Industrial Books

I picked this up on an anonymous recommendation and am now wholeheartedly praising it to anyone who will listen! The author, Craig Canine, has fashioned a page-turning, suspense-filled, dramatic telling of an entreprenuer's struggle, laced with a suprisingly fascinating history of the development of modern agricutlure. Not just for business-school types or farmers, it is a tale well-told and absolutely worthy of the high rankings you are seeing here.

This is one of those rare books that makes you realize that there is a history and great story behind every invention. Mr Canine does an incredible job at showing this to us, as well as the implications that an invention has in the long run. Truly an incredible book. I hope to see more of this authors work!

Today's inventor and entrepreneur faces a difficult series of hurdles on the road from conception to production. In more and more areas, a new obstacle is being added. Due to various economic forces, the number of companies that may purchase or license your patent is decreasing. In some fields two or three giant corporations dominate the market. If they turn you down, and the costs to develop your invention are high, are you locked out of the market?

This book relates the story of how for thirteen years two men, inventor Mark Underwood and his cousin Ralph Langren, a sales and marketing specialist, fought the battle to develop and market their Bi Rotor combine.

If you think all the problems of harvesting grain were solved by Cyrus McCormick's mechanical reaper, this book's review of the history of harvesting will give you a fascinating new picture that your school books did not provide. In one lifetime (McCormick's) farming went from medieval tools to mechanical reapers, and from nine of ten Americans living on a farm to the farmer becoming a minority of the population. Incidentally, McCormick did not invent the basic reaper. But as the book points out, he was "a great inventor, a master salesman, a prophet of mass production, and a robber baron, all rolled into one."

What Kansas dirt farmer Mark Underwood did was to reinvent the combine (a combine is called that because it combines reaping, threshing, and winnowing). He was inspired, as a high school senior when working a summer job, by a drum type mixer used to mix cement, sand, and gravel. For nine years he sketched and turned the idea over in his head. In 1989 he was awarded a $20,000 grant by the Kansas Technology Enterprise Corporation and was able to build a two-thirds size model.

When testing the first model they quickly discovered a way to clean the grain in the same operation. Other developments, such as the self leveling sieve soon came about. The book details the privations endured for years as they built ever improved prototypes. Finding funding for these prototypes was an unending battle. They approached the big and the small, Ross Perot, John Deere, International Harvester, and Caterpillar. They finally scored by offering limited partnerships to small investors and with a development deal with Caterpillar.

The book is not only loaded with penetrating looks into the progress in agriculture but with looks at the vital relationship between the inventor and the entrepreneur. It points out that when a partnership is formed between the typically passive, compulsive perfectionist inventor and an aggressive, systematic entrepreneur, there is no limit to what can be achieved.

The story of how and why grain elevators came to dominate the landscape is a must read. Also, how grain elevators led to a grain grading system and in turn how this led to futures trading is not only interesting history, but will give you an understanding of some of the headlines in today's financial pages. There is nothing dull in the story of the progression from horses to steam to internal combustion engines and from massive soil compressing wheels to tractor treads that prevent soil compression. (Soil fertility is destroyed by soil compression.)

Equally interesting is the tale of why Ford's highly successful Fordson tractor lost out to the Farmall tractor. Ford froze its design. International Harvester added a practical power takeoff (PTO) mechanism and "power farming" came of age in l924.

The chapters on corn hybrids and weed-killing herbicides are not only informative, but they are a reminder of how changes affecting agriculture worldwide were brought about by individuals obsessed by an idea.

Is the old-fashioned inventor obsolete in the modern high-tech world? Read the book and decide for yourself. An easy read and the many delightful insights into modern agriculture are a reminder that food production is still very much a concern in this age of electronics.

I picked this up on an anonymous recommendation and am now wholeheartedly praising it to anyone who will listen! The author, Craig Canine, has fashioned a page-turning, suspense-filled, dramatic telling of an entrepreneur's struggle, laced with a surprisingly fascinating history of the development of modern agriculture. Not just for business-school types or farmers, it is a tale well-told and absolutely worthy of the high rankings you are seeing here.

