Instructions
1 thread of at least 250 words. For each thread, you must support your assertions with at least 1 citation in current APA format. Acceptable sources include Cisco material, the Bible, and scholarly journals. You must also reply to 2 other threads of at least 100 words each..
Topic: Wired and Wireless Networking
Discuss, compare, and contrast wired media (coaxial cable, twisted pair, fiber optic) with wireless media (802.11 a,b,g,n). Decide which is better and defend your position.
Thread 1
I could start off by saying I don’t like having to pick a specific media… as every media is good and bad in its own way. There are different prices, different hardware & software requirements, and different capabilities for each network media type. What media is chosen would absolutely depend on the budget, infrastructure, capability requirements, etc. The list is actually fairly long and can continue to expand the more you dig into it.
If wired media is being compared to wireless, there are quite a few differences but I will focus on 4 in particular for this post.
Speeds – Wired media is capable of faster speeds than wireless media.
Cost – Wireless media in enterprise solutions, can be less expensive than wired media. Again, this is situational. This could be reversed.
Mobility – Wireless media allows hosts to be mobile and wired media does not.
Security – Wired media is more secure than wireless media.
From my time working with and creating small LANs in the offices that I’ve worked in, I prefer wired media. Wired media requires more physical work than wireless, but overall its less technical work. If everything is wired, then I don’t have to configure a wireless router and set everything up security wise. With wired media you can get more for less money.
With wireless routers you can spend hundreds of dollars on a router for an area and the signal cant penetrate the walls, so the signal is weaker in some spaces. With wired media, I can route everything through the wall and ceilings and get everyone a reliable connection.
Even for my home network, I prefer wired media. Its less likely to be interrupted. Even my Nighthawk gets interrupted every now and then, which momentarily drops my connection.
Overall, for me, Ill choose wired over wireless every time if I can.
**100 word reply**
Thread 2
Discuss: Wired media is said to be “media that transfers information over a network”. (Introduction to Networks) There are three forms of wired media today: twisted pair, fiber optic and coaxial cable. Wireless media transmits data through microwave, infrared or radio-wave signals to satellite or radio towers.
Contrast: Wired media is more secure than wireless media. Wired media also has a more expensive start-up cost, because of the wires that it takes and the cost of installation. Because of wired media,the positioning of computers for easy connectivity with Ethernet cables. It can be a challenge for wireless transmission in a building, because of concrete and metal walls interfering with the signal. Because of the radio-waves they emit, there have been misleading information about wireless media being potentially hazardous to health. But it has never been proven
Compare: Both wired and wireless media, transmit signals and are fast. I feel that a wired network connection is better than a wireless network connection. Because a wired connection, while it may be more expensive, it’s direct and to the source, “no middle man”. With a wireless connection you have to know exactly what host, what router and what switch you are wanting to connect to. And you must make sure that there are no signal interference while trying to connect them. Another fun fact able wired cabling, while yes it is true that there will be a few cables lying around; but with the technology we have in place today, it is very easy to hide the cables as if they were never there.
**100 word reply**