Technology Books

This is one of Dr. Seuss's best for very young children. It is fun to read, and will surely make you giggle, especially when you see the pink underpants! The pictures are cute and we always pause to talk about them. There are few words and soon your toddler will have them memorized, and be reading along with you. The kids and I highly recommend this book.

We also recommend "Jamberry" by Bruce Degen and "There's a Wocket in my Pocket" by Dr. Seuss.s

LOVE THIS BOOK. IT is silly but awesome. So memorable. My son loves this book!

These books are smaller than I expected but I cant complain for the price. Good for young children. Simple

The thing I like best about this book is that the words and the pictures go together nicely. When the words say "Our eyes see bees," there is a picture of a lot of bees. So, from an educational perspective, you can have your child point to a picture while he or she hears the verbal description of the picture. It's helped my baby lean several words and phrases.

This simple concept is something that a suprising amount of childrens' books lack. It is good for two reasons. It helps them put words to pictures, and it helps them learn to read. The book is for children that are 4-8, but it's ability to help children match the verbal sounds of words to pictures makes it appropriate for infants as well.

The learning potential of the book is enhanced by the rythm of the words. The book's sentences ryme and procede in a rythm that makes the book more enjoyable for your child. My baby is noticeably delighted whenever he sees that we are about to read this book.

It is highly recommended.

This is the perfect book for the youngest of Seuss fans. It's a very simply book that starts out with a boy pointing to his eyes and saying what they are...and then to his bunny friend's eyes. The book goes on to explain what eyes do and what they help us see. I thought the pink underpants was a little strange, but they're just kids afterall!

I'm a little surprised that I didn't notice anyone else had harped on its beautiful cover. The cover is absolutely beautiful with its its pretty sea-mint green background and wonderful illustrations. I always thought the boy's eyes looked more like they belonged to the rabbit...they're huge!

To sum it up, it's a cute story about eyes!

We bought this book to accompany the Butterfly Pavilion from amazon.com. This book was a little above her level of understanding, she is only 2 after all. She did get the gist of it. Great illustrations and concise.

Excellent book- my 3 & 5 yr. olds loved it, and it was easy enough for them to understand, yet descriptive enough that they were intrigued. We bought it in preparation for buying a butterfly habitat to watch the process ourselves. Great learning experience.

I am very much impressed with this series of books, as I have ordered 4 of them. Your service is great and I continue to enjoy doing business with you.

I bought this book with the butterfly graden and we gave it as a birthday present. By the time the caterpillars came in the mail she was so excited and she new everything that was going to happen. This was propbably the best birthday gift I could have given an animal loving child. I will give this gift over and over again.

I bought this book for my friend's three-year old, who has been facinated recently with butterflies. I can see that he'll be interested now - and he'll be able to grow into the more detailed information later.

I have revisited this book a number of times since I read it last year. It is a good resouce in understanding the benefits and dangers of going green.

Excellent breakdown of the drivers for companies to go green. Also excellent analyses of strategies used by the corporate world to achieve their goals with green programs. Many examples of what worked and what didn't work.
Great reading!

Good book with alot of insights... but I think you really have to be interested with these matters to be able to finish the book.

This is a great book! The information presented is very useful. I have also heard both authors speak at conferences. They have a great message and convey it clearly.

This book explores what every executive must know to manage the environmental challenges facing society and business. According to the authors, companies generate lasting value by building environmental thinking into their business strategies. This book attempts to show how to be good stewards of the Earth while simultaneously building the bottom line; how to keep a sharp focus on execution while using an environmental strategy; and ways to cope with environmental pressures and responsibilities.

According to the authors, the state of the art in environmental thinking can be summed up with the slogan, "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle." The best pollution-control option is to reduce the use of resources and eliminate waste. The next best option is to refurbish or reuse items. Then recycle what's left. As a last resort, throw something out.

