What exactly is LAN(local area network), can someone explain what this means in understandable words?

Friar Tuck

Local Area Network. A network that connects computers that are close to each other, usually in the same building, linked by a cable. www.stlcu.com/resources/dictionary/secondary_definition.php?lookup WAN is a Wide Area Network Feb 11 02, 6:36 PM

Crash

The LAN consists of a circuit which connects the computers to each other and contains the hardware needed for efficient communication (often in the form of expansion cards which plug directly into the computers' circuitry), and software to run the network. The software provides for appropriate priority control over data transmission and reception and allows the system to cope with multiple users having access to the same files. This involves extra protocols to cover simultaneous access by different users, security over data and so on. LANs can be made up of several identical computers, often to allow shared access to an expensive pice of equipment, such as a laser printer, or facilities such as disk storagesystems, data files to maximise its cost- effectiveness. In some cases several microcomputers provide input to a single mainframe or mini-computer, so that they can be used independently and as intelligent terminals to the central machine. The distance over which a LAN can be set up is limited by the efficiency of the cables connecting the machines, and they are typically usedwithin relatively small areas because of the expense of log distance connections. Within these limits they provide an efficient and secure meansof communication and can significantly extend the computing power of an organisation at low cost. Feb 23 02, 8:44 AM