Chapter 7 - Telecommunications, the Internet, and Wireless Technology

The principle components of telecommunications networks include computers, network interfaces, a connection medium, network operating system software and either a hub or switch.  The networking infrastructure for a large organization includes the traditional telephony system, mobile cellular communication, wireless local area networks, video-conferencing systems, a corporate website, intranets, extranets and a wide array of local and area wide networks, including the Internet.The rise of client/server computing, the use of packet switching and the adoption of the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) have all shaped contemporary networks.

The main telecommunications transmission media are twisted copper wire, coaxial cooper cable, fiber optic cable and wireless transmission.  Local area networks (LAN) connect PC's and other digital devices together within a 500 meter radius and are used today for many corporate computing tasks.  Network components may be connected together using a star, bus or ring topology.  Wide area networks (WANs) span broad geographical distances ranging from several miles to continents.  Digital subscriber lines (DSL) technologies, cable Internet connections and T1 lines are often used for high-capacity Internet connections.

The Internet is a world wide network of networks that used the client/server model of computing and the TCP-IP reference model.  Every computer that uses the Internet has a unique number associated with it (IP address).  Main Internet services include email, newgroups, chatting, instant messaging, Telnet, FTP and the Web.  Web pages are based on Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) and can display text, graphics, video an audio.  Companies have also started to realize economies by using VoIP technology for voice transmission and by using virtual private networks (VPNs) as low cost alternatives to WANs.

The principal technologies and standards for wireless networking, communication and Internet access are high speed, high bandwidth and digital packet switched transmission.  Broadband 3G networks are capable of transmitting data at speeds ranging from 144 Kbps to more than 2 Mbps.  4G networks capable of transmission speeds that could reach 1 Gbps are also starting to be released.  Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) and Global Systems for Mobile Communications (GSM) are both common cellular standards.

Radio frequency identification (RFID) and wireless sensor networks are valuable for business because they provide powerful technology for tracking movement of goods by using tiny tags with embedded data about an item and its location.  RFID readers read the radio signals transmitted bt these tags and pass the data over a network to a computer for processing.  Wireless sensor network (WSNs) are networks of interconnected wireless sensing and transmitting devices that are embedded into the physical environment to provide measurements of many points over various large spaces.