Programming Books

As a former Forensic Video Analyst for a law enforcement agency, I can attest that not only is this the most thorough and easy to understand FVA "Course" book that I have ever read and gained the most from, the author is one of the top Forensic Video Analysts in the country, and even the world.
Any one who is interested in this profession, law enforcement and private, must have this book. Even if you already are an FVA professional, this book is an excellant reference source.

Photoshop CS3 for Forensic Professionals is by far the most informative course book for photoshop users. As a college student working towards a criminal justice degree with a concentration in criminal investigations, I highly recommend this book for any professional or student that needs to improve their digital imaging skills. The instructions are easy to understand and the step by step instructions on the companion CD are detailed. After reading Photoshop CS3 for Forensic Professionals and taking the CD course I can honestly say that my imaging skills have been greatly enhanced. This book is an excellent student resource and an invaluable tool for the forensic professional.

Part 1, "The Essentials", is comprised of six chapters. The first two chapters are not specific to Photoshop, and are a must read for anyone interested or involved in the use of digital images within a legal setting. The remaining four chapters provide an important foundation for analysts and investigators using Photoshop.

Part 2, "The Digital Darkroom", and Part 3, "Image Analysis and Enhancement", are detailed instructions regarding Photoshop's settings, filters, and the multitude of related processes to achieve optimum imaging results. Included with the book is a CD-ROM contianing sample images to work with when going through the tutorials, as well as some free scripts and trial plugin's.

I've been using Photoshop for several years now in my Forensic Video workflow, as well as personally for Graphic and Web design projects. This book has already proven to be the single most valuable reference for me pertaining to the use of Photoshop in either setting. It's also probably the smartest investment I've made in quite some time.

Great resource! Is there another in the offing?

This book both improved my workflow and my abilities to enhance images. The pratical exercises hit home the finer points.

I would compare this book to a "Forensic Photoshop" course costing much more, well done!

A lot of work went into this book and it shows. So many of us in this profession are so overwhelmed with casework that we don't have time to publish. I am glad that George found the time to get this out to everyone. Hopefully, this will inspire others to get their ideas in print and help to convince the publishing community that there IS a market for this material.
Great job George!
Cheers,
Jim Hoerricks
[...]

This is really a great book. For anyone who wants to use Adobe Photoshop Lightroom in their photography, this book shows clear methods to taking advantage of the program's strengths. The lessons in the book make use of the program logical, and digital workflow make sense. This is a must have on this subject.
And also anyone who has participated in workshops with or watched seminars by Seth and Jamie knows how knowledgeable and enthusiastic they are about the world and business of digital photography. That comes through remarkably in this book.

Lightroom is the most significant and useful piece of software for photographers since Photoshop, but it's "help" is rudimentary at best (IMHO). In "Workflow not Workslow in Lightroom 2" photographers Seth Resnick & Jamie Spritzer use their excellent teaching skills to take us through their legendary D-65 workflow showing us the ins and outs of Lightroom 2 in the process. The workbook is easy to follow and explains the why as well as the how without bogging down. With their specific instructions, clear examples, and well thought out guidelines, Seth & Jamie will have you up and running with your own fully functioning workflow in place by the end of the book if not sooner. This is the one reference book that lives next to my monitor. Wether you're just starting out or have been shooting for years, if you want to use Lightroom, this book will make your life a great deal easier. Thank you Seth and Jamie for a job well done!

Lightroom 2 is an amazing program with amazing capabilities. But you need someone to explain LR2's high-tech stuff in understandable English. This is exactly what Seth Resnick and Jamie Spritzer do in this indispensable guide. Step-by-step, the text and photos explain how to use Lightroom 2's tools and modes. Chapter 13, "D-65's Lightroom Workflow" brings it all together in a high-efficiency workflow.

This book is a "must have" for both pros and amateurs.

This book is based on Seth Resnick and Jamie Spritzer successful operation of their photography business. This is the approach they teach in their D-65 workshops. I'm not a professional photographer but I did take their workshop and was completely blown away. This book follows their clear process for processing your digital images. They explain their reasons for their recommended steps in clear, unambiguous terms. If you are interested in learning proven workflow this is the book to purchase. You won't regret it.