I really enjoyed the many case studies included. Here are a few:

(a) In the weeks before Christmas 2001, the Dutch government was blocking Sony's entire European shipment of PlayStation game systems; more than 1.3 million boxes were sitting in a warehouse because a small, but legally unacceptable, amount of the toxic element cadmium was found in the cables of the game controls. Sony rushed in replacements to swap out the tainted wires. It also tried to track down the source of the problem by inspecting more than 6,000 factories and resulted in a new supplier management system. The total cost of this environmental problem was more than $130 million.

(b) In a speech to shareholders, Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott vowed to cut energy use by 30 percent; to use 100 percent renewable energy (from sources like wind farms and solar panels); and to double the fuel efficiency of its massive shipping fleet. The company will invest $500 million annually in these energy programs.

(c) In the mid-1990s, executives at Unilever saw a big threat to one of their product lines. Supply for the frozen fish sticks business was at risk because the oceans were running out of fish. In partnership with World Wildlife Fund, the company set up the Marine Stewardship Council, an independent body to promote sustainable fisheries around the world. The Council certifies fisheries where the total catch is limited so that fish populations do not diminish over time. To create specific incentives for fishermen to seek certification, Unilever committed to buying 100 percent of its fish from sustainable sources by 2005.

(d) Over the last 15 years, chemical giant DuPont has cut its contribution to global warming by 72 percent. Half of the cuts came from changing one process: the production of adipic acid. This modification eliminated emissions of nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas that causes far more warming than carbon dioxide.

(e) IKEA is proud of its "flat packaging." Efforts to squeeze millimeters out of every box have allowed the company to pack its trucks and trains tighter. That saves up to 15 percent on fuel per item.

(f) Toyota saw the Green Wave coming and responded with the energy-efficient "hybrid" Prius, a breakthrough product that enhanced profits.

According to the authors, the top 10 environmental issues facing humanity are:

1. Climate Change. This includes rising sea levels, changes in rainfall patterns, severe droughts and floods, harsh hurricanes and new pathways for disease.
2. Energy. Companies selling goods and services that promise to improve energy efficiency will claim market share.
3. Water. Companies around the world now face limits on access to water.
4. Biodiversity and Land Use. Biodiversity preserves our food chain and the ecosystem on which all life depends. It also holds prospects of new drugs, foods and other products. A key factor in the decline of biodiversity is habitat loss.
5. Chemicals, Toxics and Heavy Metals. Part of what makes air pollution more dangerous is the presence of toxic elements. Exposure to chemicals like dioxin, a byproduct of production processes such as papermaking, and heavy metals such as lead and mercury can create severe public health risks.
6. Air Pollution. Significant air-quality controls on factories, cars and other emissions sources have reduced air pollution over the past 30 years in the United States, Japan and Europe. But the air is still not clean.
7. Waste Management. The EPA estimates that the 1,200 Superfund sites across the country will require
about $200 billion to clean up over the next 30 years. Under the liability provisions of the Superfund law, anyone found responsible for the waste at a site can be held liable for the full cost of cleanup, even if the toxics were legally disposed.
8. Ozone Layer Depletion. With a thinned ozone layer, the world becomes a more dangerous place, with
reduced agricultural productivity, higher risk of skin cancer and other health problems.
9. Oceans and Fisheries. More than 75 percent of the world's fisheries are over-exploited and beyond sustainability.
10. Deforestation. Every company that uses wood, paper or cardboard packaging has a stake in, and responsibility for, the state of our forests. When McDonald's realized 15 years ago that litter was an issue, it began working on reducing packaging.

Companies can and should be a force for good, leading the charge on caring for the environment and protecting our shared natural assets. Financial and environmental success can be achieved together. With the right mindset and tools, companies can handle the hard trade-offs.

This is a great book that should be required reading to executives at all levels!

My friend & I traded water books. I am finishing The Holy Order of Water now and she is finishing Fresh Water: Women Writing on the Great Lakes by Alison Swan (Editor). The Holy Order of Water is a great, great book although it's a bit science heavy in parts for me. At one point I thought, "Hmmm, I haven't read so much Latin since high school!" Anyway Marks is a delightful person. I researched him a little on line. There are more books in him. I hope he does not keep it all inside to long. I look forward to hearing more from him. Everytime I hear water I think about him! He has so much respect for nature.

