Webster’s New World Telecom Dictionary (Webster’s New World)

Webster’s New World Telecom Dictionary, by Ray Horak, is a comprehensive telecommunications dictionary of more than 7,500 terms critical to understanding voice, data, video, and multimedia communications system and network technologies, applications, and regulation. Given the convergence of computing and communications, the book also effectively is a computer dictionary with a telecom focus. It is thoroughly researched, highly objective, absolutely accurate, and includes just about every essential term, abbreviation, acronym, contraction, initialism, and portmanteau you might encounter in the telecom and datacom domains. Although the book is a technical dictionary, Horak’s plain-English, commonsense style yields definitions that are as thoroughly understandable to the business professional or student as they are to the electrical engineer. In fact, many entries are encyclopedic in nature, discussing applications and issues. Horak also injects a bit of his wry sense of humor, sprinkling occasional telecom trivia and marginally related definitions that will have you smiling and chuckling to yourself, but not to the point that they detract from what is an important book on a serious subject. An instant classic, Webster’s New World Telecom Dictionary is the one and only telecom dictionary you will need. It also makes a perfect companion to Horak’s Telecommunications and Data Communications Handbook, published by Wiley-Interscience in October 2007.

Customer Review:
A Better Source than the Internet!
Review by Vladimir Kaminsky Webster’s New World Telecom Dictionary by Ray Horak is a comprehensive telecommunications dictionary of more than 4,600 terms essential to a clear understanding of voice, data, video, and multimedia communications system and network topologies, technologies, applications, and regulations. The book encompasses numerous volumes of materials in the area of telecommunications that can be only compared with information from the Internet. Horak’s background and experience allowed him to be an expert in many telecommunications areas.

The book is the witness to this fact: it covers such simple technologies as twisted pair, such complex techniques as Passive Optical Networks, Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing; and such evolving technologies as WiMAX and MIMO. It is interesting to note that Horak presents dry facts of telecommunications reality with humor and historical references, making it easy to read and more attractive to readers. The book can amaze a reader by its thoroughness to cover various topics, provide references, describe symbols; and it reveals Horak’s deep knowledge of the topics and ability to work with huge amount of sources.

For an encyclopedic treatment of the subject and a perfect companion to this work, see Horak’s Telecommunications and Data Communications Handbook, also published by Wiley in 2007. Horak is an independent telecom consultant. He is active in litigation support as a consulting expert and testifying expert, often in cases involving intellectual property such as patent, copyright, and trademark and service infringement. He has authored five telecom books and written of hundreds of technical articles, white papers, case studies, and solution briefs. Vladimir Kaminsky, PhD is a President of Practel, Inc, a consulting company that is specializing in advanced communications technologies and network design.

Customer Review:
A valuable addition to your Telecom Library
I review books in my role as a VoIP & SIP trainer for TrainingCity.com. When students ask me what to buy, I always recommend that they have a technical dictionary close at hand. I am now recommending they have two, the old one and “Webster’s New World Telecom Dictionary”. I know it seems like overkill, but in fact these two books are both on my list of “must haves” for 2008. Webster’s dictionary is focused, includes diagrams, and provides timely, accurate information. Buying two or more books is never easy, so I often suggest students speak with their managers and discuss buying a “team library” of books that can be shared by everyone in the group. Often companies have a book budget, it can’t hurt to ask!

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