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and / or fiber optic cabling. WANs may span a city, a state, a country, or even
the world.
Wireless LAN (WLAN)
A wireless LAN does not use cable to transmit signals, but rather uses radio or
infrared to transmit packets through the air. Radio Frequency (RF) and infrared
are the commonly used types of wireless transmission. Most wireless LANs
use spread spectrum technology. It offers limited bandwidth, usually under
54Mbps, and users share the bandwidth with other devices in the spectrum;
however, users can operate a spread spectrum device without licensing from
the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).