networks

Also, we'll be studying the salient features of the Multi-tier Architecture of Client-Server Networks which I'm sure is very interesting.

So let's get started!

Some Basic Commands in MATLAB

      

MATLAB, on opening, shows 2 screens, one of which is the command window and the other is the editor.

The command window is used to execute all the commands, while the editor is used to write your code.

When some basic commands are entered on the command window, a result corresponding to the command is displayed. The command window can perform basic operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, logarithm etc.

">>" is known as the command prompt. It appears automatically on every new line in the command window.

For example, when we enter "2+3" in the command window, the value 5 will be assigned to a variable.

"Ans" is a default variable, and the value is assigned to this variable if no other is specified.

>>2+3

>>Ans =

>> 5

An Introduction To MATLAB

MATLAB (short for Matrix-Laboratory) is a software package designed specifically to perform scientific computations and visualizations. It was developed by MathWorks, first released in 1984. It is an Object-Oriented Language, and contains features such as classes, inheritance etc. Besides a large variety of default built-in functions, user-defined functions can also be included and used. MATLAB includes C and C++ Math libraries that support the development of stand-alone applications.

The basic data type in MATLAB is a matrix. Matrices are defined as arrays. A scalar in MATLAB is treated as a matrix of a single row and a single column. Single-row vectors and a single-column vectors are treated as horizontal and vertical vectors respectively. Variables and their types need not be declared, and can be directly initialized.

Classification of Computer Networks by Range

Computer Networks can be divided into the following types on the basis of the area which they cover or in other words, on the basis of the range they have.

Network Classification by Range:

1. Personal Area Network (PAN)
2. Local Area Network (LAN)
3. Wireless LAN (WLAN)
4. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
5. Wide Area Network (WAN)

Classification of Computer Networks

A computer network is a system for communication among two or more computers or workstations. Computer networks can be sorted by range, functional relationship, network topology and specialized function. Hence following are the different types of networks along with the determining factors:

Types of Internet Connections

As technology grows, so does our requirement for greater, better and speedier Internet connections. Throughout the years the way content is displayed by means of the Web has additionally changed radically. Ten years back having the capacity to show striking messages in diverse colors on a page was something to respect. Today, Flash, animations, internet gaming, video streaming, database-driven sites, e-trade are the norm. Hence following are the different Internet Connection Types as indicated by the diverse data bandwidth necessities: 

1. Dial-Up Connections 
2. Cable Connections
3. DSL Connections
4. Leased Line Connections
5. Optical Carrier Connections
6. Internet over Satellite Connections

Computer Network Configurations

Networks are established with a basic idea of what requirements they are supposed to fulfill and what type of clients they are supposed to serve. We'll look at the classification of networks on the basis of "requirements" later. In this post, me and you, are going to study about types of network configurations. These configurations are based on the type of the type of clients they are set up for.

The two types of network configurations are:

1. Point-to-Point Configuration
2. Multipoint Configuration

Network Design Criteria

Every Computer Network set up needs to meet certain demands or requirements for the organization its being set up. These requirements are collectively studied under Network Criteria. The major criteria that a Data Communication Network must meet are:

1. Performance: Performance is the defined as the rate of transferring error free data. It is measured by the Response Time. Response Time is the elapsed time between the end of an inquiry and the beginning of a response.

Relevance of Computer Networks

Before reading this article, I advise you to read an Introduction to Computer Networking.

Computer networking is important because it provides businesses and corporations with a more clear and reliable source of connection between one another. Networking all the computers in the office gives all employees access to the same materials, making it easier to provide information to company employees, as well as customers. This is especially true in customer relations and customer service positions. Computer networking eliminates the need for the customer to keep track of their issues, and instead, these issues can be passed along if, and when needed.

Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy for http://www.thecheesygeek.com/ If you require any more information or have any questions about our privacy policy, please feel free to contact us at any of the options provided at the Contact Us section of About Us blog post. At http://www.thecheesygeek.com/, the privacy of our visitors is of extreme importance to us. This privacy policy document outlines the types of personal information is received and collected by http://www.thecheesygeek.com/ and how it is used.

About Us

The founder of this blog is Shubham Mehta (aka TheCheesyGeek).

I am a student doing my graduate studies in Computer Science Engineering from India and aim to share all the information that I learn or discover in the days to come on this blog. I hope to share and learn a lot from this experience and welcome suggestions from anyone. Your feedback is always welcome. Feel free to always contact me.

And if you think you can contribute so as to take this to a higher level, in any manner whatsoever, it'll be really great to listen from you. 

Meet your own TheCheesyGeek! :)

"All you TechGeeks out there! Here's the chance to keep your adrenaline rush high with all the trends in the ever-changing world of technology! Keep yourself updated and let your brain do the talking!"
- Sandeep Ravindra's words for us.

Introduction to Computer Networking

A Computer Network, often simply referred to as a Network, is a group of computers and devices interconnected by communication channels that facilitate communications among users and allows users to share resources and information.

In computer networks, networked computing devices pass data to each other along data connections. Network computer devices that originate, route and terminate the data are called network nodes. The connections (network links) between nodes are established using either cable media or wireless media.