P2P

I like this book very much because it brings together several pathfinders to explore the emerging peer-to-peer environment. Especially interesting to me were the technical topics (part III), not because I care about technical, but because they addressed the core global issues that have not yet been resolved and must be resolved if international peer-to-peer is to become the new new thing: metadata, performance, trust, accountability, reputation, security, and interoperability through gateways.

The directory of peer-to-peer projects at the end of the book is really helpful--80 distinct projects are listed in 15 different categories--disappointingly, the editors chose not to do the courtesy homework of providing current contact information including a URL for each one, so thousands of people will have to duplicate that homework, a gross violation of the fundamental peer-to-peer ethic....one time data entry, universal access.

This book is especially valuable to those following the early days of Ray Ozzie and the Groove Networks roll-out. As one who is an enthusiastic early adopter, and who believes that NSA needs to get out of the way and let them export the full value of their security, I see this book as the "first edition" guide to peer-to-peer, and I agree with the reviewer from Norway: we now need the "sons of" books and products that address the meta-data and other technical issues that are touched on by this first really excellent overview book.

When I first picked up the book, I had modest expectations. I have been disappointed by technical experts treating topics from the social sciences -- and this book does just that. Different chapters focus on such issues as: incentives on users to cooperate, the vulnerability of computer networks to social control, strategies for reliable communications, and censorship. Yet in this volume each topic is treated clearly, intelligently, and insightfully.

The authors not only summarize their topics well, they regularly offer sparkling insights. For example, in the chapter "The Cornucopia of the Commons," Dan Bricklin explains how certain peer-to-peer applications are enriched by consumption. The more that users consume from the electronic commons, the larger that electronic commons becomes. In the case of Napster, as users download files those files become part of the overall archive available to others. This turns the tragedy of the commons on its head: well-designed peer-to-peer applications can create explosive processes of value generation - an insight I find both provocative and profound.

The book sits squarely at that most difficult spot on the intellectual spectrum: the place where technology and policy overlap. Is this a policy book? Yes, it is. The topics above are all policy-relevant, and for a technical expert many of them would be new. Is this a technology book? Yes, it is that, too. It talks about network architecture design, technical implementations of trust and reputation, name spaces, and searching. For social scientists, the book is an excellent introduction to computer networking.

Peer-to-Peer is nearly 400 pages long and has 19 chapters. Amazingly, every chapter is worth reading. I can't say that about many edited volumes that I know! The editor also did a good job of integrating the different chapters so that the book has overall coherence.

This book is perfect for a university-level class about the Internet. The chapters on name spaces are useful to study of ICANN and global governance. Chapters on Napster help when studying intellectual property, those on FreeNet are useful when studying free speech. In my Internet policy class, I sprinkle chapters from the book throughout the semester.

Aside from teaching, the book is useful for anyone who wants to understand computer networking. It is accessible and readable, yet surveys a wide range of technical topics.

Considering the importance of the Internet and of peer-to-peer networks, it can be surprising difficult to find good explanations of the issues. This book does just that.

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Since the book's release, p2p usage has grown, and the attendant controversy about the downloading of copyrighted material, mainly music, has continued unabated. Napster in its original incarnation has gone. But other p2p networks, like Kazaa, have arisen.

Another type of p2p network has also emerged - for social networks. Companies include Friendster, Tribe.net, Ryze and others. Of course, these aren't covered in the book, because they did not exist when it was written. But as a measure of how comprehensive the book is, one of its chapters describes the key work on social networks and encompasses this entire group of companies.

The technical level is moderate throughout the book. While XML, SOAP and cryptography are described, you only need slight familiarity with these topics. The discussion involving them tends to be at a higher level of usage.

This book is very up to date with the latest information about P2P (i.e., HailStorm and Jxta). The book is geared at a business reader, but it cover the salient technical aspects of how peep to peer works. P2P covers some of the biggest uses of P2P technology. P2P covers the biggest uses of P2P technology in the form of peer-to-peer collaboration, applications-interaction systems, resource utilization, and supercomputing applications.

P2P introduces Napster and does mention Napster occasionally, but refreshingly the book does not center on Napster. P2P provides many real world examples of P2P in action. The business reader will find that many of the examples are being deployed in businesses to solve business problems. For example, a large law firm, Intel, CareScience and several other businesses are covered as P2P success stories. P2P does a great job of separating hype from reality (application operating today) and addressing the shortcomings and concerns facing P2P.

P2P does not argue for P2P for the sake of the technology, but as a solution to a specific business problem. Before I read this book I really did not consider P2P a viable business technology. After I read this book I realized the P2P can be a good match to some business problems and should be considered when searching for a solution.

Each chapter begins with a real life scenario, and after sometimes i couldn't wait to get to the next chapter. He gives a lot of examples of what companies are doing and what would the impact of their action be, to do this he gives some practical examples of how other people have dealt with their problems using P2P.

A book which presents technology in a non technical way, lets you see it from a manager's point of view. Even if you are a programmer like me i would recommend this book as it would let you see the whole idea of P2P in another very useful manner.

A must read.

The authors start by putting Project JXTA in a global context and comparing it with other technologies and indirectly hinting at the ethical and political issues involving P2P networks.And then over the next few chapters they make a very smooth and organic transition to details of various protocols and APIs.

The authors have thereby solved the classic dilemma of the forest versus the trees - either you are high up in the clouds
passively admiring the beauty of the forest or you are lost in the woods screaming for help at every step.Often authors forget this dilemma and are either lost in generalities or in details.

I heartily recommend this book to anyone and everyone.

What is interesting is how perhaps some of the research described could lead to a p2p network whose main usage is not the unauthorised copying of copyrighted material. Right now [2004], most nontechnical articles on p2p focus on this issue, because there is yet not widespread p2p net whose main usage has not become exactly this.

Most of the research deals with ways to improve a p2p network. Like easier discovery mechanisms, or more robust downloading. Which is especially germane if one is downloading large files and the duration of which increases the chance of a hiccup on the network. The larger issue is that if one solves these problems and builds a better p2p network, that just increases its allure for downloading music and video.

What I am criticizing is:
1) Poorly written / edited or translated-- there are whole pages in this book where the author(s) do not bother with the conventions of the English language (article usage, tense agreement, etc.) Consequently, the paragraphs that are made up of these poorly written sentences are difficult to understand _at best_.

2) Incomplete application. From the back cover: "A Complete : 'discovery and lookup server' model P2P application. HARDLY!! The propaganda on the back (conveniently) fails to mention the fact that MS SQL server 2000 is required (as is IIS and WIN 2K) to create a functioning app.

3) Misleading presence of Java. The fact that a skeleton app is written in Java and such statements as: "Whenever the Java appears, (sic) interoperability follows. Java makes the application more flexible, as it is not restricted to any operating system." leads one to believe that this is a cross-platform app. In fact it is not. The presence of Java code is rather negligible, and even if it weren't, critical components require MS software.

4) Good overview of P2P application models. The first chapter is worth reading. If you are interested in understanding different approaches to P2P app design, check it out.

BTW, this is a book for programmers, though many I am sure with be disappointed.

I have this book, one of the very first of my P2P collection, and i don't think you would be disappointed with it either.
Have fun.