Networks and their uses
By Harry Munro-Clark
IP addressing
•Also known as an "IP number" or simply an "IP," this is a code made up of numbers separated by three dots that identifies a particular computer on the Internet. Numbers from 0-255
•The IP address acts as a locator for one IP device to find another and interact with it.
•It is not intended, however, to act as an identifier that always uniquely identifies a particular device.
•In current practice, an IP address is not always a unique identifier, due to technologies such as dynamic assignment and network address translation
MAC addressing
Protocol
•A communications protocol is a system of digital message formats and rules for exchanging those messages in or betweencomputing systems and in telecommunications. A protocol may have a formal description. Protocols may include signaling,authentication and error detection and correction capabilities.
Packets
•In computer networking, a packet is a formatted unit of data carried by a packet mode computer network. Computer communications links that do not support packets, such as traditional point-to-point telecommunications links, simply transmit data as a series of bytes, characters, or bits alone. When data is formatted into packets, the bitrate of the communication medium can be better shared among users than if the network were circuit switched.