An Internet Service Provider (ISP) is an organization which provides internet services to users. These organizations can be commercial, non-profit, private, or even community-owned. One of the key services they provide is the ability for their users to access the Internet. Laptops, computers, mobile devices, and any smart device that is capable of connecting to the Internet will require an ISP to connect to the Internet. To accomplish this, the ISP will provide the user with their own IP Address, which may be static or dynamic, to use as identification while surfing the internet. The user would then browse a website from their web browser by typing in its website name; let's say, iplocation.net. This website name (domain name) would be translated into its own IP Address which uniquely identifies the website via DNS. This IP Address is then sent to the user's local router which is then forwarded to the user's ISP and then from there; to iplocation's ISP via ISP Switching centers like Metropolitan Area Exchange (MAE). Other services an ISP may provide include Internet transit, web hosting, Usenet service, and co-location services. Internet transit is a service provided to allow a smaller ISP to connect to the Internet and have their network traffic "transit" over a network. Web Hosting is provided to users who require a means to keep their website active and available but lack the equipment to do it themselves. Usenet was one of the first means of communication on the Internet that was designed back in the 70s and is no longer used. Finally, co-location is the service of providing server space and equipment for rental to hosting customers.

The Domain Name System (DNS) is a decentralized naming schema of resolving domain (host) names into numerical IP Addresses. The IP Addresses are assigned to various computing devices and services on the Internet but because remembering a series of numbers is difficult for people, it's easier to remember them by their corresponding domain names and have the DNS translate it into the relevant IP address.

The term intranet is comprised of two words: "Intra" means internal and the "net" represents the network. The Intranet, therefore, can be defined as the internal network. It is a private network with access limited to the authorized users only. The Intranet can be as simple as a private website or it can be as big as private organizational infrastructure, accessed by only the authorized users. The intranet may not necessarily be connected to the Internet but they usually do. In typical intranet architecture, there are specific computers in a defined parameter where each computer in the intranet plays a specific role to provide common tools and features to every computer connected to the intranet. There are vendors that provide the intranet portal software like Share Point, Igloo, and Huddle.

Internet can be defined as the worldwide network where machines like computers, servers, and smart devices are connected together for communication and data exchange purposes. In the layman's terminology, the Internet is the network of networks interconnecting computing devices located throughout the world. These networks use some communication protocols to link the network devices with each other.

A Wi-Fi (also known as WiFi) is a wireless network technology which allows WiFi enabled devices to communicate with each other, and also share the Internet without wired connectivity. Wi-Fi is based on 802.11 IEEE network standard which uses radio frequency signals to transmit data. The distance supported by Wi-Fi network depends on the type of Wi-Fi radio and antenna in use, and whether the environment is open or enclosed within walls and bricks. As the distance between the Wireless Access Point (WAP) and mobile device move farther away, the radio signal weakens and the transmission data rate slows down until the signal is not strong enough to be usable. The performance of Wi-Fi network also varies depending on the type of standard employed by the Wi-Fi devices, namely 802.11 (a), (b), (g), (n) and (ac).

Do you have a dead zone in your home with no wireless signal? You're not alone. With a proliferation of laptops, smartphones, tablets, and smart TVs; we use more Internet than ever, and your router alone may not be able to cover your entire home. You may even have a range extender or an access point that complements your home network, but having multiple networks within your home may cause your smart devices to hop on and off a separate network causing delays and interruptions.

Ethernet is the most widely used local area network (LAN) technology, that defines wiring and signaling standards for the physical layer of TCP/IP. Ethernet was originally standardized as IEEE 802.3 with a data transmission rate of 10 Mb/s. Newer versions of Ethernet were introduced lately to offer higher data rates. Fast Ethernet and Gigabit Ethernet support data rates of 100 Mbps and 1 Gbps (1000 Mbps) respectively. An Ethernet LAN may use coaxial cable (10Base2), unshielded twisted pair wiring (10BaseT, 100BaseT and 1000BaseT), or fiber optic cable. Ethernet devices compete for access to the network using a protocol called Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection (CSMA/CD). With the prosperity of Internet, Wi-Fi, the wireless LAN technology standardized by IEEE 802.11, is used in hybrid with Ethernet LAN to offer portability.

You have a private or public network with servers and workstations that are assigned static and dynamic IP addresses (either private or public IPs). You assigned them the static IP addresses due to NAT (Network Address Translation) or for public access, and dynamic IP addresses via the DHCP. Even if you kept a good record of those assigned IPs, there are times when you want to find all IP addresses of networked devices. The following procedure may be used to determine IP addresses of networked devices that are connected to your network.

Often times we see a networked printer suddenly stop working and you need to find a static (private) ip address of the printer to diagnose further. How do we find IP address of a networked printer? There are a few different ways to go about finding it.

RJ-45 conductor data cable contains 4 pairs of wires each consists of a solid colored wire and a strip of the same color. There are two wiring standards for RJ-45 wiring: T-568A and T-568B. Although there are 4 pairs of wires, 10BaseT/100BaseT Ethernet uses only 2 pairs: Orange and Green. The other two colors (blue and brown) may be used for a second Ethernet line or for phone connections. The two wiring standards are used to create a cross-over cable (T-568A on one end, and T-568B on the other end), or a straight-through cable (T-568B or T-568A on both ends).