Required Readings

Week 1: Introduction to Networking & Decimal, Binary, Octal and Hexadecimal numbers

Quiz Date: October 1

Topics

• Read Introduction to Networking (take note of any terms you aren't familiar with and ask about them on the forum)
• Watch the Kahn Academy video on Binary Numbers
• Read the Learning About Computers Binary Tutorial(which also covers Hexadecimal)
• Use Kerry Veenstra's dynamic page on Binary and Hex to play around with Binary
• Read about Decimal, Binary, Octal, and Hexadecimal in the TCP guide.
• Read about Boolean and Logical Functions in the TCP guide.
• Watch Vi Hart's Binary Hand Dance (optional, but your instructor finds it charming)

Action Items

• Familiarize yourself with the TCP/IP guide and how to navigate it.
• Post your name, a short introduction to yourself, and your favorite website to our forum.
• Become comfortable with Binary and Hexadecimal and check your understanding here (Binary), here (Hex), and here (Bitwise AND).
• Lab 1 will help you with Binary, Hex, and Bitwise ANDs.

 

Week 2: Physical Layer

Quiz Date: October 8

Topics

• Wikipedia on Quantization, 
• Wikipedia on Sampling,  and 
• Wikipedia on Nyquists's Theorem (everything past the first two paragraphs on Nyquist's Theorem is too advanced for this class's subject matter).
• Optional: DCN - Error Detection & Correction

Action Items

• Lab 2 will help you with tunderstanding quantization.

• Lab 3 will help you with understanding Parity Bits.

 

Week 3: Data Link Layer

Quiz Date: October 15

Topics

•  Our book still doesn't have that much on things at the low level, so we will continue to rely on lecture and Wikipedia. 
• The Open System Interconnection (OSI) Referene Model>OSI Reference Model Layers>Data Link Layer(Layer 2)
• Wikipedia on Ethernet
• Pay particular attention to the section on Carrier \ Sense Multiple Access Collision Control
• Also  Carrier Sense Multiple Access Collision Avoidance
• Wikipedia on Cell carrier channel access methods

Action Items

• Lab 4 will help you understand LANs, MAC addresses, and Ethernet 

 

Week 4: more Data Link Layer

Quiz Date: October 22

Topics

•  Our book still doesn't have that much on things at the low level, so we will continue to rely on lecture and Wikipedia. 
• The Open System Interconnection (OSI) Referene Model>OSI Reference Model Layers>Data Link Layer(Layer 2)
• Wikipedia on Ethernet
• Pay particular attention to the section on Carrier \ Sense Multiple Access Collision Control
• Also  Carrier Sense Multiple Access Collision Avoidance
• Wikipedia on Cell carrier channel access methods

Action Items

• Lab 5 will help you understand wireless LANS and Lab 6 will help you understand Collison Domains 

 

Week 5: Internet Layer

Quiz Date: October 29

Topics

Our book becomes useful around now, but it has far more nuts and bolts than we need to worry about. 

• IP Overview from our text
• IPv4, IP addressing, IP Datagram Encapsulation
• Wikipedia on IP and Wikipedia on IP addresses
• Tutorial on subnet addresses and IP ranges without Binary
• Routing Protocols (I suggest paying the most attention to BGP). 
• Wikipedia on BGP,  Wikipedia on Packet Forwarding

Action Items

• Lab 7 will help you understand IP addresses 

 

Week 6: Internet Layer

Quiz Date: November 5

Topics

Still same reading... 

• IP Overview from our text
• IPv4, IP addressing, IP Datagram Encapsulation
• Wikipedia on IP and Wikipedia on IP addresses
• Tutorial on subnet addresses and IP ranges without Binary
• Routing Protocols (I suggest paying the most attention to BGP). 
• Wikipedia on BGP,  Wikipedia on Packet Forwarding

Action Items

• Lab 7 will help you understand IP addresses 

 

Week 7: Internet Layer 

Quiz Date: November 12

Topics

Keep reading about IP, and....

• IP Overview from our text
• IPv4, IP addressing, IP Datagram Encapsulation
• Wikipedia on IP and Wikipedia on IP addresses
• Tutorial on subnet addresses and IP ranges without Binary
• Routing Protocols (I suggest paying the most attention to BGP). 
• Wikipedia on BGP,  Wikipedia on Packet Forwarding

Start on TCP:

• Every subsection in the TCP and UDP Protocols section is pertinent.
• Wikipedia on TCP, Wikipedia on UDP, Wikipedia on Ports
• Host Tables and DNS (Domain Name System)

Action Items

• Lab 8 will help you understand IP addresses 

 

Week 8: Transport Layer

Quiz Date: November 19

Topics

TCP:

• Every subsection in the TCP and UDP Protocols section is pertinent.
• Wikipedia on TCP, Wikipedia on UDP, Wikipedia on Ports
• Host Tables and DNS (Domain Name System)

Action Items

• Lab 9will help you understand network configuration

 

Week 9: Transport Layer

Quiz Date: November 24

Topics

TCP:

• Every subsection in the TCP and UDP Protocols section is pertinent.
• Wikipedia on TCP, Wikipedia on UDP, Wikipedia on Ports
• Host Tables and DNS (Domain Name System)

Action Items

• Make sure if you turn in any old labs, you alert the TAs that you have done so (so they can give you partial credit)