Languages Books

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

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

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

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

Paul

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

I'm a glutton for books on education, and I can comfortably say that this is hands-down the most practical, entertaining, and useful book I read in 2008. While I was still reading the book I was able to implement some of Anderson's ideas in my own classroom. He's a middle school teacher but I adapt many of his lesson ideas for my third grade class. He answered every question and eased my discomfort about teaching structure in a fluidly structured environment like writer's workshop. Well done in striking the balance between squelching student ideas and squeaking by with any old slop.

I love sharing this book with fellow teachers. It is easy to read and the ideas can easily and quickly be incorporated into my work with students. I work with students in small groups and one-on-one and I can always refer to one of Jeff Anderson's creative ideas.

As the forward of this text suggested, this book IS engaging enough to read far into the night, despite it being about grammar and usage! It is packed with usable information, visuals, examples and stimulating ideas for writing teachers. I highly recommend it, for teachers and writers of all ages (middle school to college).

I love this book. I teach high school and I was never able to find creative and concrete ways to teach grammar concepts. Anderson takes the best of what we know about how to teach grammar (that is should be taught in the context of a student's own writing, that it should be active, that is should be scaffolded, etc.) and really focuses on how to make that happen. Look at his "sentence smack-down" and the "express lane editing" to really change how you look at teaching grammar. My kids loved it and I really felt like they were getting it and would use it again. The book is teacher-friendly and activity-based and includes copies of handouts.

This was a great read packed with real classroom experiences, creative learning activities, and terrific, easy-to-understand explanations of grammar and how to teach it.

The Message is made available to the members of our congregation. It has greatly incresaed Bible study, especially for those who listen to it as they commute to work. For any who are more comfortable listening than reading, I highly recommend it.

like my title this version is amesome. it's cheap enough to buy it. i have listened to it at work and learned so much, i also have been listening to it as i read the bible, so i am hearing and reading it. for if i listen i can drift thoughts, or things of many other things, if i just read it late at night i can fall asleep, or realize the last 2 chapers, i don't know what i was reading. so by doing both i have been getting heaps out of the old testament, which is hard for people to get warmed up to. But i sure have. you'll like it.

"The Message" is a paraphrase of the Bible. It is easy to read and understand; however, readers should be cautioned that this is one author's interpretation. "The Message is not THE BIBLE and is marketed as a paraphrase. This is also not a verse by verse paraphrase but rather a chapter by chapter look at how Eugene Peterson interprets the scripture. Therefore, it changes the meaning of scripture that is conveyed in trusted translations of the BIBLE.

The Message is a great translation for listening to the Bible. The 5 MP3 CDs are an economical and convenient way to get the material. As others have noted, the readers are very easy to listen to. The production is very well done.

I hate to be the one to nitpick, but I noticed several dozen numbering errors in the file names and in the MP3 meta data. Perhaps I'm handicapped by a poor media player but I had to correct some of these files by hand for the chapters to sort perfectly. I'm certain that in most cases the errors go completely unnoticed by listeners because the files themselves are in the correct order on the CDs. The files on CD 4 are arranged in a completely different manner than the other discs.

So while I found the MP3 arrangements imperfect, the content itself is superb and deserves 5 stars. Buy it.

Having enjoyed the hard copy versions of The Message for years, I decided to invest in the CD version and was very glad that I did. Each chapter of The Message has a brief snazzy musical intro (which I *really* like) with a woman's voice giving a background about the church, the times and the general history. I suppose I glossed over this part in the written form, but I surely do enjoy listening to it on tape. It really helps put the whole thing in context.

I'm always hesitant to invest in these "books on tape" because sometimes, the reading so dry and boring, but the reading on The Message is strong, clear and interesting. The intro to Matthew even features Eugene Peterson himself, explaining a little background about how he wrote "The Message."

I am *not* an audio-based learner but more of a visual learner, yet my thoughts don't drift whilst listening to these CDs. I find it very easy to stay focused and really pay attention and soak up the meanings.

I've listened to these CDs for several years now and they never grow old. I love the layout and organizations of the tracks, the little case (very handy), the narrator's voice, the music and above all, I love listening to The Message.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

if this book satisfies my sister-in-law who is the best teacher in Texas and probably in the United States, then it is great for my homeschooling.

