Software Books

I brought this book to school to and my teacher loved it! This book was full of tips and ideas to use the computer for my homework.

This little gem is filled with no-nonsense advice. For example, I've run and updated my MSCONFIG and saved memory by not loading programs I never use. But what makes it really special is the nurturing tone for all this technical help. It's the kind of book that starts the section on how to deal with tech support by telling readers never to call them an empty stomach. So, have a cup of tea while you read it, but be sure to have a pen handy to jot down the changes you'll want to be making. Or better yet, sit near your computer, so you can try out the tips as you read.

I'm thrilled that Helen Gallagher is finally sharing her comfort/expertise model of working with computer users in her new book. This book is especially helpful for those who may be intimidated by fast-talking techies who don't understand how "non-techies" think. I especially like the way the author raised the awareness of adapting computer use to accommodate learning, vision, and other disabilities for greater independence. Not only has the author packed this book with practical, easy-to-follow solutions for almost every computer problem, but she also leaves readers with confidence to tackle new computer problems they may encounter.

This is a terrific addition to my tech-library. In fact I may just recycle the rest of the how-to books. This text put me completely at ease and is not filled with tech-talk. It's easy to understand and you almost feel like the author is sitting beside you on the sofa gently telling you just what you need to know.

Hearing so much about spyware in the news, I was concerned about the security of my computer. So I first went to the section in Computer Ease about that issue, and was surprise to learn there was a simple way to find out if I had spyware... In less than a minute I was able to check this. This book is a delight to use - it is easy to understand and tells me clearly what I need to know without confusing techno terms...

This book was written before virus prevention was fashionable, yet everything in the book regarding delivery systems, methods and policies are still 100% true. I recently re-read it and find that by taking some simple precautions, your risk is minimized. (Note: This reviewer was a contributor to the book)

I've read a lot of books on the subject of computer viruses, but this one is simply the best. It's easy to read, understandable, and teaches you how to protect yourself from viruses without using expensive software.

I've read a lot of books on the subject of computer viruses, but this one is simply the best. It's easy to read, understandable, and teaches you how to protect yourself from viruses without using expensive software.

Although I am no longer in the computer biz, this handbook was easy to read and insightful. This is suggested reading for those discovering the wonderful world of viruses. Check it out.

oh, Dear. virus is just jocking

The book came amazingly fast and was in great condition!

Thanks!

It's a great book. The authors explain step by step from tutorials to simulations.

This book should be on the shelf of very instructional designer and course developer responsible for creating computer-based training or web-based training. The book stands out for three important reasons: (1) if offers concrete directions regarding how to develop instruction at the lesson level; (2) the recommendations are based on research findings and when research findings are contradictory the authors acknowledge the divergence; and (3) the book is well written, it is accessible to the average reader. The first chapter **alone** makes the book worth the price - it will help you answer the question "What is the difference between information and instruction?"

Seen from the point fo view of a non-expert readers, and comparing with <10 other books on similar subjects, the book looks quite good. It covers most of the basic types of learning activities (tutorials, drills, simulations, educational games and tests), plus a detailled overview on more organisational issues (analysis, design, ...), some chapters on technology for implementation of CBI as well as more advanced topics as instructional modelling, computer managed instruction and AI-techniques. Good reading, no hyper-specialised vocabulary. Happy that my holiday in canada brought me back this good reading to Flanders (Belgiium/Europe). Coming from an IT background (engineering & computing), it gives some goods clues on project management for development of CBI products. Les solid on educational/didactic theories.

Hesitating between 3 and 4 stars (don't feedl myself sufficiently qualified to give higher scores).

This book is excellent. There are many sections, in fact, which I will refer back to later as job aids. This book reinforces and elaborates on many concepts and methods that I, as an instructional designer, have been using intuitively when developing courses. It provides a structure to the process of organizing content and developing computer-based training. The only drawback to this book is that it is slightly out of date from a technology standpoint. However, it is so strong in every other area, including instructional design, interface design, interactivity design, and project management, that its strengths far outweigh its weaknesses. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who designs or develops CBT and WBT, I think it will prove to be a valuable resource.

Obviously specifically for Ada but a good resource for any programmer interested in the general concept of concurrent programming. The organization of the chapters and the introduction to concurrency are alone worth the price.

Fully harnessing multi-core processors requires concurrent programming, yet most mainstream languages have little support or do so with poor portability. Well-written concurrent Ada programs can be extremely portable and support multi-core and multiple processors automatically. This book explores, in-depth, the concurrent programming ("tasking") part of the Ada language. The authors then show how the concurrent programming facilities of Ada are augmented by the language to support real-time programming. These standard real-time facilities are state-of-the-art, extending, for example, beyond the POSIX real-time facilities in their expressive power.

