Computer Science Books

Finally, a refreshingly honest approach to CMMI and process improvement. Michael has an uncanny ability to see into the heart of organizational psychology and points out the real reasons for attempting any improvement or organizational change. He strips away the hype surrounding CMMI and focuses on what's really important...obtaining results and improving the bottom line. It might be considered contrarian or even heretical by those making a living by selling CMMI, but I call it practical, gutsy and honest. A must read by any organization considering change regardless of the model chosen.

If you're expecting a book that shows how to implement the CMMI, or even one that gushes about its benefits you're in for a surprise. Yes, this book does show how to achieve process improvement by using the CMMI as a model, but it differs greatly from the recipe approaches of similar books that will have you marching over a cliff instead of improving your organization. The author does this by uncovering fallacies and the blind paths the CMMI (or any process improvement initiative) represents.

Here's what to expect from this book, and why you should read it cover-to-cover before embarking on a CMMI implementation or other process improvement initiative. How to spot and avoid common pitfalls such as:

- focusing on the process instead of the benefits, which of course, can be counterproductive when the process itself is applied blindly and without regard for real efficiency.

- avoiding the 'when all you have is a hammer everything looks like a nail' effect; i.e., attempting to apply the CMMI to everything

- mis-diagnosing problems with the process and applying the wrong solution; for example, scope creep in a project causes a reaction that often results in claims that the requirements management process is broken when the real problem is a lack of discipline or standards (not the same as a process)

Besides showing what does not work, and forcing you to look at your real goals before embarking on a CMMI implementation or process improvement initiative, the author leads you through a realistic appraisal of your goals and objectives, and shows you how to accomplish them. He is a strong proponent of using a systems view, and shows how to apply systems thinking principles to achieving your goals and objectives. This is the real value of this book, and why it's a sanity check for any organization that is about to embark on any improvement initiative.

Of course, if you are going to implement the CMMI, in whole or relevant parts to improve your capability, this book provides a clear roadmap for doing just that. Do not let my previous remarks lead you to believe that this book is anti-CMMI because it's not. It's merely anti-unrealism.

Regardless of your end goals, much of the material in this book applies to any activity, from strategic planning to process improvement to embracing a methodology. It's one of the best books I've read, and one that anyone contemplating CMMI should read before they read anything else about that model.

I bought this book because my Company is thinking about getting into CMMI. I realized that this book is a common sense approach to process improvement. I was skeptic about CMMI and the way that other companies implement it. This book makes you keep your feet on the ground. It is an imparcial approach to a difficult task. You may save yourself a lot of money just by following the guidelines recommended by the author. In my case, I used some of the recommendations in my own process, because common sense is applicable everywhere.

Any criticisms you have encountered about this book being biased towards prepress are true. But if you are involved with PDF in prepress, this book is very good.

This book will take you from beginner (but not novice) to advanced intermediate. It won't take you to expert; but then expert comes with experience. Given that each prepress environment has its own peculiarities, you'll have to work within your system to take it to its limits. This book can help some of the way.

My only complaint is related to my personal situation. On occasions, concerning some particularly fine points, the book suggests "ask your prepress partner". I am trying to become that prepress person, so I found this frustrating. Understandable, but frustrating.

I needed something more comprehensive and revealing than the usual offering of beginners texts. Yet, I WAS a beginner.

This book not only covers the general abilities of Acrobat, it discuses little known intricacies and technical issues that will make you a power user in record time.

Remarkably, the information is explained in simple, ordinary language.

I started working for a medium sized ad agency 2 years ago. Every document we produce has to be made in to PDF format for review by our clients. I could make a PDF, but really had no true understanding of the settings and what I was really doing. This book is truly excellent at giving a novice a complete understanding of the PDF format. For someone already knowlegeable about the PDF format it is also a very valuable reference. This is one of the most useful computer books I have bought in years and I buy alot of them. When our tech-guy has problems with Acrobat he comes to me and borrows this book.

The best thing about the book is that it breaks down PDF creation by program. For example, if you use Quark Xpress there is a chapter dedicated on how to use Acrobat with Quark. If you use Microsoft Word there is another chapter on using Acrobat with it. These chapters present you with real world scenarios and how to deal with them.

This is not some kind of quick start guide. It does get in to some detail and that helped me a great deal. It doesn't just gloss-over a subject or give you bare-bones steps on how to do something.

This is an easy to understand book that will help out anbody at any level with using Acrobat. I can't say enough good things about it. This is the first book I have purchased in the "Real World" series of books... it won't be my last!

