Service Télématique
et Communication
| Les Nouveaux Chemins de la Connaissance |
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N° 2 September 1994
Editorial
Dear Reader,
Well, it seems that our Newsletter exists as this is number 2 and we have so much material in stock that
you might well receive a number three consisting of 6 pages ...
Some of you have been kind enough to compliment us on the quality of the first issue, and we have also
had quite a few “ electronic readers ” of the WWW version (details about this were on the last page of the first
issue).
The Belgian readers will receive this Newsletter with the Business and Telecom magazine - see last page
to find out why.
We are happy to publish a paper about the joint project with our ULB Library Colleagues, and you will
read more about these types of “ interdisciplinary ” activities right hereunder, as well as in the next
issue.
Let’s keep moving along the new paths of knowledge...
Paul VAN BINST.
LICENCE SPECIALE EN TELEMATIQUE ET ORGANISATION
Five years already...
Professors Paul VAN BINST and Luc WILKIN are seen here in 1989 (but they still look quite the same ...) when they created this unique, interdisciplinary, high-level postgraduate programme for adult students (courses take place in evenings and Saturday mornings). With an average of more than 50 students per year, this program has proved to be very successful and, according to students’ comments and appreciations (collected every year), corresponds quite well to their expectations in front of the telematics phenomenon and its impact on the business life. The dual aspect of the curriculum, addressing both technical and human problems, is particularly appreciated.
(Photo: Daniel DUMONT)
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURE
Pascal Paridans has been a member
of the group since 1990. He has been
working in several projects involving
expertise in electronic mail (X.400)
and management of private and
public networks (TCP/IP, X.25). He
participated during two years to the
conception and the development of an
information server (CONCISE)
currently used as a central
information server in several places in
Europe.
Since February 93, under contract
with the Belgian company ComTech,
Pascal has been detached as network
consultant to the European
Parliament (EP). His main job
consists in the management of the
local area network in all EP sites
(Brussels, Luxembourg, Strasbourg,
and soon all European capital
cities).
He is tasked with designing the EP’s
TCP/IP network with the aim of:
- improving the quality of the existing
network,
- allowing an efficient management of
the network,
- integrating the new buildings in the
existing network.
He has also had, within the EP, the opportunity to use his electronic mail expertise and has thus been integrated in the Mail Working Group of the EP. This group is tasked with identifying the requirements concerning electronic mail and checking the market to determine the opportunity for the EP to launch a new electronic mail strategy for its own purpose.
E-mail : paridans@helios.iihe.rtt.be or
C=be; A=rtt; P=iihe; O=helios;
S=paridans
Development of an ETHERNET-ATM Bridge with ALCATEL BELL
Since the beginning of
1993, Service Télématique et
Communication has been
contracted by Alcatel Bell to
take part in an ATM project.
The main goal of this contract
is to design and develop part
of an Ethernet-ATM bridge
based on the concept of
virtual LAN. The well-known
Spanning Tree protocol has
been implemented over the
Alcatel hardware and various
upper layer protocols are
being implemented as well.
In addition, a
prototype of an IP router is
also built on this hardware.
In the scope of this contract,
Service Télématique et
Communication is
working
in close collaboration
with the Broadband Research
Center in Antwerpen.
This contract is a very
interesting opportunity to
participate in a real-world
industrial project, to discover
new techniques and to work
within a high quality and
advanced environment.
This work is being
carried out by Robab Sattari
Sadat, Alvaro Guillen, Eric
Mannie and Thuan-An Nguyen.
Theoretical aspects are also
supported by Ramin Najmabadi
Kia and Bernard
Sales.
E-mail: najmabadi@helios.iihe.rtt.be or
C=be; A=rtt; P=iihe; O=helios; S=najmabadi
Conformance Test Suites for X400’88 Profiles
The European Workshop for Open
Systems, EWOS, is responsible among
other things for the production of X.400
profiles. The final approval of X.400’88
profiles is about to be
completed.
In order to assess conformance
of products against these profiles, it is
necessary to update the existing CTS
test suites defined for X.400’84 (and
slightly modified for ‘88).
A Project Team has been set up by
EWOS, whose task is to determine how
much work will be needed to make Test
Suites used in the Test Laboratories
suitable for X.400’88 profiles. This EWOS
PT, of which Olivier Paridaens is a
member, consists of five CT and MHS
experts.
E-mail : paridaens@helios.iihe.rtt.be or
C=be;A=rtt;P=iihe;O=helios;S=paridaens
European Libraries to Benefit from New International Information
Service
The LIRN Project
As part of the European
Commission’s DG XIII Libraries
Programme, work has com-
menced on a project to develop an
international information enquiry
and referral service for European
Libraries using X.500 electronic
directories technology.
Project LIRN (Library
Information enquiry and Referral
Network) will study and define
the service required for an infor-
mation and referral network and
establish a working pilot system
between Belgium, Portugal, and
the United Kingdom.
LIRN’s aim is to enable libraries
to easily identify key sources
from the mass of information
available throughout Europe and
to assess the capability of these
sources to supply information.
Project members are LASER
(London and South Eastern
Library Region), Business
Information Network, University
College London, Level-7 Ltd, the
University of Aveiro, and the
University of Brussels.
Work officially started on 21
January 1994, and the project is
scheduled for completion in
1995.