Hooray for this new textbook - The Photoshop Lightroom Workbook: Workflow not Workslow in Lightroom 2!
It arrived today and we are thrilled, just thrilled. I confess this is a very biased review as I am a
d-65er for life - in other words I attend authors Jamie and Seth's digital workflow d-65 workshops annually to stay current. By doing so I may be sure I am doing everything I
can to best use the most powerful cameras, computers, software + know I may implement the
most effective and efficient techniques and procedures in digital workflow known.
As a photography studio we strictly adhere to Seth and Jamie's step-by-step workflow. In this way we
know we are producing and delivering the absolute best possible digital images
exactly to our clients' designers' and creatives' layout specifications and for best possible
reproduction whether it be for print, web, display, billboard, or what have you.

`Workflow not work slow' has been my motto ever since I met digital guru and gift to the photo community Seth Resnick years ago at a Photo Expo talk he gave at the annual professional trade show at Jacob Javits Convention Center. After studying with Seth I decided to replace my 4x5
and 2 1/4 E-6 old school film cameras and darkroom (after 16 intense years of amazing service) with Canon dslrs and Adobe software and Apple hardware. I implemented Seth and Jamie's workflow from the start.
I did this because Seth and Jamie's hands on step-by-step teaching which is described and beautifully written and clearly
Illustrated with the authors' own virtuoso image rendering in this new textbook, allowed me to expand my creative and quality control over my
photographic work - beyond my dreams.

I have studied and learned many digital workflows, attended endless talks, and seminars, and workshops on digital photography and workflow and without a doubt, the workflow taught and illustrated in The Photoshop Lightroom Workbook: Workflow not Workslow in Lightroom 2 is the simplest and best. I am thankful daily that from the moment I learned Jamie and Seth's workflow I was able set up my camera, computer, software,
and archives to create the highest quality captures, tweak and parse my RAW files to optimum
level, and output my images for any usage, confident that I was delivering the best caliber work humanly
and technically possible. In Seth's class another professional photographer once turned to me
and whispered `Seth and Jamie just know way too much about everything (re:digital workflow)' I nodded silently so as not to miss any of their lecture.

One of my favorite parts of the book is titled 'before you shoot.'
S+J are wizards at teaching how if you set up your computer and camera
properly before you release the shutter you go out already ahead of the game. You will learn and understand RAW, DNG, and how to utilize the full capacity of these incredible file formats. Lightroom is brand new last year and it allows anyone to create and enhance photos like never before.
It is recommended you learn the most effective LR techniques from S+J - from cataloging your files for archive and searchability to tweaking
the vibrance, tones, and luminance or split toning of the colors you render
in your fave images.

This photoshop and lightroom book is much more than a software or tech manual. It gives you the power to
record and render the detail of fact or the spirit of an emotive or historic moment, or the painterly
quality of a landscape as photography was designed to allow. This book allows you to
be at one with the technology necessary to capture this imagery your mind envisions and
gives you the tools and skills needed to realize these pictures effortlessly, second nature.

S+J are awesome authors and teachers and role models. For years Jamie and Seth have generously supplied a comprehensive handbook with pdf updates on their workflow during the classes they so brilliantly teach
across the country. This textbook is a tremendously invaluable contribution
to anyone who uses a digital camera and has an interest in maximizing their photos +
have a desire to learn to best use their computers, cameras and software to produce pictures they never thought possible.

Buy the book and you will not regret for a second. Once you learn
Seth and Jamie's workflow you will be able to pick up your camera, and be creative and loose.
You will have creative freedom because you will be self- assured that the moments you capture
photographically will be translated into the most impeccable and uncompromising library of digital image files.
This book will change your life.

Instead of reading this book from front to back I read the sections as needed. PHP isn't the only language I dabble in so I haven't had many opportunities to go through the book but the sections I have read are very well written, informative and easy to read.

