Tools Books

I thought it was an excellent book. The author was clearly very knowledgeable both as a basketball player and as a quantitative analyst. Probably this dual identity is also what allowed him to communicate the findings so well to non-analysts while preserving enough of the meat of the analysis for pure analysts to see where it would all lead to.

Best book on sports statistics that I've read.

First of all, I am the author, so the 5-star rating is admittedly biased, but also honest as I wrote the book under the influence of award-winning books like "Guns, Germs, and Steel," "Good to Great," and "Ender's Game." Now that it's 3 years after Basketball on Paper went to press, a couple years after the description here was written, and a year or more after the book got me a job in the NBA, I wanted to add an updated description.

I wrote the book in the hopes of presenting a scientific _method_ for approaching basketball. By "method", I mean that it doesn't present a magical all-encompassing rating for players, but rather a _structure_ for basketball as genetics provided a structure for understanding life and biology. The possession-based concept introduced early in the book allows you to evaluate strategy, the chemistry of a team, and, yes, who are better players. It doesn't matter whether it's the NBA, WNBA, college, high school, or the international game -- the methods apply and I've applied them. The book focused on the NBA and WNBA because that was where the statistics were most readily available going back more than a year or two. That is changing and I have already seen foreign leagues incorporating my work into their game.

This structure does introduce formulas, nothing more complicated than the addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division that I learned through baseball cards when I was 10 years old. For coaches who want to avoid these, I actually recommend reading the last chapter first because it summarizes the conclusions of the previous chapters. For people interested in player evaluation, the book has numerous lists of player stats, how many wins and losses they contributed, and how they did it. This includes players as far back as Bill Russell, but as recent as Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O'Neal, and Allen Iverson.

For baseball fans, I should say that Bill James' work on Win Shares in baseball paralleled mine in basketball, though we did take slightly different approaches. Bill has even said of the book, "Excellent writing. There are a lot of math guys who just rush from the numbers to the conclusion. . .they'll tell you that Shaq is a real good player but his team would win a couple more games a year if he could hit a free throw. Dean is more than that; he's really struggling to understand the actual problem, rather than the statistical after-image of it. I learn a lot by reading him." I am happy to say that experts in statistical evaluation of baseball (like Bill), football (like Aaron Schatz and Ben Alamar of Pro Football Prospectus), and basketball are all communicating about the common goals we have for doing scientific evaluation of team sports, where analogies to business team environments and global politics abound.

I realized as I wrote the book that there were a million projects that I could do from what is in the book. Those projects have come about and grown even before I joined the Seattle Supersonics in October of 2004. Evaluating strategy has grown so much from the basics in this book. Player evaluation, especially as they move from one league to another, has evolved. And, with the experiment of the 2004-05 season, I got to show how the work significantly helps coaching a team. That season, I joined the Sonics with a fixed roster that was universally picked for last in their division. I worked with the coaches, management, and players to provide a different perspective to their own backgrounds, one that complemented their own expertises. At the end of the season, we won our division, we upset the experts by winning our first round series, and we gave the ultimate NBA champions one of their toughest playoff battles. I felt that we should have won the championship -- perhaps naive, but also a measure of the belief I had in not only the work in Basketball on Paper, but also in the ability of the staff and players I worked with.

Now that I do work in the NBA and apply new tricks of the trade, I can't really write another book sharing my secrets. But Basketball on Paper contains the framework, the basic insights, and a lot of the numbers for understanding a lot more about the beautiful game.

Oliver's work shows a maturity that has been lacking from many basketball evaluation books--John Hollinger's "Basketball Prospectus" being another exception. Not only are players evaluated statistically but their roles on their teams are considered in context in relationship to their numbers. If you want to gain an understanding of basketball as perhaps you've never had before, and are willing to accept the ambiguous nature of numbers themselves, this is the book for you!

