IEEE 802.11g is another well-known wireless standard in the series of IEEE 802.11. It was last modified in 2003 and is regarded as one of the latest addition in the series of wireless standards. It extends the performance of 802.11b standard in many ways and can support data transmission up to 54Mbs. In reality, 802.11g attempts to combine the best of both 802.11a and 802.11b. IEEE 802.11g uses the standard frequency range of 2.4 GHz and it offers both higher throughput and backward compatibility with 802.11b access points. These access points operate in the same frequency but have a throughput of 54Mbps which is one the main features of IEEE802.11g.

The latest common 802.11 standard is 802.11n, which is faster and offers longer distance communication. While there are many devices available using 802.11n, the standard has yet to be formally published.

WLANs have a broad range of standards, some of which are well established and interoperable, while others are still underdevelopment. No matter what the present situation of these standards may be, there are still some issues like security and interoperability that raise questions about the overall adaptability of these standards. The way I see it, there's definitely a need to work on these standards, which could provide opportunity for developers and consumers by turning the wireless market into a more diverse environment than ever.

Dr. Humayun Bakht completed his Ph.D at the School of Computing and Mathematics in Liverpool at John Moores University. Prior to his current course of studies, he has successfully completed his MSc Software Engineering and BSc Electronics Engineering from University of Liverpool UK and Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology in Karachi, Pakistan. Humayun's research interest is mobile ad-hoc networks, in particular, the development of a new routing algorithm for this type of networking. He can be reached at humayunbakht@yahoo.co.uk and you can visit his Web site at http://www.geocities.com/humayunbakht/.