Communication Technologies Tutorial

Communication is defined as a process of exchanging information and sharing thoughts, ideas, and emotions among different entities. Thus, communication forms the basis of interaction in the world. Communication between two or more persons can take place through various mediums like spoken words, written text, graphics, images, videos, etc.

Before the invention of telephones, communication was limited to face-to-face interactions or letters. With the development of technology and digital tools like TV, telephones, radio, smartphones, social media, video conferencing, emails, etc. which we use today, the form of communication has completely transformed and it has become quite efficient to provide instant connectivity across very large distances.

The invention of these modern technologies has eliminated the geographical barriers in the communication. Today, we can use these tools to instantly share a text, image, or video message or to make a video call with our friends and families.

The primary objective of this tutorial on Communication Technologies is to provide an overview of various communication technologies used in the field of electronics, computer networks, and communication systems. The understanding of these concepts is crucial to perform tasks related to communication and networking.

Introduction to Communication Technologies

Communication Technologies are nothing but the tools and systems that provide ability of exchanging information among different entities or devices. These technologies can exchange information in various formats like text, images, videos, audios, etc. These are very important for providing global connectivity.

The history of communication technologies starts with the invention of telegraph in the 19th century. Telegraph was the first communication technology that can send a message over long distances by using electric signals. It paved the path for development of modern communication technologies that we use today.

Then, several other communication technologies like telephone, radio, and TV have been developed in the 20th century for communicating audio and video content.

The Internet was the revolutionary communication technology developed in the late 20th century that helped in providing very fast exchange of information across the world.

This tutorial on Communication Technologies is divided into twenty chapters −

• The first three chapters describe the introduction to communication, history of networking, and basic terminologies related to communication technologies respectively.
• The next two chapters explain the switching techniques and transmission media used in communication systems.
• Next, we introduce various networking devices like Modem, router, connectors, ethernet card, etc.
• Different networking topologies like bus topology, star topology, ring topology, etc. are discussed in the next chapter followed by an explanation on different types of communication networks like PAN, LAN, WAN, etc.
• Network protocols and mobile communication protocols are discussed next.
• The next three chapters describe various mobile communication technologies such as 2G, 3G, 4G, etc. along with their characteristics and benefits, Email protocols like POP3, IMAP, etc. and VoIP (Voice Over Internet Protocol), Wireless technologies like Wi-Fi and WiMAX.
• In the next few chapters, we cover networking security and different types of security threats, followed by the concept of firewall, cookies, hacking, and some security acts and laws.
• The last chapter explains various web services such as HTML, WWW, XML, HTTP, etc.

This tutorial is meant for presenting the fundamentals of various communication technologies in a clear, interesting, and easy to understand manner.

Prerequisites to Understand Communication Technologies

As the most introductory tutorial on communication technologies, it is primarily intended for absolute beginners. Thus, someone having no background in electronics and communication engineering can easily understand the concepts covered here.

This tutorial can serve as an introductory resource on communication technologies for undergraduate college students as well as a reference for practicing communication engineers.

FAQs on Communication Technologies

The most Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about communication technologies are tried to answer in this section.

1. What is communication technology?

Communication technology is a tool or system used to generate, transmit, store, and receive information. Communication technology is typically a combination of hardware and software. It involves the use of a networking infrastructure for exchanging information over long distances.

Communication technologies provide information exchange in various formats like text, images, videos, audios, etc. Common examples of communication technologies include telephone, internet, radio broadcasting, TV broadcasting, social media, etc.

2. What are different types of communication technologies?

Listed below are some of the popular types of communication technologies −

• Telephone − It is a wired communication technology used for transmitting voice signals through copper wires.
• Ethernet − It is also a wired communication technologies used in computer networks for data transmission.
• Fiber Optics − Fiber optics is also a wired communication technology used in computer networks for data communication. But it transmits data in the form of light signals, instead of electric signals.
• Cellular Technologies − These communication technologies are used for transmission of voice signals, text messages, and internet data using radio frequency signals. Examples of these technologies include 3G, 4G, 5G, etc.
• Wi-Fi − It is a wireless communication technology used in local area networks to connect devices and exchange internet data.
• Bluetooth − It is also a short distance wireless communication technologies used in personal devices like phones, laptops, keyboards, etc.
• Satellite Communication − It is a wide area communication technology that uses satellites for data transmission. It is mainly used in TV broadcasting, navigation system, and internet communication.

3. Is Wi-Fi a form of communication technology?

Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) is a very common example of communication technology. It is used in local area networks or personal area networks for wireless data communication. It allows connecting devices like smartphones, laptops, computers, smart TVs, etc. to the Internet without need for any wire or cable.

