Networking for Dummies [Paperback]

Doug Lowe (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0764504983 | ISBN-13: 978-0764504983 | Publication Date: June 15, 1999 | Edition: 4

The latest on Web servers, wireless networks, and file sharing!

Get going with hot tips on creating and managing large or small networks

Whether you want to manage a mega-network, build a small business network, or just connect the PCs down the hall, this guide gives you what you need to know without giving you a headache. From getting started to upgrading to Windows .NET Server, incorporating Macs, and going wireless, it's networking made easy, fast, and fun!

The Dummies Way

• Explanations in plain English
• "Get in, get out" information
• Icons and other navigational aids
• Tear-out cheat sheet
• Top ten lists
• A dash of humor and fun

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Computers in business environments become exponentially helpful and critical for daily operations when they're linked together in local area networks (LANs) that enable coworkers to share files, Internet access, and valuable resources like printers and plotters. Building a network of IBM-compatible PCs requires careful strategic planning, and Networking for Dummies, Fourth Edition, will help you sort out the technical details as painlessly as possible.

This book helps you figure out whether you need a LAN at all--the author isn't shy about recommending simpler solutions such as printer switches--and then helps you get everything hooked up. Mainly, Lowe describes LANs in an accurate and comprehensive, though somewhat generic, way.

Once it has been determined that you need a network operating system, Lowe describes the characteristics of several good ones (including NetWare 4.2, NetWare 5, Windows NT 4, and LANtastic). He also explains network architectures, cabling systems, and security issues. New to this edition is information on transforming your LAN into an intranet by adapting internal protocols to Internet standards. There's lots of solid information on troubleshooting and optimizing performance too.

Much of the valuable information in Networking for Dummies comes in the form of scenarios. Lowe uses short situations and explains, specifically, what networking hardware and software will be required or beneficial. Find a story that matches your situation and you'll be in business. --David Wall

Review

"...a good basics book...if you want to Ethernet more than a couple of machines." -- Portable Computing, May 2000

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 4 edition (June 15, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764504983
• ISBN-13: 978-0764504983
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,439,098 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Doug Lowe is a veteran author of more than 40 For Dummies books with more than a million copies in print. He's covered everything from productivity software to programming.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

107 of 111 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent introduction for the novice, October 2, 1999

By 

Michael Brand ([e-mail]) (San Antonio, Texas, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Networking for Dummies (Paperback)

This book (4th Edition) answered the questions I had about networking my small business. Specifically, I needed to know: 1) should I use a peer-to-peer or a client/server LAN, 2) if client/server, should the server be dedicated as a server or could the server also be used as a workstation, 3) which operating system would be most appropriate for the clients or peers, 4) which network operationing system would be most appropriate for a server, 5) is the installation of the network within my scope.

Before buying the book I had searched the Web in vain (both computing-specific sites and search engines) looking for answers to these questions. This book provided the information I needed to answer all five questions. The information is very product specific (eg, Novell NetWare can be difficult to install and the complication and expense is not justified for a five-user network; a peer-to-peer LAN is easy to set up with Win95 or Win98; PCI network cards are much easier to configure than the older styles). The book is well written (ie, easy to read, to-the-point, relevant).

If you decide to install a peer-to-peer LAN with Win98, this is probably the only book you will need. If you decide to install a client/server LAN with a network operating system (NOS) such as NetWare or NT Server, you will probably need a book specific to those systems for installation and maintenance (there are Dummy books for both systems - which I haven't yet read). If you don't know which NOS to use, this book can help you decide.

65 of 68 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Definately for beginners, December 21, 1999

By 

C. McGlone - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Networking for Dummies, Third Edition (Paperback)

Not a bad book, but it is VERY basic. If you have worked with a network before, there is little information you can glean from this text. For someone who knows little about networks, or computers as a whole, this may be a good purchase. Do not, however, expect this book to teach you everything you need to know about working with a network. It is very simple, which makes the topics easy to understand, but expect to get another book centering on your particular network if you plan to do some serious networking. I would, however, recommend this book to newbies in networking as it goes over terms and concepts that everyone must know.

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gives you all the basics on computer networks + some extras, June 10, 2002

By 

Dr. Eduard Van Kleef (Berlin, Germany) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Networking for Dummies (Paperback)

Who this book is for: This book is intended to help the absolute beginner in computer networking get a basic overview of the issues and terminology involved. It is well-written and contains some of the typical "dummies"-humor helping to keep the text easily digestable.

What this book is NOT: A how-to manual that will get your network going if you're sitting in front of a screen clueless on a Sunday morning. That said: after reading this book you won't be clueless any more.

On to the detailed contents. The book is divided into six parts:

Part I: The absolute basics
No further info necessary: How to open up your computer, so that you can install a networking card, for example.

Part II: Building your own network
Planning you network; making basic choices of e.g cabling etc.

Part III: Network management for dummies
Basic network management: making backups, taking care of security

Part IV: Webifying your network
Creating the connection to the internet; creating websites

Part V: More ways to network
Miscelaneous, like: networking your home, dial-in networks and non-standard hard-/software (MacIntosh; Linux etc.)

Part VI: The part of tens
A number of top-ten lists, partially amusing, partially useless

As I wrote: the book is really good in helping you to obtain an overview of the types of networks that exist and the different terminologies/choices involved. Once you have made a decision that you will need/want to create a network involving operating system X running on computers of type y, you will probably need to get another, more specific book to help you dig deeper.

If you haven't made that decision yet: Go get this book!