nodes listen to all transmissions and select certain ones based on address identification. A bus involves some type of contention control mechanism for accessing the bus transmission medium. bus topology A network architecture in which all the nodes are connected to a shared cable. bypass To establish a communications link without using the facilities of the local exchange carrier (e.g., the telephone company). byte The amount of storage required to represent one alphanumeric character, or 8 bits. Bytes are used as a measure of storage, as in a 2GB hard drive. This is different from the measurement for transmission capacity, which is expressed in bits per second (e.g., a 10Gbps backbone). C7 (Common Channel Signaling 7) A signaling protocol specified by the ITU-T and used in high-speed digital networks to provide communication between intelligent network nodes. C7 is the European equivalent of SS7. Also sometimes called CCS7, for Common Channel Signaling System 7. C (cross) link A link that interconnects mated STPs. CA (certificate authority) A trusted third-party organization that issues digital certificates used to create digital signatures and public-private key pairs. The CA guarantees that the indi- vidual granted the unique certificate is, in fact, who he or she claims to be. cable modem A device designed to operate over cable TV networks to provide high-speed access to the Internet. CableHome A CableLabs HAN standard. The CableHome 1.1 specification includes gateway security features; standardized prioritized QoS for HANs; support for home servers, teleworkers, and home offices; simple parental control; and LAN management messaging and LAN IP statis- tics monitoring. CableLabs A nonprofit research and development consortium that is dedicated to helping its cable operator members integrate new cable telecommunications technologies into their busi- ness objectives. CableLabs has developed industry specifications such as DOCSIS, OpenCable, PacketCable, VOD Metadata, and CableHome. Glossary call processing cal