Customer Reviews

Computer Networks

5 star:		(55)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I've been teaching Intro to Netwking for 7 years (half electrical engineering and half computer science students). I'm also a practicing network engineer in satellite (and ground) communications (15 years experience). Until this year (2001) I used Tanenbaum to teach my graduate level course, but this year I think I may have to abandon him. On the plus side the book is clearly written, well illustrated, combines both theory and practice, and is very well organized. I strongly endorse the layered approach both for teaching and for practice. On the negative side is Tanenbaum's relatively-poorly written physical layer. He also does not have a consistent approach to networking performance.

But the biggest problem now is that since 1996, when this book was last updated, there has been a major shift due to the convergence of the telecommunications and computer networking (Voice over IP). Also the development of fiber optics has become a major factor. Finally, the convergence of wireless with the Internet is rapidly taking shape.

These changes are touched on by parts of this book, but these changes are more than mere additions. They affect the fundamental engineering approaches used by network engineers. For example, statistical traffic models now cannot be ignored, availability (always a major topic in telecomm) must now be covered, the full implications of mixed traffic types must now be explored, multiplexing needs greater attention, scheduling is now essential, etc. Although it is NOT obvious that commercial voice will merge with the Internet, it is obvious that the future is VoIP (lots of implementation approaches).

Tanenbaum still has a lot to offer. No other textbook is as well organized. This is the first duty of an author: to organize the topic. For example, I agree with Tanenbaum's putting ATM at the network layer even though in practice it is treated as a data link protocol (ATM obviously has a limited future).

My recommendation to someone considering this textbook is that there is no "killer-textbook" in this area. If Tanenbaum updated this book, he could (in my est) ascend to the position. For now this should be supplemented with more up-to-date textbooks. Perhaps I'll consign my students to two textbooks this year (torturous), but for sure they need supplemental material. I refuse to allow my students to enter the networking world unprepared . The networking world is changing!

When I just started working as a programmer, I came across the 2nd edition international student reprint of this book, in red softcover, at a students' bookshop, and bought it. I treasure that copy in my library to this day - it gave me a solid background in computer networking that served me well in the past and is an asset that will serve me in the future.

Previous reviews have mentioned Tanenbaum's excellent and concise writing style and the breadth of the material covered, which are two of the good qualities that made this book a classic.

What wasnt mentioned and I consider important is :

- The bottom up explanation of networking, starting with the physical layer, up through the OSI layers (link layer, network layer, transport layer) to the application layer. This structure makes it very clear how networks work, how they are designed, and why.

- The well made balance between broad coverage of topics and the depth of coverage of each topic. After reading this book it's easy to start studying in depth any subtopic covered in this book (e.g. TCP/IP through Comers' books) as the reader knows how the subtopic fits in the big picture and knows enough to make a smooth start.

Some previous reviewers asked about solutions to problem, so I'll note that this book does have booklet with problem solutions, which is apparently made available only to academical staff [ and people mistaken to be such :-) ].

I highly recommend this book to anyone who has any type of network related job, students who study networking, and anyone who wants to study computer networking.

This is probably the most complete and in depth theoretical approach to Computer Networks book you can buy.

The structure of this book is based mainly on the OSI Reference Model which is divided in 7 different layers. Each chapter in the book is dedicated to a layer, in this way, one can get an insight of a broad variety of subjects such as IEEE standards (Ethernet, Token Ring, etc,), Congestion control and routing Algorithms, network and transport layer protocols (IP, TCP and UDP) and many more topics.

As a complement you should read Richard Stevens TCP/IP Illustrated, volume 1 for a more practical approach to TCP, UDP and IP.

The best book for beginner, intermediate and advanced users.

I used this book as a supplement for a networking university course. This book covers a lot of material, there is no single question I had that it couldn't answer ! I recommend it to anybody interested in networking (all layers of the OSI model : physical, data-link, network, transport, session, presentation and finally presentation). It also covers ethernet standards, TCP/IP stack and even give some source code in C to explain some concepts. A must have of any modern computer student.

