The first thing one needs to do when considering connecting a Mac to ethernet is to survey the area in which they intend to use their computer, such as a home office, and ensure that it has an outlet that is compatible with an ethernet cable. Rather than being a two or three prong outlet, it will instead have room for a small, plastic rectangular plug. For more information, please check out the video on the information website wonderhowto.com.
The next step is to go out and buy an ethernet cable. They tend to be very thin, long cables that are either black or grey, and can be picked up at stores such as Staples or Best Buy. Once you have the cable, you will then need to plug it in to both the computer, as well as the ethernet plug-in, usually situated in the wall like an outlet. It is important to note that if you were previously accessing the internet via an airport, you may need to turn the airport on your computer off, so that it knows to access the internet through the ethernet connection.
When talking about printers, a few terms you may come across are resolution or DPI (dots-per-inch) and page definition language (PDL). Resolution refers to the clarity of the letters or pictures when they are printed onto a page, thus the higher the DPI the better quality the printing will be. On the other hand, PDL describes how the printer is able to communicate with the printer. The most popular forms of PDL are PostScript and Page Command Language, and in general PostScript means the printer will be more complex and expensive, whereas Page Command Language shifts much of the work to the computer, making the printer simpler and less expensive.