Programming Books

This book is easy to read and very practical. It helped me a lot with one of my data charting projects. Highly recommended.

It delivers what it promises. You will be able to write printing code, make your own controls, etc., after reading this book.

GREAT BOOK! The book was by far the easiest to follow book for GDI+ and Custom Controls using C#. I am very pleased and highly recommend this to all who wish to learn GDI+.

If you are moving up from GDI, you will find that GDI+ is about 50 times slower, but 50 times easier to program.

This is the kind of book you want to read when you want to get started with GDI+ development, and custom controls in particular. Yes, there are a lot of things that are not explained, but they, GDI+ and custom control development is a huge topic and couldn't possibly be covered in one book! The information provided in this book is excellent. It covers the basics of GDI+, custom control development, printing, and even web related stuff you may not think of at first. What's missing is how to build input-oriented controls, such as as fancy grids or spreadsheets and other advanced topics. But then again, I wouldn't expect a book like this to cover these topics.

One of my first .NET ah-hah experiences back in 2001 was creating an .aspx file that I could reference as a graphic (!). The .aspx file received two query parameters which informed it of the file name of the jpg and the width that the returned image was supposed to be. So then in an IMG tag, I would simply put src="ShowPicture.aspx?file=product1343.jpg&width=100" and it would display a thumbnail of that picture 100 pixels wide and proportionally high. This is an excellent way to produce dynamic pictures as well as protect your online photographs (show thumbnails to visitors, full sized pictures to members), and the .NET GDI+ classes are straight-forward and easy to use. Ever since then I have been looking for a book which goes into deeper detail of creating graphics in .NET with the GDI+ classes. Wrox has finally produced this book! In chapters 1 through 10 you get the basics: pens, brushes, texts, fonts, image manipulation, paths, regions and printing. Then in the rest of the book you learn how to make custom controls which create custom graphics (I love books that teach two things at a time -- great for developers who do four things at a time). If you read this book, you will think about graphics differently, namely, as dynamic objects which your application, the user and the environment can manipulate at run time. Very exciting.

There's not much to say about this book other than it is the best GWT book out there. It is prior to 1.5 but the generics really don't change any principles or techniques covered on this text.

It does have a very practical approach, with a lot of coding and it mixes several other technologies to solve the covered project issues, so, if you are not familiar with recent (not so recent anymore) web tech you will probably need a bit of research to fully enjoy the reading.

This Book contain a real utilities Drag and Drop, Windows, conecting with logic in other lenguages by HTTP GET/POST and more, ideal for an understanding of the potential for rapid GWT Technology.

I was thoroughly impressed with this book. Not only does it provide a great introduction to GWT, it provides the right background information on AJAX, patterns of AJAX usage, and other tools to use alongside GWT. I was just expecting another dry reference book for yet another framework. The examples were well thought out and interesting - not just more Hello World apps.

I think you may need a good background in both Java and JavaScript for this to be easily consumed, but for me it hit the spot.

When I first checked out Google Web Toolkit, I was hooked. Finally, being able to write AJAX-based applications without being mired in cobbled-on Javascript code.

The docs on [...] are fairly good, but with few examples. This book has a good mix of theory and background of GWT, along with many examples. I'm learning a great deal from it, and it has become invaluable to picking up GWT.

I have done GWT development and book came into market recently. I must say it has cover lot of ground with working examples. You will get some practical tips on development of GUI and deployment on Tomcat. I am giving 5 star because no other GWT book cover ground like Ryan has done.

There are many different aspects to this book that I love. First was the educational aspect. Going into it I didn't know too much about MD, and the author provides an explanation of it in easy to understand terms. Secondly, its amazingly open and honest. The author discusses all of his feelings and struggles so clearly that your heart really melts for him. But at the same time, you are strengthened and touched by his sense of self. The stories about his outdoor adventures really motivated me to get out there and see everything that our beautiful country has to offer...and to think about the sense of accomplishment and glory of completeing a task that seems so daunting. Its amazing what Jonah does and how he never quits.

