Computers Books

I agree with many of the other reviewers - this book is great. I recently got Mathematica and found the imbedded Help browser a little cryptic at times. I purchased Mathematica Navigator after reading many of the reviews here. I haven't read the book from cover to cover, but instead use it as a reference after having read chapters 1 through 3.

I'm studying Matrix algebra, so I skipped to Chapter 18 and worked through the examples without any problem, save a small error on page 467 where an upper case P was typed in lower case.

Highly recommend for anyone wanting help making the most out of very powerful software.

Very well written and full of useful information to start learning Mathematica. It covers all the foundamentals.

This is a GREAT reference book. You won't learn how to program Mathematica from it. You will learn an amazing amount about how Mathematica works by reading it. If you don't believe me, check out it's thorough explanation of cubic splines. It's better than the Mathematica Help. It also comes with the complete book which can be installed in the Mathematica help system.

There is, literally, a wealth of information to work with in this book.

I would also strongly recommend getting An Introduction to Programming with Mathematica, Third Edition. This is a first rate "course in a book" for programming.

There are other books which are good. Between these two books, you will have an amazing arsenal to work with!

Paul

Mathematica is an excellent program, with good built-in and online documentation - although many feel the Documentation Centre in version 6 is not as good as the Help Browser in version 5.2. But sooner or later you will find a problem for which the official Mathematica documentation does not help. The program can then be very frustrating, as the syntax is complicated and error messages can be very cryptic. Help online is painfully slow, as the official resource, the news group comp.soft-sys.math.mathematica (Mathgroup), is moderated, so help requests have to be approved before they will appear. (The newsgroup sci.math.symbolic is sometimes helpful and since its not controlled by Wolfram Research, posts appear immediately). Hence Mathematica users will need one or more good books - more so than with other similar programs such as Maple or Matlab.

In addition to the book Mathematica Navigator by Ruskeepaa, I own several other books on Mathematica, including:
* The Mathematica Book, Fifth Edition by Stephen Wolfram
* The Mathematica Guidebook: Programming by Michael Trott.
* The Mathematica GuideBook for Symbolics (w/ DVD) by Michael Trott.
* Schaum's Outline of Mathematica by Eugene Don
* An Introduction to Programming with Mathematica, Third Edition by Paul Wellin
* Programming in Mathematica (3rd Edition) by Roman Maeder - I also own the first edition.
* The Beginners Guide to MathematicaRG, Version 4 by Jerry Glynn and Theordore Gray

plus a few more old books I've either had a very long time or bought very cheaply on Amazon.

Given the choice of only one book, I would choose Mathematica Navigator by Ruskeepaa. It comes with a CD-ROM which has the whole contents of the book, which may be integrated into Mathematica's help system. It's not unique in that respect, as so do Micheal Trott's Mathematica Guidebooks, but they have far too much irrelevant material in them. Ruskeepaa's book sticks to important facts about Mathematica. The book covers a wide range of topics. Sometimes I wish in more depth, but the book offers a good compromise between width and depth. In particular, the information on writing Mathematica programs is far too short, so its unlikely to satisfy someone wanting to write a major Mathematica package. For writing packages, Programming in Mathematica (3rd Edition) by Roman Maeder based on Mathematica 3 is arguably still the best, although Maeder's 1997 book is very old.

The only significant fault I can find of Ruskeepaa's book is its age. Mathematica 6 is a really major upgrade from 5 with many functions now built into the kernel which previously needed to be loaded from packages. Many functions or options have been deprecated. As such, some of the information is no longer accurate. But given at the time of writing (December 2007) there is no book on Mathematica 6 published, I think Ruskeepaa's book, which is based on version 5, is the best Mathematica users can get. However, if by the time you read this, someone has published a book on Mathematica 6, then it might be worth buying that instead.

I would have given this 5 stars, but it is getting a bit dated now.

I liked the first version so much that I bought this second edition also. The first edition was based on Mathematica 3 but this second edition is based on Mathematica 5 (Mathematica 6 has only just shipped within the past 2 months).

As did the first edition, this second edition comes with a cd that contains the entire book in Mathematica notebook form. The style sheets used to format the second edition cd notebooks are much cleaner looking than the first.

