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Networking

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NPL switch box

These handmade “buttons and lights” switch boxes connected terminals to the NPL network developed by packet-switching pioneer Donald Davies. NPL was a competitor to ARPANET.

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Connecting Computers

Networking has transformed computers from stand-alone data-crunchers into the foundation of an unprecedented global community. Networking rests on a simple concept: getting computers to communicate with each other.

This requires a physical connection, like wires or radio links, and a common language (protocol) for exchanging data. Once these are in place comes the layer we see: information systems like the Web.

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