An Innovative Student Network Laboratory for Teaching, Research and Development for Undergraduate Computer Technology Program

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This project addresses a major challenge in training engineers and technologists in the extremely fast growing area of communications technology, including uses of photonics technology in networking and communications. This project is designed to expand and integrate fiber networks, ATM LANs, and multimedia to the desktop. In the course of this project, several new experiments are being developed, involving newer networking technology and techniques integrating technologies for supporting multimedia to the desktop, for simulated manufacturing, and for business environments. Recovery, fault-tolerance issues, and recovery as it applies to ATM networks can be explored. Applied computing using object-oriented tools and techniques, and rapid prototyping in a client/server, as well as peer-to-peer arrangement, can be introduced as used in workplace and industrial settings. An undergraduate textbook and laboratory books are being produced for a variety of applications, ranging from vanilla flavored Novell networking issues to more complex internetworking issues interfacing with TCP/IP and SPX/IPX, ATM LAN environments, and interfaces to wireless. Faculty are also producing software programs for various aspects of simulation, protocol issues, balancing, and recovery of multiple heterogeneous networks. This is a very innovative project for two reasons. It integrates diverse technologies and allows teams of undergraduate students to plan, design, configure, and choose the technology components for `their network.` The instructor acts as a guide and facilitator for multiple project teams who work together for seamless delivery of final projects. Since these networks are designed independently of the campus network, students are free to explore various architectures, product combinations, internetworking, and fault-tolerance/recovery without any restrictions or fear of disrupting other campus operations. The approach that is used for assigning laboratory experiments is to choose sample situations from industry from local manufacturing, communication, and control applications and then to identify suitable technology and configurations. The problems are assigned and their progress monitored in a way to emulate real-world issues encountered by our graduates in a diversity of settings. Students on each team evaluate each other in terms of contributions to the group, teamwork, and performance.