William Stallings has made a unique contribution to understanding the broad sweep of technical developments in computer networking and computer architecture. He has authored 18 titles, and counting revised editions, a total of 35 books on various aspects of these subjects. In over 20 years in the field, he has been a technical contributor, technical manager, and an executive with several high-technology firms. Currently he is an independent consultant whose clients have included computer and networking manufacturers and customers, software development firms, and leading-edge government research institutions.He has six times received the prize for best Computer Science and Engineering textbook of the year from the Textbook and Academic Authors Association. Bill has designed and implemented both TCP/IP-based and OSI-based protocol suites on a variety of computers and operating systems, ranging from microcomputers to mainframes. As a consultant, he has advised government agencies, computer and software vendors, and major users on the design, selection, and use of networking software and products. Dr. Stallings holds a Ph.D. from M.I.T. in Computer Science and a B.S. from Notre Dame in Electrical Engineering.