Exercises:

1. Give Russian equivalents of the following phrases:

Configurations, or shapes; the basic types of configurations; a private communications network; run by special networking software; transmission purposes only; special hardware and software are used instead.

2. Say if the following sentences are true or false.

1. A number of different network configurations, or shapes, aren’t used to satisfy the needs of users in different situations. 2. Although private, public, and international communications networks actively use each network configuration today; you will most likely come into contact with one in the context of a local area network. 3. Note that modems are always needed within a local area network; special hardware and software are used instead. 4. Metropolitan area networks link computer resources that are more widely scattered - such as among office buildings in a city. 5. Wide aren’t networks link resources scattered around the country and the world.

3. Insert missing words, use the text’s vocabulary:

1.The basic types of configurations are star (and …) network, bus network, and ring (and …) network. 2. Although private, public, and international communications … actively use each network configuration today; you will most likely come into contact with one in the context of a local area network. 3. The company that is using it … owns the LAN. 5. Chances are that the microcomputer you will be using in your … will be part of a local area network.

4. Translate these sentences into your native language:

1. A local area network is a private communications network, connected by a length of wire, cable, or optical fiber, and run by special networking software that serves a company or part of a company that is located on one floor or in a single building. 2. Chances are that the microcomputer you will be using in your office will be part of a local area network. 3. The LAN also provides a communications link to outside communications systems, and it can be connected to other local area networks in different locations, either by public communications lines or by dedicated lines – lines leased by the company for its transmission purposes only.

5. Retell the text.

Text 21

Star Network

Words and word combinations:

The star network – звездная сеть

a popular network configuration – популярная форма сети

as nodes – как точка пересечения

companies with a large data processing facility – компании с большой способностью обработки данных

a host computer or a file server – головной компьютер или сервер

a large-capacity hard disk storage device – сохраняющий прибор с большим объемом жесткого диска

a single multilevel system – единственная многоуровневая система

a central database – центральная база данных

a hierarchical, or tree, network – иерархическая или древовидная сеть

The star network, a popular network configuration, involves a central unit that has a number of terminals tied into it. These terminals are often referred to as nodes. This type of network configuration is well suited to companies with a large data processing facility shared by a umber of smaller departments. The central unit is usually a host computer or a file server. The host computer is a large computer, usually a mainframe. A file server is usually a microcomputer with a large-capacity hard disk storage device that stores shared data and programs. The primary advantage of the star network is that several users can use the central unit at the same time- the star sometimes used to link microcomputers to a central database. However, its main limitation is that whole network is affected if the main unit ’goes down’ (fails to function). Since the nodes in the system and the points of the star together can be very high. When a number of star networks are configured into a single multilevel system, the resulting network is often referred to as a hierarchical, or tree, network. In this type of network a single host computer still controls all network activity. However, each (or some) of the computers connected to it in turn.

Hierarchical network configuration is often used by large companies with a main communications center linked to regional processing centers. Each regional processing facility acts as a host computer to smaller offices or branch computer facilities within region. The lowest-level computer facilities allow the users to do some stand-alone applications processing. The regional computer facilities are used to manage large business information resources (usually in the form of regional databases) and to provide processing support that the smaller computers cannot handle efficiently.

Star network

Hierarchical network

Text 22

Bus Network