UNIT 5 INTERNET CONNECTIVITY AND

PROTOCOLS
Structure

5.0 Objectives
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Internet Protocols
5.2.1 Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)
5.2.2 Serial Line Internet Protocol (SLIP)
5.2.3 Point to Point Protocol (PPP)
5.2.4 File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
5.2.5 Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP)
5.2.6 Secure Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTPS)
5.2.7 Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)
5.2.8 Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP)
5.2.9 TELNET
5.2.10 Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP)
5.2.11 Wireless Application Protocol (WAP)
5.2.12 Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP)
5.2.13 Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP)
5.2.14 Internet Message Access Protocol (IMAP)
5.3 Internet Connectivity
5.3.1 Dial-up Connection from a PC
5.3.2 Accessing Internet through Leased Line
5.3.3 Connecting to Internet through a Mobile Phone
5.3.4 Connecting to Internet through Cable Network
5.4 Summary
5.5 Keywords
5.6 Answers to Self Check Exercises
5.7 References and Further Reading

5.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this Unit, you will be able to:

know the commonly used Internet protocols;

features of various Internet protocols;

learn the different ways of accessing Internet; and

learn the differences between various ways of accessing Internet.

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Internet Architecture
5.1 INTRODUCTION
In this unit, we shall discuss the concepts related to protocols with a special
focus on Internet protocols. Protocols are very important in Internet world –
so that networks using different hardware and software configuration can
communicate and transmit data to each other.
Moreover, different clients use a network for different purpose such as
e-mailing, web surfing, telnet, file transfer, etc. While the usage of a network
may differ from user to user, all kinds of usage involve transmission of data.
In every case, data is being transmitted from client to server and vice versa.
Depending on the nature of the transmission, the protocol will be applied to
data at the client side for appropriate presentation at the server end. There are
a specific set of protocols pertaining to Internet which are discussed in this
Unit.
Another topic for discussion in this Unit is the way to access Internet. People
may be in need of Internet access when they are in office, home or on the way.
The importance associated with the place where they intend to access Internet
determines the way they need to access Internet. If they are in a vehicle, then
they can access Internet from their mobile phone/laptop. At home they can
access Internet from their home PC. In office, they can access Internet through
their machine which is part of an office LAN. Of course, there are other ways
of accessing Internet. In this unit, different ways of accessing the Internet is
given along with illustrations wherever possible.

5.2 INTERNET PROTOCOLS

A protocol is the structure in which data is transmitted between two devices.
The structure may vary from a set of devices to another set of devices for the
data that is transmitted among themselves.
The following issues are directly associated with the protocol between the
devices:

What is the procedure that is to be followed to check the errors in the
message.

Is the message going to be compressed during transmission? If yes, what
is the method that will be adopted?

How does the receiver know that the message is received completely?
(That is, the way to find the end of the message.)

How will the receiver acknowledge to the sender that the former has
received the message?
There are a number of protocols in existence. The protocols that are to be used
are totally dependent on the computers that communicate with each other. In
this unit, we shall focus on only those protocols that are related to the Internet.
There are some protocols which transmit the message/data in the form of
packets. The message is divided into packets and these packets are then
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transmitted from the source to the destination. It is not essential that all the
packets travel in the form of a convoy from the source to the destination. Each Internet Connectivity and
Protocols
packet may follow it’s own route from source to the destination. Once, all the
packets are received at the destination, the computer will recompile them into
the original message.
Any computer that is connected to the Internet has an address. This address is
called an IP address. IP address is made up of 32 bits. It is denoted by four
numbers which are separated by periods. An example of IP address is
190.10.30.16.
A modem is a device that converts digital data to analog form and analog data
to digital form.