I also enjoyed the writing style. Its very conversational and humorous...esp the 'Ladies' chapter, loved the deserts! The internal beauty of people really is what makes this world go around.

Jonah Berger's "He Walks Like a Cowboy" is touching, funny, inspirational and insightful. This book should inspire others to be true to themselves and live their dreams in spite of their challenges. A good dose of reality from a gifted author. A compelling autobiography.

I recently attended a gathering specifically centered around this book. I overheard a conversation between a few people speaking about how this book is so motivating and inspiring for people with disabilities. I quickly interjected and reminded the people in the conversation that it does this for those WITHOUT any physical disability as well. After all, we all have some sort of disability that we live with. It may not be muscular dystrophy but we all have challenges we must face on a daily basis. Berger teaches us through his own life experiences that we have a choice as to HOW we live with these challenges. Its never easy but he shows us that we can do anything we want to with hard work and determination. It sounds cliche but there's no denying that after reading this book.

A quick, emotional, hard-hitting, MUST read!

Jonah Berger presents a road map for people with disabilities, particularly those of us with progressive diseases. He demonstrate how to face the future with humor, humility, and how never to take today for granted.

He discusses delicate topics like dating and the pain he lives with daily, with grace and his ever-present humor. The letters written by his family and friends are testaments to his incredible character and inspirational strenght.

He Walks Like a Cowboy is a rare opportunity to understand both the emotional and physical challenges of going through life with a disablity. It is a personal story told with great love and heart, allowing the reader the chance to connect with who the author is, and not just the words. A great book and I am looking forward to more from Jonah Berger.

I've your fantastic book, How to Do Everything with Your PC, and I do have to say it's the best book I've purchased yet! It's answered just about every question I've had. Just about everything a person can think of about using a Windows PC is answered in this book, from doing my email, getting on the Internet, even making digital movies -- it's answered in this book.

How To Do Everything With Your PC is more than a simple introduction to personal computers. Robert Cowart has written a thoroughly "user friendly" and comprehensive guide to how even the most novice computer user can take full advantage of all the capabilities computer technology has to offer them. Every aspect is methodically covered including selecting the PC that best meets a particular need; effectively using the Windows operating system; customizing the Web browser; upgrading equipment and troubleshooting problems on the system with ease and confidence; getting connect to, and efficiently using, the Internet; managing personal finances on the PC; building a home computer network (including a wireless network); manipulating digital photographs on the PC; creating a "digital jukebox" with the PC; synchronizing data from the PC to a handheld device or laptop; and much, much more. How To Do Everything With Your PC is very highly recommended for those new to computers -- and has a great deal to offer even the more experienced users.

If you're looking to get the maximum use from your PC investment, this is the book to read. The book gives you concise information on how to set up your PC and perform routine maintanence. There's also sections on using peripheral hardware, setting up your own Web site, and using with the software that comes bundled with most PCs. I learned volumes by reading this well-written, easy to understand book and can highly recommend it to anyone who owns a PC and wants to get the most from it.

I have read the entire book and enjoyed every minute of it. The most important thing however is this: Cowart's book is very,very good, and he is more than knowledgeable in his field. The book is one that you will retuirn to time and time again, for answers. You bought, or are thinking of buying it for one reason: to learn more about your computer. This book has all the answers to probably 95% of the questions you may have. It covers nearly everything about computers that readers want to know and to learn. It is easy to understand, and for the person who is new to computers, this is a must. It has a well thought out Index which is also of importance to those who don't understand their new machine. For more experienced users,this book is for you too. It's a reference book you'll enjoy,and use, for a long time.By the time it becomes obsolete, I expect Robert Cowart to write an updated version; but that time isn't anytime soon.

