3Com TokenLink VelocityTM XL PCI Network Interface Card manual Lobe cable, OnNow/ACPI

GLOSSARY 3

lobe

All network components in a specific area that physically connect to a specific MAU or wiring hub.

lobe cable

The section of cable that attaches a ring station or network device to a MAU or wiring hub.

MAU

Multistation access unit. A passive hub.

NDIS

Network Driver Interface Specification. A software specification used in many operating systems to create drivers for network NICs. NDIS drivers support multiple protocols and multiple NICs and can be unloaded from memory to conserve conventional DOS RAM space. NDIS permits the high-level protocol components to be independent of the NIC by providing a standard interface. Windows NT and Windows 95 support NDIS 3.0 and NDIS 4.0.

ODI

Open Data-link Interface. A MAC-level specification developed by Novell and Apple Computer. Like NDIS, the ODI driver supports multiple protocols and NICs and can be unloaded from memory to conserve conventional DOS RAM space.

OnNow/(ACPI)

A comprehensive system-wide approach to system and device power control. OnNow is a term for a PC that is always on but appears to be off and responds immediately to user or other requests. See also ACPI.

Parallel Tasking architecture

A proprietary technique developed and patented by 3Com that provides significant performance improvement by allowing network interchanges of data to occur in parallel.