Online Books

Tyrone Adams' and Norman Clark's new book, The Internet: Effective Online Communication, provides a comprehensive and insightful view of the Internet from a communication perspective. Although there are other texts on the Internet, this is the first to focus on communication competence in the online environment. The text integrates theory and practice to help readers become critical Internet consumers and producers.

I found Chapter 1 on the Internet's history the most intriguing. That background information provides a context for understanding the Internet's structure and current uses. In Chapter 2, the authors distinguish the Internet from other communication mediums, and at the same time observe that the boundaries between communication contexts are blurring.

Chapters 3-5 cover the nuts and bolts of communicating online: email, listservs, newsgroups, chat rooms, MUDs, MOOs, and net conferencing. Although most students are quite familiar with email, listservs, and chat rooms, they are often less familiar with newsgroups, MUDs, MOOs, and net conferencing. With more and more organizations using net conferencing for work group and team meetings, the latter topic is especially useful.

Chapters 6 and 7 address gathering information on the Internet. These invaluable chapters move readers out of the traditional search engine to other search strategies such as topic rings and bibliographic databases. In addition, the authors provide specific criteria for evaluating online information and how to cite the information found.

Chapters 8-10 shift the reader from an Internet consumer to an Internet producer. With the help of the CD-ROM included with the book, students can design a fairly sophisticated webpage. Although the authors stress the utility of learning HTML, the web editor on the CD-ROM allows students to produce their first webpage with ease.

Students found Part 5, "Exiting Cyberspace: Implications of the Internet," particularly informative and sometimes surprising. For example, Chapter 12, "The Internet and U.S. Law," led several students to investigate computer use policies in the workplace.

My students gave the book high marks for readability, current examples, and thorough explanations. The authors' familiarity with effective online communication is plainly evident: Adams and Clark don't just write about the Internet; they are cybertravelers, clearly comfortable with and truly knowledgeable about Internet communication. We've become so immersed in online communication that we seldom give it a second thought. Adams and Clark include provocative information that will spark much debate in any classroom. Students learn practical online communication skills, as well as the theoretical background they need to adjust to an ever-changing and increasingly globalized Internet.

"An Introduction to Online Learning - A Primer for Online Students" provides an orientation to students wishing to take online classes.

Distance education differs from traditional classroom instruction. Success ratios for online students increase when those students have an "orientation" or "introduction" to online learning. This book is intended for individuals with minimal computer experience wanting to take online classes.

A DVD accompanies the book with video lectures covering the main material in the book.

The book has four main sections.

Section 1:
An Introduction To Online Learning
This section provides an introduction to online learning. It is presented in an accessible manner and has been designed to pose and then answer the main questions and concerns students taking online classes might have.

Section 2:
Secrets of a Successful Student
This section presents the precepts of 'Active Learning' in an accessible manner making it easier for students to integrate the principles into their life. In addition, this chapter covers learning styles and other concepts at the core of most orientations to online learning.

Section 3:
Working Online - Getting Started
Using screenshot visuals, this section details the technical skills necessary to take an online class. The skills are organized into easily comprehensible modules. The modules are in order of technical priority: once a student understands how to get onto the web and view web-pages, different elements of online classes are covered.

Section 4:
Working Online - Working Smarter
This section covers technical skills which can help online students more effectively complete their online work. Many of the technical questions that students have when taking online classes are answered in this chapter.

Highly recommended! I was prompted to buy this book because I wanted to add both a Gold and a Real Estate component to my portfolio and was looking for guidance. My advisor wasn't much help and other investing books don't address my specific needs. This book was exactly what I needed. It showed me how to invest in Gold and Real Estate using Exchange Traded Funds that give me the return (and safety) I wanted from these market segments without the hassle or risk of trying to find individual stocks. I learned that I could just buy a group of the best stocks in each market with one easy purchase. Plus it showed me how to do the same for other target markets such as Health Care, Energy, Homeland Security and even China. In addition this is more than simply a book, it's a complete course in target market investing - giving me access to an online component with interactive tools and Web links that gave me the resources necessary to transform knowledge into action. Eventually all investing publications will have to use this format to be competitive. I'm glad I found one that does now.

This book makes an excellent case for the pertinence of Freud to the new models of culture and knowledge in the new millennium. The scientific descriptions are clear and lively, appropriate for non-scientists, and the first part will be of help to anyone in cultural studies, women's studies, or "theory' in the university. The writing is clear and lively.

I loved this book! "It Happened Online" gave me the courage to finally
put myself up on a dating site. This book is filled with hilarious
stories, serious online dating dos and donts, and strategies to find
your own soul mate. For anyone on the online dating realm, thinking
about it, or just want a funny read...get this book!

Last year when I tried to look for jabber book, I picked up DJ Adams's "Programming Jabber" because it got so many good reviews at amazon. But I've found that book rather confusing. I'm still confused with many topic, especially in how jabberd internal components interact. Well, I'm not native English speaker, so the fault could be on my side rather than the book. However, this "Jabber Developer's Handbook" actually clearify many questions I've in mind through the use of many useful charts and diagrams. I've not finished reading it completely, but skimming through the pages, I think the book was organized very well, better than Programming Jabber. Plus, while not useful to me for now, the book does include some interesting material on using jabber with other technologies like xml-rpc, soap, and jxta.

The author has the rare ability to convey his ideas in terse, lucid and precise language. They will define the future of journalism in the information age as a result of rapid advances in telecom technology.

What an entertaining, refreshing, and thought-provoking read! The premise of Kristina's book is that our expanding techno-modes of communicating--ranging from e-mail to IMs to texting--have indeed changed the way we approach relationships, but if these techno-driven relationships are to succeed, they need to be as equally stimulating in their non-electronic forms. This book provides a bird's eye view of just how much techno-relating has permeated our lives. (How did we ever communicate without e-mail and cell phones anyway?) It also provides a nice reminder that all the techno-relating in the world can't replace the need we all have for real, live human connection.

* Most "up-to-date" textbook in the field of Rheumatology at the moment (the other major textbook have not have the updated edition yet * It has excellent introduction on the basic sciences sections and also it has included some of the newer agent for treating rheumatological disease * It still lacks the quality/quantity of illustrations/pictures as compare to Kippel's Rheumatology, but the written sections have make up most of the deficiency * It's is well organized. * Its content is easy to find. * Excellent reference for General Internist/Rheumatolgist as a reference textbook in the practise

This is one concert that has got to be issued on DVD it was the 30th anniversary of Taylor Guitars and who better than Kenny Loggins who had been working at the guitar company since '73 to headline the concert.
The acoustic set featured two of Kenny's then musicians Shem (von)
Schroeck on bass and keyboards and Doug Jackson on second guitars.
Songs:
Conviction of the Heart
Return to Pooh Corner from the album which he claimed was for parents to enjoy kids by...
Danny's Song
Now and Then- one of his little known gems from his Keep the Fire record
Your Mama Don't Dance- a great rockin' version which lead into a medley
of Young Blood, Chain of Fools, Hound Dog and Prince's Kiss (so FUNNY he has such a sense of humor... I wish he would record these one day!)
The One That Got Away
Alive and Kicking (written with Clint Black)
I'm Alright (an anthem for gophers and golfers everywhere)
Forever (his forever signature and signoff song)