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Our February 22nd meeting Sgt B. Cowper of the Halifax Regional Municipality Police will be the guest speaker. A look
at the Halifax Regional Police Servicegives an idea of what an
'Internet Cybercop' is all about. And will be held a7.00 pm at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, 1675 Lower Water
Street, Halifax. Plus the opening introductory talks on the following:
Rob MacCara - Solving Common Printer Problems
Bill Marchant - Something about OS/2
Diane Smith - Envelopes in WordPerfect
NOTE NEW MEETING FACILITIES
The HAPCC general meeting is on 4th Sunday of each month. The HAPCC has a new meeting place at: Maritime Museum of the Atlantic 1675 Lower Water Street , Halifax, NS
Meeting time 7:00 - 9:00 pm.
Parking available in the nearby Government
parking lot or in the Museum parking lot. Access to the building
is via the Night Entrance Doors, located just to the right of the
regular front doors. If door is locked, use the bell on upper
left side of the Night Entrance Doors.
The meeting room is on the second floor and
has a theatre type of layout. Washrooms are located close by.
Elevator service is available. Coffee served.
This document is mailed to all paid up members
and to anyone who has attended a meeting within the past three
months. Yearly membership dues are $15.00.
Society Mailing Address -
P.O. Box 29008, Halifax N.S., B3L 4T8.
Chairperson David Potter
Vice-Chair Bill Marchant
Treasurer Rob MacCara
Web Librarian Thayne MacLean
Newsletter Editor Diane Smith
Membership Promotion Pat Conen
and the following members who assist in planning our monthly
meetings: Norman DeForest, Henry Hill, Ken Gilmour,and Colin Stuart.
In an other item in the press the Queen has
entered cyberspace and the link is The British Monarchy-The Official
web Site. It is worth checking out.
The Bluenose, a fishing schooner, is an icon of down east history. Find more on the story
at Bluenose II Home Port Page.
The HAPCS has two kinds of meetings. Firstly
the regular Sunday night meeting which most members attend
regularly, secondly the monthly (approximately) planning
meeting which organizes the business of the Society, including
what happens on the Sundays. The planning meeting is held on
Monday, a week after the regular meeting in which all members of the
Society are urged to attend. At the planning meeting, we discuss
feature speakers for regular meetings, finances, membership,
training, and other computer related subjects.
....Bill Marchant
Articles can be submitted in almost any format, ASCII text, AMI Pro, MS Word, Windows Write, WordStar and of course WordPerfect.
Networking Made Simple
Meeting schedule for the upcoming year
Network Simply put, a network is computers, printers, faxes, and other electronic devices linked with cables so all
the pieces can 'talk' and work together. We will first talk about some terminology to make sure that we're all
discussing the same things here! We will only be talking about basics here, and I don't expect that you'll be able
to go home and immediately setup your own network, but you should have the groundwork covered in any case with what
will be presented here.
Which network is right for you?
You have two types of network configurations to choose from - peer-to-peer and client-server. Your choice depends
on the number of PCs, printers, and other devices you want to connect and the types of software applications you
work with.
Peer-to-peer network if you have five or less nodes to connect, you'll probably want a peer-to-peer network. A central
controlling device called a hub is a what ties the nodes together. Each computer is an equal or 'peer' of the others,
and can share files and peripherals connected to the network. While a peer-to-peer network is a low-cost,
easy-to-install solution, it is not as efficient for sharing large and complex files, such as databases or graphics.
Client-server network if you have six or more nodes to connect, and work with large files like databases or
information that is updated frequently, your best choice is a client-server network. The presence of a central
computer, or server, in this configuration gives you several advantages. Because files are stored in a single
location, they're easier to update, back up, and archive with dependable results. The server itself is typically a
high-performance computer that ensures speedy data access and delivery, and gives you the platform to add capabilities
such as centralized accounting.
Cabling comes in several varieties, including coax, twisted pair, and fiber.
Coax cable the most common types of cabling for smaller networks are coax and twisted pair. Coax resembles cable
TV wire. It has the benefit of not requiring a hub and can be used to connect large numbers of computers together
in a single 'string.' Coax was the first standard cabling type; however, it is less flexible than newer twisted-pair
cabling and doesn't support high-speed technologies. Twisted-pair cable twisted-pair cabling resembles the wire that
connects your telephone to the wall jack. Its low cost, ability to make easy additions and changes to the network,
and built-in path to high-speed technologies such as Fast Ethernet gives you more advantages. Networking
technologies include Ethernet, Fast Ethernet, Token Ring, FDDI, and ATM. The two most popular choices for
networks are:
Ethernet transfers information at 10 megabits per second (Mbps) in small bursts of data called 'packets' to ensure
accurate, efficient operations.
Fast Ethernet, also known as 100BASE-TX; it is 10 times faster than Ethernet, transferring information at 100
megabits per second. Fast Ethernet is ideal for sending large, complex files such as databases and graphics.
Ports generally speaking, the point at which a device connects to the network so that data can pass through.
The simplest example of a port is the point where you plug your telephone into the wall.
Node
Any computer, printer, modem, fax machine or any other device connected to the network.