The book tries so hard to be relevant and interesting. Vortex energy, spiritual nature of water. I'm just not buying it. Don't get me wrong. I love water; I think it's important. And, sure it's mysterious. But it's not that mysterious. Some people may like the author's ideas, but I find them to be science-lite, a bit disappointing for a book on water.

I am an artist and read The Holy Order of Water about three years ago when I was painting a body of work about water. This interesting mix of personal anecdotes, mythology, and science, supports the realization that I've had after living on a lake for 14 years that water is alive. It gave me lots to ponder while working and I've since decided to focus all of my work on water. Thank you, William E. Marks, for your efforts to raise awareness and preserve water resources.

Hello H2O Lovers,

As a layperson on the path of being a true leader in the H2O movement, I am very glad to have been offered this book to open my eyes about the elixir of life.

This book is astounding in its clarity and authenticity. Its fun to read and brings home my actual deepest feelings about water.

It brings you a masterful tapestry from the authors life story, the science, the philosophy and even the spirituality of water.

Read it. I promise it will trasform your life and it will transform your relationship with water.

You will never relate to a cup of water in quite the same way again.

Truly,
Leslie Gabriel aka WaterMan
Host Of "And So It Flows"
WBCR 97.7 FM Great Barrington, MA

This book is as important to the Earth as Water itself. Many of us are increasingly concerned about what we are doing to the environment. Our concerns about the plight of water and its importance to the survival of life on this planet are addressed magnificently in this book that describes powers of water of which even I was unaware!

Water is a mystical, magical substance, and oh how we take it for granted; filling it with carmel coated sugar substances for profit; tossing our waste products into it as if it had no value of its own, wasting it on "the perfect lawn" which servies absolutely no purpose or function, or even washing our cars, which cry the death knoll of Earth daily.

Care enough about Water to read this book. Pass it on to your friends. Give it as a gift for Arbor Day, Earth Day, Valentine's day. It's the most important book you will read this year.

Just when I was ready to wipe the dust off of my Internet Marketing Books to "brush up" from just a year ago, out comes this book.

After reading this book, I realize now that my "other" books seem antiquated. I have no need for them now as "Win Spiders" has introduced me to the next generation of Web Buzz and Marketing.

Catherine Seda really has her finger on the pulse as this book opens your eyes to what is working now and what is not working.

If your not using these techniques this book teaches, your behind the eight ball. I would like to see a full blown "course" from the author as I will be the first in line to own it. Great Job !!

I liked this book. It covers Internet marketing in a pretty thorough manner. There's material about online public relations or reputation and credibility building. And there's coverage of online advertising. The book is split into two parts and ten chapters as follows:

I. Using public relations for longterm success (Chapters 1-5)
II. Making online advertising profitable for your business (Chapters 6-10)

1. Winning the SEO battle
2. Leveraging articles for the Web
3. Blogging for business
4. Networking in social media
5. Broadcasting your message
6. Connecting through email
7. Unleashing an affiliate force
8. Maximizing pay-per-click
9. Reaching out through contextual advertising
10. Targeting shopping communities

The book is well written and outlined pretty well. I'm not sure chapters 6 and 10 belonged in Part II, but who knows? And I'm not sure it is possible to UNLEASH an affiliate force (Chapter 7). But who knows? I would have liked the book better if chapters 1-6 and 10 had been included in the main body of the book. And the advertising and referral fee stuff were included in a short appendix section or saved for another book.

I think chapters 2, 3, and 5 were intimately related. And I would have kept them together instead of breaking them up by inserting Chapter 4 as the author did. And Chapter 5 (podcasting) could have been split into two chapters with one being about streaming audio and the other being about streaming video. 4 stars!

Catherine Seda's presentation of information is enjoyable and most of all understandable. Whether you have been in the website development space for 15 years or 15 months she delivers the information in a manner which enables you to grasp and then implement it. I found that she confirmed what I knew and then gave me some new tactics and strategies that I am employing now for the first time. I highly recommend this book to both web savvy individuals and those just beginning.

The book has very helpful, up to date tips for website optimization and traffic generation for the beginner and intermediate audience. I would recommend it.

