User's Manual

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Appendix B:
DEFINITION OF TERMS
2.4 GHz band – radio operating band designated license-free by the FCC
802.11b – IEEE standard for high-speed wireless data network communications
Access Point (AP) – a wireless device that regulates and directs communications
among several wireless clients
Adapter – an internal or external circuit board that attaches to a computer to allow
support for various devices; a network adapter (like the USB Client Station Adapter)
enables a computer to connect to a network
Ad Hoc – peer-to-peer computer network; wireless clients communicate directly to each
other; usually for temporary networks
Channel – a specific frequency band used in wireless communication
Client Station – any computer on a network that requests information or services from
another computer (a server) and acts according to the server’s response
Data Frame – bits of data to be transmitted over the network
DHCP Server – [Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol Server] – automatically assigns
IP addresses to client stations
ESSID – Extended Service Set Identifier – name of the network
FCC – Federal Communications Commission
Fragmentation Threshold – any data frame larger than this threshold will be divided
into smaller pieces before transmission
GHz – Gigahertz
IEEE – Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers – a professional organization
that sets standards for data communications
Infrastructure – server-based computer network; wireless clients communicate through
an Access Point; used for long range or large networks or internetworks
IP Address – [Internet Protocol Address] – a unique number used to identify computers
on a network; can be static (manually assigned) or dynamic (periodically assigned by
DHCP server)