To reduce the processing required to embed a code into image data and decode the code. In an embodiment, a method is also provided. The switching operation conversion circuit starts up by being applied with the direct voltage, and includes a normally on type switching element and an off driving circuit. These parameters are determined using integer values and integer operations and may be used by a link management system for performing load balancing among a plurality of output ports and for determining whether to forward low priority data traffic via a particular output port.