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Date:      Fri, 13 Apr 2001 03:00:44 -0500
From:      Andrew Hesford <ajh3@chmod.ath.cx>
To:        lists <lists@vivdev.com>
Cc:        freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG
Subject:   Re: Ports versus ports
Message-ID:  <20010413030044.A12770@cec.wustl.edu>
In-Reply-To: <v04003a03b6fc5b29466d@[192.168.1.100]>; from lists@vivdev.com on Fri, Apr 13, 2001 at 03:33:54AM -0400
References:  <v04003a03b6fc5b29466d@[192.168.1.100]>

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On Fri, Apr 13, 2001 at 03:33:54AM -0400, lists wrote:
> Well I am dilligently reading as much of the various discussions as time
> and vocabulary will allow, and I am happy to report that I am able to
> understand and follow more and more of what is being discussed.  Which
> isn't to say I understand much.  :-)
> 
> Anyhow, I understand that there are ports - as in stuff that has been
> recompiled to work in a new environment (such as FreeBSD) from another
> environment (say, Linux).
> 
> Then, there are ports - as in that to which a number is assigned by IANA
> for TCP and UDP.
> 
> Having R(some of)TFM, I have a question or two.
> 
> It isn't coincidence that these things have the same name is it?
> What precisely do these things have in common and what separates them?

Guess what! There is a third type of port, and it is a physical
connection point to your box, as in a serial port, printer port,
keyboard port, etc.

TCP/UDP ports are virtual access points, which all connect through the
physical ethernet port to your machine. These two ports (TCP and
physical) have a common backing concept... connection points between
equipment. However, you must remember that physical ports consist of
pins, sockets, and plugs... TCP ports are virtual.

As for software ports, I'm not really sure where the term came from...
However, these ports have nothing to do with physical ports or network
ports... if the name isn't a coincidence, at least there is no modern
connection between the two.

As I finish this, I think that you might be confused if your English
isn't great. Right now, I'm too tired to clarify this. Therefore, if you
need extra help deciphering this, just reply with "What the fuck?" and
I'll get to it when I'm less sleepy. :)

-- 
Andrew Hesford
ajh3@chmod.ath.cx

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