Customer Reviews

Complete Guide to Networking

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1 star:		(3)

 

 

This book, while explaining in almost graphic detail the complexities of networking, is not for the novice. For the intermediate level user, who wants to know all the ins and outs of networking, the minutia, it should answer any questions you might have.

I have many books on networking. Peter Norton easy explaination of topics esp of new upcoming trends on RAS etc. is excellent. I recommend this book to both beginners and as well intermediate interest.

David Kearns, the actual author of this hound, has produced another of his yawners. He's pointlessly snide and irritating - viz, his insistence on "octet" where anyone else would call eight bits a "byte"- but at least he's incomplete: he essentially ignores Linux, gives the cold-shoulder to Unix, and is flat wrong in his limited knowledge of MacOS. This falls somewhat short of most definitions of "Complete", especially with the rapid growth of Linux as a low-cost network server alternative. If you're new to networking, you may get the impression this book is over your head. It isn't. It is incomplete, irritating, and wrong. Keep looking.

I knew I wasn't going to like this book as soon as the author complained that 8 bits were an octet, not a byte, and to beware of experts who used the second term ('they've been spending too much time with programmers' he laments). I was thereafter reminded of this unjustifiable and incorrect moaning every time he used the word octet. I would have gotten over it if I had ever been distracted by actually learning something from this book. Some people have a gift for teaching, that is, an ability and desire to explain things well, this author does not. I suspect the author's motive here was primarily to be published.

Being a long time Network Professional, I have never owned a overview of networks or telecommunications book. My library is very technical and or specific to one or more technologies or protocols. My task lately was to recommend one for an executive, and I found this is no easy task. The introductions to networking or telecommunications books I looked at are either 800 pages and very technical or too basic and poor subject matter. This book was the only one I could find to recommend to this person that had enough detail and was not as technical as the others available.

I realy hate this book. A lot of errors, no word about Linux. I will never bye any other "Norton" book. I also tried to get some answers from the author but the silence was the answer. There are so many good book around! Buy someone else.