Communication and Network Concepts

Abbreviations
ARPANET

NSFnet

Advanced Research Projects Agency NETwork

-

National Science Foundation network

TCP/IP

Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol

NIU

Network Interface Unit

NIC

Network Interface Card

TAP

Terminal Access Point

MAC

Media Access Control

LAN

Local Area Network

MAN

Metropolitan Area Network

PAN

Personal Area Network

WAN

Wide Area Network

WWW

World Wide Web

VGM

Voice Grade Medium

DGM

Data Grade Medium

UTP

Unshielded Twisted Pair

STP

Shielded Twisted Pair

PDA

Personal Digital Assistants

bit

binary digit

bps

bits per second

Bps

Bytes per second

kbps

kilo bits per second

Kbps

Kilo bytes per second

mbps

mega bits per second

Mbps

Million bytes per second

kHz

kilohertz

MHz

megahertz

GHz

gigahertz

THz

terahertz

MODEM

MOdulation DEModulation

AM

Amplitude Modulation

FM

Frequency Modulation

PM

Phase Modulation

A/F

Audio Frequency

DTE

Data Terminal Equipment

DCE

Data Communication Equipment

TXD

Transmit

RXD

Receive

RTS

Request To Send

CTS

Clear To Send

CD

Carrier Detect

DTR

Data Terminal Ready

DSR

Data Set Ready

RJ-45

Registered Jack 45

BNC

Bayone-Neill-Concelman

AUI

Attachment Unit Interface

SNA

System Network Architecture

VFIR

Very Fast Infrared

HTTP

Hyper Text Transfer Protocol

URI

Uniform Resource Identifier

URL

Uniform Resource Locator

URN

Uniform Resource Name

MIME

Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions

SMTP

Simple Mail Transfer Protocol

NNTP

Network News Transfer Protocol

FTP

File Transfer Protocol

SLIP

Serial Line Internet Protocol

PPP

Point to Point Protocols

IP

Internet Protocol

IPCP

IP Control Protocol

NCP

Network Control Protocol

LCP

Link Control Protocol

ISDN

Integrated Services Digital Network

ISP

Internet Service Provider

GSM

Global System for Mobile communication

SIM

Subscriber Identification/Identity Module

TDMA

Time Division Multiple Access

CDMA

Code Division Multiple Access

WCDMA

Wideband Code Division Multiple Access

TDM

Time Division Multiplexing

IDEN

Integrated Digital Enhanced Network

WLL / WiLL

Wireless in Local Loop

PSTN

Public Switched Telephone Network

GPRS

General Packet Radio Service

CSD

Circuit Switched Data

UMTS

Universal Mobile Telecommunications System

EDGE

Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution

SMS

Short Message Service

SMSC

Short Message Service Center

IRC

Internet Relay Chat

SIP

Session Initiation Protocol

ITU

International Telecommunications Union

VoIP

Voice over Internet Protocol

Wi-Fi

Wireless Fidelity

BWA

Broadband Wireless Access

HTML

Hyper Text Markup Language

DNS

Domain Name System

POP

Post Office Protocol

XML

eXtensible Markup Language

DHTML

Dynamic Hyper Text Markup Language

ASP

Active Server Pages

PHP

Hypertext Preprocessor

PERL

Practical Extraction and Reporting Language

JSP

Java Server Pages

OSS

Open Source Software

FLOSS

Free Libre / Livre and Open Source Software

FOSS

Free and Open Source Software

GNU

GNUs Not Unix

FSF

Free Software Foundation

W3C

World Wide Web Consortium

MIT

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

GPL

General Public Licence

UNCITRAL
Laws

United Nations Commission for International Trade Related

IPR

Intellectual Property

FAT

File Allocation Table

WAIS

Wide Area Information Servers

ASCII

American Standard Code for Information Interchange

OSI

Open Source Initiative

Network
An interconnected collection of autonomous computers.
Network Goals

Resource Sharing
Reliability
Cost factor
Communication medium

Application of Networks
1. Sharing
Peripherals
Exchange of Information
Distributed control
2. Access to remote database
Reservation for airplanes, trains, hotels
3. Communication facilities
Communication Medium
Evolution of Networking
ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency NETwork)
First network project by US Department of Defence in 1969 to connect
computers at different universities and US defense.
NSFnet (National Science Foundation network)
It is a high capacity network developed in mid 80s allowed only the
academic research.
Internet
-

