Tips on Networking on Computers

Some short tips for surfing-

You can type a word in the Address bar and press CTRL+ENTER to automatically add https:// and .com on either side of the word.

If your e-mail program is Microsoft Outlook or Outlook Express, you can drag an Internet shortcut into an e-mail message.

You can rearrange your Favorites list or menu by dragging and dropping.

To print the current page or active frame, press CTRL+P.

If you want to know which actions you can perform on a favorite link, right-click the link on the Favorites menu.

To print a document, you can drag an Internet shortcut to a printer icon on your desktop.

You can keep your most frequently visited Web pages only a single click away by dragging a shortcut to the page onto the Links bar.

To scroll toward the end of a document, press the DOWN ARROW.

To scroll toward the end of a document in large increments, press PAGE DOWN.

You can type the friendly name of a favorite page in the Address bar, then select the page name in the AutoComplete list that appears.

To display the Links bar, a handy place to keep your favorite Web sites, click the View menu, point to Toolbars, and then click Links.

To quickly print just one frame of a Web page, right-click inside the frame, and then click Print.

You can print a table of all the links associated with a Web page. In the Print dialog box, click Print table of links.

Clicking the Search button displays a search service on the left side of your screen and a Web page on the right.

To move backward or forward within the Search bar, right-click within the Search bar, and then click Back or Forward on the menu that appears.

To search from the Address bar, type go, find, or? followed by a word or phrase, and then press ENTER.

You can mark favorites or Links bar items for offline reading by right-clicking an item and then clicking Make available offline.

You can specify whether to accept'cookies' on your computer for each security zone. For more information, look up'cookies' in the Help Index.

You can rearrange shortcuts on the Links bar by dragging and dropping them.

To change the color of links on Web pages, click the Tools menu, click Internet Options, and then click the Colors button.

To open a new Internet Explorer window, press CTRL+N.

You can print all documents that are linked to a specific Web page. In the Print dialog box, click Print all linked documents.

To rename an item on the Favorites list or on the Links bar, right-click the item, and then click Rename.

You can drag your toolbar, Links bar, and Address bar anywhere you want them. You can even combine them to save space.

For more information about Internet Explorer features, click the Help menu and then click Contents and Index.

To see the names of the buttons on the toolbar, click the View menu, point to Toolbars, click Customize, and then click Show Text.

To stop downloading a page, press ESC.

To change your home page to the page you have open, click the Tools menu, click Internet Options, and then click Use Current.

To gain space on your hard disk by deleting temporary files, click the Tools menu, click Internet Options, and then click Delete Files.

You can add folders to your Favorites list by clicking the Favorites menu and then clicking Organize Favorites.

You can remove a shortcut from your Favorites or Links list or menu by right-clicking it and then clicking Delete.

To turn off the underlines in Web page links, click the Tools menu, click Internet Options, and then click the Advanced tab.

To change a favorite site's offline properties, right-click the item on your Favorites list, and then click Properties.

To screen which Web sites can appear on your computer, click the Tools menu, click Internet Options, click the Content tab, and then click Enable.

You can use Profile Assistant and Microsoft Wallet to store personal information securely.

To go to the next page, press ALT+RIGHT ARROW.

To go to the previous page, press ALT+LEFT ARROW or BACKSPACE.

You can see a list of Web sites you have visited recently by clicking the History button on the toolbar.

You can move your cursor into the Address bar by pressing ALT+D.

You can tell if the Web site you're on is secure; a lock icon appears on the status bar. For more information, double-click the icon.

You can add and remove buttons on the toolbar by right-clicking the toolbar and then clicking Customize.

You can save a Web page for offline reading by clicking the File menu and then clicking Save As.

Instead of clicking the Back button, you can press the BACKSPACE key to move back a page.

You can switch between a regular-sized Internet Explorer window and full-screen mode by pressing F11.

To save a page or picture without opening it, right-click the link for the item you want, and then click Save Target As.

You can get e-mail when a Web site changes. First make the site available for reading offline, then change its Download tab properties.

To make Web pages load faster, click the Tools menu, click Internet Options, click the Advanced tab, then turn off sounds and pictures.

When you add a Web page to your Favorites list, you can also make it available to read when you're not connected to the Internet.

To move to the beginning of a document, press the HOME key.

To move to the end of a document, press END.

