3G
Third-generation mobile telecommunications system. Three different 3G systems are currently being defined: UMTS by ETSI; J-FPLMTS by ARIB in Japan; and different systems by the TIA. The first generation was analog cellular such as NMT, AMPS, TACS; second generation cellular systems are digital such as NADC, GSM, PDC, CDMA.

A

ACTS
Advanced Communications Technologies and Services.

ADSL
Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line.

AMPS
Advanced Mobile Phone Service.

ARDIS
Advanced Radio Data Information Service.

ATM
Asynchronous Transfer Mode.

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B

Bandwidth
The bandwidth of a transmitted communications signal is a measure of the range of frequencies the signal occupies. The term is also used in reference to the frequency-response characteristics of a communications receiving system. All transmitted signals, whether analog or digital, have a certain bandwidth. The same is true of receiving systems. Generally speaking, bandwidth is directly proportional to the amount of data transmitted or received per unit time. In a qualitative sense, bandwidth is proportional to the complexity of the data for a given level of system performance. For example, it takes more bandwidth to download a photograph in one second than it takes to download a page of text in one second. Large sound files, computer programs, and animated videos require still more bandwidth for acceptable system performance. Virtual reality (VR) and full-length three-dimensional audio/visual presentations require the most bandwidth of all. In digital systems, bandwidth is data speed in bits per second (bps). Thus, a modem that works at 57,600 bps has twice the bandwidth of a modem that works at 28,800 bps. In analog systems, bandwidth is defined in terms of the difference between the highest-frequency signal component and the lowest-frequency signal component. Frequency is measured in cycles per second (hertz). A typical voice signal has a bandwidth of approximately three kilohertz (3 kHz); an analog television (TV) broadcast video signal has a bandwidth of six megahertz (6 MHz) -- some 2,000 times as wide as the voice signal. Communications engineers once strove to minimize the bandwidths of all signals, while maintaining a minimum acceptable level of system performance. This was done for at least two reasons: (1) low-bandwidth signals are less susceptible to noise interference than high-bandwidth signals; and (2) low-bandwidth signals allow for a greater number of communications exchanges to take place within a specified band of frequencies. However, this simple rule no longer applies in general. For example, in spread-spectrum communications, the bandwidths of signals are deliberately expanded. In digital cable and fiberoptic systems, the demand for ever-increasing data speeds outweighs the need for bandwidth conservation. In the electromagnetic radiation spectrum, there is only so much available bandwidth to go around, but in hard-wired systems, available bandwidth can literally be constructed without limit by installing more and more cables.

BER
Bit Error Rate.

Bluetooth
Technology specification being created for short-range wireless connection (up to 10 meters) using low-cost transceiver chips to be embedded in mobile computers, smart phones, and other portable devices. Provides three voice and data channels via a one-to-one connection with built-in encryption and verification.

BOOTP
Bootstrap Protocol.

BS
Base Station. Also known as MMS (Mobility Support Station) or Base Station Controller.

Broadband
Broadband refers to telecommunication that provides multiple channels of data over a single communications medium, typically using some form of frequency or wave division multiplexing.

BSC
Base Station Controller.

BTS
Base Transceiver Station.

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C

CDMA
Code Division Multiple Access. A standard using spread spectrum transmission, the same frequencies being used by other CDMA or narrowband systems. The term CDMA is often used to refer to IS-95 or cdmaOne.

CDPD
Cellular Digital Packet Data.

Cellular telephone
Cellular telephone is a type of short-wave analog or digital transmission in which a subscriber has a wireless connection from a mobile telephone to a relatively nearby transmitter. The transmitter's span of coverage is called a cell. Generally, cellular telephone service is available in urban areas and along major highways. As the cellular telephone user moves from one cell or area of coverage to another, the telephone is effectively passed on to the local cell transmitter. A cellular telephone is not to be confused with a cordless telephone (which is simply a phone with a very short wireless connection to a local phone outlet). A newer service similar to cellular is personal communications services (PCS).

CLNP
Connectionless Network Protocol.

CMRS
Commercial Mobile Radio Services spectrum.

CTIA
Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association. A trade group that represents cellular, PCS, and enhanced specialized mobile radio carriers.

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D

DCE
Data Communication Equipment.

DCT
Digital Cordless Telephone.

