Friday, August 1, 2003
Slow Lane On The Information Superhighway?
Posted by Brad Adrian in "ARTICLE" @ 03:00 AM
In a paper presented at the Infocom 2003 conference, French researchers say they have identified a problem with standard WLANs that can severely slow down the overall speedof the network.
"Engineering experts at France's Centre Nationale de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) in Paris have demonstrated how a slow device connected to WLAN hotspot can cause an entire network to drop to a slower speed, citing a common channel access method as the cause...In other words, when a device with a low bit rate captures the channel, it penalizes other devices using a higher rate by degrading the speed of their connections."
Somebody needs to explain the technical details of their findings to me, but it sounds to me like they're saying that a slow or older wireless device on the network can have the same effect as getting stuck on the autobahn behind a 1956 DeSoto doing 25 mph. The important implication, of course, is that WLANs used by disparate devices, like public WiFi hotspots (or even corporate networks) can be subjected to troublesome slowdowns.
I sure hope that this isn't as bad as it sounds. If word spreads that connectivity can be hampered by a single slug on the system, this could make it even more difficult for WiFi hotspots to gain adoption and earn any real money.
"Engineering experts at France's Centre Nationale de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) in Paris have demonstrated how a slow device connected to WLAN hotspot can cause an entire network to drop to a slower speed, citing a common channel access method as the cause...In other words, when a device with a low bit rate captures the channel, it penalizes other devices using a higher rate by degrading the speed of their connections."
Somebody needs to explain the technical details of their findings to me, but it sounds to me like they're saying that a slow or older wireless device on the network can have the same effect as getting stuck on the autobahn behind a 1956 DeSoto doing 25 mph. The important implication, of course, is that WLANs used by disparate devices, like public WiFi hotspots (or even corporate networks) can be subjected to troublesome slowdowns.
I sure hope that this isn't as bad as it sounds. If word spreads that connectivity can be hampered by a single slug on the system, this could make it even more difficult for WiFi hotspots to gain adoption and earn any real money.