The book was actually for my wife (who hates computers and hates manuals even more), yet needs them in her business. She keeps the book on her desk as a reference. It does not use technobabble and is not boring. The index is good. It is written a lot like asking a friend for help. It is not intimidating. Now I am about to order another one for myself.

The format and content was unusual - light hearted and entertaining, yet helpful and complete. I have been using computers since working on mainframes in college in 1958. Even with this background, I found the book helpful and informative. I often get phone calls from friends and customers about their computer problems and have already purchased three additional copies of the book for their use.

I highly recommend the book for all users from beginner to veteran.

The only C# book that I have two of...
One at home...
One at work...

You will probably need a more basic book if you are a beginer.
But I would make this my second book.

If you are coming over from C++, then make this
your first book on C#

This book is one of the worlds best kept secrets on
learning C#. I'm lucky that I took a chance on it.

Not only are the visuals great, but the selection of topics are great also.

Explains more or less basic features but does it in such a way as to stick in your head (Like Head First series claim, but this is done in a way that I prefer).

Even know I am a seasoned programmer, I still highly recommend this to novice and above for reference. Apress is starting to become my favorite programming publisher....

Wow, I just read half of this book. I never wrote a book review before. I don't know what say. I was so suprised. It is just so GOOD!!! I have read several other highly rated C# books before. But none of these book can give me so clear explanation like this book does. It solved many of my misunderstandings of a lot of concepts by giving simple examples with visual figures.

Probably my favorite programming book that I've read to date. I read it completely in two nights, it's just incredibly engaging (as nerdy as that sounds). I just like the way this author explains things. It's like you're sitting with a friend of yours that just tells you what you need to know in a very clear no-nonsense way. This is the very best book to learn C#. It is especially helpful for people coming from a Java or C++ background.

I purchased this book about a few weeks ago for roughly $40 inlcuding postage. A few days later the price dropped to $12 and some stores are selling the book at around $8.... l0l

Suppose you knew nothing of automobiles and wanted to know how they worked. A book using this author's approach would first tell you about every kind of screw in the automobile, it's exact size, material, thread count per inch, and type. Chapter 2 would tell you about the nuts into which the screws would be placed. Even for an experienced programmer, this book will tell you all about the trees, but very little about the forest. Why three stars:
because it's an excellent reference text about the language, clear and thorough.

This is the C# book that I always keep next to me. If I am unsure about some type of class, delegates, interfaces, etc. I open up this book and get right up to speed. While concise, Dan leaves nothing out in terms of details required for effective C# programming.

The LINQ coverage is outstanding! It is so good that I hope Dan does an entire book on the subject. His mastery of informative graphics would be an ideal format for help to save us T-SQL hacks from having to stand on our heads to get at LINQ.

I highly recommend this book.

You will not read a better book on C#.

The first edition (2005) was great, this one is even better.

If you only get two books on C# then this should be one of them.

But, if you only buy one book... :) then get this one.

Sorry this review is short on content, but the other reviewer will bring you up to speed. (just the ones with 5 stars)

The 2008 version vs 2005 version

It includes a new chapter on asynchronous programming using delegates.
It includes a new chapter on the new LINQ features.

One small down side in the 2005 version (not sure about the 2008 version)

The author states that fields should begin with upper case letters and local variable begin with lower case. In 2005 chapter on Methods, the author makes the mistake of using upper case for local variables...

This may have been corrected in 2008 version.

I now have 4 books on C# and this is by far the best (at least for me). The material is well organized with consice, well thought out explanations. In addition, the figures add a great deal of to clarify the text. To me, this book was written to inform.

As I usually make numerous notes this book fits my needs very well with an ample amount of white space.

Thanks to Daniel Solis.

If you are like me, typically when I read a programming book or article, I feel compelled to download the code, and modify it slightly in order for the content to really "sink in". Remarkably, while reading this book, I rarely felt that to be necessary, as his code examples often fully "illustrated" the topic. The result was that I was able to read this book quickly, 2-3 chapters per sitting.

