Reference Software Books

I have skimmed over a lot of pocket manuals during my first year of IM residency (Ferri, Wash Manual, Rosen, Pocket Medicine, Oxford handbook), spending way too much money in the process. In the end I was left between Osler and Pocket Med. In a head-to-head comparison between the two, I was left with Osler as the triumphant source. While PM has it's value, it seems to rely heavily on buzzwords and "fast facts", without creating much substrate for deeper understanding. The OMH is a much more detailed review of key topics you will need to be familiar with throughout your residency. The Pearls and Pitfalls portion is very helpful. There are certain deficiencies, without a doubt. I do not like the fact that some chapters are only available in the PDA version, making studying these topics very annoying. Some subjects are totally overlooked (e.g. tick-borne diseases), while others have a little too long a discussion (such as sickle cell disease). Either way, I still feel more comfortable reading this book than PM, as it explains things a little more solidly and facilitates retention. If there is one thing I have learned, there is no one single source for learning Medicine, but there is a basic set of topics that are prerequisite knowledge for becoming an internist, and that can be learned very well from this book. The rest will come from inhouse experience, didactic sessions, articles, board review courses, et cetera. I strongly recommend this book for all IM residents, but don't let it (or any other manual, for that matter) shut your eyes to other sources.

Lots of good information in the book, but nothing you can look up quickly. The book is hefty and you need to read the table of contents beforehand so that you'll know what's available in the book. For example, there's an entire chapter on the gastrointestinal disorders in HIV, but this is not indexed. If you were to suddenly come upon a patient with HIV and GI complaints, you have to flip through the table of contents to find that chapter. If you look up HIV in the index, it does not refer to that chapter at all.

Even worse is the PDA version. There is no built in index, as there is with the PDA version of the Washington Manual. To search, it uses the Palm OS search function which is slow and terrible. For example, if you scroll through the table of contents, you can eventually get to the section on migraines. If you do a search for migraines, you'll get the word Migraines on top (which you can not actually click on) and links to sections on other type of headaches which you CAN actually click on. A good PDA text should have an index that gives you a listing of all occurences of "migraine" with the chapter on migraines being the first link.

I hope the next edition will have a better index and a better PDA version. A good handbook should be written with the idea that you will be walking around with this book in your pocket and if you suddenly get pimped, you should be able to look up the answer on the spot. A good PDA text would be ideal for this.

I was given a copy of the book at the Chief Resident's conference. It is fantastic!! I liked the first edition as a resident but this is far superior. The second edition is smaller and more carry-able. Chapters have more uniform organization that is easy to use. Charts/Algorithims are practical and capture common problems. Some key derm pictures. Getting the PDA (that has some additional chapters and formulary) is fantastic. The references have quality scores.

Overall a great book for Internal Medicine residents and students. I will use it and will recommend it.

I find this book to be a valuable reference for teaching my own college C++ programming class. Many object-oriented topics which are largely ignored by other authors are nicely covered in this text, making it a super first reference for any future C++ programmer. The real world treatment of object-oriented design and analysis is appreciated, from the educator's perspective.

I'm half way through this book. Based on what I have read, this book is good for someone new to OO design and possibly not familiar with C++ either. But if you have read Bjarne Stroustrup's "The C++ Programming Language" and the Gamma et al's "Design Patterns" book, you won't gain much new from it. Moreover, it is sometimes not very acurate. For example, when talking about the difference between malloc() and new, the authors failed to point out that new calls object constructors while malloc() does not, which is perhaps the most important difference. Overall, this book is good for beginners for getting a general view of programming methodologies, OO and C++. But if you think you have known the basics, this book is not for you.

Mr. Sanchez is my instructor at Montana State University Northern (Great Falls Campus) and I used much of this book in Programming II in C++ class. It is slated to be the text of our System Analysis and Design course and I'm delighted. This book starts with the basic concepts of Object Orientation in C++, builds an easy to follow foundation, and then expands on the more advanced topics of Models and Patterns in C++, a topic that has only been poorly written about prior to the introduction of this book. This book is well worth your time and money if you want to become an advanced C++ programmer.