At anyrate, I definitely recommend the second edition even if you already have the first edition.

The further back in the book, the more vanilla it got. I can see why one person wrote that the author was obsessed with the Wizards. (paraphrased)

I love the scenarios and best practices in the first part of the book.
Later on you wonder why they put in some of the chapters. This book may be a good place to start if you know nothing. I enjoyed much of the book, but I need to buy another book that gets more into the specifics.

This is a collaborative work by current practitioners of Small Business Server (SBS), each of whom contributed their forté to the contents. Consequently, it is the most detailed, if not the most current book on SBS available today. The latest version of SBS is R2 and this book is based on Service Pack 1, but the differences are minor and so it is definitely as relevant today as it was at publication. It may be steep for some novices, but for those confident in their Windows fundamentals, this is a worthwhile investment. Absolute beginners should consider Windows Small Business Server 2003 R2 for a gentler introduction.

I've only had the book for about a week. So far I'm very happy with the all the detailed explanations. This book is easy to read, both for beginners and veterans in the tech community. Neale gives many recommedations which have help me compare and refine my own costums. I recommend this book to anyone looking into installing and maintaining SBS 2003.

I own quite a few books on Microsoft Small Business Server 2003 and this book by Eriq Neale and his co-authors is the ONE that has the most dog eared pages. I bought this book shortly after it came out and look at it Frequently.

It has helped me with the current SBS 2003 Servers I manage and given me tips and ideas I had not thought about before. This book covers SBS Server 2003 from installation to completion and just about eveything in between. This includes stuff like how to integrate Macintosh workstations and using Group Policy in an SBS 2003 environment, and much more.

If you are "New" to Small Business Server or have been using SBS 2003 for a little while, I would suggest you order this book and READ it! It will be worth your money, in my opinion.

An extremely valuable resource. I found it well written and full of essential, useful information.

This book is like a SQL SERVER 2000 bible for me. It has the most wonderful information in it, clear and easy to understand. I needed to interview for a job and I looked to this book for clarity and knowledge and boy was I enlightened. A must read for a beginner DBA like myself!!!!!

I have been a DBA for a bunch of small sites for many years. Recently I committed to a job w/ a large, online OLTP retailer and needed to fine tune my knowledge of the SQL Server engine.

I was shocked at just how flawed/lacking my knowledge was after reading this book.

Let me first state this sucker isn't for people looking to get by using the Enterprise Manger GUI. This book dissects the inner most workings of the db engine and it's under lying theory. Their is a lot of TSQL. I found myself limited to reading only a small number of pages at a time and then needing a break. The book is that intense and I have a Masters of Science degree as well as MCDBA and MCITP certifications.

Probably my favorite feature of the book is its small size, under 400 pages from tip to tail. I'd suggest this book to anyone wanting an understanding of what they are actually doing in SQL Server when they issue commands from EM. This book should be a requirement for any DBA or DB Designer in my opinion.

This is the best book ever written on performance tuning. Excellent text and very well written too. Thanks a lot.

I have been working with SQL for several years and always felt a bit weak in my understanding of best practices. I have only absorbed a few chapters so far on index structure and execution plans but already I feel like I have fast tracked into the clever peoples class. The layout is excellent and the language unambigous.

I am a SQL Server performance consultant to many large corporations and government agencies. I have read and re-read this book so many times I should know it by heart. Still, I carry it with me on consulting engagements everywhere I go. There is almost always someone at my client's site who wants to improve their performance tuning skills. I show them the book and tell them this is where you start.

I don't know if there will be a version specifically for 2005, but it really doesn't matter much. The central concepts of the book have not changed for SQL Server 2005.

Ken England's writing style is clean and lucid. He can explain complex issues in a remarkably understandable way. His explanation of indexes and strategies of indexing is a great example of readable technical writing. He also has a good understanding of what is important and what is not.

This book is accessible to anyone who has some experience with SQL Server or any relational database. Someone with little experience may not get it all in one pass, but they will be much better prepared for real-world SQL Server performance tuning.