This easy to read grammar book fit the bill for me when I needed to brush up on some basic rules quickly for an exam. There are plenty of examples to help cement each concept and the authors also use comic strips to emphasize each point. I highly recommend this book the anyone who wants to learn how to write a paper correctly.

On this cold, winter day in January, I'm reading More Nitty Gritty Grammar. Who would have thought that a grammar book could be entertaining? Edith Fine and Judith Josephson have found the perfect formula. Similar to their first book, Nitty Gritty Grammar, this one is organized in an appealing, accessible way. I actually enjoyed testing my grammar skills with the quiz. Their compilation of nationally-syndicated cartoons addressing grammar issues adds visual interest and levity. They explain the rules, state the exceptions, and give plenty of examples. It's an excellent resource guide for yourself or for a friend. I highly recommend it.

There has never been a friendlier invitation to master English usage basics than Nitty-Gritty Grammar until its new companion, More Nitty-Gritty Grammar. I recommend them for all my community college students. Not in the ivory tower crowd, authors Fine and Josephson are, however, astute observers of language ills and, if laughter is the best medicine, most-palatable healers. Their topics are relevant, their well-researched explanations straightforward, their examples fresh and funny. My students agree.

Better organized and more comprehensive than even the popular _Transitive Vampire_ series or _Woe Is I_, this second book by Josephson and Fine is whimsical and easy to use. It's packed with humorous examples that are current and uncontrived. This is the only book I've found to cover some of the finer points that have always bothered or confused me--such as when British convention differs from that in America. Indispensible!

this is a great book and i received it just like i expectd to receive it.

We have read this book repeatedly, and my first-grader enjoys it every time. Now he enjoys reading it to me. Great for beginning readers.

WHAT A JOY THIS BOOK IS. THE STORY IS FUN AND SO CUTE. ONE OF MY ALL TIME FAVORITES TO READ TO THE CHILDREN.

This is one of those that is an absolute delight to read to and with kids. A mouse, minding his own business is caught by a weasel who of coure plans to whip up a batch of Mouse Soup. Our fast talking little mouse simply talks his way out of the dinner by telling the weasel four delightful stories, thereby distracting the weasle and at the same time, teaching the weasle a good lesson. The illustrations are great the the story telling is of the highest quality. Cute is a word that is over used, but in this case I have to use it because it fits so well. This work is almost along the same lines as the famous Uncle Remus tales, but in many ways is more appealing. I liked this one and do highly recommend it. The art work alone is worth the price of the book.

I have to bow to a superior opinion in rating this book. After reading it to my 5 y.o. son, I had come to the conclusion that the subset of stories were pretty lame and uninteresting. I mean one of them is about two rocks that get lied to by a bird (or so the rocks think). And another is about a rose bush growing out of a comfy chair.

But my 5 y.o. informs me that I don't know what I am talking about. This book is great, he told me. And he convinced me that this was true by doing something his active little self seldom does: he went and got the book off his shelf and dragged his father over to the couch so that dad could listen to him read the stories. [Could have knocked me over with bookmark.]

The AR Reading level for this book is 2.4 which means that the Accelerated Reading committee, and it's software, suggests this book for Second Graders in their fourth month of school.

[The AR designation is a general "guide" that rates books on a relative scale of difficulty. Children can certainly read at levels above or below their group range, so that this number should only be used as a aid to help choose books that are appropriate and not frustrating.]

Four Stars. This book has a mouse cum Scheherazade premise: A weasel captures a poor little mouse and the mouse plots to get out of being eaten by telling stories. The stories the mouse tells didn't appeal to me, but my five y.o. son sure liked them. The AR reading level indicates the book is suitable for Second Graders.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

soli deo gloria

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

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

However, consider the following:

