or complement, analog to digital and digital to analog converter functions. For example, an analog signal must be converted to digital before it can be transported on a digital network. A digital signal must be converted to analog before it can be transported on an analog network. The three types of media we should know about are baseband, free space, and fiber. Most baseband transmission is on copper twisted pair or coaxial wire. TRANSMISSION TYPE AND MEDIA Table 4-5 presents a summary of transmission types. Baseband Transmission Baseband transmission is a catchall for electrical signal transport. The term baseband has deep analog roots. Two simple examples include the physical transport of sound vibrations along a string between two paper cups, and the same sound signal along two wires between a 4 NETWORK TECHNOLOGY AND METHODOLOGY TABLE 4-5 Media type Medium Application Good characteristics Bad characteristics Copper Building & Campus Low Cost Poor Bandwidth - Twisted Pair Network Easy Install Distance Performance Susceptible To Baseband Crosstalk Copper Building & Campus Greater Bandwidth High Install Cost Network Good Noise Immunity Sensitive To Physical Placement Free Space Inside Outside Inexpensive Path Limited Bandwidth Carrier Local Long Distance Right-of-Way Capacity Fiber Inside Outside Huge Bandwidth Costly Path Local Long Distance Capacity Right-of-Way microphone and a speaker. The first is an acoustical-based phenom- ena, the second an electrical-based phenomena. Carrier transmission in simple terms is a method whereby the base- band signal is carried from one point to another on some type of carrier signal. The process of placing the baseband signal on the carrier signal is called modulation. Demodulation reverses the modulation process, separating the baseband signal from the carrier signal. Modulation techniques are beyond the scope of this book; however, Table 4-6 presents a summary of several of the most common found in use in broadcast and communications networks. TABLE 4-6 Technique Applicat