IntroThe IEEE 802.11 Working Group on January 19 unanimously approved a new Draft 2.0 802.11n proposed standard. In this podcast we take a look at this new draft standard and also look at earlier standards including 802.11 a, b and g.Question: Mike – before we get into the technology….. this new draft standard was approved unanimously by a 100 yes, 0 no, 5 abstaining vote, but it is still not a standard yet. What is the rest of the process to get this to be a standard?The IEEE 802 Plenary committee meeting will be held March 19th in Orlando, Florida and between now and then the IEEE will collect votes and comments with two questions asked. The first question that will be asked by letter ballot over a 15 day period is "Should 802.11n Draft 1.10 be forwarded to Working Group letter ballot as Draft 2.0?" If this question passes by 75% or more then a second question will be asked by letter ballot "Should 802.11n Draft 2.0 be forwarded to Sponsor Ballot?"If both of these pass by 75% or more then on the IEEE will start moving the Draft 2.0 towards a standard. It looks like they will move this standard along much more rapidly with approval before the final approval date of October 2008 on the current IEEE timeline found on their website.Since late 1990s, IEEE has approved four standards for wireless LANs: •    IEEE 802.11•    IEEE 802.11b•    IEEE 802.11a•    IEEE 802.11gIEEE 802.11n expected to be approved by 2008IEEE 802.11Specified that wireless transmission could take place via infrared (IR) or radio signals•    Infrared Transmissions: –    Can send data by the intensity of the infrared light wave –    Light spectrum: All types of light–    Infrared light: Can be used for wireless transmissions–    Emitter: Device that transmits a signal–    Detector: Device that receives a signal–    Advantages:•    Does not interfere with other communications signals•    Not affected by other signals•    Does not penetrate walls–    Disadvantages:•    Lack of mobility•    Limited range•    Confined to indoor use•    Slow transmission speed•    Radio Wave Transmissions:–    Radio waves can penetrate through objects•    Provides mobility–    Radio waves travel longer distances –    Can be used indoors and outdoors–    Radio waves can travel at much higher speeds than infrared transmissions–    IEEE 802.11 standard outlining radio wave transmissions has become preferred method for wireless LANsQuestion: Can you tell us about the different standards over time? Can you start out with 802.11a?Release Date Op. Frequency Data Rate (Typ) Data Rate (Max) Range (Indoor) October 1999         5 GHz         25 Mbit/s     54 Mbit/s     ~30 metersIEEE 802.11a•    IEEE 802.11a standard specifies maximum rated speed of 54 Mbps –    Also supports 48, 36, 24, 18, 12, 9,and 6 Mbps transmissions using U-NII band•    802.11a and 802.11b published at same time–    802.11a came to market later due to technical issues and high production cost•    Range of 802.11a is less than that of 802.11bHow about 802.11b?Release Date Op. Frequency Data Rate (Typ) Data Rate (Max) Range (Indoor) October 1999     2.4 GHz 6.5 Mbit/s 11 Mbit/s ~30 meters (~98 ft)IEEE 802.11b•    802.11 standard’s 2 Mbps bandwidth not sufficient for most network applications•    802.11b amendment added two higher speeds (5.5 Mbps and 11 Mbps) to original 802.11 standard–    Uses ISM band•    Supports wireless devices up to 115 meters (375 feet) apart–    Radio waves decrease in power over distance–    802.11b standard specifies that, when devices out of range to transmit at 11 Mbps, devices drop transmission speed to 5.5 MbpsAnd g?Release Date Op. Frequency Data Rate (Typ) Data Rate (Max) Range (Indoor) June 2003 2.4 GHz 24 Mbit/s 54 Mbit/s ~30 meters (~98 ft)IEEE 802.11g•    Effort to combine best features of 802.11a and 802.11b–    Data transfer rates to 54 Mbps–    Support devices up to 115 meters apart•    802.11g standard specifies that devices operate entirely in ISM frequencyNow, how about some det