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

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

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

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

There must be other readers who find a bit awkward the following comments provided within the first page of the introduction: "O.K., we'll be frank: we chose 'Agile' for the title out of marketing concerns. It seems to be the current term of choice for the kinds of things we describe in this book. It is a term that rolls off the tongue more easily than other clever names that clamor for your attention on today's bookshelves". Now, the authors quickly follow these comments with the argument that many of the ideas shared here had their genesis prior to the Agile software development movement, they also note that the scope of this book is broader than "so-called" agile development. The authors attempt to describe their interest in "effective" rather than "agile" software development, and that some of the ideas provided within the pages of this book "would fit nobody's definition of agile". In addition, some of the patterns shared here, the authors continue, were criticized by one of the founders of Extreme Programming (XP), who noted that "anyone who worked on organizational issues was avoiding real work". This reviewer provides this background here because the book starts off on a strange note, provided that anyone is willing to read the introduction. In the conclusion to their introduction, the authors save themselves by getting down to the core purpose of this book: "We have captured the good things organizations do, and we have recorded them as patterns. We hope these patterns will be as interesting and useful to you as they have been to us". It is with this frame of mind that one needs to read this book, if it is to be of any use to them in their business of software development. The history behind this book is what might make it particularly attractive to potential readers. As stated, "this work draws on data gathered as part of the Pasteur process research program at AT&T Bell Laboratories. In the Pasteur program, we studied software development organizations in many companies worldwide, covering a wide spectrum of development cultures". The Pasteur studies used social network diagrams and adjacency diagrams to make some sense out of the network of organizational roles and the communication paths between them. While this reviewer found these diagrams to be of some aid in understanding the associated dialogue with each, at first glance they sometimes appear as like large entity relationship (ERD) diagrams with entity relationships liberally overlapping each other to a degree that can pose a challenge to even the most attentive reader. Another type of diagram that the authors provide, the interaction grid, which is intended to convey a communication matrix for a given organization, sometimes adds to the discussion but often does not, especially when the number of roles included is very high. The authors, however, seem to understand the costs and benefits of process usage very well, noting that they started their studies on process and organization just as software development standards increased their influence in the 1980s and 1990s, and while process can add significant value, these cultures "often ignored important variations in organizational behavior that are key in dealing with market uncertainties or the uncertainties that arise in any process rooted in human intellect and instinct". And three problems typically arise with the process specification document as the final word on development activities in practice: lack of empirical conformance between practice and process specifications, incompleteness of process models, and inability to capture long-term stable process abstractions. One of the best quotes that the authors provide in the entire book is as follows: "In Contextual Design, we always try to build on natural human ways of interacting. It is easier to act, not out of a long list of rules, but out of a simple, familiar model of relationship. A list of rules says, 'Do all these things' - you have to concentrate so much on following the rules you can't relate to the customer. It's too much to remember. A relationship model says, 'Be like this' - stay in the appropriate relationship, and you will naturally act appropriately." (For a much more in-depth look at this debate, see my review for "Balancing Agility and Discipline" by Boehm and Turner.) While the project management pattern language, piecemeal growth pattern language, organizational style pattern language, and people and code pattern language portions of this text hold the most content, it is unfortunately a fact that much of the content provided in these sections, however truly relevant, can now often be found elsewhere in late-2008 industry literature. The difference that this content provides is that organizational design and construction patterns are presented as patterns, such as "Community of Trust", "Architect Also Implements", and "Incremental Integration", much like other books of the patterns genre. In the opinion of this reviewer, the most insightful portions of this text that might be of interest to individuals already familiar with many of these ideas are contained within the organizational principles and anthropological foundations portions of the book. Essentially, the former section, as the authors indicate, "offers practical advice that will make it easier to apply the patterns. You need to know when an organization is ready to try out patterns, and, once it is ready, you need to know how to apply the patterns. You also need to know what to do when a pattern doesn't seem to be working. This isn't an academic exercise: The future of your organization is on the line". Among the topics discussed here are dissonance, team burnout, crisis management, change, empowerment, schismogenesis, team building, piecemeal growth, and the role of management. The latter section follows the thought of the authors that "it would be a good idea to build on the insights and foundations from anthropology, the formal world of the study of culture". Among the topics discussed are structure and values, shortcomings of process, roles and communication, and social network theory. Some readers might be interested in the fact that one of the closing chapters to this text is a rather interesting case study on the Borland Quattro Pro for Windows project, which was adapted from an article written by one of the authors, Coplien, and Jon Erickson, that appeared in a 1994 industry publication. The answer of "probably not" is provided to the following question: "Can we capture the architecture of the Borland development organization and process and expect phenomenal results if we apply it to large development projects such as those that we have at AT&T?" The productivity that was demonstrated on that project, however, demonstrates what is possible.

