Glossary
coaxial cable | A type of wire consisting of a center wire surrounded by insulation and a grounded shield of braided wire. |
(coax) | The shield minimizes electrical and radio frequency interference. |
DOCSIS | The CableLabs |
| modems and supporting equipment. |
download | To copy a file from one computer to another. You can use the Internet to download files from a server to |
| your home PC. A DOCSIS digital voice modem downloads its configuration from a server during |
downstream | In a network, downstream describes the direction of data received by your computer from the Internet. |
Ethernet | The most widely used type of local area network (LAN). The most commonly installed Ethernet networks |
| are called |
| usually over |
expansion slot | An opening in a computer where a circuit board can be inserted to add new capabilities. |
A connector used to connect coaxial cable to equipment. | |
IP address | An Internet Protocol address is an identifier for a computer or device on a TCP/IP network. Networks |
| using TCP/IP route messages based on the destination IP address. Your cable provider assigns your |
| digital voice modem an IP address to provide a continuous Internet connection. |
MAC address | The Media Access Control Address uniquely identifies each device that can be connected to an Ethernet |
| network. It is permanently written to |
| panel of your SURFboard Digital Voice Modem. You need to provide the MAC address to your cable |
| provider. |
MHz | Mega Hertz. A measure of frequency - millions of cycles per second. One MHz means one million cycles |
| per second. |
PBX | A private branch exchange is a private telephone network usually used within a business. Users of the |
| PBX share a certain number of outside lines for making telephone calls external to the PBX. |
PSTN | The public switched telephone network is the traditional |
| network originally invented by Alexander Graham Bell. It is sometimes referred to as plain old telephone |
| service (POTS). |
The most common type of connector for household phones. | |
The most common type of connector for Ethernet networks. | |
splitter | A splitter is a device that divides the signal power from an input cable equally between two or more |
| signals, each carrying a selected frequency range. |
TCP/IP | Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol is a set of standards and rules for communication |
| between networks. |
upstream | In a network, upstream describes the direction of data sent from your computer to the Internet. |
UPS | An uninterruptible power supply provides a battery backup to enable voice service to continue for some |
| time during a power outage. |
USB | Universal Serial Bus is a computer interface for |
| voice modems. When you connect your SURFboard Digital Voice Modem to the USB port, Windows 98 |
| Second Edition and later versions automatically recognize the digital voice modem. |
VoIP | Voice over Internet Protocol is a method to exchange voice, fax, and other information over the Internet. |
| Voice and fax have traditionally been carried over traditional telephone lines using a dedicated circuit for |
| each line. VoIP enables calls to travel as discrete data packets on shared lines. |
SBV5222 SURFboard® Digital Voice Modem | 41 |