I have been using the formulas and ideas presented in Dean Oliver's book for the past three years. I was never a math fan, but my spreadsheets for calculating basketball statistics are the most complicated I have ever created and it was this book that started my obsession. The book inspired me with a fascination over a new way to look at the game and the players that bring it to life. Mr. Oliver's work was just a starting point and over the past few years I have added other formulas and other mathematical approaches to looking at the game, but I would not have gotten anywhere without this book. It is an essential tool in my toolbox for evaluating and enjoying the game of basketball.

This is a great book for people who are both numbers geeks and basketball geeks. I wish that there was more of a focus on college basketball, but that's just me. The author even replied to a couple of my questions regarding some of the formulas via email. Highly recommended for a basketball fan intrigued by statistics and indexes.

I am beginning my first year teaching this fall, and I will have a kindergarten classroom. When I got this book I was so excited because it aligns very closely to my philosophies on behavior management. It addresses a wide range of issues that may arise and gives detailed, systematic information on dealing with those issues from a social/emotional standpoint. Besides that, the book is so easy to read and packed with valuable information--not a lot of filler material and redundancy. I literally completed this book in one sitting, because as soon as I began to read, I couldn't put it down! Since then, I have re-read several pieces from the text and appendices. I plan to use this as the cornerstone of my management system this fall.

I have found this book to be very insightful in reading the behaviours of children and young people. I am a high school teacher and it is very obvious when students don't have a chance to develop these six life skills. The ideas for activities to promote the skills were fun and easy to implement and made a lot of common sense. I feel inclined to send this book to all the local small people schools. Very easy reading too. Some generalisations were made however at the end of each chapter were lists that made it easy to research further if you need to.
Definitely a great find

It's about time! In all the years I've been dealing with children, I have never found a book that explains childrens' behavior in such a clear and understanding way.
The book takes you through a number of chapters, each dealing with a different aspect of behavior. Bilmes does a wonderful job illustrating these in a clear manner while providing the reader with charts and tables.
My favorite part is that she is understandable. She doesn't try confusing the reader with "big words." She gets to the point and the point gets to you. You don't need to read and reread sentences to decode them, which I found very helpful.
I could not be happier to have purchased this book. It is a lifesaver in the classroom.
Stephanie Anderson- California

This book is amazing! I have been looking for a book like this to guide me in teaching children the social/emotional skills they need to thrive in my classroom and in life. It is packed full of information, sample scripts, and activities that will help you successfully implement its ideas and principles in your classroom. Although it was skillfully written for use in the classroom, parents could also learn a lot from it. It is a must read for all preschool/kindergarten teachers. Read This Book!

This is the book I've been waiting for! It demonstrates such a wise and compassionate understanding of children and the root causes of their behavior, AND it gives loads of practical suggesions on how to actually work with kids in ways that are productive and respectful. I am a preschool director, and I bought a copy of this book for every one of my teaching staff. Jenna Bilmes goes way beyond stickers and charts and explains how teachers (or parents and other adults) can speak to children and frame activities to elicit very different responses and build social and emotional skills kids (and adults!) need to be successful and enjoy life. Thank you, Ms. Bilmes, for writing this book!

Every horse-owner, and especially those who aspire to train horses, should read this book from cover to cover and keep it handy by your nightstand!

It's a "must-read" if you really want to progress as a rider and become one with your horse. My guess is that far too many people buy bits because they look pretty without ever giving thought to the type of mouthpiece, length of shank, etc. If you dream of a truly responsive horse, then you must learn the mechanics of a bit!

Although it's true that when I was a girl, I did a lot of western-style riding and read every horse story ever written, I'm a far cry from a horse expert. In fact, back surgery twenty-five years ago, removed me permanently from the saddle.

A person who knows that I continue to have a deep appreciation for animals, horses in particular, who also knows my walls are covered with high quality photographs, and who is aware that I make my living as a writer perhaps realized that "Bits and Bridles" by Bennett and Lynch might feed all of these predilictions, and so he gave me the book as a gift. He couldn't have been more right.

The book is extraordinarily well written by authors who are highly knowedgable and humane and who consider both the horse and the rider in relationship to the all the information they impart on bits, bridles, and their relationship to the opimum horse-care and horse-riding experience.

