1. Fast Ethernet for Networks http://compnetworking.about.com/library/glossary/bl def-fastethernet.htm/ Link provided by yuhong chen @ Villanova university http://compnetworking.about.com/library/glossary/bl def-fastethernet.htm/

2. A brief introduction to Ethernet In 1973, at Xerox Corporation’s Palo Alto Research Center (more commonly known as PARC), researcher Bob Metcalfe designed and tested the first Ethernet network. The Ethernet standard has grown to encompass new technologies as computer networking has matured, but the mechanics of operation for every Ethernet network today stem from Metcalfe’s original design. The original Ethernet described communication over a single cable shared by all devices on the network.

3. Why Ethernet is so pop today? Ethernet is popular because it strikes a good balance between speed, cost and ease of installation. These benefits, combined with wide acceptance in the computer marketplace and the ability to support virtually all popular network protocols, make Ethernet an ideal networking technology for most computer users today.

4. Three types of Ethernet Traditional Ethernet supports data transfers at the rate of 10 Megabits per second (Mbps). Often referred to as "Thicknet," 10Base5 technology was the first incarnation of Ethernet. It was used in the 1980s until 10Base2 "Thinnet" with more flexible cabling appeared. Over time, as the performance needs of LANs have increased, related technologies like: Fast Ethernet Fast Ethernet supports a maximum data rate of 100 Mbps. It is so named because original Ethernet technology supported only 10 Mbps. Fast Ethernet began to be widely deployed in the mid- 1990s as the need for greater LAN performance became critical to universities and businesses. Gigabit Ethernet have been developed that extend traditional Ethernet to 100 Mbps and 1000 Mbps speeds, respectively

5. How Ethernet works Ethernet follows a simple set of rules that govern its basic operation. To better understand these rules, it is important to understand the basics of Ethernet terminology. Medium - Ethernet devices attach to a common medium that provides a path along which the electronic signals will travel. Historically, this medium has been coaxial copper cable, but today it is more commonly a twisted pair or fiber optic cabling. Segment - We refer to a single shared medium as an Ethernet segment. Node - Devices that attach to that segment are stations or nodes. Frame - The nodes communicate in short messages called frames, which are variably sized chunks of information.

7. Continue…. Ethernet protocol specifies a set of rules for constructing frames. There are explicit minimum and maximum lengths for frames, and a set of required pieces of information that must appear in the frame. Each frame must include, for example, both a destination address and a source address, which identify the recipient and the sender of the message. The address uniquely identifies the node, just as a name identifies a particular person. No two Ethernet devices should ever have the same address.

8. Continue Since a signal on the Ethernet medium reaches every attached node, the destination address is critical to identify the intended recipient of the frame. However, when a station first receives a frame, it checks the destination address to see if the frame is intended for itself. If it is not, the station discards the frame without even examining its contents.

9. Continue… Since a signal on the Ethernet medium reaches every attached node, the destination address is critical to identify the intended recipient of the frame. However, when a station first receives a frame, it checks the destination address to see if the frame is intended for itself. If it is not, the station discards the frame without even examining its contents.

10. Some important issues CSMA/CD The acronym CSMA/CD signifies Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Detection and describes how the Ethernet protocol regulates communication among nodes A limitation of Ethernet there are practical limits to the size of our Ethernet network in this case. A primary concern is the length of the shared cable Routers:Logical Segmentation Bridges can reduce congestion by allowing multiple conversations to occur on different segments simultaneously, but they have their limits in segmenting traffic as well.

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12. What to improve in Ethernet design? Faster speed Be able to transfer multiple kind of jobs System security improvement New type of cables Wireless More compatible

13. My comments to this website perfect place not only for the Ethernet study but to all the computer networks Fits for all level of computer students Multiple ways to learn, like online quiz, tutorial, chatting and forum discussion give us fancy ways to participating on line I think it’s very good

14. Reference used http://compnetworking.about.com/cs/ethernet1/ http://compnetworking.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http% 3A%2F%2Fwww.howstuffworks.com%2Fethernet.htm http://compnetworking.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http% 3A%2F%2Fwww.howstuffworks.com%2Fethernet.htm http://compnetworking.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http% 3A%2F%2Fwww.howstuffworks.com%2Fethernet.htm http://compnetworking.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http% 3A%2F%2Fwww.howstuffworks.com%2Fethernet.htm