Appendix E: Linux, Open Source, And Beta Operating Systems; Appendix F: Glossary - Linksys USB200M Guia Del Usuario

Appendix E: Linux, Open Source,
and Beta Operating Systems
Linksys does not provide technical support for Linux, BSD, or other freeware
and open source operating systems. Although many Linksys products have
been proven to perform well under Linux and other freeware operating systems,
technical support for setup and troubleshooting is not provided. For
information on where to find device drivers and setup instructions for Linux
and other freeware operating systems, visit the support pages and FAQ files on
the Linksys website, www.linksys.com .
Linksys does not provide technical support for Beta operating systems.
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Instant EtherFast ® Series Compact USB 2.0 10/100 Network Adapter

Appendix F: Glossary

10BaseT - An Ethernet standard that uses twisted wire pairs.
100BaseTX- IEEE physical layer specification for 100 Mbps over two pairs of
Category 5 UTP or STP wire.
Adapter - Printed circuit board that plugs into a PC to add to capabilities or
connectivity to a PC. In a networked environment, a network interface card is
the typical adapter that allows the PC or server to connect to the intranet and/or
Internet.
Boot - To cause the computer to start executing instructions. Personal
computers contain built-in instructions in a ROM chip that are automatically
executed on startup. These instructions search for the operating system, load it
and pass control to it.
Buffer - A buffer is a shared or assigned memory area used by hardware
devices or program processes that operate at different speeds or with different
sets of priorities. The buffer allows each device or process to operate without
being held up by the other. In order for a buffer to be effective, the size of the
buffer and the algorithms for moving data into and out of the buffer need to be
considered by the buffer designer. Like a cache, a buffer is a "midpoint holding
place" but exists not so much to accelerate the speed of an activity as to support
the coordination of separate activities.
CAT 5 - ANSI/EIA (American National Standards Institute/Electronic
Industries Association) Standard 568 is one of several standards that specify
"categories" (the singular is commonly referred to as "CAT") of twisted pair
cabling systems (wires, junctions, and connectors) in terms of the data rates
that they can sustain. CAT 5 cable has a maximum throughput of 100 Mbps
and is usually utilized for 100BaseTX networks.
CSMA/CD (Carrier Sense Multiple Access/Collision Detection) - The LAN
access method used in Ethernet. When a device wants to gain access to the
network, it checks to see if the network is quiet (senses the carrier). If it is not,
it waits a random amount of time before retrying. If the network is quiet and
two devices access the line at exactly the same time, their signals collide. When
the collision is detected, they both back off and each wait a random amount of
time before retrying.
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