Since its recent introduction, the ZigBee protocol has created an enormous amount of buzz in venues from magazine covers to trade show floors to water coolers. Its promise of providing a simpler, cheaper, more power-efficient WPAN (Wireless Personal Area Network) alternative to WiFi and Bluetooth has opened up new data collection possibilities in application areas from industrial controls to medical devices to intruder alarms. Yet, despite this widespread interest, there is still little information available that goes beyond detailing the spec itself. Missing from the current ZigBee lexicon...

Wireless networking is poised to have a massive impact on communications, and the 802.11 standard is to wireless networking what Ethernet is to wired networking. There are already over 50 million devices using the dominant IEEE 802.11 (essentially wireless Ethernet) standard, with astronomical growth predicted over the next 10 years. New applications are emerging every day, with wireless capability being embedded in everything from electric meters to hospital patient tracking systems to security devices.

This practical reference guides readers through the wireless technology forest,...