Digital BW, The Print

From: "Tyler Boley" <tyler@...>
To: <DigitalBlackandWhiteThePrint@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, August 27, 2003 1:04 AM
Subject: [Digital BW] networking all these boxes


> Things are getting a bit complex here with multiple machines
doing
> different tasks. So for the first time I need to connect more
than two
> computers all together on a network. At this point it'll be 3
Macs and
> 1 PC, could grow.
> Not being one with networking experience, the info looks like
Martian
> to me.
> I'm being advised that a router is preferable to a simple hub,
can
> anyone comment?
> Any brand recommendations?
> Thanks,
> Tyler


Tyler,

Maybe we call the hub types differently here but the way I
connected my PCs and printers is as follow;

A router (old PC with a floppy driven Freesco OS) goes to the
internet, that router and all the other PCs are connected to a
switch. The switch is a hub that can have mixed speed network
connections where one connection doesn't slow down the other. I
also have two printers with network cards that are on another
small switch that is connected to one network card on the print
server computer that has two network cards, the other one goes to
the main network. That way my print spooling jobs don't go
through the main network.

AFAIK there are solid state routers with multiple network
connectors + isdn and/or adsl and/or cable connections included
that do the work that my old PC and switch do together. If you
need that internet connection as well then you need a router. If
it is just to connect the Macs then a switch is enough. The solid
state router is silent and takes less energy than my setup does.

Ernst