I feel coverage of the main C# topics was excellent, as well as the order they were presented. His chapters on delegates, interfaces, and LINQ were especially good, with very little wasted time delving into esoteric areas that might be interesting, but not very useful. The only negative feedback I would offer is that occasionally topics were addressed to a general programming newbie audience, but I just skimmed those.

In summary, my kudos to author Dan Solis, it's a terrific book!

There are many books about the Rational Unified Process (RUP) and how to put it in place, but this one is SPECIAL. Fundamentally, It is:
- Concise the main body is under 150 pages, including diagrams and tables)
- To the point (it wastes no time delving in the details of RUP concepts for which there already are many good references)
- Practical (It deals with the realities of championing and managing RUP adoption in a real commercial environment, NOT what you might do in an academic setting)
- Comprehensive (It addresses the strategic, financial, and political aspects of the task, not merely the technical aspects)

It also provides a critical benefit over other comparable books, namely a strategy to deal with a problem that has plagued RUP throughout its existense: Its size and complexity.
Although there is consensus in the software industry that you cannot turn a novice organization into a mature RUP outfit in one fell swoop, very little is said on how to scale and evolve expectations over time, from conducting successful pilots, to disseminating the method across the entire organization, on to growing the organization through graduated maturity levels of adoption. This books fills that gap.

Two "caveat" worth mentioning:
1- This book assumes that you are an experienced RUP practioner and consequently says very little in the way of RUP concepts
2- This book is (mercifully) short which is absolutely necessary to NOT put the reader to sleep. As a result, while it provides a clear and concrete picture of the adoption process, it does not "dot all the i's" nor "cross all the t's". In other words, after you read this book, you will have a clear idea of the road ahead, but it will take ample effort to get yourself to the point where you can walk it ... blindfolded.

Implementing process in a large organization is a huge challenge not just technically but socially. Joshua Barnes gets this, "people are slow to change and react to change in different ways". His book should be required reading for anyone working to improve process efficiency and effectiveness.

The number one reason process adoption projects fail is because there isn't visible support from upper management. Barnes's book focuses on ROI at every step and wages the key arguements to gain the support from both the top and the roots. His guidance also outlines a model to support the change so that process improvement lasts and continues, instead of people reverting back to old practices.

As this book states, leading a RUP implementation without the right subject matter expertise significantly limits your odds of success. I am currently working with Joshua on a large scale RUP/Rational Tool implementation and experienced life before and after having the right knowledge on-board. Joshua has guided multiple large scale implementations and has brought his accumulated base of implementation knowledge and lessons learned to bear. Joshua's book contains much of what he has learned and is an excellent handbook if you are planning to or are currently running a RUP / Rational Tool implementation of your very own.

There are many books out there on USING the Rational Unified Process (RUP) and the tools. However, guidance on IMPLEMENTING a methodology across an enterprise and how to achieve ROI with tools has not been readily available. Over the years I have seen organizations filled with RUP gurus and tools experts still fail in their Rational rollout, and unfortunately they often retreat to their previous chaotic process or lack thereof. As well, organizations struggle to make their ROI and capability & maturity improvements quantifiable.

This book provides tools, complete with real examples, to create a business case for RUP and productivity tools, shows how to increase capability through a structured mentoring program, and most importantly, how to assess your results to ensure your implementation is on track.

I, like Joshua, teach courses on implementing RUP and the tools. This book is clearly now THE reference text for my students.

This book is a must have for anyone implementing the RUP. It hits on a lot of key pieces of the puzzle that go far beyond the configuration of process material and process instancing.

One chapter I found invaluable is the chapter on mentoring. In my personal experiencing training alone has never been enough when trying to adopt the RUP. This chapter finally put into words for me what I have been trying to communicate to a lot of companies. I now have a place to refer them when I am trying to make my point.

Another chapter was the one on tooling. This is overlooked a lot. Making sure you have the tooling to support your process in an absolute must and this book brings that to light.

