Patent ID: 7840697

Claim:
An information processing system comprising: a plurality of external devices that are connected to a local network; and a line concentrator apparatus that unifies the plurality of external devices via the local network and connects the unified external devices to an external network, the line concentrator apparatus comprising: a switching hub, and a repeater hub, wherein said switching hub receives data from said external network and transmits the data to the repeater hub, and transmits information received from a first external device of the plurality of external devices to external devices of the plurality of external devices other than the first external device, the information regarding a processing status of the first external device, and said repeater hub transmits the data from the switching hub to all of the external devices that are connected to the local network, said repeater hub transmitting the data, as it is, to all of the external devices equally, each of the external devices comprising: a receive-only receiving device that receives the data which has been supplied from said external network to the repeater hub of the line concentrator apparatus, and a transmitting/receiving device that, when the external device is executing processing of data received via the receiving device, transmits information regarding a data processing status to another of the external devices in the local network via the switching hub of the line concentrator apparatus, and that, when any other of the external devices executes processing, receives information regarding a data processing status from said any other external devices via the switching hub, and the plurality of external devices themselves mutually select an external device best suited for processing the data, based on the information regarding the processing statuses of the external devices, wherein the external devices are printing devices.