If you own more than one computer, chances are you already have a network. These
days, most broadband service providers throw in a router with a new connection.
Typically it has four slots on the back, which means that you can connect up to four
computers to the Internet simultaneously without adding any other hardware. Once you
connect a second computer to the router, you have a little network of your own. The
next logical step for most people is to plug in a network-enabled printer into the
router so that they can print to it from any of the computers on the network.
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