Wireless Lan and Ieee 802.11 in Digital Library

Abstract

We seem to recall a time when protocols and standards were two different things. In the past couple of years, the craze over new protocols has seemingly breathed new life into library information technology, replacing the doldrums of standards with the hope of new, universally accepted protocols. We must admit to being too young to have been there, but we wonder if things felt like this when MARC and Wireless LAN were poised to change the world of library automation as also in XML, OpenURL, and the Open Archives. An increased rate of mobility brought about by the Wireless LAN break through has given a new dimension to networking capabilities. The IEEE 802.11 defines standards for both 1-2 Mbps and higher speed wireless communication. The study of the PHY and the MAC layer as per the IEEE 802.11 protocols reveal that the issues like security and reliability of utmost importance in this type of networking. In short if higher speed networking of this kind can be created then there would be no need for the conventional physical medium communication. Globalization of this technology would indeed bring the world closer and bring about a new era of wireless technology in the Library.