To see a list of all Internet addresses you have typed during this session, click the small down arrow at the right end of the Address bar.

You can set a different level of security for each Web site. On the Tools menu, click Internet Options, and then click the Security tab.

To search for a word or phrase on a Web page, press CTRL+F to open the Find dialog box.

You can close the current window by pressing CTRL+W.

To display a list of the Internet addresses you have typed in the Address bar, press F4.

In the Address bar, you can quickly move the cursor back between parts of the address by pressing CTRL+LEFT ARROW.

In the Address bar, you can quickly move the cursor forward between parts of the address by pressing CTRL+RIGHT ARROW.

If you use Netscape, you can learn about differences in Internet Explorer by clicking the Help menu and then clicking For Netscape Users.

To go to a new location, press CTRL+O.

You can install more Internet Explorer components by clicking the Tools menu and then clicking Windows Update.

If you want to learn more about using the World Wide Web, click the Help menu and then click Tour.

You can quickly put a shortcut to any Web page on your desktop by right-clicking in the page and then clicking Create Shortcut.

To see how any Web page was coded, right-click in the page, and then click View Source.

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As a student of computer science I always have to learn the networking.In my primary classes I had to learn-

BASIC IDEAS OF NETWORKING-

The types of networking:-generally networks are 3 type.

1)lan(local area network)

2)man(metropolitan area network)

3)wan(wide area network)

Lan provide efficient optimized  communications over a moderately sized geographic area(such as an office building, ware house, campus or factroy.).A lan can be

defined as a communication vehicle for interconnecting computing elements via well defined interface mechanism.(the computing elements can be micro computers

mini computers, or mainframe computers).Most LANs do not exceed distances of 10 km.In LAN short distance and high data rate are the most important

characteristic.The following reasons for the popularity of Lans-

i)A availability of low cost, high performance micro computers

ii)The development of inexpensive network components.

iii)The introduction of cost effective, powerful networking software.

Man is those type of network where  a network is needed within a system or city.Such as Indian rail way railway reservation system is an example of MAN.

Wan is a collection of LANs.As the name suggests WAN spread accross countries and continents, satellites being one of the transmission media.The network

can be a private system made up from a network of circuits leased from the local Telephone company or set up using public systems as virtual private networks.

The main distinguishing feature between WAN & LAN is that, the LAN is under the complete control of the owner, where as the WAN needs the involvement

of another authority like the Telephone Company.Lans are also able to handle very high data transfer rates at low cost because of the limited area covered.

Lans have a lower error rate than Wans.

INTERNET:-

After the invention of internet a great revolution has occurred in the comunication system.Internet is the collection of WANs.(Remember Lan is not neccessary to

connect in a wan).

As a computer user we need the following things for internetworking:-

1)A P.C

2)a telephone line

3)an operating system(generaly win9x, xp, .;Unix/linux etc etc)

4)Modem

5)an ISP connection(ISP=internet service provider)

6)Additional mendatory thing:-An antivirus system.

And try to learn some basic things such as Email, Surfing etc etc. from your nearest cyber cafe.

CArefully use the internet.

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This will be a quickest method to do a peer to peer networking between 2 pcs.

Things Required.

2 PCI or Onboard Ethernet ports

1 RJ45 Cross Cable (Available in the Market, Readily Crimped)

Win 98 OS

Network Settings.

Make sure u add the following in the Network Settings in Control Panel

Install The Driver for the Ethernet Adapter and that will add it up in the adapter listing in the network settings

Now add TCP/IP Protocol

Now Add File/Print Sharing Services

Make sure in TCP/IP Settings, you specify the IP addresses as follows

10.0.0.1 for client A and 10.0.0.2 for Client B

Subnet mask must be 255.255.255.0 for both clients

Make sure the workgroup specified are the same for both the machines

Reboot both the machines

And if everything is proper, both IPs must ping each other.

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Hi Guys,

I read all of the other excellent reviews and they have probably already explained what vsk_saran had wanted to know . But being the pain in the back side that I am I had to get in and give a review .

Peer to Peer networks .

What is it? As the name suggests it is a network of equivalent computers . By equivalent computers I mean they are at the same level in a network, none of them directly or indirectly controlling the others.

