Doug Lowe - Networking For Dummies

Networking For Dummies, 10th Edition

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Copyright 2013 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2013933934

ISBN 978-1-118-47408-2 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-118-47412-9 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-47411-2 (ebk); ISBN 978-1-118-47414-3 (ebk)

Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

About the Author

Doug Lowe has written enough computer books to line all the birdcages in California. His other books include Networking All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies (now in its fourth edition), PowerPoint 2013 For Dummies , Java All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies , and Electronics All-in-One For Dummies .

Although Doug has yet to win a Pulitzer Prize, he remains cautiously optimistic. He is hopeful that Claude-Michel Schnberg and Alain Boublil will turn this book into a musical, titled Les Rseau Miserables . (Hopefully the role of the vengeful network administrator will be played by someone who can sing.)

Doug lives in sunny Fresno, California, where the nearby Sierra Nevada mountains are visible through the smog at least three or four glorious days every year.

Dedication

This one is for mom. I will miss you so.

Authors Acknowledgments

Id like to thank project editor Christopher Morris, who did a great job of managing all the editorial work that was required to put this book together, and Amy Fandrei, who made the whole project possible. Id also like to thank Dan DiNicolo, who gave the entire manuscript a thorough technical review and offered many excellent suggestions, as well as copy editor Teresa Artman, who made sure the is were crossed and the ts were dotted (oops, reverse that!). And, as always, thanks to all the behind-the-scenes people who chipped in with help Im not even aware of.

Publishers Acknowledgments

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Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:

Acquisitions and Editorial

Sr. Project Editor: Christopher Morris

Acquisitions Editor: Amy Fandrei

Sr. Copy Editor: Teresa Artman

Technical Editor: Dan DiNicolo

Editorial Manager: Kevin Kirschner

Editorial Assistant: Annie Sullivan

Sr. Editorial Assistant: Cherie Case

Cover Photo: Spectral-Design / iStockphoto

Cartoons: Rich Tennant ( www.the5thwave.com )

Composition Services

Project Coordinator: Katherine Crocker

Layout and Graphics: Jennifer Creasey, Joyce Haughey

Proofreaders: Jessica Kramer, Kathy Simpson

Indexer: Slivoskey Indexing Services

Publishing and Editorial for Technology Dummies

Richard Swadley, Vice President and Executive Group Publisher

Andy Cummings, Vice President and Publisher

Mary Bednarek, Executive Acquisitions Director

Mary C. Corder, Editorial Director

Publishing for Consumer Dummies

Kathleen Nebenhaus, Vice President and Executive Publisher

Composition Services

Debbie Stailey, Director of Composition Services

Introduction

W elcome to the tenth edition of Networking For Dummies, the book thats written especially for people who have this nagging feeling in the back of their minds that they should network their computers but havent 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 cant use the fancy color laser printer thats on the financial secretarys 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 its 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, youve 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 dont 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, Whats the big deal? I can do this!