I spend a lot of time doing development and figuring out new coding tips and tricks. I don't, however, spend a lot of time thinking about the copy for a site or how to market it. We often get so hung up on the how that we forget about the why. Catherine Seda's book gives us great insight into another perspective of web development.

Search Engine Optimization is something that all web developers need to take into consideration these days but it's more than just making sure you use proper semantic tags. There are other, non-technical, things you can to do to improve your search results.

* Writing your copy to contain proper keywords and phrases
* Making sure your hyperlinks contain proper keywords
* Conducting an outreach campaign to get your site featured on other sites. The more sites that link to you with your keywords, the better your rankings will be
* Learn how to leverage blogs, podcasts, and social networking to increase your traffic.

There are other tactics as well. If you run a website selling office decorations, consider writing an article about how to decorate for a 3rd-party website. You'll establish yourself as an industry expert, and the links back to your site will increase your search engine rankings.

In short, there's more to building a website than just writing code. Increasing your awareness of other aspects of development makes you a more well-rounded member of your team and allows you to better serve your clients. Catherine Seda's book is a great way to start.

[..]

I read this book in three days. I have not read a book for enjoyment in years. Once I picked it up it was over. The stories make you TRY to relate to your own house. At the risk of sounding gay, It becomes a tear jerker.

I am a firefighter in a department much smaller than the FDNY. We do not run many calls and I was starting to get unmotivated and complacent. After reading this book I remembered the brotherhood of firefighters I am in and gained a new love for my job.

the most moving book I have ever read.It takes the good with the bad. No sugar coating, all honesty.

I should know: I'm a firemen's daughter. In fact, I'm a Rescue 2 firemen's daughter (we're a special breed) and have spent my entire life in the wacky world of Rescue firemen. Although it's really hard to capture the type of insanity and devotion these guys have for their jobs - Tom does a really good job. If someone you love is a fireman: read this book. It'll help you understand them better. Hey, even if you don't know anyone whose a firemen you should read this book. I just have 1 bone to pick with you Mr. Downey: Captain Ruvolo's daughters are not what I would call "pampered" (p.62). He loves them and they love him just as much.

Amazing stories in this book. You get the feel of the life of a member of the famed FDNY RESCUE 2. It is the kind of book that you read one chapter, and say..."Just one more chapter and I will put it down." But you cant put it down. After I finished the book, I said "I wish there could be more stories." Highly recomend this book to anyone interested in the life of those crazy enough to run in where the rest of the world runs out!

Very clear explanations of the core security technologies. The author doesn't shy away from the hard subjects, and makes them quite accessible. The IPSec chapter is the best explanation of the subject I have seen anywhere.

I used this book to pass the CCIE security written exam, and highly recommend it. It is also a very good reference for practicing consultants and network security architects.

Not only for exam preparation, this book is for every Cisco lover. Covers a lot of stuff, took me over 2 months to finish but I feel way more knowledgeable now.

CiscoPress's "Network Security Principles and Practices" by Malik is truly an awesome work. The book weighs in at over 750 pages, and not a page is wasted. The book is split up over multiple sections (Intro to Network Security, Building Security into the Network, Firewalls, VPNs, IDS, AAA and ISP Security). I have found this book of value as I pursue my CCIE Routing & Switchng lab and to better enhance my basic understanding of Cisco's vision towards network security. I also used this book to prepare for my CCSP and CISSP studies.

Practically on every page is either a diagram or detailed configuration explaining the subject at hand. In particular, the configuration examples are extremely helpful as the configs, themselves, are appended with detailed notes of their syntax. Chapter 13, IPSec, is probably the best one-chapter discussion on Cisco's implementation of IPSec and VPN I have found anywhere (and I have over 50 CiscoPress books). Another testament to it's superb level of expertise is the few and far between typos or errors that I have found.

One item to note - you will need to block off a few weeks (or months) to fully understand and appreciate the value of this book. I reference this book often, as I find information in this book I cannot find documented or presented the same way in other books.

