Week 8 postings- reflections

 This week’s chapters on network essentials, LANs, and wireless networking really helped me understand how important networking is in everyday technology. Before reading these chapters, I knew the internet and networks connected devices, but I did not fully understand how everything actually works together behind the scenes. Learning about IP addresses, routers, switches, and protocols made me realize how much planning and organization goes into building a network.

The section about LANs was interesting because it explained how devices communicate within a local area, like in homes, schools, or businesses. I thought it was cool to learn how switches help direct traffic and improve communication between devices. It also made more sense why wired Ethernet connections are usually faster and more reliable than wireless connections.

The wireless networking chapter stood out to me the most because Wi-Fi is something I use every day. I learned about wireless standards, frequencies, and security methods like WPA2 and WPA3. I never really thought about how important wireless security is until now. It made me realize how vulnerable networks can be if they are not properly secured.