Long-distance foot races, like marathons, are intriguing, aren't they?
Even more interesting is the story of Pheidippides. When Athens defeated the Persian force during the battle of Marathon, he ran 25 miles to deliver the victory message.
In ancient Athens, messengers ran long distances to convey important messages. As Phidippides approached the Acropolis, he praised Nike, the Greek goddess of victory, and collapsed dead because of exhaustion (keep in mind this is a myth, so events may be slightly exaggerated).
In data communication and networking, data transmission systems are equivalent to messengers like Pheidippides (without the whole death thing). To transfer analog and digital data among global business networks, companies use data exchange software or electronic data interchange (EDI) software.
Data transmission or communication is the process of transferring digital or analog data from one device to another in a point-to-point, point-to-multipoint, or multipoint-to-multipoint environment.
Organizations choose data transmission systems to ensure smooth data flow via information networks.
Businesses multiply their strengths with mergers, acquisitions, and diversification. Effective decision making about such complex and different business environments requires contextual and connected data.
Companies can’t have what they need from each other without fast data acquisition and transmission. Data communication solutions improve data transmission rates while protecting data quality within organizations with large data volumes.
Furthermore, data transmission reduces hardware costs and gives people easy access to data when they need it.
Data communication between two or more devices using a network relies on the following data transmission elements.
Imagine keying in data to a computer using a keyboard. The electronics inside the keyboard use standard coding schemes to convert data inputs into equivalent binary coded patterns.
7 bits present 128 elements, while 8 bits present 256 elements in a keyboard. The receiver follows a similar process to decode received binary patterns and convert them into characters.
Both senders and receivers use Extended Binary Coded Decimal (EBCDIC) and the American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) codes for representing alphabetic, punctuation, and numerical characters.
Digital data transmission happens in a similar way. A source device generates data in the form of digital signals or bit streams. A communication medium like a physical copper wire, wireless network, or optical fiber transports this data to one or more recipient devices.
Each outward signal can be a baseband or passband.
Data transmission can also facilitate internal data transfer, like sending data from a hard disk or random access memory (RAM) to a processor. In most cases, data transmission is digital but can also be analog.
Data transmission effectiveness depends on four characteristics:
Data transmission modes vary depending on data exchange direction, numbers of bits transmitted, and synchronization between transmitter and receiver.
Data transmission modes can be classified into three categories based on their direction of information exchange.
In simplex data transmission mode, data flows in one direction. This unidirectional communication restricts senders to sending and receivers to receiving only. Simplex isn’t a popular transmission model since most businesses need two-way communication.
Devices using simplex transmission send more data using the entire channel bandwidth. However, there’s no inter-communication between devices because of the unidirectionality.
Common examples of devices using simplex transmission models include keyboard and mouse. Radio stations also use simplex transmission to send signals to listeners who can’t transmit back.
Half duplex or semi-duplex transmission mode allows data to flow in both directions, but only one direction at a time. Basically, devices can transmit and receive data, but not simultaneously. Like simplex transmission, the half-duplex transmission uses the entire channel bandwidth in one direction at a time.
Imagine talking via a walkie-talkie, a classic example of half duplex transmission. You can only listen when another person speaks. Similarly, they can only listen when you speak. If you both try to speak at the same time, you’ll hear nothing but a distorted sound.
Half duplex transmission causes communication delay as you have to wait while the other party sends data.
Communication in full-duplex transmission mode is bi-directional. Data flows in both directions, allowing both devices to send and receive messages simultaneously. The full duplex transmission uses two simplex channels that move traffic in opposite directions. A full duplex is the fastest communication mode between devices.
A telephone network uses full duplex transmission to let two people talk and listen at the same time. However, the full duplex mode needs a dedicated path to ensure seamless communication between two devices.
| Simplex transmission | Half duplex transmission | Full duplex transmission | |
| Communication direction | Uni-directional | Bi-directional, one at a time | Bi-directional, simultaneously |
| Send or receive data | Sender can only send data | Sender can send and receive data, one at a time | Sender can send and receive data simultaneously |
| Communication channel usage | One channel | One channel | Two channels |
| Bandwidth utilization | Maximum of a single bandwidth | Lesser utilization of a single bandwidth | Doubles transmission bandwidth utilization |
| Performance | Inferior | Moderate | Superior |
| Ideal for | Transmissions that need full bandwidth for data delivery | Transmissions that don’t need to send and receive data at the same time | Transmissions that need to receive and send data simultaneously in both directions |
| Example | Radio, keyword, and monitor | Walkie-talkies | Telephone network |
You can divide data transmission modes into two categories depending on the synchronization between receivers and transmitters.
Synchronous transmission is a full duplex-type transmission that uses clock signals to keep the transmitter and receiver in step with one another. This data transfer method packages and sends data in large blocks at fixed time intervals. Clock signals in transmitter and receiver ensure continuous and consistent time-based data block transfer.
Now, let’s break down how synchronous transmission works.
Synchronous data transmission sends data blocks instead of characters, so it's fast – precisely why businesses transferring large amounts of data love this model. However, this data transmission can be expensive.