5.2.1 TCP/IP : Transmission Control Protocol/ Internet

Protocol
TCP/IP stands for Transmission Control Protocol/ Internet Protocol. TCP/IP
is not a single protocol but is a set of communication protocols that are used to
connect computers that have data to be transmitted over the Internet. Every
machine on Internet transmits data. The client machine transmit queries, servers
transmit answers.
TCP
A TCP connects the destination and source machines on the Internet. This
enables both of them to transmit data between each other. The following are
the advantages of TCP:

The message is definitely delivered from the source to the destination

The packets that make up the message are delivered in the same order to
the destination as they are transmitted from the source.
IP
This protocol specifies the structure of the packet. That is, the place from
where the data starts and where it ends inside the packet. Also, it is this protocol
which specifies the position of this packet in the set of packets that form the
message so that it can be used during the time of recompilation at the destination.
The packets are also called datagrams. IP also specifies the addressing scheme
for the packets. Several versions of IP are released since it’s inception. The
current version is IPv6.
When a computer (source) wants to send message/data to another computer
(destination), then the source specifies the address of the destination and
confirms that the message/data is to be sent. Then, IP comes into action. It
splits the data into packets and specifies the addressing scheme. Once IP has
done its job, TCP comes into action. It establishes a connection between the
source and destination so that the packets can be transmitted between them. It
is not necessary that only source sends data to destination. Once the
communication starts, destination is also permitted to communicate with the
source over the same connection. TCP also ensures that all the datagrams
(packets) reach the destination and vice-versa. Also, it ensures that the order
of receipt of packets at source/destination is the same as they are transmitted 85
by the source/destination.
Internet Architecture So, it is both TCP and IP which lead to communication between the source
and destination. TCP/IP is the default standard for Internet based
communication. Almost, all the network operating systems support them. That
is the primary reason for Internet being a network of machines that are based
on different operating systems. Needless to say, TCP/IP uses packet switching
technology. The alternative is circuit switching technology in which the
message/data travels along a fixed line from source to destination and the
destination receives data in the same order in which it is sent from the source.

5.2.2 SLIP : Serial Line Internet Protocol

SLIP stands for Serial Line Internet Protocol. This is a protocol that is used to
connect to Internet through telephone lines. So, if the Internet connection is a
Dial-up connection, this protocol can be used. But, SLIP is a older protocol
and very few Internet service providers are using it. It was developed when the
speed of connection was around 2kbps. SLIP transmits data over serial lines.
That is, data is transmitted one bit at a time which is time consuming.

5.2.3 PPP : Point to Point Protocol

PPP stands for Point to Point Protocol. This is another protocol that is used to
connect to Internet through telephone lines. This is the protocol that is being
used by most of the ISPs (Internet Service Providers) for dial-up access to
Internet. This is a protocol that works comfortably with the speeds that even
exceed 64kbps. It supports error detection (That is, any error that creeps in
during the transmission of the message between the source/destination can be
detected) and data compression. The packets that are generated by TCP/IP are
sent by PPP to a server that in turn places these packets on the Internet.

5.2.4 FTP : File Transfer Protocol

FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. This is the protocol that is used to
upload/download files to/from the Internet. When files are to be exchanged
between source/destination, FTP comes into action. FTP uses TCP/IP to enable
the transfer of data between source/destination. Whenever a website is to be
hosted, web pages are uploaded to the concerned web server. It is the FTP
which enables the uploading of files.

5.2.5 HTTP : Hyper Text Transfer Protocol

HTTP stands for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol. This is the protocol that is
used to transfer web pages between web browser and web server. HTTP does
a wide variety of tasks. The way the data/message is to be formatted is specified
by HTTP. The way the data/message is to be transmitted is also specified by
HTTP. Whenever data is transmitted between web browser and web server,
both browser and server need to respond to the commands of each other. The
nature of response is also defined by HTTP. When you need to go to a particular
website, it is the home page which is usually loaded into your browser. So,
when you type the website address/URL in the location bar of the browser and
press ENTER, or click at “go”, it is the HTTP which guides the web server
about the web page that is to be sent to the browser in response to the URL.
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In the case of HTTP, both Browser and Web server will not be aware of the Internet Connectivity and
Protocols
commands that are executed by themselves prior to the current command.
This shows the statelessness of HTTP. This is one of the reasons for the
existence of static websites. In the case of static websites, only web pages are
transferred between the browser and the server depending on the URL entered
or depending on the buttons/links clicked on the web page, but, the web pages
cannot be interactive and are not dynamic. They cannot react to the user’s data
which is fed into a web page. Such reaction is possible in the case of dynamic
web pages. Java script, Java, Cookies, Active-X, Php script, servlets and applets
are used for generating dynamic web pages.

