UGANDA MARTYRS UNIVERSITY

Making a difference
NAME : MUTUNGI FELIX
COURSE : DCS&IT
COURSE UNIT : NETWORKING
YEAR : ONE
ACADEMIC YEAR: 2018-2019
RESEARCH ABOUT;
1. COMMUNICATION MODEL
2. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN IPv4 & IPv6

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COMMUNICATION MODELS
Communication is a complex process, and it is difficult to determine where or
with whom a communication encounter starts and ends. Models of
communication simplify the process by providing a visual representation of the
various aspects of a communication encounter. Some models explain
communication in more detail than others, but even the most complex model
still doesn’t recreate what we experience in even a moment of a
communication encounter. Models still serve a valuable purpose for students
of communication because they allow us to see specific concepts and steps
within the process of communication, define communication, and apply
communication concepts. When you become aware of how communication
functions, you can think more deliberately through your communication
encounters, which can help you better prepare for future communication and
learn from your previous communication. The three models of communication
we will discuss are the transmission, interaction, and transaction models.

Although these models of communication differ, they contain some common

elements. The first two models we will discuss, the transmission model and the
interaction model, include the following parts: participants, messages,
encoding, decoding, and channels. In communication models, the participants
are the senders and/or receivers of messages in a communication encounter.
The message is the verbal or nonverbal content being conveyed from sender to
receiver. For example, when you say “Hello!” to your friend, you are sending a
message of greeting that will be received by your friend.

The internal cognitive process that allows participants to send, receive, and
understand messages is the encoding and decoding process. Encoding is the
process of turning thoughts into communication. As we will learn later, the
level of conscious thought that goes into encoding messages varies. Decoding
is the process of turning communication into thoughts. For example, you may
realize you’re hungry and encode the following message to send to your
roommate: “I’m hungry. Do you want to get pizza tonight?” As your roommate
receives the message, they decode your communication and turn it back into
thoughts in order to make meaning out of it. Of course, we don’t just
communicate verbally—we have various options, or channels for
communication. Encoded messages are sent through a channel, or a sensory
route on which a message travels, to the receiver for decoding. While
communication can be sent and received using any sensory route (sight, smell,
touch, taste, or sound), most communication occurs through visual (sight)

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and/or auditory (sound) channels. If your roommate has headphones on and is
engrossed in a video game, you may need to get their attention by waving your
hands before you can ask them about dinner.

Linear model of communication

The linear or transmission model of communication, as shown in Figure 2.2.1,
describes communication as a linear, one-way process in which a sender
intentionally transmits a message to a receiver (Ellis & McClintock, 1990). This
model focuses on the sender and message within a communication encounter.
Although the receiver is included in the model, this role is viewed as more of a
target or end point rather than part of an ongoing process. We are left to
presume that the receiver either successfully receives and understands the
message or does not. The scholars who designed this model extended on a
linear model proposed by Aristotle centuries before that included a speaker,
message, and hearer. They were also influenced by the advent and spread of
new communication technologies of the time such as telegraphy and radio,
and you can probably see these technical influences within the model
(Shannon & Weaver, 1949). Think of how a radio message is sent from a
person in the radio studio to you listening in your car. The sender is the radio
announcer who encodes a verbal message that is transmitted by a radio tower
through electromagnetic waves (the channel) and eventually reaches your (the
receiver’s) ears via an antenna and speakers in order to be decoded. The radio
announcer doesn’t really know if you receive their message or not, but if the
equipment is working and the channel is free of static, then there is a good
chance that the message was successfully received.

Although the transmission model may seem simple or even underdeveloped to

us today, the creation of this model allowed scholars to examine the
communication process in new ways, which eventually led to more complex
models and theories of communication.

Interactive model of communication

The interactive or interaction model of communication is a process in which
participants alternate positions as sender and receiver and generate meaning
by sending messages and receiving feedback within physical and psychological
contexts (Schramm, 1997). Rather than illustrating communication as a linear,
one-way process, the interactive model incorporates feedback, which makes
communication a more interactive, two-way process. Feedback includes
messages sent in response to other messages. For example, your instructor
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may respond to a point you raise during class discussion or you may point to
the sofa when your roommate asks you where the remote control is. The
inclusion of a feedback loop also leads to a more complex understanding of the
roles of participants in a communication encounter. Rather than having one
sender, one message, and one receiver, this model has two sender-receivers
who exchange messages. Each participant alternates roles as sender and
receiver in order to keep a communication encounter going. Although this
seems like a perceptible and deliberate process, we alternate between the
roles of sender and receiver very quickly and often without conscious thought.

