Internet Books

The book is really well written, covering even more topics (i.e. Networking) than the first edition. Considering the advanced nature of the book, it's surprisingly easy to understand.

However, i would recommend reading Operating Systems: Design and Implementation (3rd edition) by Andrew S. Tanenbaum and Albert S. Woodhull before this one if you're not familiar with Operating Systems, as this book covers advanced topics which are not for begginers.

Reading this book, I think it helps to know UNIX and some C already, but is ok if you don't... This book gives great details and examples. Must have for anyone working on/with solaris 10.
Yes.. it explains how zones and things like that work...

Do you want to know how the Solaris kernel works? This is the book for you!

If you've read any of the other titles by these authors you'll know how clear and succinctly written this book is. The book is not your normal 2nd edition "nip and tuck", it's a rewrite!

One of the things I really like about this book is that it describes the internal theory and implementation of many kernel subsystems, but is not a code walk through or reiteration of other books / manuals.

The book covers many of the new and recent features of Solaris, so it's also valuable for long time Solaris engineers that need to keep updated. People that are new to UNIX internals will also like this book as it starts with the assumption of some UNIX principles (but not too much), and takes you a *lot* further.

There are pointers to other material for the truely adventurous, and small examples with sample output that keep the subject material relevent and enable to reader to make the connection between the theory and their system.

Very highly recommended!

The book "Solaris (TM) Internals and OpenSolaris
Kernel Architecture (2nd Edition)"
is one of the best
books (perhaps the best one) that I own on
the Operating Systems related field.

I study also the Linux Kernel which is also
technically elegant, and I recommend to anyone
interested in Operating Systems design and
implementation, to study the
OpenSolaris Kernel also,
since is very well designed and
in my opinion is technically
the best design that I know until now.

The book is excellent, it has clear presentation of the
advanced algorithms used at the Solaris internally,
and the reader has a lot to gain by elaborating
the internals of perhaps the most
advanced modern operating system.

Well written and detailed. If you wish or need to know about the internals of Solaris this book is the source. This is a second edition and covers 10 and updates information on 8 and 9. The first edition covered 2.5.1, 2.6, and 7. I liked the first edition and waited for this edition based on the books/authors web site and have not be disappointed. Highly recommended, a reasonable background in OS theory is helpful with the type of material covered here - but not required - it will aid in understanding however. Recommended more general OS books would include "Operating System Concepts" by A. Silberschutz, J. Peterson, P. Galvin, "Operating Sytstems" by A. Tanenbaum, A. Woodhull, and "Unix Internals" by Uresh Vahalia among others.

This is one of the most unusual books I've come across in a long time in the way it thoughtfully blends learning from the author's life and many different disciplines of study. By carefully organizing the material into two sections, Robert Kamm makes some very profound ideas easy to understand. There are wonderful insights about why we so readily give in to the speed of the information age. Especially enjoyable for me was Chapter Four which peels back the Superman myth layer by layer to reveal some startling messages. I also found quite unique among all books on family and workplace issues Kamm's emphasis on the importance of the grieving process in helping us grow. The scope of the book is almost too ambitious, but he pulls it off with passion. A courageous and eloquent work.

Extraordinary depth of thought yet expressed very clearly. The most comprehensive book of its kind available--moves from a theory about human nature through a fascinating explanation of the underlying meaning of the superman myth, to personal application, then professional and organizational. Very wise on intrapersonal dynamics. A unique applicatiion of the grieving process as part of a liberated person's standard operating mode. Insights could be as valuable to just anybody trying to live their live or apply to business, social, religious and political leaders. Being in business myself, I'm impressed that a business leader, or any leader for that matter, who really "gets" the author's message could revolutionize his way of operating and lead his people to higher productivity, more genuine satisfaction and a better balance between work and family. One of those books that, if it hits you, it hits you hard and you want to share it with a lot of people you know. Author's description of superman made me feel as if he'd been peeking into my psyche, my father's and my grandfather's. Strong stuff...and apparently only the first in a trilogy. More, please, Mr. Kamm!

Best selling author Harvey Mackay wrote "Swim With The Sharks", describing the dog-eat-dog world we live in and how to be the dog that eats. In "The Superman Syndrome," Kamm brings the voice of compassion, integrity and openess to the service of humanity as the way we ought to conduct our lives. He provides the counterpoint to Mackay: "Swim With the Dolphins."

