William.Stallings.Data.and.Computer.Communications

This book attempts to provide a unified overview of the broad field of data and

computer communications. The organization of the book reflects an attempt to

break this massive subject into comprehensible parts and to build, piece by piece, a

survey of the state of the art. The book emphasizes basic principles and topics of

fundamental importance concerning the technology and architecture of this field, as

well as providing a detailed discussion of leading-edge topics.

The following basic themes serve to unify the discussion:

Principles: Although the scope of this book is broad, there are a number of

basic principles that appear repeatedly as themes and that unify this field.

Examples are multiplexing, flow control, and error control. The book highlights

these principles and contrasts their application in specific areas of technology.

Design Approaches: The book examines alternative approaches to meeting

specific communication requirements. The discussion is bolstered with examples

from existing implementations.

Standards: Standards have come to assume an increasingly important, indeed

dominant, role in this field. An understanding of the current status and future

direction of technology requires a comprehensive discussion of the role and

nature of the related standards.