_Dream_Reaper_ is a delightful tale of two cousins--a mechanic and a salesman in their endeavors to develop a more compact design for the harvesting combine and market the concept through a sponsor. The struggle of Mark Underwood in creating the Bi-Rotor machinery to reduce grain spillage and parts clutter provides a glimpse into the hardships of inventors. The insightful interpersonal skills of Ralph Lagergren reveal a confidence in not settling for corporate comfort, but in taking a big risk for a big payoff.

In intervening chapters, Canine diverts from the story to introduce the history of harvesting and its mechanization . The reader learns of many fascinating conversation topics, such as the etymology of "tribulation", a patent infringement lawsuit on a reaper that launched Abraham Lincoln's political career, the corn growing experiments of Henry Wallace, or the genetic differences between grains and weeds enabling an aromatic compound to kill the latter without affecting the former. Whether one is interested in agriculture, machinery, history, Canine's prose makes the book a pure joy to read.............

Well, they didn't, but it's a classic anyway.

This is a terrific book for anyone who wants to learn how great projects are visualized, actualized, and pressed through extremely challenging environmental circumstances. It's a source of inspiration for the dreamers and the practical alike.

If you want to read about architecture and engineering, you get only a small dose here. It's more about the capitalization, visioning and building. But that story is magnetic and wonderful.

Only thing they left out: that it was to this (then half-empty) building that Annhaeuser-Busch delivered the "first" case of legal beer to Al Smith at the end of Prohibition. Smith, the "wet" and the eternal optimist, exemplifies what this building was conceived to be: a vibrant and living testimony to the human spirit.

So, it stands to reason that it survives now as New York's essential symbol.

From the outset, the Empire State Building seemed to have had everything going against it. Although conceived during the 1920s boom years, most of the construction went on during the earliest years of the Depression, thereby putting the idea of high occupancy in the severest doubt. Its location wasn't ideal either. It was three miles north of the Wall Street district and a mile south of the center of the midtown business center. And it was ten blocks south of Grand Central Station and three avenues east of old Pennsylvania Station. The idea of mooring dirigibles was quickly scrapped after failed attempts. And sure enough, although the Empire State Building did get built, the tenants did not come. King Kong did, but he didn't pay rent.

John Tauranac describes all this and more in his exhaustive book, THE EMPIRE STATE BUILDING: THE MAKING OF A LANDMARK. Written in an engaging style, Tauranac's book is as elegant and interesting as the subject itself, while his wit is as colorful as the characters surrounding the Empire State Building's creation. The book covers the idea for the building, Raskob's and Smith's supervision, the monumental task of the construction workers, and, most importantly, the survival of the building to become THE emblem of America's cultural and economic reach while become THE identifying symbol of New York City. The generous amount of photographs add to the understanding and enjoyment of the book. Highly recommended.

This is an excellent work that details the history of the Empire State Building. I was a bit surprised to find how much the author managed to pack into my paperback. Everything from skyscraper height restrictions to land leases and modern restructuring of ownership for tax purposes (and all the "interesting" stuff in between). If you buy this book and you're not from New York, do yourself a favor and get a map of the area. So you can follow along in the early chapters.

This book is a must read for anyone interested in not only the Empire State Building, but in New York City history of the late 1920s and early 1930s. Who would think that a building completed in 1931 at 1250 feet high would still be the tallest building in NYC in 2007 (of course, we can't forget the tragic loss of the taller WTC Towers). This book covers the quick construction of the ESB, but also covers the politics and history behind the building's location (the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel used to be at the corner of 5th Ave and 34th Street) and the people involved. This is an interesting book about an exciting time where anything seemed possible in one of the world's greatest cities.

I bought this book shortly after a trip to NYC in 2000, and found it to be an excellent history of one of the Big Apple's architectural jewels, the Empire State Building. It is full of intrigue, history, great anecdotes and one-of-a-kind photographs. If you're a visitor to Manhattan or a local resident, you owe it to yourself to read this book.

This is a book with a strong focus on modern telecom networks. It has helped me achieve a good understanding of SS 7 - both the protocols and the network aspects. And herein lies the strength of the book - its stress on both the 'academic' and the 'practical'. I would recommned this book to all those who wish to obtain technical insight about mobile, ISDN and Intelligent networks - as SS 7 is at the core of all three. practical aspects.

