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Frequently Asked Techno-Questions about Business Telephone Equipment

and Cabling

1. What is VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol)?

To understand VOIP, let's begin with "Voice". In prehistoric times, 25 years ago, all wiring across

the country was pretty much for telephone usage. As the Internet grew another network was put

into use. It could handle DATA, or the information that's being passed around on the internet.

Today, traditional phone systems still run off the original telephone lines. However because the

Internet network expanded, it now has the ability to handle telephone also. So instead of running

your phones off the traditional lines, you have the choice of having your telephone run off your

DSL or cable connection or whatever you're using for the internet. If you elect this latter option,

you will have your Voice calls over an internet protocol.

2. What are the differences in cable categories?

Category 5. Category 5E. Category 6. Fiber Optics. What's this all about? It's about bandwidth -

or speed - delivered to the desktop. Category 5 has a bandwidth speed of 100 megabytes per

second. Category 5E is 2 1/2 times faster with a speed of 250 megabytes per second and fiber

optics allow for a breathtaking 1.25 GIGAbyte flow, but at a breathtaking price. The good news

however, is that now copper is up to Category 6 with a 1 GIGAbyte speed, which will spare you the

expense of fiber.

3. What are paired cable runs?

It takes one pair of wires to power a digital phone and it takes one pair of wires to power a

computer. If you put two "paired" wires together (4 wires) you get 2-pair. If you put 4 "paired"

wires together you get 4-pair (8Wires). Back to your phoneand computer. If they're on the same

desk they could run off one single 2-pair cable run to the desk but industry-standard is to use a

a 4-pair run. This leaves room for extra jacks to be added. It also saves the day if a wire fails.

4. What is plenum Cable?

Plenum cable is fire-retardant and is used for dropped ceilings. Be prepared to pay extra.