Ports and Protocols Flashcards
Ports and Protocols
Ethernet, USB and FireWire are different types of cable port protocols which can be used to attach external devices to your computer.
Bluetooth
A low power wire- less network protocol designed to connect up to 7 devices over a short range. Examples of devices which use Bluetooth include cellphones, headsets, mice, keyboards, printers, iPod Touch, PSP, Wii controllers, and computers. Ranges vary, but are typically around 30 to 50 feet.
Cable Modem
A device which allows a computer to connect to other computers via optical cable, like cable TV. Fiber-optic internet speeds can be as high as 2000 Mbps, but most cable service is much slower.
DSL Modem:
A device which allows a computer to connect to other computers via a spe- cial high-speed phone line. DSLspeeds can be as high as 115 Mbps, but most DSL service is much slower.
Ethernet port
An I/O protocol that allows you to connect your computer to a local network of computers, printers and ether- net hubs. Sometimes you’ll see 10Base-T written, which refers to Ethernet running at 10 megabits per second. Ethernet is available at speeds of 10, 100, and 1000 (Gigabit) Mbps.
FireWire
An I/O protocol used by many video cameras and some CD drives. Sometimes it is referred to as IEEE-1394, or i.LINK (by Sony).
Hotspot:
A Wi-Fi broadcasting location. Many Hotspot loca- tions require the use of a password. Some require a fee.
Lightning
A proprietary cable/ connector used by Apple to connect iPhones and iPads to chargers, dongles, Macintosh computers, and other devices. It can transfer data as well as power.
Thunderbolt
An I/O protocol that allows both data and dis- play signals to be simultane- ously transmitted via a single cable. This will allow you to daisy chain your monitor, hard drive, and other peripherals with fewer cables. Originally conceived of as an optical pro- tocol, the first-generation Thunderbolt cables use copper wire in order to convey power as well as data.
The current speed of Thunderbolt is 10 Gigabits per second (10 Gbps) in both di- rections, but future generations may be as fast as 100 Gbps when optical fibers are added to the cables. The cable ends are based on DisplayPort /
PCI Express connectors.
USB
An I/O protocol used to connect a keyboard, mouse, printer, scanner or other pe- ripheral. Apple replaced SCSI and ADB with USB because it is inexpensive. It is hot-plug- gable, which means that USB peripherals can be attached or detached while the computer is on. Adding USB peripherals requires the addition of one or more USB hubs which are ex- ternal to your computer. While a USB cable can carry power, using multiple USB devices requires additional power adapters.
Originally, USB 1.1 ran at 12 Mbps (slower than FireWire 400). USB 2, however, is rated at 480 Mbps. USB 3 is rated at 5 Gbps, and USB 3.1 is rated at 10 Gbps (20 times faster than USB 2).
Wi-Fi
A wireless protocol used to connect 2 to 254 devices, usually providing access to the Internet. Short for Wireless Fi- delity, Wi-Fi is a trade name for the IEEE 802.11 protocol. Apple uses the Airport trade name for the same protocol. Wi-Fi networks can be secured with WEP, WAP or WAP2 en- cryption.
