router will have a unique IPaddress, and the computers on the other side of the router can have
any IPaddress, as long as they are on the same subnet.
ipconfig- useful utility for finding out current IP Address, host name, etc. The equivalent utility
for Windows 98/ME is winipcfg.
IPv6- The next generation of the current Internet protocol (IPv4). The new protocol delivers
more IPAddresses and has better support for QoS (Quality of Service); this allows for better
streaming of audio and video.
ISP(Internet Service Provider) - A company that provides your Internet access and provides
you with an IPaddress.
LAN (Local Area Network) - ALAN is a group of computers on a network, usually within a
building.
Layer- All Internet protocols are divided into layers; all perform a special task. The physical
layer is only concerned with transferring raw data while on the other end, the application layer
does tasks like e-mail or web browsing.
Link State- Most Ethernet devices have a link state LED that tells whether there is an electrical
connection between two network devices. Alink LED that is not lit up means that no data can be
transmitted.
MAC Address- This is the physical address of a network adapter. This address is unique for all
network devices, unlike the IPAddress which can be set to any value.
Modem- A device that converts an analog signal to data for use by a computer. Examples are
phone modems for dial-up Internet access, cable modems and DSLmodems.
Network- Two or more computers connected together form a network and they can share data.
The Internet is a giant network of millions of computers connected together.
Packet- Packet is a unit containing a small amount of data. Data on a network is sent in pack-
ets which allow for very efficient use of bandwidth as the network is only used when data is
actually transmitted.
ping- a useful utility for finding out if another computer on the network is able to communicate.
At the command prompt, type 'ping' followed by a host name or IPAddress and a number of
packets will be sent to that computer.
PowerPacket™- The technology that forms the basis of Powerline communications. This is an
advanced technology utilizing the latest DSPtechnology to overcome problems with noise on
the powerlines.
Powerline Networking- Connection of network devices over existing powerlines. No additional
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