5.2.6 HTTPS : Secure HTTP

HTTPS stands for Secure HTTP. Whenever message/data is to be sent securely,
HTTPS is used. It does not mean that whatever data is sent between browser/
server is secure. Only a particular message/data is secure when HTTPS is
enabled during it’s transmission. An analogy of such security is personal
security guard for VIPs. So, irrespective of the number of people travelling
through a particular route, only the VIP is provided security, and not every
one who travels along that route.
5.2.7 SSL : Secure Sockets Layer
SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer. SSL creates a connection between the
client and server that is secure. This enables the transfer of any amount of data
between source/destination. HTTPS and SSL are complementary to each other.
Usually, websites which deals with the transfer of sensitive information such
as credit card numbers, etc. use SSL. The URLs that require an SSL connection,
start with https:// instead of http://.
5.2.8 SMTP : Simple Mail Transfer Protocol
It stands for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol. Whenever an e-mail message is
sent, it is SMTP which transfers this message to the destination.
5.2.9 TELNET
It is often the case that people go out of their offices and realise that they need
to access the server available on their office LAN. Usually, they access their
server from their terminal in the office. Now, since they are away from office,
they cannot login to their server from their terminal. For them to login to their
server, they need a machine which exactly behaves like terminal in their office.
TELNET enables this task. It is a program which enables a machine to behave
like the server to which you login. So, using TELNET, you can login to the
server of your office, which you otherwise do from your terminal in the office.
Now, you can execute commands from the terminal on which TELNET is
running on the server without realising the fact that you are away from your
office. TELNET enables you to logon to your office LAN and do work as you
are doing while sitting in your office and accessing the LAN from a terminal
which is connected to the LAN.
5.2.10 NNTP : Network News Transfer Protocol
It stands for Network News Transfer Protocol. USENET is a bulletin board 87
Internet Architecture system on the Internet. Anyone who registers with USENET can access the
bulletin board, post to it as well as receive the information that is added to the
bulletin board through e-mail automatically. NNTP is used to access, post and
receive information from the USENET.

5.2.11 WAP : Wireless Application Protocol

It stands for Wireless Application Protocol. It is used by wireless devices such
as mobile phones, PDAs , etc. to access Internet. So, any person having a
mobile phone which is WAP enabled can access the websites by connecting to
Internet from his/her mobile phone.

5.2.12 ICMP : Internet Control Message Protocol

It stands for Internet Control Message Protocol. It is an extension of Internet
Protocol (IP). Any packet which consists of error messages/control information/
any other information is supported by ICMP. For example, a PING command
uses ICMP. PING is used to find the accessibility of an IP address.

5.2.13 IGMP : Internet Group Management Protocol

It stands for Internet Group Management Protocol. IP multicasting refers to
the ability of a server to broadcast a message to a number of destinations at a
time. IGMP is the standard for IP multicasting over the Internet. IGMP enables
a single set of packets to be transmitted from a source to a number of
destinations. Conventionally, when a message is addressed to more than one
recipient, one set of packets is transmitted to each recipient separately. So, if
you address ten recipients, ten sets of packets are transmitted from the source
to all the ten recipients at a rate of one set of packets per recipient. But, IGMP
enables just one set of packets to reach all the ten recipients.

5.2.14 IMAP : Internet Message Access Protocol

It stands for Internet Message Access Protocol. It is used to retrieve e-mail
messages. The latest version of IMAP is IMAPv4.0. The latest version has
some additional features such as enabling the user to retrieve only those
e-mail messages which consist of specific keyword(s).
Self Check Exercise
1) Fill in the blanks.
a) A ________ is the structure in which data is transmitted between
two devices.
b) A ________ is a device that converts digital data to analog form and
analog data to digital form.
c) In TCP, the packets that make up the message are delivered in the
_______ to the destination as they are transmitted from the source.
d) _______ creates a connection between the client and server that is
secure.
e) __________ refers to the ability of a server to broadcast a message
to a number of destinations at a time.
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f) WAP stands for __________________.
 Internet Connectivity and
5.3 INTERNET CONNECTIVITY Protocols