When we choose to live a life at speed, not depth, we choose an unrelenting willingness to sacrifice family, love, marriage and all else in pursuit of success. That's the synthesis of what Kamm calls "The Superman Syndrome."

For men in particular, there's an opportunity to cast the Superman uniform aside in favor authentic selfhood and family. Kamm says it's where "the inner and outer journeys are inextricably woven together...to tear down the wall of illusion between personal and professional realms."

Amen.

I had Bob Kamm's book for several months before I slowed down to read it. I knew better, but my life was caught up in speed at the expense of depth. Bob has a hard hitting way of reminding me about the importance of relationships, without leaving me bleeding on the side of the road. So, after reading the book, I gave it to my son to read, and now I'm going to get another copy for my daughter and son-in-law. This is a must read for all of them. For someone you love, read The Superman Syndrome.

I expected this book to be about our being inundated with information and how that drives us to be super-human and create something in us that makes us seem sick. What I got was a hundred pages of reviews of Superman (the movies, comics, and other items) and then 200 pages of how to fix our problems as a result of our Superman myth becoming reality. But the real gist of this book is that we are addicted to the working speed of the information age (which is a synonym for today) and, as a result of this, we are denying our most valuable job: to be effective parents. If we change the purpose of our lives to be children-focused, then we will have a better society. No argument there. What he suggests is very much akin to The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, which I happen to agree with. While his writing is imaginative and flowing, in general, I found this book redundant, not very cohesive, and not well organized. I agree with the findings he presents in the last half of the book, but it certainly could be more succinct. The title could better reflect the content.

This book offers good strategies for implementing VoIP. It covers the feasibility studies required and pre and post evaluation of the network. Technical details are covered well but the most important aspects such as QoS, SLA's are explained in some sort of details, which is an important area when dealing with VoIP.

I used this book as one of my main reference in my final year project with UOL BSc in CIS.

I recommend this book not just for Engineers, Technicians, Managers and IT staff, but also for anyone wishing to learn about the basis of VoIP.

As one of the lead Network / IP Telephony engineers for my employer, GE IT Solutions, I was excited to learn that Cisco Press had published a book addressing the business and project management aspects of Voice Over IP (VOIP). I was glad that I picked up "Taking Charge of Your VoIP Project" by John Walker and Jeffrey Hicks (ISBN 1587200929) and I highly recommend the book to any IT decision maker, project manager, or lead engineer considering VoIP technologies.

The authors clearly indicate in their preface that the book is not a technical "how-to" manual for VoIP. Rather, the target audience is "chief information officers and information technology managers who choose to deploy VoIP in their organizations". The book opens with an overview of VoIP terminology and acronyms. For the most part, the discussion remains at a high level, although the details on IP packet headers probably could've been scaled back, given the target audience. Chapter 2 delves into the business drivers for moving to VoIP, such as convergence and ROI.

Chapter 3, Planning for VoIP, was a particularly helpful section in relation to my job functions. The chapter does a excellent job discussing the value and importance of planning and design for VoIP networks, a critical piece of any VoIP project that I feel customers (and even some vendors and implementers) often overlook. In fact, if it weren't a copyright violation, I'd probably copy the entire chapter and hand it out to any of my existing and potential VoIP customers. Better still, I'll by them a copy of this book.

Subsequent chapters of the book's focus continue to balance the business considerations with the technical aspects of VoIP. Topics of discussion include finding the right implementer, QoS tuning, ongoing VoIP Management, SLAs, and security considerations.

As mentioned earlier, I highly recommend the book to any IT decision maker, project manager, or lead engineer. I've encouraged many of my non-technical business colleagues at GE ITS to read "Taking Charge of Your VoIP Project". In fact, one of our Six Sigma quality leaders engrossed herself in the book and gained an very comprehensive understanding of both the business and technical aspects of VoIP. Next thing I know, she'll be pursuing her CCIE!

