Quake Books

You may need to skip over some parts of the book to leave some suspense, especially if you're a first-time player of this game. The walkthroughs detail the maps in every hub, including the weapons and other units that could be gathered. One limitation is the elevation in the maps; you can't discern altitudes. Walkthroughs give you specific pointers on how to go to your objectives the most efficient way.

As for the book's multiplayer tips, use of keyboard and mouse is stressed for efficiency. It needs a little working-on on positioning in maps to give you a competitive advantage.

If you are looking for a serious mystery, this is not one. However if you are looking for something light then this would be it. It was funny to have your MIL arrested, but the way the son acted like he didn't care drove me insane. The husband/wife did not have a good relationship and that bothered me too.

I did however like the PI and their adventures. I was disappointed in the battering wife theme going on too. I am not going to comment on that topic, but I am not sure it should be in a fiction book either of this sort. Especially when Mr Faulk is confronted and then they just leave her?

Again, this was an entertaining book. However, like I think most fiction isn't to be taken seriously, this sure isn't either! Have fun with it!

Carolyn and Jason Blue are off to San Francisco. Jason will be attending a conference on environmental chemistry and toxicology in their hotel the Stanford Court. Carolyn calls her mother-in-law only to get a message on her answering machine that she has been arrested for first-degree murder. At first Jason doesn't believe her, but then he hears the message too.

Since Jason is tied up in his conference, Carolyn goes to visit her. Vera Blue, her mother-in-law, tells her not to investigate. She says the police will figure out their mistake. Once Carolyn meets with Vera's lawyer Margaret Hanrahan and Inspector Harry Yu, she realizes she'd better start looking into things because no one else is. The police feel they have the murderer.

Carolyn and Jason move over to Vera's sublet so that it will be easier for Vera to get messages to them. In the process, Carolyn meets Bruno Valetti who lives on the second floor. He is totally smitten with Vera and ends up helping Carolyn with part of her investigation.

Jason contacts his dad, Vera's ex-husband, and he flies into town and hires private detective Sam Flamboise, a gay former football player turned private eye. Sam and Carolyn do a lot of the detecting together. There are so many potential suspects. They quite often end up in seedy locations. Plus Jason is not too excited to find out they have been riding on Sam's motorcycle.

This was the first book I've read in this series. I like Carolyn a lot. This was a very enjoyable story. I thought she blended some great characters together and I found the story to be quite believable.

My only frustration was with the fact that a chapter can be written from a different character's perspective. She lists at the beginning of each chapter who is speaking, but I read in small bursts and found myself forgetting who was talking. I can see in other books (I've since read another in this series) this really helps the story. I just didn't find it as helpful in this one.

I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading more in this series.

This book was one of only four that I, in this lifetime, have thrown across the room. It was the worst kind of mystery drivel, with ridiculous and contrived detecting by amateurs and a parade of shibboleths and caricatures. The scenery comes across as written by a tourist rather than a local, and the protagonist is in no way sympathetic or likeable.

Hands down the most disturbing thing about this book, however, is the bold racism that comes across in Fairbanks' depiction of characters of any ethnicity. Foul.

I never know how well I am going to like each entry in this series. They are rather inconsistent and this one falls somewhere in the middle of the rest. In this episode, Carolyn Blue and her husband are in San Francisco. Upon arriving, Carolyn dutifully calls her mother-in-law, who lives there, only to discover that she has been jailed on a murder charge.

As with her other books, Ms. Fairbanks, has written each chapter from the perspective of either Carolyn, her husband, or, in this case, the private detective hired to help find the real murderer. The chapter is then written in first person from that character's viewpoint.

There were several errors in this book. Twice was Carolyn to be written in the first person, but she was referred to in the third. Another error - the male private detective tells Carolyn that he has a relationship with a man, she comments on it, and then about 10 pages later, he tells her again and she is shocked. And, Carolyn and the detective go to a bar and order a Corona beer which is served to them on tap. Unless something has changed in the last year or so, Corona is only served in bottles.

