Planet Broadband

Rating:
Summary: High Speed Internet and its Birth...
Review: "Planet Broadband" is not a Star Trek episode or another Sci-Fi title. It is the answer to the question: Of where the term "broadband" originated and why is it used when discussing cable internet services? This question is the base for the book "Planet Broadband" by Rouzbeh Yassini. When I first received the book, my initial thoughts where focused on the Cable Internet environment, but the book also presents the DSL side as well. This small book of 140 pages, including index, not only explains how the concept of Broadband communication evolved, but the possible directions it can go.

This book is clearly more of a history of how the concept of broadband was developed and the growth of the Internet that it leads too. I can foresee future generations of children reading this book in a college course on Information Technology. When one considers that only three to five percent of the American public use any form of broadband services, the growth potential presented is unbelievable.

Personally for me, a detail-oriented reader this took me about a total of 8 hours to complete. That may seem slow, but considering the topic and the events occurring within the world of telecommunications, that is better than I expected. As I read this book, I would pause from time to time and comment to myself on how Yassini's points are either already occurring or how I can see them occurring or already being implemented. Additionally, I found enlightenment in the knowledge that both DSL and cable Internet are actually considered broadband. While the Cable companies have a tendency to advertise themselves as a broadband service, in reality they are only one of several broadband services. Some of the concepts presented include virtual training like many universities are now offering and virtual meetings with individuals all around the world. While he does point out that everything is not immediately on demand in this day and age, within time we can witness more and more services becoming that way.

Within the book, Yassini points out the concept of being able to check the items in the refrigerator from work or have the washing machine place a service call to the manufacture before you know there is a problem. These are features of a broadband planet and within time our children and their children will not know a world where we had modems connecting to the internet or downloads that took hours. But as you read you realize that while today is the birth of broadband, this book is more the introduction to tomorrows internet and a must read. To prove the point that "Planet Broadband" is an introduction, my baby boomer mother who works in the cable industry as a customer service person, took the book from me and read it cover to cover one day and told me "This is where we are going and everything." So if a 50+ year old parent can see it we know that the world will be there some day.

Near the end of the book, Yassini focuses on telecommuting and a comparison of that to working at the office. While he clearly points out that telecommuting is not for everyone or all the time, it has productivity advantages and will only grow with time. I think one of his best examples is in Chapter 6, where he remembers the MCI commercial of a woman working at home and changing a presentation on the fly for clients and co-workers half way across the country. That image is an example of how the world has changed thanks to the advances of broadband and the ability to telecommute without being in the dark room or bound to the long commutes all the time.

As I hold the book and consider my final thoughts on the subject of "Planet broadband", this book is not designed for the IT world, but for the general public. I would recommend this as an excellent addition to anyone's library and especially to individuals in the information technology community. For management or others it is an excellent resource to justify a telecommuting policy or practice, or a good reason why they should upgrade from the modem and narrow band to the world of high speed Internet.

Rating:
Summary: Broadband's past, present and future.
Review: Although the books compact look and feel should have indicated otherwise, I expected yet another technical book that would require a fair amount of commitment and concentration on my part. I was pleasantly surprised to discover this was not the case.

Unlike most books I read, I found this book read more like a story than a technical book. Although technical content is kept to a minimum, the different technologies are well explained and the concepts are easy to understand.

I didn't see any direct coloration between this book and any specific certification track. However, this book would serve well as a preparatory book for anybody coming into the broadband spectrum or even for those pursuing Cisco's Cable specialization or CCIP certifications.

I found the historical references and usage statistics both interesting and surprising. Like most, I am aware of broadband and use it on a daily basis. However, until reading this book I was oblivious to its usage and far reaching possibilities.

The author's knowledge and enthusiasm for the subject is apparent, sometimes so much so the book does tend to become a little repetitive. Despite this, you can't help but be excited by what broadband has and will have to offer in the future.

If the author's predictions are correct and I believe they are, broadband will become as prominent as the television or telephone. In fact if broadband has its way, both will become applications on a broadband network.

If you're looking for detailed technical information or configuration help, this book is not for you. If you desire an overview of broadband and a glimpse into its history and future possibilities, start reading

Rating:
Summary: Changing the way we live, learn, work, and play
Review: One of the most often heard terms in computing these days is "broadband". Although it's often discussed and just as often dismissed as hype, many people may not know what broadband fully means or signifies. In "Planet Broadband", author Rouzbeh Yassini provides an easy to understand introduction to describe what broadband is and why it matters to us.

"Planet Broadband" looks at the potential of this fast growing communications technology. It explains why broadband is more than just a faster connection to the Internet - in fact, broadband can unlock the power of the information age and holds the promise to improve nearly every aspect of modern life.

The author is considered the "Father of the Cable Modem", having founded LANcity in 1990, and having introduced the first high-speed residential communications modem designed to integrate with television cable networks. His excitement about broadband is infectious and he successfully describes the many features and benefits of this technology. As he points out, in 2002 over 42 million people worldwide had some form of broadband connection to the Internet, and in the U.S., more than 50,000 new households connect to broadband every week. He predicts that broadband will be in a majority of U.S. homes within 5 years. By comparison, it took 70 years for the telephone to makes its way into a majority of homes, and 90 years for the majority of U.S. residents to have their own car.