The book first establishes the necessary foundation for understanding concurrent programming by explaining the possible problems (e.g., deadlocks and race conditions) and highlighting some of the mechanisms traditionally used in concurrent programming, such as semaphores and message-passing.

The tasking part of Ada is then covered in full detail, necessarily including interactions with some other parts of the language, such as exceptions, but also including interactions with the Ada object-oriented language facilities. The implementations of a number of reusable concurrency abstractions serve to illustrate the use of the tasking features.

The authors next lay another foundation, this time for scheduling in real-time systems, and show how Ada directly supports the common approaches. Both fixed-priority and dynamic-priority dispatching are supported by Ada and these are covered in detail. Ada 2005 also defines a number of time-related abstractions, such as a monotonic clock and timing events, and these are also covered completely. As in the concurrent programming part of the book, a number of reusable abstractions are implemented; in this section they illustrate the real-time language facilities. A discussion of the popular Ravenscar Profile, adopted by some other languages, is included.

No language is perfect and Ada is no exception. The tasking part of Ada 83 was particularly controversial in the domain of real-time systems. Ada 95 addressed many of these issues and added some new ones. Ada 2005 does the same. These issues are not ignored in the book.

I own 46 books on Ada (not counting older editions of some of them), gathered over 27 years of applying the language. Some are excellent and some not, but this one is highly prized. I highly recommend it to professionals and students alike.

By far the best on the subject. Offers complete coverage of any aspect of concurrency with Ada, including real-time and distributed programming issues. Burns and Wellings are the acknowledged experts on this topic.

The best aspect of the book is the analysis of features and their interactions, providing a depth not available in other texts covering the entire language.

Assumes you know some Ada, but includes an introduction to the sequential part of the language.

I own quite a few books on Ada; this is the one to get if you want the details of Ada concurrency.

Ada has been one of few languages which provides facilities for concurrent programming, but readings for the feature had been limited. This book is not only the first but also an excellent guide to the capability of the new Ada standard.

It covers,

1.@The Ada Language

2. The Nature and Uses of Concurrent Programming

3. Inter-Process Communication

4. Ada Task Types and Objects

5. The Rendezvous

6. The Select Statement and the Rendezvous

7. Protected Objects and Data-Oriented Communication

8. Avoidance Synchronisation and the Requeue Facility

9. Using Protected Objects as Building Blocks

10. Exceptions, Abort and Asyncronous Transfer of Control

11. Tasking and System Programming

12. Real-Time Programming

13. Object-Oriented Programming and Tasking

14. Distributed Systems

15. Conclusion

Not only Ada programmers, but also all professonal software engineers who design real-time, embedded systems, advanced students of computer science, and even beginners should find it quite useful.

I've read the original print published in 1995, which has been out-of-print.

I am so happy to know it is now to be RE-PRINTed, and every programmers would be.

the authors of this book is famous. and the contents of the book do not disappoint me.

i have several references about ada. of course, some of the references are written by the author of this book. But, regard to the acting mechanism of ada task, this book is awesome.

but, if you are the beginner of real-time & embedded system, you should have another reference(s) to fully understand the meaning of the every article of this book.

This is an excellent business math book. It's easy to work with and has lots of examples for practicing. It breaks the subject matter down in a manner where it's easy to understand. Chapters 10 through 14 are really great for individuals to learn about their finances. Chapters 15 through 17 are excellent for businesses. There are other chapters that are really great in establishing the basic foundation in business math. Overall this is an excellent book to use for brushing up on math or just learning about business math for business or individual use. Another excellent book to read is "Trilogy Moments for the Mind, Body and Soul."

Im a college student and when I first started using this book I said to myself this is like H.S math. Little did I know it does get more complicated but its on a college level as you go on. It takes you back to the basic mathematics and then to a college level mathematics. I liked the book very much so. There is also a answer key in the book (but only for the the odd #'s)which is very useful as well.

I think this book is great, becareful not to get the instructors edition, I got that edition by mistake then ordered a student editon used, it did not come with the cd like it said it would.

This book was incredibly helpful for a college class in Business Math. Many of the adults in my class had not studied any sort of math in years. This book made the subject easy with great examples succinct and thorough summaries. Recommend it for other teachers in the same area.

There are several typos in this book, but don't let that get you down. This is an excellant review of business math. It begins with the basics of operations, and then progresses to more complex formulas. It will help everyone from business majors to consumers to better manage their money.

This book was in NEW condition. I cannot believe that I got it at such a great price. Good work Opusbooks!!

I couldn't help the religious reference since this book has quickly become my new Bible. I have been a loyal follower of "The Official Guides" and "CorelDRAW 11" has lived up to my expectations, if not exceeded them in many respects.

