Keywords in communications technology

New communications products are often described by their manufacturers using a variety of confusing keywords, such as teletex, videotex, network integration etc. The manufacturers do not, however, explain the relationships between these terms, or the concepts that they share. The paper discusses these keywords with respect to the ISO reference model for open systems interconnection, and their relative positions within this structure. It discusses, in detail; transmission, switching, internetworking, network integration, local area networks and integrated service digital networks. Keywords relating to applications such as office automation and text processing are more clearly interrelated, and future end systems are proposed.