Sams Teach Yourself TCP/IP in 24 Hours, Fourth Edition

Cable Broadband

Demand for Internet services, and the ever-increasing capacity of computer systems, caused the industry to look for alternatives to the conventional technique of connecting to the Internet through a slow and finicky phone modem. Rather than undertaking the huge expense of providing a whole new cabling infrastructure for every home that wanted access, service vendors looked for ways to provide Internet services over existing wires.

One form of residential cabling that has proved quite capable of supporting Internet services is the cable television network. Cable-based broadband is now common in many parts of the world. A typical cable modem connection is shown in Figure 9.7. The cable modem connects directly to a coaxial cable ...