Rating: 
Summary: A must have
Review: This book is a must have for anyone who writes networking code in C or C++ for UNIX/POSIX systems. It is complete, easy to understand, and stands up well both to skimming and to use as a reference.Surprisingly, it includes both multithreaded I/O concepts, raw sockets, routing sockets, and even IPv6 (in amazing detail) and SCTP. This book is worth its weight in gold to anyone from a student to a professional.
Rating:
Summary: current classic
Review: This book, as with all other Stevens books, can be used as either a tutorial or reference. The depth of information here is unparalleled. I continue to be impressed with the detail in this book. Fenner and Rudoff have done an outstanding job of maintaining quality and tradition this invaluable reference. Avid Stevens fans will not be disappointed.
3rd edition updates include:
*IPv6 added
*POSIX 1003.1-2001 added
*XTI dropped
*T/TCP dropped
*SCTP added
*Key Management Sockets for use with IPSec Added
*Machines used for examples updated
*Other material updated where appropriate (including new functions)
I bought this book a year ago along with Stevens "Advanced Programming in the UNIX Environment" I read most of this book as a tutorial on network programming. I continue to use it as reference. I also read all of APUE. Since then I've added TCP/IP Illustrated, Volume 1 and UNIX Network Programming, Volume 2 to my collection. I've come to apprecaite the painstaking detail, pure clarity, and conciseness that are the hallmarks of all Stevens books.
I'm thankful that Rudoff and Fenner updated this classic. This book is all most will need for the sockets API. I don't have the second edition, but I'm quite happy with the third. It's good to have something that speaks to IPv6. This is the best of the old and new. I wouldn't mind seeing an updated version of TCP/IP Illustrated volumes 1 and 2 either if Fenner and Rudoff are up to it.
All of the Stevens books compliment each other really well. Truth be told, the more Stevens books you read the better off you are.
Rating:
Summary: A New Classic
Review: This will become the new classic of Unix Network Programming. When I first heard that there was a new edition, I was afraid that the classic would be destroyed. Although it is quite different and much of it has been done by "et al", it turns out to be quite good. Initially I did a quick scan and immediately saw some things missing (like FTP). However, after reading the book and realizing how infrequently I had referenced the missing parts in the first book, I was much happier. With the additional IPv6 information and newer technologies, this more than made up for the deletions (from volume one). The text is easy to read and flows logically. What really impressed me was the depth of the expertise. For me, there had been some stumbling blocks in TCP and UDP development early on (especially nuances of UDP) that took a fair amount of time to figure out. I was pleasantly surprised to see many of those difficulties laid out cleanly for anyone to figure out in a matter of minutes. That alone is worth the price of the book. The index is extensive and helpful. The questions at the end of each chapter are limited, but enough to be useful in a college course. The printing is high quality. The paper is high quality (thin, but strong so that the 1000 page book is not huge or heavy). The printing takes up much of the page (i.e., not two-inch borders like some books). The binding lies flat without separating the pages. Definitely a quality printing. Yes, a new classic.
Rating: 
Summary: Invaluable UNIX Programming Resource
Review: While not a C programmer by any means, I decided to take some time and tackle the UNIX Network Programming book. I found that lots of early college classes came back to me as I forged a few pages in. It was clear from the very beginning that this book was going to be a very detailed study on all aspects of IP networking as it relates to UNIX programmers. Even for someone who isn't initiated in the topic or really even interested, it was quite an experience to read through the hundreds of flow charts and detailed examples of C code showing how to perform all kinds of interesting network tasks. From a simple HTTP GET to detailed network file and connectivity operations, including TCP and UDP packets, ports, sockets and so on, there is a place in the book for each kind of network programming service. There is also a fair amount of text dealing with debugging techniques, allowing even those programmers who are experienced in their craft to find new ways to ferret out the problems in their code. The book also promotes good stylistics in programming, engendering the idea that readable and understandable code is better code than that which simply works. There are also examples and explanations for IPv6?, for any programmer who is going to be making the leap into next generation networks. There are also instructions on how to deal with wireless networks, security models and other topics for anyone who plans on designing network applications or specialized network configurations. It's probably not accurate to rate a book on a topic that holds little interest to the reader, but even a modest script programmer can tell when a book hits a subject just right and brings out all the details in a concise, easy-to-understand way. If you're a hard-core network programmer, this book is definitely for you. If not, you may find you learn something anyway.
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