What is IEEE 1394?
[[File:FireWire-46 Diagram.svg|thumb|120px|The 6-pin and 4-pin Firewire Connectors]] [[File:FireWire gniazdo.jpg|thumb|120px]] '''IEEE 1394''' is the name for a set of [[standard]]s. The standards specify a [[serial communication|serial bus]] which can be used to transfer [[information]]. Other names for the standards include '''Firewire''', '''i.Link''' and '''Lynx'''. The standard is often used to connect a [[computer]] to an external device, like a [[hard drive]] or [[digital]] [[camcorder]]. It also has uses to transfer data in [[car]]s and [[airplane]]s. It is similar to the contemporary [[Universal Serial Bus|USB]]. Firewire replaced the earlier [[SCSI]] for many applications: Making a [[device]] understand Firewire is easier than having it understand SCSI. Firewire plugs and cables are also thinner and much easier to handle than SCSI cabling. ''FireWire'' is popular in industrial systems for machine vision and professional audio systems. It is preferred over the more common [[USB]] because of its greater effective speed and power distribution capabilities, and because it does not need a computer host. Perhaps more importantly, ''FireWire'' makes full use of all [[SCSI]] (older connecting possibility) capabilities. Compared to [[USB]] 2.0, it usually has higher data transfer rates. This feature is important for audio and video editors. Many computers intended for home or professional audio/video in the early 21st century supported built-in ''FireWire'' ports, including [[Apple Inc.]] prior to 2008 and [[Sony]] [[laptop]] computers and most [[Dell]] and [[Hewlett-Packard]]. It is available to general public on retail [[motherboard]]s for do-it-yourself PCs, alongside [[USB]]. FireWire is produced in [[wireless]], [[optical fiber]], and [[coaxial cable]] versions. However, the copyright fees demanded from users of FireWire and the more expensive hardware needed to implement it prevented FireWire from displacing [[USB]] in mass-market, where cost of product is crucial. == History and development == FireWi