Is it time to cut the Ethernet access cable? A range of companies with wireless LANs are discovering that 50% to 90% or more of Ethernet ports now go unused, because Wi-Fi has become so prevalent. Mailbag: Wireless vs. wired Recently, I mentioned that wireless LAN capabilities are becoming integral to LAN deployments as a whole. I speculated that perhaps wireless LANs would become the preferred method of connecting to a network - at some point superseding cabling options. You had mixed reactions. Does 802.11n spell the 'end of Ethernet'? Is the advent of the 802.11n wireless standard the “end of Ethernet” - at least in terms of client access to the LAN? MacBook Air: .11n Standard, Ethernet Optional So Apple announced their thin notebook, the MacBook Air moments ago, and I couldn't help but notice that, thin coolness aside, there is no Ethernet port on this machine. There's an optional USB-attached Ethernet dongle (no full-speed Gig-E, then), but users are expected to be wireless essentially all of the time. This is more than a cynical attempt to sell APs (Apple also announced a couple of these, equipped with large hard drives for their clever real-time backup mechanism, Time Machine); it's the future. Still, this is a gutsy move for Apple, but, then, they'll sell tons of these no matter what. Juniper bolsters branch router, switch lines Juniper Networks this week will extend its branch office line with routers and switches designed to enable remote workers to securely access enterprise resources at lower cost. Infiniband vendor catches Ethernet wave Infiniband data center switch vendor Voltaire has caught the Ethernet bug. Expand A Small Network With an Ethernet Switch Most home-office networks start with a PC, a router, and a modem. But when a small single-user network grows into a larger multiuser network, your original Wi-Fi router can run out of free ethernet ports to connect various PCs, networkable printers, small-business servers, and other essential hardware. That's when a switch comes in handy. CCNP lab for $750 plus cables Cisco Subnet blogger Wendell Odom ends his springtime CCNA/CCNP lab series with a run-through on how to put together a lab on a budget of $750. Asked & Answered: Help for PPPoE Can PPPoE and PPPoA be simulated using GNS3? Steve Blass tackles this reader question. May Giveaways Cisco Subnet, Microsoft Subnet and Google Subnet are collectively giving away books on Google Apps Deciphered, the CCNA Security exam, an awesome SQL Server 2005/2008 training video and the grand prize, a Microsoft training course from New Horizons worth up to $2,500. Deadline for entries May 31. Network World on Twitter Get our tweets and stay plugged in to networking news. |
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