This paper shows how algorithm visualization can be used to teach sliding windows protocols. In the described approach, the student creates and visually manipulates traffic between an abstract sender/receiver pair. This work contributes to algorithm visualization by describing a tool built specifically to teach sliding windows protocols. The Sliding Windows Visualization system can be seen at http://www.burgoyne.com/~henryd/master_project. The interaction levels available in the software are

more »

... cribed. Finally, we make the claim that sliding windows protocols lend themselves especially to visualization and that algorithm visualization is an important "missing link" in the teaching of sliding windows protocols.