With the advent of the World Wide Web the global Internet has rapidly become the dominant type of computer network. It now enables people around the world to use the Web for E-Commerce and interactive entertainment applications, in addition to e-mail and IP telephony. As a result, the study of computer networking is now synonymous with the study of the Internet and its applications. The 5th edition of this highly successful text has been completely revised to focus entirely on the Internet, and so avoids the necessity of describing protocols and architectures that are no longer relevant. As many Internet applications now involve multiple data types – text, images, speech, audio and video – the book explains in detail how they are represented.

A number of different access networks are now used to gain access to the global Internet.  Separate chapters illustrate how each type of access network operates, and this is followed by a detailed account of the architecture and protocols of the Internet itself and the operation of the major application protocols.

This body of knowledge is made accessible by extensive use of illustrations and worked examples that make complex systems more understandable at first glance.  This makes the book ideal for self-study or classroom use for students in Computer Science or Engineering, as well as being a comprehensive reference for practitioners who require a definitive guide to networking.