Omni 56K USB Lite
P
Glossary
keyboard port) or through software.
POTS
Plain Old Telephone Service is the analog telephone service that runs over
copper twisted-pair wires and is based on the original Bell telephone system.
Twisted-pair wires connect homes and businesses to a neighborhood central
office. This is called the local loop. The central office is connected to other
central offices and long-distance facilities.
Processing
Unit
A computer's brain. Here all the necessary calculations are performed.
Promiscuous
Packet Capture
Actively capturing packet information from a network. Most computers only
collect packets specifically addressed to them. Promiscuous packet capture
acquires all network traffic it can regardless of where the packets are
addressed.
Protocol
A "language" for communicating on a network. Protocols are sets of standards
or rules used to define, format, and transmit data across a network. There are
many different protocols used on networks. For example, most web pages are
transmitted using the HTTP protocol.
Proxy Server
A server that performs network operations in lieu of other systems on the
network. Proxy Servers are most often used as part of a firewall to mask the
identity of users inside a corporate network yet still provide access to the
Internet. When a user connects to a proxy server, via a web browser or other
networked application, he submits commands to the proxy server. The server
then submits those same commands to the Internet, yet without revealing any
information about the system that originally requested the information. Proxy
servers are an ideal way to also have all users on a corporate network channel
through one point for all external communications. Proxy servers can be
configured to block certain kinds of connections and stop some hacks.
PSTN
Public Switched Telephone Network was put into place many years ago as a
voice telephone call-switching system. The system transmits voice calls as
analog signals across copper twisted cables from homes and businesses to
neighborhood COs (central offices); this is often called the local loop. The
PSTN is a circuit-switched system, meaning that an end-to-end private circuit is
established between caller and called.
Public Domain
A special form of distributing software. Public domain software authors make no
claim to commercialize their rights.
Public Key
System of encrypting electronic files using a key pair. The key pair contains a