In 1990s the internetworking of ARPANET, NSFnet and other private

networks resulted into Internet.
The Internet is a world wide network of computer networks.

Gateway
A Gateway is a device that connects dissimilar networks.
Backbone
A Backbone is a central interconnecting structure that connects one or
more networks just like the trunk of a tree or the spine of a human being.
Protocol
It is a set of rules for communication.
TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)
-

It is dividing the file/message to be sent into small parts called Packets on

the source computer.
It is reassembling the received packets in the destination computer.

IP (Internet Protocol)
It is responsible for handling the address of the destination computer.
InterSpace

It is a client/server software that allows multiple users to communicate

online with real time audio, video and text chat in dynamic 3D environments.
Elementary Terminology of Networks
Nodes(Workstations)
A computer becomes a node or workstation of a network as soon as it is
attached to a network.
Server
A computer that facilitates the sharing of data, software and hardware
resources on the network is termed as a Server.
Two types of servers

Dedicated Servers The computer reserved for servers job and

its only job is to help workstations access data, software and
hardware resources.
Non Dedicated Servers A workstation that can double up as a
server.

NIC (Network Interface Card) / NIU (Network Interface Unit) / TAP

(Terminal Access Point)
It is an interpreter that establish communication between the server and
workstations.
MAC Address (Media Access Control)
It refers to the unique physical address assigned by NIC manufacturer.
Switching Techniques
These are used for transmitting data across networks
Three switching techniques are,

Circuit switching
Message Switching
Packet Switching

Circuit Switching
In this , first the complete physical connection between two computers is
established and then data are transmitted from the source computer to the
destination computer.
Its like Telephone call
Message Switching
In this, source computer sends data to switching office(Buffer). The data is
passed on as a free link to the next Switching office. This process continues
until the data reaches the destination computer.
This type of switching will work like Postal Service

Buffer It is a physical memory storage used to temporarily store data

while it is being moved from one place to another.
Packet Switching
It is same as message switching.
Difference between Message switching and Packet switching
Message Switching
There is no upper limit on
block size
Data packets are stored on
the disk

Packet Switching
Tight upper limit on block size
Data packets are stored in
main memory. It improves the
performance

Transmission Media / Communication Channel

It is meant that the connecting cables or connecting media
Types of Communication media

Guided Media
Unguided Media

Cables
Waves through air, water or vacuum

Guided Media

Twisted Pair Cable

Twisting of wires reduces Crosstalk
(The bleeding of a signal or signal interference is called
Crosstalk)
o VGM Voice Grade Medium
o DGM Data Grade Medium (Higher Quality)
Advantages
It is simple, flexible, low weight and very inexpensive
It is easy to install and maintain
Disadvantages
Because of High attenuation, it needs repeaters to carry
signal over longer distances
Low bandwidth
Types of twisted pair cables

UTP (Unshielded Twisted Pair) It can have maximum

segment length of 100 meters
STP (Shielded Twisted Pair) It can have maximum
segment length of 100 meters but able to protect external
interference
Coaxial Cable
In this cable the solid wire core is covered
by one or more foil or wire shields, each separated plastic Insulator
Types of Coaxial cables
Thinnet
meters

