1. The Ethernet network

1.1 Design by DIX: Digital Intel Xerox

The creation of Ethernet dates back to the 1970s, and more precisely to the work of Bob Metcalfe at Xerox's central research laboratory in Palo Alto (California). Xerox soon decided to look for reinforcements, and joined forces with Intel and Digital Equipement (later taken over by Compaq). The first official Ethernet specifications (also known as DIX, in reference to the initials of each of the three partners' names) were published in 1980, but it wasn't until 1985 that Ethernet became an official standard, with the publication of the IEEE 802.3 specification by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The first version of Ethernet specified that stations on the network communicate when they want to, but never at the same...