This book is well written and contains a lot of great content about Internet marketing. It was written by three CEO's whom have made their own success. I would say that its focus is more from the serious business perspective than for the armature home business newbie looking for some "how to?". But still this book was definitely worth my time. It was easily worth my 12 dollars! This book has many references which will really help out and all the theory is backed by statistics making all the data very convincing. I am sure that if any of those dot com's had this data, there would be more of them still around :)

One of the hardest things about being successful on the Internet is keeping up with the pace at which the playing field keeps changing. I found this book to be extremely well-written, and more importantly, presents information in a way that's not dated by the time you've read it. It's good, simple, common-sense advice for what works. Loved the case studies. It's an invaluable resource for entrepreneurs who can benefit from others' experiences.

There are many titles that deal with the topic of web marketing. Net Results.2 stands head and shoulders above the rest. It addresses the complexities faced by both novice and experienced marketers and provides solid, understandable advice for achieving success at either level. Great case studies help pull the advice into context and give the reader insight into tried and true methodologies that really work. The real beauty of this book, however, is that it provides AFFORDABLE advice for how to garner online success and build traffic. I believe that many of the now failed dot.com startups would still be around today had they heeded the advice available in Net Results.2.

Bought this to read over the weekend. Was a very good read, but what I found amazing is at least 1/3 off the web resources they list are either dead links or offer a totally different services than what was discussed in the book. Great for basics, great ideas - but they really need to update the book (which I would buy)

NetResults.2 is an overview of what is necessary to market a web site. Nine chapters explain things from Investment Goals to Public Relations. Each chapter has pictorial examples of the explanation and a Resource section at the end of each chapter. The book is printed in an easy-to-read font, large enough to make reading a breeze.

The Content section contains seven pages, an appendix of Internet Resources is nine-pages and the index section is seventeen pages long making it user-friendly. On each cover is an extra "turn over" so you can "bookmark" where you stopped reading and as an added incentive, the book cover is plastisized so you can read and drink your coffee without fear of spillage!

I purchased this four volume set when I was studying Greek at Denver Seminary, back in 1989 as it was highly recommend by my Greek professor. I used it quite a bit during seminary and even after that in my personal Bible studies, and more so when I started working on my Analytical-Literal Translation of the New Testament: Third Edition (ALT).

The arrangement of this set is by English not Greek words. But the fourth volume provides an index to where the discussion on Greek words can be found.

For each entry, the English word is given in bold, then the basic Greek word in a box. Then variant forms of the Greek word are given and synonymous Greek words, each with an English equivalent. Then the main article begins with a discussion of the use of the word(s) in classical literature. Then there's a discussion of the usages of the word(s) in the LXX translation of the Hebrew, OT, often indicating what Hebrew word the LXX was translating, and finally is the discussion of the usage on the NT.

So lots of information is presented, and if you read through the entire article for a word, you will definitely gain full knowledge of the history and usage of the word. However, the thoroughness of this set can sometimes be a drawback. It is just too much information and takes too long to read through. Most of the time when studying a word, you don't need that much background, so standard lexicons, like the ones on the BibleWorks 7 software program, provide sufficient info.

But that said, I am glad I purchased this set when I did. I didn't refer to it that often in my translation work, but on the occasions that I did, it helped to clarify how to translate a particular word.

For instance, some claim that "porneia" only refers to prostitution. The article in volume one of this set explains that this was originally the sense of the word. However, by the time of Christ, "porneia" referred to any kind of sexual intercourse outside of a Biblically lawful marriage (pp. 497-501). As such, I rendered this as word as "sexual sin" with the alternative translation of "fornication." I explain in more detail the reasons for these renderings in the Glossary contained in the Companion Volume to the Analytical-Literal Translation: Third Edition. The information for that glossary entry was mainly taken from the article in this set.

This set is also helpful when working on articles for my Web site. And it would be helpful in sermon preparation.

All that said, this volume is rather expensive. So only get it if you really think you will need in-depth word studies for transition work, sermon preparation, and the like. Less expensive lexicons and software programs will provide sufficient information for less serious Bible studies.

