Glossary

Note: these aren't the definitions you'd find in a book. If that's what you want, then go look in a book. These are they way I would explain the terms to someone. I'd appreciate it if you'd let me know of anything that's misleading or just plain wrong, but I'm not trying to be too strict. Life is tough enough. Sometimes, I may show some sarcasm, though.

EIA/TIA568

This is the color-code connection standard for an RJ-45 (8 conductor) connector. There are two wiring standards: 568A and 568B. They are both EIA/TIA standards, whatever that is. They differ only in that two pairs of colors are swapped. The 568B is an older standard defined by AT&T; new installations are supposed to use 568A. The really important thing is that everything be consistent or you'll get yourself confused. Note that the difference is only in what color is used for what pin, not what signal is on what pin, so in a patch cable with both ends pre-wired, it doesn't matter. The details are here.