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

Very, VERY good. The IPSec chapter alone is worth the book, and the AAA chapters are _great_. Saadat has been able to explain in a great technical level and very clearly subjects which you're going to find in your day to day work - if working with Cisco and security. But not only that: chapters about IPSec, RADIUS, TACACS, are of value even if you do not use Cisco gear.

Missing from the book: a better chapter on NAT, PPTP. Saadat should write the 2nd edition adding those two topics, updating the IDS section, IPSec (including NAT-T), maybe add a little something about SSL VPNs, PIX 7.0 ? The section on ISP security could also benefit from a refresher (CoPP, uRPF?)

4.5 starts because it shows it age - otherwise, 5 stars for sure.

This is one of the first books I read for anyone preparing for CCIE Security. I found this book to be very comprehensive in its approach. The author has combined all the network security technologies in one book and now this is tough. It starts with an Introduction and then builds on that. It covers the whole nine yards VPN's Firewalls, IDS, Access Control. The Troubleshooting part of the book is very helpul to working professionals as it starts with troubleshooting NAT and then covers everything from Firewalls (PIX and IOS), VPN's, IDS and AAA. A lot of issues can be resolved just using this part of the book. I recommend this book as it will surely help everyone looking for everthing about security. This book is a must read for professionals pursuing the CCSP and CCIE Security Certifications.
Niloufer Tamboly, CISSP

I agree with the critics who claim this book . . . "a delightful, rollicking history, a fun read and well supported by research". Greenfield's account is entertaining as well as informative, not a book to put you to sleep as some histories are. I read it as a library book and decided it is a 'must have' in my library. Although her style is professional, the read is easy - no big words to look up in order to understand the full meaning. Her account of world events is so insightful and complete, you come away with more than an appreciation of how color has changed the world An understanding of world history in general is gained, both political and economical. I especially loved the personal stories that added so much interest for me.

I live in Oaxaca, Mexico and even many people here are not aware of the impact of cochineal on the Spanish Empire and Europe. This book is fascinating! And well written.

This was one of two books a friend traveled across the country to share with me. I am so glad she did. I would never have picked up this book on my own. I have a terrible time finding non-fiction works that are interesting - unless they are recommended. I look at the table of books and decide something looks good. Then when I get it home, I have a hard time getting to my 100 page allowed stopping point.

Greenfield does a wonderful job of describing the importance of the color red throughout history and the different compounds used to create it. With a focus on the cochineal originating in Mexico, this book covers the fortunes of Spain and the industry itself. Weaving the domestication of cochineal with the efforts of other countries to destroy Spain's monopoly, the book moves quickly. there were very few sections of the book where I was willing to put it down. Yes, I could stop at the chapters, but I only once put it down while in the middle of a chapter.

I highly recommend this book - and if I didn't have to send it back to its owner, I would keep it in the library. I will be recommending it to my mother for her book club. With their focus on women authors and a mix of fiction and non-fiction, this book will give them much to discuss.

Some of the best stories are the histories of everyday objects that few ever consider. This book is an example of such a story. It traces the history of the color red; specifically, it examines the sources of red dye sought by humans over the past 700 years. Something as simple as a color can actually be quite difficult to obtain without the marvels of modern technology. This book starts of at the Venetian textile guilds of the late Middle Ages and shows the reader the state of the world's textile industry. Of all the colors, bright red is hardest to produce on clothing, and individuals and governments devote a lot of time and effort to procure new sources. Many are found, but the best one is carminic acid found in the insect cochineal, native to the Americas, and cultivated in Mexico specifically to obtain the color red. Starting with the Spanish conquest, red dye from Mexico is exported to the rest of the world, and four centuries of trade wars and political intrigue follow. The book lays all this out in chronological order, citing places, people, governments and institutions. But eventually, man's technology caught up with nature's bounty, and by 1900, synthetic red dyes destroy the cochineal cultivation industry. All the ensuing technical advances, scientific discoveries, and commercial contests are detailed clearly by the author. The book ends with a survey of the dye industry at the end of the 20th century, and a review of how red dye has influenced, and been influenced by fashion tastes throughout the centuries. This book touches many countries, and ties in history, economics, fashion, politics and science into a wonderful tale of man's obsession for a specific color.