`New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology' edited in its English translation from the German by Colin Brown, is the most useful DICTIONARY on this subject I have found over the last two years of teaching Bible study. It is a true dictionary, with a primary focus on Greek etymology in classical Greek literature (Homer, Hesiod, playwrights, Plato, Aristotle, historians), the Greek translations of the Old Testament, and the New Testament, with distinctions made between Synoptic, Pauline, and other uses of the same term.
Before acquiring this work, I wrestled with `Theological Dictionary of the New Testament', edited in German and completed around 1933 by Gerhard Kittel, and translated into English by Geoffrey W. Bromiley, which has 10 huge volumes filled with a wealth of information, except that everything is organized by original Greek terms, and my reading of Greek is simply not up to snuff yet. So, while I have never been disappointed by this resource, it is simply too clumsy to use for the quick check on a meaning.
Brown's translation, on the other hand is marvelously organized by English words, with a transliteration of the Greek into English characters, followed by the original Greek script. Super, when the term you want is one of the major terms. A fly enters the ointment when the term you want is secondary to a more common word. I ran into this situation when I tried to look up `mute' (kophos) which my annotated Bibles told me could bean both deaf and dumb. Well, there was simply nothing there in volume 2 (G - Pre) under `mute'. By this means, I discovered the great value of Volume 4, the `Indexes'. `mute' was here in abundance, with the primary entry (within the entry for `dumb') highlighted, and I was merrily on my way.
I discovered an even greater value to this work when I looked up `hypocrisy', to help me understand the use of the word in Luke (who happens to use if far less frequently than Matthew). A recent lecture on Matthew stated that `hypocrisy' didn't mean the same to the ancients as it does to us. I did not entirely trust this observation. As I stated above, this Dictionary gives at least three different interpretations of words, one for classical Greek, one for Old Testament (LXX) Greek, and one for New Testament Greek. Well, classical Greek did mean an actor or explainer of narrative in dramas who may have performed with a mask. But usage in the Synoptics is virtually identical to our modern meaning. Even better, Luke's quote of Jesus may even been a metaphor using both meanings, one who explains as well as one who does not believe what they preach.
I was even more pleased with the book when it confirmed an interpretation I had of Luke's use of `yeast', which disagreed with the notes in my study bible. Brown, et. al. even went so far as to point out the common mis-interpretation of `yeast' in this context.
You may be using `Vines Complete Expository Dictionary', which puts everything in a single volume and is keyed to Strong's concordances. I've used Vines often, but I also often find this book light on interpretations in all parts of scripture. Vines is good, but this set of four smallish volumes is better for quick, but discriminating reference. Of course, it also has all the usual scholarly doo-dads, which are great, but not as important as the sound, discerning interpretations.

We are very pleased with the service and product. There were a few glitches but were cleared up immediately. I am very happy with the service. Thank's to all involved

A must for any bible study. As Greek has been transliterated there is really no need to even know the original language. The articles are AMAZING!!! AMEN!!!

The transliteration of the Greek is the only draw-back to this work as personally I prefer the Greek terms and in the Greek word order.Allow me to explain why. I do not use the NIV, though I know it to be a trustworthy translation, thus I tend to come directly from the Greek text to this. Thus I usually find the term, I am searching, in the transliterated indexed 4th volume. So if this was in the Greek word order and untransliterated it would prove easier. But enough of my crying! It IS WORTHY TO BE PURCHASED!

I also supplement this set with 'Theological Lexicon of The New Testament' by Ceslas Spicq, which tends to develop words the NIDNNT and Kittle have omitted. The TLNT is in the Greek word order and untransliterated, so it may feel odd to some who are not yet aquainted with the Greek.

Without question purchase the NIDNNT prior to the TLNT by Spicq as you will gain far more use from it.

soli deo gloria

I hate to be the only one not giving this a 5 (but four means it's great). [NOTE: My rating was accidentally registered as a five] Others have already highlighted how great this is. In many respects, it is superior to Kittel's Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (10 volumes). I've owned my set since 1980, when it was three volumes (the current fourth volume is an index). I can't give it five stars because 1) organizing by English words is very difficult and annoying for those of us who can look it up in Greek word order, like all the other Greek resources (20 minutes learning the Greek alphabet is all it would take for someone who doesn't read Greek). 2) Like so many other works geared to both those who read Greek and those who don't, it uses transliteration in the articles. I think that's the ONLY thing I like better about Kittel's - no transliteration! 3) This is not cost-effective compared to the absolutely outstanding and inexpensive "abridged" version of this set (see more below).

