Communication Technology Update and Fundamentals

Book Overview

Communication technologies surround us in every part of our lives: via television, web, blogging, mass media, and much more. How do people in business keep up with the latest and greatest trends, and how do they differentiate good information from bad information? How do they get help analyzing information and coming to conclusions about trends that will impact their businesses and business decisions? How do they consider the environmental and sustainability issues surrounding communication technology? This book answers these essential questions. It's for professionals and students working in telecommunications, including electronic mass media, digital signage, computers, consumer electronics, games, satellites, and telepresence. The best of the best minds on these topics all come forward here, each in their own chapter, to report on, analyze, and make recommendations, for the new edition of this definitive guide to new technologies. New to this edition: New coverage of historical perspectives on communication technology bring the ideas and concepts to the forefront, providing a thoroughly grounded approach designed to appeal to professors looking for more the why's than the how's of communication technology New chapters on digital cinema, mobile commerce, digital television, cinema technologies, e-books, home video, digital audio, and telepresence. As always, every chapter is updated to reflect the latest trends on the topic Brand new Instructor's manual with testbank and sample syllabus (cw.routledge.com/textbooks/instructordownload/) Companion website--brand new for this edition, including chapter-by-chapter additional coverage of technologies and further resources (commtechupdate.weebly.com)

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0240824563
• ISBN13: 9780240824567
• Release Date: August 2012
• Publisher: Focal Press
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 1.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 10.8" x 0.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

As the world becomes more complex, so does communication.

The wolf whistle has been replaced by Facebook. Semaphores are replaced by telegraph, by phone, by today’s “The Twonky” (1953) type iPhone. It used to be good enough to be literate, but without an understanding of today’s communications and the underlying technology, one might as well be blind and dumb. This book is a great overview and a place to start. Later, it makes a great reference to use as you encounter (and you will) the different media not only used at the office but at home, and soon every walk of life. I have to admit that my favorite chapter is the first, as it covers the history of communication, and I lived through most of that history. However, I use the rest of the book before making purchase decisions. I am amazed by how well the book keeps up with common communications. Of course, that could be because this is an old edition and the newer information has been crammed into it. At the time of this review, we are at least on the 18th edition. If a newer edition comes out, there will be newer information; however, this edition will still have all the fundamentals, and history will not have changed that much. It is written for students and has an extensive biographical section. But I find it is useful for anyone interested in purchasing or understanding today’s communication technology. You will want to keep this and the updated versions for reference and history.