Chapter 19 – Why The Internet Works Well
Review Questions:
Question
Solution
What is the strength of IP?
IP allows the Internet to include almost any
type of computer hardware technology.
TCP makes reliable communication
possible even when the Internet
experiences temporary congestion.
The rough consensus and working code
refers to the idea that TCP/IP arose from a
consensus among researchers, and no idea
was accepted until it had been implemented
and demonstrated.
Through careful planning and attention to
detail. However, more importantly
researchers demonstrated ideas and
eliminated weaknesses by building and
testing the software.
Because TCP/IP standards documents
specify the exact way to send IP datagrams
on a given type of network, and all vendors
adhere to these standards.
What is the strength of TCP?
What is the rough consensus and working
code, and why is it important?
How did researchers eliminate weaknesses
from the development of the TCP/IP
software?
Why can computers and routers from
multiple vendors all communicate?
Thought Questions:
Question
Is TCP/IP an RFC or an Internet standard?
What is the difference?
What lessons can be learned from the
success of TCP/IP?
TCP/IP is a standard. Internet standards are
generally recognized as documenting those
protocols and practices that have proved
the test of time. At the time of this writing,
there are more than 2,500 RFCs but only
58 Internet standards.
http://hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/00/0
8/index2a_page5.html?tw=commentary
The success of TCP/IP can be summarized
by:
 the team of talented, dedicated
researchers
 researchers were allowed to experiment
Even though the federal government
declared that OSI would be the protocol of
the Internet, why did TCP/IP persist?
Trivia:
A married couple working at Stanford
developed an improved way to connect
different networks together. They operated
the multi-million dollar company, Cisco,
from their house until venture capitalists
took over and propelled it to a multi-billion
dollar business.
Where are these two people today and what
are they doing?
Does it appear that TCP/IP will continue as
the dominant protocol of the Internet?
Why or why not?
without economic payoff
 built the Internet to operate efficiently
 each part of the Internet worked well
separately
The U.S. government proclaimed OSI was
the protocol the Internet was going to use,
but it never happened. Too many networks
were already using TCP/IP, and it was too
much trouble to switch. Europe mandated
using OSI, but the universities were
switching over to TCP/IP anyway because
they didn't want to cut themselves off from
the giant Internet in the United States.
http://www.pbs.org/opb/nerds2.0.1/networ
king_nerds/tcpip.html
Cisco, founded by husband and wife Len
Bosack and Sandy Lerner, experimented
with connecting their two detached
networks located in two different buildings
on campus. With the help of two other
Stanford staff members, Bosack and Lerner
ran network cables between the buildings
and connected them, first with bridges and
then with routers.
Bosack funds a company in Seattle that
studies extra-terrestrial intelligence, and
Lerner bought an English manor where she
started a cosmetic company.
http://www.forbes.com/forbes/97/0825/600
4058a.htm
http://www.seti.org/
Answers will vary but should point to the
need for faster transmission of video
technology.