Network Essentials: Security, Components, and Usage

Posted on Mar 13, 2025 in Computers

Network Passwords and Security

Usually, you need a password to use a network. It is important to keep your password secret. The following rules make a password more difficult to guess:

  • Should be at least 6 characters long.
  • Have a mixture of numbers and letters.
  • Include both capital and small letters.
  • Be easy to remember.

Should not:

  • Be a word from a dictionary.
  • Be a common name.
  • Include spaces, hyphens, dots, or *$.

If the cable fails, the whole network will fail. If you don’t use the right password, you won’t get access to the network. If you place a floppy disk near a magnet, you will destroy the data.

Network Components

  • Server: Most networks…
  • Client: This is the desktop…
  • Peripherals: Once you have…
  • Hub: Desktops typically…

Basic Network Concepts

  1. What is a network? A network is a group of interconnected devices which exchange information and share resources.
  2. What are its hardware components? The exchange of information among network members.
  3. What is the difference between a local area network and a wide area network? In a LAN, the computers are connected with wires, while in a WLAN, computers are connected wirelessly.

Understanding Computer Interfaces

  1. This is a window which appears when information about a choice is needed or when options have to be selected: Dialog Box.
  2. This indicates the amount of space between the dots which make up the image on a monitor: Aperture grill pitch.
  3. This is part of the screen which is used to select an action, usually by clicking the mouse button over it: Command button.
  4. This is a measure of the number of dots which make up the image on a monitor: Maximum resolution.
  5. This shows a list of choices which the user can select from using the pointer: Drop-down list box.
  6. This is part of a dialog box where the user can type file names and other information: Text Box.
  7. This is the speed at which the monitor refreshes the image on the screen: Refresh rate.
  8. This is a small picture on the screen which represents a program or folder: Icon.

Exit Windows Dialog Box

  1. What does this computer screen show? A text, and two buttons. (This screen shows a Windows dialog box which allows you to shut down the session.)
  2. What do you use this dialog box for? You use this dialog box to close Windows.
  3. What features does the dialog box contain? This dialog box contains text, the OK and Cancel buttons.
  4. What happens if you click on each button? If you click the OK button, the system switches off. If you click the Cancel button, you return to Windows.

Computer Terminology

  1. Crosshair: +
  2. Hourglass: ⏳
  3. PC: The personal computer which people use, AND is a personal computer which is most common in homes.
  4. Menu: You can find it in computers (electronic devices).
  5. Pointer: The arrow which points or selects a program, a file, etc.
  6. Window: which any computer program has.

Floppy Disk

Advantages: Most computers use floppy disks. You can use them to carry data. They are also very cheap. Disadvantages: They are slow and have a limited capacity.

Fixed Hard Disk

Advantages: They are fast and can store much greater amounts of data than floppies. Disadvantages: You cannot use them to transfer data.

Removable Hard Disk

Advantages: You can move data. They are almost as fast as fixed hard disks and have high capacities.

Using a lightpen, you can print… A scanner can be used to draw pictures… A trackerball works in… A joystick is another input… A barcode is a pattern of printed black lines which supermarkets use for pricing.

  1. A floppy disk can hold 1.44 MB of data.
  2. A motherboard is a printed circuit board which controls all the others.
  3. A password is a secret set of characters which allows access to a computer.
  4. A monitor is an output device which displays data on a screen.
  5. A disk drive is a unit which reads and writes to disks.
  6. An expansion card is an electronic board which adds features to a computer.
  7. A CD-ROM drive is a common storage device which reads from a CD disk.
  8. A notebook is a portable computer which is about the size of a piece of paper.
  9. The system unit is the main part of a computer which contains the main electronic components.

Client: A network computer used for accessing a service on a server. Server: A main computer that provides a service on a network.