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I'm confused. What makes this a "systems approach"? I've scanned through the index and a few chapters but it doesn't appear to be applying a systems/cybernetic
by beaconstudios 6y ago
I'm confused. What makes this a "systems approach"? I've scanned through the index and a few chapters but it doesn't appear to be applying a systems/cybernetic approach to network engineering, unless I've missed something. Is it because it covers the whole stack in a systematic way?
Not bagging on the book, by the way - just trying to establish whether it's worth reading through, as I'm already somewhat familiar with network protocols but would be interested in systems/cybernetics insights into networking.
- halfeatenpie 6y agoI agree with this comment. I don't understand what specifically makes this a "system approach".
- trepetti 6y agoMaybe as opposed to a theoretical treatment? In academia, there is a dichotomy in CS research between systems and theory, which may have been what they were getting at.
- stjohnswarts 6y agoIt takes a bottom up approach rather than top-down, and gives you all the gory details as opposed to bird's eye view of things. I would take it as that. System is an almost useless word other than implying a "lower level" view.
- beaconstudios 6y ago"system" actually has a ton of meaning, it's just been co-opted to mean "hardware" in software circles. It means a collective object that is greater than the sum of its parts.
- MikeBVaughn 6y agoWe used the book in my undergrad networking course, and I liked it quite a bit. It's "systems" in the catchall "lower-ish-level computing" sense of "systems-level programming," rather than the "systems theory" sense. The pedagogical structure of the book makes it a solid follow-up to a standard undergrad OS class, IIRC. It's been ten years since I've read it, though, so YMMV.