Imagine a world without computer networks: there would be no more YouTube, Google, instant messaging, online video gaming, Netflix, and iTunes; no online shopping; no file sharing; and no central backups of information. This unit begins by defining a network and addressing the benefits of networking, before covering how data is transmitted across networks using protocols.

You will create a piece of work which demonstrates you understand the key aspects of each lesson (these will be in the first slides of the lessons below). You can present this in any way you like as long as it can be uploaded electronically to your computing book. You will prove you know this, by taking a quiz at the end of the unit. This combined with your own document will give you a grade for your work.  

Your 'need to know' learning points are:

Week 1-

• What is a computer network?

• Which term describes a set of rules that computers on a network use to communicate with one another?

• What is a valid protocol for email addresses?

Week 2-

• What is a hub?

• What is a network cable?

• What is a router

• What is a server?

Week 3 -

• Which term describes the amount of data that can be moved from one point on a network to another point in a given time?

• What is ‘buffering’?

• What is an advantage of a wired network?

Week 4 -

• What is the internet?

• What is an IP address?

• What are packets?

Week 5 -

• What is the World Wide Web?

• What is VoIP? What is TCP?

• What is the internet of things?

• What do you need (software) to access the World Wide Web?

Week 6 -

• How are websites stored on the internet?

• What is a top level domain?

• What is HTTP/HTTPS?

You will test your knowledge with a quiz at the end of this unit!