Bandwidth Speak

• Access provider–A
  
  company that sells Internet connectivity. Examples are MTNL, VSNL, Satyam
  
  and Mantra.

• Bandwidth–A
  
  measure of the information-carrying capacity of a transmission medium. For
  
  digital devices, bandwidth refers to the amount of data that can be
  
  transmitted in a certain period of time. The larger the bandwidth, the
  
  greater is the amount of information that can move through a network.
  
  
  
  Nasscom’s Operation Bandwidth has drawn attention to India’s
  bandwidth-related problems. According to Nasscom-McKinsey Report 1999, India
  
  will require a bandwidth of 300GB by 2005. India’s current international
  
  bandwidth is estimated at 325Mbps.
  

• Backbone–A
  
  large transmission line that carries data gathered from smaller
  
  interconnected lines. India does not have an Internet backbone. DoT has
  
  plans to set up the National Internet Backbone to cover 549 stations across
  
  the country.

• Broadband–A
  
  type of data transmission in which a single medium-wire is used to carry
  
  multiple channels simultaneously. Examples are cable TV and DSL technology.

• Collision–Collision
  
  occurs when one part of the network is used for different data transmissions
  
  at the same time. A collision results in a garbled message. There are
  
  collision detection techniques that can ensure proper transmission of your
  
  data.

• Connectivity–Reference
  
  to a program’s or device’s ability to link with other programs and
  
  devices.

• Data transfer–The
  
  outward-bound traffic from a Web site, with the exception of e-mail. This
  
  includes HTML, graphic, audio or video content accessed by someone viewing
  
  the site.

• Digital
  
  subscriber line (DSL)–DSL connects the PC to the telephone exchange using
  
  the same copper lines as the normal telephone connection. Attaching a DSL
  
  modem to this connection will enable you to have a 24-hour online connection
  
  to the Internet. Your telephone line is free for simultaneous communication.
  
  In India, DSL accounts cost up to Rs 30,000, including modem and
  
  installation charges.

• Integrated
  
  services digital network (ISDN)–A communication protocol offered by
  
  telephone companies to carry data, video and voice traffic. ISDN allows you
  
  to send digital information at speeds up to 128Kbps over the normal
  
  telephone network. MTNL and VSNL offer ISDN services in India.

• Leased line–A
  
  permanent telephone connection between two points. A leased line is always
  
  active. In India, leased lines are popular in the corporate sector, although
  
  getting a leased line can take about 45 days.

• Optical carrier–The
  
  term is used to specify the speed of fiber optic networks conforming to the
  
  SONET standard. A few examples are OC-1, OC-3 and OC-48, which are
  
  equivalent to 51.9Mbps, 155.5Mbps and 2.5Gbps, respectively.

• Optical fiber–A
  
  thin strand of glass wire capable of transmitting large amounts of
  
  information in seconds. Information is transmitted through the optical fiber
  
  in the form of light. In fiber, data can travel at 60% of the speed of light–that
  
  means 179,876 kilometers per second. In India, various companies are into
  
  the business related
  
  
  
  to optical fiber, notable among them being Spectranet, Hughes Tele.com,
  Reliance and Enron.
  

• SONET–Short for
  
  Synchronous Optical Network, SONET is a standard for connecting fiber-optic
  
  transmission systems. The international equivalent term is SDH.

• Streaming–The
  
  broadcasting of sound and video over an Intranet or Internet in real time.
  
  This is a bandwidth intensive application and is yet to make waves in India.

DQ