Wi-Fi uses radio frequency signals for data communication among digital devices.

4. What is the first type of communication technology?

The Electric Telegraph is the first type of communication technology. It was invented by Samuel Morse in the years of 1840s. It is used for long distance transmission of messages using electric signals and cables.

5. What is the function of communication technology?

The main function of communication technology is to allow exchange of information between two or more entities. Communication technology provides a platform and a communication channel for this purpose.

A typical communication technology is responsible for transmission, storage, and reception of a variety of data like text, images, videos, audios, etc.

6. What are the risks of communication technology?

Some of the major risks of communication technologies are listed below −

• Communication technologies are highly vulnerable to privacy and security issues like data breaches, unauthorized access, etc.
• Communication technologies are also sensitive to cyber threats like virus attacks, phishing, identity theft, etc.
• Over usage of communication technologies can lead to social isolation, real interactions, mental health issues like depression, anxiety, etc.
• Sometimes communication technologies may be used for spreading fake news and false information that can lead to mass level confusion and manipulation.
• Since everyone has no equal access to communication technologies. This creates a gap in the society.

7. What are switching techniques in communication?

In communication, switching techniques are defined as the methods of data routing between devices and networks. The main purpose of using switching techniques is to ensure efficient data transmission over the communication networks.

Listed here are the three main switching techniques commonly used in modern communication −

• Circuit Switching − In this switching technique, a dedicated communication path is provided between the transmitter and receiver during the data transmission like in traditional telephone system.
• Packet Switching − In packet switching, the message is broken down into smaller units called packets, and then these packets are transmitted to the receiver through different communication paths over a network. At the end, the packets are reassembled to retrieve the original message. This switching technique is used in internet and modern communication systems.
• Message Switching − In message switching, the whole message is sent to the intermediary nodes where it is stored temporarily before being transmitting to the next node.

8. What is a network topology?

An arrangement of devices in a communication network provided for data transmission among them is referred to as a network topology. Network topology describes the way in which devices are interconnected and data is communicated among them.

Some commonly used network topologies in modern communication include bus topology, star topology, tree topology, mesh topology, ring topology, and hybrid topology.

9. What are the types of communication networks?

Communication networks are classified into the following major types −

• Personal Area Network (PAN) − It is a small area network used for connecting personal devices like smartphones, laptops, etc.
• Local Area Network (LAN) − It is a network used within a building like home, college, etc. for connecting devices.
• Metropolitan Area Network (MAN) − This network is used for connecting devices over a city.
• Wide Area Network (WAN) − This network is used to connect devices over a very large distance or globally.

10. What is VoIP used for?

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol. It is a communication technology used for transmitting voice signals using internet or IP based communication networks.

Common applications of VoIP include voice calls over internet, video conferencing, call forwarding, etc.

11. What is the difference between VoIP and WiFi calling?

The main difference between VoIP and Wi-Fi calling is that VoIP uses internet or IP-based cellular networks like 4G, 5G, etc. to make and receive calls, whereas Wi-Fi calling uses Wi-Fi networks instead of cellular networks like 4G, 5G, etc. to make and receive a call.

12. What are the different wireless technologies?

We have listed here the various types of wireless technologies that are widely used −

• Infrared (IR) − It is a short-distance wireless communication technology used for data transmission. It uses infrared light and works in line-of-sight.
• Bluetooth − It is another short-distance wireless communication technology used in mobile devices for exchanging data between them.
• Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity) − It is very popular wireless technology used to connect mobile devices like smartphones and laptops to the internet. It is used in local area networks for data communication.
• Cellular Technologies − These wireless communication technologies are used in mobiles and smartphones to provide voice and data exchange services. These technologies are the backbone of mobile phone communication.
• Satellite Communication − It is a long-range wireless communication technologies used for long distance and large volume data communication.

13. What is hacking and cracking?

Hacking and cracking are two very common terms in communication security. They are defined as follows −

Hacking − An unauthorized access or control to a computer system or a network to gather sensitive information for unethical use is referred to as hacking.

Cracking − The process of removing the security mechanism or protection like password, encryption, etc. to get unauthorized access into the system is termed as cracking.

14. What is HTML?

HTML stands for Hypertext Markup Language. It is a text-based scripting language used to define how a web browser displays text, images, or other forms of media on a webpage. HTML is used for creating and designing webpages and websites.

15. What is HTTP?

HTTP stands for HyperText Transfer Protocol. It is an internet protocol that defines how data to be transferred using world wide web. HTTP is the basic building block of the data communication over internet.