Hubs Are for 10BASET;
Repeaters for Thinwire
Almost all ethernet systems installed today are based upon category 5,
2 or 4 pair wire. These pairs of 2 or 4 wires are connected to hubs of
various intelligence. (See Winter 1995 The Unibase Review
or "Fast Ethernet - Dawn of a New Network" by Howard W. Johnson.)
What about oldtimers who have the thinwire ethernet systems? Well, we
at DMAC found that the exact function performed by the hubs on 10BASET
systems, can be performed by a repeater on thinwire ethernet systems.
Our system, with over three dozen computer nodes, started to get network
errors -- especially on the faster 120 mhertz clock speed pentiums.
After much blustering, as we oldtimers will do, we chopped our single
thinwire ethernet system into three segments all connected to a repeater
from Tut Systems Repeater Division. Worked like a champ. No errors since
the installation. This may help others also.
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