Connecting Dissimilar Network Products
Are there any ideas out there about how to connect new Network products, that are almost all UTP/RJ45 based, with an established Ethernet/COAX/BNC Network?
I have this established COAX-based LAN built into the fabric of my building. Up to ten workstations can be connected to wall sockets using the usual "make before break" BNC connectors and it is an ideal way to connect a laptop or a desktop on the fly. No other boxes are required and no power supplies are necessary. This is just a "peer-to-peer" workgroup without a server.
Desktop "combo" NICs that incorporate a BNC connector are still commonly available, but they are getting harder to find for laptop PCMCIA NICs. And other peripherals are increasingly likely to be "LAN ready" using RJ45 cable.
Having gone to a lot of trouble building the COAX into the building, I'm anxious to avoid running new UTP cable all over the place.
So, what's the best way of interfacing a network product that has an RJ45 socket with a 10-base2 LAN using COAX?