BKMBLCOM.RVW   20000503

"Mobile Communications", Jochen Schiller, 2000, 0-201-39836-2, U$49.95
%A   Jochen Schiller schiller@computer.org
%C   P.O. Box 520, 26 Prince Andrew Place, Don Mills, Ontario M3C 2T8
%D   2000
%G   0-201-39836-2
%I   Addison-Wesley Publishing Co.
%O   U$49.95 416-447-5101 fax: 416-443-0948 bkexpress@aw.com
%P   394 p.
%T   "Mobile Communications"

The preface states that this is a text for a course that follows a
basic introduction to data communications.  Support materials to
assist the instructor are available on a Web site.

Chapter one is an introduction and history, and it is nice to see the
focus on Europe for a change.  While the book overall emphasizes the
higher, computer science layers of the communications stack, chapter
two presents a very good explanation of wireless transmission:
antennae, propagation concerns, and access methods, with CDMA [Code
Division Multiple Access] being oddly missing.  The comparison of
media access in chapter three, however, does look at space, time,
frequency, and code division.  There is an overview of the systems
using GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication), DECT (Digital
Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications), and UMTS (Universal Mobile
Telecommunications Service) in chapter four.  The review of satellite
communications, in chapter five, deals mostly with orbital dynamics,
but does give a quick comparison of new systems as well.  Chapter six
is a rough examination of the new digital broadcast protocols.

LAN protocols include 802.11, HIPERLAN, and Bluetooth in chapter
seven.  A review of work and specifications for wireless ATM is given
in chapter eight.  Chapters nine and ten concentrate on wireless
levels for TCP/IP, looking first at a mobile network layer, and then a
mobile transport layer.  Chapter eleven deals with the requirements
for support for mobility, and the work needing to be done on file
systems, the Web, and the Wireless Application Protocol.

The material is very easy to read, and almost simplistic.  There are
review exercises at the ends of chapters, but these are,
unfortunately, the usual reading check, rather than challenging
assignments.  Overall, though, the book presents a clear picture of
the situation for mobile communications, and is particularly suitable
for information technology students and workers.

copyright Robert M. Slade, 2000   BKMBLCOM.RVW   20000503