How do they work, easy using broadcasts .When each computer gets online it send an alive poll around using network broadcasts with the essential data eg hostname, IP address, MAC address, share information . Each system already on the network picks up this information and refreshes its own list.

What are the advantages of using this kind of a network?  The biggest one is cost, there is hardly anything required besides the computers with NIC's, cables and a hub in case of more than one computer .For small offices with not a very big budget this is an ideal setup .

Biggest Disadvantage: It is terribly slow . The primary reason for this is because peer to peer networks use broadcasts to communicate, this generates enormous amounts of traffic.Since this is irrespective of the protocol in use and it becomes a nightmare to use if you have more computers.

How to create a peer to peer network: incase of more than 2 computers, buy a hub . Buy straight cables and connect each of the PC's to the hub . Power the hub on and power all the machines on . In the network properties(will vary from OS to OS) chose TCP/IP as the protocol you want to use. Eventhough the easiest to use is Netbeui, TCP/IP comes in very very handy specially in this internet age . This will involve a little more configuration though. You will need to set the IP addresses on every PC .Use IP addresses from the following Subnets 10.X.X.X, 172.X.X.X, 192.X.X.X . The reason for this being that these are reserved IP blocks for private networks . Normally what I have done in the past is to give the IP address 192.168.1.1 to the first computer, then 2, 3 and so on .No 2 PC's can have the same IP address and this way you normally dont make any mistakes.

In the case of Netbeui, you dont have to configure anything, just load the protocol up and reboot the PC . After a couple of refreshes you will start seeing the other computers on the Network Neighbourhood .

Why am I so hell bent on using TCP IP if netbeui is so simple to install? Easy, with TCP IP you tend to get a lot of fringe benefits.  You can go ahead and share an internet connection amongst all the comps on the network . Just set the gateway address in the TCP IP property page to the IP address of the computer dialled up the internet and you are ready to go . This is of course provided that you have a modem connected to one of the computers and have dialled up to the internet from it.

In case you have only 2 computers, you dont need a hub at all, use a cross over cable and connect the 2 comps up . This has been very well explained in a couple of the previous reviews.

With the price of hardware and software going down it will always be better to use a non p2p network simply because of the speed and the security it offers . Just my humble opinion,

Hopefully I have been able to do justice to this topic, I am ready for all the brickbats or bouquets . Imagine someone with my ID writing reviews about networks and computers .:-D  .

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On a Monday morning, I called up spooks; I needed his help on getting my computers to talk to each other, and all my efforts were going in vain. I remembered suddenly that he being affected by computerosis, was probably the best person whom I could call upon. Upon agreeing that I would treat him to  chicken burgers at Mc Donald’s, spooks finally agreed to fly from Queensland to Baltimore!(I didn’t intend to have him for more than a day:))

On seeing the mess I had made of myself with computers he remarked ”basics my friend, is the first step of networking! Its obvious that you need a special lesson on networking from the lord of networking!”.(sigh).There we go, I thought!

On being treated with a burger(clever of him to make me pay before telling me anything), spoke spooks -Essentially, get your fundamentals right! What do you want to do? Connect two computers or connect more than two computers?(pause). Was that a question to me? What was I gonna answer? I mean, two is fine by me, but if I have to connect three then….”Ah, my friend” spoke spooks “ 2 or 3 don’t maketh a difference to you, eh? Keep in mind, two computers, you may not have to use hub or a router, just simple plain cat-5 cable will do. More than two, hub or router is a better option”.(confusions galore) Hub? Router? Cat-5? 5 cats? Or cat no. 5? What the hell is he talking about?

”Apparently you are confused!” spoke spooks with a glee that could have stretched from Alaska to Alabama. ”You want to know what they are aren’t you?”(before I can say no…just connect those computers…)”Cat-5 is cable standard used for networking. With out it, you are a dead duck in networking. Get it right: Cat – 5 is not a cat, it’s a cable to connect two 2  computers. Again, there are two types of Cats…I mean, Cat-5’s- One is the normal one, and the other is a twisted Cat-5 cable. The twisted one is the one that you will use to connect two computers.  More than 2 computers you got to use normal Cat – 5 with a hub or router. So far so good?”(a meek nod) I nodded yes and asked ”If I want to connect without  Cat -5 cable….”