DECT
Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications. Standard defined by ETSI. Checkout a list of DECT manufacturers on the WWW. Basic DECT parameters: Frequency range 1.88 - 1.90 MHz, Number of carriers 10, Channel spacing 1.728 MHz, Multiplexing - between bearers TDMA - between uplink/downlink TDD (Time Division Duplex), Number of timeslots 24 per frame (12 uplink, 12 downlink), Frame length 10 ms, Modulation GFSK, B*T=0.5, Nominal deviation 288 kHz, Timeslot length 417 µs, Peak transmit power 250 mW, Gross bit rate 1152 kbit/s. Data rate per full slot: Gross rate 48 kbit/s, Data rate traffic 32 kbit/s (B-field), Data rate signalling 6.4 kbit/s (A-field). Speech coding ADPCM to ITU rec. G.721 (32 kbit/s).

DHCP
Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol. An IETF protocol.

DNS
Domain Name System

DTE
Data Terminal Equipment.

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E

E-GSM
GSM protocol applied to an extended frequency range but still in the 900 MHz band.

E-TACS
Extended Total Access Communication System. TACS extended in frequency range.

EDACS
Enhanced Digital Access Communication System: Ericsson's proprietary trunked system standard for the USA.

EDGE
Enhanced Data for GSM Evolution, an upcoming extension to the GSM standard for higher data rates, a new modulation format, 8PSK, on the existing GSM TDMA structure and symbol rate. It can be used to access the Internet at much higher speed. The new technology requires new hardware and software in both mobile stations and base transceiver stations.

EFR
Enhanced Full Rate. New voice coding algorithm applied in PCS-1900 systems (and now in GSM-900 as well, first system installed in Hong Kong).

EMC
Electro Magnetic Compatibility

Embedded system
A computer system that is a component of a larger machine or system. Embedded systems can respond to events in real time. Most digital appliances, such as watches or cars, utilize an embedded system.

ESN
Electronic Serial Number. Unique identification number embedded in a wireless phone by the manufacturer to prevent fraud. ESN differs from the mobile identification number, which is the wireless carrier's identifier for a phone in the network.

E-TDMA
Extended Time Division Multiple Access.

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F

Fixed wireless data
Wireless service to a fixed location through antennas larger than are seen in mobile or portable setups. The fastest data throughputs—up to T-1 speed—are available over fixed wireless networks.

FLEX
Motorola's paging standard. An extension to two-way paging has been named ReFLEX.

Full user mobility
Wireless classification under which users can access data while in motion, for example, in a car.

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G

Gateway
A ground-based link to a mobile satellite service network.

GEOS
Geo-stationary Earth Orbit Systems. Communications system with satellites in geosynchronous orbits 22,300 miles above the Earth.

GMPCS
Global Mobile Personal Communications Services. Proposed mobile satellite systems that will provide global wireless phone service.

GPRS
General Packet Radio Service. GPRS permits faster Internet access and improved mobile technology through continuous connectivity.

GPS
Global Positioning System. A series of 24 geosynchronous satellites that continually transmit their position. GPS is used in personal tracking, navigation, and automatic vehicle location technologies.

GSM
GSM (Global System for Mobile communication) is a digital mobile telephone system that is widely used in Europe and other parts of the world. GSM uses a variation of time division multiple access (TDMA) and is the most widely used of the three digital wireless telephone technologies (TDMA, GSM, and CDMA). GSM digitizes and compresses data, then sends it down a channel with two other streams of user data, each in its own time slot. It operates at either the 900 MHz or 1800 MHz frequency band. GSM is the de facto wireless telephone standard in Europe. GSM has over 120 million users worldwide and is available in 120 countries, according to the GSM MoU Association. Since many GSM network operators have roaming agreements with foreign operators, users can often continue to use their mobile phones when they travel to other countries. American Personal Communications (APC), a subsidiary of Sprint, is using GSM as the technology for a broadband personal communications service (PCS). The service will ultimately have more than 400 base stations for the palm-sized handsets that are being made by Ericsson, Motorola, and Nokia. The handsets include a phone, a text pager, and an answering machine. GSM together with other technologies is part of an evolution of wireless mobile telemmunication that includes High-Speed Circuit-Switched Data (HSCSD), General Packet Radio System (GPRS), Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE), and Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service (UMTS).