I, who will probably never need to put Dr. Bennett's and Ms. Lynch's "best practices" into place and who,in fact, could not have cared less about what was in a horses mouth or around his head during my years as a young equestrian, was impressed by the clarity and communication impact of writing that made even me realize the critical importance of the proper hardware to both the horse and his care-taker/rider. The writing was suitably and quite beautifully augmented by outstanding, full color horse-photography.

This book is just what I've been looking for. It's a huge reference on the science of bitting for horses, and covers both English and Western bits and techniques. It's filled with tons of clear color photographs showing the various types of bits available out there, and long discussions about the whys and wherefores of choosing the proper bit for your horse.

The following chapters are included: The Language of the Bridle; Anatomy and Bit Selection; Dentistry and Mouth Care; an Introduction to Bits and Bridles: Fundamental Principles of Bitting; Snaffle Bits; Mouthpieces; Leverage Bits; Trade Offs; Gag Bits; Going Bitless; the Traditional Hackamore; the Spade Bit; Bit Accessories and Training Aids; Bit Progressions and Soft Mouths; Developing Soft Hands; Problems, Solutions, and Safety; Bitting and Competition. There is also a great glossary and effective index at the back.

All in all this book is a must-have for any intelligent rider who wants to work effectively and humanely with their horse. It's well worth the purchase price, don't hesitate to buy it!

This book is the most comprehensive book I have found regarding bits and their effect on the horse and his performance. It is extremely comprehensive, including information on how conformation, bit, bridle, horse health, rider, etc. affect the horse's performance. It covers all types of bits, from snaffles to spades, as well as bitless options (mechanical hackamore and traditional hackamore). It is extremely well-written and features beautiful pictures.

Most importantly, it has helped me understand how my bit and related equipment affect my horse's performance. I found this information very useful as I am currently transitioning out of the snaffle, and I now have a better understanding of what is happening physically and mentally with my horse.

I highly recommend this book to both english and western riders. The book does lean towards the western rider, but the english discipline is also completely covered.

I've been very proud of Bits And Bridles by Dr Bennett and Betsy Lynch, and how well it's been received by the equine community. I use the words "proud of" because it was my priviledge to design and layout the book for publication.

I have been a horsewoman for 30 years, and I was impressed with the manuscript from the first time I read it. I will be the first to acknowledge that I do not know everything about horses or tack, but I personally could not disagree with a single statement in the book. I learned a great deal as well, during the design process. I have recommended (or given) this book to most of my friends and acquaintances in the horse industry. As a horsewoman, as far as I am concerned Dr. Bennett and Ms. Lynch are the foremost authorities on the science of bitting. While I never had the opportunity to meet them while designing their book, I am honored to have been part of the process.

I am big fan of Nikki Leigh's proven skills in guiding writers toward success. Nikki Leigh's Book Promo 101 is an excellent tool that lays out her experience and method of getting an Author's name and literature available and accessible to readers.

I have benefited greatly in my writing career as a result of following Nikki Leigh's advice. If you are a writer who has written a great story that no one knows about, then you have to read this book and learn how to get your story into the hands of the public. I can say from experience, it works.

Author Steven Clark Bradley

An author can never get too much information about promotion. Book Promo 101 is a great starter. I can't think of a single aspect of promotion it doesn't address.

As a disclaimer, I didn't feel comfortalbe rating this book because I am quoted in it. I hope authors will forgie me for the indiscretion. I just know that Nikki's experience can make a difference in any author's campaign.
-----
Reviewed by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, award-winning author of the HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers

Nikki Leigh has done an outstanding job of covering numerous aspects of book promotion any author needs to know. Here depth of knowledge is apparent from page one.

The book is an excellent resource for the most novice of authors on up to the most seasoned.

Anyone who is serious about marketing and promoting their book would benefit greatly by reading Book Promo 101 from cover to cover more than once. It will be like a good movie that reveals more with each viewing.

Book Promo 101 is a must have for any author's personal library.