”Nonsense! Just follow whatever I am saying. Connecting without cat-5? U must be joking?! Any how Hub is a device which allows you connect more than 2 computers together. Router is another device which does the same. I wont explain technicalities here, for I can guess you wont understand it, can you?”(another nod) I quipped – “Hub, Router, does it make a difference…?”(before I can complete)”Of course, certainly, surely! For a hub to operate, one computer needs to route all the information from other computers. In a sense, one computer needs to be a server. With a router, you need not do that! All computers can be individually connected to the router, which will either interconnect you or connect you to another networks – so there you see, router is always the preferred option!**”

(another nod, drowsy feeling)”Okay, but how do I go about connecting them, do tell me please” I pleaded. ”Not now! – you promised me that you are taking me to Hooters!”(did I?).”The next lesson will be after we come back!”(what a dread I thought!).

After we came back from Hooters in the afternoon(a good 100$ spent…mine of course!) spoke spooks-”I see that you don’t have a network card. How about going to downtown and getting few?(Did I need one?, downtown – NO!) However after another two hours and yet another visit to Mc Donald’s, spoke spooks - ” I think experience is the best teacher…I will do the talking…you do the connecting…do you have a TV? Do u get HBO? Yeah…great! Call me if you need help!”(what…the…). The fear of having him back made me connect the network cards, by looking at the do it yourself kit in it! However after a while I had to call -”what do I do next, spooks?”. ”Connect - he called out!(great, fine, thank you!, how?)

”Connect the two computers by the cat-5 twisted cable you bought. Restart your computer. If all goes well, then you should see each other in each other’s computer. If not, then change a few things. Like, go to settings, change the TCP/IP configuration and assign a local area network IP…namely…192.168.xxx.xxx series. If that doesn’t work, check whether the two computers are in the same network neighborhood by clicking on the my networks icon in control panel. If you are using windows XP, make sure your NetBIOS is enabled – its disabled by default in windows XP, and you will need it to connect two computers in a networks. If you are able to see each other, voila all is well” shouted spooks ”And if you need any more help, don’t bother me man…I got to watch Star Wars Episode 2 on HBO!.(what a great help he has been!). Remorse, I started the venture on my own. At repeated intervals, I tried connecting to spooks, but all I heard was swissssssssssssshes and swooooooooooooooooshes  from the other room! Finally after recalling what he spoke and doing them and after some trials, to my horrifying surprise, I made it!(Cant I kick this guy out right now….I thought)

My repeated attempts to convince that Queensland(job done…please go!) is better place turned in vain - ”Man you are sick! I got to give you more of my knowledge - until that happens, I am not budging!” spoke spooks - ”Tell me one thing – if you were to connect wirelessly, how would you do it?”(I could see his devilish grin again…of course I didn’t know, and he knew I didn’t know)”I know you don’t know! Its simple, you have to get yourself a couple of Wi-Fi wireless networking cards. They are damn cheap you know. With it you also need the wireless router, which is not cheap! Now, what you do is, connect your router or the hub to the wireless router, and your wireless card to your PC or laptop, and  your wireless network is ready…of course you did need to configure your router and the wi fi card to a preset identification key and a ID.”(STOP…I shouted…you better email me that stuff I lamented!) Fortunately, Spooks  produced something which made me happy outright - ”Tickets to Australia, today at 8…you know you aren’t the only person who needs my knowledge!”. I couldn’t believe my eyes! YIPPEEEEE! Out of happiness, I treated spooks to yet another burger!

At 8 in the evening, I was glad to send him off! I was grateful to him, for having me taught networking, and of course going back!  But eh – spooks was right about one thing though – Experience is the best teacher, I mean I learnt how to connect right?!

On the next Monday morning, I  got a call from spooks - ”Buddy, do you have any idea as to how I am supposed to design a website?”. I couldn’t have asked for more – MY CHANCE now!

p.s: This review is dedicated to spookay.one of the best writers here!

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For P2P networking, the best bet is to have a networking card in both PC's and use a crossover cable.  A crossover cable can be purchased from most computer stores for about 15-20 USD.  This allows both PC's to communicate at whatever speed the card is(10/100.)

Assign one computer the IP address of 10.1.1.0 and assign 10.1.1.1 to the other.  Share a drive and you're off!

Regular ethernet cables will only work if there's a hub in use between the two PC's(PC to hub.)  You'll still have to assign the IP addresses.

