UNIT - I

DATA & INFORMATION

Data refers to the raw facts that are collected while information refers to processed data that enables
us to take decisions
Ex. When result of a particular test is declared it contains data of all students, when you find the
marks you have scored you have the information that lets you know whether you have passed or
failed.
The word data refers to any information which is presented in a form that is agreed and accepted
upon by is creators and users.
DATA COMMUNICATION
 Data Communication is a process of exchanging data or information
 In case of computer networks this exchange is done between two devices over a transmission
medium.
 This process involves a communication system which is made up of hardware and software.
The hardware part involves the sender and receiver devices and the intermediate devices
through which the data passes. The software part involves certain rules which specify what is
to be communicated, how it is to be communicated and when. It is also called as a Protocol.
CHARACTERISTICS OF DATA COMMUNICATION
The effectiveness of any data communications system depends upon the following four fundamental
characteristics:
1.Delivery: The data should be delivered to the correct destination and correct user.
2. Accuracy: The communication system should deliver the data accurately, without introducing any
errors. The data may get corrupted during transmission affecting the accuracy of the delivered data. 3.
3. Timeliness: Audio and Video data has to be delivered in a timely manner without any delay; such a
data delivery is called real time transmission of data.
4. Jitter: It is the variation in the packet arrival time. Uneven Jitter may affect the timeliness of data
being transmitted.

COMPONENTS OF DATA COMMUNICATION

A Data Communication system has five components as shown in the diagram below:
Message:Message is the information to be communicated by the sender to the receiver.
Sender: The sender is any device that is capable of sending the data (message).
Receiver: The receiver is a device that the sender wants to communicate the data (message).
Transmission Medium: It is the path by which the message travels from sender to receiver. It
can be wired or wireless and many subtypes in both.
Protocol: It is an agreed upon set or rules used by the sender and receiver to communicate data.
A protocol is a set of rules that governs data communication.
A Protocol is a necessity in data communications without which the communicating entities are
like two persons trying to talk to each other in a different language without know the other
language.
DATA REPRESENTATION
Data is collection of raw facts which is processed to deduce information.
There may be different forms in which data may be represented. Some of the forms of data used
in communications are as follows:
Text
 Text includes combination of alphabets in small case as well as upper case.
 It is stored as a pattern of bits. Prevalent encoding system : ASCII, Unicode
Numbers

 Numbers include combination of digits from 0 to 9.

 It is stored as a pattern of bits. Prevalent encoding system : ASCII, Unicode
Images
 A Pixel is the smallest element of an image.
 a picture or image is a matrix of pixel elements.
 The pixels are represented in the form of bits. Depending upon the type of image (black n
white or color) each pixel would require different number of bits to represent the value of
a pixel.
 The size of an image depends upon the number of pixels (also called resolution) and the
bit pattern used to indicate the value of each pixel.
 Example: if an image is purely black and white (two color) each pixel can be represented
by a value either 0 or 1, so an image made up of 10 x 10 pixel elements would require
only 100 bits in memory to be stored.
 On the other hand an image that includes gray may require 2 bits to represent every pixel
value (00 - black, 01 – dark gray, 10 – light gray, 11 –white). So the same 10 x 10 pixel
image would now require 200 bits of memory to be stored.
 Commonly used Image formats : jpg, png, bmp, etc
Audio
 Data can also be in the form of sound which can be recorded and broadcasted. Example:
What we hear on the radio is a source of data or information.
 Audio data is continuous, not discrete.
Video
 Video refers to broadcasting of data in form of picture or movie
DATA FLOW
The devices communicate with each other by sending and receiving data. The data can
flow between the two devices in the following ways.
1. Simplex 2. Half Duplex 3. Full Duplex
1. Simplex

 In Simplex, communication is unidirectional

 Only one of the devices sends the data and the other one only receives the data.
 Example: in the above diagram: a cpu send data while a monitor only receives data.
 The simplex mode can use the entire capacity of the channel to send data in one direction.

2. Half Duplex
 In half duplex both the stations can transmit as well as receive but not at the same time.
 When one device is sending other can only receive and vice-versa (as shown in figure
above.)
o Example: A walkie-talkie.
 The half-duplex mode is used in cases where there is no need for communication in both directions at
the same time; the entire capacity of the channel can be utilized for each direction.
3. Full Duplex
In Full duplex mode, both stations can transmit and receive at the same time.
Example: mobile phones
 One common example of full-duplex communication is the telephone network.
 When two people are communicating by a telephone line, both can talk and listen at the same time.
 The full-duplex mode is used when communication in both directions is required all the time. The
capacity of the channel, however, must be divided between the two directions.