I've used DNTT for years. I always come away from reading articles quite edified. It's a tremendous resource. It's so good I overlook it's organizational faults.

However, consider the following:

Zondervan quietly put out an abridged version of this. Nothing important is missing! See my review of the New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology - Abridged Edition here on Amazon for more details. That is only $23, while this four volume set is $93. That uses the odd English based organizing system, the abridged is easier to use and all words are listed in Greek word order. They crammed the information into one volume by shrinking the type (still plenty big), moving to a double column format, and making the book taller and deeper than the original size. Read more about it at my review.

If you are considering this set, you may want to consider the abridged instead. When I've used the abridged, I never feel cheated because they kept all the relevant stuff! I have all the major theological dictionaries of the NT (TDNT, DNTT, Exegetical Dictionary of the NT, and Spicq's TNLT) and I use them routinely. I'm telling you that the Abridged version of this is not a kiddie version. It's the real thing. It's the best kept secret in scholarly resources for the NT! Don't feel like you're slighting yourself by getting the abridged, you're not. Now the abridged Kittel's, by contrast, is a different story. That was a serious abridgement and a serious compromise of the original. I sold that on eBay. I retain and use the original.

A great supplement to this set (or the abridged version) is Spicq's Theological Lexicon of the New Testament. See my review of that. It is far more theologically refreshing and insightful than either this set or TDNT (EDNT is the most bland, but it has its strengths).

May God bless you in your pursuit of a greater understanding of Holy Scripture.

Though the Financials OCP exam is being retired, the Financials package itself remains unchanged. This book is still the best introduction to how to use Oracle Financials.

The exam this book relates to retires in about 2 weeks from now and Oracle Corporation has not given an indication of what will succeed this exam.

How relevant is the book if I can't use it for the specified exams?

This is the most thorough book on Financials I've seen. A must-have, whether you're going for the OCP certification or not.

Most complete treatment of Financials I've seen. Excellent book.

Top notch all the way around. Got me through all five exams. That OCP logo looks mighty good on my resume!

This book is more than just a restoration and retouching. Mark Fitzgerald has included the basics of photoshop in a clear and easy to understand way. The book is easy to navigate and find answers to your questions. One of his suggestions saved me hours of work. I highly recommend this book, it is a must have in anyone's photoshop library!

I've been working with Mark's book at my side for about a month now; it's clearly the best, most easily organized Photoshop book I've ever used. Every section of it taught me something new, or re-introduced me to concepts that I thought I had known but were made clearer and easier to use. I have had the pleasure of working with Mark on a couple of occasions conducting lighting workshops, so I know first-hand his excellent teaching skills. He brings them all to this book; its content and organization are first rate. Even though the book is organized primarily around restoration and retouching, it covers the whole spectrum of Photoshop and demonstrates indispensable skills for any photographer, at any skill level. I particularly found his section on file management (chapter 5: Getting Organized) to be the clearest, most easily applied description to be found anywhere, but every chapter in the book is equally content rich and superbly organized. There's a ton of Photoshop books out there (I think I have at least half of them!) but this is hands-down the best.

For a photographer who is new to Photoshop CS3 and it's amazing complexity as digital manipulation software, it can be intimidating to use. What is helpful about a technical book like "Restoration and Retouching Bible" is that it makes it easy to understand and use. The book is well written by the author who has a clear understanding of the software and it's tools. The first 200 pages are designed to help you understand the fundamentals and tools to succeed as a digital photographer manipulating digital images. I recommend this book as a great resource for entry level upgrade from Photoshop elements users to experienced Photoshop CS3 photographers.