Maximum Segment length 185

Thicknet
Optical Fibers

Maximum Segment length 500 meters

- It carry light from a source at one end of the fiber to a detector at

the other end.
- The light sources used are either LEDs or LDs
- Bandwidth of the medium is very high
Parts of the Fiber cable
The Core The glass or plastic through which the light
travels
The Cladding Cover of the core which reflects light
back to the core
Protective coating Protects the fiber cable from the
environment
Advantages
Safe and secure transmission with high transmission capacity
Types of Fibre Optic Cables
Single Node Supports a segment length of 2 kms
Multi Node Supports a segment length of 100 kms
Unguided Media
Microwave( Terrestrial Microwave)
Microwave signals are similar to radio and television signals and are used
for long distance communication.
The microwave transmission consists of ,
a transmitter
Receiver
Atmosphere
Radio Wave
The transmission making use of radio frequencies is termed as radio-wave
transmission.
This transmission offers mobility.
It is applicable for hill station transmission
Each different radio signal uses a different sine wave frequency
Any radio setup has two parts:
The transmitter
The receiver
Satellite (Satellite Microwave)
Radio wave can be classified by frequency and wavelength. When
the frequency is higher than 3 GHz, it is named microwave.

 Most communication satellites have multiple, independent reception

and transmission devices known as transponders.
The area coverage is quite large.
Infrared

It uses infrared light to send data.

It is used to transmit data between PDAs or cell phones

Ex. TV remotes, Automotive garage doors, Wireless speakers

Laser

It requires direct line-of-sight.

It is unidirectional like microwave

Data Communication Terminologies

Data channel
It is the medium through which the information is carried from one point to
another.
Baud
It is the unit measurement of the capacity of a communication channel.
Bits per second(bps) / Data transfer Rates
It is the unit measurement of data transfer rates over a communication
channel.
Bandwidth

It refers the difference between the highest and lowest frequencies

of a communication channel.
High bandwidth channels are called broadband channels.
Low bandwidth channels are called narrowband channels.
Frequency is measured in cycles per second (hertz)
Types of Networks
Based on geographical spread, types of networks is classified into four
types

PAN
LAN
MAN
WAN

Personal Area Network (Range of 10 meters)

Local Area Network (An office, a building or a factory)
Metropolitan Area Networks (Over a city)
Wide Area Network (Across countries)

Network topologies
The pattern of interconnection of nodes in a network is called the topology
Factors of Network Topologies
Cost

 Flexibility
Reliability
Point to point Link

It is basically relies upon two functions transmit and receive

Major network topologies types are:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Star topology
Bus / Linear topology
Ring or circular topology
Tree topology
Graph topology
Mesh topology
Fully connected topology

Network devices
Modem (Modulation / Demodulation)

It is a computer peripheral that allows you to connect and

communicate with other computers via telephone lines.
It converts digital signals to A/F (Audio Frequency) tones that the
telephone lines can transmit and also it can convert transmitted
tones back to digital information.

Two types of Modems are:

Internal Modem
External Modem
Modulation is the process of sending data on a wave. 3 types of modulation
techniques are used:
AM (Amplitude Modulation)
FM ( Frequency Modulation)
PM (Phase Modulation)
RJ 45 (Registered Jack 45 )

It is an eight wire connector looks much similar like telephone

connector(RJ 11) used to connect computers on the LAN
(Ethernets)
Ethernet is a LAN architecture developed by Xerox Corp along with
DEC and Intel
Ethernet uses either bus or star topology

Ethernet card

It is a device which connects computers as part of Ethernet.

This device is available with three different connectors.

Bayone Neill - Concelman (BNC)
Registered Jack 45 (RJ 45)

For coaxial cables

For twisted pair cables

 Attachment Unit Interface (AUI)

pair/fiber optics cables

For coaxial/twisted

Hub

It is a hardware device used to connect several computers together

Hubs are multi-slot concentrators.
It can support 8,12 or 24 RJ 45 ports and these are often used in a
star/ring topology.

Function of a Hub

It transfers the data to all the connected ports in the same segment.
Hub is a multiport repeater, which causes unnecessary network traffic.
Hence it is called non-intelligent or dumb device.
A Hub would be like, in a hotel just one phone line available to all the
rooms
A hub can send or receive information, but it cant do both at a time.

