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What is Data Communications ?

Data Communications can mean many things to different people, but when we are dealing with computers
and our interactions with them, we are typically discussing equipment that was designed to provide or
gather information needs to communicate beyond itself, to similar equipment or to a dissimilar system,
Data Communications provides the tools, products and equipment to make this happen.

A simple scenario would be two personal computers in the same building, but 50 feet away from each
other. By hooking up a cable between the two personal computers, we now have Data Communications.
The extent of Data Communications builds from this point on, since there are many factors such as
distance, topology, protocol, signaling, security, etc.. that determine how Data Communications will take
place.

Some of our more common Data Communications would be the simple act of your Personal Computer
connecting to the Internet with a modem. You have now established a Communications between your PC
and lets say a website. Every time you click on a hyperlink, you are requesting information and it is
presented to you in some for of Data which may letters, graphics, or colors.

Other forms come in ways you may not see. If you are speeding on a some major highway, they have
sensors and cameras that can tell how fast you are traveling. This system proceeds to capture a picture of
your car, license tag and information on the event. This Data automatically Communicates to a central
motor vehicle computer where it checks the data base against your license tag number, when found, it
will send out your ticket in the mail.

Other forms of Data Communications have changed the way work and live dramatically
by delivering immediate news and information right into our homes, allow us to get
money from an ATM without standing on Data Communications

Data Communications is the transfer of data or information between a source and a

receiver. The source transmits the data and the receiver receives it. The actual generation
of the information is not part of Data Communications nor is the resulting action of the
information at the receiver. Data Communication is interested in the transfer of data, the
method of transfer and the preservation of the data during the transfer process.

a bank line, shop, learn and buy any product or service without leaving our home.

Communication means the exchange of information or messages. When we talk with

each other, we are exchanging information. Data communication is the exchange of data
between two devices (computers) via some form of transmission medium such as wire
cable, wireless system, microwave system, satellite system etc. The communicating
devices must be the part of a communication system. The communication system
may consist of hardware and software. In data communication process data is
transmitted electronically from one system to other system using standard methods.

The data transmitted from one place to another in form electromagnetic or light waves
through communication medium. The electromagnetic or light waves representing data
are called signals. Data communication signals can be in analog or digital form.
 Therefore, data transmission is divided into:

1. Analog data transmission

2. Digital data transmission

1. Analog Data Transmission

The transfer of data from one place to another in the form of analog signals or in the form
of continuous waves is called analog data transmission. The analog signal consists of a
continuous electrical wave. The light waves, sound waves or radio waves are examples of
analog signals. The transmission through telephone line, microwave system or satellite is
the example of analog data transmission. An analog signal is shown in figure below.

Analog Signal

2. Digital Data Transmission

The transfer of data from one place to another in the form of digital signals is called
digital data transmission: A digital signal consists of individual electrical pulses that
represent bits grouped together into bytes. Computer accepts and processes data in the
form of digital signals. Data is also transmitted from one computer to another through
telephone line, microwave system or satellite. In this system, a modem is used on both
sides. A modem is an electronic device that can convert the analog signal to digital and
vice versa. A digital signal is shown in figure below.

Digital Signal

Characteristics of Communication System

The communication system depends on the following characteristics.
Delivery – The data must be delivered from source device destination device.

Accuracy – The data must be delivered accurately. If there is any error occurred during
transmission, the data must be re-transmitted.

Timeliness – Data must be delivered within time. It is very important in real time
systems because data becomes useless if it is delivered late. For example, in television
transmission, the video signals must be delivered within time as they are produced
without any significant delay. This kind of delivery is called real-time transmission.

Components of Communication System

The basic components of a communication system are:

a. Message
b. Sender
c. Medium
d. Receiver
e. Protocol

Message – The message. is the information or data that is to be transferred from one
location to another. It may consist of text, numbers, pictures, sounds, videos or any
combination of these.

Sender – A device used in a communication system to send or transmit messages to

another device is called Sender, or Transmitter or Source. A sender may be a computer,
workstation, telephone handset, video camera and mobile phone.

Medium – Medium is a path or channel through which message is transmitted (or sent)
from one location to another in a communication system. The twisted wire, fiber optic,
microwave, satellite system etc. are used as medium.

Receiver – A device used in a communication system to receive messages from another

device (sender) is called Receiver or Sink. A receiver may be a computer, workstation,
telephone handset, mobile phone, television set, printer, fax machine, and so on.

Protocol – A set of rules that guides (or governs) data communication is called protocol.
It represents an agreement between the communicating devices. Without a proper
protocol, the devices may be connected but they cannot communicate with each other.
For example, a person whose mother language is English cannot communicate with a
person who can speak only Urdu.