I recently read the book titled "Taking Charge Of Your VoIP Project" by John Q. Walker and Jeffrey T. Hicks. ISBN: 1587200929.
The title is a great reference for understanding VoIP technology and helps identify the many aspects that one must consider for a successful deployment of Voice over IP. Reading this book ahead of time will empower the reader with the lingo, technology and solutions to be effective when leading a team.
The book starts out by giving the reader an understanding of the basic technology concepts surrounding traditional voice networks, or Public Switched Telephone Networks (PSTN) and then goes right into the basic technologies that allow Voice over IP (Data) to be a viable alternative to the traditional phone networks.
Chapter 2, Building a Business Case for VoIP, gives the reader good information to ponder over and helps identify purpose for building a case for a VoIP solution.
The next chapter, "Planning for VoIP" is one of the larger chapters and for good reason. After all, anyone in business knows that planning determines whether the project will go smoothly with little surprise or whether it's a disaster. In this chapter you'll learn about reliability, call quality assessment, and over all VoIP readiness assessment, among other things.
Another great chapter is Chapter 5, "Quality of Service and Tuning". Probably one of the biggest challenges that an organization will face. QoS is challenging due to the complexity of a true end-to-end QoS solution in an already complex data network. Accomplishing QoS requires in-depth knowledge of the existing data network. Furthermore, the communication to others on the team of what it's going to take to get the network "up to snuff" to support VoIP will be a task in and of it self. It makes ATM technology look quite attractive. The chapter has quite a bit of detail; however the authors don't drop the reader over the deep end of the technologies.
I would recommend this book to those that are anticipating implementing Voice over IP in their network, those that are in the process of piloting Voice over IP or even those that are in the midst of a VoIP implementation would benefit from this title.
The book is best suited for Project Managers, management, telecommunication and Data networking personnel. Really and truly, most anyone would benefit from reading this title. It covers such a broad range of information that having a well educated project team is going to ensure that the project goes smoothly and all things are considered. This book does an excellent job of presenting all of the issues that personnel involved in a Voice over IP project should be aware of to ensure success. It gives the reader a great appreciation for the complexities and helps a great deal with ironing out a good sound strategy.
This book has several figures, tables and diagrams. Like the old saying goes, "A picture is worth a thousand words". This statement holds true in the title. Like I always say, pictures are good.
The book covers everything you'd think about and everything you wouldn't think about.
Coming from the data side of a VoIP solution, I thought I had enough figured out to make a VoIP project a success. This titled made me think about issues that I would have otherwise over looked. Especially issues relating to traditional telecommunications.
Don't start you project without this book. It may end up costing you more than this book in mistakes if you don't.

Excellent book if you are looking for "in-depth" crash course in to VoIP. The amazing part was vendor neutral tone. Even though it came out of Cisco Press, it hardly preached any specific vendor. It was mostly focused on the fundamentals.

However the book lacks a decent index section. Hardly any important words are mentioned.

John Walker and Jeffrey Hicks's "Taking Charge of Your VoIP Project" (ISBN: 1587200929, Cisco Press) is an installment in Cisco's Network Business Series line of books and covers the topic of voice over IP (VoIP) from a business strategy perspective. Although the book does cover some technical aspects of VoIP, its main purpose is to guide the reader in understanding the steps from beginning to end on how to develop a business case all the way to deploying a successful and secure VoIP deployment. The book covers eight major areas:

* VoIP Basics
* Building a Business Case for VoIP
* Planning for VoIP
* Do It Yourself or Outsource?
* Quality of Service & Tuning
* Ongoing VoIP Management
* Establishing VoIP SLAs
* VoIP Security

This book's primary audience is meant to be at the managerial and above levels, although it does have value for senior technical staff, albeit from a different angle. For the management level, the book's value is in how it covers enough technical detail to make the reader aware of the complexities of VoIP, yet at the same time it presents both a business rationalization and realistic implementation steps so as not to scare the reader away (from the technology). For the senior technical staff or technical manager, the details of the technology will seem rudimentary, but the business framework may be less familiar territory, and therefore more valuable. For the technical audience, it addresses the often asked question of, "Where's the business need for VoIP?"

The eight categories can really be summed up into three major headings: VoIP Technology Summary, Business Justification, and Deployment Considerations. The "VoIP Basics" or technology summary provides the necessary background information on the PSTN and legacy PBX's in order to present the context for understanding how VoIP is a change in voice technology. This section is brief, and Walker and Hicks end with a general overview of data technology and how you converge old voice technology into it, discussing signaling, transport protocols, codecs, and the hardware necessary to make everything work. In terms of the business case for VoIP, the authors present three major cost savings opportunities: toll cost savings, simple network savings, and productivity savings. These areas are commonly talked about and should not be a surprise to the reader; the value here is that the book enables the reader to talk intelligently about the cost savings areas to a business audience. From here, Walker and Hicks cover how to project the ROI, how to make sure you have the data to back up your projections, and what associated costs should be considered before starting the project (e.g., is it cheaper to outsource?). Lastly, the authors spend time discussing both the pre and post implementation requirements and implications of running VoIP, spending less time on the technical details and more time on the big picture of implementing such a technology: Considering the quality requirements (i.e., QoS), integrating VoIP into a network management structure, establishing SLAs with the customer, and securing the technology.

