What is a FIFO buffer?
A FIFO (First in-First out) buffer is what a UART chip uses to process data more smoothly. The data is fed to the buffer in a stream, stops, and then sends the data out. This process allows for Windows to continue with other things while the buffer does the work on a hardware level. The buffer will then send a request to the Windows kernel to continue the data stream after it has dumped the characters out. [The FIFO buffer settings can be found in Control Panel -> Modems -> Properties -> Connection -> Port Settings] Without a FIFO buffer, users will experience more CRC (Comm Overrun) errors and flow control problems. 5. The serial data format. A computer runs on a parallel data format. This means that things are processed parallel to each other. A modem uses a serial format. A serial format means that one chunk of data is processed after the other, and only one at a time. For modem communication, the data is chunked into a certain character format, to be processed by both modems. Keep