And while this is not an error, I found it incredibly strange that Jason Blue, son of the accused murdered does absolutely nothing other than have his father hire the detective, to free his mother. If my mother were in jail, I would be doing whatever it took to get her out.

Not for sure if I will be buying the next in this series or not.

I checked this book and "Truffled Feather" out from our library at the same time. While I thought the food writer + mystery would be a great premise, I was sadly disappointed with these two books. The plots are okay but I was distracted with the author's characterization of Carolyn Blue--a "Forty-Something" writer. I have no idea how old the author is, but she writes from the point of view of someone who has no idea what it is to be in your 40s in 2003 (when this book was published, and presumably, the time frame in which it was set.)I am 43, and Carolyn Blue comes across as more of my mother's age (69). In this book, Carolyn marvels at her ability to use the internet (hello? she has 2 kids in college!),and describes her first motorcycle ride from the perspective of well, my mother! The author's descriptions of Carolyn's wardrobe and hairstyle bring to mind 1970-s style polyester. Carolyn Blue has no sense of humor, and she is just not a very likable heroine. Even the food columns interspersed through the book sound stilted and prissy. In both books, Carolyn comes across as self-centered and self-righteous. The potential for an amusing, fun mystery is there, but the results are rather annoying. This problem with the character ruins the premise of these books for me...I won't be reading any more!

This book takes you by surprise. Dr. Hayford starts by saying that the book is more a collection of sermons than his usual careful exegesis of scripture with footnotes and documentation. However this book makes more sense than all of the commentaries and rants of other authors combined. Dr. Hayford sets out to make the book of Revelation understandable as a book of worship and practical application for our lives today. Along the way he gives us insights into the real meaning and some clarity of the prophetic. Here are some nuggets to wet your appetite:

"The book of Revelation is the newspaper of tomorrow, but it is also a handbook for today. It forecasts a series of terrible and terrifying events, but at the same time it provides a perspective on the whole that affords us very practical hope" (page 7). "The book of Revelation is not a revelation of `stuff'; it is a revelation of Jesus. It is not a revelation of information; it is a revelation of Jesus. It is not a revelation of prophesies; it is a revelation of Jesus" (page 29). "The book of Revelation was not given to us as a book for speculation. It was not given as a coffee table book for the saints to sit around and talk about because it would be `fun to guess.' It was given for very pragmatic reasons: to encourage in the midst of trial, to motivate in the time of opportunity, to bring us to worship and praise before the Lord, and to realize that in the spirit of praise around His timeless throne, there is constantly an unscrolling of God's purpose in motion, which is worldwide, yet personal in its implications" (page 111).

This book may startle you by its conclusions. If you are a pre-trib dispensationalist or a Tim LaHaye fan, this book probably isn't for you. Dr. Hayford is very clear about his feelings on that approach: "The book of Revelation becomes distorted when a linear approach is taken. It is easy to become confused with this approach because the book of Revelation is not written in a linear fashion. It is a series of prophecies that are seen from different viewpoints" (page 137). "People want to turn it [the book of Revelation] into a linear progression from chapter 4 though the end of the book, but it can't be done. It can't be done without creating more questions and problems, which are strained at and worked at until we end up with something that has a certain amount of satisfaction: `Well, we've got that thing lined up.' The only problem is that anytime we think we have a prophecy lined up, we soon discover that we didn't have it as lined up as we thought. We end up speculating about everything that happens" (Page 179).

To conclude, if you want to make sense of the seals, and the trumpets, and all of the various overlapping symbols, events, and people, this book will help. If you want a neat system of theology that raptures you out of here at the first sign of trouble I recommend anything Dr. LaHaye writes instead. Blessings...