The book also comes with downloadable tools that make the practices in the book a reality. They add the value of making this a real world book, verses an academic view of process implementation.

This book was definitely worth getting.

This is one of the most helpful computer books I have ever read. I not only learned from the numerous examples, I was inspired by their creativity to create content of which I'm proud, and to go from making a me-too product to something people will talk about.

It is truly amazing what the unpublicized, interactive capabilities of QuickTime allow you to make.

I would warn anyone buying this book, use LiveStage Pro on a Mac as nature intended it; the Windows version is quite buggy and more than a little clunky.

By reading this book you may probably notice, that you are wrong and you will be surprised how much there is you can still learn about the subject.
The book covers every aspect regarding interactive content creation with QuickTime
It is a rich source of in-depth information and there is a wealth of ready to use functions. In combination with the many tutorials and samples it is valuable and useful for all who author interactive QT or intend to do.
For experienced users it is a real reference book even if your authoring environment differs from the one (LiveStage Pro) used throughout the book as many aspects and programming technics are transferable.

I just started using Live Stage Pro to author quicktimes 2 months ago and found the software's manual to be helpful but light on insight. In a nutshell 'Interactive Quicktime' is a crucial book to get if you're learning LSP (although the author goes into other methods of working with quicktime too). What can I say? It helps you understand what's going on within the world of the quicktime architecture and walks you through tons of projects to help you get it. I wasn't getting it with the LSP manual. As the author states it would be helpful to know a little bit of applescript or some other programming language but I'm picking it up slowly but surly and I've never written a word of code in my life. It's well worth the price.

This really is an excellent book. The examples that Matthew uses to teach in each chapter are useful far beyond just wired QuickTime. I keep it next to my desk for use in my other development environments as well.

For example there is a chapter on scripted motion which talks about linear interpolation, easing in and out, motion along mathematical functions, circular motion, paths and spline interpolation. I incorporated a few of these animation algorithms into my desktop applications and they work/look great.

Highly recommended.

If you think that QuickTime is just a media player for showing video and listening to audio, this book will make you think again. Delving into the depths of the QuickTime architecture Matthew shows the reader the huge breadth of interactivity that is possible and encourages the reader to think how techniques can be applied in different ways. Each chapter ends with an 'Explorations' section asking the reader to think about various topics that have been looked at, and how they can be applied.

The book is broken up into six main sections covering topics such as sprites- communicating with them, moving them, interaction, modelling physics etc. Other sections include the structure of QT, adding interactivity to existing movies, user interfaces, multimedia and communicating with the world.

Each section is subdivided into chapters looking at a specific area (39 chapters in all), and usually going through several small projects. ALL of these projects are included on the CD, often in both beginning and final forms so that you can go through all the steps or just look at the final version if you are more advanced. Because the book is structured with more complex issues handled later on, even a relative newcomer can work through the book, while the experienced QT content producer can go directly to the sections of particular interest.

There is a 42 day trial version of LiveStage Pro on the Cd as most of the projects are done using it, along with demos of several other programs and examples of the best QT work by other people.

In the introduction Matthew mentions that he often looks at the contents and index of a reference book first, as these tell you a lot about a book. Nine pages of Contents, twenty pages of Index, a Glossary and Appendix S! Even including a list of every file on the CD and many http links.

As Matthew explains how things are done rather than simply showing you the program-specific scripts a lot of the book can be applied to other multimedia environments such as Flash, Director and Runtime Revolution. I regard this book as required reading for all people working to create highly interactive media, whether they use QT or not.

In summary this book will revolutionise how you think of and use QuickTime. By showing what is possible rather than what is commonly used Matthew expands the interactive medium in a way that pushes the boundaries.

Highly recommended, and I found that the author quickly replies to any questions that you ask him by email.

