Red Seal Electrician Practice
Signalling and communicationQuestion 146 of 1506

Why is Ethernet described as non-deterministic?

  1. Random delays mean no guaranteed maximum delay
  2. It uses a master that can fail, so the delay is not fixed, and it is slow
  3. It has no collision detection, so the data can be lost
  4. It only works at 10 Mbps, so it is too slow for control
Show answer

Correct answer: Random delays mean no guaranteed maximum delay

In practice, a lightly loaded network rarely sees a problem.

Source: Lessons in Electric Circuits IV: Digital (Kuphaldt), 14.8: Practical considerations - Digital Communication

Practice signalling and communication

Questions last reviewed: 18 October 2026