Communications Books

My boyfriend's father convinced me that, as an art history major, I needed to read this book. I was a little hesitant, but after the first chapter I was completely hooked.

This was a truly powerful book. No matter that it is not a true biography, it was beautifully written and moving. I would recommend this to anyone with even a passing interest in art.

Amazing book and so very well written as all of Stone's other books are...I have always been mesmerised by Van Gogh's paintings, especially when I saw an exhibit of his in London.The colours were so wonderful that I just stood there infront of those pieces of art like a zombie ! I loved this book !

I loved this book. For someone like me, with just a passing knowledge of art and art history, it was pretty amazing to learn about Van Gogh's development as an artist and the Impressionist art movement. In addition, I think that its two major themes of expression and immortality are going to have a lasting effect on me.

By expression, I mean that Van Gogh put all his time and energy into expressing himself in a way that he felt was making the best use of his skills. For him, his calling was a new form of art, and he stuck with it despite receiving no recognition or profit for his work during his lifetime. By immortality, I mean that although Van Gogh was not successful in his lifetime, his work lives on and is hung in the most important museums in the world.

Highly recommended.

This is a beautiful novel about a beautiful human being. If you love Van Gogh's paintings (he is my personal favorite of all painters) then by all means, you need to read this wonderful book. In his prose, Stone is able to paint a vivid, vibrant, illuminating portrait of an amazing artist. I was truly blown away and completely consumed from the first chapter on. I actually read this fine story after visiting the Musee d'Orsay (Museum Orsay) in Paris and seeing first hand the magnificent works of this illustrious Impressionist. Of all the great many paintings presented at the Louvre and d'Orsay, it was the Van Gogh's that captivated me more than all the others (which is saying a lot, because the whole place is captivating!). I couldn't believe some of his self-portraits. What really fascinated me the most was the despondency in those steel blue eyes of his. This is what led me to read this story. I wanted to know where all that pain and suffering came from. Irving Stone answered all of my questions and then some. He is a brilliant and insightful writer and I will be looking forward to reading his novel "The Agony and the Ecstasy" which is based on the life of another favorite artist of mine - Michelangelo.

Anyone who is struggling to become an artist needs to read this! Talk about sacrifice and desire and heart and passion... this man Van Gogh was a true original. A man like no other before or since.

"...for by sadness the countenance of the heart is made better."

I can't recommend this one enough.

I should have read this biography sooner. I used to be in love with his paintings, and even fantasized that IF I were to travel back in time, I would've married him -- all this BEFORE I read this book. After I read it I found out that there was one such infatuated woman (Margot), and also a tragic unrequited love story that led him to religion and then to painting. Anyone who is creative will sympathize with the extent to which pain can be transformed into the strength to create. The creative path is not always materially rewarding, and even if it is all an artist has, it will continuously change others' lives. I absorbed every word of this book and was hooked until the very end. Poverty and disinterest is ephemeral... belief in oneself is revolutionary.

I am so greatful that Sandy allowed me to see her journey as she walked through the depth of grief. In reading this candid account it gave me insight into my own grief after the death of my three sons.
Thank you Sandy!

This book brought me great comfort. I especially liked the final page of each chapter. Sandy creates a great sense of spiritual awareness. I couln't put this book down, it was for sure a must read. With Sandy's view on things this is one of ways to cope and continue to live on with the people here, on the physcial side, but know that our loved ones continue to be with us spiritually. I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!!!

I read this book within 2 weeks after my son died in an auto accident on 8/13/08. I have since shared it with other friends who have lost a child, and with my siblings after our parents died. As a Christian, I believe that the soul lives on, and after reading this book I believe that love lives on as well. I have had personal messages that I believe come from my son, as well as messages through a psychic medium. What a blessing!
God bless Sandy for her strength in sharing her experiences, and for her guidance to others who tread the same long road after a tragic loss.