This book was a pleasant surprise, despite being a totally comprehensive resource tool, close to 800 pages, it's written in a no nonsense, straight to the point style. How rare is that these days ? I found it concise, well written, with great illustrations and literally hundreds of useful tips and workarounds. It's also got plenty of "how-tos", and covers every aspect of the program in detail (including VBA scripts) in very easy-to-grasp terms. Also included are a complete shortcuts guide, downloadable web resource files, and invaluable hidden program functionality.

A huge bonus for me was that it covers both the Mac & PC releases - yeah ! I also found the sections on Text, 3D, and Animations particularly helpful.

Coreldraw is a great program and this is a great book - total quality from start to finish !

This book is an excellent manual for understanding the logistical operations of CorelDraw 11. It is written with a tone geared towards one who has never used this program before yet does not lack in expanded intricacies of operations.

An experienced user can flip through the section needed to learn shortcuts and streamline processes, while the novice can start from page 1 and treat it as a tutorial.

This book makes a great addition to the library of anyone who uses CorelDraw 11.

If you are a new or old user of Corel Draw, and you have just up-graded to Corel Draw 11, this is the book to learn from. With it's 800 pages to go through you will find every thing you need to know to get you up and designing in no time. Steve Bain has done a great job of writing this book, so even the new user can under stand how the tools work and what there for. It is a little pricey, but it is worth every cent. If your going to learn this programe, I would recomand this book to be the first one you get and it may be the last one you need to teach you about Corel Draw 11. I have not needed any other book but this one to learn the programe. I keep it by my computer and use it almost every time I'm using Corel Draw 11.

After upgrading from an earlier version of CorelDRAW, I needed to get up to speed quickly. This book is an excellent way to learn and excel at using version 11. The step sequences expose you to beginner and advanced level drawing, the tutorials are easy-to-follow, and there's an abundance of helpful and useful tips. Even if you're an experienced illustrator, you'll find great techniques in this book. Trust me you won't regret the purchase.

The very clearly written style, REAL WORLD EXAMPLES!!!, and great technical content make this book a must have for Crystal Reports Development.

5 Stars

This is my first crystal report book and i can say this is the best crystal report book ever i found. Every chapters has a lot of Tutorials and Tips.

This book - like others written by Brian Bischof - is well laid out and clearly written. It has many excellent examples, and they are easy to find and utilize. It is also quite apparent that he has gone to considerable effort to illustrate the many new features that are to be found in CR XI.

I have had to purchased numerous books in the last year, trying to understand the differences between Visual Basic ver. 6 with Crystal Reports ver. 6, and Visual Studio.NET 2003 with its version of Crystal Reports and beyond to VS.NET2005 and CR-XI. Brian's books are the only ones that I have close at hand for when any problems arise.

Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R3B3G17CXEUCTT The Crystal Reports Encyclopedia gives you many features and reporting tips that you won't find in other books. This video review shows you the 4 best parts of the book and afterwards it goes in-depth to show you screen shots from the book's original PDF file.

When you're finished watching this video review, you'll see why the Crystal Reports Encyclopedia makes it easy for beginners to learn how to create reports; and how the tips and tricks will give Crystal Reports experts a reason to always keep this book next to their computer.

I am a Crystal Reports developer and as such I am always on the lookout for good reference material. When it comes to Crystal Reports that is not always easy to find. When you do find a reference book, like so many in the programming area, it is simply a restatement of the help file. By that I mean there is little more information than you can find by clicking on the software's help button. Not so with this book, the author has created something unique. In it there are a number of things that make this true, for example there are tutorials to step through processes and a best of forum feature where real world questions have been asked and answered.

Also, many Crystal Report developers are asked to create accounting reports. The author has created an appendix that specifically deals with the basics of getting those tasks done. He explains three different accounting software packages and what to look for in the table structures. He also steps you through the report layout of a number of common accounting reports. Extremely helpful to those who are debit and credit challenged. It was something I really appreciated.

There is alot to recommend about this book. Just remember this is not about .Net (that is supposed to be a later volume) but rather about the Crystal Reports Professional version. However there is more than enough here to be of value to anyone who creates Crystal Reports.

I used the source code in this book when I implemented buddy system in my OS.
Bruno's code is very effective and the design is excellent too.
I've learned a lot of things in this book.
So, I'd like to recommend this book absolutely!

I think I said it all right there. Great for intermediate/advanced c++ users. It also contains sections on various algorithms which implement many of the data structures discussed in previous chapters. Just get the book already!

The book has a detailed introduction and explanation to the subject and clearly explains how to analyze and implement in programming. This is done all in C++ and it is suited to students in Computer Science Courses. The exercises at the end of the chapters are quite useful.

Believe the summary...this book is for 2nd and 3rd year post-secondary students. I am an experienced C++ programmer, but Grade 12 math isn't enough to cut through the explanations to get to the code, which I can understand perfectly well.

