Course 100: Telecommunications for Non-Engineers

This course provides an introduction to the landscape and fundamental technologies of the telecommunications marketplace. Designed with the non-technical professional in mind, this course provides day-to-day examples of the intricacies and competitive landscape of the industry.

Most importantly, telecom fundamentals for non-engineers provides crucial insights into fast-changing and dynamic competitive landscape, regulations and impact of new technologies.

Introduction and Overview

• Structure
• Regulation
• Competition
• The Network

The Fundamentals

• Evolution of Current Telecom Landscape
• Telecom Act of 1996
• Standards
• Plain Old telephony Service (POTS)
• Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN)
• Circuit and packet switching
• Analog and digital technologies
• Local Loop Configurations
• Loop Signaling
• Local Loop Equipment
• Access Points
• Cabling
• Transport and signaling networks
• Switched telephone and data networks
• Access and terminal equipment networks
• Convergence

Communications Technologies

• Communications methods
• Bandwidth, loss, frequency response
• AMI, B8ZS, NRZ, AM, FM, PSK, QAM
• Sync and async transmission
• Modulation/demodulation
• Communications devices
• Voice coding method
• Basic Data Communications
• LANs, PANs, MANs, SANs, WANs
• Technology of network architecture
• Packet switching
• Data communication channels
• Data communication device

Public and private networks

• Lines and trunks
• Leased and switched networks
• Switched circuit and packet Services
• Dedicated Services
• Network Intelligence and Signaling
• Signaling System 7 (SS7) - The Glue
• Transmission Media

Customer premises equipment and services

• Customer Telephone System (CTS)
• Private Branch Exchange (PBX)
• Key Telephone System (KTS) overview
• Centrex: Analog and Digital
• Automatic Call Distributors (ACDs)
• Computer Telephony Integration (CTI)
• Interactive Voice Response (IVR)
• Voice Mail

Emerging Technologies

• Voice and data integration
• xDSL
• Frame relay
• SONET/SDH
• ATM/cell relay
• VoIP
• B-ISDN
• Cable modems
• VPN

Digital Access and Transport Systems and Standards

• North American Digital Hierarchy: DS0, DS1 (T1), DS2, DS3 (T3)
• Fractional Services
• European hierarchy: E1, E2 and E3
• Basic Rate Interface (BRI) ISDN
• Primary Rate Interface (BPR) ISDN
• Digital Access and Cross-connect System (DACS)
• xDSL
• DSLAMS
• Synchronous Optical Network (SONET)
• Synchronous Digital Hierarchy (SDH)
• DWDM
• Metro Ethernet
• Wireless communications

Mobile and Cellular Services

• Cellular Networks
• Personal Communications Service (PCS) Standards
• Fixed Broadband access: LMDS, MMDS
• Wireless LANs/MANs/WANs
• Microwave communications
• Satellite communications: LEO, MEO, GEO

Convergence

• Voice and Data
• Transmission
• Networks
• Applications
• IP Infrastructure and Services
• VoFR
• VoATM
• VoDSL
• VoIP
• QoS
• All IP Access and Backbone

Voice over IP (VoIP) Essentials

• The principles of transmitting voice calls and fax over the Internet
• Applications
• VoIP networks
• Bandwidth compression
• The Gateway
• Packet prioritization
• RSVP
• H.320
• H.323
• SIP
• WAN engineering issues

The Future

• The Future of Telecommunications
• Migration from circuit to packet switching
• Multimedia Technical Advances