With the proliferation of computers in recent years, the amount of available Bible software has expanded as well. One of the better Bible software packages is the PC Study Bible by Biblesoft. Many "packaged" Bible software programs contain tools which you either don't need or want or don't know how to use. Not so with this program. The CD-rom contains tools which can be used by the layman and scholar alike. The collection represents some of the finest conservative evangelical scholarship available today.

If you purchase just one software program for Bible study then make it the PC Study Bible. You'll be glad you did!!

I don't know whether to recommend this or not. It's functional and somewhat intuitive. It handles system resources sloppily - get more than 4-5 windows open you'll be getting messages about low system resources (fwiw, my machine is has 256M RAM and 30G free space). Problem is alleviated but not fixed in version 3.1. Note to Biblesoft: This is an inexcusable handling of resources.

That said, as a program I've found it useful, especially for studying specific verses or chapters. It's much easier to search these dictionaries than hardcover ones; ditto for word studies and commentaries. You pull up a verse, and dictionary, commentary, and other cross-referencing is a click away. The supplied Matthew Henry commentary is superb, a "must have" no matter what program you get. The Barnes' Notes are mostly excellent too. These two commentaries make a good team. Now if they'd just get all the Banner of Truth commentaries in there, we'd be in commentary heaven.

The PC Study Bible (PCSB) is the most powerful Bible software available. Because of its "Smart References" PCSB goes beyond the ordinary "search" to provide relevant, indexed cross references to every passage of Scripture, including all commentaries, maps, language tools, etc. In addition, PCSB now includes the Bible Authoring System, which allows you to create your own Bible study materials that are immediately included in the powerful indexing system unique to PC Study Bible.

By using the Bible Authoring System, I can make a few simple modifications and my sermon transcripts become a searchable, indexed part of by Bible software. My illustrations, graphics, notes, devotions--everything!

The PC Study Bible is also incredibly easy to use. It is intuitive and does not demand any training to operate. However, the HELP feature includes detailed articles and instructions for using the most powerful applications in ministry-relevant ways.

PCSB is so useful, powerful and complete, that I now use it exclusively as my sole means of sermon preparation. Where was it when I was in Bible college?

In addition to being a very good book at an excellent price (good bye Barnes & Noble), Amazon's service is EXCELLENT.

Once you get your feet wet with PSE2 tools and commands [with simpler books such as "50 Digital Photo Techniques", "99 Easy Tips", "PSE2 for Dummies", etc] it's time to take stock where to go next. If those suffice, stop right here. But, if you want to go beyond and really understand the richmess of PSE2 and the great things you can do with your digital images, then this is the bridge between novice and intermediate-to-advanced user. The massive 750-page text certainly isn't for first-timers. But once you get a feel for tools such as Magnetic Lasso, Magic Wand or Clone Stamp, you want to know what all those little 'options" such as threshold and feathering can do to improve (or ruin) your images. Here's the place to go! Just the tips alone are worth the modest price [never knew that TAB toggles between a screen crowded with tools, palettes & bars, and an uncluttered full-sized screen; or that the SHIFT-key will let you move the image while painting or correcting an image]. Not only is every tool and command explained, and color calibration of screen and printer detailed, but the authors then go on with a hands-on workshop on filters, effects and painting, and final sections on the fine points of optimized printing and web publishing. The authors write clearly, precisely, yet with admirable brevity; they maintain a comfortable balance of lightness without resorting to the heavy-handed forced jocularity of certain yellow and black books.

The greatest (albeit not fatal) flaws are: a) absence of color illustrations alongside the text -- rather than the two full color page inserts tucked in the center; b) a CD with full resolution color images for hands-on mastering of the techniques described in the various chapters is a virtual necessity, and would add little to nothing to the total production cost. For these reasons, plus the fact that the author's website remains "...currently unavailable" for downloading compressed images, I deducted one star from the 5-stars for the content. Also, the index - although extensive - lacks references to common PSE2 terms such as anchor point, white point, portrait retouching, etc; a reference book certainly should have a near-encyclopedic index, as no one ought to read the book from cover to cover. All told: great intermediate level book that's easy to read and provides all the detail you might ever desire.

Both Ken Milburn and Gene Hirsh have set out to provide the users of Photoshop Elements 2 with the most complete reference guide that can be found. The book is designed for beginners, Photoshop and Photoshop Elements 2 users, and those who are already familiar with image editing.

