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Communicating without wires has great appeal. Wireless data can pass through
walls and travel for miles. Portable devices are easier to use when there are no
data cables to attach and route. Plus, wireless communicating is fun. Even in an
age when wireless phones and networks are routine, there’s something enter-
taining about designing a system that sends and receives information with no
visible connection between the sender and receiver.

A data-communication system must carry information to the receiver at the
desired speed, without errors, and without causing interference to other elec-
tronic devices. For many applications, wired interfaces meet these requirements
easily and at low cost. Where cables aren’t possible or desirable, wireless tech-
nologies are an alternative.

This chapter presents options for selecting and implementing wireless technolo-
gies for transferring asynchronous data.