The Peripherals are the devices are the devices that surround the system unit.
Ex. Keyboard, mouse, Speakers, printers, monitors etc.
Types of hubs
Active Hubs It is used like repeaters since it amplifies the signal
electrically
Passive Hubs
It is used to pass the signal from one computer
to another without any change.
Switch

It is used to segment networks into different subnetworks called subnets

or LAN segments or Switched LANs to prevent traffic overloading
It is responsible for filtering i.e., transforming data in a specific way and for
forwarding packets between LAN segments.
A SWITCH (or a multiport bridge) can effectively replace (for example) four
bridges.

Function of Switch
Switch establishes a temporary connection between the source and
destination and then terminates the connection once the conversation is
done.
A switch would be like a phone with private lines.
Repeater
A repeater is a network device that amplifies and restore signals for long
distance transmission.
If the distance exceeds 100m a repeater needs to be added there.
Bridge
A bridge is a network device that establishes an intelligent connection
between two local networks with the same standard but with different types of
cables.

Router
A router is a network device that is used to separate different segments in
a network to improve performance and reliability. A router works like a
bridge but can handle different protocols.
It is used for WAN connections / shared internet access.
Function of a router
Compared to hubs and switches, routers are smarter still. Routers use a
more complete packet address to determine which router or workstation should
receive each packet next. Based on a network road map called a routing table,
routers can help ensure that packets are travelling the most efficient paths to
their destinations. If a link between two routers fails, the sending router can
determine an alternate route to keep traffic moving
Steps
Data is sent to the router
The router determines the destination address and forwards it to the next
step in the journey.
The data reaches its destination
Gateway

A gateway is a network device that connects dissimilar networks. It

establishes an intelligent connection between a local network and external
networks with completely different structures.
It expands the functionality of routers by performing data translation and
protocol conversion.
A gateway is actually a node on a network that serves as an entrance to
another network.
In homes, the gateway is the ISP that connects the user to the Internet.
It often acts as a proxy server and a firewall
It is also associated with both a router (Which use headers and forwarding
tables to determine where packets are sent) and a switch ( which provides
the actual path for the packet in and out of the gateway)

Proxy Server
A machine that is not actually a server but appears as a server.
Firewall
A system designed to prevent unauthorized access to or from a private
network
LAN Design
80 20 Rule
80 percent of the traffic on a given network segment is local whereas 20
percent of the network traffic should need to move across a backbone.
Hub/Switch

It must be placed in all the blocks which contains more than one computer
Repeater
If the distance between two blocks exceeds 100m then a repeater needs
to be added between those two blocks.
Bridges

Bridges are used to connect separate segments of a network. Bridges

forward the frame only if the destination MAC address is on another part
or if the bridge is not aware of its location. The latter is called flooding.
Bridges uses Spanning Tree Protocol to build a loop free network
topology.

Flooding
Flooding is a simple network routing algorithm in which every incoming
packet is sent through every outgoing link except the one it arrived on. It is used
in bridging.
Problem with hubs
Hubs share bandwidth among all attached devices. Hubs cannot filter
traffic. They sent data frames to all connected nodes or devices.
The Solution
The solution for the above problem is to use a smarter hub called a
BRIDGE. Bridges can filter network traffic based on MAC addresses.
Problem with a Switch
A switch cannot stop traffic( data packets) destined for a different LAN
segment travelling to all other LAN segments.
The Solution
The solution to above problem is a ROUTER. The Routers filter network
traffic based on IP address. The IP address tells the router which LAN segment of
the network traffic(data packets) belongs to.
Combining Hubs, Switches and Routers
Hubs are best used in small networks where there are few nodes on the
segment
When the number of nodes on the network grows, move to switches.
Replace hubs with switches if the utilization is over 40 percent on Ethernet
networks or above 70 percent on Token Ring and FDDI network
FDDI (Fiber Distributed Data Interface) is a standard for data transmission
on fiber optic lines in a LAN that can extend in range upto 200km.
Difference between Hub and Switch
Hub
Sends the incoming data
Packets to all connections

