Glossary

802.11a

A fast wireless networking technology, which transmits data at a maximum of 54 megabits per second. Also called Wi-Fi5. Wi-Fi5 is, as you might have guessed, about five times as fast as Wi-Fi equipment. 802.11a wireless networks use the less-crowded 5GHz band , and therefore are less prone to interference from home electronics.

802.11b

The most popular wireless networking standard, transferring data at up to 11 megabits per second. Also called Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity). This networking technology communicates over the unlicensed, 2.4-GHz radio band. 802.11b networks share the band with other home electronics including cordless phones and microwaves .

802.11g

A fast wireless networking standard that shares the 2.4GHz band with 802.11b equipment. 802.11g and 802.11b equipment can communicate with each other. 802.11g is faster than 802.11b (54 mbps rather than 11 mbps).

Access point

This hardware device allows wireless network cards to connect to a wired network. An access point has a wired component (an Ethernet port) and a wireless component (a radio that allows wireless network adapters to connect to the network).

Ad-hoc mode

Wireless networks typically work in one of two configurations (sometimes called topologies ): ad-hoc or infrastructure. The topology or mode you choose depends on whether you want your PCs to communicate directly or with an access point. In ad-hoc mode data in the network is transferred directly to and from wireless network adapters connected to PCs. An ad-hoc network is also called a peer-to-peer network.

Bluetooth

A technology used to transfer data wirelessly . Bluetooth is found in PDAs and cell phones and can be used to transfer data to laptop and desktop computers and printers. Like 802.11b networking equipment, Bluetooth operates in the 2.4-GHz band, does not require a line of sight between components , and can pass through walls.

Broadband modem

Unlike a 56-kilobit per second modem which sends and receives data over analog phone lines, a broadband modem sends a digital signal over your telephone or TV cable wiring, depending on whether you use a DSL or cable modem, respectively.

Cell

Each wireless network device you use creates an area in which data is transmitted and received. These cells interlock providing greater distance over which the data is transferred, also called the equipment's range.

Data packet

Data is transmitted over networks in pieces, called data packets. The data packet contains the data being sent as well as the address of the sender and recipient.

Ethernet

A wired standard for networking hardware. Some of your equipment, such as a broadband modem, will connect to your access point by an Ethernet cable. Until recently, Ethernet was pretty much the only technology available for networking your computers.

Fast Ethernet

A wired technology that can transfer data over cables at up to 100 megabits per second.

Firewall

A firewall on your network puts a layer of protection between you and a hacker. Firewalls can be software you install on a computer, or they can be built into a router, or used as a standalone firewall hardware device. Whether you decide to install software or hardware, a firewall will help keep outsiders from accessing your network.

Gateway

Hardware or software that allows multiple computers to access the Internet. In most cases, on a LAN, your gateway is a router. Your gateway could also be a single computer sharing its Internet connection with the other computers on the network.

Hub

This hardware device is used to connect multiple wired elements of your network, including computers or routers, to your network. A hub has ports, usually four or more, into which you plug network cables. An access point works a bit like a wireless hub, and connects a wireless network to a wired network.

Hybrid network

A network that mixes more than one networking technology. For example, you could create a network that uses Ethernet (wired) network adapters and 802.11b (wireless) network adapters.

Infrastructure mode

You can increase the range of your wireless network by adding an access point. Wireless networks that use an access point are operating in infrastructure mode rather than ad-hoc mode, where the network adapters communicate directly with each other.

Internet connection sharing ( ICS )

A Windows feature bundled with operating systems Windows 98SE and later. The utility allows one of your computers to act as a router, sharing its Internet connection with other computers in your network.

IrDA (Infrared Data Association)

A wireless networking technology that uses infrared light. Infrared is a line-of-sight technology, which, like your TV remote, requires devices to be lined up in a straight line to communicate.

LAN (Local Area Network)

A network of computers in one location, usually a home or office.

NAT (Network Address Translation)

Your router should have a feature called NAT, which allows you to share one IP address provided to you by your Internet Service Provider (ISP) for each computer on your network so that they can access the Internet.

Network adapter

Also called a network adapter card or Network Interface Card (NIC), this is a card installed in your computer that is used to connect the computer to a network.

MAC (Media Access Control) address

Each network adapter has its own unique serial number, called a MAC address. You can see the MAC address of your wireless network adapterit's usually printed on the underside of the adapter.

PC Card

A removable module used to add features to a laptop, such as a network adapter, memory, or a small hard drive. A PC card slides into one of two PC Card slots you'll find on a laptop. Note that the PC Card slot is sometimes called a PCMCIA slot (PCMCIA stands for Personal Computer Memory Card International Association).

PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) Card

A card you install into a slot in a desktop computer. PCI Cards are sometimes used to connect wireless network adapters to desktop computers. Connecting a PCI Card to a computer is slightly trickier than using USB. You must open the computer case and install the card in an open PCI slot inside the computer.

Protocol

A language used by a network to send and receive data. TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) is the protocol used to transfer data over the Internet. You can also use TCP/IP as the protocol for your home network, for sharing Internet access, files, and printers.

Router

A hardware device or a software program that allows one network to connect to another. In a home network you can use a router to connect your LAN to the large network of interconnecting networks called the Internet. You can buy an access point with a built-in router. Your router will allow you to share a single Internet connection among all the computers connected to your network.

SSID (Service Set Identifier)

A name that identifies your network. To access the network, the SSID on each computer has to be the same.

Standard

An agreed-upon specification for the design of computer software or hardware. 802.11b is a wireless networking standard.

TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol)

The common language, or protocol, spoken by all computers on the Internet. On your home network, TCP/IP can be used both to access the Internet and to transfer files and share printers.

USB (Universal Serial Bus)

PCs that came with Windows 98 or later (when you purchased them) will have typically two USB ports. For connecting desktops to a 802.11b network, USB is a very good choice. USB network adapters are inexpensive and easy to install. The ports are hot-swappable, meaning you can plug in equipment and unplug it without rebooting the machine. That said, you will sometimes need to restart your computer for some network software to recognize the network adapter.

WAN (Wide Area Network)

A very large network spread over a large area, such as a cell phone network. When we talk about wireless networks we're talking about a home network that you can construct yourself, not a cellular voice or data network, which is often called a wireless WAN.

Wireless encryption

Networking hardware comes with software to encrypt data over the network so that it can't be read by an unintended recipient. The data is scrambled at the source, and then descrambled by the recipient. The technology standard for wireless encryption is called WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy). You can enable wireless encryption on your network adapters and your access point.

Wireless networking

Connecting two or more computers to create a local area network (LAN), using radio transmitter/receivers (sometimes called transceivers).

Wi-Fi

See [802.11b]

Wi-Fi5

See [802.11a]