The interactive model is also less message focused and more interaction
focused. While the linear model focused on how a message was transmitted
and whether or not it was received, the interactive model is more concerned
with the communication process itself. In fact, this model acknowledges that
there are so many messages being sent at one time that many of them may
not even be received. Some messages are also unintentionally sent. Therefore,
communication isn’t judged effective or ineffective in this model based on
whether or not a single message was successfully transmitted and received.

The interactive model takes physical and psychological context into account.
Physical context includes the environmental factors in a communication
encounter. The size, layout, temperature, and lighting of a space influence our
communication. Imagine the different physical contexts in which job interviews
take place and how that may affect your communication. I have had job
interviews over the phone, crowded around a table with eight interviewers,
and sitting with few people around an extra large conference table. I’ve also
been walked around an office to unexpectedly interview one-on-one, in
succession, with multiple members of a search committee over a period of
three hours. Whether it’s the size of the room or other environmental factors,
it’s important to consider the role that physical context plays in our
communication. Psychological context includes the mental and emotional
factors in a communication encounter. Stress, anxiety, and emotions are just
some examples of psychological influences that can affect our communication.
Seemingly positive psychological states, like experiencing the emotion of love,
can also affect communication. Feedback and context help make the
interaction model a more useful illustration of the communication process, but
the transaction model views communication as a powerful tool that shapes our
realities beyond individual communication encounters.

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Transaction model of communication
As the study of communication progressed, models expanded to account for
more of the communication process. Many scholars view communication as
more than a process that is used to carry on conversations and convey
meaning. We don’t send messages like computers, and we don’t neatly
alternate between the roles of sender and receiver as an interaction unfolds.
We also can’t consciously decide to stop communicating because
communication is more than sending and receiving messages. The transaction
model differs from the transmission and interaction models in significant ways,
including the conceptualization of communication, the role of sender and
receiver, and the role of context (Barnlund, 1970).

The transaction model of communication describes communication as a

process in which communicators generate social realities within social,
relational, and cultural contexts. In this model, we don’t just communicate to
exchange messages; we communicate to create relationships, form
intercultural alliances, shape our self-concepts, and engage with others in
dialogue to create communities.

The roles of sender and receiver in the transaction model of communication

differ significantly from the other models. Instead of labelling participants as
senders and receivers, the people in a communication encounter are referred
to as communicators. Unlike the interactive model, which suggests that
participants alternate positions as sender and receiver, the transaction model
suggests that we are simultaneously senders and receivers. This is an
important addition to the model because it allows us to understand how we
are able to adapt our communication—for example, a verbal message—in the
middle of sending it based on the communication we are simultaneously
receiving from our communication partner. The transaction model also
includes a more complex understanding of context. The interaction model
portrays context as physical and psychological influences that enhance or
impede communication. While these contexts are important, they focus on
message transmission and reception. Since the transaction model of
communication views communication as a force that shapes our realities
before and after specific interactions occur, it must account for contextual
influences outside of a single interaction. To do this, the transaction model
considers how social, relational, and cultural contexts frame and influence our
communication encounters.

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Social context refers to the stated rules or unstated norms that guide
communication. Norms are social conventions that we pick up on through
observation, practice, and trial and error. We may not even know we are
breaking a social norm until we notice people looking at us strangely or
someone corrects or teases us. Relational context includes the previous
interpersonal history and type of relationship we have with a person. We
communicate differently with someone we just met versus someone we’ve
known for a long time. Initial interactions with people tend to be more highly
scripted and governed by established norms and rules, but when we have an
established relational context, we may be able to bend or break social norms
and rules more easily. Cultural context includes various aspects of identities
such as race, gender, nationality, ethnicity, sexual orientation, class, and
ability. We all have multiple cultural identities that influence our
communication. Some people, especially those with identities that have been
historically marginalized, are regularly aware of how their cultural identities
influence their communication and influence how others communicate with
them. Conversely, people with identities that are dominant or in the majority
may rarely, if ever, think about the role their cultural identities play in their
communication. Cultural context is influenced by numerous aspects of our
identities and is not limited to race or ethnicity.

Open system interconnection (OSI)

The open system interconnection model (OSI) is the reference tool for
understanding data communications between any two networked systems.it
divides the communication process in to seven layers. Each layer both
performs specific functions to support the layers above it and offers services to
the layers below it. the three lowest layers focus on passing the traffic through
the network to an end system. The top four layers come in to play in the end
system to complete the process.