I've read quite a few of Jim's works over the years, and he has never failed to impress me. This book should be required reading for any project manager!

My initial pre-read perception of this book was that it was going to be just another perspective of agile methods. I was wrong. Coplien and Harrison have dissected development teams to identify the key criteria leading to successful efforts and high-performing teams. Beyond process, this book identifies the organizational structures required to make the processes work.

From an organizational perspective, roles and responsibilities within your development teams are a primary success criteria for your agile (or any other process) adoption. This book presents how and why key roles within your teams work and why teams without these key roles don't work. The way they have presented the material provides for a quick cross-reference when you are looking for solutions to help your teams.

Beyond the organization patterns themselves, I believe some of the richest material in this book is presented in the last few chapters as they present the history and importance of organizational structures, roles and responsibilities in applying process - "Process emerges from structure, and structure emerges from values". There is great value in this book beyond most software development process books.

As project managers, most of us who've been in the field working for a while come to realize that successful project teams are more the result of "good" ongoing social engineering of one sort or another rather than just dumping an almost randomly selected group of people together, coming up with an MS Project Plan and saying "do this" (the Death Star approach, all to common in large traditional process-driven IT shops). After this has happened to you, painfully, you begin to come to the realization that perhaps there's more to project management than the mechanistic "people are interchangeable resources" PMBOK-style approach.

If it hasn't already, it begins to dawn on you that the "soft" side of project management (client relationship building, communication within the team and between teams, team dynamics and team morale, motivation, empowerment, commitment, a human-style of project management) are as important or even more important than the technical work and the technical skills required. Most of us have run across teams with prima-donna's who think they're the cat's whiskers, be they project managers or technical personnel, who have the personal graces of a warthog and who are incredibly destructive to team morale and team performance. They continue to exist, sadly, and because they often deliver, albeit at the expense of everyone who works for them or with them, they continue to survive in "Death Star" style IT shops where delivery is all important and the style of successful delivery means nothing or is short-sightedly disregarded. OK, so that's my rant.

Now for the book. We've all seen successful projects and successful teams (or at least, I hope we all have). Some teams gell and perform way above the norm. What this book does is distil over 100 successfully applied organizational patterns of one sort or another from real projects in real software development groups. These patterns are broken down into logical groups (Project Management Patterns, Piecemeal Growth Patterns, Organizational Style Patterns & People and Code Patterns) which are dissected and explained, with examples provided. What the authors have done is to identify and describe key organizational patterns which are used by successful teams - not processes, but organizational structures of various types that are needed to make processes work successfully. A large amount of practical experience has gone into the content - over ten years of research experience from the authors alone.

I've read a lot of books on Agile, but this is the first I've come across that sets out organizational patterns - and does it so effectively that you'll wonder why all the stuff in here never occurred to you before. As you read through the book, you'll see patterns that will make sense, the kind of "ah-ha, that's what the problem is and this is how I can dom something about it" sense. You'll find this book useful in that the contents can be taken and applied right away. It's easy to pick what is most useful for your team, what can be applied immediately and what would be nice later on, once some of the basics are in place. The content is practical in that you can easily identify what your problems are and what pattern would help fix it, why the pattern is intended to fix it, and there's good advice on how to introduce new patterns.

With over 100 patterns, there are a lot, but they're set out concisely, a page or two to each pattern. There's no fluff, it's well-written, there's no appreciable bias, there's a lot of material, including some good coverage of the importance of effective organizational structures in applying process. As we all know, all the process in the world will not a great project team make. The book's structure is coherent and well-organized, the patterns described can be used individually or as groups and the authors give you some pretty good ideas as to what's immediately useful.

