The Asia-Pacific Internet Handbook Episode IV: Emerging Powerhouses Author: Madanmohan Rao Publisher: Tata McGraw Hill Price: Rs 395/-

We’ve had several authors encapsulating the history of the Internet. What is it then that separates Madanmohan Rao’s book from the rest? For one it’s more focused. It truly captures snapshots of Internet economies in the APAC region. Rao traces the current Internet developments and contextual trends in only the major Asian IT power houses like Japan, China, South Korea, India, Australia and Singapore.

Each of the contributors analyse the growth development of Internet usage in the respective countries and predict the key trends for the future.

Rao’s Internet handbook tracks the itinerary of the Internet through geographies in the Asia-Pacific that are now leading the rest of the world in technology. Every country is studied in the light of eight parameters set by the author or the ‘eight Cs’ of the Internet economy: connectivity, content, community, commerce, capital, culture, co-operation and capacity.

Envied by the rest of the world, the Japanese could connect at the then high speed of 64 Kbps as early as in 1996-97. The government as well as private players like NTT played a significant role in making its telecommunications infrastructure the best in the world. Korea, which mesmerised the world by rapid growth of Internet usage, is soon catching up after Japan with the rapid growth of wireless technology and related equipment market. In China and India, the Internet and the IT sector are being assessed as vital tools in promoting economic development. Australia, though an enthusiastic adopter of technologies developed worldwide, has a ‘looming digital divide’ in its rural areas. While e-commerce has proliferated in Australia due to technologically literate masses, e-government has been the key word in Singapore’s success. As Pillay puts it, “Tremendous work is still in progress, but to a large extent there is a collective will, both political and social, to make it happen.” Interspersed with snapshots, comments, charts and graphs, this handbook is valuable for professionals and entrepreneurs who are in the business of the Internet.

— Deepika Janardhan

Wireless Communications and Networks Author: William Stallings Publisher: Pearson Education

Ever wondered how the message you punched on your cell phone to SMS a friend actually reached its destination? Wireless networking has amazed and intrigued

many. William Stallings’ Wireless Communications and Networks is a comprehensive offering on the labyrinthian subject of wireless networking.

Divided into four main parts, each part comprises sub-parts that cover every aspect of wireless technology from the introduction of the first wireless telegraph back in 1896 to Bluetooth, the fastest growing technology standards ever.

In the first part, Stallings details complex concepts like multiplexing, data communications concepts, signalling techniques and analog and digital data transmission.

The second part discusses the fundamental technology of wireless transmission and the encoding of analog and digital data for wireless transmission.

Part three deals with major types of wireless networks like satellite-based networks, cellular networks, cordless systems, fixed wireless access schemes and the use of mobile IP and WAP to provide Internet and Web services. While Part four examines underlying wireless LAN technology and the two standardised approaches to wireless LAN technology and applications.

Though Stallings claims that the book is designed for students with little or no background in data communications and professionals, a lay reader would find the book too complex for comprehension.

Wireless continues to be the catchword across the world and grows more complex than ever with new technologies and standards being introduced. Stalling’s book makes comprehensive reading for enthusiasts who want to understand the latest in wireless.

— Deepika Janardhan

Principles of Wireless Networks Author: Kaveh Pahlavan & Prashant Krishnamurthy Publisher: Pearson Education Price: Rs 350/-

Did you know that more than one billion people subscribe to cellular services? Did you also know that close to 200 billion GSM short messages are exchanged yearly? It wouldn’t be plain intuition then, to say that the wireless networking industry is probably the fastest growing industries in the world today.

While the industry grows manifold, there is also a corresponding need to understand and keep up with this growth. That explains the increasing number of textbooks on wired and wireless networks. Yet the subject is so vast that no single text can possibly incorporate all the aspects of wireless networks in one piece. Kaveh Pahlavan and Prashant Krisnhamurthy’s book try to address this need ‘for a comprehensive treatment that provides a unified foundation of principles of all voice- and data-oriented wireless networks.’A detailed yet simple narrative coupled with diagrams, charts and problems make it useful for a diverse audience comprising managers, engineers, scientists and students. Pahlavan and Krishnamurthy’s offering serves as a good reference book as well.

- Deepika Janardhan

Adobe Acrobat 5.0 Contact: Adobe Systems India Pvt Ltd Tel: 914532026 E-mail: sandeepm@adobe.com Price: Rs 12,000

In business, we take computers and the Internet for granted. So when a client sends you an attached document by e-mail and you are unable to open it (because you don’t have the native application), your work comes to a standstill. It’s a problem we’ve been living with until Adobe created the Portable Document Format (PDF) and Acrobat software. Now, we are seeing more PDF files on the Web, especially for whitepapers.

There are separate programs for reading and creating/editing PDF files. You will need to install the Acrobat Reader to read PDF files—it’s available as a free download from the Adobe website or other shareware sites. To create and edit PDF files there’s another program called Adobe Acrobat—this you’ll have to buy. In this review we’ll discuss Adobe Acrobat 5.0 and why it’s essential for your business. But first a little backgrounder on the PDF standard.

Adobe created PDF for sharing documents across a broad range of hardware platforms and software applications, regardless of versions or fonts. The highlight of a PDF file is that it retains the essence of the original—it preserves the fonts, formatting, colours, and graphics of the source document. So you’ll see the document exactly as it appeared on its author’s screen. What’s more, you don’t have to worry about fonts and native applications. You just need the Acrobat Reader.

Now we’ll talk about Adobe Acrobat 5.0—the software that lets you create and edit PDF files. While both the Reader and Acrobat software let you view and print PDF files and fill in Adobe PDF forms, the latter offers much more.

For starters, you can create a PDF file from any application. For instance, you can work on a Microsoft Word document or Excel spreadsheet. When the document is completed, click the Adobe PDF filemaker icon on that application’s toolbar. Then e-mail the PDF file to a colleague, or publish it on the Web. Acrobat also allows you to convert Web pages or entire Websites to PDF files—great for offline browsing.

You can also use Acrobat to create electronic forms. These are used for conducting online surveys, or for quickly gathering customer information.

With the Reviewing features, you can circulate a document on your intranet and ask everyone to add their comments in the margin. Reviewing includes highlights, strikethroughs and adding sticky notes.

The Security features may be a strong reason to use this software—especially if you circulate confidential documents. Your PDF documents can be secured with password protection and 128-bit encryption. You can set options to prevent people from printing, altering, or repurposing the content.

Then there are other great features like support for XML. This improves the integration between forms data in PDF files with backend systems (such as databases).

Just as we completed this review we learnt that there’s an update available. Adobe Acrobat 5.0.5 addresses known issues (read: bugs) in Acrobat 5.0 and provides support for Microsoft Windows XP, better integration with Microsoft Office XP, support for Mac OS X and Macintosh versions of Microsoft Office, as well as additional updates.

- Brian Pereira