Hill Books

(An earlier review may also appear after trying to merge and update an older acct with a new acct.) ...I picked this volume up at TechEd 2001. It maintains its relevancy four years later. The competition between related books brought the race down to "McGraw-Hill's Encyclopedia of Networking & Telecommunications" winning by one length over the "Microsoft Encyclopedia of Networking".
Tom Sheldon provided the most well-grounded and well-rounded information to fulfill the title of an "encyclopedia of networking" compared to Mitch Tulloch's very good but more Microsofted (I think microsoft as a verb can now come into play) approach to the subject and its fields.
Sheldon's book contains a greater variety of entries and their corresponding information (i.e. terms/acronyms like "NSA" & "PKI") instead of a namebrand focused presentation. I would like to see a "Special Characters" index category like Tulloch's book has, but this is not as necessary when using the search capability of the book's CD edition (which is included and loaded with hyperlinks to outside information sources).
I highly recommend Tom Sheldon's book. It's user-friendly layout and design are easy on the eyes, and I'm glad to have it at my desk (when I'm able to return it there after tracking down who last borrowed it).

I stumbled accross the old 2nd edition in our library and a day later I was in awe of Mr Sheldons fantatistic book. Unlike most networking books their is no waffle in this one. His style of writing disects networking information into logical digestible chunks. The second edition can be downloaded from his site but I recommend you getting your hands on the latest edition if possile because it is more upto date and has lots of new additions. This book is a one stop shop for everything you need to know about networking and a priceless resource for any networking student.

Firstly I'd like to say...Thanks Tom, for helping to keep me in a job! Up until recently I worked as a Network Administrator in Sydney and believe me, your books saved my bacon on more than a few occasions! I first received the electronic edition of the Encyclopedia of Networking whilst studying Computer Technology and e-business in Sydney. The encyclopedia was included as part of the overall course and many references were made in the college's learning guides to certain chapters when more detailed information was necessary on a particular topic. I'm currently involved in the area of Multimedia and Telecommunications and recently obtained a copy of the latest edition, The Encyclopedia of Networking and Telecommunications and am amazed at how much extra and updated information has been included. I keep the book close by at all times and find myself referring to it quite regularly. I could now honestly say that it's become my IT bible! It covers all aspects of networking, the Internet, Electronic Communication, topologies, protocols, security and various configurations in absolute and thorough detail. The encyclopedia also comes with a CD that can be loaded onto your computer as a PDF file and the search facility works brilliantly. I must say that if anyone is involved in, or wants to know anything about Networking and Telecommunications this book is an absolute must! Personally, I can't see how I could do my job without it. Thanks a million Tom! ...John Botica

Tom Sheldon can capture the core of a hard to read, multi-hundred page networking book in less than a couple of pages. Crystal clear definitions, well structured text and diagrams, plus excellent cross-references make his "Encyclopedia of Networking" a huge time saver for any networking professional. Manuel Vexler, Certified Network Engineer

I work for an ISP in the Upstate NY area in 2nd level Internet support. I have found this book to be a very handy and comprehensive reference on Networking technologies. We are also an ILEC and I am impressed with how well this reference covers terms or acronyms that I am unfamiliar with when dealing with this side of the business. Great job Tom! Keep up the good work.

This is one of the most useful books I've read to date on bringing a product to market. It covers all the basics and then some. I have recommended it to all my friends!

People may joke that Tamara Monosoff became a millionaire with the help of suckers like me buying her book. THAT IS NOT THE CASE! She is an extremely intelligent and fascinating woman. If you cannot launch your own business after reading her book, it is in no way Tamara's fault. I am amazed at how much time and effort she obviously devoted to writing this book. Just when I would ask myself a question regarding something she wrote, she was answering it in the very next sentence. The book is FULL of helpful examples, websites, and addresses. I would STRONGLY recommend this book to anyone.

This book is well worth the money. Short and sweet review and gets to the point now go buy this book!

I thought the first thing I needed to do with my invention was make a prototype. NO! Tamera says the first thing I need to do is get a spiral notebook and keep a hand-written ledger of everything I do, chronologically, to protect myself in court. I NEVER would have thought of that.

She explains step by step what to do next and HOW to do it: how to do market research, patent research, etc. But most of all, she gets right to the meat of everything. Tamera does not fill up her pages with fluff to make a dreary fat book. She guides us through the steps and all the way, she recounts how one particular mom handled these steps. She also puts in so many other examples from other mom inventors along the way.

