PhoneNet
Encyclopedia
AppleTalk
AppleTalk is a proprietary suite of protocols developed by Apple Inc. for networking computers. It was included in the original Macintosh released in 1984, but is now unsupported as of the release of Mac OS X v10.6 in 2009 in favor of TCP/IP networking...
networking physical layer created by Farallon Computing (now Netopia
Netopia
Netopia is a company, headquartered in Emeryville, California, that produces a variety of broadband products including modems, routers, gateways, and Wi-Fi devices. The company also produces the NBBS , as well as the Timbuktu remote administration software...
). Instead of using expensive shielded twisted pair
Twisted pair
Twisted pair cabling is a type of wiring in which two conductors are twisted together for the purposes of canceling out electromagnetic interference from external sources; for instance, electromagnetic radiation from unshielded twisted pair cables, and crosstalk between neighboring pairs...
wiring as in Apple's LocalTalk
LocalTalk
LocalTalk is a particular implementation of the physical layer of the AppleTalk networking system from Apple Computer. LocalTalk specifies a system of shielded twisted pair cabling, plugged into self-terminating transceivers, running at a rate of 230.4 kbit/s...
implementation, PhoneNet uses standard four-conductor telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
patch cords and modular connector
Modular connector
Modular connector is the name given to a family of electrical connectors originally used in telephone wiring and now used for many other purposes. Many applications that originally used a bulkier, more expensive connector have now migrated to modular connectors...
s, and is generally used in a daisy chain
Daisy chain
Daisy chain may refer to a daisy garland created from daisy flowers, the original meaning and the one from which the following derive by analogy:*Daisy chain *Daisy chain *Daisy chain...
topology. PhoneNet used only two of the wires, allowing it to be piggybacked on existing phone cabling by splitting out the wiring in the wall jack into two jacks, one carrying analog telephony via RJ11 jack; the second AppleTalk data via a PhoneNet adaptor. The theoretical maximum speed for data transfer was 230K.
Though PhoneNet transceivers are still available from third parties for use on legacy Macintosh networks, no current Mac model comes with the RS-422 serial ports that are required for PhoneNet transceivers; virtually all Macintosh networking is done using Ethernet
Ethernet
Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
or Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...
, with a small amount of IP
Internet Protocol
The Internet Protocol is the principal communications protocol used for relaying datagrams across an internetwork using the Internet Protocol Suite...
-over-FireWire used for ad hoc networking.