This book covers all standards used in the world in a very complete way. It describes all aspects of the digital technologies used in the telephony world. I have used it several times in the last weeks, while making some avaliation tests in ISUP and DSS1 and it was very useful!

A text that builds up the subject step by step. Of particular merit is the tutorials on all three subjects - SS7, ISDN and Synchronization. The main theme is rightly SS7 considering its significance in modern telecom networks. A good text both for students and professionals. More details should be provided on U-interface. Perhaps the author will include this in the Second edition.

If you need to know about the ISDN, network syncronisation and non-advanced SS7 this book is the best. It is a shame though that the book does not cover SS7 user parts such as SCCP,TCAP and due to date of publication does not have BISUP, Etc. The book is extremely well written.

This book is packed with ready to use information on SS7. Eversince I got hold of this book, I have used it on numerous occasions in my work. Though I bought it mainly for SS7, I found the chapters on network synchronization and timing truly revealing. Very few telecom engineers are aware of the significance of timing in telecom networks. I do not know of any text that treats this subject so convincingly. In conclusion, a great work.

In this book, Dr. Weinzimmer points out many of the errors in normal business thinking by providing common sense alternative that will provide value to any company's customers. For example, he says to throw out SWOT analysis, but he provides an alternative that focuses on the customer instead of focusing on the firm. I had this professor for my undergrad capstone project and know that he truly believes in his ideas because he forces us to apply them in our senior consulting project (which uses actual companies as clients). This book allowed us to produce original ideas that will help our client grow their business. This book was even entertaining to read and, depending on the amount of analysis you want to put into it, can be a quick read.

Dr. Weinzimmer provides an excellent alternative to the common views on strategic management. I was a student in his strategic management course during my undergraduate study, and we used this book. Comparing it to other strategy classes, I can honestly say his view comes out on top. I would recommend this to any college student looking for an alternative to what is commonly included in books.

Although his examples and strategies tend to focus on large corporations, his approach to the issues and challenges of growth are applicaple to the smallest of entreprenaurs. Few books I found that don't have a lot of fluff, and give you usable ideas to implement. There are not many books I have read twice...but I am on my second time around with this one. So have I accomplished fast growth? Not yet but it feels like we're on the right track. Ric Hansen/ Radio Parties- Seattle
Hey if you are planning a party or wedding and need entertainment give me a call 1-800 954 3535. See, I am already using some new marketing strategies!

I'll admit, when I saw the 'PhD' after the author's name, I was afraid this would be a bone-dry and obscure piece of academic writing. But it is written with great clarity and is highly readable as well as informative. It's worth reading.

Unquestionably, fundamentals are the key to sustained business success. In today's dynamic and scattershot corporate environment, buzzwords and instant "must-do" paradigms abound. In "Fast Growth", Dr. Weinzimmer has blown through the confusing clouds of "must do's" spun by hypothetical consultants to deliver a product of strategy fundaments focused on additive value creation. Dr. Weinzimmer doesn't stop there, but continues on past strategic identification through all important steps of its implementation. A beautiful combination of the "WHAT" and the "HOW". Surely a gift for every businessperson - from college students through CEOs.

I've read all the reviews of Schmidt's efforts on matter of European Integration. And here's what I think: She is destined to embrace the English model and the English model, I'm convinced, will embrace her. The two will be as one. They will be a European Union far more robust than anything concocted in Brussels. So I, for one, would like to celebrate that true union of politics and passion and hoist a glass to Schmidt and this English Model!

I've read all the reviews of Schmidt's efforts on matter of European Integration. And here's what I think. She is destined to embrace the English model and the English model, I'm convinced will embrace her. They will be as one. A European Union far more robust than anything concocted in Brussels. So I, for one, would like to celebrate that true union of politics and passion and hoist a glass to Schmidt and this English Model!

As I see it, the English model must be (and no doubt is, in Schmidt's extraordinary hands) smart, generous, and prone to displays of great good humor. The English model must display the kind of maganimous spirit that say, one brother-in-law might display to another brother-in-law if the latter brother-in-law were, say, a writer needing a place to stay in England.

I've read through the review string, and I must ask about the referenced English model. Please tell me more. I know of course of Schmidt's work on French models and German models and the energy she devoted to the models of Italy and America. Before I endorse this new effort, I think we should know more.