My rebuttals are extremely pointed, but are given with the deepest respect for the person and ministry of Pastor Jack Hayford.
Problem one: Chapter two of E Quake focuses on worship as being the key to unlocking the vision. Pastor Jack mentions the struggling churches of Revelation 2 and 3, and rightly states that worship brings our focus onto Jesus, not methods, as the answer to any weakness present among His people.
However, I disagree with the position he takes that the worshipful giving away of resources in a financially struggling congregation guarantees the overflow of God's provisional blessing. The story he tells to verify this doctrine takes place, as all such stories regarding the prosperity doctrine do, in an American church. He argues that his point is correct because it worked. Of course it "worked!" But it doesn't "work" in the other 95% of the world.
The Lord's people in struggling third-world churches are no less loved by God than prosperous American churches, and they constantly give what little they have to support the Lord's work among them. We do these brothers and sisters wrong to mistake our privilege for entitlement!
The Bible nowhere teaches that being godly insulates a person from suffering. In fact, the Bible does much to dispel that theological error. The book of Job soundly refutes such nonsense, as does Jesus Himself, Paul, James, and yes, even the book of Revelation. It isn't for nothing that God comforts His people in Revelation 7:16 by saying that in His Presence, they will never again suffer from hunger pangs, dehydration, or lack if shelter!
Poverty is not a lack of faith.
One of the most touching messages I ever heard came from a Ugandan minister who told our congregation how his people walk for several hours to come to church, wearing the one piece of clothing they own. They cry out to God in intercession for America, with tears streaming down their faces, because "American Christians are a people of little obedience." The Ugandan Christians intercede hungry much of the time, not because they are fasting, but because they don't have enough food to eat.
These Christians know want. This minister has to answer very hard questions among his people, questions like, "If Jesus loves me so much, why does my baby have no food?"
Problem two: Pastor Jack gives several illustrations from his own ministry in chapter four of E Quake. It is to one of these examples that I desire to respond. I have been exposed to this particular illustration twice: at a function Jack Hayford spoke at, and in written form in E Quake. Both times it has disturbed me greatly.
In no way do I question his sincerity or motives. I don't doubt that he is completely unaware that he speaks from an experience of privilege. Yet pain is caused by the supposition he promotes, and although it is unintentional and innocent, it hurts, nevertheless.
His example is that a mechanic is a mechanic because God created him to be one. He does it because he loves it and wouldn't want to do anything else. He wasn't made to work in an office on Wall Street. Being a mechanic is his "place" in the world.
Ouch.
People of means, that is, those who have the luxury of choosing for themselves what kind of job will let them feel fulfilled, no doubt applaud this saying. They could be engineers, bankers, or politicians at their whim; or, if it so suits their desire, mechanics. It doesn't matter. They can pursue whatever they wish. They are privileged; life has many options, none of which involves suffering.
However, there is a different reality for those who were not born white, male, and privileged. In most cases, a mechanic or a waitress, day laborer, car wash attendant, etc., does the job they do not because they find fulfillment in it, not because they wouldn't want to work in a cushy office, and not because they love to sweat, but because they never had an opportunity to do any better.
Unlike the privileged class, their parents couldn't afford to send them to college so that they could rise above blue-collar level. They are desperate single moms struggling to raise several kids on minumum wage, because dad bailed out on paying child support. They come from a background of poverty where they are toiling up from generations of hardship caused by prejudice.
Are we to believe that this hardship is their ordained "place?" Please!
People who hold down two and three minimum wage jobs simultaneously that offer no health insurance and that barely make ends meet don't do so because they love it! They have no choice.
Perhaps the mechanic Pastor Jack mentions hates his job. Perhaps he dreamed of better things, once. But lacking the "connections" that opens the doors to the better things of life, dreams give way to reality. So, he works as a mechanic to put food on the table.
This is not as far-fetched as it sounds. I know a Guatemalan pediatric nurse who, due to the red tape of licensing differences, works here in the U.S. in a deli market all day. She hates it, but it pays the bills.
Only a generation ago, the white American population believed Latino crop pickers happily chose a nomadic life. They were meant to work the fields; it was their "place." The privileged believed blacks were created with less intelligence and were made to be second-class. They were expected to remember to keep their "place." Much the same is still believed about women.
Are these people or their forbearers created to be less than their potential because they are outside of America's privileged class? Was the lady who used to be a nurse but is forced by circumstance to be a deli clerk "made" by God to be a deli clerk or a nurse? It borders on the absurd!
The descendents of slaves are now lawyers, teachers, and scientists. The children of Vietnam War "house girls" have become accomplished musicians and students since immigrating to America. A homeless woman was recently admitted to Harvard.
So what does all this say? That slaves are created to be slaves, house girls created to be prostitutes, or homeless people created to wander the streets desolate? Hardly! Yet their progeny might have suffered the same fate had not opportunity arisen.
It is just as cruel to propose that hotel maids, grocery baggers, or gas station attendants are "made" by God to be lower caste. We are Christians, not Hindus. Status and privilege are simply that.