The seven layers

1. Layer 1 – the physical layer.

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 The physical layer of the OSI model defines connector and interface
specifications, as well as medium (cable) requirements. Electrical,
mechanical, functional, and procedural specifications are provided for
sending a bit stream on a computer network.

Components of the physical layer

 Cabling system components.
 Adapters that connect media to physical interfaces
 Connector design and pin assignments.
 Hub, repeater and patch panel specifications.
 Wireless system components
 Parallel SCSI (Small Computer System Interface)
 Network Interface Card (NIC)
2. Layer 2- the data link layer.
This provides the following functions:
 Allows a device to access the network to send and receive
messages
 Offers a physical address so that a device’s data can be sent on the
network.
 Work’s with a devices networking software when sending and
receiving messages.
 Provides error- detection capability.

Common networking components that function at layer 2 include:

 Network interface cards

 Ethernet and token ring switches
 Bridges
3. Layer 3- the network layer.
This provides an end-to-end logical addressing system so that a
packet of data can be routed across several layer 2 networks (Ethernet,
token ring, frame relay, etc.). Note that network layer addresses can also
be referred to as logical addresses.
Two additional functions of the network layer are diagnostics and the
reporting of logical variations in normal network operation.
4. Layer 4- the transport layer.
This offers end-to-end communication between end devices
through a network. Depending on the application, the transport layer

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 either offers reliable, connection oriented or connectionless, best-effort
communications.
Some of the functions offered by the transport layer include:
 Application identification.
 Client side entity identification
 Confirmation that the entire message arrived intact.
 Segmentation of data for network transport
 Control of data flow to prevent memory overruns
 Establishment and maintenance of both ends of virtual circuits
 Transmission-error detection
 Realignment of segmented data in the correct order on the
receiving side
 Multiplexing or sharing of multiple sessions over a single physical
link.
 The most common transport layer protocols are the connection-
oriented transmission control protocol (TCP) and the
connectionless user datagram protocol (UDP).
5. Layer 5- the session layer.
This provides various services including tracking the number of
bytes that each end of the session has acknowledged receiving from the
other end of the session. This session layer allows applications
functioning on devices to establish, manage and terminate a dialog
through a network.
Functionality includes:
 Virtual connection between application entities
 Synchronisation of data flow
 Creation of dialog units.
 Connection parameter negotiations
 Partitioning of services in to functional groups
 Acknowledgements of data received during a session
 Retransmission of data if it is not received by a device.
6. Layer 6- the presentation layer.

This is responsible for how an application formats the data to be

sent out on to the network. The presentation layer basically allows an
application to read (or understand) the message.

Examples of presentation layer functionality include:

 Encryption and decryption of a message for security.

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  Compression and expansion of a message so that it travels efficiently
 Graphics formatting
 Content translation
 System-specific translation
7. Layer 7- the application.
This provides an interface for the end user operating a device
connected to a network. This layer is what the user sees in terms of
loading an application (such as web browser or e-mail). This application
layer is the data the user views while using these applications.

Example of application layer functionality include:

 Support for file transfers
 Ability to print on a network
 Electronic mail
 Electronic messaging
 Browsing the world wide web

INTERNET PROTOCOL VERSION 4 (IPv4)

Data communication over different kinds of networks. IPv4 is a connectionless

protocol used in packet-switched layer networks, such as Ethernet. It provides
the logical connection between network devices by providing identification for
each device. There are many ways to configure IPv4 with all kinds of devices-
including manual and automatic configurations-depending on the network
type.

IPV4 is based on the best-effort model. This model guarantee’s neither delivery
nor avoidance of duplicate delivery, these aspects are handled by the upper
layer transport.

IPv4 uses 32-bit addresses which limits the address space to 4 294 967 296
(232) addresses.

IPv4 reserves special address blocks for private networks and multicast
addresses.

INTERNET PROTOCOL VERSION 6 (IPv6)

This is the most recent version of the internet protocol (IP), the
communications protocol that provides an identification and location system
for computers on networks and routes traffic across the internet.

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IPV6 was developed by the internet engineering task force (IETF) to deal with
the long-anticipated problem of IPV4 address exhaustion. IPV6 is intended to
replace IPV4.

In December 1998, IPV6 became a draft standard for the IETF, who
subsequently ratified it as internet standard on 14 July 2017.

