Wi-Fi Alliance - Industry body that negotiates and agrees standards for Wifi technology. Made up of 250 members including leading technology groups. It certifies compatibility between Wi-Fi products.
IEEE - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. In charge of ratifying standards as official.
802.11 – Filing number used by IEEE to label wireless networking standards (protocols). A letter is added to the end of 802.11 to label the different flavours of 802.11 that have been ratified. They are: 802.11a, 802.11b and 802.11g. 802.11n is not available yet but manufacturers do make wifi products that comply to draft 802.11n and promise compatibility with the soon to be ratified 802.11n standard.
Wi-Fi Alliance Certification – The Wifi Alliance tests the compatibility of Wifi products. Those products that pass the test are allowed to use the Wifi Alliance Certification logo. It will normally be to a specific standard, or combination of standards. The most common is the Wi-Fi Certified b/g logo, which means that the product is compatible with 802.11b and 802.11g.
Wireless Router - Device the sends and receives data to computers, printers and other devices.
Wireless Adapter - Device that plugs into a computer to communicate with the wireless router
Wireless Network Card - A card that is built into a computer that allows communication with a wireless router.