I have to give it to this author, he has a very high assumption of math. If you are not a math wiz but can comprehend Calculus, this book is beyond outstanding. I will give the reader the necessary math methods for achieving you reliability analysis correctly. I spent alot of time going through these calcs and doing the proofs they are with out a dought right on the money. The boo is packed full of wonderful examples and methods. Kudos to the author.

This is THE seminal text on reliability analysis. The author writes with the same crystal clarity he uses to present material at technical conferences. The exercises are carefully graded to lead the diligent reader toward steadily deepening understanding of the material. All diagrams are clear, cogent, carefully annotated, and well keyed to accompanying text. The definition and explanations of cut sets are especially good, allowing the engineer or analyst to economically reduce a complex problem to a set of smaller, more mathematically tractable problems. Also, this work does an excellent job of ramping the reader's knowledge upward from the justifiably assumes prerequisite of basic statistics learned in one introductory class presumably having a calculus prerequisite.

This is definitely the best text on Reliability Engineering that I've seen. Leemis really brings the material to life in a way that I have not seen replicated in the other texts that I have perused. For a first introduction to Reliability, I cannot think of a better text. The reader should have a solid foundation in mathematical statistics, however, before starting on this volume. An adequate resource for building this foundation is Larson and Marx's "Introduction to Mathematical Statistics". Especially make sure you understand the basics of maximum-likelihood, as Leemis emphasizes it in his derivations -- the more advanced stuff you'll learn about in his book, however.

As an aside, I have actually taken Leemis' class, and I can honestly say that I learned more about probability from his lectures and the text than I ever previously thought possible. Again, I highly recommend the text.

This is a great book that was a reading in one of the advanced robotic courses I took at graduate school. It contains a lot of stuff that you want to get your hands dirty on especially for those who are mathematically inclined. A great book from an authoritative source in the field-worth your money.

Comprehensive coverage of motion planning techniques.

If you're interested in robot motion planning, this book is it! It provides incomparable detailed coverage of the major methods for motion planning and their theory, and could serve as a great geometrical perspective to planning in general. It's not a casual read, however and is meant for a specialist audience with a liking for theory. No professional roboticist should be without it.

This old book is a timeless gem. It goes into the details of the mathematics of fractals and also shows well-commented C code for producing fractal imagery along with good color illustrations.
Chapter 1, "Fractals in Nature", uses computer generated images to build a visual intuition for fractal as opposed to Euclidian shapes. There is also a mathematical characterization with Brownian motion as the prototype.
In chapter 2, "Random Fractal Algorithms", randomness is introduced into the algorithms discussed in chapter one as a way of simulating natural phenomena. Ideas are extended to higher dimensions. C programs that produce mountain ranges using these ideas are presented, along with the resulting imagery.
Chapter 3, "Fractal Patterns Arising in Chaotic Dynamical Systems", turns to the topic of dynamical systems and is less mathematical than the first two chapters. There is some mathematics and some illustrations in 2D and black and white that should be familiar to any student of dynamical systems.
Chapter 4, "Fantastic Deterministic Fractals", demonstrates how genuine mathematical research experiments open a door to a new reservoir of fantastic shapes and images. Programs are shown that extend the ideas of chapter 3 into truly beautiful fractals. Ideas here stay mainly in 2D.
The final chapter, "Fractal Modelling of Real World Images", draws from the material of the previous chapters to present C programs that produce clouds, vegetation, smoke, and mountain ranges, all by altering a few of the parameters in the sample code presented by the authors.
This book is much better than more recent titles that bury their algorithms in complex high level languages or "toy books" on the subject that provide dumbed-down applications and in which the simplest possible explanation of fractals is given with no insight. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in understanding fractal mathematics and in using that mathematics to produce stunning visual effects.

In my opinion, the best work ever written in the category not-for-beginner-but-available-to-non-specialist (such as Beauty of Fractals, by the same authors). An easy answer to question "How can I generate a fractal image with my PC?", from brownian motion to Julia sets. A must for reader interested in fractals (a bit out-of-fashion but still very interesting field).

You cant go past this book,

This book reads at any level, Great introduction to the field as well as an indespencible reference. Shows easy to implement code examples, and has lots of pictures showing what can be acheived.

This has been a main reference for a theisis I am currently working on. The question is, why is it out of print. If you can find it it's worth it's wheight in gold.

Discovery Channel, move over. Keep this book at your computer terminal. Now you can indulge in (a lot) of learning, or just quenching your curiosity!

Not just for grown-ups--there's a whole chapter (pp313-334) titled "KIDSTUFF", with pointers to such sites as "Helping Your Child Learn Science", "Children's Butterfly Site", "Science Made Simple" and "Planet Pals". With the decline of our schools, perhaps kids using the Net to carve out their own learning journey will be a big part of the solution.

