This unit was intoduced to us because we needed to learn how networks work and how people connect with one another through computers. We learned that there were many ways to connect multiple computers called topologies. A topology is basically an overview of what a community of computers look like. A physical topology is the arrangement of cabling while a logical topology is the path that data travels between computers. Some topologies are more efficient than others and each one has its benefits and negative points.
Here is an example of a bus topology. All the computers are in a line connected by a wire. It is the cheapest and perhaps the simplest topology to implement. However, it's like a series circuit. It's a bit inefficient. If one computer is removed or if there's a problem with the cable, all the systems go down at once.
This is the ring topology. The data travels to each node in the network until it reached its destination. A benefit to having this topology is that it is capable of distributing network resources fairly and evenly amoung all the computers. It has "smart hubs" which can find a computer failure and remove it.
The star topology is really efficient to use. Every computer or device is connected to a central hub. It is good to use because if a computer fails or is disrupted, it does not affect the others. Furthermore, multiple computers could run and communicate simultaneously. Adding more devices to the system can be very easy as well. The only disadvantage is that if the hub or central point had a problem, all the devices connected to it would be vulnerable.
There's the mesh topology. It is very complicated because each device is connected to every other device in the network. Because it's so complex, it's not good for a large amount of computers. Although it is pretty good in terms of security. The data goes straight to the recipient.
Lastly, there is the wireless topology. A wireless topology uses an access point to control communications. For this, the medium for the data is the air instead of a wire.