Switch
Sends the incoming data
Packets to appropriate

Offers single lane connection,

hence either send or receive
at a time
Shares bandwidth among its
connections
Inexpensive choice

connections
Offers two-lane connection,
hence send and receives at
the same time
Doesnt share bandwidth,
each connection gets full
bandwidth
Expensive than hubs

Communication protocols
A protocol is a special set of rules to exchange information between the
communicating entities.
HTTP (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol)

It is the set of rules for transferring hypertext(i.e., text, graphic, image,

sound, video etc) on WWW(World Wide Web)
It is an application level protocol.
The HTTP protocol consists of two fairly distinct items: The set of request
from browsers to servers and the set of responses going back to the other
way.

FTP(File Transfer Protocol)

It is a standard for the exchange of files of any type across internet.

FTP isnt just the name of the protocol; it is also the name of a program or
command
It works as a client/server process

Objectives of FTP

To promote sharing of files

To encourage indirect or implicit use of remote computers
To transfer data reliably and efficiently

TCP (Transmission Control Protocol)

-

It is dividing the file/message to be sent into small parts called Packets on

the source computer.
It is reassembling the received packets in the destination computer.
TCP is responsible for making sure that the commands get through to the
other end. It keeps track of what is sent and retransmits anything that did
not get through

IP (Internet Protocol)
It is responsible for handling the address of the destination computer.
It provides the basic service of getting datagrams to their destination
Datagram
A Datagram is a collection of the data that is sent as a single message.
SLIP (Serial Line Internet Protocol)
It is used for delivering IP packets over dial-up lines.
PPP (Point to Point Protocol)
It is used for transmitting IP packets over serial lines.
It is a layered protocol with the following layers

Starting with a Link Control Protocol (LCP) for link establishment

Network Control Protocol (NCP) for transport traffic for a particular

protocol suite
The IP Control Protocol (IPCP) for transportation of IP packets over PPP
link

Wireless communication
It is simply the data communication without the use of landlines(without a
physical connection)
Not all wireless communication technologies are mobile.
Mobile computing

It means that the computing device is not continuously connected to the

base or central network.
Mobile devices include PDA, laptop computers, smart phones

Wireless or mobile computing technologies

GSM (Global System for Mobile communication)

It is one of the leading digital cellular systems.

GSM users simply switch SIM cards
GSM uses narrowband TDMA which allows eight simultaneous calls on the
same radio frequency.
GSM is also the basis for IDEN (Integrated Digital Enhanced
Network), a popular system introduced by Motorola and used by Nextel.

SIM(Subscriber Identification Module)

SIM cards are small removable disks that slip in and out of GSM cell
phones
It gives a cellular device its unique phone number
It has memory, a processor and the ability to interact with the user.

TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access)

It is a technology for delivering digital wireless service using Time Division

Multiplexing (TDM)
TDMA works by dividing a radio frequency into time slots and then
allocating slots to multiple calls

CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access)

It is a digital cellular technology that uses spread-spectrum techniques

where data is sent in small pieces over a number of discrete frequencies.
Each users signal is spread over the entire bandwidth by unique
spreading code.
At the receiver end, the same unique code is used to recover the signal.

WLL / WiLL (Wireless in Local Loop)

In WLL services, the telephone provided is expected to be as good as

wired phone. Its voice quality must be high a subscriber carrying out
long conversation must not be irritated with quality; one must be able to

use speakerphones, cordless phones and parallel phones. The telephone

must support fax and modem communications and should be connectable
to a Public Call Office.
WLL is a system that connects subscribers to the Public Switched
Telephone Network (PSTN) using radio signals as a substitute for other
connecting media.