There are different ways of accessing Internet. The way one accesses Internet
directly depends on the infrastructure they possess at hand. A person who
does not have a machine at his/her home or office may access Internet from a
cyber café. A person who has a machine at his/her home may access Internet
through a telephone line (Dial up connection) or cable (if s/he has). Apart
from the above mentioned ways of accessing Internet from home, a person
can also access Internet through his/her mobile phone (if it is WAP enabled).
In case, they have a machine at their office and if the office is having a leased
line for Internet, then they can access Internet from their office (of course, it
depends on the System Administrator who enables access to Internet through
various machines).
Now, let us elaborate on various methods connecting to Internet as mentioned
above.

5.3.1 Dial-up Connection from a PC

If you have a telephone connection and a PC with modem, then the most popular
way of accessing Internet is through a Dial-up connection from your PC. The
digital data from the computer is converted by the modem to analog form and
is passed on to the telephone line. At the other end, another modem is used
which converts the analog data received to digital form and then passes onto
the receiving machine. Essentially, what you do is that you open the dialer
software (this is usually a part of your operating system) and click on the
connect button (this button may vary from dialer to dialer.). Then, you will see
your computer dialling the telephone number of your ISP (VSNL, MTNL,
SIFY, DISHNET are some of the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) operating
in India). Once the connection is established, you may be requested to enter
user name and password, or you may supply the same in the window of the
dialer before starting the process of dialing the ISP. After verification of user
name and password, your PC is logged on to the Internet and you can start
browsing the Internet.
The following are the requirements to access the Internet through a dial-up
connection:

A modem

TCP software

Internet account from an ISP

Dialler software to connect to ISP

Browser
Accessing Internet through dial-up connection is most popular among the users
who access Internet from home.
The following are various steps that are to be followed to access Internet through
dial-up connection:

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Internet Architecture Step 1: Open the dialler software (Refer to Figure 5.1)

Fig. 5.1: Dial-up Icon

Step 2: Enter user name and password. Then click on Connect button in the
Connect To Dialog Box (as shown in Fig. 5.2).

Fig. 5.2: Connect to Dialog Box

Fig. 5.3 depicts the PC dialling the number of the server of the Internet Service
Provider (ISP)

Fig. 5.3: Dialog Box showing the Dialling Process

Fig. 5.4 depicts the verification of user name and password at the server end.

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Fig.5.4: Dialog Box showing Verification of the User Name and Password
Fig. 5.4 depicts the PC logging onto the Internet. Internet Connectivity and
Protocols

Fig. 5.4: Dialog Box showing the Logging in Process

Once successfully logged into the Internet the connection complete Dialog
Box appears as shown in Fig.5.5.

Fig. 5.5: Connection Complete Dialog-Box

If you are successfully connected, a little computer screen icon appears on the
right hand side of the of Windows task bar that looks like the one shown in
Fig. 5.6:

Fig. 5.6: Computer Screen Icon

This flashes with sent and received data indicating that the link is active. When
you double-click on this icon, you will see a dialog box as shown in Fig. 5.7:

Fig. 5.7: Connected to Dialog Box

Step 3: After logging onto the Internet, click on the browser button to start
browsing.
It is important to set the Internet options for your PC before trying to access
Internet by applying the above steps.
In very small organisations, Internet is accessed through a Dial-up connection
from a single PC. The access speeds vary from 2400 bps to 56000 bps. Higher
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speeds are possible if ISDN connection is possible. ISDN (Integrated Services
Internet Architecture Digital Network) is a technology that is designed for the existing telephone
lines which enable them to handle higher data rates. ISDN can be implemented
by installing the requisite processing equipment.
One of the most common ways of accessing Internet for the customers who do
not have access at their home or office is to go to a cyber café. Most of the
cyber cafés have LAN and customers can access Internet through nodes. The
server (which is equipped with a modem) of the LAN is connected to Internet
through dial-up connection. As long as the server is connected to the Internet,
customers can access Internet through nodes connected to the Server. Customers
are usually charged on hourly basis.

