Welcome to PPC Microsmith

Networking Solutions

Cabling

The most common type of cabling today is commonly known as 10 Base-T which is named for its ability to transfer data at a rate of 10 Megs per second. Traditionally most PC networks are based on 10 meg per second transfer times. The most important feature of twisted pair cable to know is that it should be CATEGORY 5 as it will support 100 Meg Networks.

Cable for UNIX or XENIX networks can be of a lesser grade as the amount of information transferred is much less than with a PC network as it is a SERIAL CONNECTION. With the introduction of PC networks and the phasing out of serial networks some businesses have 10 Base-T cable installed with adapters to run terminals that can easily be converted to support PCs.

If you are considering adding or moving terminals to a location where there is no existing cable it is wise to use 10 Base T cable for future conversion to PCs and the cost difference is minimal.

Terminals / PCs

A terminal is typically a serial based device that displays information sent to it by a central computer. Information entered into a terminal is sent to the central computer and all processing of this information is done on the central computer, not on the terminal.

A PC is a computer which is capable of processing software on its own. In a multi-user scenario PCs are typically connected by a LAN (Local Area Network) through 10 Base T cable. Certain types of software called client-server have a central database located on a central computer (commonly called a Server) and have some of the software installed on each station so that information can be processed more quickly than if everything was done by the server. The strength of this design is that it provides the ability for graphical programs (Windows etc.) to run and different stations can run different applications without always affecting the server which stores data centrally.