This book is a result of the recent rapid advances in two related technologies: com-
munications and COMPUTERs. Over the past few decades, communication systems
have increased in complexity to the point where system design and performance
analysis can no longer be conducted without a significant level of COMPUTER sup-
port. Many of the communication systems of fifty years ago were either power or
noise limited. A significant degrading effect in many of these systems was thermal
noise, which was modeled using the additive Gaussian noise channel.
Communication has been one of the deepest needs of the human race throughout recorded
history. It is essential to forming social unions, to educating the young, and to expressing a
myriad of emotions and needs. Good communication is central to a civilized society.
The various communication disciplines in engineering have the purpose of providing technological
aids to human communication. One could view the smoke signals and drum rolls of primitive
societies as being technological aids to communication, but communication technology as we
view it today became important with telegraphy, then telephony, then video, then COMPUTER
communication, and today the amazing mixture of all of these in inexpensive, small portable
devices.
Communication protocols – for short protocols – form the basis for the opera-
tion of COMPUTER networks and telecommunication systems. They are behavior
conventions which describe how communication systems interact with each other
in COMPUTER networks. Protocols define the temporal order of the interactions and
the formats of the data units exchanged. Communication protocols comprise a
wide range of different functions and mechanisms, such as the sending and receiv-
ing of data units, their coding/decoding, error control mechanisms, timer control,
flow control, and many others.
Since the first edition of the book was published, the field of modeling and simulation of
communication systems has grown and matured in many ways, and the use of simulation as a
day-to-day tool is now even more common practice. Many new modeling and simulation
approaches have been developed in the recent years, many more commercial simulation
packages are available, and the evolution of powerful general mathematical applications
packages has provided still more options for COMPUTER-aided design and analysis. With the
current interest in digital mobile communications, a primary area of application of modeling
and simulation is now to wireless systems of a different flavor than the traditional ones.
The information age is exploding around us,
giving us access to dizzying amounts of data the instant it becomes available.
Smart phones and tablets provide an untethered experience that offers stream-
ing video, audio, and other media formats to just about any place on the planet.
Even people who are not “COMPUTER literate” use Facebook to catch up with
friends and family, use Google to research a new restaurant choice and print
directions to get there, or Tweet their reactions once they have sampled the
fare. The budding Internet-of-things will only catalyze this data eruption.
The infrastructure supporting these services is also growing exponentially,
and the technology that facilitates this rapid growth is virtualization.
Wirelesscommunications,especiallyinitsmobileform,hasbroughtusthefreedomofmobility
andhaschangedthelifestylesofmodernpeople.Waitingatafixedlocationtoreceiveormakea
phone call, or sitting in front of a personal COMPUTER to send an e-mail or download a video
program, has become an old story. Nowadays it is commonplace for people to talk over a cell
phonewhilewalkingonthestreet,ortodownloadandwatchamoviewhiletravelingonatrain.
Thisisthebenefitmadeavailabletousbythesuccessfulevolutionofwirelesscommunications
over three generations, with the fourth generation being under way.
Failure analysis is invaluable in the learning process of electrostatic discharge (ESD) and
electrical overstress (EOS) protection design and development [1–8]. In the failure analysis
of EOS, ESD, and latchup events, there are a number of unique failure analysis processes
andinformationthatcanprovidesignificantunderstandingandillumination[4].Today,thereis
still no design methodology or COMPUTER-aided design (CAD) tool which will predict EOS,
ESDprotectionlevels,andlatchupinasemiconductorchip;thisisoneofthesignificantreasons
why failure analysis is critical to the ESD design discipline.
The Raspberry Pi has become a computing phenomenon. This single-board miniature
COMPUTER, first released in February 2012 by the Raspberry Pi Foundation, has grown into
a series of nearly a dozen models that have sold a total of more than 10 million units in
five years.
Inexpensive to buy and to run, Raspberry Pi COMPUTERs are great for enthusiasts,
good for games, and fun for children. Raspberry Pi COMPUTERs are also terrific in the
classroom, enabling you to put on each desk an easily-manageable COMPUTER on which
students can do everything from learning Internet use and essential office software skills,
through grasping programming basics in an easy-to-learn format, to performing full-on
programming in Python, Java, C, and other languages. Better yet, you can install all the
software needed for those activities automatically alongside the operating system.
You probably have heard all about what you can do with the Raspberry Pi. This credit-
card sized COMPUTER can be plugged into your TV or any HDMI monitor to replace a
typical COMPUTER. This little device is used in many COMPUTER projects, DIY electronics
projects and even as a learning tool for kids who want to learn the basics of COMPUTER
programming.
The world of home automation is an exciting field that has exploded over the past
few years with many new technologies in both the commercial and open source
worlds. This book provides a gateway for those interested in learning more about
this topic and building their own projects.
With the introduction of the Raspberry Pi COMPUTER in 2012, a small and powerful
tool is now available for the home automation enthusiast, programmer, and electronic
hobbyist. It allows them to augment their home with sensors and software.