Once again, Jack Hayford brings the Ancient Word to life for the modern reader. E Quake is a straightforward presentation of the Book of Revelation: not a verse by verse commentary, nor an emotionaly charged devotional. Hayford gives an honest appraisal of the what and why of Revelation, along with presenting the idea that Revelation is not so much about a future doomsday, but about present opportunities to give worship and do warfare in the name of Jesus Christ, who is coming in glory.

"A NEW Approach to Understanding the End Time Mysteries in the Book of Revelation"? That sub-title right there told me this book is false. Dr. Harry Ironside, one of America's greatest theologians of the past made this statement that certainly applies to Jack Hayford's book: "Be careful of any teaching that is new; it might not be true." There were other problems with the book as well. Jack Hayford downplays how bad the tribulation will be and makes the reader believe it's simply a bad time of persecution, rather than great calamity. The tribulation is a time to punish the ungodly and a time for God to deal with Israel again. The church will NOT be here. Stephen King couldn't put together what's really going to happen during the earth's darkest hour! Where in the world does Hayford come up with the idea that the white horse in Revelation 6 is Jesus? Jesus has already been crowned in Revelation 4 by the saints in heaven and doesn't have to work for the crowns as Hayford thinks. Didn't Hayford bother to look at the Greek words for "crown" in Revelation 6 and Revelation 19? They're two different words! "Crown" in chapter 6 is the word "stephanos" while chapter 19 is the word "diadema". Obviously, they're two different words! He also makes the rapture no big deal. Believe me, it will be a big deal! Hayford symbolizes the book of Revelation too much, a great danger to anyone studying Revelation. In short, the pre-wrath view of the rapture has seized America like a prairie fire. That's sad because it's a false theory that dates back to about 1977 or somewhere in the '70s. That's a far cry from the Pre-trib rapture that dates to the time of Christ and the Apostle Paul. Other writers have written commentaries on Revelation and they're pre-trib. Amazing how they've been preserved all these years! What makes this generation anymore special than past generations? Past generations spent much more time in the Bible. Today's generation is dumb compared to scholars up to 100 years ago. As my review title says, Hayford should stick with other topics in the Bible, ones he's better at. His view of Revelation is in serious error and is a far cry from "the blessed hope" in Titus 2:13.

Although this book is not very long, Jack Hayford does an excellent job of introducing readers to the Book of Revelation. Of all the books in the new testament, I have always found Revelations the most difficult to understand. I am glad that Pastor Jack Hayford has finally written a book that gives definitive insight into some of the symbols, terms, and messages contained in the text.

Luckily for the reader, he does not try and explain every single verse in Revelations. So, if you are looking for an extremely detailed explanation of Revelations- don't buy this book.

Instead Pastor Hayford tries to give the reader a basic understanding of why Revelation was written, how the book is structured (something that I definitely misunderstood until I read this book), and what it means to us today. The one great lesson that became crystal clear to me after reading this book, is the importance of worshipping God in a Christian's life. Many Christians, myself included, underestimate the power and importance of worship in their Christian walk. Just like prayer, it a fundamental discipline that can make a world of difference in your life, and the life of the Church.

Just like one of the previous reviewers mentions, I hope Pastor Hayford does another follow-up book about Revelations. Now that I have a fundamental understanding of the book, I would like to dig a little deeper, and gain even greater insight.