GPRS (General Packet Radio Service)

It is a technology for radio transmission of small packets of data especially

between mobile devices and Internet.
You can also watch real time News, download games and watch movies.
A user of the GPRS network is charged only on the amount of data is sent
or received as opposed to the duration of the connection.

1G networks

NMT, C-Nets, AMPS, TACS are considered to be the first analog cellular
systems
1G networks were conceived and designed purely for voice calls .
No consideration of data services.

2G networks

GSM, CDMAOne, D-AMPS are the first digital cellular systems.

GSM supports Circuit Switched Data(CSD), to place dial-up data calls
digitally.

2.5G networks

GPRS, CDMA2000 1x are the enhanced version of 2G networks.

GPRS offered the first always on data service.

3G networks

UMTS FDD and TDD, CDMA2000 1x EVDO, CDMA2000 3x, TD-SCDMA, Arib
WCDMA, EDGE, IMT-2000 DECT are newer cellular networks that have data
rates of 384 bit/s and more

EDGE(Enhanced Data rates for Global Evolution)

It is a radio based high speed mobile data standard with 384 kbps speed.
It is formerly called GSM384

SMS (Short Message Service)

It is the transmission of short text messages through mobile phone
Chat

Online textual talk, in real time is called chatting.

Most common chat protocol is IRC (Internet Relay Chat)

Video Conferencing

 A two way videophone conversation among multiple participants is called

Video Conferencing.
Most common Video conferencing protocols are H.323 and SIP (Session
Initiation Protocol)
SIP is an IP telephony (audio only) signalling protocol used to establish,
modify and terminate VOIP telephone calls.
VOIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol) is a technology that enables voice
communications over the internet.
Connecting wirelessly to Internet
Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity), lets you connect to the Internet without a direct
line from your PC to the ISP. Its range is 30 100 m.
For Wi-Fi to work, you need:

A broadband Internet connection

A wireless router
A laptop or desktop with a wireless internet card or external wireless
adapter

Wi-Fi Hotspots
A hotspot is a venue that offers Wi-Fi access.
WiMax
WiMax can provide Broadband Wireless Access(BWA) upto 50 km for fixed
stations and 5 15 kms for mobile stations.
Internetworking Terms ad Concepts
WWW(World Wide Web)
It is a set of protocols that allows you to access any document on the net
through URLs
WWW Attributes

User friendly
Multimedia Documents
Hypertext and Hyperlinks (Dynamic link to files or documents on net is
called hyperlink)
Interactive
Frames

Telnet
It is an Internet utility that lets you log onto remote computer systems.
Web Browser
A web browser is a WWW client that navigates through the WWW and
displays the web pages.
Ex. Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, Netscape Navigator

Web Server
A web server is a WWW server that responds to the requests made by web
browsers.
Website
A location on a net server is called a website.
Ex. microsoft.com
Web Address
Each website has a unique address called Web address/URL.
Ex. http://www.microsoft.com
Web page
Each page/document of a website is called as web page.
URL (Uniform Resource Locator)
The internet structure of the WWW built on a set of rules called HTTP and a
page description language called HTML. HTTP uses Internet addresses in a
special format called a URL.
Domain Names
A URL specifies the distinct address for each resource on the Internet. An
Internet address which is character based is called a Domain Name
DNS (Domain Name System)
The character based naming system by which servers are identified is also
known as DNS
Web hosting
It is a means of hosting web-server application on a computer system
through which electronic content on the internet is readily available to any
web-browser client.
The various types of web hosting services
Free hosting
This type of hosting is available with many prominent sites that offer to
host some web pages for no cost. Ex: geocities, tripod, homestead etc.
Virtual or shared hosting
This type of hosting is provided under ones own domain name,
www.yourname.com.
Dedicated hosting
In this type of hosting, the company wishing to go online, rents an entire
web server from a hosting company.
Colocation hosting

For those who do not fit the dedicated sever mold, hosting companies
offer a similar, but less-restrictive hosting, known as colocation hosting.
Web 2.0
Refers to added features and applications that make the web more
interactive, support easy online-information exchange and interoperability.
Some noticeable features of this are blogs, wikis, video-sharing websites,
social networking sites, RSS etc.
Web 2.0 tools are available free and are widely used by people.
Ex.