Overall, the book provides a good, but broad treatment of how to present a case for VoIP and then deploy it. The irony of the book is that the readers who can best utilize the information will probably be the ones that find the book a little boring. For example, experienced managers will take away the unique points of implementing VoIP and recognize how it can fit in a realistic way for their particular environment. On the flip side, the knowledgeable network technician will similarly be able to see the nuances of VoIP that the book presents and understand the implications for the existing network. To both audiences, the pre-existing experience and knowledge may cause them to find the book too basic, although the lessons learned will most likely be valuable to them. To the less experienced readers (technical or managerial), the book is a great starting point and will most likely engage them more, but without additional references or resources (e.g., basic project management skills, understanding business budgeting cycles, etc.), the information learned may be just enough to make them dangerous.

"Taking Charge of Your VoIP Project" is a great resource for its intended audience of decision makers and project managers. It is not necessarily meant for the technical person doing the implementing, although the information is beneficial as it ties the technical to the practical.

With a strong example-to-paragraph of information ratio, this this title is readable and well presented: highly reccomended. But I'll hold back on a 10 only because the authors only skimmed the most important aspect of HTML layout: tables. While this book *was* just a starter, as the "...24 Hours" claims, I am still struggling to learn how tables function. Still it's, very well-written, enjoyable, topical (covering what you need to know), and organized, giving you a good taste so all those lines of Hypertext Markup start becoming legible.

This is, without a doubt, the best book on the market for learning beginner's HTML.

This book helped me out so much when I just started out. I was 13, and had just gotten the internet and I realized that even the average person had a web page, so I looked at the source code and realized that it is not that hard. I wanted to expand my knowledge, so I bought this book, and it helped so much. It has definetly helped me as a resource when writing my pages now. I reccommend this book to anyone just starting out.

I bought 2 other HTML books before I found this one. This book was really awesome. It was easy to read and understand. I learnt a lot.

Dick Oliver is the best author!! You will really get a lot out of this book even if you are a beginner!

The is a very good resource. It gives great ideas on how to use the internet in the classroom. What I like particulary is the wealth of ideas it gives on how to incorporate the internet in the classroom.

I highly recommend Teaching with the Internet to the novice and experienced net user. It is a great sounce of "current" web sites spanning the educational needs for K-12 students. I have used lessons taken directly from the book with great success. I consider the text to be an invaluable resource in my personal journey in understanding the "net" as well as to open new areas of exploration for my young students. This book is also a wonderful tool for parents trying to assist their children with study projects, book reports, etc. The information in this book is updated regularly through its web site as changes take place on the www. This educational tool is a wise investment for anyone who uses the "net".

Teaching With the Internet: Lessons From the Classroom is a practical, hands on guide well suited for layman use. It encompasses both Netscape and Internet Explorer browsers as well as the IBM and Macintosh systems. Each chapter is devoted to either a specific Internet strategy such as navigating and communicating or to specific subject areas and concerns within the public school curriculum K-12. This text should be included as an essential component in every school's technology reference library and utilized as an indispensable resource in effective Internet teaching. It is packed with countless creative teaching suggestions and noteworthy web sites as well as step by step instructions on how to implement it all.

This book proved to be very informative, giving step-by-step models to use to incorporate internet resources into classroom activities, computer workshops, research projects and student inquiries.It is organized by chapters that give curriculum based internet ideas, with excellent related educational web-sites. It is geared for all levels of teacher ability, so everyone can get their classroom started. Although some ideas and sites seemed repetitious, it allows you to refer to a specific chapter by subject area to find related sites and sample activities. This book is comprehensive enough to highlight features of various navigation tools, cover both MAC and PC platforms for grades K-12.

Don and Deborah Leu have created a great Interent reference/teaching guide for teachers of all computer skill levels, from beginners to old pros!

The book not only inlcudes explicit explanations of Internet terms and procedures, but includes plenty of figures and examples of what the screen would actually look like as you are working. The Email to You sections contain real teachers describing real projects that they have sucessfully done with their students. Leu and Leu also provide many, many links to resources and project ideas in the major academic disciplines for teachers to use as they begin to incorporate the Internet in to the classroom.