I would say this book could be utilized by a novice or experienced PHP programmer. The author covers topics starting advanced enough not to bore the hell out of the experienced and thorough enough not to loose the novice.

I'm a bit of a novice PHP programmer still, and I found this book accessible and useful. The scripts are well commented, well explained, I have found them to be secure thus far (I have limited knowledge here but they seem to adhere to best practices), and I can find what I want quickly. When they have special needs like JavaScript or something, they explain why afterward. Each script also has a "How It Works" section afterward. Before each script, they have intro paragraphs saying what is needed in order for it to work, such as a pre-created directory or something.

I can recommend this book to other PHP programmers at the novice/beginner level as well as the more advanced levels.

Generally, I'm not a big fan of cookbooks (for programming!) but this one is really good. A great reference to have as you are coding and think "oh... how do i do X again?" or just to read and review. Another use - give a copy to your friends who STILL are writing PHP 4 code!

I highly recommend this book. It covers all aspects of PHP 5, including OOP, without getting bogged down. Though this book consists of contributions from four authors, it comes together as one smooth read. Its full of examples and hits its mark very effectively. It makes a great companion to the Zend PHP 5 Certification Guide. Well done!!

I normally don't write reviews unless I had a bad experience. However, in this case, the PHP 5 Recipes book is an exception! I love this book! The examples are CORRECT!! The information I need is very well organized - I really love the way that the book was organized! I wish all of my tech books for other languages were arranged in this problem-solution manner. The information you need to build a robust and well organized and valid website is here in the book! I definitely highly recommend that you get THIS book if you are thinking about doing some php work. The php code they have is on the mark! The authors included more than I needed by including a section on XML/XSLT with PHP. Definitely get this book!

Simply put, read this book and you will definitely be able to produce excellent movies.
The book can be read from start to finish or just dip in to where the specific information is. The book is written so both ways work.The clear instructions enable even a novice to be proud - even amazed at what they can do.
Two days after reading this book I put a mini movie on the internet! If I can, you can!

As an owner of the author's Pinnacle Studio 8 book, I waited to buy what I anticipated to be his Pinnacle Studio 9 Plus book. But wait no more. A supplemental chapter covering the 9 Plus features - PIP, Pan and Zoom, and Chroma Key, is avaiable at http://www.doceo.com/studio9.html under "Click here to download free chapter on new features of Studio Plus", and now I have the equivalent of the Studio Plus 9 book.
I agree with the other reviewer's comments and no point in repeating them here, except to say that for me the best parts about the author's presentations are the illustrative examples.

Pinnacle's Studio 9 is a love it or hate it package. At $99 (retail price) it is very inexpensive for what you get. The problem, people report, has been getting it to work on their system -- I also hear that the newest release of the package is much, much better. It also seems to work better with Intel Pentium CPU's than with AMD and it also likes memory, say a gigabyte.

But as for the book, this is one of the Visual Quickstart Guides. They're great. They use a format of having two columns on each page with the outside column being text and the inside being pictures. Each page is devoted to some small task and handles that task completely. You can start at the front of the book and go all the way through and you'll get a pretty good tutorial on the software. Or you can use the index to skip around and quickly get to the particular detail you are looking for.

Jan Ozer is an excellent writer. He starts out with the statement "you have the manual for the software" and then goes on from there. This is not a manual of how to, this is a what and why kind of book that explains what it is that you are trying to do and then goes on to tell you how to do it. The manual tells you how to do a J-Cut and an L-Cut. This book tells you what they are.

I've read numerous technical books on many subjects and have never sailed through the software as smoothly as with this book.
If you're looking for a tutorial that can whiz you through the subject matter with ease and accuracy this is it! No matter where you wish to refer back to, you can do it without reading the whole chapter (as with other tutorials). Quickstart is the name however I feel it should be named Quick referrence.
Best investment I've made in a while. I'm making movies that are in awe at my office. I've been told they have been made professionally.