This book is one of the very best I have seen in a long time. The author has taken great care to present historically correct and detailed information about the long history of cochineal farming, and sale of this commodity (dried beetles that can be processed to create a brilliant hue of red).
She reveals all of the intrigue of Spain's royalty, as they sought to keep this much prized product of New Spain exclusively for the Spanish empire. Even Perkin's discovery of the color "mauve" is discussed. This book will find broad interest among scholars and the general public. It is certainly a book worth owning, if you love the history of textiles.

Patricia Cummings

Mollison must be credited with promotion of the concept of Permaculture and this book is a world-wide view with enough examples to stimulate the thinking of a designer in any climate. It would be the bible for anyone working as an ecological designer on a worldwide scale. This tome includes not only a wealth of information but Mollison's personal views are given at every opportunity as well. With the breadth of his knowledge it can sometimes be helpful. That said, it is not an easy read. Mollison assumes familiarity with terminology from many disciplines, but with a scientific background it makes it all the more credible.

However, since its publication, there are other books for specific climate types that provide more detail. For those living in temperate climates, particularly the NE US, Dave Jacke/Eric Toensmeier's Edible Forest Gardens is more focused. If you live and plan to practice permaculture in only such climates, it should be sufficient. For the tropics, see [...] for a manual.

Bill Mollison represents the most successful attempt to mainstream practical home-scale sustainable design principles. I found myself needing to do an enormous amount of supplementary research to actually understand what bill was talking about, but to explain them in depth here would have taken away from the thrust of the book - which is mainly to show you example after example (many on every page) at sustainable principles of design put into practice.

The book remains the best book on sustainability written to date. There are some aspects of his system that are lacking that I will briefly draw attention to. Understand that I deeply appreciate his genius, but I want to just mention that these other things need to be integrated into his system to be fully fully sustainable.

1) He doesn't pay enough attention to seed saving and plant breeding. A loss of seed diversity and a re-invigoration of seed savers is essential to truly sustainable self-sufficient design.

See:
Seed to Seed - by Suzanne Ashworth and Kent Whealy
Breed your own Vegetable Varieties - by Carol Deppe

2) He very rarely mentions the role mushrooms and fungi can play in sustainability.

See:
Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World by Paul Stamets

3) He doesn't stress the science behind it enough, which is fine, but leaves you asking sometimes... how do we know this is really ecologically sound? How can I NOT imitate mr. mollison but still create an ecologically sound system? Basically, Mollison's proscriptions are incredibly scientifically informed but not always scientifically explicit.

See:
Plant Ecophysiological Ecology
New Dimensions in Agro-Ecology
Smallholders, Householders: farm families and the ecology of intensive sustainable agriculture - by Rober Netting

4) In relation to the first point, he also doesn't stress the role that evolution plays in sustainability. This is a very complicated problem, see book.

See:
Evolutionary Conservation Biology.

These are not really criticism so much as signs of slight conceptual anal retentiveness on my part... Also please don't forget mollison's OTHER books which are incredible as well, especially the permaculture book of ferment and human nutrition.

The information presented in this book is worth a semester of agriculture, chemistry, and geography classes.

I was initially set back when I went looking for a copy of this classic and discovered that there wasn't a recent printing available and all of the ones on the market were over $100 at the time. Still, I wanted to learn about Permaculture and everyone said that this was the place to start.

I am extremely happy with my decision to buck up and fork over my money. This text is the source from which all others on the topic are written and they pale in comparison.

If you are someone who is looking to homestead, or currently doing so, this book will help you plan your own gardens, manage your land as a whole, and be able to assist others in the community.

Lastly, the book is a nice hardcover, the pages are thick for a tome of this size, and the print is nice and dark. The copy in front of me has been well thumbed, tossed around, and shelved on many occassions and is still holding up nicely. Only the corners are dinged up a little.