Kathleen Gage
The Street Smarts Marketing
Bestselling author

Ms. Leigh is extraordinary. I have no idea how she is able to compile so much information into one book--and I hear she's writing another. This woman has helped me tremendously and is willing to share her expertise with all.

Follow her directions and you'll see a boost in your book sales numbers. I did.

Book Promotion 101, the first in a series from author Nikki Leigh, is clearly a book written by an author with that rare blend of writing talent and keen business savvy. The book starts out by introducing the basics of promotion and tricks to help the reader develop what the author calls the "Marketing Mind" - something that doesn't always come easily for authors. Interspersed with meaty "how to" chapters, are advice from professionals in the world of book promotion, as well as tips and tricks from Muze, her cat and writing companion. Each chapter ends with exercises to reinforce the concepts it introduced and to help you dig deeper in your promotional efforts.

While all that is great, what makes Book Promotion 101 really unique is the depth and breadth of the subject matter covered: when to begin promoting your book, ways to promote through the development and presentation of your book, hiring and working with a publicist (and deciding if you need too!), how to develop a marketing plan, write an effective biography, build a press kit, get press coverage and book reviews, develop a brand and a website that reinforces it, ways to build your credibility as an author and why that's important, and even where to look for markets to sell it. By the time I got to the end, it didn't seem possible that Ms. Leigh could have more tricks up her sleeve. She does promise more, however, and I can't wait to get my hands on the next installment.

This book is fascinating! To be able to view these knives in full color, and see the old black and white pictures of soldiers of the Civil war is just a delight. I make custom knives, and this book gives me hours of creative enjoyment. A great bargain for the price!!!---Jon

Excellent Pictures and stories. I would like to see more information about the knife makers and markings applicable to each maker.

I purchased this book as a gift for my uncle. It is well worth the money! It is a coffee table-type book with thick heavy pages and LOTS of beautifully detailed photos. His only negative comment when I gave it to him was, "That is a dagger on the cover!" and He knows his knives!! I guess the publisher doesn't know what a bowie knife looks like. If you like bowie knives or know someone who does, this is a perfect book.

Many knife collectors will welcome this edition to their bookshelves. The high numbers of high quality knifemakers and eager customers in recent years has created a natural interest in the early beginnings of the uniquely American Bowie knife that needs to be satisfied. Mr.Flayderman has heard the calling and has delivered in abundance. There is something for everybody in this book. The quality of documentary evidence is commendable and I even liked the pictures but don't think of this as a coffee table book. There is more here than can be covered in this humble review. The owner of this edition will return to it again and again and will glean yet another glimpse of our American history when the country was young and wild. If knives are of interest to you this book will serve.

Excellent book. I was a little leary of spending $80 bucks on a book but than remembered the last time, and did't purchase the "Antique Bowie Knife Book" Glad I did purchase this book I think it is everthing the Antique Bowie Book is and more. Wonderful pictures of Bowie knives as well as alot litature on them also. Nice addition is the actual pitures of people and the knives they carried.. If you area Bowie collector and don't own "The Antique Bowie Knife Book" you will be please with this If you do own it you may not think its woth it since alot of thwe same knives are covered

Great book. Lots of help, from felling your wood to finishing your home.
I reccomend it.

While no one book will make you an expert builder this book will show you that you can build your own Log Home. Roger Hard has written an easy to understand How To Guide with topics like tools needed, chain saw mills even alternative power sources. I especially liked the tree species map of the US and Canada and the insulation value chart of the different species of wood.
Along with other books, videos,web sites, message boards, talking with Log Home owners and dealers this book should be apart of your strategy.

This update of the classic 1977 book will help you choose a site, plan your cabin, find a kit or build from scratch. Easy to read text, illustrations, plans and details of a pretty 24' x 40' hillside cabin can be a do-it-yourself guide or can serve as your inspiration for other cabin designs.

This is the best of the cabin building books I've read yet. This book not only shares great technical detail with quality photographs but also discusses how to plan ahead to minimize the chance of mistakes. Discusses what the banks are willing and not willing to finance, land and site selection for building, type of ground to build upon among many other topics in addition to very detailed construction methods.
This may be the only book you need.

