Unit 2

Lesson 5 - Wireless Transmission

   Wireless LAN Comparison

In recent years, several promising wireless LAN technologies have declined in importance, leaving spread spectrum techniques as the only currently viable approach for comprehensive wireless solutions. Within this category, it is important to carefully consider the features offered by different vendors to ensure they are appropriate for your specific requirements. Wireless LANs represent an area of rapid technological change that will likely continue.

The Wireless LANs Table presents a comparison between the two most popular wireless technologies: spread spectrum and infrared "point-and-shoot."

Wireless LANs

Wireless LAN Type

Advantage

Disadvantage

Radio: Spread spectrum

Transmission through walls
Only comprehensive solution

Low data rate
(1 to 2 Mbps)

Nonradio: Infrared point-and-shoot

Higher speed (up to 20 Mbps)
Inexpensive

Short range, line-of-sight, point-to-point
Mobile Computing

Tremendous innovations are being made to provide mobile computer users with the ability to communicate with the rest of a LAN using long-distance wireless technologies. This is a very volatile area, and technologies are being developed based on satellite transmission, cellular (telephone) systems, special mobile radio, and other media. In many ways, these can be considered long-distance data communication technologies rather than LAN technologies. However, their success hinges on their ability to internetwork with the dominant "hard-wired" LAN protocols.

   Activities

See the Activities and Extended Activities section in Unit 2 Lesson 5 in your textbook Introduction to Networking to test what you have learned so far.

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