Excellent Reference guide, April 8, 2008

I have been a photoshop user for a couple of years, but tend to only edit the obvious such as exposure, color balance, maybe the contrast and/or sharpness and then I'm done. It wasn't until recently that I have been using various layers to enhance my images and im finding that I still lack confidence with the abundance of tools and options CS3 has to offer. I relate these inadequacies to sporadic practice. Like anything, practice makes perfect, and if you don't use it... you loose it. Since photoshop isn't my full time job, I find that I forget minor details more often than not. This is where "The Photoshop Bible," comes in as an amazing resource. First of all the table of contents is written very well. Being able to look up a specific tool or scenario, fast (portraiture, architecture) is vital to a 500 page book of information. This book is relatively new to me and I have already used it several times as reference and im happy I did. Each time I have used the book, I start by scanning the index, after finding the page and reading into it I always find additional information that helps me perform the task more effectively. I also find that his dialogue makes for an easy read that's comprehendible the first time read.

I would recommend this book to anyone serious about photoshop, who doesn't have the time to continually practice and learn the new tricks because this author makes it easy! It's easy to find what your looking for and it's easy to read, understand and perform what the author says!

As an architectural photographer, who has been using Photoshop since version 2, I intended this book as merely an occasional reference guide. Due to the title, I anticipated that some areas of the book would have little relevance to me. Not the case. I was delighted to find it was written with universal relevance. When working with a program for as long as I have Photoshop, certain approaches become habit and I at times fail to become familiar with many new program functions without frequent periodic review. This book's author is able to organize and communicate clearly, through examples, the principles behind the program and its new features in a way that all users would benefit. I am not accustomed to writing reviews or recommendations, but I feel it is well deserved here.

I have another Photoshop book which is good but this one has additional info and different ways of doing things that helps. Only downside is the version it's based on is earlier than mine. But most of the suggestions that had changed, I could figure out.

I echo the comments from everyone else. This is the best choise book to buy to learn how to use this product.

I have uesed this book more than any book I have on photoshop. This is my seconed copy. My first I gave to a friend. Everyone who sees this book wants it. Mat makes everything so easy, you will wonder how you ever did with out it. I give this book five stars. I would love to give it 20 stars,but they only give me five. You will be working in elements and photoshop like a pro in one day. Debbie

I highly recommend this book to anyone who is a new user to Elements or even those who have been using it for a while. You can always learn some new, or improved techniques that you had not thought about. The examples are very easy to follow and they work. They are grouped logically and it is well written with very few errors. You can not go wrong with this book.

I've used Photoshop Elements for several years. I started with Elements 2 & upgraded to PE3 a couple of years ago. I found it too complicated so I went back to PE2. The problem is, I never learned to use layers & fudged on restorations & enhancements. Some looked pretty good, some looked "fake". Without layers there was lots I couldn't do. I got the PE5 program a few months ago & thought I might be able to figure it out. I gave up until 3 weeks ago. That's when I got Matt's book. I have worked thru most of the book & love the detailed visual guide for each lesson. I don't want theory, I just want a simple explanation on how to do things. I can't say enough about this wonderful book. I was able to go to Matt's website & download all of the "before" photos that are in the book. I followed the instructions for each lesson using his photos. After finishing each lesson I worked with photos of my own. I can't imagine a better PSE how-to book than this!

Jack Herrington's "Podcasting Hacks" (O'Reilly) is an excellent collection of tips, tricks, and explanations about making, publishing, and enjoying podcasts.

Although the book is primarily aimed at people who are creating podcasts, it also contains some info on the tools and techniques for finding and listening to them.

The O'Reilly "Hacks" books are structured as a series of specific projects, "hacks", that you can implement, but most every hack also includes a valuable explanation of the technology or expertise it uses.

The hacks in this book fall into both technical and non-tech categories. There's plenty on microphones, mixers and mp3 files. But also a lot on interviewing, blogging and getting publicity for your 'cast.

The book's first Chapter is the only one specifically for podcast listeners. It talks about sites and directories for finding the podcasts that are of interest to you. It also describes systems for downloading them, and the software for listening. Although the chapter contains much good info, it seems a bit out of place to me, in a book which is mostly of interest to people already looking to produce podcasts.

Chapters 2, 3 and 4 are "Starting Out", "Quality Sound", and "Formats". They dive into the gear and technology of recording and producing your podcasts.

Chapter 5 "Interviewing", and 7 "Publicity", tell about how to collect valuable and useful content, and how to get the word out to your potential audience.