This book is a must read by all those mathematicians, scientists and engineers who like to understand difference equations and discrete dynamics. It contains the most complete and comprehenive analysis of the stability of one-dimensional maps or first order difference equations. It has an extensive number of applications in a variety of fields from neural network to host-parasitoid systems. The most enjoyable part of the book is the new chapter on continued fractions and orthogonal polynomials and the totally revised chapter on asymptotics. The chapter on stability theory is by far the best exposition on the subject; it updates most of the material in the popular LaSalle book. I enjoyed very much the lucid and transparent writing style of Elaydi which many math books lack. I am planning to use this textbook in my undergraduate course on differnce equations and dynamical systems in the Fall of 2000. There are some minor misprints and errors that I was able to decipher. The author may need to consider publishing a solutiion manual since some of the problems in the book are quite challenging. It is also desirable if the author post an errata on his web page and/or on amazon.com.

Among the few introductory texts to difference equations this book is one of the very best ones. It has many features that the other texts don't have, e.g., stability theory, the Z-transform method (including a study of Volterra systems), and asymptotic behavior of solutions of difference equations (including Levinson's lemma) are studied extensively. It also contains very nice examples that primarily arise in applications in a variety of disciplines, including neural networks, feedback control, biology, Markov chains, economics, and heat transfer. Unfortunately, among differential and difference equations, students usually only learn about differential equations, although many problems they encounter later can be solved using difference equations. Hence it is very useful for students to study difference equations (or even, dynamic equations, which can accomodate differential and difference equations at the same time), and for such an undergraduate or beginning graduate course, Saber's book can be used as a textbook. It is particularly useful for such a purpose since it contains many exercises and also many programs for the calculator TI-85. Although the first edition did contain several misprints, the second edition has eliminated most of them. Saber's superb writing style makes reading this book very enjoyable.

This is the best book on modern difference equations. It contains a wide range of material on difference equations and may be very interesting in applications in Physics, Biology, economics and other many subjects. It is easy and readable for those who want a quick overlook on the subject. At the same time it is very deep and goes to high level and leads to many research problems for those who wish that. I am so impressed by this book that I am going to translate it into Arabic through the Arabic Organization for Education, Culture and Science. Shortly , this is a wonderful book and I strongly recommended it to every scientist who is working and interested in discrete models

El texto An Introduction to Difference Equations del profesor Dr. Saber N. Elaydi ha sido utilizado en reiteradas ocasiones, en el curso Ecuaciones en Diferencias Finitas, dictado por el profesor Dr. Julio López, de la Universidad La Frontera de Chile, curso del cual, este semestre soy alumno.

El texto del profesor Elaydi, es un libro que explica de forma amena, clara y precisa, distintos tópicos de Ecuaciones en Diferencias. Comenzando el estudio de los primeros conceptos a tópicos avanzados del tema, destaco dentro de sus muchas cualidades el gran número de ejemplos y aplicaciones expuestas en distintas áreas de las ciencias, además de gran cantidad de ejercicios propuestos, lo que permite al alumno practicar e internalizar las definiciones, proposiciones y teoremas estudiados. Me parece, sin lugar a duda, el texto más claro e interesante que he leído sobre el tema. Cabe destacar que este texto contiene tópicos, que en otros no son tratados. Otra importante cualidad del texto es, que aunque se tiene sólo ediciones en ingles, el profesor Elaydi, ha escrito su libro de tal manera, que no es un impedimento para los hispano parlantes, tenerlo como libro guía en nuestros cursos.

Alex R. Sepúlveda C.
Alumno de Ingeniería Matemática
Universidad de La Frontera
Chile.

A very readable text, but I noticed several annoying misprints, mostly involving references to equations, examples, and theorems within the text.

Recommended, but caveat reader.

This book is excellent. I first read this book in graduate school in 1976, and I continue to find Weinberg's ideas useful. It was outstanding then, and it has held up with time.