What they have produced is a guide that covers PSE 2 from A to Z, for both the PC and Mac user. They start off the book by covering the installation of PSE 2 onto both computer systems, setting up and calibrating monitors and explaining what PSE 2 does best. They cover all aspects as they continue their journey through Elements; from contact sheets, picture packages, plug-ins and scratch disks, palettes, the File Browser, Tools and the Toolbox, Recipes, Selections and Blending. They deal with Collecting, Cataloging and Managing Images, Correcting Exposures, Contrast and Color Balance, Retouching and Repairing and Filter Effects.

As they take you through Elements, they don't just continue paragraph after paragraph. They do an excellent job of providing the reader with NOTE boxes, bringing up points to be remembered and useful suggestions. TIPS buttons also provide the reader with items to be used during the use of Elements. The graphics that are included cover both Windows and Mac views, along with the commands that are used in both systems. The one thing that needs to be understood is that they have covered every command, tool, recipe, filter and item that is part of Elements 2.

They cover transferring images from your camera, scanning and card/disk readers. They explain File types, such as PSD, TIFF, JPEG and GIF, the four most universal types that are used. They emphasize saving the original file, saving as, proper file formats, strategies and Interpolation. They provide the reader with images and work their way through to the completed task. They show examples of each filter, special effects, text and shapes. I went through the entire book and tried to find something that they may have missed or overlooked within PSE 2... they didn't miss a thing. Need to prepare your images for publication on the Web, have no fear; it's in the book. Dithering, lighting effects, texture fill, tracing, sketching and brushes; it's all there.

The book is a complete reference guide for PSE 2 users. If you want to know about every aspect, tool, filter or use for PSE 2, it's in the book. If you're looking to know everything that there is to know about PSE 2, then run out and get yourself this book. My only complaint about the book was the fact that the color section was very small but the images included in it were so compelling, I wanted more.

All in all, The Complete Reference is an outstanding book for users of PSE 2. Highly recommended.

Russ Walkowich

This book explains the concepts of UML for someone who is looking to understand UML or needs a refresher.

When I wanted to learn C language, the second book I picked up was this same series on C [the first one being K & R, which I read later to comprehend].

This book on UML follows the same tradition of "Teach a concept then give plenty of exercises to practice what you learnt". It includes two case studies also. It also includes a chapter on Real time UML, another on OCL and another chapter on Design patterns. A very good buy for the money (16+ dollars).

Pros: Excellent book for beginners Lots of exercises to practice what you learnt. This can be a first book to read before moving into heavy weights like UML series [from awl] or Booch series [from sigs]. Coverage of Object Constraint Language

Cons: May be taking a case tool like Rational Rose or TogetherJ for implementation, as a side-by-side treatment would have made this book more comprehensive.

Overall I am very much satisfied with this book at a elementary level.

Considering the pricetag of textbooks on this subject, this Schaum's outline is an excellent value. This is one of those Schaum's that has enough good narrative to stand alone as a textbook on a subject. The book takes the practical stance of involving two case studies throughout that serve as subject matter for the numerous examples. One is CarMatch, which is a franchising company promotes car sharing. The other is VolBank, which is a non-profit organization matching volunteers with people and groups needing help. This book covers version 2.0 of UML. The book provides a "How To" section in each chapter in whch examples are developed from one of the two case studies. The two case studies provide examples that cover business modeling, information system development, and real-time system development.

The first two chapters of the book introduce the case studies and provide background to UML. The next twelve chapters explain the notation of UML diagrams and how to produce them. For each type of diagram there are sections on the notation, on how to produce the diagrams, on how each diagram is related to other diagrams, on how each diagram can be used in business modeling, and on how each diagram fits into the Unified Software
Development Process. Each chapter has a set of review questions with answers at the back of the book, solved problems, and supplementary problems. Chapter 15 covers the ways in which UML can be extended. The final two chapters provide information on related topics: Software tools for UML and design patterns. The book concludes with a summary of UML notation, answer pointers for the review questions, the UML Metamodel architecture, a glossary, and a bibliography.

The only thing missing from this book is more integration with tools such as Rational Rose, and more examples of coding from the UML. However, considering the price and the ground covered, I still consider this a five star book on the subject of UML.