Facebook
WordPress
Myspace
Twitter
Digg
YouTube
Del.icio.us
Blogger
Flickr

HTML

Hyper Text Markup Language

This language tells the browsers like mosaic or netscape or internet
explorer how to display text, pictures and links on the screen

XML

eXtensible Markup Language

it is a markup language for documents containing structured information

DHTML (Dynamic HTML)

It refers to web content that changes each time it is viewed. For example,
same URL could result in a different page depending on any number of
parameters such as:
geographic location of the reader
time of day
previous pages viewed by the reader
profile of the reader
Script
It is a list of commands embedded in a web-page. These are interpreted
and executed by a certain program or scripting-engine.
Web scripting
The process of creating and embedding scripts in a web page
Types of scripts

client-side scripts
server-side scripts

Client-side scripts
Client-side scripting supports interaction within a webpage. Ex. VBScript,
JavaScript,
Hypertext Preprocessor (PHP)
Server-side scripts
It supports execution at server-end. Ex. PHP, Perl, ASP (Active Server Pages), JSP
(Java Server Pages) etc.
Difference between client side scripting and server side scripting
Client-side scripting
Script code is downloaded and
executed at client end
Response to interaction is more
immediate once the program code has
been downloaded
Services are secured as they do not
have access to files and databases
Browser dependent
Affected by the processing speed of
users computer

Server-side scripting
The script is executed at the server
end and the result is sent to the client
end
Complex processes are more efficient
as the program and associated
resources are not downloaded to the
browser
Have access to files and databases
but has security considerations when
sending sensitive information
Doesnt depend on browsers
Affected by the processing speed of
host server

Terminology and definitions

free software
open source software

Free software

Means the software is freely accessible and can be freely used, changes,
improved, copied and distributed by all who wish to do so. No payments
are needed to be made.
Definition of free software is published by Richard Stallmans Free Software
Foundation

Open source software

Can be freely used (in terms of making modifications, constructing
business models around the software and so on) but it doesnt have to be
free of charge.

The distribution term of open-source software must comply with the following
criteria:
1. Free redistribution.
2. Source code.
3. Derived works.
4. Integrity of the authors source code.
5. No discrimination against persons or groups.
6. No discrimination against fields or endeavour.
7. Distribution of license.
8. License must not be specific to a product.
9. The license must not restrict other software.
10.License must be technology neutral.
FOSS
A software which is free as well as open belongs to category FOSS(Free
and open source software).
1. OSS and FLOSS
OSS refers to open source software, which refers to
software whose source code is available to customers and it can be
modified and redistributed without any limitation. FLOSS refers to free
libre and open source software or to free livre and open source software.
The term FLOSS is used to refer to a software which is both free software
as well as open source software. Here the words libre and livre mean
freedom.
2. GNU
GNU refers to GNUs Not Unix.
3. FSF
FSF is free software foundation. FSF is a non-profit organization created
for the purpose of supporting free software movement. Richard Stallman
founded FSF in 1985 to support GNU project and GNU licenses.
4. OSI
OSI is open source initiative. It is an organization dedicated to cause of
promoting open source software. Bruce Perens and Erics Raymond were
the founders of OSI, which was founded in February 1998.
5. W3C
W3C is acronym for World Wide Web consortium. W3C is responsible
for producing the software standards for World Wide Web.
6. Proprietary Software
It is the software that is neither open nr freely
available.
7. Freeware
It is generally used for software, which is available free of cost and
which allows copying and further distribution, but not modification and
whose source code is not available. Example is Microsoft internet explorer.

8. Shareware
It is available with the right to redistribute copies.
Shareware is not the same thing as free and open source software for 2
main reasons:
a) The source code is not available and
b) Modifications to the software are not allowed.

