The document summarizes key aspects of telephone networks. It notes that telephone networks originally used analog technology, but have transitioned to digital due to economic and service advantages. It describes how modems are needed to convert digital data to analog signals for transmission over telephone lines. The network consists of subscriber lines, switchboards, and trunk lines to connect callers. Though telephone networks were intended for analog voice calls, they can transmit any type of digital data protocol, albeit at slower speeds than newer dedicated data networks.