I recommend this book to anyone who has struggled with trying to understand the Book of Revelations. If you are looking for an excellent source to give you a basic understanding of Revelations, look no further. Get a copy of this book and add it to your Christian library.

Sadly this thing only really covers Map making,with the title it has I would cry foul and demand your money back,unless you are focusing on maping.

While this book does primarily cover mapping for Quake 4 (which is a form of modding), it also covers other aspects of modding (although in lesser detail). However, if you want to make a new level for the game, this book rocks. It comes with complete examples on making maps from start to finish. It shows you how to make custom textures for your maps and characters. Then it shows you how to package and release your map to the world.

[...]

Definitely worth the price. You'll be making your own maps for your friends or clan by the end of the weekend.

The title is Quake 4 Mods for Dummies. The tag line is "Ever wonder what Quake 4 would be like if it included that especially cool weapon you dreamed up? Here's the fun and easy way® to find out." But here's the deal: it will show you how to INCLUDE that fancy new weapon, but not how to make it. Nor will it tell you how to change the gameplay mechanics of the game.
What you get instead is 200+ pages of how to make maps. At the end of that is a small section on how to make a GUI, reskin models, and package them for putting into the game.
I'm giving it 3 stars because it seems like a pretty nice map tutorial, but this is NOT a book on how to make mods. If you wanted to learn how to make that machine-gun-shotgun, you're out of luck here. If you wanted to find out how to make new power-ups, you're out of luck here.
Summary, the book would be better named Quake 4 Mapping for Dummies.

The Book refers you to a web site for additional code; however, the web site does not contain any information about the book. This makes it difficult to follow the instruction.

Don't let the size of this book fool you.
ID put together an incredible program with Quake series,
and this is THE book to read about it!
Good Job.

A fairly good guide with some nice pics and maps. But in retrospect, who would want to buy a walkthrough for QUAKE II anyway ?

The maps and technical input was very well put. I enjoyed going back and catching secrets I had missed. Although, I don't agree with all the strategy tips and firmly believe people should try their own strategy first, it was a nice follow-up guide. I think Mr. Wessel did an excellent job, but left out the main reason I bought the book. Their are no tittle key references. I really needed some advice in that area and I didn't find any. Overall the book was very in depth, but lacked shortcuts. I enjoyed it thouroghly none the less. Thanks for the book. - Jake

This translation of the work of Pedro Sarmiento de Gamboa is both riveting and detailed. As an account of the history of the Incas it is unsurpassed in its accuracy, presenting evidence gained from the Incas themselves circa 1570AD. Events and occurrences are vividly portrayed although the reader is always left with a sense of myth being mixed with fact. Also the annoying use of Italics to mark out the obvious and often contradictory statements forced to be included in the book by the Spanish Viceroy of the time is somewhat demeaning.

Despite this the translation serves as a fascinating read and as a lucid and detailed account of the history of the Incas. The translator has also included an invaluable lexicon of Quechua words and useful maps of the areas in question that add a realism to the book that would be otherwise unachievable.

A stunning and informative read this work is equally capable of being a book of general interest or an accurate academic source. However the prime benefit of this book is not its authenticity but its rich detail that illustrates the lifestyle of the ancient Incas in a truly vivid manner. It is also interesting to note the strong religious superiority that is portrayed by the author and the attitudes of the Spanish conquistadors towards the Incas that were apparent during this period of history and to observe how these factors shaped the type of history that was recorded during this period, a fact that is all to easy to overlook.

The *hero* is rather 1930's in attitude and it is some time in the future, with exotic weapons and cars. Took several pages to get going, but grows on one. Not a bad read at all. If Bond and The Saint are up your alley, you should like this one

The book was OK for the beginner but don't get it if you have the full version. The book is woefully short on picture (they are non existent) but overall it is an OK book to get the novice Quake player started.

This book is not a book but a magazine. Its the spanish version of PC gamer. If you understand spanish, then this mag is for you. If you like the articles in pcgamer then you'll like the depth here. Its a good enough stratedy, secret, ... guide for quake2/unreal.