 | Accessories & Tools | | Cables & Adapters | | Cases & Fans | | Cases-Small Footprint | | Case Mods & Lights | | CD, DVD, FD & Storage | | Cooling, Watercooling | | CPUs & Overclocking | | Gaming Gear, Games | | Hard Drive, Controller | | Keyboards, Mice, Input | | Laptops & Notebooks | | Memory, USB Drives | | Modems & Low Profile | | Monitors, LCD & KVM | | Motherboards, RAID | | Network & Wireless | | Power Supplies, UPS | | Printers, Scanners | | Quiet PC, Parts for | | Servers, SCSI, Blade | | Software & Training | | Sound, Speakers, MP3 | | Systems-Desktop,PDA | | Video Cards, Camera |

|  |  | |
  Tips on How to Choose Network ProductsBy Dr. Michael
You are encouraged to make links to this article from your website and tell your friends
Customer Reviews: Click here for more reviews.
The following advice is based on many years of experience. It is provided as a free service to our customers and visitors. However, Directron.com is not responsible for any damage as a result of following any of this advice. You are welcome to distribute these tips free to your friends and associates as long as it's not for commercial purposes.
- If sales volume is what matters to you, the top three volume manufacturers in network products are 3COM, Intel and D-Link. However, we do not see much of a difference in performance or reliability among these brands; although you may choose one brand over the others because of historic reasons.
- Choose a 10/100 dual speed product whenever your budget allows. The 10BT is being phased out. 1000BT is on the horizon. A 10/100BT product would give you the most value at this time and maximum product lifetime. A 10/100 dual-speed product will allow you to connect to both 10 and 100BT networks automatically.
- Forget about co-ax if you are starting new. The pair-to-pair network is too much trouble to maintain and it is not much cheaper either.
- You don't need a hub if you have only two computers to connect with. You can use a "straight" cable (as compared to the normal "twisted-pair") to connect them directly with two network adapters. Most commercial cables are, however, made "twisted-pair."
- 100BASE-T Fast Ethernet operates at ten times the speed of regular 10BASE-T Ethernet, yet can be seamlessly integrated into existing Ethernet installations to deliver high bandwidth performance where it's needed. Rapidly becoming the standard for today's LAN, Fast Ethernet provides a cost-effective solution for the network bottlenecks created by the growing volumes of data generated by today's more powerful desktop PCs and bandwidth-intensive networked applications. Fast Ethernet, together with 32-bit PCI bus architecture, extends the power of high performance desktop PCs onto the LAN.
- Fast Ethernet - When and Where You Need It
Enabling your network for high-speed bandwidth needn't involve a mammoth undertaking accomplished all at once. Fast Ethernet is an extensible networking solution that can be deployed in a flexible manner, step-by-step, as your network growth warrants. A phased approach is almost always the most cost-effective way to implement a network strategy. Fast Ethernet, as an evolutionary extension of time-proven Ethernet technology, can be integrated one step at a time, when and where it's needed.
Interested in Fast Ethernet Network Cards or Fast Ethernet Hubs.
- What's the difference between a hub and a switch? The word "switch" is often misused and misunderstood. In a nutshell, a hub is a device that the speed of a hub is shared by the individual ports. For instance, the maximum speed of a 10BT hub with five users on it is 10/5, i.e. 2BT. In a switch, the speed of individual ports is not shared. Each port is connected independently at the maximum speed, such as 10 or 100BT. However, most dual-speed hubs have a feature of auto sensing and switching between the two speeds. Remember, the word "switching" in a hub has a very different meaning from a "switch."
If you find this article useful, please create a link to it from your website or tell a friend about it. If you have any comments or suggestions about this article, please email information@directron.us
|
Other "How to Choose" Tips | Microprocessor | Memory | Motherboard | Hard Drive | | Monitor | Video Card | Sound Card | Network | Case | Power Supply |
| Go to Top | Home | Other Resources |
Copyright 1997-2008 Directron.com/HCCI. All rights reserved
Read More Customer Reviews
Write New Reviews
|
|
Shipping Policy |
|
Customer Services |
|
Payment Policy |
|
|
Est. Shipping
Cost
Time-in-Transit Map
FAQ - Shipping
Top Reasons for
Delays
UPS,
FedEx,
Postal
Office
Walk-in Sales
APO/FPO Shipping
International
Tracking Orders |
Return Rates
Store Statistics
Customer Satisfaction
Account Applications
Frequent Errors
FAQ-Services
FAQ-Tech Support
Newsletter
Order Status |
Credit Card via Phone
Purchase Order
Prepay, PayPal
Resellers
Corporate
Schools,
Government
Terms & Conditions
Price & Tax
FAQ-Payment
|
|
Top Brands |
|
Abit,
Acer,
AMD, Antec,
AOpen,
Asus,
ATI,
Biostar,
Buffalo,
Cooler Master, Corsair, Creative, Dell, D-Link,
Enermax,
FSP,
Gigabyte,
Hauppauge,
HP,
Intel,
InWin,
Kingston,
Lenovo,
Lian-Li,
Linksys,
Lite-On,
Logisys,
Logitech,
Maxtor,
Microsoft,
MSI,
Mushkin,
Netgear,
OCZ,
Seagate,
Shuttle,
Sony,
SuperMicro,
ThermalTake,
Vantec,
ViewSonic,
Western Digital,
XFX,
Zalman.
|
Have a question about our products, services or technical issues? Find the answer instantly! Type your question or key words in English:
95% email/ phone questions already have answers on our web site.
|
Copyright (c) 1997-2008 Directron.com, Inc., Houston, Texas
Buy -
Sell -
Trade -
Build -
Repair -
Upgrade -
Help -
Troubleshoot -
Shopping
Computers -
Laptops -
Servers -
Hardware -
Parts -
Software -
Peripherals -
Services
High Quality -
Low Prices -
Discount Shop -
Large Selection -
Free Products -
Fast Shipping
Affiliates: Dallas Computer Store - San Antonio Computer Store - K12 Education Computer Systems |
|  | |