Chapter-7B

Data Communication
 Modem
Short for modulator-demodulator. A modem is a device
or program that enables a computer to transmit data
over, for example, telephone or cable lines. Computer
information is stored digitally, whereas information
transmitted over telephone lines is transmitted in the
form of analog waves. A modem converts between these
two forms.
Fortunately, there is one standard interface for
connecting external modems to computers called RS-
232. Consequently, any external modem can be attached
to any computer that has an RS-232 port, which almost
all personal computers have. There are also modems
that come as an expansion board that you can insert
into a vacant expansion slot. These are sometimes called
onboard or internal modems.
Modem
 Digital VS Analog
Describes any system based on discontinuous data or
events. Computers are digital machines because at their
most basic level they can distinguish between just two
values, 0 and 1, or off and on. All data that a computer
processes must be encoded digitally, as a series of zeroes
and ones.
The opposite of digital is analog. A typical analog device
is a clock in which the hands move continuously around
the face. Such a clock is capable of indicating every
possible time of day. In contrast, a digital clock is
capable of representing only a finite number of times
(every tenth of a second, for example).
 Broadband
A type of data transmission in
which a single medium (wire) can
carry several channels at once.
 Channel

Also referred to as a transmission

channel(bandwidth), the path
between two nodes of a network
that a data communication
follows. The term can refer to the
physical cabling that connects the
nodes on a network, the signal
that is communicated
 DSL Technologies

DSL (Digital Subscriber Line)

technologies use sophisticated
modulation schemes to pack data
onto copper wires
 DSL
Asymmetrical DSL (ADSL).
Symmetric DSL (SDSL).
High –bit-rate DSL.
ISDN DSL(IDSL).
Symmetric DSL(SDSL).
Very-high-bit-rate DSL(VDSL)
ADSL
Short for asymmetric digital subscriber line, a new
technology that allows more data to be sent over existing
copper telephone lines. ADSL supports data rates of
from 1.5 to 9 Mbps when receiving data (known as the
downstream rate) and from 16 to 640 Kbps when
sending data (known as the upstream rate).
SDSL
Short for symmetric digital subscriber line, a technology
that allows more data to be sent over existing copper
telephone lines .SDSL supports data rates up to 3 Mbps.
 ATM
Short for Asynchronous Transfer Mode, a
network technology based on transferring
data in cells or packets of a fixed size. The
cell used with ATM is relatively small
compared to units used with older
technologies. The small, constant cell size
allows ATM equipment to transmit video,
audio, and computer data over the same
network, and assure that no single type of
data hogs(control) the line.
ATM
 Wi-Fi
Short for wireless fidelity
. Wi-Fi Alliance an organization made up
of leading wireless equipment and
software providers with the missions of
certifying all 802.11-based products for
interoperability and promoting the term
Wi-Fi as the global brand name across all
markets for any 802.11-based wireless
LAN products
Wi-Fi