Data Communications : From Basics to Broadband (4th Edition)

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic
Review: A must read for anyone entering the telecommunications industry and looking for plainly worded, in depth explanations of how it works. I recommend this book to anyone (with or without a technical background) who is interested in how telecommunications has evolved.

Rating:
Summary: Bps or Baud Rate? What's the difference?
Review: Excellent first reference on networks. Definitions are well defined, and new terms are highlighted. Author uses easy to understand analogies to describe complex concepts. Good for novice to intermediate student.

Rating:
Summary: Incredible Overview
Review: The author tackles an impossible subject...cover all aspects of telecommunications and do it in a coherent and logical manner. He succeeds incredibly well...this is an excellent textbook...an excellent reference and it is an excellent read...

Rating:
Summary: Not for Engineers or anyone with a technical background
Review: This book covers all the major topics in data communications but does so in a very simplistic manner that barely scratches the surface of any of the topics covered. Of course the breadth of the book is so wide that it would not be possible to cover even a fraction of the topics in any detail. The back of the book says that it is a suitable book for those with a technical background and that the 'shaded areas' go into more technical detail. I found the shaded areas to be just as elementary as the rest of the book, and in many cases doesn't tell the full story. This is a good book if you only want an introduction to telecomm topics, or want a dictionary of telecomm acronyms. It is fairly well written and has some very simplistic analogies for those who might need plain english illustrations of telecomm concepts. The reason I'm giving it a low rating is because I feel the publisher/author is trying to sell this to a technical audience, which I strongly feel it is not suitable for. But if you know nothing about volts, bytes, bits, baud, hertz, etc... then this would be a good place to start.

Rating:
Summary: Not for Engineers or anyone with a technical background
Review: This book is a must for anyone who wants to learn about data communications. I found it very helpful and I simply enjoyed reading it which doesn't happen very often with this kind of literature. It won't make you an expert in data comm. but it will give you a very solid overview of the industry and introduce you to the technolgies used in today's telecommunications. Thanks, William, good job.

Rating:
Summary: One of the better books I have ever read!
Review: This book, though based on some older technologies, is truly exceptional. Before reading this book I practically knew nothing about telecommunications and data communications. I now understand everything from how the public phone system works to the OSI model to how bits of data are sent over a fiber optic line.

I say this book is based on many older technologies because it is. It talks about modulation and demodulation, and at this point in time I think we are quite a ways from 14.4 modems - which were huge in the 90's, just not so much anymore. However, even though this technology is getting quite old, the concepts are still in use today and it is an important part of understanding data communications.

If you think you might be interested in knowing how any of the following work, then this book is definitely for you: PBX's, DSL, Multiplexing, Networking (WAN and LAN), Protocols, Bits and Bytes, Wireless, Data Security, OSI model, Public Network, Fiber Optics, Modems, Protocols... The list goes on and on. There is so much in this book, that you can't help but feel enlightened after reading it!

The one complaint I can see people having with this book is there is too much information. It simply covers so many different aspects of computing that you might feel overwhelmed. This did not bother me at all, but it is something to keep in mind.

Rating:
Summary: One of the better books I have ever read!
Review: This book, though based on some older technologies, is truly exceptional. Before reading this book I practically knew nothing about telecommunications and data communications. I now understand everything from how the public phone system works to the OSI model to how bits of data are sent over a fiber optic line.

I say this book is based on many older technologies because it is. It talks about modulation and demodulation, and at this point in time I think we are quite a ways from 14.4 modems - which were huge in the 90's, just not so much anymore. However, even though this technology is getting quite old, the concepts are still in use today and it is an important part of understanding data communications.

If you think you might be interested in knowing how any of the following work, then this book is definitely for you: PBX's, DSL, Multiplexing, Networking (WAN and LAN), Protocols, Bits and Bytes, Wireless, Data Security, OSI model, Public Network, Fiber Optics, Modems, Protocols... The list goes on and on. There is so much in this book, that you can't help but feel enlightened after reading it!

The one complaint I can see people having with this book is there is too much information. It simply covers so many different aspects of computing that you might feel overwhelmed. This did not bother me at all, but it is something to keep in mind.