Although some definitions of terms such as LAN, MAN, and WAN, depend on the geographical area covered by the network, we prefer a definition that also takes into account the technology used. In general, a LAN (Local Area Network) covers a geographical area of a campus (several buildings) or smaller. The major LAN technologies in use today are Ethernet (10, 100, and Gigabit) and 802.11. One may hear the term "wireless LAN" and that is, as the name implies, this is a wireless communication system covering the geographic area of a campus or several buildings (and often only one floor of one building).

A contiguous geographic area in which telephone service is provided, through one or more central office switching facilities, to a particular group of people. The boundaries of a LATA are not fixed by municipal or governmental boundaries but relate, rather, to the design of the communication network.

A local telephone service provider who is limited to circuit termination within a single LATA (Local Access and Transport Area)

In the context of data networking, latency is synonymous with "delay" and refers to the amount of time a packet of data takes to get from one point to another. For example, in a Voice-over-IP telephony system, latency of greater than roughly 100 milliseconds is heard as an annoying delay at the point where one party begins to speak.