I agree with most of what the earlier reviewer stated. Schmidt is definitely 5-star material. But her most recent efforts have in point of fact focused almost exclusively on the English Model, and with amazing results.

Excellent topic coverage by what I consider to be the best mind in the field today!

One of the best written textbooks I have ever read, in any field. Crystal clear, and is a gold mine of knowledge.

This text is very good for those who start doing research in statistical signal processing. A lot of explanations, technical terms are well presented and consistent, plus a number of examples that help you to learn about different statistical signal processing concepts and algorithms. Research students can be beneficial alot from this text.

Without any hesitation, I consider this book as a masterpiece in the area of statistical signal processing. Kay takes the reader to the journey of estimation theory as if a science teacher takes his students to a field trip. The one special feature of this book is the convergence of thought that reader obtains upon reading the book. Kay lays a fundamental bridge between various estimators using his succinct style for describing the subject.

Few special areas require more attention in this book. For example the coverage of EM methods is very condense and requires more elaboration. Also there is no discussion on the estimation methods using higher order statistics.

Overall I consider this book as the best book I have read ever and I highly recommend this book to those who want to obtain an ever-lasting view on statistical signal processing.

I've had tough courses on statistical signal processing as a post-grade student. I am often confused in front of a problem and turning back to the notes taken in class doesn't help much.
When you read this book all gets bright. I am still wondering how some teachers can be so confusing while such good books do exist...
However don't count on it for in depth mathematical demonstrations, it starts with a practical problem and explains how to model things. Thus it is a bit bottom-up but anyway starting from a good graduate level in signal and stats.
I got this one at the library but already ordered a copy for myself and am planning to get part2 on detection.

Came in a timely manner and was described well by the seller.

Jay B. Barney has written an enduring, understandable user's guide to corporate strategy that is a must read for any business student. Barney helps would-be business leaders frame their strategic decision-making process. Barney first explains to his audience the concepts of strategy and performance, and their relevance to the corporate organization both internally and externally. Barney then explores the different strategies that the corporation can adopt in dealing with its competitive environment: Cost leadership, product differentiation, tacit collusion, and alliances. The author does a very good job in demonstrating to his readers that the four strategies are not mutually exclusive but occasionally complementary. Finally, Barney explores how a company can structure itself across markets over time. He successively addresses the issues of integration, diversification, mergers and acquisitions, and globalization. Gaining and Sustaining Competitive Advantage has been one of the most influential business textbooks that I have ever been asked to read.

This is a great book - more for what it organises than what it adds as new ideas.

Barney sets a model for Competitive Advantage (VIRO) and them compares strategic models as potential sources. It places many of the modern attempts in perspective. Without this starting understanding, the modern gurus (Hamel) are almost impossible to apply as their ideas lack the perspective on the role of strategy within an organisation and within all of the other management tools.

It places Michael Porter within a framework where his work can be better used.

For managers and post graduates, this book sets out the fundamentals of strategy and where it can take you.

Not cheap (by a long way) but a fair price for the knowledge.

Jay B. Barney has written an enduring, understandable user's guide to corporate strategy that is a must read for any business student. Barney helps would-be business leaders frame their strategic decision-making process. Barney first explains to his audience the concepts of strategy and performance, and their relevance to the corporate organization both internally and externally. Barney then explores the different strategies that the corporation can adopt in dealing with its competitive environment: Cost leadership, product differentiation, tacit collusion, and alliances. The author does a very good job in demonstrating to his readers that the four strategies are not mutually exclusive but occasionally complementary. Finally, Barney explores how a company can structure itself across markets over time. He successively addresses the issues of integration, diversification, mergers and acquisitions, and globalization. Gaining and Sustaining Competitive Advantage has been one of the most influential business textbooks that I have ever been asked to read.

This is a very concise and interesting book on competitive and corporate strategies. It compiles all the main issues regarding studies on competitive advantage withouth losing focus on the specifics of each different kind of strategy.

I would recommend using the book only after a review of microeconomic concepts. This will allow graduate business students coming from other areas (like engineering) to grasp the strategy concepts more easily.

One suggestion: it would be nice if the authors included cases at the end of each chapter. Since the book presents the theory from a basic up to a more advanced level, this would let students to quickly fix the concepts by applying them in real world situations.