5.3.2 Accessing Internet through Leased Line

Usually, corporate offices access Internet through leased lines. A leased line is
a dedicated communication channel which connects the company to the ISP.
The significance of this mode of accessing Internet is that the company is
always connected to Internet. It does not have to dial to the ISP as and when
access is required. In other words, company and ISP are connected through
hot line. The expenses involved for the user in accessing Internet through leased
line are higher when compared to dial-up access, but the speeds are also higher.
They vary from 56 kbps to 10 mbps. Different ISPs have different schemes of
billing the customers for the leased lines. Some ISPs charge the user based on
the volume of traffic. It means that your bill is directly proportional to the use
of Internet. More you access, more you are billed. Some ISPs have a fixed
charge per annum.
Employees of corporate sector access Internet through their nodes. A group of
nodes are connected to a hub or a switch. For example, if an organisation is
having three separate buildings as part of its office, then one probability is that
each building will have a hub/switch and all nodes of that building are connected
to that hub/switch. The hub or switch is in turn connected to the router and the
router is in turn connected to the leased line (a telephone line which is dedicated
to the organisation) for accessing Internet. A radio link is also a form of leased
line wherein a radio antennae is used to establish virtual connection between a
corporate office and an ISP. Several ISPs support radio link.
Figure 5.8 depicts the connection to Internet through a leased line.

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Fig. 5.8: Connecting to Internet through Leased line
5.3.3 Connecting to Internet through a Mobile Phone Internet Connectivity and
Protocols

Internet can be accessed through a Mobile phone which is WAP enabled. Here,
a Mobile phone could be any WAP enabled device such as PDA, Laptop etc.
When you click on the appropriate menu item in your mobile phone, then the
WAP enabled device (a mobile phone in this case) contacts the concerned
base station. In turn, the request is transmitted to a WAP gateway. A WAP
enabled device can only access web pages which are developed using WML
(Wireless Markup Language). But, web servers have web pages which are
written using HTML. So, a filter is used for conversion from HTML to WML
and vice-versa. The WAP gateway contacts the filter which converts the input
WML request into HTML and contacts the appropriate web server. The web
server transmits the response to the filter which converts the input HTML
page to WML page, thus making it compatible to WAP enabled device. The
other way for WAP enabled device to access web pages which are developed
using WML directly is to contact the web server through the WAP gateway.
Figure 5.9 depicts the communication between a WAP enabled device and a
web server.

Fig. 5.9: WAP device connecting to the Web Server

5.3.4 Connecting to Internet through Cable Network

Cable television has become as popular as radio now-a-days. Almost, every
person is having access to cable television and most of the households have
cable connections. Internet can also be accessed through the cable that brings
TV channels to our homes using a cable modem. To access Internet through a
cable, there is a need for a cable modem. Cable modem acts as an interface
between the computer and the cable. Cable modem separates digital and analog
signals travelling on the cable and enables a PC to send and receive data using
coaxial cable on the same frequencies used by the cable TV channels. The
primary advantage of cable is the large bandwidth it offers. ISDN and DSL
cannot match the bandwidth and speed offered by the cable. PSTN (dial-up)
offers maximum of 56 kbps, ISDN offers a maximum of 128 kbps whereas
cable starts with 64 kbps and can go upto 38 Mbps. Internet through cable is
therefore, suitable for downloading multimedia such as movies, animation,
etc.
The Internet through cable uses the existing cable that already connects TV in
our home. This cable is capable of carrying both video signals and data signals
at the same time. Neither television nor data signals are affected by simultaneous
use. Internet through cable is right solution for bandwidth intensive applications
and corporate customers. Though cable has immense potentials as an access
technology, it has a long way to go in terms of infrastructure, quality of service,
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cost factor, security, etc. Siti Cable, Ice Network Pvt. Ltd., Innomedia
Internet Architecture Technologies Pvt. Ltd., Mantra Online, BPL, Aptech Internet Ltd. and Zeenext
offer Internet through cable TV in India.
Self Check Exercise
2) Fill in the blanks:
a) Accessing Internet through ____________ is most popular among
the users who access Internet from home.
b) A __________ is a dedicated communications channel which
connects the company to the ISP.
c) A WAP enabled device can only access web pages which are
developed using _________________.
d) Fibre enables higher ______________.