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H

HDML
Handheld Device Markup Language. Derived from Hypertext Markup Language (HTML), this programming language allows Internet access from wireless devices such as handheld personal computers and smart phones.

HTTP-NG
Hypertext Transfer Protocol-Next Generation. A replacement for HTTP 1.0, HTTP-NG maintains the simplicity of HTTP 1.0 while adding important features such as security and authentication.

HTTP
Hypertext Transfer Protocol.

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I

ICMP
Internet Control Message Protocol.

iDEN
Integrated Digital Enhanced Network. A Motorola-enhanced mobile radio network technology that integrates two-way radio, telephone, text messaging, and data transmission into a single network.

IF
Intermediate Frequency.

IMT 2000
International Mobile Telecommunications by the year 2000 project.

Internet Screenphone
A telephone-like appliance with a built-in display screen that can be used to quickly call up Internet sites.

IP (Internet Protocol)
The Internet Protocol (IP) is the method or protocol by which data is sent from one computer to another on the Internet. Each computer (known as a host) on the Internet has at least one address that uniquely identifies it from all other computers on the Internet. When you send or receive data (for example, an e-mail note or a Web page), the message gets divided into little chunks called packets. Each of these packets contains both the sender's Internet address and the receiver's address. Any packet is sent first to a gateway computer that understands a small part of the Internet. The gateway computer reads the destination address and forwards the packet to an adjacent gateway that in turn reads the destination address and so forth across the Internet until one gateway recognizes the packet as belonging to a computer within its immediate neighborhood or domain. That gateway then forwards the packet directly to the computer whose address is specified. Because a message is divided into a number of packets, each packet can, if necessary, be sent by a different route across the Internet. Packets can arrive in a different order than the order they were sent in. The Internet Protocol just delivers them. It's up to another protocol, the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) to put them back in the right order. IP is a connectionless protocol, which means that there is no established connection between the end points that are communicating. Each packet that travels through the Internet is treated as an independent unit of data without any relation to any other unit of data. (The reason the packets do get put in the right order is because of TCP, the connection-oriented protocol that keeps track of the packet sequence in a message.) In the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) communication model, IP is in layer 3, the Networking Layer. The most widely used version of IP today is Internet Protocol Version 4 (IPv4). However, IP Version 6 (IPv6) is also beginning to be supported. IPv6 provides for much longer addresses and therefore for the possibility of many more Internet users. IPv6 includes the capabilities of IPv4 and any server that can support IPv6 packets can also support IPv4 packets.

IRC
Infrared communication.

ISDN
Integrated Services Digital Network.

ITU-2000 (also known as IMT-2000).
Term coined by the International Telecommunication Union for the new third-generation global standard for mobile telecommunications.

IVIS
In-Vehicle Information System. Enables intelligent vehicles that provide the functionality to increase the productivity and safety of the driver.

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J

JTACS
Japanese Total Access Communication System.

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K

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L

LEC
Local Exchange Carrier. An authorized carrier that has been commissioned to provide local voice-level telecommunications services within a predetermined area.

LEO
Low Earth Orbit. Mobile communications satellite between 700 and 2,000 kilometers above the Earth.

LMDS
Local Multipoint Distribution Service. Broadband radio service that enables two-way transmission of voice, high-speed data, and video (wireless cable TV).

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M

MBS
Mobile Broadband Systems.

MDSS
Mobile Data Synchronization Service. The ability to synchronize data on client devices with data stored in an enterprise database. A common protocol has been developed that will eventually allow a variety of clients to synchronize with a variety of databases.

ME
Mobile Equipment. Also known as Mobile Unit (MU)

MEMS
Micro-Electro Mechanical System.

Microbrowser
Modified Web browser that allows users to get Internet data on a handheld wireless device.

MSS
Mobile Satellite Service.

Multi-modal
A system that operates using multiple interfaces (for example, both text and speech).

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N

NAMPS
Narrowband Advanced Mobile Phone Service.

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O

OSI
Open Systems Interconnection.