Who should buy this book? Students with a good grasp of basic calculus, who want a thoroughly academic treatment of algorithms in C++ in order to pass Computer Science.

Who should not? A C++ programmer that wants clear, effectively presented information on implementing standard algorithms and data structures in order to get their project done.

I'm of the Keep It Simple school of thought, and the practical theory and implementations in this book could have been presented much more effectively without the adademic bafflegab.

I am currently working on my calculus skills in my spare time, and as my familiarity with the mathematical notation grows, I may be able to put this book to good use. Untill then I wish I'd bought something else, programming doesn't need to be as dense as this book makes it.

This is a great book for one who has had a formal study of undergraduate Calculus/Algebra and a very good understanding of the C++ language. The book starts off with explaining the fundamentals that will be applied to measure the effectiveness of a piece of code, and is very helpful for those who wants to understand the basic theory applied in the later chapters. This books treats almost all the basic data structures and have been presented in a very simple non-profounding way, like keeping the class design and hiearchy the same throughout. All the data structures have been explained using the (easy to use) arrays as well as link-lists. This makes it easier for a novice to grasp the fundamentals and go on to implement more complex and effective data structures using link lists. Overall, I found this book extremely helpful in getting a sound footing on this topic.

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.

Most artists can't do everything - usually they are somewhere in the middle of a chain of production responsiblities that don't include the skillsets involved with presenting a portfolio, digital or otherwise. Many points of insider knowledge are invaluable - I was on the cusp of using PowerPoint for my CD portfolio (my wife has strong skills with this) before being warned that this bussiness presentation software's would be viewed with derision by art directors, and that a high resolution version of a website format is the way to go here - this one parcel of knowledge was worth the price of the book alone, but it is far from the only lesson imparted. Highly recommended - it doesn't stray into realms of esoterica for the sake of pagecount.

This handbook is targeted at beginners in designing portfolios to submit their artwork or photos when job hunting. It is filled with information, however most is very basic and will only be a review for most readers.

If you set can aside the near 100% focus on digital media (though it is excellent for that kind of format) and not hyperventilate in feeling like you need to come up with Flash or DVDs after reading this, it offers solid points on portfolio content, whatever format you choose.

It covers what should go in, what should not go in, how much should go in, how/if to deal with process pieces, storyboarding,
thematic ties to pull a disparate portfolio together, and sage advice on basics like the kinds of written copy you want to include, such as design briefs, problem statements, and tag lines. It's my favorite book for this effort right now. My husband's, too. I have to pry it off his desk.

It's also savvy when it comes to marketing, so I think it will have a long shelf life in my library for the days when I need to market myself on other things besides landing a job, like marketing my firm.

It has some printed web site design examples which offer visual eye inspiration for printed page layout. It even has great image workflow tips, towards preserving the best image quality with the least needed resolution, that are comprehensible to the lay person as well as meaningful to someone with a high degree of digital photographic processing background.

For several months I searched for an appropriate textbook for a course that I was developing. Several days prior to the deadline for the course outline, "Designing a Digital Portfolio " was published. After reading the book, I realized this was the authoritative text for anyone in a creative field. The book asks and answers all the essential questions. It is perfect for the technological savvy multimedia programmer or for any artist with limited technology expertise. I urge anyone who is even considering developing a digital portfolio to buy this book. Without qualification, this is the most valuable book on the market

Multimedia Portfolio Instructor/Art Institute/Art Institute Online
Subject Matter Expert / Curriculum Development Multimedia Portfolio

This is one of the best books on its topic that I have ever seen. From the title, I expected to find advice on preparing images for the screen, how to put them on a CD or DVD, etc. Those things are there, but the book begins in a logical place that I wouldn't have considered. Brown's approach is truly holistic.

Check out page 23 for the first page of a three-page self assessment check list. It has you evaluate your professional strengths and weaknesses, goals and personality.

Chapter 3 asks you a bunch of questions to help you identify who your audience really is and focus on them.

The rest of the book covers various digital formats, how to organize your work, how to get images of 3D and oversized work into your portfolio, including choosing a camera and setting up for shooting.

Ms. Brown covers editing your images to remove the most common problems, such as moire, sharpening needs, bad crops, etc. And ... she devotes a section to creating written content to accompany your stunning images, telling you how to write to that audience you defined earlier.

She explains the differences between a monitor screen and a printed page. You need to know that to design the correct interface for your portfolio. She also has a full chapter devoted to marketing and copyright issues.

The entire book is scattered with quotes (in friendly green type) from experts and those who have gone before you. The quotes tell you what agencies are looking for in a portfolio, how others have found success at this, what things you can do to streamline the process, etc.