The means by which communications are transferred are usually invisible to the users. However, election management bodies (EMBs) may need to be aware of the different options available for linking communication.
Telecommunications began with telephone signals sent through wires strung on poles. While this method is still widely used, other means of transmission are now common, including fibre-optic cables, and microwave and radio signals sent by satellite and ground-based transmitters.
The type of signal medium used for an electoral function will largely be determined by the locally available infrastructure. In most developed countries, the telecommunication structure will be extensive and well served. In these cases, EMBs will be able to purchase readily available telecommunications services. In less developed areas, EMBs may need to make special telecommunications arrangements if the local infrastructure is insufficient for the EMB's needs.
In most telecommunications applications physical cables are used. Different types of cables can be used depending on availability and type of data being transmitted. Cables can be measured by the number of bytes of data that can be transmitted per second. A byte is the basic unit of information in computer storage and processing. A byte consists of 8 binary digits (bits), each of which consists of a 0 or 1. As a byte contains so little information, data transfer rates are usually given in kilobytes (1,024 bytes) or megabytes (1,048,576 bytes).
The higher the number of bytes per second that a cable can transmit, the faster the data transmission will be. Standard telephone cables do not tend to be very fast at transmitting large amounts of data. Specialised high-speed data cables are generally used where speed of transmission is important. ISDN (integrated services digital network) lines are often used to transmit large quantities of data at high speeds. Fibre-optic cables can also be used for high-speed data transmission. Optical cables transmit data using pulses of laser light.
In some applications, particularly remote locations, physical cables may not be available or appropriate. In these cases data can be transmitted by microwaves or radio waves, using satellites or land-based transmitters.
These telecommunications mediums are complex and are constantly being improved upon. An EMB wishing to use specialised telecommunications methods would be advised to consult specialists in the field.