Now in an updated and expanded new edition, Build Your Own Low-Cost Log Home is a solid, in-depth guide to a venerable and neglected art. Chapters cover log preparation, needed tools, site and cost considerations, sample designs, accommodating heating systems and other utilities, the differences between manufacturer's kit homes, maintenance of one's log home, and much more. Black-and-white diagrams and photographs illustrate this methodical, easy-to- follow instructional. Build Your Own Low-Cost Log Home is a practical-minded resource for creating a livable modern home, packed cover to cover with tips from firsthand experience.

It is well-written, clear, and extremely USEFUL. And it is very easy to use.

The book clearly presents how to create a powerful career portfolio and market yourself effectively. Very valuable tools presented in a well-written book made this one of my best Amazon buys of the year.

I have worked as a vocational counselor for many years, and I use this book on a regular basis with my clients as well as with my own family/friends. A nice feature of The Career Portfolio Workbook is that it outlines what you need to do during the process of creating a portfolio, but also recognizes that some people don't have the time to work through the process in a step-by-step fashion. For example, the book has a note in the introduction that if you need a portfiolo in a hurry - say, for an interview tomorrow - you need to read chapters X and Y. With a week to prepare, chapters W, X, Y, and Z should top your reading list. If you have more time, read the whole book.

The directions are wonderful, and allow each person a wide range of flexibility in terms of developing a unique style of presentation. The book includes templates, sample portfolios, and other documents you can modify for your own use.

Highly recommended.

The Career Portfolio Workbook is a great resource which I have used to transition into a new profession. I was able to use the ideas in the workbook to market myself and to set myself apart from the competition. I have many career books but this is the best. The system is comprehensive and easy to organize. It is a unique way to manage your career.

This book really works! It is clearly written and is guaranteed to help you put together an excellent portfolio. Only days after using the guidelines of this book to create a PEAKS resume, I got 3 calls for job interviews. It really is amazing and I recommend it to anyone, no matter how far along you are in your career.

I know you've heard it before, buy this book and great things will happen. This book is different. It offers easy to read, true to life examples of what it is really like when your out looking for a job or promotion. The authors base the workbook on how you can set yourself apart from your competition. I was very hesitant at first but gave the career portfolio a try. The step by step directions in the book made a seemingly daunting task quite manageable and rewarding in itself. I put together my career portfolio and have a new confidence in myself that I am sure contributed to landing my new job. I wish I had this years ago.

The author writes in the Introduction: "Much of Clifford algebra is quite simple. If this fact were generally recognized, Clifford algebra would be more widely used as a computational tool." However, a few applications discussed in the book may require some physics usually covered in the first year of graduate school.

The author starts by Clifford algebras of the 3-dimensional Euclidean space and the 4-dimensional Minkowski space-time. He discusses the Maxwell equations in flat space, the Dirac equation for the electron, the Dirac operator, spherical harmonics, and curved space-times with Schwarzschild and Kerr metrics. The book ends with matrix representation and classification of Clifford algebras of real non-degenerate quadratic spaces and an appendix on Lorentz transformations.

From a letter to the author. John, I have to write you to tell you what a wonderful book you wrote. I still can't believe how good it is. Yesterday I was waiting for a television show to begin in ten minutes and I picked your book up while I sat front of the TV set. When I finally looked up 45 minutes later, I had missed the show! In 35 years as an algebraic topologist, I have tried to learn various things about Clifford algebras because of their role in K-theory and in the Atiyah- Singer Index theorem, and more recently because of the Seiberg-Witten equations. With only mediocre intensity, mostly browsing, I have had little success. In the month since I met you and bought your book, I have browsed through it while occupied with several other competing projects. In the process I have internalized the classification of Clifford algebras, learned how physicists use Dirac's equation, what they are doing when they talk about gauge theory, understood Hodge duality much better and so the codifferential operator. And I still have only browsed through a small portion of the text. I think we mathematicians should study your book to learn how to improve our own levels of exposition. Sincerely, Daniel Henry Gottlieb