Central processing units (CPU), RAM, and network protocols like Ethernet use synchronous transmission.
Asynchronous transmission is a half duplex-type transmission that uses start (binary 0) and stop (binary 1) bits to mark the beginning and end of characters during data transfer. It doesn't matter what you send; each character must start with 0 and end with 1 for a device to know it has received or sent a complete character.
Onto understanding how asynchronous transmission works.
Since there's no clock mechanism, asynchronous communication devices don’t send or receive information at a steady pace. In spite of this, they maintain reliable information flow by negotiating speed as per hardware capabilities.
Asynchronous data transfer is best for low-speed transmissions. You can always compress data to boost speed. When you key in data using a keyboard, that’s a classic example of asynchronous data transfer.
Synchronous transmission uses timing signals to send a continuous stream of data, whereas asynchronous transmission transfers data at a random time interval.
| Synchronous transmission | Asynchronous transmission | |
| Data form | Blocks or frames | Bytes or characters |
| Transmission speed | Fast | Slow |
| Transmission time interval | Constant | Random |
| Transmission cost | Expensive | Economic |
| Gap between data | No | Yes |
There are two categories of data transmission based on the number of simultaneous bits transferred over a network.
Serial data transmission receives or sends data using a single packet of data bits at every clock pulse. It uses bi-directional communication to transfer data via a computer bus or communication channel. Serial transmissions generally convey 8 bits at a time along with a start and stop bit.
Data transfer among two computers using serial ports is an example of serial transmission.
Serial transmission is suitable for long-distance data transmission because of its simplicity and low cost. The data transfer speed, however, is comparatively slow due to a single communication channel.
Parallel data transmission transfers multiple data bits simultaneously. In this mode of transmission, parallel wires do the heavy lifting by containing data. Other cables help transmitters and receivers communicate with each other.
The way a computer communicates with a printer is a good parallel data transmission example.
Parallel transmission is ideal for sending a large volume of data in a shorter time. That’s why you often see it in short-distance communication. However, two transmission channels too close to each other can interfere with data signal quality. This transmission mode is also expensive as it needs more channels.
Serial transmission uses a single communication channel to transfer data, whereas parallel transmission deploys multiple parallel links to transmit data simultaneously.
| Serial transmission | Parallel transmission | |
| Data form | One bit at a time | Multiple data bits at a time |
| Transmission speed | Slow | Fast |
| Transmission cost | Economic | Expensive |
| Usage | Long-distance communication | Short-distance communication |
Data transmission media can be divided into guided and unguided media.
Wired, bounded, or guided transmission media ensures high speed and secure data transmission using physical links. Guided media, ideal for shorter distances, has five major types.
Unbounded, wireless, or unguided transmission media broadcast messages using electromagnetic signals. It transmits the following types of signals.
Bandwidth and data transfer rate are two parameters that businesses use to measure data transmission channel capacity.
Bandwidth refers to the frequency ranges available for data transmission through a channel. The higher the bandwidth, the faster the data transfer rate. Channel bandwidth is measured in Hertz (Hz).
Data transfer rate, or bit rate, measures the number of bits transmitted per second between source and destination. Data transfer rate is measured in bits per second (BPS). For example, 1 kilobit per second (KBPS) equals 1024 BPS.
Let’s look at what to consider when choosing a data transmission mode.
What to consider when choosing a data transfer mode:
Every domain plays by its own rules, and data transmission systems are no different. These rules or protocols dictate how the sending and receiving ends of a system work.
Data transmission protocols define three elements:
When learning about data communication, you’ll come across De Facto and De Jure standards.
De Facto standards are rules that companies adopt because of their widespread use. These standards aren’t approved by any organization. For instance, you can establish a standard at your company depending on its needs.
De Jure standards are regulations set by recognized bodies like the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).
For example, data communication protocols follow simple mail transfer protocol (SMTP) or transmission control protocol (TCP) in certain cases.
Keep reading to explore common data communication etiquette.
Data security is vital to any business. However, how do you ensure data doesn't leak while traveling? You use secure data transmission methods.
Businesses ensure data transmission security with these seven methods.
Data transmission is more than sending and receiving data. It decides whether a business succeeds in processing complex tasks or not.
For example, the data you receive may fuel business applications and help you make decisions. So you don’t want a sub-par data transmission under any circumstances – precisely why companies sincerely address issues like server health, data transmission structure, latency, and network congestion.
Businesses often rely on content delivery network (CDN) solutions to ensure seamless data distribution. CDNs help you use the network efficiently by utilizing nodes strategically located around the globe. As a result, you can easily avoid network congestion and offer a better user experience.
Most CDNs come with built-in load balancers to help senders and receivers access the closest entry and exit points. This ease of data transmission improves speed. Also, CDNs help protect your data from emerging threats.
Operating a business is a marathon, not a sprint. You need efficient data transmission systems, like Pheidippides, to share information across networks and make decisions. Start by deciding which transmission mode works best for you so that you leverage it to create your legacy.
If you’re looking to share data among companies and stakeholders without changing the inherent meaning, it’s time to start using data exchange.
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