Ethernet Video Series
Episode 01, Segment 05 of 05
Ethernet Tutorial (continued)
Well, that’s Ethernet! Or at least, that’s the basis of the original old-style Ethernet. Nowadays, there are many different types of Ethernet networks using different kinds of cables running at different speeds, capable of communication over different distances. But they all trace their roots and base their technology on the concepts that have been discussed here.
Terminology
And now that you are comfortable with these simple concepts, we should cover a
little bit of terminology. This will allow you to go shopping for Ethernet
equipment, buying things with confidence and speaking the language written on
the boxes in the stores. This will also allow you to understand some of the
other training videos that are available here on AskMisterWizard.com.
Collisions
(Click above image for enlarged view)
When two or more Ethernet stations transmit at the same time, they garble the
messages from both, and this condition has been called a "collision". Because
collisions and collision detections are such an important part of Ethernet
operation, sometimes an Ethernet segment is called a “collision network,” or a
“collision domain.”
Ethernet Addresses
An Ethernet address is 48 bits in length. That’s the source Ethernet address and
also the destination Ethernet address. Consisting of 48 binary bits, each
Ethernet address is sufficiently precise to allow every single Ethernet
interface in every single computer and every single piece of network equipment
that has ever been made, to have a unique address from among trillions and
trillions possible.
Ethernet Data Rates
Old-style Ethernet transmitted 10 million bits per second. Later on, more modern
versions were built with an accelerated speed of 100 million bits per second.
Still later, designers learned how to send billions of bits per second, and
created what is now called "Gigabit Ethernet".
End of Episode 1.