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Glossary
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A
B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
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- 802.11a
- An IEEE wireless networking standard that specifies a maximum data transfer rate of 54Mbps and an operating frequency of 5GHz.
- 802.11b
- An IEEE wireless networking standard that specifies a maximum data transfer rate of 11Mbps and an operating frequency of 2.4GHz.
- 802.11g
- An IEEE wireless networking standard that specifies a maximum data transfer rate of 54Mbps, an operating frequency of 2.4GHz, and backward compatibility with 802.11b devices.
A
- Access Point
- Device that allows wireless-equipped computers and other devices to communicate with a wired network. Also used to expand the range of a wireless network.
- Adapter
- This is a device that adds network functionality to your PC.
- Ad-hoc
- A group of wireless devices communicating directly with each other (peer-to-peer) without the use of an access point.
B
- Backbone
- The part of a network that connects most of the systems and networks together, and handles the most data.
- Bandwidth
- The transmission capacity of a given device or network.
- Beacon Interval
- The frequency interval of the beacon, which is a packet broadcast by a router to synchronize a wireless network.
- Bit
- A binary digit.
- Boot
- To start a device and cause it to start executing instructions.
- Bridge
- A device that connects two different kinds of local networks, such as a wireless network to a wired Ethernet network.
- Broadband
- An always-on, fast Internet connection.
- Browser
- A browser is an application program that provides a way to look at and interact with all the information on the World Wide Web.
- Buffer
- A block of memory that temporarily holds data to be worked on later when a device is currently too busy to accept the data.
C
- Cable Modem
- A device that connects a computer to the cable television network, which in turn connects to the Internet.
- CSMA/CA (Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Avoidance)
- A method of data transfer that is used to prevent data loss in a network.
- CTS (Clear To Send)
- A signal sent by a device to indicate that it is ready to receive data.
D
- Daisy Chain
- A method used to connect devices in a series, one after the other.
- Database
- A collection of data that is organized so that its contents can easily be accessed, managed, and updated.
- DDNS (Dynamic Domain Name System)
- The capability of having a website, FTP, or e-mail server-with a dynamic IP address-use a fixed domain name.
- Default Gateway
- A device that forwards Internet traffic from your local area network.
- DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol)
- A protocol that lets one device on a local network, known as a DHCP server, assign temporary IP addresses to the other network devices, typically computers.
- DMZ (Demilitarized Zone)
- Removes the Router's firewall protection from one PC, allowing it to be "seen" from the Internet.
- DNS (Domain Name Server)
- The IP address of your ISP's server, which translates the names of websites into IP addresses.
- Domain
- A specific name for a network of computers.
- Download
- To receive a file transmitted over a network.
- DSL (Digital Subscriber Line)
- An always-on broadband connection over traditional phone lines.
- DSSS (Direct-Sequence Spread-Spectrum)
- A type of radio transmission technology that includes a redundant bit pattern to lessen the probability of data lost during transmission. Used in 802.11b networking.
- DTIM (Delivery Traffic Indication Message)
- A message included in data packets that can increase wireless efficiency.
- Dynamic IP Address
- A temporary IP address assigned by a DHCP server.
E
- Encryption
- Encoding data to prevent it from being read by unauthorized people.
- Ethernet
- An IEEE standard network protocol that specifies how data is placed on and retrieved from a common transmission medium.
F
- Finger
- A program that tells you the name associated with an e-mail address.
- Firewall
- Security measures that protect the resources of a local network from intruders.
- Firmware
- 1. In network devices, the programming that runs the device. 2. Programming loaded into read-only memory (ROM) or programmable read-only memory (PROM) that cannot be altered by end-users.
- Fragmentation
- Breaking a packet into smaller units when transmitting over a network medium that cannot support the original size of the packet.
- FTP (File Transfer Protocol)
- A standard protocol for sending files between computers over a TCP/IP network and the Internet.
- Full Duplex
- The ability of a networking device to receive and transmit data simultaneously.
G
- Gateway
- A system that interconnects networks.
H
- Half Duplex
- Data transmission that can occur in two directions over a single line, but only one direction at a time.
- Hardware
- The physical aspect of computers, telecommunications, and other information technology devices.
- HTTP (HyperText Transport Protocol)
- The communications protocol used to connect to servers on the World Wide Web.
I
- IEEE (The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers)
- An independent institute that develops networking standards.
- Infrastructure
- Currently installed computing and networking equipment.
- Infrastructure Mode
- Configuration in which a wireless network is bridged to a wired network via an access point.
- IP (Internet Protocol)
- A protocol used to send data over a network.
- IP Address
- The address used to identify a computer or device on a network.
- IPCONFIG
- A Windows 2000 and XP utility that displays the IP address for a particular networking device.