Chapter 6 "Blogging" covers how to use a blog to publicize and distribute your podcast. It covers the most popular blogging systems like Movable Type, WordPress, Drupal and others. It covers using an existing blog, or setting up a new one. Also creating and managing the all-important RSS feed for your podcast. It also talks about internet hosting services which specialize in providing online storage and bandwidth for podcasts, which, because they are larger-sized files, can be a burden on traditional hosting arrangements.

Chapters 8 & 9, "Basic Editing" and "Advanced Audio", expand upon the post-production and audio tech material already covered. And Chapter 10 "On the Go" talks about recording podcasts out in the field.

"Podcasting Hacks" was first published in 2005, before the boom in video on the net, so it is short on info for video-podcasters. Though much of the discussion on interviewing, distribution, publicity, and hosting are directly applicable to video 'casts. Chapter 10 "Videoblogging" touches briefly on what was then an infant medium.

All in all, "Podcasting Hacks" a very useful and informative book, for both new and experienced podcasters.

Introduction
From the title, my impression was that this book would provide several specific technically-advanced strategies to maximize efficiency and enjoyment of podcasts. The strategies covered wouldn't necessarily be comprehensive, but rather serve as additional specialized tools one could add to the toolkit. Contrary to my impression, I was pleasantly surprised at the range of topics covered. I assumed from the term "hacks" in the title that the book's focus was going to be on adapting software and hardware for easier podcasting creation and consumption. However, there was plenty of focus on soft-skills as well, like methods of hacking your voice to sound better in a recorded format, or how to hack an experience you've had into a well-told and interesting story for a podcast.

Things I Liked

The book's foreward, believe it or not, contains the most succinct and accurate description of what podcasting is -- and isn't -- that I've read anywhere. I am mistrustful when a technology is advertised as "the hot new thing that everyone is doing!" because it usually seems to be a solution in search of a problem. That the foreward took a realistic tone made me favorably anticipate what would come in the rest of the book. The other thing that set this book apart was its range of contributors. There are hacks supplied by professional newscasters, popular podcasters, technologists of all stripes, and developers of podcasting tools and applications. These wide-ranging perspectives allowed the author to cover everything from writing Perl scripts to understanding basic copyright law to setting up a home studio to marketing your podcast - all in all, having this book is like getting to pick the brains of the top people doing podcasting, and having concise written documentation upon which to refer.

Things I Liked Not So Much

A minor point, but as someone who does not use Macs, PCs AND Linux boxes on a daily basis, I really only care about stuff available for the platform I work on. But the format of the book didn't allow me to easily locate the information relevant to me. When the book discussed software and hardware options, it wasn't clear which platform a hack was for until late into the description. A small addition to the hack title, like "Mac Only", would have remedied this.

In addition, the organization of the hacks was surprising and a little frustrating at times. For example,
Hack #2 is writing a perl script to re-assemble feeds of your choosing from other sites as a customized rebroadcast. As I was reading the hack, I thought about several questions one might be expected to have, such as "What is perl?", "What do I need to utilize this script?", and "How can I tell if this script will work with my web server"? These issues weren't covered until Hack #7. In another example, chapter 3 explores how to get quality sound; , the author uses terms like "condenser microphones" and "phantom power" early on, which he doesn't really explain until later on in the chapter when he discusses the various types of microphones.

Do you know how to listen to a podcast and produce one of your own? If you don't, this outstanding book is for you! Author Jack Herrington, has written a great book about how to find great podcasts and subscribe to them without filling your hard disk.

Herrington begins by showing you how to listen to podcasts through your browser and on a variety of different devices. Next, the author takes you through the basic hardware and software setup required to make high-quality podcasts. Then, he covers in depth how to pick the right audio hardware for your podcast; as well as, how to reduce noise to get that elusive clean sound. The author continues by covering the formats of various shows, and provides examples of formats; as well as, case studies of many popular podcasts. In addition, you'll also learn how to interview people, and how to edit the interviews. The author also concentrates on the mechanics of posting your podcasts to the Internet. Next, the author shows you how to market your podcast, make some money off it, and work with the podcasting community. Then, you will learn the basics of audio editing, what applications are available, and how to understand and use audio effects and filters. The author continues by taking things a step further and shows you how to build your own home studio, integrate audio feedback, add sound effects, and more. In addition, the author shows you how to take your show on the road with the hacks. Finally, he covers the basics of videoblogging and shows you how to create a teleprompter to give your videoblogs a professional feel.

