computer network

A computer network or data network is a telecommunications network which allows computers to exchange data. In computer networks, networked computing devices exchange data with each other using a data link. The connections between nodes are established using either cable media or wireless media. The best-known computer network is the Internet.

Network computer devices that originate, route and terminate the data are called network nodes.^[1] Nodes can include hosts such aspersonal computers, phones, servers as well as networking hardware. Two such devices can be said to be networked together when one device is able to exchange information with the other device, whether or not they have a direct connection to each other.

Computer networks differ in the transmission medium used to carry their signals, communications protocols to organize network traffic, the network's size, topology and organizational intent.

Computer networks support an enormous number of applications and services such as access to the World Wide Web, digital video,digital audio, shared use of application and storage servers, printers, and fax machines, and use of email and instant messagingapplications as well as many others. In most cases, application-specific communications protocols are layered (i.e. carried aspayload) over other more general communications protocols.