Supplies Books

Most hunters and shooters have a dismal understanding of optics. For evidence, go to a shooting range or hunting camp and pay attention -- you'll see such absurdities as guys with $2K rifles toting $30.00 K-Mart binoculars, guys with short-ranged 30-30s topped with gigantic 4-14x scopes, and guys with European optics that cost more than a well-used car who can't hunt or shoot well enough to remotely take advantage of their gear. This book is the antidote to such maladies.

John Barsness is one of the two best currently active hunting/gun writers. (The other is Craig Boddington.) In this book, the best of its kind that I'm aware of, Barsness has done something incredible -- made a treatise on optics (which could easily have become a dry morass of technical info and jargon) that's also an enjoyable read.

Barsness does an excellent job of informing the curious hunter about all aspects of hunting optics -- gun scopes, binoculars, spotting scopes, and even rangefinders. He tells you what attributes to look for and why. He also dispels a lot of the myths about hunting optics (eg., that bigger is always better, that optical brightness is the single most important attribute of a riflescope, that ultra-expensive, hard-to pronounce Euro-scopes are the greatest thing since smokeless powder, etc.) Barsness, to his credit, looks not only at the Rolls Royce-level optics that few real-life hunters can afford; he also looks at middle-class and even proletarian products, and points out that many of them are better than you'd expect (just like expensive optics can sometimes be lemons.)

This is a book that I've referred back to again and again, and have found extremely helpful when shopping for scopes, binoculars, and spotting scopes of my own. I highly recommend it to any hunter.

In spite of being a little dated this study of optic basics is extremely useful. After reading this book I understood more about optics and their performance than I could have hoped. Barsness has a logical style that begins in basics, describes how American optics differ from European, and how to compare to get best value for dollar (high price doesn't neccessarily mean best). He also writes an enlightening segment on how to use binocular,rifle scope, and spotting scope as a system becoming more aware of all that goes on just beyond our sight. This was an entertaining book to read and a pleasure to learn from.

Someone explains optics without trying to sound like a NASA rocket scientist. It's written in a clear, concise, down-to-earth style that manages to explain optics without causing an onset of narcolepsy.

I found Optics for the Hunter to be educational. I learned several bits of information that helped me feel like I was making an educated decision in purchasing both a binocular and rifle scope. It does not really help you choose between the various products within a mfg line (like between the various Leupold models) you'll have to figure that out for your self.

It does provide valuable info on mounting scopes as well. I am glad I bought it.

My friend turned me on to this book. It really does have everything you need to know before buying rifle scopes and binocular. Easy to understand objective opinions on all hunting optics. If your in the market for optics or you need to know where your currently owned optics fit in, then you'll want this book. Highly Recommended. AAA+++

Before I met Party Drinks by A.J. Rathbun, I would literally host my gatherings at the bar down the street, because I was incapable of mixing anything other than vodka and orange juice in plastic cups. A.J., friend to cocktailers everywhere, took me to school with his great book, and showed me how to easily make lavish libations on a cheapskate's budget and to make 'em look like a million bucks. The Summer Beer (beer, vodka, and lemonade) is a treat, even in wintertime. The recipes have little tales about the drinks so you can really "act like ya know" when serving them up. Don't weep for the bar down the street, though. Until A.J. can fit a pinball machine in his jam-packed guide, there's always time for a occasional tavern call. Bottoms up!

I love this book! It has so much more to offer than the book I bought at Crate and Barrel for 5x the price. It's quirky and fun and filled with unusual recipes. Great selection of drinks for summer days, cold nights, casual get togethers or swanky cocktail parties. Plus it's filled with tons of hilarious footnotes that are worth quoting while you mix. My favorite drinks (not just because the names are great): the Red Carpet, the Presidential, Silk Stockings, and the Slow Comfortable Screw. You have to try the mojito. This really is the prettiest cocktail book I've seen. Perfect gift item--just tie a bow around it and add a bottle of your friend's favorite alcohol.