I would highly recommend this book to teachers and teacher educators alike. I consider my self to be an advanced user of the Internet and I learned several new things from reading this book!

This is a great hand book for any small business owner who likes to sell products or service on online. Highly recommended.

I`m surprising with this book, is just amazing. Very easy to read, very intuitive too. Now I`m interested in make my own site and use my new SEO
knowledge. Thank`s Mr. Rognerud, your book is amazing!

Ultimate Guide to Search Engine Optimization: Drive Traffic, Boost Conversion Rates and Make Lots of Money (Entrepreneur Magazine's Ultimate Guides)

So I just set up my first website and didn't have a clue how to get "Optimized" until I read the The Ultimate Guide to Search Engine Optimization. The Additional Resources section in the back with URL's to many SEO tools is incredible. I just saved over $1500 by doing it myself rather than paying for a website analysis from a SEO company. Thanks Jon Rognerud! With the tips and tools provided in this book, getting my site recognized is fun!

The Ultimate Guide to Search Engine Optimization provided solid tips and actionable information for both new and experienced marketers and entrepreneurs. Having a keen understanding of the techniques of SEM is valuable for the do-it-yourselfer or the corporation that hires a firm. I find myself turning to the pages over and over again as a reference guide. It sits next to my frequently used dictionary and thesaurus in my office and has become a key resource. I was especially pleased at the inclusive nature of the book. Jon Rognerud is one of the few search marketers who opened the door to the secret club for me. I highly recommend this book to anyone with an online presence.

I saw this book advertised in Entrepreneur Magazine and knew I needed help with my new ecommerce site [...] so I went on-line and bought myself a copy. The ROI on this resource tool is beyond measure. This 203 page book and accompanying CD contains so much useful information that it makes my head spin. Most of the content was easily understood by someone who is not a web master. I did not realize how critical keywords and links were to SEO. I got busy right away improving my content and links. This is a book I plan to re-read several times until I have optimized my search engine results. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to increase web traffic.

Comprehensive in-depth guide to creating personas using quantitative and qualitative techniques. Well written. No fluff. Note that creating personas requires significant resources, so small businesses would be less likely to develop them. Nevertheless, this book provides valuable insights for anyone serious about developing user centric web sites. If only more "practical guides" were like this one.

It delivers how to know user's thoughts and express it in effective way to others. And also remind me a lot of thing I know already but I forgot while working.Good for someone who interested in user experience design.

It is clearly one of the best books on webdesign, a compulsory one on any IA's or IxD's bookshelf.


What I liked:
- the insights this book gives you are instantly actionable, it is really a step-by-step guide
- the authors discuss the topics that are relevant to persona creation (and take it literally, there is great information on survey design, how to segment results, what sources to use to find a photo for your persona, etc.)
- you will find good real world examples
- the book shows multiple approaches based on different needs and constraints
- the copywriting is also outstanding, no nonsense and easy to digest

What I didn't like:
I am trying hard but really can't think of anything :)

This book has got to be one of the most comprehensive on the topic of personas available. Between the detailed types of personas and processes on when and how to use them, it's almost overwhelming in scope for such a relatively small book.

The power of this book is the amount of experience the authors have in the subject. Where other books may make a cursory review of personas and how to apply them, this one makes clear delineations of the two types it describes (qualitative and quantitative) and how/when they should be used and their limitations. Examples and discussions of successful projects as well as when "personas are taken too far" distill a lot of practical experience.

This book is for the serious UI/usability designer/developer. Though it is not so technical as to be over the heads of executives, managers and stakeholders, once past the first chapter the details are likely to be more than most will need.

This comprehensive guide approaches user experience research like never before, and is well-written, easy-to-read, and quite user friendly. It provides real-world examples of how user research is done in just enough detail that it can both inform an executive of the role of usability research as well as introduce methodology for persona creation to someone starting out in user experience design.

"You are not the user."

As an interaction designer and information architect for the past 12 years, I have been most drawn towards books that go far beyond principles and theory to ones I can actually extract from and use their contents for the praxis of the craft, rather than just reading descriptions of a process. This is a great book that is a blueprint to follow to get it right. It defines the entire user research and persona creation process and offers insightful case studies from successful companies that Mulder and Yaar worked with like Vista Print.

