The digital revolution has spawned a host of technologies for networking of digital data over the last six years as the need to support audio and video streaming has grown and the concept of home networking emerged.

Most digital networks were not specifically created for this application. As a result, the concepts of channels and the methodologies for bus arbitration are not consistent with the technical and user needs required in the example above.

For example, in most wired Ethernet systems, the basis of the network is to detect collisions of data transmissions, back off some amount of time, and then retry the transmission. Even when a data packet transmission is successful, a node/system must re-arbitrate for control of the bus, again and again and again. Although this is not an insurmountable challenge, it is clear that Ethernet’s underlying architecture is not optimal for streaming consumer quality audio and video.

But the 1394 standard is. This technology is continually expanding while maintaining legacy compatibility– it is not a static networking technology. From its inception, IEEE 1394 has been directed at networking a variety of digital applications in a constrained user environment. The standard already offers solutions for MPEG2, DV, IP, audio, and other data types in a network that can be clustered within 4.5 meters, or widely distributed throughout a home or small office. A 1394 network can be set up by connecting equipment with the appropriate cables, with no need for address set-up. Most important, AV applications can be operated continuously without interference even if new equipment is added to the 1394 network. As more 1394-equipped products reach the market, the value of the network will continue to grow, and the 1394-FireWire-i.LINK technology will solidify its leadership as the digital networking standard. Top