If the name of the game on the modern network is interoperability, 2004 was a good year for networking. Here's how Linux and open source software led the way, and a look at a few other highlights (and low points) from the past year.
Bringing a new Windows machine up on the network can expose it to worms before you can even patch it. With the Knoppix Security Tools Distribution, you can use Linux to patch your Windows systems and even recover from lost Administrator passwords or corrupted registries, even when they're using NTFS.
Watching all that data fly across your network is nice, but knowing that your users can find what they're looking for in the midst of it all is even nicer. With ht://dig, you've got a do-it-yourself search solution that helps them sift through the haystack for that needle.
As a network administrator, you've got to cultivate a certain amount of professional paranoia. tcpdump indulges your need to know and tells you exactly what's going on over your networks.
