Home Networking. Backbone: The low- voltage wiring that connects various electronic equipment together.

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1 Home Networking Backbone: The low- voltage wiring that connects various electronic equipment together. Bandwidth: A measure of the carrying capacity of a communications device, usually expressed in kilohertz (khz) or megahertz (MHz). Baseband: A band of frequencies and related equipment used to carry signals in an unmodulated form (i.e., in their original electric form, without any modification). Bridge: A device that connects two networks together. Often found within Internet access devices like cable modems, where it connects a home LAN to the network of the Internet service provider and eventually to the Internet itself. Broadband: A band of frequencies used to transmit voice, data, or video signals simultaneously. Use of broadband allows more information to be transmitted at the same time. Broadband is like a multi- lane highway. CO: Incoming telephone lines. Cable Modem: A high- speed Internet access device that uses the coaxial cable network of cable television providers to connect a home PC or LAN to the Internet. Category 5e: A type of wiring used mainly to transmit data and voice signals. CEBUS: Consumer Electronics Bus, an emerging standard for connecting consumer electronics devices to a home network. The most important part of the standard is the Home Plug and Play protocol, which allows compatible devices to identify and communicate with each other. Computer Network: A system that transmits any combination of voice, video and/or data between computers. The network includes the network operating system in the client and server machines, the cables connecting them and all supporting hardware in between such as bridges, routers and switches. In wireless systems, antennas and towers are also part of the network.

2 Conduit: A plastic or metal pipe that is used to contain cable runs. It is often installed empty into new or renovated homes to allow easy running of new cables in the future. Connected Home: A house that has been properly wired and designed to receive and distribute a variety of music, video and data signals throughout the house. Is also equipped to connect to services outside the home. Daisy Chain: A method of connecting networked equipment such that each successive device in the network is connected in series from the previous device. This type of wiring is typically found in older telephone wiring installations, but it's not particularly flexible or reliable. Compare with Home Run. Digital Subscriber Line (DSL): A dedicated digital high- speed broadband connection that is leased from the local phone company to provide a high bandwith, always- on Internet connection. Ethernet Local Area Network (LAN): A network of personal computers and peripheral devices configured to share information within the home. Ethernet is the most common computer network and is usually characterized by RJ- 45 jacks. Firewall: Hardware or software that prevents hackers from tampering with your computer and/or home network. Futureproofing: The act of designing or installing a system that will meet the technological needs of a home today, as well as prepare it for future technologies. Gateway: A software- driven device that receives a variety of information from the telephone company, cable company and internet service provider, distributes those signals to equipment in a way so that products of dissimilar networking protocols can communicate with each other. Hardwired System: A system that uses its own dedicated cabling infrastructure to transmit commands to electronic devices. High-Speed or Broadband Internet Access: A connection to the Internet that transfers data faster than a traditional telephone (dial- up) connection. The most common services are digital subscriber lines (DSL), cable modems or direct broadcast satellite (DBS). High Speed Digital Internet: Worldwide, fast and secure surfing on the internet, e- commerce, e- mail and e- banking. Home Network: Two or more computers interconnected to form a local area network (LAN) within the home. A home network allows computer owners to

3 interconnect multiple computers so that each can share files, programs, printers, other peripheral devices, and Internet access with other computers. Homerun: A wiring method that connects electronic components individually to a distribution hub (e.g., Start Network) Hub: The central distribution point of a networking system where all wiring terminates. (Distribution Center/Box) Infrared (IR): The part of the light spectrum just below the visible portion. Often used for wireless networked devices and remote controls in a home. Internet Home Gateway: Acts as a router to direct the flow of digital signals throughout a building. ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network): A telephone system that allows two standard phone lines or medium- speed data networking over a single phone- line connection. ISP: Abbreviation for Internet Service Provider. Internet service can be powered through the phone line, cable and power line. Jack: A cable connector in the form of a receptacle, used with a plug to complete a cable connection. (Also see plug). LAN: (Local Area Network) LANs connect computers in a home, office or building. Each computer in a LAN can run its own programs, as well as access data on other computers on the LAN. The computers can also share printer and allow users on the LAN to communicate with each other. Most LANS use the Ethernet protocol. Multimedia Outlet: An outlet that houses an assortment of cable, telephone/data and speaker jacks. Modem: A device that converts a computer's digital signals into analog tones that can be carried over a telephone network. The name comes from the function, which is to MODulate and DEModulate these signals. Panels: The metal or plastic enclosure which house and protect a microprocessor's circuitry, looks like an electrical circuit breaker box. Usually located in the home's basement. Plug: The part of a connector system that goes into a jack to make an electrical connection. Typically, a plug is referred to as the male connector, while a jack is referred to as the female connector.

4 Prewiring: The practice of concealing wiring behind the wall of a home as it is constructed or renovated. Protocol: A common language or specification used by devices communicating over a network. Residential Gateway: A device that connects your home to the Internet via an Internet service provider. RG-6: A type of wiring generally used to transmit video signals between devices. Often referred to as coaxial cabling. Router: A device that connects different types of networks together. Is commonly contained within a gateway. Satellite Dish-Based Internet: A high- speed connection that uses a small disk antenna and digital transceiver to connect to the Internet. Server: A computer program that provides services to other computer programs or other computers. Shielding: A protective layer in a cable that prevents electromagnetic interference from outside sources. Smart Homes: A relatively new term describing remote and in- house control of Internet enabled household appliances like refrigerators, heating systems, smoke and fire alarm systems. Streaming: Streaming video is a sequence of "moving images" that are sent in compressed form over the Internet and displayed by the viewer as they arrive. Streaming media is streaming video with sound. With streaming video or streaming media, a Web user does not have to wait to download a large file before seeing the video or hearing the sound. Instead, the media is sent in a continuous stream and is played as it arrives. The user needs a player, which is a special program that uncompresses and sends video data to the display and audio data to speakers. Structured Wiring: A multipurpose system of in- wall wire and cable linking a central distribution center/hub with multimedia outlets located in key rooms of a home (home office/den/study, kitchen, family/great room and each bedroom). This system delivers all the voice, data and video (cable, internet access, telephone, etc.) performance you need today while providing the capacity to handle tomorrow's technologies as well.

5 Surge Suppressor: A device that prevents damage to electrical or electronic equipment by isolating them from unexpected rises in current or voltage (e.g., lightning strikes). Switcher: A device that sends data from one computer directly to another computer. Switches: A central device that connects PCs at higher speeds than a hub. Telephony: A powerful telephone connection using the Internet that offers security and good speech quality. You can also send and receive fax messages. Terminate: Connecting a wire or cable to something, usually a piece of equipment or a jack or plug. Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS): A device that includes a battery that keeps a computer running several minutes after a power outage. Universal plug and play: An initiative to simplify the interconnection of PCs, appliances, networks and services by extending plug and play to include networking. UTP (Unshielded Twisted Pair): The cable used in most home telephone and data networks, this twisted- pair cabling contains no shielding to protect it from outside interference. VoIP: Short for Voice Over IP. This refers to any technology offering voice telephony services over the Internet. Voltage: The measurement of electrical force in a circuit, measured in volts. X10: A proprietary technology that enables electronic devices to send and receive commands to and from each other via a home's standard electrical wiring.