Chapter 1. Networking and Routing Fundamentals

Achievement: Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow.

—Successories

In recent years, the growth of networks everywhere has accelerated as many organizations move into the international business arena and join the Internet community. This expansion continues to drive the development, refinement, and complexity of network equipment and software, consequently resulting in some unique issues and exciting advances. You rarely see an advertisement that does not contain the famous www prefix. In my hometown, one of the local news stations now displays the e-mail address of its reporters as they deliver the news! Is this the new economy in action, or is it just another example of too much information? At least the media are feeding on their own now!