Sandy Goodman and her book "Love never dies" changed my life. My son passed away on 2/6/06 and i thought my world had also come to an end. I had gone to my church for help, it did not. I tried grief counseling, it did not help. One day i found myself in a book store and Sandy's book jumped out at me. I read a chapter in the store and thought, wow, this is a story about my life since my son passed. I bought the book and returned home. I sat down and read the entire book in one sitting. This book change my life. I had no idea it was possible to communicate with my son through a medium. But i did and now i know my son still lives. I then went on to learn to communicate with my son on my own just as Sandy was able to do. My world changed when my son passed but my world once again changed when Sandy's book came into my life. I have learned so much since Sandy's book. But she showed me what was possible and i will be forever grateful to her and her book "love never dies". She also has a web-chat for parents on wed. nights. We share our experiences and this helps so much. Thank you Sandy
Dennis
Plano, Texas

I highly recommend Sandy Goodman's book Love Never Dies for anyone who has lost a child or a loved one.
I read "Love never Dies" a couple of months after losing my son. The book helped me journey through the most difficult and painful time of my life and gave me a renewed sense of hope and peace that my son still exists. Sandy Goodman's true story of a mother's loss and the relationship she still has with her son Jason left me believing that our loved ones are not gone but are still very much a part of our lives.
Sandy Goodman's book also led me to her wonderful and compassionate web-site and forum "Love Never Dies 4 U" It's been my life-line these past two years since I lost my son.

This is a really great book on BGP and Internet Architecture. The explanation of BGP at the protocol level is great. More importantly though is its explanation and examples of using eBGP / iBGP with an IGP.

I've heard it criticized as being dated and too Cisco specific. Though it is Cisco specific, it's still very relevant. I would start with this book and read past NANOG presentations on introductory BGP if I wanted to learn how the Internet works.

Internet Routing Architectures is considered the BGP4 handbook and rightfully so. I found the overall composition easy to read. Even though the book is aimed at varying levels of expertise, it does not assume any level of knowledge in TCP/IP or routing. It explains all the concepts, from the simplest one right up to the most demanding, in a fluent way. The book works hard not to withhold protocol details and design-oriented information, while at the same time realizing that building general understanding comes first. An in depth look at BGP is supplied here from the theory aspect, if you need actual configurations and commands I suggest also:

Cisco BGP-4 Command and Configuration Handbook : CCIE Professional Development

This is a good book, let there be no doubt about it. But in my opinion it goes beyond the scope of the 682-661 exam for which purpose I bought it. However, every ISP backbone routing engineer should have this book with him and use it as a dictionary in case of.

This is the best BGP-4 book out there in preparation for the CCIE. Do not waste your money on others this is the one that you need. It takes you from the beginnings of the Internet to the current uses of the protocol. This book is a must have.

I have always felt that I am part of the small minority that just does not see the beauty of this book if studying for the CCIE. I have, for years, read other's comments on the how Halabi's "Internet Routing Arch" is a `must have', yet I still have not found a similar reason why. While I do feel that the book does (probably) the best job at explaining BGP and how to implement BGP in a Cisco-centric world, I have not discovered the value for the CCIE. I would much rather spend my time with CiscoPress's "Routing TCP/IP" Volume 2, by Jeff Doyle and Jennifer DeHaven Carroll than this book.

One item of concern, there is a noticable amount of trivial errors in this book that can lead to disaster if implemented incorrectly. For example:

Page 106 - "...any traffic that has an origin OR destination that does not belong to the local AS." This clearly should be an AND, not OR.

Page 315 - "You can also specify a PREFIX list..." - I believe this should be a filter list, not a prefix list.

And then there are places where the book is too opinionated - for example - page 206 "Many operators choose to filter dynamically learned defaults to avoid situations in which traffic ends up where it is not supposed to be." I do not feel this is true, and can think of multiple times when not filtering the advertised default route may just end up being the worst option. In fact, I do not feel either configuration is the right configuration to admit or condone, as the wrong configuration can have disastrous effects.

I still have to give this book 4 stars - simply because of it's utilitarian value and overwhelming sense of loyalty given to this book by others. But I don't reach for this book too often.

I give this book 4 pings out of 5:
!!!.!

This manual has everything you need to ensure you are grammatically correct. My office uses it daily as a reference. I would definitely recommend that every office keep a Gregg Reference Manual on hand.

Have a question about colons, semicolons or commas? It's all here. Whether writing a term paper or business document, the Gregg Manual is a must-have. I had not heard of it until I was hired to edit reports and it has proved invaluable. Everything is covered, from how to write numbers to proper phraseology. Worth the money.

I started a new job in which I reference this book frequently. I would recommend it to anyone who is in need of a quick reference.