Weinberg distills the essence from von Bertalanffy's classic and manages to present it in a very accessible fashion. The book has been out of print for quite a while so it is great to see a new edition. The message and information contained in here, although originally published in 1975, is now more relevant than ever.

Weinberg covers many aspects of systems theory beginning with the main stumbling block with the present scientific paradigm: the idea that the universe is mechanistic. His treatment is much more general than Robert Rosen's in "Life Itself" but still conveys why the mechanistic notion is flawed.

He then outlines the general systems theory approach before leading into the idea that a system is simply a way of looking at the world. He then outlines the principle of indifference. This leads straight into two sections outlining various aspects of making observations. Finally he discusses behaviour and then some general systems questions.

Throughout the book he uses many examples from disparate fields in conjunction with questions for further research. It is great to see someone who doesn't preach systems but actually uses the ideas.

Definitely a must-read as we decided how to solve the myriad of issues before us.

Weinberg's book will not teach you how to be a systems thinker. It will, however, provide a stimulating discussion and thoughtful examination of an alternative approach to problem analysis and solution. The book is not so much about how the systems approach works or how it can be applied to complex problems as it is an invitation to his readers to explore their perceptions of what they think they know versus what they really do know. Throughout the book, Weinberg follows the strategy of leading the reader through a series of logical discussions designed to bring them face to face with their biases and misconceptions about systems vs. reductionist thinking. In doing so, Weinberg exposes the shortcomings of the reductionist approach to problem solving by demonstrating to his readers that the real solutions to some familiar and apparently simple problems are very complex.

Through his examples, Weinberg shows that by viewing a system holistically within its environment, we may be able to discern patterns of behavior/actions and recognize interactions, interrelationships, and interdependencies among the components that will be missed in a reductionist approach. From that view, we can better understand the system and, perhaps, better predict how it will evolve over time. The success of his approach is demonstrated by the fact that people are still reading and quoting his book 25+ years after it was written.

One facet of this book which I found beneficial may be a drawback for some readers. Weinberg wrote from the viewpoint of a computer programmer and a scientist. A person not versed in either field might have difficulty understanding his examples.

I was searching for an alternative to the out-of-print book 'Quality Software Management, vol.1: Systems Thinking', written by the same Author.
Having read few Sofware Management series books from the same Author, which I rate at the very top of my list, I was biased on very high expectations. Surprisingly, I have found it being quite verbose and in the end, I couldn't get too much inspiration out of it.

In computing, a timeless classic is anything that is worth reading for any reason other than to obtain a historical context after five years. If that still holds true after twenty five years, then it is truly an extraordinary piece of work. That label applies to this book. It is not about computing per se, but about how humans think about things and how "facts" are relative to time, our personal experience and environmental context.
Human thinking is a complex operation and that is the point of this book. The problems and examples presented are not those in computing, but problems in how we think about the world and how that world can be different from person to person. In many ways, Weinberg anticipates the development of the science of chaos, where small changes lead to disproportionate large changes. His example of the "small" change of a single character is a classic. A man was considering the purchase of a piece of real estate, but when told the cost was fourteen million dollars, sent the response by telegram, "No, price too high." However, somehow a character was dropped, so the agent received the message, "No price too high", purchased the property and so a classic error was invented.
Weinberg uses science and mathematics as the genesis point for most of his examples. The laws of thermodynamics, chance and simulations in state spaces are used to demonstrate the points. As someone with a wide background in science, I found his examples of how scientific thought gives us an anchor but yet alters over time excellent learning material. Thought problems are included at the end of each chapter and they cover many different areas. Some involve mathematics, others science and many could be the point of a vigorous philosophical debate. Together they form the best collection of thought experiments and points of contention that I have ever seen gathered together in one location.
This is a book that is a true classic, not in computing but in the broad area of scholarship. It is partly about the philosophy and mechanisms of science; partly about designing things so they work but mostly it is about how humans view the world and create things that match that view. This book will still be worth reading for a long time to come and it is on my list of top ten computing books of the year.