Appendix B: Glossary - Linksys WUSB54AG User Manual

tuned to the right frequency, a spread-spectrum signal looks like background
noise. There are two main alternatives, Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum
(DSSS) and Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum (FHSS).
What is DSSS? What is FHSS? And what are their differences?
Frequency-Hopping Spread-Spectrum (FHSS) uses a narrowband carrier that
changes frequency in a pattern that is known to both transmitter and receiver.
Properly synchronized, the net effect is to maintain a single logical channel. To
an unintended receiver, FHSS appears to be short-duration impulse noise.
Direct-Sequence Spread-Spectrum (DSSS) generates a redundant bit pattern
for each bit to be transmitted. This bit pattern is called a chip (or chipping
code). The longer the chip, the greater the probability that the original data can
be recovered. Even if one or more bits in the chip are damaged during transmission,
statistical techniques embedded in the radio can recover the original
data without the need for retransmission. To an unintended receiver, DSSS
appears as low power wideband noise and is rejected (ignored) by most narrowband
receivers.
Would the information be intercepted while transmitting on air?
WLAN features two-fold protection in security. On the hardware side, as with
Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum technology, it has the inherent security feature
of scrambling. On the software side, WLAN offers the encryption function
(WEP) to enhance security and access control.
Can Instant Wireless products support printer sharing?
Instant Wireless products perform the same function as LAN products.
Therefore, Instant Wireless products can work with NetWare, Windows
NT/2000, or other network operating systems to support printer or file sharing.
What is WEP?
WEP is Wired Equivalent Privacy, a data privacy mechanism based on a 40/64
bit shared key algorithm, as described in the IEEE 802.11 standard.

Appendix B: Glossary

802.11a - One of the IEEE standards for wireless networking hardware.
Products that adhere to a specific IEEE standard will work with each other,
even if they are manufactured by different companies. It specifies a maximum
data transfer rate of 54Mbps and an operating frequency of 5GHz. The 802.11a
standard uses the Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) transmission
method. Additionally, the 802.11a standard supports 802.11 features
such as WEP encryption for security.
802.11b - One of the IEEE standards for wireless networking hardware.