Microsoft MN-820 manual Using Other Peripheral Devices over a Network

Using Other Peripheral Devices over a Network

In addition to using most printers over a network, you can use other peripheral devices—such as hard drives, CD drives, and Zip drives—over your network. Some peripheral devices (such as some scanners) cannot be shared with other computers on your network.

Before you can use a device that is attached to another computer on your network, you will need to do the following:

OMake the device available to the network (this is also known as sharing the device). This is configured from the computer to which the device is attached.

OInstall any necessary drivers or utilities on each computer from which you want to use the device. For more information, see the documentation that came with the device.

About Reading E-Mail Messages on a Network

You can access your e-mail messages from each networked computer in the same way that you would access e-mail messages without a local area network (assuming that you have an Internet connection). Open your e-mail program or, if you have a Web- based e-mail account, sign in to your account through your Web browser.

Keep in mind the following: If you download e-mail messages from your e-mail account to your computer, those messages will not be accessible from the other computers on your network. Similarly, if you share an account with another person, and he or she downloads e-mail messages from the shared account to one computer on the network, you will not see those messages when you access the account from another computer.

If you want your e-mail messages to remain available to all users of your network at any time, you should not download the messages to one computer. (However, you should delete old messages from your e-mail account on a regular basis, so that you don’t exceed the storage space given to you by your e-mail provider.)

Playing Games on Your Network and on the Internet

Many of the most popular games now have multiplayer capability, allowing two or more players to compete by using a local network. With network-enabled games, you can use your networked computers to play games with friends and family members.

Most games come with documentation that explains all you need to know to configure your network for multiplayer gaming. However, the following steps might help you prepare for playing games over the network:

OIf you have purchased a multiplayer game, be sure to install it on each computer on the network that will be used for playing games.

OMake sure that the network protocols necessary to run the games that you want are installed on each computer on your network. For more information, see the documentation that came with your games.

OIf you are playing an Internet-based game, you might also be required to pay user fees or download game files to your computer. Be sure to follow the directions provided on the game’s Web site.

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