Just as people communicate using a language, so do computers in a network. And the language spoken by Windows Vista-along with just about every other computer on the planet today-is the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, better known by its acronym, TCP/IP.

The TCP/IP settings on your machine will in many ways be the foundation for a happy computing experience. Without them, you can forget about sending an email, surfing the Web, chatting, remote access, accessing a shared folder, receiving a software update, letting a gadget receive a weather update . . . OK, I've made my point, and you already know all this anyway.

Without a fairly good understanding of TCP/IP, administrators are very limited, and will likely spend many laborious hours of troubleshooting to get computers to talk to one another.

Fortunately, not much has changed in the upgrade to Windows Vista in terms of basic functionality. Yes, there are some new features, and yes, some of them are quite significant, such as the inclusion of IP version 6. But functionally speaking, if you know how to install a network card and set it to "Obtain an IP address automatically," most of the time you'll be in good shape.

In other words, although the click-steps and tools might take a bit of getting used to, the underlying goal of the administrator will remain the same.

In this 5-part series, we will be discussing configuring TCP/IP in Windows Vista - what is the same as previous Windows versions and what's new. As I'm sure you're aware, this is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. I'm always happy to provide additional assistance for free via my website. However, as for TCP/IP, we're just getting started.

Up Next: we start with a discussion of the newly added support of IP version 6 in Windows Vista, why this feature was added, and what this means for you.



Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brian_Culp

The Computer History Museum, situated in California, USA, is dedicated to preserving for future generations the history of the software industry, one of the largest and most influential industries in the world today.

The industry originated with the entrepreneurial computer software and services companies of the 1950s and 1960s, and grew to become a market force rivaling that of the computer hardware companies.

By the 1990s the software technology industry had become the supplier of technical know-how that transformed the way people worked, played, learnt and communicated every day of their lives.

The Computer History Museum is working to preserve information about the companies, people and events that shaped the evolution of this vital industry; and has a very active program to collect historical materials.

The Software Industry Special Interest Group is responsible for this effort, and was acquired by the museum. You can be a part of the effort to preserve the history of the software industry, by visiting their web site.

Learn about the people and stories of computing:
# The Silicon Engine

# Internet History

# Selling the Computer Revolution

# Visible Storage

# Timeline of Computer History

# Exhibits


Discover the Museum's many offerings:
# Fellow Awards

# Core Magazine

# Catalog Search

# Past Events & Lectures

# Museum Overview

# Venue Rental


Share your passion for history and technology:
# Giving & Membership

# MyCHM

# Museum Groups

# Volunteer

# Donate an Artifact




Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Caroline_Becht