Ne'er have the pleasures of contemporary pleasure-drinking been so lucidly and persuasively and clearly set forth with not only the time and liver tested recipies but also the literary, social, and personal contexts of a true, rare spirit such as Mr. Rathbun, whose fine poetry is as intoxicating as the pewter cupped juleps, the spiraling highballs, and the mystifications of the orange buck, known in the southern hemisphere as le mâle orange. I am buying a copy for every (over-21) friend this Christmas.

This book is worth reading even if you don't drink! If you do, all the better. Great recipes, very inspiring commentary. Rathbun quotes Gogol on vodka, W. C. Fields on whiskey ("Always carry a large flagon of whiskey in case of snakebite and furthermore always carry a small snake") and provides plenty of good party ideas for intemperate friends.

Said friends will also find this to be a welcome gift.

I think this will be a great gift for the holidays--I plan to get several to give to family and friends. The book is slim, but packed with lots of great drinks, plus gorgeous photos! One thing I really like about the book is that it gives lots of suggestions on variations of the drinks--in case you need to mix different amounts, or don't like or have a particular ingredient. Plus, there's some good general bartending advice at the beginning of the book.

So far we've tried two of the drinks. We had some friends over last weekend and my husband made the Champagne Punch, which has light and dark rum, lemons, and champagne. It was delicious! Even one of our friends, who isn't a huge champagne fan, really loved it. We also have tried The Rebecca, another champagne drink. We actually froze the raspberries in the vodka during the day, and had the drink in the evening--the frozen raspberries were delicious, and a perfect garnish for this very pretty drink.

Everything we use everyday comes from somewhere. Getting that product from point A to point B in a timely, cost-effective way is important to everyone in the transportation industry. But the attacks against America both domestically and abroad have shown that we are as vulnerable as ever, and one way to secure our business interests is to secure our transportation networks.
That is the subject of this excellent book, written by three veterans of the industry and featuring a foreward by Tom Ridge, the first Secretary of Homeland Security. Using their years of experience, the authors develop in the book the concept of Total Security Management, and use compelling case studies to illustrate their point that a secure business is a successful business. The book breaks down the global transportation process, shows where value is added along the way, and how to maximize that value while minimizing risk, not only from terrorism but from other less malicious but equally damaging impacts. The book further demonstrates the financial benefits of investing in security, and also how to protect physical corporate assets, whether they be fixed or goods in transit. A "Book of the Month" of the American Society for Industrial Security in December 2006, this book is a must for anyone working in or around global transportation industries.

America's transportation networks are vulnerable. The nation's "wake up," on September 11th is now amplified by government and media clarion calls to protect our ports. Securing Global Transportation Networks answers with an ingenious foundation using Demming's Total Quality Management as its blueprint. Anyone in the public, private, or academic sectors who is serious about transportation will mark themselves ahead of the curve with a first edition of SGTN on their bookshelf.

The authors make a very compelling case that organizations should adopt security as a core business concern.

The book empowers its readers by showing how organizations can avoid disruptive events through planning to protect people, facilities, supply chains, and business reputation. It also outlines how to plan for recovery from those inevitable catastrophes. The book includes many real world examples.

Another benefit of the book is that those in the technology sector can gain insights into how to be part of the security solution.

This book is both well written and comprehensive. The authors have described the multiple facets so clearly that you do not need an MBA to read it.

Total Security Management is a wake up call for global executives. Today's companies are no longer in control of their own fate unless they become proactive. Securing Global Transportation Networks provides an innovative approach to supply chain security and the relationship to value creation. I strongly recommend this book to anyone with responsibility for protecting any part of the supply chain or operating in the business of trade.

I am impressed with the authors' argument that the private sector can create value while adopting security measures throughout their transportation network. Usually, businesses view security as a cost, rather than an asset. This book, however, argues that implementing security measures can be a market differentiator and create a competitive advantage for a firm that faces an unexpected disruptive event. I would recommend this book to you if you enjoy reading about the impact of globalization on the US economy. Great read for MBA students!