This is probably one of the most informative books on video editing that you can buy. The author is an expert in the field and has the ability to not just tell you how to do something, but make you understand what is going on and thereby enabling an intuitive feel for using the program. His "Studio 8 for Windows" carried me from the depths of ignorance to a level of competence that allows me to knock out complicated projects in record time; this new Studio 9 version will do the same for you plus. This book will enable the beginner to successfully edit productions with minimum heartache....but READ before you start clicking madly away.

All the information you need in one place to quickly and efficently secure your networks and computers . Easy to read and understand but yet very technical in nature. Highly recommended for all levels of users from students to professionals.

This is a very comprehensive Internet security book that details the nuts and bolts of the problems and solutions in elbow-deep detail. It also addresses specific causes of the issues we face; from government interventions and plans to terrorism and crime motivations. Great book, I highly recommend it.

Internet security is critical to most modern organizations--which have systems links across enterprisewide networks and VPNs, as well as exposure to customers, competitors, browsers, and hackers. This practical guide to Internet security provides the means for such organizations to effectively protect their sites from internal and external threats. It provides real-life scenarios and examples, as well as hands-on instruction for securing Internet communications.

So many Internet security books focus on theory and concepts but miss the practical aspects of security. This book gives it all to you, theory, concepts and practical steps you can take to deal with Internet security. I highly recommend it.

John Vacca has done it again. He has not only made a complex technology easy to understand, he also identifies the pitfalls and solutions that one has to be aware of in order to survive in this ever increasing world of network hacking, terrorism and identify theft. The book is extremely well organized and very consistent in the way it describes the various Internet and Intranet technologies, and the security issues and solutions associated with them. This book is a must for operating system and network managers, as well as information technology specialists that must develop and maintain distributed data management applications that operate in secure environments.

Este libro, es excelente para personas las cuales hemos trabajado mucho con aplicaciones para internet, pero que estamos interesado en el web 2.0, ajax y el mundo del MVC.

Hasta el momento no tengo quejas sobre este libro, y creo que no la tendré, aunque tengo que mencionar, que deberian explicar que el libro hace uso de Zend Framework y que sin el seria dificil aplicar Web 2.0 basandonos en el libro.

CodeIgniter es mi framework para desarrollo, pero ahora que el libro me introduce hacia Zend Framework creo que tengo mas posibilidades, si eres alguien que desea aprender Zend Framework, introducirte en el mundo del web 2.0, creo que este es el libro perfecto.

This book is outstanding. Not only does it guide you through on building online applications but it also drags you through the Zend PHP framework. I would recommend this book to anyone is going down the path of becoming a fantastic PHP developer. It is a good resource.

I have been working with PHP for several years now yet the first part of this book had me pulling my hair out (whats left of it). Setting up the environment is tricky and it probably would of helped me if I had a stronger background in OO programming. With that said, this is a good book and I would recommend it to any intermediate level PHP developer.

This book is easily the most useful and well-written PHP book I've ever read. It runs you through the complete development of a web application using PHP5, Zend Framework, Smarty, Ajax (via Prototype and Scriptaculous). It also includes a useful section on Deployment and Maintenance, which includes error handling/logging/reporting, database backup and restoration, and application deployment (dev, staging, production).

The book has a heavy focus on the Zend Framework, and does a better job of explaining (and using) the intricacies of it then any other book or online resources I've come across.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone looking to use PHP5 with the Zend Framework.

This is an excellent book and I have enjoyed reading it over the past day. For someone trying to piece together the various technologies like Auth, ACL, Config, Logging and Session it's a great resource for the first several chapters, going into detail about the configuration and setup of this simple environment without any of that padding and guff that a lot of other authors include. The book doesn't treat you like an idiot, which I certainly appreciated.

The only issue I would raise is that the Author has used his own classes for database Table access instead of employing the frameworks standard Zend_Db_Table and Zend_Db_Table_Row bases. This means that anyone wanting to adhere closely to the Zend Framework (for corporate reasons) will have to reverse engineer the approaches used. An odd choice for a book almost entirely based on the Zend Framework.

