Protocols in multi-service networks

Introduction

People have always communicated with each other – initially by face-to-face communication through gestures and sounds, then over a distance through written messages and signals in the form of fires, lights or flags. Technology, for instance in the form of electrical signals, has reduced many of the limitations of distance. Communication networks have become very important, and modern society depends on them for the smooth operation of economic and social activities. In this unit we regard a communication network as the means of interconnecting devices so that two-way communication is possible, and we shall focus on networks that interconnect telephones or computers. However, you should bear in mind other forms of network such as television and radio networks, which are primarily one-way, broadcast networks. In the future the separation between types of network may be less clear.

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