I bought this book many years ago and still find myself going back and re-reading it over and over. If you're new to the Permaculture thought process you will be knocked off your horse with the common-sense, integrated approach to gardening and farming systems. I attribute this book and the thoughts provoked by it as the catalyst in seeking integrations and aggregation on many different fronts. This will always be one of the books I will treasure. I wore off the cover and have punched holes in all the pages and keep it in a three-ring binder.

...and probably one of the most fun to read. I read the first 8 chapters while working on a permaculture site on Isla Ometepe in Nicaragua, and ordered it immediately upon returning home.

Bill Mollison carefully and beautifully lays out the theory and practice of Permaculture (permanent agriculture). Permaculture is a holistic design system that sustainably envisions, creates, and organizes the spaces that we as humans inhabit on this planet. It takes everything that I feel is good for the world-Green architecture, local food, water conservation, renewable energy, organic agriculture, etc.-and wraps them into one cohesive scheme for planning the spaces and manner in which we live.

For more information, check out the Permaculture Research Institute's page at www.permaculture.org.au, especially the quick video "Greening the Desert", which is an excellent introduction.

I love books like this, which take a different approach to teaching. They begin not by going through, chapter-by-chapter, each individual building block of a network, but by showing you just how horribly wrong you may have been in your thinking all along. Then, they basically say, "Do we have your attention now? Good. Now we'll show you how to mitigate these risks." In my opinion, that's the ONLY way to teach a computer geek, since many are quite set in their ways.

In my opinion, this is THE best book I have ever read (and I have read a few) on security in a Windows network. It is very well written; unlike a standard security book that simply has configuration guides and checklists. These guys are not only security gurus, they are very good authors who know how to write. They not only offer explanations on various security best practices, but they also dispel many myths about Windows security "recommendations" by so-called experts. The book has a definite Microsoft bias (as it's title would suggest), but I found very little that I would disagree with. As a long time Windows Administrator (MCP NT4, MCSA 2000/2003 and CompTIA Security+ certified) and also being a security minded individual (though not a security specialist)I highly recommend this book.

Great people these two authors and very charismatic. If you happened to visit one of the IT forums or speeches you'll know what I mean.

Really a great book with a logical processing of different topics. One of the great things is that they create awareness by giving everyday examples of hacking attempts and how to take the right precautions. Things you'll recognize in your daily work. It's easy to read and while the book is a couple of years old, the practical site of it hasn't changed a lot. I hope they update this with Vista and Server 2008 in mind. So certainly worth buying!

Rob Faber [CISSP, CEH, MCSE]
The Netherlands

The simple truth is that if you're directly responsible for the health of a Windows network, you need to read this book. It contains a wide enough breadth to be applicable to all Windows administrators running a variety OS and application levels, while still managing the depth required to be truly informative and serve as a good everyday reference. It provides an incredible amount of detailed theory and hands-on practical advice that will give you the background information, tools and motivation to improve your defenses and keep hackers away from your data.

Those directly responsible for securing the network should read this book through and then read it again, perhaps discussing it with a peer. There's a lot of information to unpack, so a critical study of how to contextualize the recommendations to your environment would benefit from a team of individuals dedicated to understanding and carrying-out the guidelines that are given. In contrast, high-level managers and decision makers who have a more hands-off role would be well served by taking a half an hour to read the first two chapters, giving them a sobering first-hand account of the ease with which a knowledgeable attacker can subvert an entire domain. It will be 30 minutes well spent! A final group, the technically-savvy supervisors who don't actually implement (but monitor those who do), should quickly read the entire volume and hold their employees accountable for upholding at least the principles, if not the specific practices, mentioned throughout. All three groups should read it with the goal of acquiring a security mindset, filtering all their projects and goals through the "lens" created as a result of the truths learned from this pair of gurus. It is the unique combination of sufficient depth with comprehensive breadth that gives this book the edge over most recent Windows security titles from other authors. If you have to pick just one printed manual to take with you into battle, this should be your weapon of choice. I heartily recommend it as a great read for now, and as an investment for your go-to shelf later on.