Devices on the internet are assigned to a unique IP address for identification

and location definition. With the rapid growth of the internet after
commercialisation in the 1990s, it became evident that for more addresses
would be needed to connect devices than the IPV4 address space had
available.

By 1998, the internet engineering task force (IETF) had formalised the
successor protocol. IPV6 uses a 128-bit address, theoretically allowing 2 128, or
approximately 3.4*1038 addresses.

The actual number is slightly smaller, as multiple ranges are reserved for
special use or completely excluded from use.

The total number of possible IPV6 addresses is more than 7.9*10 28 times as
many as IPV4, which uses 32-bit addresses and provides approximately 4.3
billion addresses. The two protocols are not designed to be interoperable,
complicating the transition to IPV6.

However, several IPV6 transition mechanisms have been devised to permit

communication between IPV4 and IPV6 hosts.

IPV6 provides other technical benefits in addition to a larger addressing space.

In particular, it permits hierarchical address allocation methods that facilitate
route aggregation across the internet, and thus limit the expansion of routing
tables.

The use of multicast addressing is expanded and simplified, and provides

additional optimization for the delivery of services.

Device mobility, security, and configuration aspects have been considered in

the design of the protocol.

IPV6 addresses are represented as eight groups of four hexadecimal digits with
the groups being separated by colons, for example;

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2001:0db8:0042:0000:8a2e:0370:7334, but methods to abbreviate this full
notation exist.

IPV6 is an internet layer protocol for packet-switched internetworking and

provides end-to-end datagram transmission across multiple IP networks,
closely adhering to the design principles developed in the previous version of
the protocol, internet protocol version 4 (IPV4)

In addition to offering more addresses, IPV6 also implements features not

present in IPV4. It simplifies aspects of address configuration, network
renumbering and router announcements when changing network connectivity
providers. It simplifies processing of packets in routers by placing the
responsibility for packet fragmentation in to the end points. The IPV6 subnet
size is standardized by fixing the size of the host identifier portion of an
address to 64 bits.

Network security was a design requirement of the IPV6 architecture, and

included the original specification of IPsec.

The addressing architecture of IPV6 is defined in RFC 4291 and allows three
different types of transmission; unicast, any cast and multicast.

DIFFENCES BETWEEN IPv4 AND IPv6

IPv4 IPv6

 IPv4 addresses are 32 bit length.  IPv6 addresses are 128 bit length.
 IPv4 addresses are binary numbers  IPv6 addresses are binary numbers
represented in decimals. represented in hexadecimals.
 IPSec support is only optional.  Inbuilt IPSec support.
 Fragmentation is done by sender
 Fragmentation is done only by sender.
and forwarding routers.
 Packet flow identification is available
 No packet flow identification. within the IPv6 header using the Flow
Label field.
 Checksum field is available in
 No checksum field in IPv6 header.
IPv4 header
 Options fields are available in IPv4  No option fields, but IPv6 Extension
header. headers are available.
 Address Resolution Protocol
 Address Resolution Protocol (ARP) is
(ARP) is available to map IPv4
replaced with a function of Neighbor
addresses to MAC addresses.
Discovery Protocol (NDP).
 Internet Group Management  IGMP is replaced with Multicast

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 Protocol (IGMP) is used to manage
Listener Discovery (MLD) messages.
multicast group membership.
 Broadcast messages are not available.
Instead a link-local scope "All nodes"
 Broadcast messages are available.
multicast IPv6 address (FF02::1) is used
for broadcast similar functionality.
 Manual configuration (Static) of
IPv4 addresses or DHCP
 Auto-configuration of addresses is
(Dynamic configuration) is
available.
required to configure IPv4
addresses.

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References
1. Barnlund, D. C. (1970). A transactional model of communication in  K.K.
Sereno and C.D. Mortenson (Eds.), Foundations of communication
theory (pp. 83-92). New York, NY: Harper and Row.
2. Ellis, R. and McClintock, A. (1990). You take my meaning: Theory into
practice in human communication. London: Edward Arnold.
3. Schramm, W. (1997). The beginnings of communication study in
America. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
4. Shannon, C. and Weaver, W. (1949). The mathematical theory of
communication. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois Press.
5. ^Silvia Hagen (2014). IPv6 essentials: integrating IPv6 in to your IPv4
network. O’ Reilly media, inc.p.33. ISBN 9781449335267.
6. ^New Zealand IPv6 Task Force. “FAQS” Retrieved 26 October, 2015.

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