Rules and the Communication Process

Rules and the Communication Process

Networks rely on many rules to manage information interchange. Some of the procedures governed by network standards are as follows:

Procedures used to initiate and end an interaction
Signals used to represent data on the media
Methods used to direct a message to the intended destination
Procedures used to control the rate of data flow
Methods used to enable different computer types to communicate
Ways to ensure that messages are received correctly

Enabling computers to communicate is an extremely complex process—one that is often too complex to solve all at once using just one set of rules. As a result, the industry has chosen to solve different parts of the problem with compatible standards so that the solutions can be put together like pieces of a puzzle—a puzzle that comes together differently each time to build a complete communication approach for any given situation.