Great book and will be used often. It was required for my studies for writning in all classes not just english

I purchased the manual to use when I edit other people's documents. I have not had a chance to really go through and use the manual as yet because I've been busy with other things. I have flipped through the pages just to see what it offered and I have seen how terrific this manual is. It has everything a person would need in helping them to decide the best way to use grammar, spelling, editing, punctuation whether in editing or in writing. Use of the manual is great when writing business letters, addressing different dignitaries, and the list goes on. It would be especially helpful to the "Writers" of the world, and also especially if the non-Writers of the world or just anyone who couldn't remember certain things they were taught in English class in High School or College, this manual will definitely help.

I graded The Gregg Reference Manual five stars not because I've gone through the whole book, because I haven't as I mentioned above, but because if you open one or two pages, you can definitely see what this manual has to offer. It is well worth having. In fact, everybody needs a manual like the Gregg Manual. It would behoove any person to purchase this manual.

Now, if I can rate the Gregg Reference Manual with five stars without going through the whole manual yet, you can imagine what you, me, or anybody could accomplish by going through it from beginning to end. A person needs this manual next to them at all times, like you do with a dictionary.

Buy it!! It's well worth the money.

Many networking books I read (or other books on similarly technical subjects) have a tendency to get bogged down in technical minutia that distracts from the big picture. Not so here. Cormer does an excellent job of getting all the important information out there and explains the common networking protocols, what goes into them, and what they do, without losing the reader. Do not think that this is a superficial view though - I've been in the field for several years now and still use it as a reference on occasion.

I purchased the book titled: Internetworking with TCP/IP Vol.1: Principles, Protocols, and Architecture (4th Edition)for a class. The book arrived ahead of schedule, marking the service amazon provided as second to none. Keep up the great work.

Look for the 5th edition of this same book.
4th edition is much older than the newer 5th edition.

I knew nothing about TCP/IP. As a result, I bought a book "learn TCP/IP in 24 hours" and trashed it after I bought this book, no more 24 hour books. I had no idea what routing is and were to start looking for documents on the internet. This book is scientific and puts it all together. Each chapter lists the RFC that he relied on so you know were the stuff came from. The book is not boring; the author is excellent in explaining ideas. He covers ICMP, GGP, OSPF, EGP, DHCP, DNS, BOOTP, ARP and more. I feel I have accomplished something big by reeading this book. If you are not a beginner in routing, then look at the RFCs they are the source.

Want to really, really, really know TCP-IP???

Read this book and you will know it cold.

When I was introduced to this book in March of 2007, I was just putting the finishing touches on a communication workshop of my own, Mastering the Art of Listening. As a business coach, I long ago realized that most breakdowns in companies as well as relationships, occur in a world of dysfunctional communication. What inspired me about this book was it was if I had read Thomas' mind when creating my own workshop. I am now leading Communicate or Die workshops for businesses and my own workshop for relationships. A must read if you own a business or work for one, especially in a bigger corporation.

"I started reading "Communicate or Die" and couldn't put it down. I was reading it on the subway and kept missing my stops and having to go back."

As a public speaker, I am always looking for new and practical books to help me convey a down-to-earth message. Communicate or Die definitely meets those standards. It is truly a winner!

I have read this book a few times over the years and always been empowered to communicate more effectively when I read it again. In the last months I have been studying the book's material, like my life depended on it as the title indicates. I read for 20 minutes each day, highlight sections and writing observations into my journal. It is one of the best books on communication I have read and studied and as I take on a new and bigger challenge, my daily study is an imperative.
The book puts me into an environment where I am conscious of my speaking and how I listen to people, of effectiveness and forward motion. To share Communicate or Die's wisdom and tools with my associates and clients, I have ordered a special edition of 750 copies with our own brand on the cover. It is to be my gift to herald in a new and prosperous 2007. I consider it a small and high-leveraged investment in the leadership of my volunteers and colleagues and essential for the task that we have taken on in the world - the end of rape on earth.
Peg Thatcher, International President, Project for the End of Rape; CEO, Thatcher & Associates.

I am firmly of the belief that communication is as much art as science and that its mastery is a life-long endeavor. "Communicate or Die" presents principles and distinctions that are pivotal to producing results - and building relationship - through speaking and listening. It packs a lot of power into a short space. This book is eminently readable and thoroughly useful. I recommend it highly.

Good and insightful techniques for negotiation and great book for beginners. If you are not aware of these techniques then there are chances that you will fall victim of them by an expert who knows it all

I strongly recommend this book to all who find themselves as a victim in negotiation and power game

I made a $9,000 concession after only reading 45 pages...
I think it is safe to say the book has paid for itself.

