Communications Systems and Networks

A must read for all existing and aspiring Networking/Telecommunications professionals! Horak has succinctly, yet thoroughly, covered basic through advance information and history on one of the most complex issues of the last and this century. In my 33 years in this industry I have never encountered such a complete treatise in one place before. A seminal work!

This book is organized well and is packed full of relevant information. I teach a Data Communications course, and I currently use 'Voice & Data Communications Handbook' by Bud Bates. That book isn't bad but has a lot of fluff examples. After reading both books, I much prefer Horak's book as a text for the class. I prefer it because it contains less fluff, is better organized, and is more concise.

When Ray sent me a copy of the new Second edition of "Communications Systems & Networks" I was expecting a good update of the 1996 first edition. Instead Ray has produced an almost entirely new text, and he's done a simply OUTSTANDING job.Ray is the editor of Newton's Telecom Dictionary, and this book makes an excellent companion text to that great classic. Those of you who read my reviews know that I give free copies of that text to every student who attends my TrainingCity.com classes. If you bought Newton's Telecom Dictionary, buy this book, you won't ever regret it. Ray uses his experience editing "Newton's" throughout "Communications Systems and Networks." Every term is explained clearly and concisely. Reading through this book I was continually amazed at how well Ray can explain complex concepts, and get ALL the relevant information into so few paragraphs. In conclusion, I believe this is an instant classic, and a must have for any Voice & Data library.

As a switch software developer for many years, I have developed a deep understanding of small corners of switch features, but lacked a good overall knowledge of network architecture. Thank you, Ray, for providing me with the system overview essential for the systems engineering job that I have recently assumed. This is a comprehensive overview of modern communications networks (with interesting brief histories - a nice touch for good readability) aimed at a person with some telecom experience, but like me, with an incomplete background. This book has very nicely filled in knowledge gaps with a great overview of the technologies involved in today's networks. Some of this was familiar, and the rest I knew only in vague generalities. I have been recommending it to others in the field as a good reference. My only complaint is that it is large and cumbersome, so does not travel well. A CD-ROM version would be a very nice handy reference while on my frequent road trips. And he takes his solicitation for input, as stated in the foreword, very seriously. I think the level of detail is just right, as it gives me enough background to follow technical discussions and ask intelligent questions.

This book is not for beginners. If you are looking for a really good beginner's book for non-techies, Annabel Dodd's 'The Essential Guide to Telecommunications' would be a good start for you. This book assumes a fair bit of knowledge on the part of the reader and is loaded with a lot of technical language, but if you are even a little comfortable with the telecom language, there's a great deal to be learned from this book.Two things I really like about this book. First, the material is very up-to-date. In one chapter, Horak explains various 'flavors' of DSL very well--differences in how they are provisioned. He also spends a lot of time covering LAN and data networks, which is great considering most telecom traffic will eventually be data (not voice). Second, the diagrams showing how the networking equipment work and connect with each other is very helpful, especially for a guy like me with a non-engineering background.I usually don't use the term 'gripping' to describe a technical book, but Horak's book is just that because I get hungry to learn more about how the whole telecommunications-network-thing works. Perfect to use in defense against those engineers who have looked down on the liberal arts grads for our ignorance of technology!