Business Data Communications Introductory Concepts and Techniques, Third Edition

Rating:
Summary: There has to be a better overview out there.
Review: The 3rd. ed. was required text for my Data Communications Concepts (modems, routers, etc.) class. The class is over and now I can say: this book is poorly organized collection of facts, the Boy Guide Book of Everything About Data Communications. The index was poor and all the web tags in the margins went to the same place (the publisher's site). The pages were idiosyncratically renumbered from "1" for each chapter, making it difficult to judge the length of the book. It was also physically the most poorly bound paperback text I have seen. This was forced on our instructors by committee, but there must be a better summary of data communications out there for those of us who have to make a living at it. If you have to buy it, you won't die, but if you don't have to buy it... don't.