Tanenbaum has overhauled his second edition to take into account the massive shift to Internetworks and the IP protocol. As usual, he does an excellent job of elucidating the subtleties of the technology while maintaining his witty style.

The book's key strength is that it combines solid theoretical underpinnings and clear explanations with consideration of the non-technical aspects of networking. These include market acceptance (some wise words on why ISDN failed, for example), the politics of "standards" and day-to-day pragmatic "getting it done" issues.

Tanenbaum's broader consideration enables the book to avoid the trap of becoming an unworldly academic text. It gives "Computer Networks" its licence to function as an indispensable everyday working reference.

I work in the communications/networking industry and keep this book handy. I lend it to colleagues to photocopy the odd section, and they always end up buying their own copy. Enough said!

I gave this book a 9 for including some of the old and dying technologies that lack even instructional value, at the expense of newer technologies that are seeing wide deployment. Grist for the fourth edition, I guess :-)

I used this book for a networking course. This is a good reference but not a good book to learn networking from. Some concepts are not really clear. I always believe that few basics well is more important than absorbing lots of facts that you don't understand or half-understood.

This book could have been split into 2 volumes.

My advice for beginners is that don't use this book.

I just happened to come here to send the book details to a friend to buy...so I thought I'd stop by and write this review.

My computer networking professor used this book in our networking class. Although I didn't fully appreciate the book while I was in class (what student *DOES* like their text books?), but now that I'm out of school I'm seeing I have a very good grasp of exactly how networks work because of the breadth and detail this book offerd me. We also happened to use his operating system books in our OS class -- he's that good a author.

There's been many times that I - a software engineer - was able to hold a conversation with my friends who are network engineers at a local ISP company. I have Tanenbaum to thank for my knowledge. Excellent book.

In networking you have to understand certain concepts and those concepts are crucial to becoming a valued network technician. I have seen or read many books on networking but until now I hadn't read one so detailed.

This book literally takes a chapter for each layer of the OSI model and breaks it down. Starting with the physical layer and then to the Data Link layer which has chapters for the 2 sublayers as well.

You'll see where protocols fit into what layer, how security is affected at what layers, where routing algorithms figure out paths and which protocols to use. The author simply amazed me with the amount of information this book covered.

The book covered it all including IPv6, Java, ATM, FDDI, Routers, SLIP, HDLC and so much more. This is certainly a great addition to my personal technical library.

This book is THE book for computer networks, even if you don't know anything about Computer Networks. It will give you a fair idea of how Computer Communication happens. It is one of the best conceptual Computer Science books ever published. It does not clutter the book with very minute details, and hence the book is not just a reference book, but a book to read.

The book starts with an introduction to Computer Networks, what they are, why they are, and how he plans to make the reader understand how they work. He pretty much sticks to the TCP/IP Network model, consisting of five layers. He takes a bottom up approach, and starts magnificiently with the Physical Layer, working his way up to Application Layer. Due importance has been given to the Transport and Network Layers, which are the most important and heavily loaded layers of the TCP/IP model. He not only gives the facts about the protocols in each layer, but also gives why the protocols are as they are.

His way of explanation is quite intuitive, and he explains the simplest things first, making the things more and more complex. This is how he explains the data link protocols, with 6 examples of progressive complexity.

Plus, of course, one of the things that makes this book a real joy to read is Tanenbaum's sense of humor. He never misses a chance to pass a side remark or comment.

All in all, very good book for learning about Computer Networks. This book should be an adequate book for an undergrad one semester course, with some topics omitted. I believe it has enough content to even go with a graduate course, but with some additional reading.

The format may be a little academic for some, but the content of this book is top-notch. The book covers all protocols and transmission methods, and includes a very good section on routing. There is even a good deal of theory and sample code included which is very useful if you are a network developer.

The beauty of this book is that all of the explanations are very thorough, even for a beginner. The textbook format makes it the ideal reference guide for anyone setting up or maintaining a computer network. This book is a must-read for anyone studying for their MCSE.

This is without a doubt the most comprehensive reference on this subject I have ever found.