Date   : Sat, 20 Nov 2010 11:50:15 -0600
From   : jules.richardson99@... (Jules Richardson)
Subject: Rockin' out with awServer :-)

Pete Turnbull wrote:
> It's a bit harder to understand where the 1518 maximum (1500 MTU) comes 
> from, but the usually-suggested reason is the evolution of old (DIX) 
> Ethernet specs to 802.3.  The original Ethernet specs didn't need a 
> length field; all the things that were carried over Ethernet in the 
> early days had their own limits built in.  However, it did have a type 
> field, and it so happens that all the useful type numbers were bigger 
> than 1500.

Hmm, another possibility is that it was simply chosen to be the maximum that 
one of the systems of the time that was expected to make use of it could 
handle, and once DIX evolved into Ethernet it was somewhat set in stone.

cheers

Jules