Network - A network is a group of computers connected together in a way that allows information to be exchanged between the computers.

Packet - A piece of a message transmitted over a packet-switching network. 

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Local area network (LAN) - technologies connect many devices that are relatively close to each other, usually in the same building.

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Wide area network (WAN) - technologies connect a smaller number of devices that can be many kilometers apart.

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Ring topology - Like a bus network, rings have the nodes daisy-chained. The difference is that the end of the network comes back around to the first node, creating a complete circuit.

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Node - A node is anything that is connected to the network. While a node is typically a computer, it can also be something like a printer or CD-ROM tower.

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Media Access Control (MAC) address - This is the physical address of any device -- such as the NIC in a computer -- on the network.

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IP address - is short for Internet Protocol (IP) address. An IP address is an identifier for a computer or device on a TCP/IP network. 

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Bus topology - Each node is daisy-chained (connected one right after the other) along the same backbone.

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 Token - is a special series of bits that travels around a token-ring network. As the token circulates, computers attached to the network can capture it.

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Star topology - In a star network, each node is connected to a central device called a hub. The hub takes a signal that comes from any node and passes it along to all the other nodes in the network.

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Tree topology - A tree topology combines characteristics of linear bus and star topologies. It consists of groups of star-configured workstations connected to a linear bus backbone cable.

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Protocol - in computer science, a set of rules or procedures for transmitting data between electronic devices, such as computers. In order for computers to exchange information, there must be a preexisting agreement as to how the information will be structured and how each side will send and receive it.

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peer-to-peer architecture - Often referred to simply as peer-to-peer, or abbreviated P2P, a type of network in which each workstation has equivalent capabilities and responsibilities. 

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client-server architecture - Client-server architecture (client/server) is a network architecture in which each computer or process on the network is either a client or a server.