Oh, there's a whole chapter on Mathematics! Good for those among us who were unlucky enough not to have good math teachers at school (which is most of us, I guess. Good maths teachers are a rarity.) The sites covered here might very well spark passion in our younger folk who have this subject spoon fed to them in it's most tasteless form. I mention this because I, myself, struggled with Maths at high school. That struggle ended when I took charge of my own Maths training. I chose my own books & materials and methods of learning. And saw my Maths marks skyrocket.

Need I say more? Get this book. For yourself. For your kids. For your country which is already in painful need for the scientifically astute.

Discovery Channel, move over. Keep this book at your computer terminal. Now you can indulge in an orgy of learning, or just quenching your curiosity!

Not just for grown-ups--there's a whole chapter (pp313-334) titled "KIDSTUFF", with pointers to such sites as "Helping Your Child Learn Science", "Children's Butterfly Site", "Science Made Simple" and "Planet Pals". With the decline of our schools, perhaps kids using the Net to carve out their own learning journey will be a big part of the solution.

Oh, there's a whole chapter on Mathematics! Good for those among us who were unlucky enough not to have good math teachers at school (which is most of us, I guess. Good maths teachers are a rarity.) The sites covered here might very well spark passion in our younger folk who have this subject spoon fed to them in it's most tasteless form. I mention this because I, myself, struggled with Maths at high school. That struggle ended when I took charge of my own Maths training. I chose my own books & materials and methods of learning. And saw my Maths marks skyrocket.

Need I say more? Get this book. For yourself. For your kids. For your country which is already in painful need for the scientifically astute.

Discovery Channel, move over. Keep this book at your computer terminal. Now you can indulge in an orgy of learning, or just quenching your curiosity!

Not just for grown-ups--there's a whole chapter (pp313-334) titled "KIDSTUFF", with pointers to such sites as "Helping Your Child Learn Science", "Children's Butterfly Site", "Science Made Simple" and "Planet Pals". With the decline of our schools, perhaps kids using the Net to carve out their own learning journey will be a big part of the solution.

Oh, there's a whole chapter on Mathematics! Good for those among us who were unlucky enough not to have good math teachers at school (which is most of us, I guess. Good maths teachers are a rarity.) The sites covered here might very well spark passion in our younger folk who have this subject spoon fed to them in it's most tasteless form. I mention this because I, myself, struggled with Maths at high school. That struggle ended when I took charge of my own Maths training. I chose my own books & materials and methods of learning. And saw my Maths marks skyrocket.

Need I say more? Get this book. For yourself. For your kids. For your country which is already in painful need for the scientifically astute.

I am taking a class on Threat Risk Assessment and one of our main references is Douglas Landoll's "The Security Risk Assessment Handbook". The great thing about this book is that it takes what would normally be extremely dry material and makes it interesting. The book has a conversational tone which is easy to read, and yet still manages to be very informative. A great tool for anyone who wants to learn about security assessments.

Very easy to read. Very good details on how the security industry works, no more secrets.

Finally Some one has heard our struggle!! We have a guide that is easily read and solves the blank sheet of paper problem. The book is based in a real world and shows almost step by step the process. The major selling point to me is it serves as a great reference book as well. When you need collection points or industry standards this is the book. Read it and you will not leave for a risk assessment with out it.

This book of delightful poetry is a fresh NEW look at the germination process and the birth of life by way of God's high tech sources His computers; seeds, which He designs into every living thing on the earth. An enjoyable study! Barbara Ahola, Crystal Falls, MI

the author really does a great job of telling the story of God's creations and His marvelous work. In simple words she explains how God starts with just a seed and creates a dolphin, a bird, a baby. it is funny too! cute illustrations.

This book of poems clearly and wonderfully illustrates the beauty of God's creation in the world in which we live. The drawings that accompany the stories help the youngest readers to see that things in nature did not happen by chance, but rather by the creative touch of the Almighty hand of God. The color scheme is a unique addition to an already brightly colored format that kids and parents will love. A must get children's book for anyone who reads to their children. This book is certain to be a bedtime favorite, or even a great baby shower gift. Grandmothers will want them as well. Mrs. Mitchell deserves high fives for this effort.