I would rate this book as a gem! To calibrate that let me say that I think Weinreich's Geometrical Vectors and Foster and Nightingale's General Relativity are gems. Chapter 1 gives a beautiful, clear and concise introduction to Clifford Algebra in flat 3-space using Dirac's anti-commuting gamma matrices. If you have ever wondered about off-hand comments that rotations are double reflections and why half angles enter into this business this is the place to get enlightened. In an amusing series of photographs the author illustrates the 4-pi periodicity of certain objects. The object here is a copy of MTW's Gravitation - one of the more imaginative uses of this tome. As an example of the application of the CA results the chapter ends with a treatment of the spinning top without using Euler's equations for rigid body motion. If you have ever struggled through Goldstein's Classical Mechanics treatment of this problem, from Euler angles to infinitessimal rotations to d-Omega which is not a differential of a vector to dyadics to body diferentials and space differentials to Euler's equations, you will really appreciate Snygg's direct solution using CA. Sure, I know Goldstein's has to be a general treatment of solid body motion and thus more complex so he can treat more general problems, but it is good to find a more direct solution that is cristal clear and only a few pages long. This chapter is real little gem. Chapter 2 takes CA to Minkowsky 4-space rotations. Chapters 3 and 4 take you to flat n-dimensional spaces and curved subspaces embedded in them. Again beautiful explanations are presented of the meaning of tangent spaces, parallel transport and how the covariant derivative arises naturally in curved spaces. I had the silly hope that with Clifford numbers and their products all would be well and done. Unfortunately the exterior product wedges its nose under the tent flap and pretty soon the exterior derivative and its side-kick the co-differential operator soon follow it into the tent. All this is explained in Chapter 7. With Chapter 5 the learning curve steepens with the introduction of Fock-Ivanenko 2-vectors and the curvature 2-vector (or 2-form) and finally the curvature tensor. Chapter 6 solves the field equations for the Schwartzchild metric based on the F-I 2-vector approach. Chapter 8 on the Dirac equation is again an approach different than that found in the usual texts. Chapter 9 derives the Kerr metric, something you won't find in MTW published 8 to 10 years after Kerr's papers. Unfortunately the starting point is some obscure problem from an earlier chapter and Snygg does not provide the delightful physical insight of earlier examples. However, there is discussion at the of the chapter. While you might be able to solve the field equations for the Schartzchild metric on your own, once you know it can be done, I certainly would not be able to do so for the Kerr metric. Snygg takes you through step by step, none of them particularly difficult, but the sequence is certainly not something I would have found by myself. Chapter 10 I only skimmed, the index notation, with underscored and bracketed indices, becomes overloaded for my level of sophistication. Chapter 11 organizes all the matrix stuff together, again a beautiful, straightforward and clear presentation. Here is shown how to construct a matrix representation for the gammas. As you might expect, the book is a veritable beehive of sub- and superscripts over bars and carets Greek and Latin indices and full of gamma gymnastics. Even Pauli's less complementary comment on Dirac algebra comes to mind. The text has a few typos but blessedly few in the Clifford number and gamma indices. By the way, if you expect to find out how to do trace computations on gamma expressions you won't find it here. The explicit form of the gamma matrices is hardly ever mentioned until chapter 11 nor is it needed in the present context.

The author is my brother. You may doubt the credibility of my commentary, but check it out for yourself. Based on an early draft, I predict it will be a pedagogical gem. Style and content make anything John Snygg writes a pleasure to read. Snygg is a hidden treasure. As of October 1996, "Clifford Algebra: A Computational Tool for Physicists" was not out.

Snygg's book is a thoroughly delightful introduction to Clifford Algebra and its applications in physics. It is detailed, readable, and at times even humorous... but always clear and educational. Snygg presents Clifford Algebra above all as a practical tool, rather than as the ultimate algebraic representation of spatial geometry. This gives a refreshing alternative to Hestenes' writings which, although quite good, can at times be philosophically pedantic and difficult to connect with standard theory.

