Twisted pair. Twisted pair wire comes in categories, ranging from the
"slowest," Category 1, to the “fastest," Category 7 (Categories 6 and 7 are
currently considered developing technologies, with draft standards).
Traditional telephone wire is Category 1 twisted pair. Typical LAN wire is
Category 5 or 5e.
Coaxial cable. Coaxial cable is the cable used to transmit cable television
signals. The use of coaxial cable in LANs has decreased in recent years due
to the availability of high—quality twisted pair and fiber-optic cable.
Fiber-optic cable.
Fiber-optic cable is made of thin glass fibers only a little
bigger in diameter than a human hair. These glass "wires" are encased in
insulation and plastic. The big advantage of fiber-optic cable is its ability to
transmit data over longer distances than traditional twisted pair can. However,
fiber-optic cable is more expensive to use.