computer science

RAD Data Communications

RAD Data Communications is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand RAD Data Communications rather than just read about it. In short: RAD Data Communications Ltd. is a privately held corporation, headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel that designs and manufacturers specialized networking equipment. RAD is a member of the $1.3 billion RAD Group of companies.

Key takeaways

RAD Data Communications belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect RAD Data Communications to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of RAD Data Communications from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

RAD Data Communications Ltd. is a privately held corporation, headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel that designs and manufacturers specialized networking equipment. RAD is a member of the $1.3 billion RAD Group of companies.

History

RAD was founded by brothers Yehuda and Zohar Zisapel in 1981 as a spin-off from Bynet, a networking hardware distribution company founded by Yehuda in 1973. Their goal was to develop their own products; the company was simply named RAD, for Research And Development. RAD first successful product was a miniature (by 1980s standards) modem for telephone lines that did not require a separate power source. This novel concept quickly became a commercial success, and by 1985, RAD annual revenues reached $5.5 million. This initial product line evolved into RAD Data Communications, the largest company within the RAD Group. In 2014, RAD opened a new $32 million advanced R&D center for developing NFV and SDN solutions in the southern Israeli city of Beersheba. The company is active in industry standardization bodies such as the Broadband Forum, ETSI NFV ISG, International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), and Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF). One of the 46 copies of Rodin's The Thinker that were made from the original cast after the sculptor's death was acquired by Yehuda Zisapel and placed on permanent exhibit in the lobby of RAD's current Tel Aviv headquarters when the building was opened in 2000.

Products RAD's research, development and engineering includes hardware virtualization, operations, administration and management (OAM) and performance management; service assurance; traffic management; fault management; synchronization and timing over packet; TDM pseudowire; ASIC and FPGA development; hardware miniaturization; SFP form-factor solutions; and business DSL. An early RAD modem, the SRM-3, was recognized as the world's smallest in the 1992 Guinness Book of World Records. Used for connecting asynchronous terminals to host computers, it measured 2.4 in (6.1 cm) by 1.2 in (3.0 cm) by .08 in (0.20 cm). In 1998, RAD invented TDM over IP (TDMoIP®) technology and in 2013 it pioneered Distributed Network Function Virtualization (D-NFV®). At Mobile World Congress 2015, RAD introduced the world's first SFP-based IEEE 1588 Grandmaster clock with a built-in GNSS receiver. In 2015 RAD also launched a virtual customer premises equipment (vCPE) device for IP and Carrier Ethernet services with a field pluggable module for hosting virtual network functions (VNFs) and in 2016 it added a white box option that is license-upgradable for network functions such as routing, service demarcation and performance monitoring. RAD's portfolio includes the smallest NFV-empowered device yet invented. RAD has also been cited as an industry leader in developing communications platforms and security solutions for public utilities.

Markets The company's installed base now exceeds 15,000,000 units and includes more than 150 telecommunications carriers and service providers, in addition to a large number of public transportation systems, power utilities, governments, homeland security agencies, and educational institutions. RAD solutions are distributed through approximately 300 partner channels in over 150 countries. The company itself maintains 30 offices across six continents.

Awards 1994: Israel Export Award

See also Science and technology in Israel Silicon Wadi Economy of Israel List of networking hardware vendors

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with RAD Data Communications

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what RAD Data Communications claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to RAD Data Communications before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about RAD Data Communications ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of RAD Data Communications

In research: RAD Data Communications appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses RAD Data Communications in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: RAD Data Communications is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Companies based in Tel Aviv, Computer hardware companies, Electronics companies of Israel, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for RAD Data Communications outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study RAD Data Communications in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what RAD Data Communications means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain RAD Data Communications out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is RAD Data Communications in simple terms?

Why does RAD Data Communications matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study RAD Data Communications?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on RAD Data Communications.