Networks are simply things connected. For example, your friendship circle: you are all connected because of similar interests, hobbies, skills and sorts.
Networks can be found in all walks of life:
- A city's public transportation system
- Infrastructure such as the national power grid for electricity
- Meeting and greeting your neighbours
- Postal systems for sending letters and parcels
But more specifically, in computing, networking is the same idea, just dispersed to technological devices. Take your phone as an example; the reason that you have it is to access things. We'll cover how these devices communicate with each other and the rules that follow.
In computing, a network can be formed by anywhere from 2 devices to billions. These devices include everything from your laptop and phone to security cameras, traffic lights and even farming!
Networks are integrated into our everyday life. Be it gathering data for the weather, delivering electricity to homes or even determining who has the right of way at a road. Because networks are so embedded in the modern-day, networking is an essential concept to grasp in cybersecurity.
Take the diagram below as an example, Alice, Bob and Jim have formed their network! We'll come onto this a bit later on.