The use of personas has become an increasingly popular technique being used by the interaction design community to address user needs. Introduced into the mainstream in 1999 in The Inmates Are Running The Asylum, personas have gained momentum in both the software and website design communities, but still faces hurdles.

What are the benefits of personas?

A key aspect to any practitioner responsible for bringing real user centered design to an organization's product design process, being able to evangelize the importance of user research and persona creation is absolutely key. Many interaction designers understand the importance of persona creation, but lack the arguments to persuade management to both fund user research and persona creation, and to incorporate real users into the design process. This is where the book is particular important - selling proper user research and persona creation to upper management constrained by resources and deadlines.

According to Mulder and Yaar, personas bring many benefits, including these:
* Users' goals, behaviors and attitudes become a common point of focus for the team. (They keep repeating this mantra until I found myself chanting it in the shower)
* The team can concentrate on designing for a manageable set of personas knowing that they represent the needs of many users.
* By always asking, "Would Will use this?" the team can avoid the trap of building what users ask for rather than what they will actually use, or the problem which is far more pernicious - building features that a product champion thinks are important.
* Design efforts can be prioritized based on the personas.
* Disagreements over design decisions can be sorted out by referring back to the personas.
* Designs can be constantly evaluated against the personas, getting better designs into usability testing.

What is a persona anyway??

A persona is a fictional person that the team creates to reflect what is know about one of the key audience groups (sometimes that knowledge is gained from interviews, focus groups, or surveys). Typically, a team creates two or more personas to represent different user segments, while identifying a few key archetypes as the primary personas.

Helpful persona profiles include demographic information, levels of computer expertise, descriptions of the personas' needs for the particular site in development, and the goals and tasks they would have in mind when using the site.

The User Is Always Right takes you through each step of persona creation, including tips for conducting qualitative user research, new ways to apply quantitative research (such as surveys) to persona creation, various methods for generating persona segmentation, and proven techniques for making personas realistic. You'll also learn how to use personas effectively, from directing overall business strategy and prioritizing features and content to making detailed decisions about information architecture, content, and design.

What characteristics are included in a persona?

Some of the information Mulder and Yaar say a persona usually includes:
* a name and picture
* demographics (age, education, ethnicity, family status)
* job title and major responsibilities
* goals and tasks in relation to your product/web site/application
* environment (physical, social, technological)
* a quote that sums up what matters most to the persona with relevance for your site
* A narrative that brings the persona to life

The User Is Always Right is an entertaining and clearly written book that is also filled with great insight into the process, both qualitative, and quantitative, of creating user personas based on real research and how that can help interaction designers, product designers, and other user experience professionals make more usable and useful software. There are also extensive samples and examples throughout the book of real personas, actual user research data, and analysis spreadsheets. These give a very clear idea of how the recommended approaches work in practice.

For the first time (as far as I'm aware), this brings together two very different approaches: qualitative research based on interviews and observation; and quantitative research based on surveys and usage data. The authors' overall methodology provides real answers on when to use field research, when to conduct surveys, and how to combine the two sets of results. The end product are personas that have much greater rigueur and impact.

In summary, this is a must-have book for people tackling the design of complex sites, applications or devices, or for user-centered designers seeking more rigorous methodologies when creating personas. I cannot recommend this book too highly.

Rawlings does a first-rate job of conveying elegant solutions to very arduous problems. If you find yourself in the trenches trying to bridge the technology gap between modern tools and older EDI or flat file based systems - this is your book. Those without the budget for a commercial product will especially appreciate do-it-yourself practical code and easy to follow examples.

This book provides practical advice and examples on integrating XML into existing business systems. The book is easy to read and follow. The approach of the book is to break the problem down into a chain of simple problems, addressing each as a data 'filter'. The end result is to connect the input/output of a legacy system with the input/output of an XML parser.

I recommend this book to anyone faced with the problem of using XML to extend the reach of existing applications.

Mike Rawlin's book deals with the reality that legacy business applications are not readily converted to processing XML-formatted information. While XML works fine as the interchange format, you need to convert between that interchange format and the format your applications understand. Mike covers all of the minor nuances that you need to consider, presents a wealth of knowledge in an easily-understood format, and provides examples to boot.

A lot of IT people are busy making different applications running on different platforms "talk" to each other. XML was invented as the "Esperanto" of the IT world to get these systems to understand each other. In practice however it just isn't that simple, as most of these applications don't talk XML yet, until this book.