This is the first book that I've felt strongly enough about to write a review and the real world techniques covered are outstanding. It will pay for itself the first time you negotiate anything. His techniques are simple & straight forward and can be easily put into practice. I recommend the audio version so you can pop it in anytime for a refresher while driving prior to any negotiation.

Advance your as-yet undeveloped negotiating skills! Easy to read, incredibly well laid out and covers many real-life negotiating situations - you'll catch yourself smiling as you build your gambit toolbox which will allow you to deftly navigate your way through ANY situation requiring a negotiation. If its any testament, this book was critical in providing me the perspective and confidence required to become a commercial real estate broker.

I've seen this course make a very positive impact on more than one person. One thing I really like about it is that it's not about steamrolling people. It's about finding common ground and making sure both sides come away from the negotiation with their dignity and feeling good about dealing with you. With that said, this course can help you prevent being manipulated and taken advantage of by those who make a habit of steamrolling others, and do it in a way that isn't overly confrontational.

This book is a quick and easy read. Really like the "take aways" at the end of each chapter. Thom reminds us of the basics of networking while including information on networking in this milenium - using the internet and social networking sites like Linkedin. This book is a great tool for anyone wanting to build their network and their business.

Some Assembly Required is now available in a SECOND EDITION here on Amazon.com. It is "new and improved", so be sure to buy that one (Red Cover!!!)

Thanks,

Thom Singer (the author!)

Thom Singer is one of my favorite networking authors. Why?

He practices what he preaches. He not only tells me how to network, and how to get more out of business and professional relationships, he does it himself. Other network authors are too busy networking with "important people" to network in my space (with the average, hard-working professional that we all work with) to really be able to connect with me.

Thom is all about building relationships, and giving value to relationships. This all comes out in his books.

When I speak I always recommend his book as a guide that is full of tactical ideas and examples that we, as professionals can use right now, today.

I have read Thom's other 2 books and liked that this is an excellent upgrade from the original. The new cover and format look great and I especailly liked the online chapter that includes explainations to sites like LinkedIn and Friendster. I see that Some Assembly Rewquired for Women is coming out and I look forward to more titles as well.

Like everything in life, I believe one must always be looking for ways to improve, and thus I have now released the SECOND EDITION of "Some Assembly Required: How to Make, Grow and Keep Your Business Relationships". It still has the same message and great stories that were applauded in the first edition, but now has a new cover, a new chapter focused on online social networking, and more stories about successful networking and business development.

I would like to thank the thousands of readers of the book (and the blog) and the seminar attendees who have listened to the message live, many of whom emailed me with suggestions about how to make the book and presentation more effective. Your input has been invaluable.

I am proud of the SECOND EDITION and hope you will read this book and NEVER STOP NETWROKING!!!

thom

This is hands-down the most useful book I've ever read, tied only with The Relationship Cure: A 5 Step Guide to Strengthening Your Marriage, Family, and Friendships.

I let a friend borrow this for reading on a plane trip to the east coast, and came back raving that it was now his "official family book" and that his parents were buying copies for everyone they knew!

Sound, practical methods for interacting with everyone from the grocery clerk to your family, and how to get people on your side! You don't have to finish last for being nice after all! Perfect for those of us who'd rather not get ahead in life by bullying as so many do, but still want to get ahead!

Please, print more copies of this book!!!!!

I met Bob Burg in a business convention in Los Angeles area. Bob Burg is truly a great person who really practices what he teaches. He is a person of honesty, humility and integrity.

I bought all his teaching materials, CDs, tapes and books; and this "Winning Without Intimidation" book is a must-read book for everyone who wants to get a promotion at work, and to increase profits for their business.

This book will teach you how to negotiate better, to sell better, to communicate better, to understand people and one thing that I love the most about this book, it has taught me to develop a positive aura by appreciating other people around us.

This "Winning Without Intimidation" book has helped me to receive many promotions at work and it has helped me as a communication professional to meet more clients and to deal with them more effectively.

I have a lot of respect for Bob Burg for who he is. He is real, he always answers his email personally, and he has shared his wisdom, knowledge and understanding in the communication and networking area that has totally changed my life for the better! Thank you Bob, you are amazing!

I really recommend this book, it is worth the investment!