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P

Packet
A packet is the unit of data that is routed between an origin and a destination on the Internet or any other packet-switched network. When any file (e-mail message, HTML file, GIF file, URL request, and so forth) is sent from one place to another on the Internet, the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) layer of TCP/IP divides the file into "chunks" of an efficient size for routing. Each of these packets is separately numbered and includes the Internet address of the destination. The individual packets for a given file may travel different routes through the Internet. When they have all arrived, they are reassembled into the original file (by the TCP layer at the receiving end). A packet-switching scheme is an efficient way to handle transmissions on a connectionless network such as the Internet. An alternative scheme, circuit-switching, is used for networks allocated for voice connections. In circuit-switching, lines in the network are shared among many users as with packet-switching, but each connection requires the dedication of a particular path for the duration of the connection. "Packet" and "datagram" are similar in meaning. A protocol similar to TCP, the User Datagram Protocol (UDP) uses the term datagram.

Packet-switched
Packet-switched describes the type of network in which relatively small units of data called packets are routed through a network based on the destination address contained within each packet. Breaking communication down into packets allows the same data path to be shared among many users in the network. This type of communication between sender and receiver is known as connectionless (rather than dedicated). Most traffic over the Internet uses packet switching and the Internet is basically a connectionless network. Contrasted with packet-switched is circuit-switched, a type of network such as the regular voice telephone network in which the communication circuit (path) for the call is set up and dedicated to the participants in that call. For the duration of the connection, all resources on that circuit are unavailable for other users. Voice calls using the Internet's packet-switched system are possible. Each end of the conversation is broken down into packets that are reassembled at the other end. Another common type of digital network that uses packet-switching is the X.25 network, a widely installed commercial wide area network protocol. Internet protocol packets can be carried on an X.25 network. The X.25 network can also support virtual circuits in which a logical connection is established for two parties on a dedicated basis for some duration. A permanent virtual circuit (PVC) reserves the path on an ongoing basis and is an alternative for corporations to a system of leased lines. A permanent virtual circuit is a dedicated logical connection but the actual physical resources can be shared among multiple logical connections or users.

PCMCIA
Personal Computer Memory Card International Association.

PCN
Personal Communications Network.

PCS
Personal Communication System. A classification of the United States Federal Communications Commission for digital wireless communication systems based on the same principles as cellular systems, but usually operating in a different frequency range and with smaller cell sizes than cellular systems.

PDA
Personal Digital Assistant. A small, hand-held device that offers functions such as address storage, calendar and e-mail. This mobile device can be synchronized with desktop computers.

PDN
Packet Data Network

PIA
Personal Information Appliance.

Portable wireless data
A classification of networks that access the Internet by using a laptop or palmtop computer and a small wireless modem.

PPP
Point-to-Point Protocol.

PSTN
Public Switched Telephone Network.

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R

RBOC
Regional Bell Operating Company.

Roaming service
Roaming service is the ability to get access to the Internet when away from home at the price of a local call or at a charge considerably less than the regular long-distance charges. For example, if you normally get access to the Internet from an access provider in Birmingham,United Kingdom and are travelling to Hong Kong, you can call a designated access provider in Hong Kong. Instead of paying long distance charges to your local provider in Birmingham, you pay the local phone connection charge in Hong Kong and possibly a modest additional charge for the service. Roaming service is made possible through Internet service providers (ISPs) who have cooperative agreements to grant each others' customers local access to the Internet. Special software allows cooperating ISPs to keep track of and calculate prearranged payments for usage differences. Here's how it works for the user: The Internet user must already subscribe to an ISP that offers roaming service arrangements. Assuming the ISP does, the user can determine a cooperating ISP in a city to which the user is travelling. In the travel location, the user can call the local ISP's designated phone number through the computer modem, entering information during login that will identify the user's home ISP. The "foreign" ISP will contact the ISP and determine that the user is a valid user. The "foreign" ISP will grant the user access to the Internet. The user will be able to access e-mail from the home mail server. The user will be charged at local phone rates. In addition, depending on the particular service arrangement, the home ISP may levy an additional hourly usage charge of several dollars an hour or a monthly charge in case the service is used during that month. A similar roaming service is provided by some cooperating cellular telephone or personal digital assistant (PDA) service providers. If you are travelling and simply need to be able to exchange e-mail, you can consider getting a freemail membership (usually free) from HotMail, Rocketmail, or other freemail providers. Hotmail also offers POP3 server accounts for access to up to four e-mail accounts you may already have, assuming you remember the POP3 server name and your user IDs and passwords. If you subscribe to a somewhat global service such as AT&T's WorldNet or the IBM Global Network, you may already be able to access your account in certain cities through your provider's local point-of-presence (POP) on the Internet without having to pay for a long-distance call.

