Frontline Test Equipment Announces The Ethernet Complement To Its Serial Datacom Protocol Analyzer Line.Business Editors/High Tech Writers CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE) June 1, 2001 Ethertest Simplifies The Serial-To-Ethernet Evolution! Frontline Test Equipment, Inc., the leader in affordable, PC-based, data communication test equipment, today announced the availability of their Ethertest analyzer for Ethernet data communication protocols. The Ethertest user interface, which is identical to that of the company's line of Serialtest serial data analyzers, significantly reduces the learning curve for users working in mixed topology (serial and Ethernet) communication environments. In industries ranging from banking to factory automation, high-speed Ethernet networks are displacing slower-speed serial data communication networks as the solution of choice to interconnect instrumentation and equipment such as meters, gauges, sensors, transaction terminals, factory equipment, and other "networked" devices. As a result, many organizations must support both serial and Ethernet networks to address mission critical applications including automated process control, data acquisition, status reporting, and transaction processing--which makes Frontline's Ethertest and Serialtest products an unbeatable combination during this time of transition. In addition to offering a common look and feel with Frontline's Serialtest products, Ethertest generates a comprehensive array of segment-level network performance and activity statistics, and supports features including real-time data capture, timestamping, filtering, and error analysis. Ethertest is an indispensable tool for Ethernet product developers, equipment installers, and network troubleshooters--it enables shorter and less costly product development cycles, faster and more efficient network installations, and improved mean-time-to-repair following network outages. Ethernet protocols are decoded at the bit level, thus enabling Ethertest users to rapidly detect and isolate even the most minute and intermittent communication protocol related problems associated with Ethernet-based products, applications, and networks. For users who work with proprietary protocols, custom decodes can be created by Frontline's in-house engineering staff, or they can be customer-developed using the product's FrameDecoder option. According to Eric Kaplan, Frontline President, "Many of our customers are migrating from data networks based on serial communication schemes such as RS-232, DNP DNP n. Deoxyribonucleoprotein; a complex of DNA and protein that usually yields DNA upon cell disruption and isolation. DNP 2,4-dinitrophenol. 3, and Data Highway Plus, to 10 Mbps and 100 Mbps Ethernet networks. The challenge facing product developers, network installers, and network troubleshooters is to support both legacy serial networks and emerging Ethernet networks--which generally involves monitoring and analyzing data on networks of both types. Because their user interfaces are identical, Ethertest, in combination with our Serialtest serial data analyzers, provides the perfect solution." Ethertest runs on any Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000 compatible PC and supports both 10 Mbps and 100 Mbps Ethernet data rates. The product supports all Windows compatible network interface card types (PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association, San Jose, CA, www.pcmcia.org) An international standards body and trade association that was founded in 1989 to establish a standard for connecting peripherals to portable computers. PCMCIA created the PC Card. See PC Card. , PCI (1) (Payment Card Industry) See PCI DSS. (2) (Peripheral Component Interconnect) The most widely used I/O bus (peripheral bus). , and ISA (1) (Instruction Set Architecture) See instruction set. (2) (Interactive Services Association) See Internet Alliance. (3) (Internet Security and Acceleration) See .NET. ) and works with all physical Ethernet interfaces (UTP UTP (uridine triphosphate): see uracil. (Unshielded Twisted Pair) See twisted pair. UTP - unshielded twisted pair , BNC (hardware) BNC - A connector for coaxial cable such as that used for some video connections and RG58 "cheapernet" connections. A BNC connector has a bayonet-type shell with two small knobs on the female connector which lock into spiral slots in the male connector when it is twisted , and AUI (Attachment Unit Interface) The network interface used with the original Ethernet. See 10Base5. 1. (tool, product) AUI - Adaptable User Interface. 2. (networking) AUI - Attachment Unit Interface. ). Ethertest is priced at US$1,295 and is available immediately. Custom protocol decodes can be created using the FrameDecoder option, which sells for $500. About Frontline Test Equipment, Inc. Founded in 1991, Frontline Test Equipment, Inc. designs, develops, markets, and supports cost-effective, PC-based data communication test tools for the computer and communications industries. The company is currently fielding a family of general-purpose and application-specific protocol analyzers based upon a common software core--the Frontline Test System (FTS FTS facteur thymique sérique. ) software. The resulting consistent look and feel across all Frontline products drastically reduces learning curves for engineers working in multiple protocol environments. In addition to Ethertest, currently available products based on the FTS software include: Serialtest Async, Serialtest Spy, and AsyncExpress (asynchronous Refers to events that are not synchronized, or coordinated, in time. The following are considered asynchronous operations. The interval between transmitting A and B is not the same as between B and C. The ability to initiate a transmission at either end. serial data and protocol analyzers); Serialtest ComProbe (synchronous/asynchronous serial data and protocol analyzers); SerialBERT (Bit Error Rate Tester); SerialBlue (Bluetooth analyzer), and FTS for IA & SCADA (Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition) A process control application that collects data from sensors and machines on the shop floor or in remote locations and sends them to a central computer for management and control. (Industrial Automation and SCADA communication protocol analyzer). FTS products are PC-based and are compatible with Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, and 2000. Frontline is headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia, with a sales and support office located in Vienna, Austria. The company distributes products worldwide to a diverse customer base including AT&T, Sprint, SBC (1) (SBC Communications Inc., San Antonio, TX, www.sbc.com) A large, national telecommunications company that grew from a multitude of local and regional companies, including Southwestern Bell, Pacific Bell and Nevada Bell, into a single, unified brand by 2002. , Verizon, Amoco, General Electric, Rockwell Automation, Department of Defense, Burlington Northern Railroad The Burlington Northern Railroad (AAR reporting marks BN) was a United States-based railroad company operating between 1970 and 1995. History The Burlington Northern was the product of a March 2, 1970 merger comprising the Great Northern Railway, the Northern , VISA, 3COM (1) (Computer Output Microfilm) Creating microfilm or microfiche from the computer. A COM machine receives print-image output from the computer either online or via tape or disk and creates a film image of each page. , and America Online (AOL (A division of Time Warner, Inc., New York, NY, www.aol.com) The world's largest online information service with access to the Internet, e-mail, chat rooms and a variety of databases and services. ). The worldwide installed base of Frontline products exceeds 25,000.
Contact Information
For additional information regarding Ethertest or Frontline Test
Equipment, Inc. please contact:
Name: Eric Kaplan
Phone: 804-984-4500
Email: ekaplan@fte.com
Fax: 804-984-4505
Web: www.fte.com
Or, contact Frontline by mail:
Frontline Test Equipment, Inc.
P.O. Box 7507
Charlottesville, VA 22906-7507
-0-
Serialtest, SerialBERT, Ethertest, ComProbe, and Frontline Test System are registered trademarks; and Frontline, SerialBlue, and FTS are trademarks of Frontline Test Equipment, Inc. All other trademarks belong to their respective owners. |
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