NETWORK SECURITY
Protection methods:
Authorisation
Determines whether the service provider has granted access to the web
service to the requester. Ex. user name
Authentication
It involves accepting credentials from the entity and validating them
against an authority.
Ex. password
Encrypted smart cards
Passwords in a remote log-in session generally pass over the network is
unencrypted form.
Biometric systems
They form the most secure level of authorisation. They involve some
unique aspect of a persons body such as finger prints, retinal patterns
etc, to establish his/her identity.
Firewall
A system designed to prevent unauthorised access to or from a private
network is called firewall. Can be implemented in both hardware or
software or a combination of both. They are frequently used to prevent
unauthorised internet users from accessing private networks connected to
the internet, especially intranets.
Types of firewalls

Packet filter
Looks as each packet entering or leaving the network and accepts or
rejects it based on user defined rules
Application gateway
Applies security mechanism to specific applications such as FTP and Telnet
servers
Circuit level gateway
Applies security mechanisms when a connection is established
Proxy server
Intercepts all messages entering and leaving the network. It effectively
hides the true network addresses

Cookies
Cookies are messages that a web server transmits to a web browser so
that the web server can keep track of the users activity on a specific
website.
They have 6 parameters:
Name
Value
Expiration date
Path the cookies valid for
Domain the cookies valid for
Need for a secure connection
Hackers and crackers
Crackers are the malicious programmers who break into secure systems
whereas hackers are more interested in gaining knowledge about
computer systems and possibly using this knowledge for playful pranks
CyberLaw
Is a generic term, which refers to the legal and regulatory aspects of
internet and WWW
Indias IT act
In India, the cyber laws are contained in the IT Act 2000 (Oct 17). It is
based on the united nations commission for international trade related
laws (UNCITRAL) model law
Cyber crimes
Crimes committed with the use of computers or relating to computers
especially through internet
Classification of cyber crimes

Tampering with computer source documents

Hackings
Unauthorized access of a computer system and networks
Publishing of information which is obscene in electronic form
A person who publishes or transmits or causes to be published in the
electronic form
Child pornography
Part of cyber pornography but it is a such a grave offence that it is
individually also recognised as a cybercrime
Accessing protected system
Any unauthorised person who secures access and attempts to secure
access to a protected system is liable to be punished with imprisonment
and fine
Breach of confidentiality and privacy
Any person who, secures access to any electronic record, book, register,
correspondence, information, document, or other material without the
consent of the person

IPR Issues
Intellectual Property is the product of the intellect that has commercial
value, including copyrighted property such as literary or artistic works and
ideational property
Viruses
It is a malicious program that requires a host and is designed to make a
system sick, just like a real virus
Three types of viruses

File infectors attach themselves to a program file

Boot sector viruses install themselves on the beginning tracks of a hard
drive
Macro viruses infect data files

Characteristics of a computer virus

Able to replicate
Requires a host program as a carrier
Activated by external action
Replication ability is limited to the virtual system

Trojan Horses

A code hidden in a program such as a game or spreadsheet that looks safe

to run but has hidden side effects
Spread through email and exchange of disks and information between
computers
Damage is same as what a virus causes

Worms
A program designed to replicate
Characteristics of a worm

Able to replicate
Self-contained
Does not require a host
Activated by creating process
Network worm replicate across communication links

Spam
Refers to electronic junk mail or junk newsgroup postings
Virus Preventions

Write protect your disks

Use licensed software
Make regular backups

Install and use antivirus software

Keep antivirus software up to date

Difference between object oriented programming and procedural

programming
Object oriented programming
Here emphasis is on objects
Follows Bottom-Up approach in
program design
Data hiding feature prevents
accidental change in data
Features like data encapsulation,
polymorphism, inheritance are
present

Procedural programming
Here emphasis is on doing things
(functions)
Follows Top-Down approach in
program design
Presence of global variables increase
chances of accidental change in data
Features like data encapsulation,
polymorphism, inheritance are not
available