RF
Radio Frequency.

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S

SAGE
Security Algorithm Group of Experts (associated with SMG-10)

SDSL
Symmetric Digital Subscriber Line.

SDT
Speech Data Terminals.

SiGe
Silicon-Germanium Technology. Makes it possible to design complex chips that integrate the functions of a cellular telephone, an e-mailbox and an Internet browser into a hand-held information device with rapid data-transfer capability.

SIM
Subscriber Identity Module.

Smart phone
A smart phone enables connections to the Internet or Lotus Notes network so that users can access e-mail, faxes, voice mail, Web pages, and other files. It also has the potential to connect to a speech-recognition server by phone, which would allow a user to dictate notes or responses, and then see the recognized text as it is returned from the server.

SMS
Short Message Service. Electronic messages on a wireless network, such as those used in two-way paging.

SS7
Signaling System 7. The international high-speed signaling backbone used for the public-switched telephone network.

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T

TACS
Total Access Communication System.

TD-CDMA
Time Division, Code Division Multiple Access.

TDMA
Time Division Multiple Access. Digital air interface technology used in cellular, PCS, and EMSR networks.

TM-UWB
Time-Modulated Ultra-Wide Band. New wireless technology that greatly broadens bandwidth. Developed by Time Domain, TM-UWB uses short, coded pulses transmitted over a wide range of frequencies, making it useful for a broad range of applications from networking to through-the-wall radar and secure communications.

Transcoding
The operation of changing data from one format to another, such as an XML to HTML, so the output will be displayed in an appropriate manner for the device.

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U

UMTS
Universal Mobile Telecommunications System.

UTRA UMTS
Terrestrial Radio Access.

UWB
Ultra-Wideboard.

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V

VDSL
Very high rate Digital Subscriber Line.

VLR
Visitor Location Register.

W

WAP
Wireless Application Protocol. A new, open industry standard for mobile Internet access, WAP allows mobile users with wireless devices to easily and instantly access and interact with information and services.

W-ATM
Wireless Asynchronous Transfer Mode network.

WBXML
MDSP documents are encoded into WBXML, a succinct encoding of XML defined by the WAP Forum, and the WBXML byte stream is sent by enqueuing it on an MQLite queue as a single message object.

W-CDMA
Wideband Code Division Multiple Access.

WDF
Wireless Data Forum. An industry group dedicated to promoting wireless data.

Wireless
Wireless refers to a communications, monitoring, or control system in which electromagnetic or acoustic waves carry a signal through atmospheric space rather than along a wire. In most wireless systems, radio-frequency (RF) or infrared (IR) waves are used. Some monitoring devices, such as intrusion alarms, employ acoustic waves at frequencies above the range of human hearing. Early experimenters in electromagnetic physics dreamed of building a so-called wireless telegraph. The first wireless telegraph transmitters went on the air in the early years of the 20th century. Later, as amplitude modulation (AM) made it possible to transmit voices and music via wireless, the medium came to be called radio. With the advent of television, facsimile, data communication, and the effective use of a larger portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, the original term has been brought to life again. Common examples of wireless equipment in use today include the Global Positioning System (GPS), cellular phones and pagers, cordless computer accessories (for example, the cordless mouse), home-entertainment-system control boxes, remote garage-door openers, two-way radios, and baby monitors. An increasing number of companies and organizations are using wireless local area networks (LANs). Wireless transceivers are available for connection to portable and notebook computers, allowing Internet access in selected cities without the need to locate a telephone jack. Eventually, it will be possible to link any computer to the Internet via satellite, no matter where in the world the computer might be located.

Wireless LAN
A local area network (LAN) that uses wireless transmissions such as radio or infrared instead of phone lines or fiber-optics to connect data devices.

Wireless Network
Provides the means to access information over a diverse set of wireless and wired networks.

W-TDMA
Wideband Time Division Multiple Access.

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X

XML
Extensible Markup Language. A streamlined version of Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML), XML is regulated by the World Wide Web Consortium. XML can make far more advanced use of data, and create more advanced links, than HTML.

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