This book does justice to the many issues facing any corporation today when designing their software. It has a balanced blend of theory and practice. While it can be used very easily in a college classroom, it is also well-suited for a more practitioner oriented audience. Practicing managers will find the chapters and corresponding steps very useful as they try to design and implement higher quality software.

My favorite chapter was chapter 5. This chapter presents a very clear list of steps that need to be addressed when designing trustworthy software. The authors do a great job integrating the various literatures on management of change. The implementation steps would probably apply to many more change issues in organizations - showing the versatile nature of the book.

Great text!

Design for Trustworthy Software is an excellent book for developing robust software designs. The book explains very well the principles and methodologies that can help in developing of software with emphasis on prevention rather than corrective action.Professionals have been looking for a good book which can describe and help them in the reliability side of the software. This book just does that.

I particularly like Part II-Tools and Techniques of Design for Trustworthy Software. Although these tools and techniques are well known



and applied for a long time on the hardware side, their application for software is very well rxplained here. The book is excellently organized for students and beginning practitioners. In each chapter key points are are braught out at the end to confirm the understanding and then the exercises and questions challenge that understanding.

The authors have demonstrated their knowledge of wide array of concepts and principles.At the same time, their keen grasp of those concepts and princples is clearly evident.

I will strongly recommend this book for the students of the subject as well as professionals who are working to achieve robust software designs.


ASH SAHNI
PRESIDENT,ASH AND ASSOCIATES
International Consultants in Quality and Compliance Management

College-level students of quality assurance will welcome this integrated approach to software quality issues, which tells how to prevent bugs in implementation rather than discovering them after. Case examples of DFTS technology include FMEA, QFD and more, and provide a blend of theory, applications, and exercises designed to test student knowledge. Classrooms in particular will find it excellent. Its authors are a CEO of a quality assurance company and a chairman of a consulting group, and professor.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

This thoroughly researched book begins with an excellent summary of the state of software development methodologies. It provides a useful description of the important strategies, life-cycle models, and process improvement methodologies. The theme of the book comes from applying Taguchi Methods to software development. This approach to trustworthy software shifts effort "upstream" from testing to design: Build software right in the first place rather than waiting for a huge quality assurance department (or worse yet, customers) to find the bugs for you. Several chapters provide detail on how to apply these principles to large scale software systems.

The authors have pulled together material from an impressive set of resources into one, admittedly lengthy, book. The shear number of methodologies (including corresponding acronyms!) contained in this volume is staggering. The chapter endnotes document these sources and web references give many pointers for additional information. They also include several case studies written by practioners who have used the methodologies described in the book.

This is an excellent book providing exposure to a new technology in software design. Design For Trustworthy Software is well written. The quality initiative ideas are quite innovative.
I like the fact that the book's focus is on building quality into the product at the early design phases. Bugs found further downstream in the development process get more and more expensive to fix.
The exercises at each chapter's end are well presented to allow for better understanding of the material.
This is a great resource for both students and software professionals for producing high quality software.

Discussion of manufacture, use and history of the tools of the mountain man's trade. Many line drawing illustrations supported by solid text. Reasonably complete and accurate source of information.

Russell has done exhaustive work on this subject and this book is a must have for anyone interested in the Mountain Men and fur trade era.

I used this book for my graduate seminar paper on the Fur Trade. I loved all the information it gave about the tools of the Mountain Men. Don't let the fact that I'm in grad school scare off the read though. My father-in-law wants a copy now and he only has an Associates and is a down home kind of guy. It's definitely not just for students. This is an absolutely wonderful book.

This book is chucked full of great fur trade information. It has many, many line drawings and could only be better with a collection of photos of actual artifacts.

If you are a fan of the Rocky Mountain fur trade era of the early 19th century like I am, you will find this book to be a valuable resource.

Great resource for study of mountain men, early contact between Indians and whites. Useful in the study of metal artifacts of the fur trade, axes, traps, spearpoints, arrowheads, harpoons, knives and daggers, highly recommended.