When I bought this product, I was not sure it will work in my Win XP, for it said 'run under 'Win 3.1, 95, 98, 00'. Further I didn't know whether it will be integrated to my existing Libronix.

It works perfectly well in my Windows XP system and Libronix. In the reviews in christianbook.com, there is some complaint that it does not work in XP, but it's not the case for me. The official response from nelson seems to be 'no support for XP', but anyway it works in my case, and it has such a nice collection including classics like Confession, Imitation of Jesus and so on. I had only one version of bible in my Libronix 2.1 version (KJV), and through this collection now I have NRSV, NLT. Lots of good study references. (In my personal opinion, it's same or better than E-bible standard in content).

Although it is desinged for Logos Library System, old system of Libronix, it works perfectly well in my Libronix. I linked IVP New Bible Commentary (IVP collectoin) and this NLT version (Nelson collection), and it worked. Well spent money.

Only weak point : No 'offcial support' for XP from Nelson. No upgrade, maybe (Classics don't need upgrade, huh).

once you get pass the installation process and update it to Libronix Library, you have a good bible software program with a decent library. Nelson did come out with a newer version but the included books are a bit different, the older version has a better line up.

This CD-ROM is one of the best I have used. I recommend this to anyone who is serious about bible study. The price for all that you get is wonderful. The program downloads easily and if you have any problems, The Nelson website and Microsoft website are very helpful. I am very happy with my purchase.

Writing Efficient Programs, by Jon Louis Bentley, illustrates to the reader how the primary task of a software designer is the development of programs that are not only useful, but easy and inexpensive to maintain. Moreover, the book explores how software must have specific application as well as versatility to me modified for unforeseen uses. Lastly, efficient programs must be efficient to write as the cost of writing will determine their competitiveness in the software market.

Jon Bentley is recongized as one of the great authorities on Computer Programming and also as one of the best writers in the field. In this book he gives practical advice on improving the efficiency (optimizing) and the limits there of. While showing how to trade off speed for space or vice-versa, he points out the limits that can be expected to gain. His list of techniques is a collection of practical approaches rather than theoretical possibilities.

At 158 pages (not counting index) this book is eminently readable, accessable and useful. Clearly written and well organized this is a book to keep on your shelf for when a program needs improving. It is also a book to read before a program as a reminder not to make things complicated with optimization that aren't needed.

Bentley has the right idea when he states that you first write a correct, understandable and maintainable program, and then if it is not fast enough, modify it to improve the efficiency. He is also correct in pointing out that with this approach, modifications to improve efficiency, while not altering the correctness of the program, tend to reduce the clarity and maintainability of the code. However, he does miss one important point, which in his defense, is to a large extent due to the date of original publication.
With the availability of modern tools and advances in software design, it is now possible to create programs where the efficiency of the code can be part of the design. Changes in the design made to improve the efficiency can increase the maintainability and reduces the need for final alterations that lower the clarity and portability.
These points aside, the techniques that are demonstrated to improve the efficiency of code are a lesson in what is really happening as we code. Bentley starts with a simple example of making a change to a correct program that he expects to dramatically increase the speed only to see it improve by a few percent. That is exactly what happened to me when I was a commercial coder and faced with my first problem with code that was too slow and had to be improved. The problem of course was that the change does increase the speed, but that segment of code is not called often enough for the change to be dramatic.
Increasing the efficiency of code is a job to be done with a sharpshooter's rifle rather than an indiscriminate shotgun. The only really effective changes to code are those that increase the speed of the code that is actually used. Since this is often dependent on the circumstances, which includes the current data sets, this is often as much an art as it is a science. While code profilers can be an enormous help, sometimes you simply must know the circumstances where the code will be used. Bentley also gives some sound advice in that area.
Bentley's first example of code improvement, where he uses simple techniques to get an order of magnitude improvement in speed is the best example of code improvement that I have seen. The fact that it is written in the largely obsolete Pascal language does not render the example obsolete in any way. He takes an example of code to do a shortest-path search and demonstrates some of the common "mistakes" done in code that can reduce efficiency. In this case, many of the changes do not alter the clarity of the code and are an example of the point made in the first two paragraphs of this review.
The general consensus was that the best IT book of 1999 was "Refactoring: Improving the Design of Existing Code" by Fowler et. al. While reading "Refactoring . . . ", I continually thought back to this book by Bentley, as many of the same ideas for code improvement appear in both books. Even though hardware continues to be dramatically improved, there are still many situations where code must be improved and this book will teach you many facets of this essential skill.