This book will change the way you talk. If you can't I'll understand, but if there is any way your could I would apprectiate it. You will win with other as well as win with yourself when you read and put into practice the suggestions in this book. I would suggest every married man read this book for it has the power to change the way you speak to your wife! Awesome book.

i found this book to be an excelent tool for anysituation you`l incounter in life. most subjects discussed in this book, are simple and common sence, but no one does it untill they read this book and realise those things... my recomendation: a definite must buy for anyone

I would highly recommend this book and his "Endless Referrals" book to anyone who owns a business or is in sales. I was new to Chamber of Commerce and networking meetings, and Bob's books allowed me to step in and have at least a five-fold better impact from those meetings. Quickly become an influencer in your city! Bob Burg's books can help you gain a competitive edge and be more profitable.

I just finished going through the entire book line by line. I am extreemly new to Linux and security, and this book made it all very clear. I only wish I realized that there was a second edition out when I bought this one. Everything in this original edition was still completely correct and appropriate, three years later.

I'm a big fan of the Hacking Exposed style of writing. All offensive theory is backed up by command line examples, followed by defensive countermeasures. Hacking Exposed: Linux, 2nd Ed (HE:L2E) follows this tradition, updating the content of the first edition and adding 200 pages of new content. Although I reviewed the first edition in Sep 01, reading the second edition reminded me of the challenges posed by securely configuring and deploying Linux systems.

The best way to learn while reading HE:L2E is to try the sample commands. I also recommend visiting the links mentioned and installing many of the tools described by the authors. I found programs like raccess, nsat (ch. 3), sslsniff (ch. 7), nstx, and httptunnel (ch. 15) particularly interesting from an attacker's point of view. From a system administration standpoint, coverage of passlogd (ch. 2), lilo and grub (ch. 5), and X (ch. 6) were very helpful.

The authors share many novel ways to abuse Linux systems, but counter those exploits with little-known features or third-party tools. I never knew I could use bash's HISTCONTROL feature to selectively remove entries from shell history files. HE:L2E goes the extra mile to help secure your system, such as including sample C code in ch. 13 to allow one to compile TCP Wrappers support into one's own programs. Other clear, concise defensive measures were introduced in excellent chapters on keeping the kernel and packages current (appendix B) and pro-active security measures (ch. 2). The last appendix gives a short yet powerful description of the damage an intruder can perform, showing how he hid unauthorized programs and how those programs were discovered.

If you use Linux, you'll find HE:L2E indispensable. I even applied many of the tools and techniques to my FreeBSD system, showing that that good security advice can be a cross-platform endeavor.

The Hacking Exposed books have set the bar for this genre of security book. Hacking Linux Exposed - 2nd Edition doesn't fail in meeting that bar as well. If you've read Hacking Exposed - 4th Edition and think this book can't tell you anything you don't already know- think again. For those who administer Linux boxes this book provides an in-depth look at specific hacks and vulnerabilities unique to the Linux operating system and the accompanying fixes and workarounds to protect yourself. The book is overflowing with examples and sample commands that users can immediately put to use to better understand the risks and how to mitigate them. Hacking Exposed is a must-read for security- this book is a must-read for Linux security.

(...)

First, this book does _NOT_ have a installation walk through...YES!!!

You will not find another book this comprehensive in the length in HLE has accomplished. i found the book to be on point, and not overdrawn on any specific topic. The authors usage of gender is something of a mystery aswell. For the first 10 chapters or so the cracker is a woman, then in later chapters it becomes a man, then in even later chapters a woman, then back to a man :-).

i found the book to be very well written, it feels like a very good naration. There is only a few plugs of direct humor (1 about using word for the publisher, another about the shortest sentence using all letters) but these few are lightening.

Technically this book is sound. it does very good in keeping the basics of security alive through the book (chattr +i, only use what you need, upgrade, etc...). This is very helpful to a beginer for reinforced learning. The software packages it mentions for firewalls, logging, etc. are very nice and descriptive.

All around great book. BTW, did i mention that is does _NOT_ cover a Linux installation from CD/DVD? That alone should be enough to buy it.

When I first starting using Linux systems and putting them online I had NO idea what sort of grief I was in for. The reason for that grief: I had NO clue how to 'harden' a system or what that term even meant. By not knowing that I put up systems that were quickly exploited by script kiddies and SPAM houses looking for open relays to use for SPAM and for 'zombies' to use in Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks. I bought this book, read it, and haven't had those problems since. If you are going to do *anything* with Linux on the internet then GET THIS BOOK NOW. Unless, of course, you *want* to have your computers destroyed on a weekly basis...