This product is same as described in purchase. Delivery was very quickly and good conditions. I recommend this product and provider. Sincerely. Jose Pena

This book is for the weather novice who doesn't want to get a PhD in meteorology, but still wants to stay out of trouble. While most of the information about thunderstorms is available elsewhere, his section on icing was particularly valuable. I would recommend this to any pilot who seems lost about weather reports or charts. If you know your way around surface analysis charts and lifted index charts then this book might be too simple for you.

For all pilots! I purchased this book over ten years ago and I try to reread it each spring. This book condenses need to know information into useable "bites," and makes weather interesting and understandable. You will learn things about temperature dew point relationships and many other aspects of weather and weather flying that you may never hear any other place. If you are looking for a book that will better prepare you for the dynamics of weather flying, this is one of the very best.

This is a must read book for any pilot who does serious weather flying. Dennis takes the mumbo jumbo and puts it in terms that are very easy to understand. With thirty two years of flying under my belt, this is the only book that makes practical sense of very technical issues.

Good detail, personal tips & hints that I haven't seen in any other text. Although it is US orientated, it contains a wealth of interesting information.

This is a (very brief) review of four different skateboard magazines. To make sure that previous experience was not biasing my opinion (too much), I got four issues that were out at the same time. The magazines are Transworld Skateboarding (TS), Thrasher Magazine (TM), Skateboarder (SM) and SBC Skateboard (SS).

For photography, TS probably takes the lead. For the skateboard lifestyle, the edge goes to TM. For those who like to read text, SM has the most. Surprisingly, the best is probably SS, which is a balanced combination of all three styles.

Before spending too much on any one magazine, I suggest you try the same so that you get THE magazine you want.

the magizine is very thick but a lot of it is adds. The adds have good pictures of skaters doing tricks and stuff though. It also has cool interveiws and stuff. It is the only magizine i get. If you like to skate buy this magizeine.

Transworld is worth the Money! It's the price of a regular magazine, but 3 times as thick! Sure there are a lot of adds in it, but hey, they're all just pictures of skaters doing tricks! Also, there are cool articles, interviews, and coverage of tours. Any skater with {money} should buy this. SKATEBOARDNG IS NOT A SPORT!!!!!!!!

I bought this mag at a grocery store. I'm fascinated with skateboarding. It's a really thick magazine. Probably because nearly everything in it are ads. That's annoying. Good pictures, though. Anyway, it's pretty nice. I'd recommend looking around at other magazines like "Thrasher", "Skateboarding", etc. Enjoy!

The amount of skateboarding fans are increasing rapidly in the United States. If you are one of those fans, like myself, I highly suggest this magazine. It is well worth the cost. It covers everything such as pro spotlights, action shots, ads, trick tips and more. I have been reading this magazing for quite a while now, and plan on continuing my love for skateboarding. Subscribe now, you WILL be satisfied!

Good Innovation books typically break down into two categories: consolidators and original thinkers. The consolidators create overall frameworks for innovation and make the overall topic more digestable to the general reader. The original thinkers share new knowledge and insights, focusing on much narrower topics, such as Open Innovation (Henry Chesbrough), Disruptive Innovation (Clayton Christensen), or Experimentation (Stefan Thomke). Chakravorti's book, The Slow Pace of Fast Change, is definitely for the original thinkers. His specialization is the network effect of introducing innovations, how to bring complex products into complex changing market places. For example, introducing the hydrogen fuel cell will require many economic agents and individual behaviors to change. A deep understanding of the dynamics of Network Innovation is essential to bringing certain types of innovation to life. Chakravorti draws heavily on the Nobel-prize winning game theory of John Nash to explain how self-interest guides players in the introduction of such innovations.

Unusually for an original thinker, he also provides a reasonable roadmap to allow corporate innovators to find their own path to success. This is not an easy task, but it is better to know the challenges ahead of time and take action. This is an excellent book and deserves serious attention from anyone working on breakthrough innovation initiatives or large-scale business development projects.