I keep a crossover cable in my laptop bag for just such an emergency.  Works without fail every time!

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A peer to peer network is pretty easy to set up if you're using windows, but you will also be limited to the size of you're network.  If you're only networking two computers then this is a simple solution, but for more than that you will want a hub or switch.

To set up your network first you will need a network card installed in each computer.  That shouldn't be too hard, just follow the instructions that come with the card.  Then connect the two cards with an RJ45 CROSSOVER cable.  It is important that it is a crossover cable. After cards are installed and connected go through these steps for each computer: Go to My Computer - Control Panel - Network and Dial-up Connections.  You should see your network card listed in Network and Dial-up Connections.  Right-click on it and select properties.  In the general tab you will see a box that says'Components checked are used by this connection:'  You should check'Client for Microsoft Windows', 'File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Windows', and'Internet Protocol(TCP/IP).'  Next highlight Internet Protocol(TCP/IP) and click the properties button.  In the properties window select'Use the Following IP Address:' For the IP addresses for the computers use any two IPs that are different, but on the same subnet(Ex. 65.78.98.1 and 65.78.98.2).  For the subnet mask enter 255.255.255.0, then click ok on all windows that are open.  Restart your computer and you should be good to go.

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You have been thinking about Networking your computers for some time now, but you just don't know what to do first.

Maybe your network started out with a couple of computers and a printer, but now they are no longer meeting the demands of your business.  Or maybe you added one piece of equipment at a time and ended up with a closet full of wires that no one in your office really understands.  Perhaps it is just time to move up to a system that can keep up with the demands of your business.

Introduction

Virtual Private Networks(VPNs) offer the capability of interconnecting private network resources, such as workstation and servers, over public networks like the Internet. As with any network deployment, careful planning must precede any VPN implementation. Specifically, this plan must address questions related to connectivity and security.  This article covers the concept of VPN networks.

Planning a VPN

Some implementations will require little or no modification to an existing network, while others will require careful coordination with existing routers, firewalls, network address translators, and other networking equipment.

Network Connectivity

The main purposes of a VPN are to provide connectivity to a corporate network consisting of several geographically distinct corporate offices, and to provide access to traveling employees or telecommuters. A corporate office generally consists of a set of workstations that are interconnected with a LAN(local area network) and share a common link to a public network such as the Internet.  Workstations in a corporate office often have fixed IP addresses or use dynamic addresses in a limited, pre-defined range. Telecommuters and traveling employees typically use single workstations(desktop or laptop computers) with dial-up connections to a public network. Workstations for telecommuters and traveling employees often have dynamically assigned IP addresses over a wide, unknown range.

Building Virtual Private Networks

One major aspect of planning a VPN is to determine the connectivity requirements between corporate offices, telecommuters, and traveling employees.  A VPN that allows any network resource in the branch office to communicate with any network resource in the corporate headquarters can be established; or, a VPN can be very explicit, allowing an individual network resource in the branch office to connect to only one or two network resources at the corporate headquarters.  Determining which network resources should be linked via a VPN depends on the applications used on the various systems.

VPNs are typically platform independent. This means that systems running different operating systems can share a common router for Internet connectivity, and workstations running multiple operating systems can be interconnected using VPNs.  Any computer system that is configured to run on an IP network can be incorporated into VPN with no modifications required!

Conclusion

Integrating VPNs into a corporate network should follow a similar process to deploying any other network device. CEO’s careful planning before installing and configuring equipment is important to achieve a successful deployment. Our planning includes consideration of which networks and/or clients require connections through a VPN, and what other security and networking functions are operating in conjunction with VPN services.

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To connect 2 pcs is simple u can do by making a cross/by pass cable. the method is to either go to the cable shop and ask to make a cross cable, which is done by connecting 2 rj 45 connectors, with a cat-5 cable. u must make sure that when u hold the rj connector face up(where u can see the connecting wires) from left is no1(there are 4 twisted pairs) connect 1 to 3, 2 to 6, rest is straight, i.e. 4 to 4, 5 to 5 7 to 7 8 to 8. please mark it as peer to peer cross cable. in case of more than 2 pcs u have to connect through the hub, which is expexsive compared to the lan card. lan card is rs 300/= then cable is rs 9/m(for 10m it is rs 90/=) and hub min 6 port, is rs 1500/= parambir

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