Really enjoyed the book, Andy's insight and research really hit home for me. After reading it "consider the context" has become my mantra, knowing the Dreyfus Model has given me good insight into the different stages of learning and I've even bought some fresh colour pencils to start Mind Mapping. The book is chocful of practical examples that are fun and sometimes down right amazing... especially the shutting down of your L-mode and drawing that upside down man with your R-mode! This book really does give you all the tools you'll need to learn faster and explains things in fine detail to give you the big picture. Andy also has a good sense of humor so It's not a boring book about the mind, It's an action packed brain sharpener that every programmer, teacher and researcher should read this weekend.

Clearly, direct and with a lot of annotations and sidebars for help readers. Pragmatic Thinking and Learning show you different ways to understand and use our mind, every day and every moment. For any person from computer programmers to knowledge workers this book will be equally amazing and invaluable!.

I enjoying learning and thinking, they are some of the activities that lead me into software development in the first place. I was very interested to find this book on two of my favorite subjects and gave it a try.

Not all of the ideas are new. I do a few things that are mentioned and have done some others in the past. The real value to me was the new idea juxtaposed with the things I'm familiar with and a better overall perspective of the thinking and learning process.

Some of the more interesting bits, to me, were how to engage more of the non logical parts of my brain in my thinking, debugging the mind, the use of the Dreyfus Model of skills, the use of mind maps and some of the general organizational tools.

I encourage everyone in the software industry to pick the book up and give it a try. There is one small problem with the book, if you could call it that. Following the principle of writing what you know about, the book includes many examples geared enough towards software engineering that I'm can't recommend my parents should buy a copy. Though, I might loan them mine for a little while and see if my work will buy me another copy.

I tend to gravitate towards books that explore how the mind works, and how you might be able to manipulate it into better performance. Naturally, when I saw that Andy Hunt's Pragmatic Thinking and Learning: Refactor Your Wetware had been released, it went up on my to-be-reviewed list. Hunt does a great job in exploring your "wetware", and there were some chapters that squarely addressed certain issues I'm currently dealing with.

Content:

Journey from Novice to Expert: Novices vs. Experts; The Five Dreyfus Model Stages; Dreyfus at Work - Herding Racehorses and Racing Sheep; Using the Dreyfus Model Effectively; Beware the Tool Trap; Consider the Context, Again; Day-to-Day Dreyfus

This Is Your Brain: Your Dual-CPU Modes; Capture Insight 24x7; Linear and Rich Characteristics; Rise of the R-mode; R-mode Sees Forest, L-mode Sees Trees; DIY Brain Surgery and Neuroplasticity; How Do You Get There?

Get in Your Right Mind: Turn Up the Sensory Input; Draw on the Right Side; Engage an R-mode to L-mode Flow; Harvest R-mode Cues; Harvesting Patterns; Get It Right

Debug Your Mind: Meet Your Cognitive Biases; Recognize Your Generational Affinity; Codifying Your Personality Tendencies; Exposing Hardware Bugs; Now I Don't Know What to Think

Learn Deliberatively: What Learning Is... and Isn't; Target SMART Objectives; Create a Pragmatic Investment Plan; Use Your Primary Learning Mode; Work Together, Study Together; Used Enhanced Learning Techniques; Read Deliberately with SQ3R; Visualize Insight with Mind Maps; Harness the Real Power of Documenting; Learn by Teaching; Take It to the Streets

Gain Experience: Play in Order to Learn; Leverage Existing Knowledge; Embed Failing in Practice; Learn About the Inner Game; Pressure Kills Cognition; Imagination Overrides Senses; Learn It like an Expert

Manage Focus: Increase Focus and Attention; Defocus to Focus; Manage Your Knowledge; Optimize Your Current Context; Manage Interruptions Deliberately; Keep a Big Enough Context; How to Stay Sharp

Beyond Expertise: Effective Change; What to Do Tomorrow Morning; Beyond Expertise

