How Fast Do You Want the Network to Transfer Information?
It’ll depend largely on the type of network—a topic covered later in this chapter.
Wangnet will zip information over the wires many times faster than will The WEB; it’s a boon for those who need that capability but a frill for those who don’t.
Mind you, a network itself isn’t necessarily the main determinant of the speed with which files zip back and forth between machines.
The speed of your computers’ floppies in many cases will count more than the network’s transmission rate, and that’s true to a lesser extent of Winchester hard disks. Different networks, of course, may work faster or slower when teamed up with the same computer. Also, some networks seem fast when you don’t have many users. But then, with a large number, rival networks are faster.