This book is a real do itbook. It does not teach you XML or XSLT but shows you how to use it. What I especially liked is that he discusses his design considerations, he wants you to understand the whys. Once he thinks you know the basics he goes back to his basic design and improves it to make it make it fully reusable and modular, making it even beter.

Mr. Rawlins gives you toolbox of utilities, with the source code, that can become the building blocks for your own application integration system.

I have not come across a book with as much usable code in my IT career. We have already redesigned quite a few of our systems because of it. If you are into connectivityyou cant be without this book.

Ps. The word Legacy in the title does not imply big mainframes.

Easy to read, in a refreshing unpretentious style, Rawlins explains numerous complicated concepts associated with using XML. Especially useful are the chapters covering the conversion of EDI formatted data into and out of XML and the converting of one XML format to another XML format. The inclusion of Java and C++ considerations in appropriate chapters provides excellent practical advice.

I will admit to being prejudiced. I've known Del Coates for about four years now through Western Automotive Journalists.
He is a true gentleman who has always been willing to chat with me and help me to understand why I really liked a cetain car I was reviewing.

Del's book not only provides brief and clear analysis of why objects around us are made the way they are, but gave me a far more complete tool set with which to judge. What I learned will allow me to be a better writer who can now "make sense" out of what I am feeling.

I have not only told my friends about the book, I went out and purchased about a dozen and sent them to fellow writers and editors. And being the cheapskate that I am, this even surprised me.

This is simply a superb book and will be cherished by anyone who really wants to understand how Industrial Design developed
and grew into something that touches us every second of every day
whether we recognize it or not.

I will admit to being prejudiced. I've known Del Coates for about four years now through Western Automotive Journalists.
He is a true gentleman who has always been willing to chat with me and help me to understand why I really liked a cetain car I was reviewing.

Del's book not only provides brief and clear analysis of why objects around us are made the way they are, but gave me a far more complete tool set with which to judge. What I learned will allow me to be a better writer who can now "make sense" out of what I am feeling.

I have not only told my friends about the book, I went out and purchased about a dozen and sent them to fellow writers and editors. And being the cheapskate that I am, this even surprised me.

This is simply a superb book and will be cherished by anyone who really wants to understand how Industrial Design developed
and grew into something that touches us every second of every day whether we recognize it or not.

A book that addresses what many know but fail to acknowledge. This book brings the importance of design, which is a result of the power of the human senses, to the mainstream without dumbing down the material. The decisions people make in regards to buying products are largely based on unarticulated(Subconscious) reasons. Studies report that 80% of human communication is non-verbal and that visual communication is one of the oldest and most important forms of communication. In todays marketplace where most products are commodities, possesing similar features and functions, design is one of the most powerful forms of differentiation. This book details the importance of design and the key attributes that make one design stand out from another. Take notice of the "irregular" or different size of this books binding. Do you think some thought went into that?

"Watches Tell More than Time" is about how industrial designers influence the emotional responses that their products create. (Note: it's primarily concerned with physical objects, as opposed to computer software, which gets a lot of design press these days).

It explains these responses in terms of evolutionary psychology. And, in what I consider to be the reason to read the book, it tells you how to measure and optimize them. That is, it lays out the theoretical underpinnings for a small set of attributes (contrast, novelty, objective concinnity, and subjective concinnity) that are fundamentally responsible for our emotional responses to objects, then describes a systematic process by which you can strengthen the responses that you consider important for a given product, and then measure your success (using a semantic differential scale) and find out you whether you have simultaneously weakened other desirable responses.

There is some jargon, but it's well defined and to the point, and anyone interested in design should have no problem understanding it.

It's at its best when the author delves into specific examples. Many are from his experience in the car design field; others are everyday items that everyone can relate to. The detailed deconstruction of a "simple" Corelle cup is outstanding -- I wish the book had a dozen more like it.

The book's major weakness is the amount of time devoted to relatively elementary concepts, such as contrast and novelty. (How many times and in how many ways do we need to be told, for example, that new things command more of our attention than familiar ones?) I finished several chapters in a row thinking "OK, now that's he's got that out of his system, he's about to get to the good stuff." Eventually he does, but the repetition beforehand is why my rating is four stars, not five.

Note: The book is _not_ about what I might call the "mechanics of aesthetics". How is it that Curve A feels dull while Curve B -- a subtle, almost unnoticeable variation -- seems taut and alive? Why does this union of materials and forms seem exactly right, even inspiring, but that one fails to catch the eye?

