A Look Back at 2018: The One Book You Need to Learn Wireless Networks

As we say good-bye to 2018, we look back at some of our most shared blogs of the year. CommScope is pleased to share its wireless network expertise in a refreshed edition of the lauded “Understanding the RF Path” eBook. It’s the one eBook that will explain the entire radio frequency (RF) path, from mobile phones to cell towers and the core network. See this blog by Jeff Epstein for access.

2018_Best_of_12-27_EpsteinEditor’s Note: As we say good-bye to 2018, we look back at some of our most shared blogs of the year. We covered a wide range of network infrastructure topics, and we hope you enjoy revisiting some of these popular posts. This blog first appeared on August 6, 2018.

Imagine you could read one book and learn virtually everything you ever wanted to know about the space program, or the tax code, or medical research – all enormously complicated subjects that would be difficult to distill into one book. You might be surprised to learn that modern mobile communications networksare of similar complexity.

CLICK TO TWEET: CommScope's Jeff Epstein takes a look back at 2018: The One Book You Need to Learn Wireless Networks.

If you want to know everything about wireless networks, you’ve got to be interested in a lot of topics. You’ll need to know about setting up cell sites, as they’re the basis of cellular networks. You’ll want to learn about the base station antennas that ‘talk’ to your phones. You’ll need to read about the backbone of the network, those microwave antennas and fiber optic cables that carry your voice, texts, and internet traffic from the cell site into the core communications network.

You’ll also need to learn about radio spectrum, that oh-so-rare commodity that’s invisible but worth billions of dollars at auction. Network operators need to squeeze every bit of capacity out of their spectrum assets – though, in the near future, some of it will be shared!

And how do wireless networks get power? How do they avoid interfering with each other? What do you do if lightning strikes your tower? How do indoor wireless networks differ from outdoor ones? What’s the deal with those small antennas you see virtually hidden on streetlights and traffic light poles?

The answer to these questions and many more are available in CommScope’s updated version of the “Understanding the RF Path” eBook.

As the world’s networks have continued to evolve from 2G to 3G to 4G and soon to 5G, CommScope has evolved to help networks around the globe maximize their potential. CommScope is pleased to share its knowledge in a refreshed edition of the lauded “Understanding the RF Path” eBook. It’s the one eBook that will explain the entire radio frequency (RF) path, from mobile phones to cell towers and the core network.

Once you’ve begun reading “Understanding the RF Path”, you won’t understand the tax laws any better, but you will have better understanding of the many intricacies that must work together seamlessly in a cellular network every time you check your phone for a text, get a call, or receive a sound that it’s your turn in a game.