A Practical Guide to Content Delivery Networks

Following in the tradition of its popular predecessor, A Practical Guide to Content Delivery Networks, Second Edition offers an accessible and organized approach to implementing networks capable of handling the increasing data requirements of today's always on mobile society. Describing how content delivery networks (CDN) function, it provides an understanding of Web architecture, as well as an overview of the TCP/IP protocol suite.

The book reports on the development of the technologies that have evolved over the past decade as distribution mechanisms for various types of Web content. Using a structural and visual approach, it provides step-by-step guidance through the process of setting up a scalable CDN.

• Supplies a clear understanding of the framework and individual layers of design, including caching and load balancing
• Describes the terminology, tactics, and potential problems when implementing a CDN
• Examines cost-effective ways to load balance web service layers
• Explains how application servers connect to databases and how systems will scale as volume increases
• Illustrates the impact of video on data storage and delivery, as well as the need for data compression
• Covers Flash and the emerging HTML5 standard for video

Highlighting the advantages and disadvantages associated with these types of networks, the book explains how to use the networks within the Internet operated by various ISPs as mechanisms for effectively delivering Web server based information. It emphasizes a best-of-breed approach to building your network to allow for an effective CDN to be built on practically any budget. To help you get started, this vendor-neutral reference explains how to code Web pages to optimize the delivery of various types of media. It also includes examples of successful approaches, from outsourcing to do it yourself.

Gilbert Held is an award winning author, lecturer and educator. Gil graduated from Pennsylvania Military College, earning a BS in Electrical Engineering. In 1966 Gil earned a MSEE degree from the New York University School of Engineering and Science, and received an MSTM and MBA degrees from The American University in Washington, DC.

Gil was Chief of Data Communications for the US Office of Personnel Management for 20 years, until a reorganization and consolidation of data centers resulted in the closing of the Macon Data Center. Gil remained on staff in Macon and was tasked with developing OPM’s Web presence on the Internet and was responsible for designing, acquiring and constructing OPM’s presence on the Internet for which he received the Directors Award.

Between 1977 and the present Gil has authored over 100 technical books covering personal computing, data communications and business In addition, Gil authored over 500 technical articles and for 17 years has served as the Editor in Chief of the Wiley International Journal of Network Management. In recognition of his excellence in writing Gil twice was awarded the Interface Karp award. Gil has also received a variety of awards ranging from various charities to different publishers, such as Federal Week which considered him as one of the top 50 persons in Government and Academia.

In addition to authoring books, Gil has taught 14 different graduate level courses and was selected by the Vice President to represent the United States at the Popov Conference in Moscow and represented the United States at the Jerusalem Conference on Information Technology. Gil has appeared on the NBC Evening News and his technical book sales have exceeded a million copies.