Different Types of shielding

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twisted_pair

Comparison of some old and new abbreviations, according to ISO/IEC 11801:

Old name	New name	cable screening	pair shielding
UTP	U/UTP	none	none
STP	U/FTP	none	foil
FTP	F/UTP	foil	none
S-STP	S/FTP	braiding	foil
S-FTP	SF/UTP	foil, braiding	none
SFTP		Foil	Shield

The code before the slash designates the shielding for the cable itself, while the code after the slash determines the shielding for the individual pairs:

TP = twisted pair

U = unshielded

F = foil shielding

S = braided shielding

Solid core cable vs stranded cable

Solid and stranded Ethernet cables refer to the actual copper conductor in the pairs. Solid cable uses a single piece of copper for the electrical conductor while stranded uses a series of copper cables twisted together. There are many different applications for each type of conductor, but there are two main applications for each type you should know about.

Stranded cable is more flexible and should be used at your desk or anywhere you may be moving the cable around often.

Solid cable is not as flexible but it is also more durable which makes it ideal for permanent installations as well as outdoor and in walls.