5.4 SUMMARY
In this unit we discussed about internet protocols and various ways of accessing
the internet. A large number of protocols exist and some of these protocols
which are related to the internet are TCP/IP, SLIP, PPP, FTP, HTTP, HTTPS,
SSL, SMTP, TELNET, NNTP, WAP, ICMP IGMP, IMAP. We discussed all
these protocols in this unit. There are a number of ways to connect to the
Internet, ranging from leased-line connections to dial-up services. The leased-
line connection is the traditional and most common method of accessing the
Internet. It involves establishing a permanent link between a local network
and the Internet. A leased line provides point-to-point-or machine-to-machine
telecommunications. SLIP (Serial Line Internet Protocol), and the newer PPP
(Point- to-Point Protocol) are protocols that support TCP/IP connections over
standard telephone lines. Like a leased connection, SLIP/PPP allows the user’s
computer to be part of the Internet but only for the duration of the telephone
call. Dial-up connections are established through a modem and phone line.
Users dial-up an Internet host, login with a password. The dial-up method has
the advantages of simplicity and low cost, but there are limitations. First of all,
only a subset of all Internet services may be available, depending on those the
particular service provider chooses to mount on its Internet host machine.
Second, users will likely be limited in the amount of disk space they can use to
store e-mail etc. New connection options are now available which allow for
greater speeds and flexibility, while keeping costs to a minimum. Some of
these newer connection options are Cable Internet, Satellite connections,
Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), wireless etc. Cable Internet
systems allow your computer to connect to the Internet through the same cable
that carries your TV signal. An ISDN line is a type of digital phone line that
can transmit data many times faster than a conventional modem and phone
line. Mobile phones also allow the option of accessing the internet as discussed
in this Unit. Internet files can be downloaded via a satellite connection.

5.5 KEYWORDS
Analog : A transmission mode in which data is
represented by a continuously varying
94 electrical signal.
Bandwidth : The amount of data that can be sent from Internet Connectivity and
Protocols
one computer to another through a
particular connection in a certain amount
of time.
Browser : An application program that is used to
connect to sites on the World Wide Web.
Client : A software program that is used to contact
and obtain data from a Server software
program on another computer, often across
a great distance.
Client : A program, such as a Web browser, that
connects to a centralised server program
and obtains information from it.
Digital : Digital refers to the way information is
stored, in the language used by computers,
as a string of separate bits that represent
on/off states i.e. as a series of 0s and 1s, or
binary digits.
Leased line : Refers to a phone line that is rented for
exclusive 24 hour, 7 days a week use from
your location to another location.
Modem : Short for Modulator/de-modulator. A
hardware device that allows a computer to
transmit and receive information over
telephone lines. A modem converts digital
data from computers into analog data that
can be transmitted over the telephone lines.
Protocol : A set of standards used by computers to
communicate and exchange information
with each other.
Server : A piece of software or machine that acts
as a centralised source of information or
computing resources (such as Web sites,
Gopher menus, FTP archives, and so on),
available to clients.
Server : A Server is a computer, or a software
application that provides a specific kind
of service to client software running on
other computers.
URL : Stands for Universal Resource Locator and
means an Internet address expressed in a
form that any Web browser can
understand.
Web browser : Software program that allows you to access
Web pages on the World Wide Web 95
Internet Architecture Examples of browsers include: Internet
Explorer, and Netscape Navigator.
Web server : A computer that stores Web documents
and makes them available to the rest of the
world.

5.6 ANSWERS TO SELF CHECK EXERCISES

1) a) Protocol
b) Modem
c) same
d) SSL
e) IP Multicasting
f) Wireless Application Protocol
2) a) dial-up connection
b) leased line
c) Wireless Markup Language
d) bandwidth

5.7 REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING

Minoli, Daniel (2003). Internet & Intranet Engineering: Technologies, Protocols
and Applications. New York: Tata McGraw-Hill.
Tanenbaum, Andrew S.(2003). Computer Networks. 4th ed. New Delhi:
Prentice-Hall India.
http://ietf.cnri.va.us/
http://sunsite.unc.edu
http://www.charm.net
http://www.isoc.org
http://www.w3.org

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