Yassini provides an excellent background to the explosive growth of broadband by providing a very-readable history of analog and digital technologies. He describes the advent of DSL and the history of the cable modem, and makes the technologies accessible to readers of all levels and technology experience. For example, Yassini describes how someone using a cable modem sends an e-mail to his boss in another state. The description is lucid, easy to understand, and engaging. The author also describes the process that takes place when a user has DSL or a cable modem installed at home.

The book also provides an overview of some of the many applications of broadband. For example, Major League Baseball games are now available for a fee over the Internet to users with a suitable fast broadband connection. Businesses are quickly adopting video conferencing as the method of choice for conducting meetings when travel costs are a factor. Organizations buy goods, manage inventories, streamline processes, all thanks to the integration of broadband into their daily processes. The author provides detailed description sof broadband's impact in government, health-care, education, and entertainment.

In the home, broadband is also creating a revolution, and Yassini shows us how. From creating their own content, to using always-on connections for queries, to finding new forms of entertainment, home users are benefiting in countless ways from the broadband revolution. And the broadband benefits are not just limited to the PC, but are becoming incorporated into the entire home. Users are seeing broadband applications in home entertainment systems, telephone communication, and even how the home is run.

"Planet Broadband" takes the mystery out of a very fast growing technology that is affecting more us every day. Whether you are new to the world of broadband or a seasoned ILEC engineer, "Planet Broadband" is a fresh read and will be a welcome addition to your library.

Rating:
Summary: Always On Internet
Review: Planet Broadband is a small book, 136 pages, that covers the history, present, and future of broadband technology. The author, Rouzbeh Yassini, writes with a style that is easy for the non-technical reader. This is not a book that will help you trouble shoot your network, not even your broadband home network. However, it would be helpful to the person who has to sell broadband either to the public or investors. Through out the book the technical reader will sense that Yassini actually has a deep understanding of this subject: he has, after all, been called "the father of the cable modem". Yet he manages to make it simple, keeping the chapters short, with a summary at the end. The art of finding words to describe a networking concept that took a IT person a 100 hours of reading to understand to accountants and investors, is probably why Yassini has enjoyed great success as an entrepreneur in broadband.
One of the key objectives of Planet Broadband is defining broadband and how it will change so much about how we live. Yassini defines broadband as "a means for communicating in the language of digital media, over very fast networks, with something we call always-on connectivity." For Yassini, this means Cable or DS. So this popular meaning of the term has evolved from the original baseband/broadband differentiation in classic networking. Although people initially buy broadband for the speed, the fact that it is so readily available with just a click, compared to the several minutes connecting through dialup is often what keeps users paying for the service. This makes for a phenomenon know as "information snacking". The Internet PC has moved from the study, to the living room and kitchen counter top. Any time we have a question or need information, it is immediately there.
In chapter 3, Broadband Bazaar, the author gives a good summary of the history how broadband got to where it is today. He covers some of the obstacles that originally stopped the Internet from working over television cable. Some of these problems are still not overcome, such as the fact that the infrastructure is far more superior at transferring data downstream than upstream. This chapter probably would be the most interesting to the technical student. Although basic, there is likely some detail here that you didn't already know, and it is has a historical interest. For example, he discusses how some of the first implementations for cable data were municipalities. Cable companies did this at a loss at the time for the sake of goodwill with the communities, while they getting there lines stretched across right-of-ways. Yassini focuses more on the cable modem vs. DSL. He makes no apologies for this, as it is his specialty. He seems to feel that the more players there are in this, the greater the value for the consumer.
Analogies are made throughout the book to electricity, telephones, and television to broadband Internet. The author points out how long it took for these technologies to become popular from their first inception. Many statistics are put forth to show how broadband has grown even more rapidly than any of these. Not only in the U.S. but also worldwide. Indeed, it is pointed out that in Korea "more than half of the nation's 15 million households are now connected to high-speed networks that allow them to attend school, watch soap operas, and play games..."
If you are a technician who is weary of all the complicated reading you must do, Planet Broadband might be an alternative to refresh your brain. If you are not technical, you will enjoy it perhaps even more. Stewart Schley, Roger Brown, and Leslie Ellis are given credit as "Contributing Authors". In my opinion this book is much better written than most information technology books.