Mark Turrell
http://innovationBBL.blogspot.com
http://www.imaginatik.com

Many books have been published on the topic of innovation. But as rightly pointed out by Mr. Chakravorti, these studies are successful in nurturing innovations and bringing them till the gates of organizations. Many of the innovations despite being far superior solutions from powerful multinationals, fail in the market place. In other words, technological or product superiority and even the sheer muscle of giant corporations is not sufficient to ensure that these innovations are accepted by customers.

This book looks at the market as a network of players with dependencies and in equilibrium. Some entities in this network act as nodes and are the main players. Networks prefer equilibrium and it requires a good understanding of what it takes to shift this equilibrium to a new state. This is where the concept of game theory is extensively used and demonstrated through excellent case studies - Communications, Automobile Industry Supply Chains and Software are some examples. "Think Equilibrium" is the key message.

The best part of the book is that it simplifies complexity of theoretical aspects and delivers important concepts and a framework for application by managers. The other book that I enjoyed equally on the topic of game theory in business is "Co-opetition" by Barry Nalebuff and Adam Brandenburger. "How Breakthroughs happen" by Andrew Hargadon and "The Innovator's Dilemma" by Clayton Christensen will be excellent supplements if we need to trace the complete trajectory of innovation from the lab to the customer's lap.

This book is a classic. If game theory owes a lot to "A Beautiful Mind", successful innovations in future will thank this beautiful book.

I have never in my life read such an insightful book. It clearly lays out the structure of economics and helps diversify the playing field in terms of market infrastructure. Witty and well thought out, a deserved 5 star book.

This is one of the best written books I have read in a long time. The author must have pored over the crafting of every word. It is a serious book and yet it is quite a funny book. Overall it is clear he knows what he is talking about in terms of how real companies act and the game theory behind their actions. And it is about something that most people I know think a lot about. The book is on bringing innovations and new ideas to market. I read it as having much wider social and political consequences because it really does offer a way for us to understand how things work -- or don't -- in our super-connected world. With terrorism and SARS and globalization risks and the proliferation of the internet we are really connected in so many ways. I came away from the Slow Pace of Fast Change with, as the author puts it, a new "mindset" to understand and even strategize in this interconnected reality, where the network is both your best friend and your worst enemy. I know of Moore's law as the rule of the 90s--like everyone else I and everyone else I know lived and breathed it. Slow Pace...will I think give us a rule that may last even longer: Demi Moore's law. Cute, but really quite brilliant if you think about it.
Every chapter in the book helps develop a rich set of ideas interwoven with really well-told tales of strategic games among the best known companies in the world -- and even some that have since flamed out, for reasons the book helped make me understand. The tales of real world games among AT&T, the Chinese, WorldCom, Comcast, Microsoft read like a novel. Even though that particular chapter had the least new material in terms of concepts, the stories and strategic analyses alone made its presence more than worthwhile.
A deceptively easy read but it's deep stuff. I would read it again.

As the subtitle correctly indicates, Chakravorti explains how to bring innovations to market in a connected world. His contributions in this book to our understanding of both the difficulties and opportunities to do so are substantial. Acknowledging his academic roots, he acknowledges that he "developed an appreciation for a first- principles approach to strategy and decisions...how first principles translate into the framing of trade-offs and lead to timely action." Over time, he learned that true insight "comes from connecting the dots across multiple landscapes [and that] such dots lurk in the unlikeliest corners." He allows his reader to recognize those "corners" and to accompany him as he carefully but rigorously explores the connected world.

I especially appreciate his dry but delightful wit, perhaps most evident in the final chapter whose head note is a quotation from Thelonious Monk: "You know what's the loudest noise in the world, man? The loudest noise in the world is silence." Without apparent effort, he invites his reader to consider the significance of the Galton-Gould evolutionary pool table, a metaphor which suggests that a market is the polyhedron-shaped ball." perhaps recalling John Nash's insight, he suggests that when innovation arrives on the scene (i.e. in a market), it creates disequilibrium. "It is in this situation of rest [i.e. when the "ball" has stopped] which may be viewed as gridlock by some and as a stable market by others -- that innovations in a connect must pry apart."