The theme that Kampis examines in Self-Modifying Systems is the self-generation of information by the nontrivial change (self-modification) of systems. Such a system is a network of many components, which have the property of being able to transform each other and organising themselves into larger components. It is this feature that makes such component systems closed to efficient cause. Component-systems, then, are not algorithmic, but this is not a reversible equation in that component-systems can, Kampis argues, give rise, in fact, to any particular algorithm. Kampis describes the difference as that between known complexity, that is to say complexity-to-be-realised, and unknown complexity, or complexity-to-be-explained. The first of these is relatively easy to realise, the second being impossible in that "a complex operation operating on components and bringing forth yet unknown and unidentified components cannot be described as an algorithm" (Kampis 1991:239).
Component-systems, therefore, have a high degree of creativity, but they also have characteristics that avoid many of the problems that other forms of nonlinear models.Kampis argues that nothing that such a process gives rise to can be predicted before hand, and no identity can be traced back to an origin. From this, Kampis states that the creation thesis emerges. This thesis can be stated in the following way:
The organisation of the world is continually self-creating; this process is at any given stage incomplete. Information about the future is not only inaccessible but does not exist in any form. Creation is a basic and general phenomenon that cannot be explained logically. (Kampis 1991: 258).
Self-creation occurs in the form of self-modification. A system that exhibits creativity, then, has to be continually redefined because, in the course of time, all variables and their interrelations will change in so far as each component is replaced by another. It is a system which will be defined (and constructed) by the very processes it undergoes. (Kampis 1991: 490).
The book unfolds, then, as a wonderfully sophisticated model to account for the very process of change and the important limitations of prediction the process of change implies. This book deserves to be one of the key texts of autopoiesis.

George Kampis follows in the ground breaking tradition of Robert Rosen. Examines the notions of reproduction and construction. His scope is wide and through. A must read for anybody interested in Rosen complexity.

As another reviewer notes, this book will be very helpful to those interested in the complexity research of theoretical biologist Robert Rosen. Whereas Rosen has a tight, highly rigorous focus on his goal in "Life Itself", Kampis paints on a somewhat broader canvas, referencing the work of many other researchers (including Rosen). However, Kampis is similarly detailed and methodical.

Kampis first describes the limits of dynamical models, and state-based approaches, including the limitations inherent in the 'canonical formalism' of mechanics.

He then goes on to introduce 'component-systems'. This is a general formal representation of a system as being composed of some number of components out of an essentially unlimited number of possible components. In component systems, the "rules" for the dynamics of the system are not independent of the components themselves. Self-modifying component systems generate new components and delete others, thereby changing the identity of the system itself. In mathematical terms, a self-modifying system is like a function f that belongs to its own domain and range ("f:f-->f"). The result is that such systems are non-algorithmic, nor are their dynamics describable in a state-based formalism (e.g., Newtonian, Hamiltonian, etc.). This has notable consequences for approaches that attempt to treat such systems as algorithmic, or via modelling their state-based dynamics. By comparison to component systems, cellular automata and similar algorithmic formal systems are entirely trivial.

Kampis devotes many chapters to what I have cursorily mentioned, and there is much, much more in this book that is worth reading. Although there is not alot of math, what is there is important to understand. It would be helpful for the interested reader to generally understand the basic notation of mechanics, first-order differential equations, basic logic, Godel's Incompleteness Theorems, Turing machines, basic set theory, system theory, a modicum of philosophy, and linguistics. Most of these aspects are fairly well-explained, so a diligent reader can pick them up as he goes along.

This is not a book of vague handwaving arguments. It will take some studious effort to read and grasp the concepts and profundity of what he presents. However, it will be well worth the effort, and afterward you will never be able to look at dynamical systems and models, complexity, and self-modifying systems, in the same way.

Although there are alot of similarities between Kampis' and Rosen's works, they are sufficiently distinct in approaches and conclusions that both are well worth reading.

One final note: the "typewriter" font used throughout may be a bit surprising to see in the 21st century, but I found it entirely legible and comfortable once I got used to it.

If you need simulation hints this is the book. I really recommend it.

This book deserves my 5 stars due to its tremendous effort to illustrate how complex digital communications algorithms are actually put into "code" for applied research. Any newcomer to mobile communications will benefit extensively from reading and using this book. For practicing researchers and engineers, it provides a refreshing and often insightful revision of basic concepts, as well as exposure of newer technology such as OFDM and software radio.

I recommend this book to all digital communications engineers.

Harada & Prasad provide a very good working-level
understanding of how to simulate communication systems
using MATLAB. This book will appeal to advanced
undergraduate and beginning graduate electrical
engineers. It emphasizes nuts&bolts simulation, and
assumes a good working knowledge of communication
system analysis. Professionals who use MATLAB to
analyze communication systems for a living will find
the coverage fairly basic - even shallow - but the
authors well meet their goal of giving beginners a
better leg up on the process. Including their MATLAB
source code on a CD with the book may make the purchase
worthwhile all by itself.