Newspapers Books

Hands down this is the best reference of its kind. Though somewhat dated, the material is as pertinent today as it was 20 years ago. There is no better introduction to the vi, ex, and sed editors and troff and nroff text processing tools. Those just scratch the surface of the power provided in the UNIX text toolset. At the end, the authors do a fantastic job of detailing how the tools can be all brought together using the make utility to ease any text processing job. Despite the updates that have given us the WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) approach, these early text processing tools are still unmatched in their processing capabilities and extendability. This book will give you the insight and introduction you need to start making use of them today.

Now in a fully updated fourth edition, UPI Stylebook And Guide To Newswriting is the collaborative effort of Bruce Cook, Harold Martin, and the Editors of UPI. A no-nonsense, professional style manual, UPI Stylebook And Guide To Newswriting features both basic and advanced techniques for the craft of writing for print, broadcast, or television news, with specific information concerning everything from covering the white house or other governmental agencies to science writing, business journalism, foreign correspondence, the law of libel, codes of ethics, and much more. Highly accessible to readers of all backgrounds, the solid information and even warnings (for example, journalists can and have been taken to court for gathering news information in private homes without the owner's consent - even if they were permitted entry by the police). An absolute "must-have" resource manual for anyone considering or pursuing a career in journalistic writing.

Thanks to Rogak's insights and advice on starting a newsletter -- I am now the editor of a successful, profitable, and fulfilling newsletter. I wouldn't have known where to start .. much less how to continue and thrive in owning a newsletter if not for this book. Thank you Lisa!

A co-worker turned me on to Sudoku a couple of months ago. He does the USA
Today Sudoku daily. I picked up this collection recently. The book starts
(as do most such collections) with the almost-standard Sudoku tutorial.

The puzzles are rated from one to five stars (easy to hard) for difficulty
(65 one-star, 45 two-star, 50 three-star, 20 four-star, and 20 five-star).
The star ratings seem reasonable. In every collection I've seen, I have
found that there will always be a few easy ones that are hard because you
missed something staring you in the face, and a couple of hard ones that
are easy because you got lucky at just the right point. The ratings here
seem pretty accurate.

The grids are decent-sized; not jumbo, but not tiny, with one puzzle per
page. In addition to the usual heavier lines between 3x3 cubes, these
puzzles have alternating cubes shaded gray, which makes it very clear
where the cube boundaries are. The gray is a little too dark for my taste
(especially if you don't have a dark pen or pencil). The numbers are bold
and large.

Unlike some collections, these are all traditional Sudoku -- no variants
such as Monster Sudoku, Sudoku X, Killer Sudoku, etc. Also, unlike a lot
of recent collections, the givens are actually placed symmetrically (in
fact, this book was the first one that I've purchased that actually does
use symmetric givens throughout).

All in all, a good collection of Sudoku. By the way, if you're interested
in an overview of Sudoku, including history and mathematical background,
I recommend the Wikipedia article on Sudoku.

Word Roundup portion gives clues and then you search for them. There are 150 of the word roundups and 50 of the traditional word search puzzles. Good size grids for a smaller size book. The catagories are well selected. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy word search with a twist.

Beautiful paperback value guide has over 900 full color, large, sharp photos and 224 pages. Updated guide with 1999 estimated values. Main categories include alcohol, automotive, coffee, soda, sporting goods, tea and cocoa, tobacco and misc. Complete index is provided. Pictures are life-like and fun to browse. Useful addition to your advertising collectibles library.

I have been following Lois Smith Brady's work since she inaugurated the Vows column in The Sunday New York Times years ago. I rarely see any creativity with regard to wedding announcements. This is much more than a simple announcement--true 'how we met' stories, told by the bride and groom, as well as reflective thoughts by random wedding guests. It's filled with so much character. You not only get a glimpse of the couple and their personality's but also feel like you atteneded the event. The black and white photography is unique, all un-posed, featuring the guests grandmother or aunt or someone, as well as a surprise shot of the couple. It's not some 'high society' recap on weddings; it's weddings of all kinds, different cultures, traditions and backgrounds. Absolutely the most interesting couples!! When the time comes, I would love it if me and my sweetie could be featured!

John Blanchette is the best sports columnist you never heard of. Hidden away in Spokane, one of the most remote cities in America, he's covered...well, maybe not everything. But any town that gave us John Stockton, Mark Rypien, Ryne Sandberg and Bing Crosby can't be all bad.
Blanchette, the wry Big Sky guy (he's from Montana), hasn't had a lot of national exposure. Recent success by Gonzaga hoops and Washington State football, however, has gotten him some attention on the West Coast. Those of us who aren't afraid to venture far from our homes, even on line, have been rewarded with one of the most unique sports voices anywhere.
For this writer, "quirky-witty-thoughtful" is the best type of writing, sports or otherwise, there is. Blanchette just might have the patent on it. If you're brave enough to dig this book up, you'll find some of the most unusual- and best-written- pieces anywhere. From the Seattle Mariners' emergence as a baseball power to the WSU Cougs' first visit to Pasadena in 67 years, and from Spokane's proud hometown heroes to an offbeat look at sporting life in a little-seen part of the country, he brings the scene to life in a way that will surprise outsiders. Believe me, this guy can outwrite most of the big-city slickers from coast to coast. And, best of all, he's funny as heck.
In the Northwest, when you blow it/drop it/choke/just miss whatever, you pay tribute to WSU's not-so-glorious sports history...you Coug it! Blanchette may have introduced that term, but he never Cougs it.
John Blanchette. Spokane's only big-league franchise since 1981. You're gonna love this guy. I live in sports-obsessed Boston, and I'll trade the entire Globe sports staff for him even-up!

I have worked in television news, and my experiences have left me wondering about the parts of our culture that we embraced and that which we ignored. So, as I began to do some graduate study research, I thought this book would be interesting. Comparing the U. S. system to a different culture such as India's help us gain insight into what we do and why, so I enjoyed the book, as well as the author's style and insight.

You would like this book if you like Erma Bombeck, if you come from a big family, (or wish you did), if you are looking for short easy bites of reading material. This book tells everyday experiences with depth and humor. I would recommend this book especially if you need to encourage someone. I would say the message of this book is: Faith perseveres in spite of what happens in life. I loved reading this book! I hope she continues to write books. I am first in line for her next one.