For example, the author calls SUVs outwardly "robust", "rugged", and "militaristic". That feels right, but what makes it so? What is it, exactly, about the shapes and lines of an SUV that evoke such a different reaction than is typical for a minivan ("bland", "boring", "utilitarian")? Each is, after all, more like the other than like a sedan. Yet no one would have trouble identifying the type from a picture -- even without telltale backgrounds of the Rockies vs a youth soccer field. Each time I think I've got it nailed down, I see a counter-example on the road. I think it's mostly a matter of the angle between the hood and windshield, and the height of the grille. But that just begs the question: why are the more acute angle and higher grille more aggressive in the first place? A lower grille and gentler angle are considered more aggressive in a sports car.

"Watches Tell More than Time" tantalizingly dances around such questions, but fundamentally doesn't attempt to answer them. But it leaves you better equipped to wrestle with the answers yourself. (A sports car has different emotional goals than an SUV.)

So the book won't make you an industrial designer any more than a trip to the art supply store will make you an artist. Instead, it introduces you to a fundamental chunk of an industrial designer's toolkit. If you've already internalized "talk to your users" and "keep it simple", and you want a deeper understanding of how some products are able to become beloved icons, you'll probably find very interesting material here.

You will learn how humans react to a product - particularly great ones. I appreciate that the author has given me a new way to look at products and the effect of their designs.

The author describes from a neurological and pyschological point of view how you react to a new product the instant you see it. I am talking micro-seconds here. Then, he discusses how you come to like it or reject it (a few microseconds later). This was truly interesting. He relates it back to Information Theory -- yet the book was not about bits and bytes. He describes how various shapes communicate differing amounts of information. Too much results in an over load.

The author presents a simple model to analyze products. To help with this he discusses how he uses semantic difference surveys. I found this material very interesting although I wish that he had included samples of the survey documents. I didn't understand how the prospects visualized and then specified the ideal product to compare your product to.

This is truly a great book but it does requires you to slow down when you read. The author carefully defines his terms - which unfortunately have to deal with cultural abstractions (like 'zeitgeists', 'daimons'). To keep up with the author, you need to understand these terms, as the author defines them.

I will now go back a second time and try to make his framework more permanent in my brain.

The author sleeps and dreams about great design. He has been a great designer (cars) for some time and now teaches out in San Jose.

If you develop new products, or are a CEO of a company, or if you just like design... this is a required book.

I looked at the book at the book store several times and put it back because the abstract terminology turned me off. Later I went and sat down in the book store and read it more slowly. It was then that I realized what a jewell this book is. I'd love to sit in on one of his classes.

John Dunbar
Sugar Land, TX

I work in a non-technology based field, yet found this book to be a great tool for inspiring some new marketing ideas.

AT LAST! A definitive, concise, readable, understandable, helpful book on this subject that has literally changed the way I communicate and network in my business. Thank you, thank you, thank you, to the authors!!

The world can be divided into two groups: those that get it, and those that don't. Real estate is a very competitive industry -- you not only have to be "with it," you have to be "ahead of it." This book is a must have for the business person -- in this case, realtor -- who needs and wants the cutting edge advantage.

Like many people looking for a book or information on web conferencing I was frustrated in my search by the surprising lack of available material. Needless to say I was thrilled when my search ended having come across "The Web Conferencing Book..." and was happier still when I found the book to be as an informative and engaging read as it is. Extremely comprehensive, The Web Conferencing Book answered virtually all of my questions on the subject - and even provided me with information I didn't even know I need to be aware of. I can't recommend this book enough for people needing to know more on the subject as it will undoubtedly have an immediate and highly positive impact on your web conferencing abilities and overall knowledge. The authors have provided us with an amazingly valuable resource and I'm now offically on the lookout for future technology books by them.

I'm a computer services manager working in local government, so I am probably not part of the target audience for this book.

This book will give maximum benefit to a non-technical person who knows nothing about on-line collaboration. The book is effective in giving a survey of the conferencing products and services available on the market at the time of publication.

Here is my description of my "wish list" for a book on Web Conferencing:

1. Target audience: Information systems professionals
2. Detailed coverage of network issues involved with Web conferencing, including bandwidth, infrastructure and security issues.
3. Cost structure for each product reviewed.
4. Some coverage of manipulating low cost configurations to provide high levels of service. (How to do more with less).
5. Professional, rather than chatty, tone.