In message <PK****************@newsread2.news.atl.earthlink.n et>, Sue
<sm*****@earthlink.net> writes
What is the difference between an intranet and a network? Can a split
database be put on an intranet?
A computer network is a group of machines connected together. There are
Local Area Networks (LANs) made up of machines that are local to each
other, like a company's network on one site. There are also Wide Area
Networks (WANs) that are made up of machines on more than one site. The
sites may be connected by a dedicate private line or they could be
connected via the Internet, if so they may well be called Private
Virtual Networks (PVNs).
The Internet is the network of networks connected toegther. There is
only one so it gets a capital letter. A lot of people confuse the
Internet and the World Wide Web, because they mainly use the net for
browsing web pages. That confusion has spread a bit further now. An
intranet is properly a private network of computers connected together.
But it has come to mean specifically a private web server only
accessible to computers within an organisation. For many organisations
it has replaced the company newsletter.
There's another term, an extranet. This is a semi-private web server
that is accessible by people within an organisation and selected people
outside it. Typically an organisation will allow its trading partners
access to specific web pages. For instance customers may be allowed
access to a web server that has pages for them to place orders and to
track the progress of existing orders.
--
Bernard Peek
London, UK. DBA, Manager, Trainer & Author. Will work for money.