This is a very nice reference work for image processing professionals. It is a collection of articles by various experts in aspects of image processing, reporting on the state-of-the-art in their particular domains. The coverage is broad and deep. However, it is not for everyone. The writing style is that of a refereed journal. If you are not comfortable with that style of exposition, or if you are simply trying to find a snippet of code to implement a particular algorithm, this is not the book for you. At the other extreme, do not expect to find new and startling insights into the field that you did your dissertation on. However, if you want to understand the current state of the art of a colleague's field, or if you need to expand your expertise into a new area of image processing, this is a very good place to start.

This is an encyclopedia of image processing topics. It contains some introductory material to help people understand what images are and how to process them. The majority of the text, however, is for experienced people wanting to look up topics.

This book is big. It is about 8"x11" by 900 pages. It contains material from 100 different professionals on 50 different topics.

The style is academic. The editor is the editor of the IEEE Transactions on Image Processing. The page style is similar to what you would see in an IEEE Transaction.

There is plenty of math. The text explains the mathematics, but not to the depth I would like to see.

The authors illustrate the techniques with many images. If there are no "before and after" images in an image processing book, reject it. Well, this book has plenty of images. That is a strong point.

A week point is there is no source code illustrating the techniques and algorithms. I find this a major weakness, but one that is not unique to this book.

The authors leave much to the reader. This is not a read from cover to cover book. The reader must go slow, take notes, study, and read again to understand the material.

All in all, this is a good source of knowledge on image processing. If you work with images and write software to process images, you should have this book on your desk.

This is the book to have on the subject! It covers almost any aspect that you can think of in image/video processing. This is a MATH intensive book and it will not tell you how to directly implement any of its concepts in code. The author assumes that the reader will be able to do this on there own. Topics are very well explained, but sometimes I needed to reread a topic 3 or 4 times and go over the math a couple times to fully understand. Great book to have as an encyclopedia like resource on the shelf.

There is a 2nd edition of this book that was published in July 2005, so all reviews earlier than that are referring to the first edition. Regardless, the second edition of this book is just as good as the first. There are many texts that do a good job of covering image processing, but few do such a good job of covering all of the aspects of video processing - motion detection and estimation, video enhancement and restoration, and video segmentation. There is an entire section on video compression which discusses the H.261 standard, wavelets and video compression, object-based video coding, and the various MPEG standards. There are also articles on video indexing and retrieval and a unified framework for video browsing and retrieval.
In the area of image processing, there is much good information here, but the basics are better explained in "Digital Image Processing" by Gonzales and Woods. Once you master that book, this makes a good secondary reference on image processing. Although this book does go over some image processing basics, it is better at explaining more advanced concepts such as multiframe image restoration, wavelet denoising, 3D shape reconstruction from multiple views, and statistical methods for image segmentation. There are many bad books out there that are collections of articles, but don't let that scare you off. This really is a collection of very good articles published together in a coherent fashion.
There are plenty of equations, example images, and instructive figures in the articles to help explain each concept. Highly recommended.

This book is just GREAT.
It covers almost every single ascpect of image and video processing. Everything is in deep and very good explained. A lot of before-and-after example pictures (important ones in color) are provided too. But beware. You need a fairly good understanding of math to read the book. It is not intended to explain how to use Photoshop, but rather how to write your own ;-)
This book is not a read-along book. Sometimes you have to read a section 2 or 3 times to understand it.
I think sometimes a good Snippet of C-Code would help to understand, but this is acceptable.
Again: A outstanding book, which fully covers all my needs.
The price of 100 us$ is ok, because it's a lot of a book...

Ken Blanchard surely knows what he's teaching. Some people can only take the words, but Ken Blanchard not only took the words, instead he elaborated them and re-defined them into greater values.

If you want to learn practical values of leadership, this book is a must.

Excellent pocket book on small to medium-sized business leadership. The beauty of this book's format is that the reader need only read one page per day to get a great impact. The book is set up so that the reader can view an inspirational quote on the left page and a summary of one of Blanchard's many books on the right page. If desired, the reader can spend only a few minutes per day on one particular subject. In addition, the summary of the particular philosophy discussed includes the name of the book from which the summary came. This allows the reader, if interested, to refer to the book referenced in order to get a more in-depth view of what is being discussed. This is a great book to give as a gift to those business leaders who have not experienced all of Blanchard's philosophies.