Rating:
Summary: Always On Internet
Review: Planet Broadband is a small book, 136 pages, that covers the history, present, and future of broadband technology. The author, Rouzbeh Yassini, writes with a style that is easy for the non-technical reader. This is not a book that will help you trouble shoot your network, not even your broadband home network. However, it would be helpful to the person who has to sell broadband either to the public or investors. Through out the book the technical reader will sense that Yassini actually has a deep understanding of this subject: he has, after all, been called "the father of the cable modem". Yet he manages to make it simple, keeping the chapters short, with a summary at the end. The art of finding words to describe a networking concept that took a IT person a 100 hours of reading to understand to accountants and investors, is probably why Yassini has enjoyed great success as an entrepreneur in broadband.
One of the key objectives of Planet Broadband is defining broadband and how it will change so much about how we live. Yassini defines broadband as "a means for communicating in the language of digital media, over very fast networks, with something we call always-on connectivity." For Yassini, this means Cable or DS. So this popular meaning of the term has evolved from the original baseband/broadband differentiation in classic networking. Although people initially buy broadband for the speed, the fact that it is so readily available with just a click, compared to the several minutes connecting through dialup is often what keeps users paying for the service. This makes for a phenomenon know as "information snacking". The Internet PC has moved from the study, to the living room and kitchen counter top. Any time we have a question or need information, it is immediately there.
In chapter 3, Broadband Bazaar, the author gives a good summary of the history how broadband got to where it is today. He covers some of the obstacles that originally stopped the Internet from working over television cable. Some of these problems are still not overcome, such as the fact that the infrastructure is far more superior at transferring data downstream than upstream. This chapter probably would be the most interesting to the technical student. Although basic, there is likely some detail here that you didn't already know, and it is has a historical interest. For example, he discusses how some of the first implementations for cable data were municipalities. Cable companies did this at a loss at the time for the sake of goodwill with the communities, while they getting there lines stretched across right-of-ways. Yassini focuses more on the cable modem vs. DSL. He makes no apologies for this, as it is his specialty. He seems to feel that the more players there are in this, the greater the value for the consumer.
Analogies are made throughout the book to electricity, telephones, and television to broadband Internet. The author points out how long it took for these technologies to become popular from their first inception. Many statistics are put forth to show how broadband has grown even more rapidly than any of these. Not only in the U.S. but also worldwide. Indeed, it is pointed out that in Korea "more than half of the nation's 15 million households are now connected to high-speed networks that allow them to attend school, watch soap operas, and play games..."
If you are a technician who is weary of all the complicated reading you must do, Planet Broadband might be an alternative to refresh your brain. If you are not technical, you will enjoy it perhaps even more. Stewart Schley, Roger Brown, and Leslie Ellis are given credit as "Contributing Authors". In my opinion this book is much better written than most information technology books.

Rating:
Summary: Planet broadband
Review: Planet Broadband
Rouzbeh Yassini
Cisco Press
ISBN 1-58720-090-2

No this is not the next episode of the starship .... It probably is a place where no man has gone before though.

When I saw the title I imagined a world in the future where everything is automated, computerized, and far different from our current condition.

Reading this book helped me realize that the dream of such a society with technology such as broadband underpinning it is not as far off as it might seem, and yet a good ways away. The book looks at trends in consumer adoption of major technological products over time, and interestingly the rate of adoption seems to be increasing more rapidly than it used to, meaning there is greater market penetration faster as time moves on. You will find out some statistics on the degree to which different countries have broadband infrastructure and subscribers and how government policy has helped or hindered that.
For instance you will learn that in South Korea the average broadband user gets 8Mbps.You will also find the explanation both technically and from a business and societal standpoint of how broadband evolved and the two major forms of it, dsl and cable modem.

Finally you will get your walk in the future to see how the author envisions a society where technologies in the home and office are fused and made into one. Your appliances your electrical consumer items, your computers are all on one network in this future time.
Teleworking will seem normal and we will move more information than we move goods and people. Television will consist of on demand catalogs of shows and films that are started by the customer and driven by demand, not the networks timetables.

These are all things you will get out of this book. I come from a perspective of someone who usually reads computer books to find out how to do a specific task, learn details about a new product I will be using at work, or to understand a new concept. This is the first time I have read a book by computer publishers that actually let me look at the very big picture, namely how technology (broadband in this case) impacts and changes our daily lives. It actually took me outside of my usual little technical shell into a very limitless arena where my imagination took hold of the authors visions and fashioned my own ideas of what the future in this sense might bring. For a computer book to do this is rare indeed. For that reason alone I would highly recommend this book. I am an MCSE and am pursuing a ccna. Will this help me pass the ccna or mcp exams? NO. Will it give me a better ability to see the very big picture and not just the computer or server in front of me? Absolutely!!

How would I improve this book? I am probably spoiled by having read so many computer books- I really love to see drawings, pictures, etc. There are no drawings or pictures, only tables. Since that author went into some considerable detail about the subject, some drawings would not have gone amiss. A common terms or glossary section would probably have been more useful than the index.

Readability- very good, read it in one day in about three sittings of 3 hours in total. It is not a long book at 143 pages. I found it hard to put it down, as each chapter seemed to lead well into the next and there was a buildup of interest.

Overall the writer leads us into a brave vision of future technological innovation and consolidation driven by the miracle of broadband technology. I heartily recommend it for anyone interested in future societal trends in the sense of tecno innovation. I would give this book 4 stars- would have been 5 if it had illustrations.