For eons now, the ongoing joke among telecommunications practitioners has been to describe the Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) as “The network of the future; it always was and it always will be.” It seemed for years to be the great new coming attraction that never quite arrived. As it turns out, now that ISDN has arrived, it is a case of the proverbial “too little too late.” The ISDN standard has been considerably upstaged by its successor standard, broadband ISDN (B-ISDN), the operationalization of which includes asynchronous transfer mode (ATM).
ATM has been perhaps the hottest buzzword in the telecommunications marketplace, a marketplace that is bubbling furiously with a myriad of buzzwords. ATM is the general-purpose digital transport mechanism (that is, lower-level protocol suite) that enables B-ISDN capabilities for the next generation of telecommunications. These capabilities include features such as the integration of voice, data, image, and video efficiently onto a single network. This facility is needed to support rapidly emerging networked multimedia applications. To achieve such integration, ATM is based upon “cell relay” protocols that transmit fixed-length blocks of data (53 bytes in length) using a form of packet switching. This arrangement effectively handles computer digital data communications as well as digital isochronous communications (such as voice and video), where the timing of the arrival of successive packets is crucial. ATM defines a connection-oriented network architecture that links users with “virtual paths” that are grouped into “virtual channels.” All of this is done at blazing speeds: 150 million bits per second and 600 million bits per second are routed as basic service rates with ATM.
| Table 1. Descriptive Data |
| Black | De Prycker | Goralski | Handel et al. | Minola and Vitella |
| Number of pages | 426 | 380 | 383 | 287 | 384 |
| Number of chapters | 15 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 12 |
| Number of appendices | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
The five books listed above are similar in many ways. These are not managerial books. They sport a highly technical presentation, targeted to the telecommunications technical expert who is interested in learning about ATM protocols, transmission, multiplexing, and switching at a detailed level. As Table 1 shows, these books are of comparable length, with the book by Black substantially longer than the rest and the one by Handel et al. substantially shorter. The number of chapters varies between 9 and 15 with at most two appendices included. Black, again, has substantially more chapters than the others.
Table 2 compares the coverage of topics dealing with ATM on a book-by-book basis. All five books deal with the core issues of ATM effectively. Which would be considered the better book depends on the specific needs of the individual reader. The organization of each presentation and the supplementary topics included are unique to each book, as summarized in the following paragraphs.
Black
The manager who is interested in understanding more about telecommunications, and about ATM specifically, will find Black a good read. The first four chapters consist of background topics such as broadband versus baseband, SONET, OSI, X.25, ISDN, and Signaling System Seven (SS7). Black then presents the basics of ATM technology, concluding this part of the book with a discussion of message traffic management. A chapter on using ATM for internetworking follows, as does a chapter on optical fiber networking and the mapping of ATM cells into a synchronous optical network (SONET) environment. Chapters on network management and primitive ATM mappings follow, with the last chapter dealing with the development of the future of the ATM marketplace.
De Prycker
De Prycker is a popular text already in its third edition. It has a particularly practical and down-to-earth style that will appeal to those who need to apply this technology in real networks. The first two chapters deal with standards and switching. The next two chapters illustrate the practical bent of this book, in that they deal with the impact of ATM on terminals and services, and with ATM as a local area network or metropolitan area network protocol suite. The next part of the book deals with traffic congestion control, followed by a chapter on strategies for introducing ATM into a business setting. The last chapter deals with issues and technologies relating to the use of ATM to support video-on-demand applications.
Goralski
The Goralski book is, as its title implies, an introduction to ATM. It is a good overview of ATM consisting of three parts: “Networking and ATM Networking,” “The ATM Protocol Stack,” and “Building ATM Networks.” It is somewhat more cryptic than the other books. The book is a good introductory treatment for the beginning network analyst who needs to get an understanding of the issues driving the move to ATM and to become familiar with the protocols utilized. The first part of the book deals with the history of transfer mode networks and summarizes the promise of ATM for the future. The second part explains the ATM protocol suite within the context of B-ISDN and also positions ATM within the OSI Reference Model. The last part of the book examines the building of ATM networks. It looks at LANs, Switched Multimegabit Data Service (SMDS), and frame relay in the context of ATM in the future. Also included are discussions of ATM network management, equipment interoperability under ATM, ATM standards developments and inadequacies, and the ATM agenda for the future. The book concludes with a survey of current ATM products and services available in the networking marketplace.
| Table 2. Coverage of Topics |
| Black | De Prycker | Goralski | Handel et al. | Minola and Vitella |
| Networking tutorial | Extensive | Adequate | Minimal | None | None |
| Evolution of ATM | Adequate | Extensive | Minimal | Minimal | Minimal |
| ATM architecture | Extensive | Extensive | Adequate | Extensive | Extensive |
| ATMstandards | Extensive | Extensive | Adequate | Extensive | Extensive |
| ATMtransmission | Extensive | Extensive | Adequate | Extensive | Extensive |
| ATMswitching | Extensive | Extensive | Adequate | Extensive | Extensive |
| ATMmultiplexing | Adequate | Extensive | Adequate | Extensive | Extensive |
| ATMnetwork management | Extensive | Extensive | Adequate | Minimal | Extensive |
| Industrial ATM activity | Adequate | None | None | None | Extensive |
Händel, Huber, and Schröder
Händel, Huber, and Schröder do a particularly good job of relating B-ISDN and ATM technologies, which is useful, since the higher functionality of the ATM architecture must be defined within the B-ISDN framework. After developing this B-ISDN/ATM relationship in the first four chapters, the authors deal with ATM signalling, switching, and transmission. The book goes on to examine the future of B-ISDN and ATM as universal standards, with emphasis on optical environments. This book also includes an appendix that summarizes important B-ISDN and ATM standards recommendations.
Minoli and Vitella
The Minoli and Vitella book takes a different look at the question of ATM networks. It focuses on ATM as an implementation of cell relay services. It is a strong technical reference on the topic of cell relay. Minoli and Vitella present ATM in this context and thereby expand the context of the presentation. This is not a tutorial or textbook in any usual sense. The book is aimed at corporate network practitioners who are technically sophisticated and knowledgeable. In addition to the usual ATM adaptation layer and transmission discussions, Minoli and Vitella discuss internetworking with ATM to support multimedia, fast packet services, and third-generation LANs with a local ATM environment. The last two chapters deal with network management and provide a snapshot of the industry’s activity with ATM.
Comparison
These five texts are all excellent references. Which is best depends on the needs of the reader. Table 2 provides an assessment of topic coverage by each text. Each book has a different set of strengths and weaknesses. For example, the strength of Black’s book is its solid intellectual presentation. It reads very much like a college textbook; it is well organized, complete, and well written. If there is a weakness, it may be somewhat lacking in practical insight. The strength of the DePrycker book is its practical style. One gets the distinct sense that this is an author who has been in the trenches, implementing this technology in real networks in the real world. A possible weakness is that ATM industry trends and activities are not addressed in this book
The strength of Goralski’s book is that it presents the material in a less complex manner than the others, making it particularly good for the beginning network analyst or administrator. The book does not have the technical depth of the other texts, however. The great strength of the Händel, Huber, and Schröder book is that it relates B-ISDN and ATM technologies clearly. On the negative side, the book dives into the technical details without any background or networking tutorial to speak of. Also, the book does not include any information on industry activity. Minoli and Vitella take a different tack, focusing on ATM as an implementation of cell relay. Their book is a strong technical reference on cell relay services. As do Händel, Huber, and Schröder, Minoli and Vitella present technical detail without much introductory or tutorial material.