Newlen has created an amazing tool and not just for librarians. His approach is practical and demonstrates how to combine experience with the "dream job". This what resume books should be about today and this one over-delivers. After a clear review of real resumes, Newlen assessed what uniquely connects your skills, interests and strengths to the job you want! Essential hints with added bonuses of computer usage, cover letters and an extensive appendix of action verbs, makes this book a much needed business tool for everyone looking to have a resume worth sharing in today's marketplace

Newlen's book is the kind of discovery that will make a job-seeker shout "Eureka!" It was written a few years ago but remains relevant today. I can't begin to describe how eye-opening it was for me. Ever wondered what others write on their resumes, what employers and interviewers are looking for? Newlen features this in the book, with actual examples of resumes that stand out and succeed. You begin to see the process from the standpoint of the employers and understand what they have in mind when selecting among a pool of candidates, the kind of thing that will give you that much of an edge.

Newlen also dives into the details of good writing, noting the basic qualities of composition that not only conform to standards but register with a reader at a psychological level, helping her or him to remember it better. There's information on how best to leverage your training and work experience to date, specialties, formatting-- it's all in here. This would be useful to someone even outside of the librarian field! You'll find this very helpful.

This practical, easy-to-read resume guide is a great tool for anyone looking for a job in the library field, or for those updating a resume for promotions, reviews or other purposes. The examples of various types of resumes are extremely helpful. This book makes a great gift for a library school grad!

I lost my Cd for this product and have been serching for it for a year. It's an amazing collection of world facts in a well thought out and smooth interphase. I'd like to get the rights to remarket it. I suspect this is one of those cases where huge investments were made on a product, but in the flood of other junk got washed out with the trash. The big thing about the pruduct is a most detailed map that one can zoom into to see topographic detail to withing a few thousand feet, it feels a lot like having a 10 foot globe. The attlas could be deeper but it's still exellent. If I recall correctly, it also has an enunciation guide, with a cute screen-saver faunction. If you have a copy I want to buy. (909)988-2816.
Peace

With maps of the world by Hammond, this full-color, three-dimensional globe is helpful for locating places of the world and for hearing their correct pronunciations. The user can scroll through an alphabetical list of names of places, mountains, lakes, and other natural features, or type in a name or portion of a name. In response, the software delivers an arrow indicating the place's location on the globe together with the name pronounced by a native speaker. In addition, 3D Talking Globe displays the latitude and longitude of the place, a zoom function invoked by a magnifying glass icon , a distance measuring device, and atlas entries on the landform, economy, and people of the region. Fonts and refresh rates make for easy screen viewing.

Let me first start off by saying that this book is *NOT* meant for beginning Access/VB/VBA/SQL users. It is assumed that this book is geared towards intermediate Access/VB/VBA/SQL users.

This book does one thing well in that it knows that DAO is not the future and that ADO is (for the time beginning). It spends plenty of time on detailing ADO for both Access and SQL Server.

I like the fact that it deals with Access front-ends to SQL Server backends. It even takes a chapter from Kalen Delaney's masterful Inside SQL Server 7 book on SQL Server architecture.

All in all, if you consider yourself at least on an intermediate programmer with the aforementioned technologies, this book will not gather dust on your bookshelf.

All in all, a job well done.

Users of this book need to have a thorough understanding of Access, SQL servers, and be familiar with writing VB and SQL code for it to be truly helpful. To their credit the authors have included VB procedures for use in tackling specific situations, and it's indexed well enough so you can find answers to particular questions.

I liked the inclusion of the chapter on using Access as a front end for an Oracle database, since that approach is not widely discussed.

My advice to readers of this book is to skip chapters 1 and 5. Chapter 1 was not well written and covers working with DAO. Chapter 5 was better written, but considering that ActiveX Data Objects (ADO) are becoming the industry standard, it seemed a bit odd that DAO received so much coverage up front. In any case, I'd treat those two chapters as appendixes, and start with chapter 2, which actually does provide a good overview of Access in the client/server environment.