How to use ping command of dos

[Kushan]

I am not very familiar with MS-DOS and the command prompt tools. I have a network problem to sort, how to i use a ping command. i know nothing about it, what is it used for? My friends say I need to ping his computer to check connectivity. Help!

[SmirnOFF]

Usage: ping [-t] [-a] [-n count] [-l size] [-f] [-i TTL] [-v TOS]
[-r count] [-s count] [[-j host-list] | [-k host-list]]
[-w timeout] target_name

Options:
-t - Ping the specified host until stopped.
To see statistics and continue - type Control-Break;
To stop - type Control-C.
-a - Resolve addresses to hostnames.
-n count - Number of echo requests to send.
-l size - Send buffer size.
-f - Set Don't Fragment flag in packet.
-i TTL - Time To Live.
-v TOS - Type Of Service.
-r count - Record route for count hops.
-s count - Timestamp for count hops.
-j host-list - Loose source route along host-list.
-k host-list - Strict source route along host-list.
-w timeout - Timeout in milliseconds to wait for each reply.
target_name - Computer name or IP Address