Given the process of inquiry and exploration which has been completed in the prior chapters, I was intrigued by how Chakravorti achieves at least a temporary synthesis of so many different (sometimes contradictory) factors which interact throughout the innovation cycle: "the eureka moment; the development of technology to give life to an idea; and the creation of an organization to produce and commercialize the innovation." As we all know, few innovative ideas ever reach their intended market and fewer yet survive thereafter. There is indeed a natural selection process during any campaign to bring an innovation into the connected world. Chakravorti suggests four aspects of that campaign:

1. "Qualifying the endgame and, in the process, choosing between several strategic options at the outset;

2. "Orchestrating the changes necessary across the network of players through a mechanism that propagates the innovator's selective interventions into the wider network;

3. "Actively managing with the critical agents that will pass on the innovation's influence; and

4. "Making appropriate choices on how to commit to strategies that lead to certain endgames in the face of uncertainty -- depending on the situation, one must choose between making a bet, reserving options, and seeking insurance."

Paraphrasing an ancient aphorism, Chakravorti suggests that market imperfection is the mother of innovation because it creates the need to innovate both in terms of a given product or service and in terms of the campaign by which to guide it to market. and then through natural selection to at least temporary security....that is, until another innovation (which accommodates the aforementioned four aspects) eliminates the need for it.

I agree completely with Chakravorti that the "slow pace of change is good news for the strategic innovator. In fact, it is essential news." Obviously, when any organization plans to take a new product or service to market, it faces formidable competition and all manner of challenges, only some of which are posed by competitors. (How many innovative products or services have never survived internal barriers which may include what Jim O'Toole has characterized as "the ideology of comfort and the tyranny of custom") In this brilliant book, Chakravorti suggests a number of specific strategies and tactics to help achieve market penetration and eventual success in a connected world. There is also an important lesson to be learned from one of Aesop's fable, "The Tortoise and the Hare": At least in some situations, only a "slow pace" can achieve "fast change."

Need this book for a class and I got it on time! Thank you!

I received within a week. I was very happy with the service. Thank you

I already had an earlier addition of this book that I borrowed from a friend because I needed it for one of my graduate classes. Since books are soooo expensive we share whenever we can, but I really found this book to be useful so I bought my own copy. I highly recommend it for K-5 teachers...even upper grade teachers could benefit from it. It's full of ideas for writing in every genre. An excellent resource.

Certainly a good buy. This book is practical and inspirational. How education has advanced since the days I was in elementary school!

This book is an excellent resource for teachers. It is full of great ideas and of lessons for writing. It is also very helpful to those teachers who are reluctant to have their students write daily. The feature that I like best is that the author includes great trade book lists to assist the teacher in modeling good writing.

This book is fantastic! It provides a great opportunity for children to think. Most of the children in my first grade class caught on to the magic of this book, and those who weren't quite ready for it loved the illustrations.

As a person in the education field, I love this book. Thre are so man projects and writing assignments that you can do connected with the book. The pictures are great. The book is a wonderful twist on an ABC book.

This book is great to use for predicting outcomes. I just fold that second page back, read and show the first page, and then have the students guess what the second page might be. My students are 6th grade and they really enjoyed it. Some predictions were very easy, however, some really made you think.

An alphabet book that every age can enjoy, with a new twist on an old theme. Each letter represents something that will come in the future with that letter as its first in spelling. For example, "e" is for wood, tomorrow's embers." What a creative way to introduce vocabulary and thinking skills! Try to create your own Tomorrow's Alphabet and add to the book.

My 4 year old daughter loved this book when I got it from the library. I first thought that it might be a bit confusing for her but she understood it perfectly and has memorized the entire thing. This book is definately a keeper.

