Glossary J-L

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Jabber: Network error caused by an interface card continually sending corrupted data onto the network.
Jacket: The outer protective covering of wire or cable.
JAVA: An object oriented programming language developed by Sun Microsystems. Used on the World Wide Web.
Jitter: The slight movement of a transmission signal in time or phase that can introduce errors & loss of synchronization in high speed synchronous communications.
Jumper: A short length of conductor used to make temporary connection between terminals, around a break in a circuit, or around an instrument.
K: Kilo notation for one thousand or & Expression for one kilobyte standard quantity measurement for disk & diskette storage & semiconductor circuit capacity; one K of memory equals 1024 bytes (8-bit characters) of computer memory; slightly more than a thousand.
Kbps: See Kilobits per second
KEV: 1000 electron volts.
Kilo: Prefix meaning 1000
Kilobits per second: (Kbps) The measurement of data rate & transmission capacity.
KPSI: Tensile strength in thousands of pounds per square inch.
KW: Kilowatt or 1000 Watts
Kynar: PVDF Polyvinylideneneflouride resin manufactured by the Pennwallt Corporation. A crystalline, high molecular weight polymer of PVCDF having high dielectric strength as well as abrasion resistant characteristics.
L: Symbol for inductance.
LAN: See Local Area Network
LAN Manager: Microsoft's network operating system based on OS/2.
LAN Server: IBM's implementation of LAN manager
LANaware: Applications that have file & record locking for use on a network.
LANignorant: Applications written for single users only. These are not recommended for use on LAN's.
LANintrinsic: Application written for client-server networks.
LAP: See Link Access Protocol
LAPD: See Link Access Procedure-D
LASER: (Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation) A coherent source of light with a narrow beam & a narrow spectral bandwidth (about 2nm)
LAT: DECnet protocol governing communications between terminals & hosts.
Latency: The time interval between when a network station seeks access to a transmission channel & when access is granted or received; equivalent to waiting time.
Lay: Pertaining to wire & cable, the axial distance required for one cabled conductor or conductor strand to complete one revolution about the axis around which it is cabled.
Lay Direction: The twist in the cable as indicated by the top strands while looking along the axis of cable away from the observer. Described as "right hand" or "left hand."
Layer: A conceptual level of network processing functions defined by OSI. Processing is though to take place in layers starting form the physical transmission of data up through to the commands of an end-user.
LDM: (Limited Distance Modem) See Line Driver
Lead: A wire, with or without terminals, that connects two points in a circuit.
Leakage: The undesirable passage of current of the surface of or through an insulator
Learning Bridge: A bridge which automatically "learns" the topology of the LAN addresses of each node as it receives packets. Learning bridges require little or no setup at the time of installation.
Leased line: A private telephone line reserved for the leasing customer's use.
LED: See Light-Emitting Diode
Level: A measurement of the difference between a quantity or value & an established reference.
Light Source (Fiber Optic): An object capable of emitting light, In fiber optics, the light source is normally an LED or laser.
Light-Emitting Diode: (LED). A semi-conductor light source that emits visible light or invisible infrared radiation.
Limited Distance Modem: (LDM) See Line Driver
Line Conditioning: The addition of equipment to improve ("tune") the transmission characteristics of a dedicated voice grade telephone line. Conditioning is done to increase data speed (bit rate) & reduce bit error rate.
Line Connection: The process of terminating the communications links between DTE's. The term is also used for the first phase of the data transfer sequence. Line Disconnection: The process of terminating the communications link between two DTEs. Opposite of Line Connection.
Line Driver: A DCE device that amplifies a data signal for transmission over cable for distances beyond the RS232 limit of 50 feet, even up to several miles. Also called "limited-distance modem" (LDM) or "short haul modem" (SHM).
Line Equalizer: A reactance (inductance and/or capacitance) connected in series with a transmission line to alter the frequency-response characteristics of the line.
Line Level: The amplitude of a signal at a certain point on a transmission line. Usually expressed in decibels.
Line Noise: Noise originating in the transmission media. The term is normally used for telephone lines. A certain amount of line noise is practically unavoidable.
Line Speed: Expressed in Bps, the maximum rate at which data can reliably be transmitted over a line using given hardware.
Line Turnaround: The reversal of transmission direction between two communicating DTEs. Line turnaround is a major source of inefficiency in high-speed, half-duplex data communications.
Link: A telecommunications circuit or channel.
Link Access Procedure-D: (LAPD) Link level protocol devised for ISDN connections, differing from LAPB (Lap-Balanced) in its framing sequence. Likely to be used as basis for LAPM, the proposed CCITT modem error control standard.
Link Access Protocol: (LAP) AppleTalk protocols including ELAP for Ethernet & LLAP for LocalTalk.
Link Layer: See Data Link Layer
LLC: See Logical Link Control
Load: A device that consumes power from a source & uses that power to perform a function.
Loaded Line: A telephone line equipped with loading oils; adds inductance to minimize amplitude distortion.
Lobe: The cable that runs between a MAU & a device (workstation, peripheral or processor).
Local Area Network: (LAN) A high speed method of transmitting information between mainframe, mini- & micro- computers. Most often installed in a limited area such as an office building or small campus.
Local Line, Local Loop: A channel connecting the subscribers equipment to the line-terminating equipment in the central office. Usually a metallic circuit (either 2-wire or 4-wire)
LocalTalk: A 230 kilobits per second baseband network using the CSMA/CA access method.
Logical Link Control: (LLC) Defined by IEEE 802 standards as the upper sublayer of the data link layer. It allows higher-layer protocol to operate independently of the LAN being used.
Logical Unit 6.2: (LU 6.2) An IBM protocol suite governing peer-to-peer communications in an SNA (Systems Network Architecture) network.
Long Link: A Parallel Extender manufactured by Intellicom.
Loopback: A diagnostic test in which a signal is transmitted across a medium while the sending device waits for its return.
Loosely Coupled: A multiprocessor computer in which the CPU's (Central Processing Units) have separate memory & system buses.
Loss: Reduction in signal strength, expressed in decibels; also, attenuation; opposite of gain.
LU 6.2: See Logical Unit 6.2

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