BKNTDSGN.RVW  940829

Academic Press Inc.
955 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139
Josh Mills, Marketing, jmills@acad.com
publisher@igc.org
"Network Design Essentials", Tittel/Robbins, 1994, 0-12-691395-1
75730.1451@compuserve.com mrobbins@bga.com
76376.606@compuserve.com etittel@novell.com

This is the first of a projected series of six books on networking topics.  As
one would suspect, it covers the fundamentals and installation aspects of a
LAN.

For those who are putting in a local area network, this is a thorough, step-by-
step guide.  Three chapters give some basics and background.  Further material
takes the reader through planning, mapping, growth plans, management of
installation, contractors, and purchasing.  This first part deals on a
conceptual level while the twelve chapters of part two give more specifics on
actual technical details relating to various aspects of the net.  Part four
looks at some case studies.

The book primarily emphasizes large networks or those with complex topologies. 
As one of the authors works for Novell, it is little surprise to find which
network operating system gets the lion's share of specific mentions.  Since the
book looks at the same topics from different perspectives, readers may feel
that material is being repeated throughout the text.  It is difficult, however,
to overemphasize the need for documentation and planning.

For rank newcomers, the book does not start quite early enough in the decision
process.  The factors determining choice of topology, media and access control
are mentioned, but not in sufficient detail for an informed choice to be made. 
(From my perspective, that's fine:  I want to write *that* book.)  This work
will, though, provide a safety net for any network installation.  Follow the
advice herein and you will save yourself a *lot* of trouble.

copyright Robert M. Slade, 1994   BKNTDSGN.RVW  940829
 
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Editor and/or reviewer ROBERTS@decus.ca, RSlade@sfu.ca, Rob Slade at 1:153/733
Author "Robert Slade's Guide to Computer Viruses" (Oct. '94) Springer-Verlag