Half Duplex Communication Explained | Generated by AI
Question: What is the term for a communication method where both parties can transmit information, but not simultaneously?
Answer: This type of communication is known as Half-Duplex (or Two-Way Alternate) communication.
📡 The Three Modes of Communication
To better understand where Half-Duplex fits, it helps to compare it with the other two primary modes:
| Mode | Directionality | Real-World Analogy |
|---|---|---|
| Simplex | One-way only. One party is always the sender, the other is always the receiver. | A radio broadcast or a TV station. |
| Half-Duplex | Two-way, but not at the same time. Information can flow in both directions, but only one way at a time. | A Walkie-Talkie. You must wait for the other person to stop talking before you can speak. |
| Full-Duplex | Two-way simultaneously. Both parties can send and receive at the exact same time. | A Telephone call or a modern smartphone. |
🛠️ Technical Context
In networking, Half-Duplex was very common in early Ethernet setups that used a Hub. Since everyone shared the same wire, if two computers tried to “talk” at once, a collision would occur, and the data would be corrupted.
Modern networks (using Switches and Fiber Optics) almost exclusively use Full-Duplex, which allows for much higher speeds and zero collisions.
Key Rule: In Half-Duplex, the entire bandwidth of the channel is used by whichever party is currently sending.
Would you like me to explain how Ethernet uses CSMA/CD to manage these “turns” in a Half-Duplex environment?