Photo Credits; Bibliography; Index

Hunt starts with something called the Dreyfus model, which is a way to look at how people learn and acquire new skills. You start as a Novice, someone who has little to no experience. You can follow a "recipe" to get a result, but you don't know the reasons behind much of what is being done. You're just accomplishing a task. Next comes Advanced Beginner. You can break out of the step-by-step mode a bit, but troubleshooting is still a major obstacle. Think of it as having no "big picture" of the overall subject. Stage 3 is Competent. You can start to apply your knowledge to problems you haven't encountered before, and you can figure out the context behind what you're facing. This is where the largest group of people end up. Stage 4 is Proficient, which means you need the details AND the overall picture. You can learn from the mistakes of others, and anticipate what may go wrong down the road. At the final stage, you have the Expert. These people are the ones others seek out for answers. They can "feel" whether an answer or solution will work or not, although they might not be able to tell you how they got to that point. These are the people who write books like this...

This made a lot of sense to me, and helps as I start to learn a new set of technical skills at my place of employment. It's hard to go from being proficient in one area to stepping clear back to novice again. But it's ok, and everyone has to start there. That gives me a level of comfort knowing that my confusion is normal, and is to be expected...

Throughout the rest of the book, Hunt covers various areas of the mind, how it works (or doesn't), and how it can be manipulated to be more efficient. For instance, the R-mode/L-mode discussion covers how your right and left sides of the brain process information differently. It also explains how you can inadvertently "shut down" the right side by being too analytical about something. The simple act of walking away from the problem and thinking about nothing in particular can be enough to let the right side of the brain gain access to the forefront of your attention. And quite often, the answer appears almost immediately. These chapters are heavy on practical tips and "try the following" advice, so it's not merely an exercise in acquiring knowledge. Even a handful of these ideas, properly implemented, can boost your ability to learn and perform. In my case, they already have started paying off.

The "drawback" to books like this is that everyone has a different idea about how things actually happen in the brain. Others might read this and feel that their ideas and mental frameworks are more accurate. But for the vast majority of us, we don't even stop to consider if there even *is* a framework in action. Refactoring Your Wetware is an excellent read, and will motivate you to start "thinking about thinking".

I must admit I am a fan of the Pragmatic Programmers and their books in general. In the past I found their work to be well researched, direct, and useful. I found this book to be no exception.

I think what I liked best about the work was it was focused on solving the hard to describe problems of organizing your thoughts, how to change the way you think to match the problem, and even how to manage your time / interruptions to get these things done. Personally, I a big fan of mind maps, wikis, and GTD (getting things done). Andy added some nice additions (for me) to the topics, such as encouraging people to doodle on their mind maps and then try to figure what additional information/ideas these doodles are adding. I've been using wiki style editing in standard text editors for taking notes, but his suggestion on adding this capability to the ipod was intriguing.

I could list more, but I think the real value of the book is that Andy takes some really good ideas (some of which you might have seen elsewhere), puts them in one place, walks you through them systematically and puts his own additional useful suggestions that take you to the next step. Great Job!

As a professional db developer, I found this book from Rick Dobson to be an excellent guide to getting you on your way with Access using SQL Server as the back end. This a rite of passage for many Access developers, like me, who find SQL Server kind of intimidating. Rick takes you through every step of the way very logically, preparing you for your next benchmark. He thoughtfully anticipates your next question with a paragraph or two that explains the reasons why you're doing what you're doing and how to do it. No smarmy digressions, bad jokes or confusing examples. Highly recommended reading for IT developers who want to get to the next level of database development. Great job, Rick!

By far the best book I have seen regarding the difficulties encountered when moving an Access application to SQL Server. Until reading this book, I couldn't figure out why my Access queries that were 'converted' into Stored Procedures could not reference each other, why my forms would not work, why the tables weren't updateable (primary keys weren't copied during conversion), etc.
All these and many more perplexing issues are clearly explained here. For quickest results, read Appendices B and C, then the first 7 chapters before trying to convert your first Access database to SQL Server.

Having spent a number of years using Access to develop commercial solutions I recently moved on to Access projects and found this book a real find in getting up and running in a short space of time. Covering each topic in logical chunks I found it to be more than a good grounding in the subject. It is also well written in plain English and avoids the unnecessary complications that are often found in such books and I would thoroughly recommend it to anyone who is considering developing Access projects.