A book of over 75 quotes, Ken Blanchard records some of his favorite quotes and then briefly expounds on the main point of the quote. Numerous authors, famous historical figures and leadership experts such as Abraham Lincoln, Don Shula and Norman Vincent Peale are quoted in this book. Very readable and full of great advice on leadership, The Heart of a Leader is concise yet practically helpful. The author is a respected author on leadership, and so this book is appreciated as a good summary of Blancahrd's convictions and insights on leadership. I personally appreciated reading two or three quotes every day for about two months. Some quotes were obvious; some were silly but most were helpful and required thought and reflection. The style made for an easy read; it didn't require a large time commitment to glean the content of the book.

Some important topics that came through these quotes include developing leaders, encouraging those you lead, the value of a team, humility, hard work, the value of keeping a learner's attitude, high quality standards, the importance of understanding how diverse people can be, modeling good examples, morality, the importance of listening to those we lead, vision, goal setting, good communication with those we are leading, enjoying the task of leading, flexibility, the importance of good relationships, being vulnerable, and sharing leadership strategy with others. All of the above topics could probably be books in themselves, but they only get a few paragraphs each in this book. I personally found many of these quotes and the corresponding paragraph of explanation very helpful. The quotes are usually catchy, yet profound and thought inspiring.

I purchased the e-book of "Heart of a Leader." The book is chock full of great tips for a variety of situations with the justification for each tip. It is an excellent reference for any supervisor or manager.

Blanchard takes a "Chicken Soup" approach in this book, capturing the essence of the leadership parables told in his previous works in simple, concise summary format. This is a great reminder for those who have read the other works, or a great introduction for those who haven't. Either way, the essence of Blanchards' winning approach to working with, and getting things done through people is superbly presented.

A quick read, use it for any training classes as pre-reading. The analogies provided proof useful in a variety of settings. I find myself applying them at work and when dealing with other companies. Highly suggested for a framework of professinal development.

If you manage people in a business or organization I highly recommend assigning this book to your employees / co-workers. It only takes a few hours to read, yet leaves the reader with a lifetime of experiences.

Written by business consultant and trainer Mark Kimbell, The Hod Carrier: Leadership Lessons Learned on a Ladder is the deftly written, attention riveting story of Allen Hollings, a 19-year-old college student who decides to get himself a summer job on a construction site -- and finds that this decision will change his life forever. Allen is pushed and driven to the limits of his physical ability and emotional stamina as he struggles to meet the demands of the construction foreman. While learning and practicing the skills of carrying brick and mortar, Allen finds himself learning lessons about discipline, motivation, and time management that will serve him long after his summer job is over and the rest of his life begins. Indeed, Allen applies those hard learned summer job lesson to inspire a powerful work ethic in the lives and attitudes of the men and women he comes to manage in the competitive and hard working world of business. The Hod Carrier draws upon real world conditions laid out in a narrative storytelling which illustrates basic leadership principles that readers will find themselves absorbing interwoven with the genuinely interesting story so adroitly written by gifted communicator Mark Kimbell. The Hod Carrier is not just an another entertaining story, but does what the finest literary fiction has always sought to accomplish -- affecting and influencing the reader long after the novel is read and placed back upon the shelf.

Mark Kimbell's, The Hod Carrier, is one of the most straight-forward, business-applicable books I've read in years. The story about leadership lessons learned on a ladder conjures visions of difficult challenges each of us face. It also provides easy to remember lessons and simple tools such as "Bricks are twice as heavy when you're behind", and "Never forget whose bricks you are laying."

Mark's writing style is a Ken Blanchard-esque story style. The story itself is compelling, descriptive and so intriguing that you won't want it to end.

Carl Koetter
President
Koetter Training Resources, LLC

The Hod Carrier is a quick, easy read, but the message is profound. Mark Kimbell is as interesting on paper as he is in person. The concepts in this book apply in almost every area of life, and are illustrated in an entertaining and memorable way. The author creates wonderful visual images as he writes, and by the end of the book I felt almost as if I had experienced the events described along with the characters. I highly recommend The Hod Carrier. I will definitely read it again.