I bought this book on the strength of previous reviews and absolutely no experience at welding, brazing, silver-soldering, silver-brazing, sweat-soldering, or any other metal-joining skill beyond electronics soldering. It was a good choice. The author covers his subject thoroughly, clearly knows much more than he can pack into this book, and is able to present it all in an understandable fashion. There may be other books aimed at welding specialties that cover them in greater depth than this book does; this can tell you enough to let you decide whether you need more info or not. There is enough here to enable a neophyte to select, intelligently, the equipment required to accomplish whatever project he is considering. The rest is practice. The only thing lacking in the text is minor: a single color section demonstrating the differences in flames for different purposes. That information is carried by black-and-white line drawings in this book. They may be enough; I would feel a bit better-informed with a color photo (or illustration, for that matter).

I like this book a lot. Good information. One sentence annoys me though. On page 7 the author states, "Pure oxygen is flammable." This is a false statement. It made me wonder if he ever used an oxyacetylene outfit when I first read it. Who hasn't accidentally tried to light the oxygen first instead of the acetylene and found that nothing happens? Higher concentrations of oxygen increase the rate of oxidation/combustion but oxygen isn't a fuel, i.e., it isn't flammable. But pure oxygen makes things that are flammable more dangerous.

The rest of the books shows that he know what he's talking about on other topics.

I recommend the book. I couldn't find many books with so much information on oxyacetylene welding. I feel that I was lucky to find this information in a book that is also a well written book.

If you can afford only one book on Oxy Welding get this one, no make that two so you can have one in you toolbox and one to replace it when the one in your toolbox "grows legs" and walks off. This is "thee" book for the practical weldor and fits nicely into your toolbox. Read it, use it, take it with you where ever you go to work. The author is writing to you as your coworker not as an instructor or engineer though he is still showing you how to do it correctly and SAFELY.

For the novice only, Broad coverage of oxyaectylene welding and cutting, soldering and general information pertaining to various metals. Only a brief mention of arc welding though. 5 star rating only for those not interested in arc welding !!!

When I purchased this book I had already scheduled a stick welding class at the local vocational school. I wanted something that would help me not seem like a total noob when I got there. This book helped out greatly! This is a very infomative book and provides a good overview of all welding types.

This spiral bound book is a gift for our grandson. It is perfect for the teen who could use a little help organizing themselves at school as well as at home. I particularly like that is mentions teen on the front of the book so young people feel it is written with them in mind. Lots of good ideas that might click with a teen and ultimately prove to be beneficial without making a big deal of things.

This book actually came out in good time for me. It really helped me organize my room after just having it redone. also the fact that this book was able to help me organize my school stuff was good too. Junior year is kinda hectic as far school work and this book was able to help show that it's not as impossible to stay organized as it looks. I really enjoyed the great tips that this book gave also on how to organize your room. I actually took a day this weekend to Really organize my room the way that this suggested and so far it's working really well!!
Definitely recommend it for someone who thinks its just about impossible to get organized, much like myself! haha
-Lisa, age 16, New York

This book teaches a great system for getting and staying organized. It is easy to understand and engaging. I found the section on benefits very motivating and encouraging. These are really life skills that are valuable in school and adult life. A real winner!

This book has really helped me stay organized. Tells me where to keep my papers how to have folders and keep on track. It's also a great way to learn tactics you never heard of before. definitely get this book to keep on on the right track and not suffer another F.

My son Sam is going into fifth grade and was given this book as a gift. After reading it, this is what he wrote...

"Where's my stuff?" by Samantha Moss and Lesley Schwartz was so helpful to me as a student entering middle school.

The chapter called "School Stuff" had so many great ideas to get organized for fifth grade. It showed you 3 ways to organize your papers and notes. The chapter also taught me how to organize my study space at home. In addition, it showed me how to use my backback and set up my locker. The tips in this chapter are sure to make my year GREAT!

This is the ideal book for a child going into middle school!