Jesper and Steve begin the journey with the same eye-opening SQL injection attack you may have seen in one of the talks they present around the globe in their roles as security experts for Microsoft (Jesper has since changed employers). They exploit a poorly-written web application by feeding SQL code directly through the web form, eventually compromising the entire network, even though it's fully-patched and even somewhat hardened. They describe the intricacies of the attack from beginning to end, laying the groundwork for the defense techniques described in the remaining chapters. After taking over their victim network, they round out the section on fundamentals with a chapter on patch management. This was the low point of the book and, in my opinion, it glosses over the realities of just how time-consuming and complex change management and regression testing can be in a heterogeneous environment. Don't get discouraged by this chapter; slog through it and enjoy the informative--yet surprisingly fun--chapters that follow.

Having established the basics, more groundwork is laid with above average, but not spectacular, sections on administrative policies and physical security. These are the most "CISSP-ish" pages of the whole book and should look very familiar to members of the (ISC)^2. While the advice in these early chapters will stand the test of time, there's not much in here that won't already be a part of your daily arsenal. If you haven't figured out such basics as having a written security policy and that users will always choose convenience over security, then study this section hard. For the rest of us, you will find yourself saying "Amen" a lot as you review these four well-written and comprehensive middle chapters. The real epiphany comes at the end of Chapter 7 when they declare that the days of having a notion of a "perimeter" are over. If you haven't realized by now how incredibly porous your network is, this book should help bring you back to reality.

With the first half of the book used as an appetizer, the authors start serving the main course of practical, detailed advice about how to protect every aspect of your clients, servers and network infrastructure. Their incredible insight into password theory and how exactly a real password attack would work is so refreshing--these guys are experts, and it's demonstrated most profoundly in their chapter-long advice on the subject. Here and throughout the book they constantly bring you back to reality by refuting myths common in "security theater" and give you the best advice, with enough background to understand why it works. One particularly sobering moment was the sweeping dismissal of biometric authentication because of the myriad (often foolishly simple) flaws that can defeat even über-expensive fingerprint readers, retina scanners, etc. In the next two hundred or so pages the give you just enough instruction about IPSec, 802.1X, two-factor authentication and server/client hardening to help you understand the critical pieces of theory and find the detailed implementation instructions for yourself. You'll feel like you finally know the reasons to do all these things instead of just getting a litany of the individual steps to implement a particular setting or policy. Microsoft has published a lot of dry technical guides on every registry setting and tweak imaginable; these guys tell you the background information of why any of this stuff matters and they do it in a winsome, often satirical way that makes you want to keep reading.

The key concepts I took from reading this book were: a healthy skepticism about merely doing tweaks or checklists that have an air of sophistication but don't actually improve security; a sense of empowerment about how to untangle my network from a web of dependencies caused by shared service accounts (they even provide a handy utility to make their advice doable); and renewed sense of encouragement that least-privilege is actually obtainable. They end each chapter with an immediate call-to-action that addresses the most important steps you can take to do the most good quickly. If you can force yourself to do these challenging tasks for every area they address, you'll be well on the road to a more secure installation.

The problem with some computer security books is that they are nothing more than pages of checklists with myriad dos and don'ts. But after all the checklists have been dutifully completed, readers still don't understand the underlying concept of how to secure a computer. Within a short time, their computers and networks are insecure, and they are back where they began, as fodder for hackers.

The distinctive nature of Protect Your Windows Network : From Perimeter to Data is that it suggests ways to secure your Windows workstation and network, but it also takes a much broader approach to security and shows you how to address the issue of securing systems as a whole. This panoptic approach to securing systems is quite refreshing, and it makes the book a fascinating read.

The theme of the book is that there are three elements of a successful security program: people, processes, and technology. In 17 chapters covering the gamut of security from server hardening to password protection, the book details how to use these people, processes, and technology to ensure that Windows networks stay secure.

Early chapters deal with the basics of how attacks work and show the reader how they progress from low-level social engineering to the code manipulation that leads to the exploitation of software and vulnerabilities.

The book is filled with easy-to-understand practical and tactical solutions that can be implemented by everyone from nontechnical end users to system administrators, helping them to ensure that their Windows-based network is as secure as possible. Even at 550 densely packed pages, the book is quite readable.