Network software requirements
A network operating system is required for every network. It allows computers and other connected devices to send
and receive information. Network operating system software can range from simple to more robust. Peer-to-peer
networking features are built into Windows 95, LANtastic, and the Macintosh OS. Client-server configurations
require more sophisticated network operating systems like Novell NetWare or Windows NT Server.
Network Interface Cards (Nic)
Network interface cards work with software to send and receive messages on the network. Every desktop or notebook
computer on your network needs a network interface card. Ethernet network interface cards are available in 10 Mbps,
10/100 Mbps, and 100 Mbps configurations. They are available for notebook and desktop computers. Dual function
10/100 Mbps network interface cards let you keep your options open if you're planning an upgrade to Fast Ethernet
in the future. Ethernet network interface cards are plugged into your computer's expansion slot. They are available
in ISA, EISA, MCA and PCI configurations.
Hubs
Also called a 'repeater', the hub is the central point of connection in your network that makes resource sharing
possible. Ethernet and Fast Ethernet hubs are available in several port configurations. The most common sizes are
4, 8, and 16 ports. Generally you can daisy chain them together to increase the number of nodes.
Increasing functionality of your network once you have a local area network (or LAN) installed, your options are
just beginning. You can add more devices such as switches, remote access devices and resource servers to increase
your advantages.
High performance for power users: switches
Graphic designers, engineers, database users-anyone who works with large, complex applications can seriously
slow down your network performance. That's when you may want to consider a type of hub called a switch, which
lets you pinpoint data delivery to your power users. You also may want a switch if your operations are growing,
because it can divide a large network into smaller, more manageable segments.
Shared and switched connections on most networks, everyone shares the capacity of that network. If you have a 10
Mbps network, the capacity remains 10 Mbps even as you add more users and introduce more complex applications such
as graphics or images. This can create bottlenecks and slow down performance. Switching allocates data for delivery
to a specific user or group of users. For example, if you have two computers on your network who are regularly
sending or receiving large image files, they could be using substantial amounts of the network's capacity by
themselves. Installing a switch would allow you to deliver additional capacity directly to these power users
without impacting performance for the rest of the network.
Solutions for resource sharing
Print, fax, and CD-ROM servers can bring added productivity to your network by allowing you to share these expensive
peripherals. By installing a print server you can attach less costly devices, such as ink-jet printers, directly
to your network, eliminating the need to buy a network-ready printer. The server can even prioritize jobs and
print them in the order you want. A fax server lets you send and receive faxes directly from your desktop,
increasing productivity and eliminating the need for additional fax machines, as well as additional telephone lines.
A CD-ROM server provides network-direct connections for many CD-ROM drives, allowing employees from different areas
to access these drives simultaneously.
How to Network in Windows95
Now that you've installed the Nic's and run the cable from each node to the hub, how do you tell the OS that you
wish to start taking advantage of the network? You start by right clicking on the Network Neighborhood icon or
select the Network icon from the Control Panel. You first want to Add an adapter - that's the network card you've
installed in the computer, and it will show up in the Control Panel under System and Device Manager and Network
Adapter. Next thing is to select the Client you wish to use. In our case, it will be Client for Microsoft Networks.
Next add the protocol - NetBEUI or TCP/IP. Last thing to do is to add the Service File and Print Sharing.
So the OS knows which nodes it should talk to, you must also specify a Workgroup name - you can use your imagination
for this one, as well as the name for each particular computer in the Group. Funny little story here, I was installing
a small network of a half-dozen computers and a network laser in a medical office that deals with infectious
diseases, so I used the obvious choice for the workgroup name - Infected. Well didn't the secretaries think
that their machines had a virus on them when they saw Infected coming up in their Network Neighborhood folder!
It's now got a different name...
To add some of the networking advantages such as file sharing and resource sharing, you must give the rights for
others to use your resources. For example, you can Share your printer, but not your hard drive, but allow others
to use your CD-ROM. By the same token, for others to share your resources, they must Map the resource so their own
system can read it. Easiest way to do this is to open Explorer and select Tools and Map Network Drive.
If you've been given the rights to do this, you can then map away. Likewise to add a printer which is local to
someone else, you can go to the Add Printer Icon and install a Network Printer, then Browse the network for the
particular printer you wish to add. From then on, you can select this printer as easily as if it were attached to
your own computer. Obviously the computer it is attached to must be running! It is possible to have a
network card in a printer, and then it becomes a node like any other device plugged into the hub.
Newsletter Articles we are almost always in
need of good articles. If anyone has something that they feel
would make a good article, an interesting story to tell, or even
a good meeting topic, please don't hesitate to pass it on.
Articles can be submitted in almost any format, ASCII text, AMI
Pro, MS Word, Windows Write, WordStar and of course WordPerfect.
We decide the meeting dates for the upcoming
year at the last planning meeting. The dates for these are listed
below after confirmation of the dates.
As in previous years, the December meeting is moved to the early part of January due Christmas Eve being the fourth Sunday of the month.
February-22 March-22 April-26 May-17 June-28
The planning meetings are normally held on the second Monday (8 days) after the general meeting.
They are currently held at a members home and the address is announced at the meeting prior to the planning meeting.
Anyone is welcome to assist in the planning of future meetings or events.
Any changes to the scheduled dates will be announced where possible at the regular monthly meetings and/or
in this newsletter.