- IPSec (Internet Protocol Security)
- A VPN protocol used to implement secure exchange of packets at the IP layer.
- ISM Band
- Radio band used in wireless networking transmissions.
- ISP (Internet Service Provider)
- A company that provides access to the Internet.
L
- LAN (Local Area Network)
- The computers and networking products that make up the network in your home or office.
M
- MAC (Media Access Control) Address
- The unique address that a manufacturer assigns to each networking device.
- Mbps (Megabits Per Second)
- One million bits per second; a unit of measurement for data transmission.
- Multicasting
- Sending data to a group of destinations at once.
N
- NAT (Network Address Translation)
- NAT technology translates IP addresses of a local area network to a different IP address for the Internet.
- Network
- A series of computers or devices connected for the purpose of data sharing, storage, and/or transmission between users.
- NNTP (Network News Transfer Protocol)
- The protocol used to connect to Usenet groups on the Internet.
- Node
- A network junction or connection point, typically a computer or work station.
O
- OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing)
- A type of modulation technology that separates the data stream into a number of lower-speed data streams, which are then transmitted in parallel. Used in 802.11a, 802.11g, and powerline networking.
P
- Packet
- A unit of data sent over a network.
- Passphrase
- Used much like a password, a passphrase simplifies the WEP encryption process by automatically generating the WEP encryption keys for Linksys products.
- Ping (Packet INternet Groper)
- An Internet utility used to determine whether a particular IP address is online.
- POP3 (Post Office Protocol 3)
- A standard protocol used to retrieve e-mail stored on a mail server.
- Port
- 1. The connection point on a computer or networking device used for plugging in a cable or an adapter. 2. The virtual connection point through which a computer uses a specific application on a server.
- PPPoE (Point to Point Protocol over Ethernet)
- A type of broadband connection that provides authentication (username and password) in addition to data transport.
- PPTP (Point-to-Point Tunneling Protocol)
- A VPN protocol that allows the Point to Point Protocol (PPP) to be tunneled through an IP network. This protocol is also used as a type of broadband connection in Europe.
- Preamble
- Part of the wireless signal that synchronizes network traffic.
R
- RJ-45 (Registered Jack-45)
- An Ethernet connector that holds up to eight wires.
- Roaming
- The ability to take a wireless device from one access point's range to another without losing the connection.
- Router
- A networking device that connects multiple networks together, such as a local network and the Internet.
- RTS (Request To Send)
- A packet sent when a computer has data to transmit. The computer will wait for a CTS (Clear To Send) message before sending data.
S
- Server
- Any computer whose function in a network is to provide user access to files, printing, communications, and other services.
- SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol)
- The standard e-mail protocol on the Internet.
- SNMP (Simple Network Management Protocol)
- A widely used network monitoring and control protocol.
- Software
- Instructions for the computer. A series of instructions that performs a particular task is called a "program".
- Spread Spectrum
- Wideband radio frequency technique used for more reliable and secure data transmission.
- SSID (Service Set IDentifier)
- Your wireless network's name.
- Static IP Address
- A fixed address assigned to a computer or device that is connected to a network.
- Static Routing
- Forwarding data in a network via a fixed path.
- Subnet Mask
- An address code that determines the size of the network.
- Switch
- 1. Device that is the central point of connection for computers and other devices in a network, so data can be shared at full transmission speeds. 2. A device for making, breaking, or changing the connections in an electrical circuit.
T
- TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol)
- A network protocol for transmitting data that requires acknowledgement from the recipient of data sent.
- Telnet
- A user command and TCP/IP protocol used for accessing remote PCs.
- TFTP (Trivial File Transfer Protocol)
- A version of the TCP/IP FTP protocol that uses UDP and has no directory or password capability.
- Throughput
- The amount of data moved successfully from one node to another in a given time period.
- Topology
- The physical layout of a network.
- TX Rate
- Transmission Rate.
U
- UDP (User Datagram Protocol)
- A network protocol for transmitting data that does not require acknowledgement from the recipient of the data that is sent.
- Upgrade
- To replace existing software or firmware with a newer version.
- Upload
- To transmit a file over a network.
- URL (Uniform Resource Locator)
- The address of a file located on the Internet.
V
- VPN (Virtual Private Network)
- A security measure to protect data as it leaves one network and goes to another over the Internet.
W
- WAN (Wide Area Network)
- The Internet.
- WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy)
- A method of encrypting data transmitted on a wireless network for greater security.
- WINIPCFG
- A Windows 98 and Millennium utility that displays the IP address for a particular networking device.
- WLAN (Wireless Local Area Network)
- A group of computers and associated devices that communicate with each other wirelessly.
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