I have years of experience in programming but knew nothing about Access, SQL or VBA when I got my latest assignment. I can't stand those 1000 page books that want to hold me by the hand while I build some simple-minded application through eight chapters. I just need to know the basics quick and then see a few examples of some typical tasks. This book is just what I needed to quickly get me up to speed and working on my own application. There are a few minor differences with Access XP (like changed menus) so you'll need a good XP reference also. I recommend this book to any developer that needs to come up to speed quickly on either SQL or Access.

I just received this book so I cannot comment on its technical merits. However, I have noticed the book is littered with spelling errors and errors in general. Examples are (1) On page 11 "As but this architecture won't be specifically considered furhter".. and yes, I included all the spelling typos. (2) On page 19 "if you had an Access poject" instead of "project." Isn't this what spell checkers are made for? There is at least one more error that I glanced over but did not record. And I have only read to page 19! My experience has been when a book contains many typos then then code should be suspect. I hope not, because a good Access 2000 to SQL book is needed. Caveat emptor!! Paul

I remember contacting with Mr.Bratko via mail as I was a university student and I couldn't beleive that this book came from such a modest personality.
The most challanging language, the most challenging programming book I have ever faced with.
Force your IQ with this one.

... a horrible Prolog tutorial.

This is not a good first book on Prolog. If you are new to Prolog and Logic Programming, you should read 'Art of Prolog' first.

Prolog is quite different from other languages, and you'll need some time to get it. This book doesn't give you that time: after briefly introducing the basic concepts, Bratko dives at breakneck speed into recursion and list processing.

Don't get me wrong, this is a magnificent book on how to do AI with Prolog, but it shouldn't be your first Prolog book. It's an excellent second book.

I find the book does not adequetly explain the more complex code examples. First of all the code is not adequetly commented. Secondly, it does not explain the code well for programmers. First when introducing a program like in the expert systems shell chapter it should first define an interface for the program, and explain each goal listed. It should adequetly explain what each goal and clause should hope to achieve. Also, for the more complicated programs it should draw some type of diagram, maybe a flow chart or something that explains the concepts involved. It leaves too much figuring out and guessing for the reader. It is not very user-friendly!
On the positive side, it does an adequate job of explaining concepts when complex code is not involved. I found that I could follow along on even the more advanced chapters mostly everything at least until code was suddenly introduced. Then it became a guessing game as to what it was trying to do.
The author does not seem to realize that it is more difficult to try to understand somebody else's program than it is to write your own program from scratch. As a consequence the reader wastes a lot of time trying to guess what his program is doing.
Note: this review is of the 2nd edition and does not necessarily reflect the 3rd. But, then again, every other review on this page prior to mine is about the 2nd edition as well!

Although this text is always mentioned in the same breath as other introductory textbooks on prolog, I don't think I've ever seen it described as "the best."
The book which usually takes the palm in such comparisons is "Art of Prolog." While "Art of Prolog" is an outstanding book, I think that now, in 2006, it has been eclipsed by the 3rd edition Bratko's book. Why?

Simply this: Bratko's textbook is (as far as I'm aware) the _only_ textbook on prolog which treats the language as a living, developing language! Other textbooks are great for their time, but they are unfortunately stuck in their time. Its as if nothing has happend to the prolog language since February 16, 1987. But this isn't true at all!

The biggest case in point: constraint logic programming! Bratko's text is the only introductory prolog textbook to even acknowledge the existance of CLP. And Bratko gives very lucid descriptions of it, along with very helpful examples and challenging exercises.

Another case in point: inductive logic programming! An entire new branch of machine learning theory has risen, based on logic programming, and NONE of the other introductory prolog textbooks cover it? Come on guys!