This project is carried out in
Brussels by Anne Spoiden and
Benoit Pauwels for the library
aspects and by Rosette
Vandenbroucke and Nils
Meulemans for the technical
part.
E-mail : aspoiden@is1.ulb.ac.be or
C=be; A=ac; P=ulb; O=is1; S=spoiden
>Lower Layer Laboratory (3L)
Since years, many people of the Service
Télématique et Communication are
involved in various theoretical studies of
the Open Systems framework. As new
ideas and concepts are emerging
regularly in the lower layers of the OSI
architecture, we felt the need to validate
the result of our research by developing
a software laboratory dedicated to lower
layers. In particular, the main objective
was to validate the OSI concepts
designed for interworking by integrating
existing non OSI architecture as bearer
services for OSI traffic. A complete
OSI Network layer providing the OSI
Network Service over architectures such
as X.25 and TCP/IP has been
implemented. This implementation was
one of the first to provide such a service,
to support the NSAP addressing scheme,
to implement the Network Internal Layer
Service (NILS) and to implement a
Network Layer relay between X.25 and
TCP/IP. In addition,3L has been
designed to support the well-known
ISODE software by adding the missing
Network Layer under this package. The
main purposes of this project are to gain
experience in implementing and testing
OSI lower layers protocols as defined by
ISO, test new solutions and concepts
proposed by the international
community, validate the different OSI
standards for the Network layer, gain
experience in OSI routing protocols and
procedures, motivate research in the
Open Systems framework and improve
the existing project progressing within
ISO JTC1/SC6. The 3L package is now
a valuable tool to implement and test
routing and management protocols. The
ISO 10030 routing protocol has been
implemented and next activities will
consist in the implementation of
management facilities.
This work is being carried out by Robab
Sattari Sadat, Bernard Sales, Thuan-An
Nguyen and Eric Mannie with the
participation of Frédérique Purnelle.
E-mail : mannie@helios.iihe.rtt.be or
C=be; A=rtt; P=iihe; O=helios; S=mannie
Development of a Switched VSAT Communication System for SAIT Systems
As part of its long-lasting
collaboration with SAIT
Systems, Service Télématique
et Communication
participated in the first half of
1994 in the development of a
switched VSAT
communication system.
Promoted by the European
Space Agency (ESA), this
project aims to bring together
ATM and VSAT technologies
which are some of the most
advanced and innovating
breakthroughs of today’s
telecommunications
world.
Simultaneous support of the
emerging and highly
demanding multimedia
applications and the more
classic ones such as file
transfer, as well as LAN
interconnection, is the primary
objective of this effort. In this
context, Service Télématique
et Communication has been
sollicited to design the
signalling subsystem which is
responsible for the
establishment and
maintenance of
communication paths
through the network.
This design has been highly
inspired from the works of
international standardisation
bodies such as CCITT, ISO and
ATM Forum concerning the
ATM and ISDN signalling. The
most challenging issue was
the integration of the VSAT
and the ATM call handling
into a coherent and global
signalling system offering a
complete set of facilities
including point-to-multipoint
and conference connection
establishment.
This work was conducted by
Ramin Najmabadi Kia and
Bernard Sales.
E-mail : sales@helios.iihe.rtt.be or
C=be; A=rtt; P=iihe; O=helios; S=sales
How to win a cordless Telephone
Under a collaboration contract with Ascom Belgium, ULB is carrying out a study on the availability and usage of communication means.
All enterprises situated in Belgium are invited to answer a questionnaire which can be found in the issue of Business & Telecom magazine included in this mail. Everyone answering has a chance to win a cordless telephone offered by Ascom.
For further information, please contact:
Nadia PARONI
ULB
rue de Bruxelles,
37
1400 Nivelles
Tel.: 02/650 91
20
Fax: 02/650 91
21
Voice Mail: 02/727 12
51
E-mail : paroni@sish.iihe.rtt.be or
C=be; A=rtt; P=iihe; O=sish; S=paroni
GEARING UP FOR ATM
Service Télématique et Communication
has become an Auditing Member of the
ATM Forum and is also represented in
Belgium “ ATM Platform ”, as well as
attending the RARE ATM Task Force
meetings. Close contact is kept with
BELGACOM in order to participate in
the international trials, but the
first
experiments will make use, under a
contract with ComTech, of some
“ ATM LAN ” type of equipment
linking various elements of the
Brussels Universities FDDI
infrastructure, particularly to test the
performance of the MICE multimedia
conferencing system.
Researchers involved in this work
include Zlatica CEKRO, Alvaro
GUILLEN and Thuan-An
NGUYEN.
E-mail: nguyen@helios.iihe.rtt.be or
C=be; A=rtt; P=iihe; O=helios; S=nguyen
For further information
Prof. Paul VAN BINST
Université Libre de
Bruxelles
CP 230 - Bd du Triomphe
B-1050 Brussels
Tel. : + 32 2 629 32 11
Fax : + 32 2 629 38 16
E-mail :
vanbinst@helios.iihe.rtt.be
or
C=be; A=rtt; P=iihe; O=helios;
S=vanbinst;
Please note the new telephone and fax numbers.
The design of this Newsletter has been made with the collaboration of Valérie CLARAS
(Photo: Daniel DUMONT).
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