So, if you want to get the best sound with the lowest noise, read this most excellent book. Herrington, has gone in great detail in this book, to help you produce a podcast that people will want to listen to, because of what you say and do.

As usual, Oreilly's combination of technical tips and tricks with straightforward implementation is excellent. I hadn't tried any of the Hacks series yet, and found that I'm thoroughly enjoying it. They are an excellent way to quickly get important pieces of information, while still comprehensively covering the topic.

The only downside is that it may not be a great book for those without some computer skills. But, if you know computers and don't know Podcasting, this is an excellent find.

Disclosure: my podcast is mentioned in his book. I find myself reaching for this book nearly every episode I create. I thought I was doing fine with my little show before Jack came out with this book. When it was published, I was shocked at how much he had gathered, and how much I had to learn! Jack has covered a very broad area, and yet kept a balance so that you feel like every page can be applied to your podcast. I find the guidance he gives on everything from equipment to environmental noise, to show format, to legal music use to be relevant to each episode I create. I continue to go back and find new tips to improve my show. I highly recommend it.

Kishor's book is one of the few highly readable books on queueing
and stochastic processes. The abundant examples and discussions
of reliability also aid in understanding the material.
I would recommend this book to undergraduates and beginning
graduate students.

Second edition of "Probability and Statistics with Reliability, Queuing and Computer Science Applications" by Kishor S. Trivedi is a highly recommendable book. The concepts provided for probability theory and stochastic processes are excellent for students of communication, networking and computer science. It provides a good understanding of stochastic processes and Markov chains which are very relevant for students and teachers especially working in the speech processing area. I found the book and its contents very relevant and the examples provided could be very well related to networking and computer science, a unique aspect of this book. The students grasped the concepts well and found the problems very challenging and helpful in building up their concepts and knowledge. I had previously taught a number of other books and introduced this book last year at my University, I feel very satisfied and content with the decision of choosing this book for my students. All eleven chapters are equipped with excellent examples, problems and exercises broadening the reader's mind. The first 5 chapters constitute the probability theory while the rest of the chapters emphasize on stochastic processes very relevant to students of advanced networking and speech processing. Other books on probability and statistics usually lack an important aspect specially when used for computer science and telecommunication students. The examples and exercises not only make students learn and understand and probability and statistics concepts but also create its relevance to their very fields, therefore the book is an extremely precious gift from Prof. Trivedi specially for the students of computer science and telecommunication. An inexpensive Asian edition (paperback), a solution manual and powerpoint slides of each chapter are now available.

Prof. Trivedi has done a tremendous job in introducing topics of advanced research not found before; the students gained knowledge about the modern research environment and felt confident too. This book is not only recommended for beginners but also for professionals and engineers.

This book from Prof. K. Trivedi is another great guide for the novice student and the expert researcher for modeling tools and techniques. It builds upon neatly explained concepts of probability, queuing and stochastic processes to provide a variety of examples of applications. It is definitely a book that one has to keep at hand, as it contains recipes for a huge number of performance and dependability evaluation needs. Besides the rich content, the structure and the presentation are great: a bit of theory and soon one example from practical life, the reader never gets lost but he is rather brought step by step to a comprehensive understanding of the topics.

The "Probability and Statistics with Reliability, Queuing and Computer Science Applications - 2nd edition " by Kishor S. Trivedi is a valuable reference for students and professionals. Didactically organized the eleven chapters presents the core concepts of probability theory and stochastic processes in an accessible easy-to-understand approach. The rich set of examples and exercises, based on numerous computer science and engineering real world applications, allow the readers to build their knowledge gradually.
I would like to highlight the system reliability fundamentals covered and articulate with the remains topics.

A very useful book. A good choice for somebody who is just starting to get a feel of the subject, or someone who is looking to build a strong foundation in the area. The best feature of this book is its lucid language. There are many books in the market, which cover a lot of material but, for the average reader, are very difficult to understand. The example-based approach coupled with a comprehensive material coverage are additional selling points. I would highly recommend this book