I would love to see a 4th edition of this book, because since this one has been published, logic programming has moved even further ahead. Constraint handling rules (CHR), logical functional languages (like Curry), using prolog for the semantic web, etc etc etc. It might be the best kept secret in computer science, but logic programming is really still one of the most exciting areas of programming, and Bratko's book does the best job of staying abreast of, and conveying the excitment of, this living and dynamic field.

Professor Bratko has done a tremendous job of putting all the fundamental concepts of Prolog and its applications in various areas of AI. Although this book is focused on Prolog, the concepts that he has discussed are so fundamental that they can be implemented in other languages like Java as well.

I recommend this book to everyone who wants to learn Prolog. I would also recommend the readers to use a Prolog system to work out the examples and exercises as s/he goes through every chapter. A DEC10 Prolog system (like SICStus Prolog) would probably be the best companion for this book.

When OS 9 Classic was retired, it forced a radical transition to reorganize and manage fonts without the ATM.

This book is the clearest and simplest guide for OSX users to understand how font functionality has altered in the OSX environment. Also vital to crossplatform users, the author Zardetto Aker simplifies the complex nature of sharing fonts between two platform radicals (Windows and APPLE).

Those who earn their living in computer design using real world situations would benefit from buying this book.

One analogy that describes it best:

Any graphic project is like the recipe for a perfect pot of "CHILI"
FONTS are the spices going into that pot.
If you don't manage the spice in your chili, like not managing the fonts in your project .... You wind up with disaster.

MUST READING ... Zardetto Akers' Font Management in OSX takes the confusion out of the font dynamics restructured on OSX.

I love my Mac, & I love typography. What I don't love is the mind-numbing complexity of OSX's font handling. Although I don't lament the passing of the ever-crashing OS9, it's framework for fonts was beautifully simple. There's a price for progress.

This book provides what's needed to understand the foundation concepts and terminology, and to deal confidently with common font issues. Thoroughly explained, it's made apparent that the font framework of OSX is not so incomprehensible after all. For any tech-savvy graphic artist or designer, an indispensable volume for your reference shelf.

What a splendid guide! Even if you are content to use TIMES ROMAN all the time, you should still look at this book to see a model of how to write a computer guide. None of the breezy self conscious humor you find in some books (the Dummy series or Scott Kelby's otherwise informative PhotoShop books). But friendlier and more attuned to the reader's anxieties and potential mistakes than the standard dry guides (e.g. the Missing Manuals series, which are not bad). Aker seems to sense exactly what you might need to know at just the right moment, but yet does not overwhelm you without a lot of detail all at once.

I recently switched from a PC (since 1980)to Mac, which is as everyone said so much more elegant, stable and better in almost every respect. But the font system is just as complicated and eccentric in OS X as in Windows XP. You need to do some housekeeping even if you are not a font maven. Follow the steps carefully laid out in Chapter 2 (rather tedious but precise), and your system will run more smoothly and you will know a lot about where your fonts are, and how to keep them behaving well.

I am almost never moved to write reviews here, and certainly not of computer books. But this is an exceptional contribution.

Face it - you'd think just putting your fonts in the FONT folder would be sufficient. But, strange things do happen. And, for me it is never at a good time. Like when you upgrade Adobe CS ... which made half my fonts DISAPPEAR.
Thanks for the info and instructions about AdobeFntXX.lst alone - made this book a must have in my library.
And, that was just one small enlightened moment Aker's offered

I do graphics and own Macs from October, 1985. I passed thru all the font technologies that were done into the computer... from enlarging 72pt bitmaps and correcting them, the early times of Adobe's ATM and so on.
But --maybe I'm getting old-- with the introduction of Mac OS X, typography went almost out of control for me. Althought I do not use per se Office I need to install it to open others files... and it destroy any organizated fonts folders that you had managed,
Then, in a desperate move, I bought Zardetto's book!
And everything came back to order: clear instructions lead me in a clever and consistent way. I confess I did it twice. First time I said myself: "I'm an old macintoshian..." But then I realized that following the step-by-step instructions was more inteligent. Then, with everything in order, I was back "in control".
So, my advice --for newbies and oldies-- follow the instructions and then personalize your fonts. OK, first buy and read the book!