And the pictures all the way through the book are great! A nice humorous touch that helps make the point each time. Overall, I'd recommend this book very highly as a resource to anyone managing a project / team, whether Agile or not. There's a wealth of practical advice in here that any project manager could take and use, although the orientation is towards Agile Projects. An added bonus - unlike many technical books, this one won't date quickly - organizational patterns that work don't change much over the years, unlike programming languages. From a practical point of view, I've applied some of these patterns to teams I work with and the results have been positive - I've also shared the book with co-workers and they've all found it both illuminating and useful.

This book has to be The Grand Unifying Theory of Software with respect to managing the people and processes involved in software production.

To anyone who has worked in the software industry, this book is clearly the product of an enormous amount of practical experience in both management of people and projects as well as the development of software.

Coplien and Harrison have written a book which both the project manager and software engineer will understand and will immediately be able to apply to their respective work environments: This is because the book cunningly captures essential organisational concepts using a framework that is familiar to software engineers. Thus, the concepts will be by recognised by staff trained in business as well as those trained in software and systems.

I strongly feel that the material covered in this book can achieve a common communication basis between managers and engineers, and can help business developers understand the nature of their people and organisation.

If I could insist that all people in software read this book I would; but without the policing power, I can only highly recommend this book to those involved in all facets of software.

Glatzer's entertaining writing style not only pokes fun at the dreaded "writer's block," but offers advice on other writing topics such as: how to find ideas, how to handle self-doubt and deadlines. Through her clever use of humor and seasoned with personal and other writing anecdotes, she demystifies and offers excellent advice on how to outwit this bane of writers everywhere.

For example, under a section entitled "Where to Get Ideas," Glatzer writes: "Another myth is that great ideas are supposed to just come to writers. Like we're all just walking around, minding our own business when wham! A great idea falls out of the heavens and lands in our brains. I, on the other hand, am idea-challenged. The idea fairy rarely visits my home without my asking. I have to invite her, cajole her, and then sometimes bang her over the head with a stick and drag her unconscious body into my abode without my neighbors calling the police. My muse is my mortgage."

Her book, her advice and her writing style will inspire writers everywhere not to give up -- no matter what. Her book is also one that writers will return to again and again if not for advice and support then for a great pick-me-up when the writing gets tough.

Glatzer has an exceptional talent. She has writing experience that smacks you in the face with its authenticity. She says, "Writers block is really more a case of opportunity knocking and you having your radio tuned up too loudly to hear it." (p. 10) and then goes on to explain how you might benefit from the big WB.

Glatzers's book sets an example for writers because it is fresh, carefully crafted, and entertaining. There are, to be sure, other books that address writer's block but this one is far more fun and less dogmatic than most. These are the fraternal twins that let this volume fill a much-needed niche in advice books for writers.
----------------------------
Reviewed by Carolyn Howard-Johnson. ...

If you've ever found yourself staring at a blank page all day, or doing mundane chores over again just to avoid that lost feeling, then you've experienced writer's block. And Jenna Glatzer says, "That's good news - it means you're a writer!" Even highly successful writers can't avoid this problem, it's like failure, it happens and we learn from it. What's more important, is that you learn how to manage it.

I believe all writers should now celebrate, because Jenna has written a humorous and practical guide that is chock full of tricks of the trade, versatile tools, and writer's block busting exercises that tackle this problem from all angles.

It's worth more than a quick read, I plan to keep my copy close by so I can refer to it when those 'moments' happen, and more importantly, I consider most of her strategies to be a proactive way to increase my creativity and amount that I write.

I interviewed Jenna Glatzer on "The Inside Success Show" and was captivated by her charm and wit. She's dedicated and a great example of how to proactively manage problems, not just hide from them.

Here's some other things I learned from Jenna:
** How Jenna Glatzer went from art to acting, and then finally found her creative outlet in a professional writing career!
** What determines when an idea isn't going to work (in advance)
** Why you need to rid yourself of myths and rules to write well.
** How to apply relaxation techniques to get back into "the flow"

** What 3 things you can do optimize your performance as a writer
** And much, much more ...

Whether you're a professional writer needing to jump-start your creativity, a college student needing to meet your deadlines, or a business person who needs to increase output, I believe you will find this book rewarding.

