Why networks are important

Why networks are important

A computer is a machine used to manipulate data. Humans, being communicative creatures, quickly understood why it would be useful to link computers to each other in order to exchange information.

A computer network can serve several distinct purposes:

• Sharing resources (files, applications or hardware, an Internet connection, etc.)
• Communication between people (email, live discussions, etc.)
• Communication between processes (such as between industrial computers)
• Guaranteeing full access to information for a specified group of people (networked databases)
• Multiplayer video games

Networks are also used for standardising applications. The term groupware is generally used to refer to tools that let multiple people work over a network. For example, email and group scheduling can be used to communicate more quickly and efficiently. Here's a glimpse of the advantages that such systems have:

• Lower costs, due to sharing data and peripherals,
• Standardising applications,
• Providing timely access to data,
• More efficient communication and organisation.

Today, with the Internet, networks have become more unified. It is clear, then, that there are several reasons to install a network, whether for a business or an individual.