Delivering Internet Connections over Cable: Breaking the Access Barrier

An inside look at high-speed access written for the cable industry

Cable modems have emerged as a leading consumer choice for high-speed Internet access, outpacing alternatives such as digital subscriber lines, but not without raising issues about quality of service and controversy about open access. Providing an objective review of residential broadband and cable television networking, this book will be of great use for professionals who are integrating cable into their networks or service offerings. The authors compare cable access systems to competing technologies and discuss the increasingly difficult issues confronting each. Readers will also find coverage of the hottest areas in the field including high-speed data and packet voice standards, managing the "always-on" connection, and security and privacy risks.

MARK E. LAUBACH is Chief Network Architect at Rainmaker Technologies, developing the home digital backbone for video, voice, and data networking. He is a cofounder and former CTO of Com21 and is considered the father of the Com21 cable modem CommUNITY system. A key figure in modern international cable modem technology development, Laubach is the author of several landmark patents and standards.

DAVID J. FARBER is Chief Technologist at the FCC and the Alfred Fitler Moore Professor of Telecommunication Systems at the University of Pennsylvania. Over a distinguished career, he is credited with several breakthroughs in distributed systems technology and key improvements of the early Internet. He serves on the U.S. Presidential Advisory Committee on Information Technology.

STEPHEN D. DUKES is President and Chief Executive Officer of Imaginary Universes, which advises companies on development and investment of existing and new technologies. As the former vice president of Digital Broadband Technology, he was responsible for MediaOne's digital broadband development. As former vice president of technology with TCI, he was responsible for management and development of the DOCSIS specifications for high-speed data over cable networks.