Randy (Dr. Proactive) Gilbert, Host of The Inside Success Show (TheInsideSuccessShow.com) and best-selling author of "Success Bound"

I'm buying a copy for each of my clients for Christmas. It helped me break out of the block, so I know first hand that this is a gem to share! Editors: I suggest you do the same for your clients!

The heroine waits for you to guide her through the perilous, emotionally charged journey upon which you have started her. Nothing! Absolutely nothing comes to mind. You are as blank as the page that stares back at you. Deadlines loom overhead and time just keeps on ticking by. Crossing your fingers, you begin to pick up where you left off. It's just that simple, right? Wrong - you stop as suddenly as you start. Nothing! Perhaps you should do something else to take your mind off of everything for a few minutes. Suddenly you remember the last time you took "a little break" but it took you weeks to get started again. Where is she? Where is the muse that helped you get this far? Abandoned now, alone with the blank pages, panic sets in as you realize that you have it. You have caught that dreaded writer's disease. You have writer's block. What do you do now?

Just grab a copy of Jenna Glatzer's OUTWITTING WRITER' S BLOCK AND OTHER PROBLEMS OF THE PEN. As an experienced, published writer, Glatzer understands the frustration of having a blank page glare at you. Not only does she understand the frustrations that plague a writer, she has developed a comprehensive and easy to follow guide that offers a multitude of ways to combat the enemies of the creative process.

Glazter wants the writer to understand that a block is nothing to panic about. She considers it an occupational hazard that even the greats have to conquer. Glatzer lets the writer know that hope is not lost when the page continues to remain blank because there are many effective ways of slaying the beast. In each chapter the writer is encouraged to stay one step ahead of the game by examining reasons why writer's block may rear its ugly head. Exploring the psychological causes of a block such as anxiety, self-doubt, along with unreasonable expectations, Glatzer engages the writer to battle the enemy within first. Included with each chapter are creative writing prompts to help get the creative juices flowing once more.

OUTWITTING WRITER'S BLOCK AND OTHER PROBLEMS OF THE PEN is a witty and inspiring way of tackling troublesome roadblocks writers are sure to encounter. From exposing the psychological reasons behind roadblocks to effective ways of eradicating these problems, Glatzer offers encouraging and motivating words to help the writer to write. So whether you are just a novice looking to get that first manuscript completed or an established veteran who needs a little encouragement this is one book no writer should be without.

Reviewed by L. Raven James
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

the concepts are very clear ad concisely given.The book is also very well organized. you need not follow the normal start to end approach that we all have to read a book,but still the pages contain a lot of good information that is useful for any software developer to go with.
try this book for once , you will definitely help yourself good ... !!!

A very instructive and enlightening book on the ways we can change our thinking and learning skills. The brain is a wonderful organ.

I'm only halfway through the book, and while I can't assure you that the techniques therein work wonders, I will recommend this book as an interesting, enlightening read that certainly made me think differently about my usual problem-solving and creative behavior. A warning: the book is definitely geared toward software developers, and a lot of the metaphors and idioms will not make sense to a reader with a different background.

As with the original book under Hunt's name, The Pragmatic Programmer: From Journeyman to Master, this book offers well-referenced, high level advice without devolving into the preachy behavior of a self-help novella.

The book bills itself as "DIY Brain Surgery," and offers methods that actually work in practice, through this reviewer's own experiences. In addition, this book forms a large body of theory and makes a great deal of references to brain behavior in programming terms. These references may resonate with the owners of the original Pragmatic Programmer, but may put off others.


However, one need not be a programmer to make use of the practices and information found in this book. Holding the DIY elements completely aside, the material found in this book is well referenced and offers a significant amount of psychological theory for any trade dealing with people and their behavior. The black swan,* of course, is optional.

* See references in this book to The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable

I read this book from cover to cover and thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing.

Without a doubt our brain is the most complex, intriguing and powerful "tool" we have at our disposal. This book has the goal of helping it's readers make better use of that tool by leveraging it's strengths and supporting it's weaknesses. I'm not going to go into detail discussing the content, just read it yourself! I will say that, in my opinion, this book delivered on what it set out to do.

At 250 pages I felt the material was covered well, without getting lost in excessive detail or losing momentum.

While reading the book was fun, I am really looking forward to putting these ideas into practice. Really, you should read this.