It seems so easy, and she is inspiring. When I was a stay home mom, I felt overwhelmed, and out of touch with the professional world. Husbands and family aren't always necessarily supportive. Tamera says don't let any of that hold you back: you are much smarter than you think, so get that idea to market!

This is such an amazing book. Tons of great information, advice, references, and examples. Reading this book has made me want to start my own business, rather than just try to sell my idea. It is overwhelming, but so exciting at the same time!!! Thank you so much for such an incredible guide!!!!

The author's descriptive prose reeks of imagination, humor, and insight.

She comprehends human motivation, and she is equally in touch with her own feelings. And while she DOES describe human behavior in the most unflinching manner, she also demonstrates empathy, compassion, and the ability to rise above it all with laughter and good will... the numerous hilarious pranks, notwithstanding. Don't miss this.

Miss Guedel's book is a wonderful,honest and insightful memoir of the Disney animation studio of the 1970's.Her portraits of many of the talented artists are both humorous and revealing in ways that avoid trivialization and cheap sentimentality.She is a gifted author and one can only hope for a sequel book which chronicles her time with the Don Bluth studio.This book is a must have for any serious scholar of traditional Disney 2d animation history.

An amazing, archetypal hero's odyssey,
I could not put it down.
I attended BHHS and knew Heidi and many of the other players, and can attest to the veracity of all she writes.
Any Producers out there, here is a fantastic opportunity!

Heidi was my step-cousin but we lost touch after Helen Parrish (her step-mother and my aunt) died. While reconnecting with Helen's two children last year, one (Choddy) showed me a copy of Heidi's book and I promptly bought a copy and read it.

I visited Helen and John Guedel occasionally, although I lived in Atlanta at the time. I remember Heidi as being perennially sullen and aloof but this book details "the rest of the story". Clearly I would've been considerably more sympathetic had I known the hardships she suffered during her earlier childhood.

This is a great story and well told, undoubtedly a catharsis for Heidi but a great read, too. I was disappointed at not learning how her life evolved following her departure from Disney. Guess I'll have to wait for the sequel.

I'm going back east for another reunion with Helen's children this week and to see my last living aunt on the Parrish side, Kathy, whom I haven't seen in 35 years. Thinking about it reminded me to share my thoughts on Heidi's book.

Read it...I think you'll enjoy it even if you weren't there.

OH_MY_GOD. This author posts on a site called Internet Infidels, and believe me she STILL pulls no punches. She still posts under her real name. I wouldn't if I were her. I'm sure the outraged religious fundamentalists will come here next and try to pan her book. WOW.....After following some of her posts, I looked up Heidi Guedel's profile on the Internet Infidels site and it led me here to Amazon and her book. I've just finished it. Now I understand...... and I can't stop laughing.

After you learn about her childhood, and her sanity-saving ability to turn even the worst human behavior and circumstances into humor (much like Groucho Marx did, and she met Groucho, by the way, because her father produced the Groucho TV show) you get to ride the waves of laughter along with her as she turns Disney Studios upside-down by stamping "BULL$**T" on the company memos they posted in the hallways, and putting fake puddles of spilled beer on stacks of priceless animation drawings just to watch a rather pompous artist implode. There are many more pranks and scandalous tales about some famous artists in the animation business, including one who recently won an Academy Award for 3-D special effects.

And far from poking fun only at everyone else, she bares her own soul and exposes her own legendary boo-boos - like accidentally putting a stack of drawings by famous Disney animator Ollie Johnston on the roof of her car and driving off without it. She returns in the middle of the night, realizing what she must have done, and finds one drawing left on the street in front of the studio, with a tire mark across it. What she does about it next is so poignantly funny..... but I won't spoil it for you. Read this book. It is so special and so REAL.

Herman and Gioia have done an excellent job of outlining successful strategies based on their own experience as well as the experience of successful organizations. Their simple, but complete, list of critical components for becoming (or remaining) an employer of choice provide a valuable guide. I particularly like the inclusion of examples and quotes from organizations that use these approaches and techniques. This is a complete "how to" guide. A must read...and, a must use book.

Herman & Gioia's EOC is a virtual quick-trip to understanding how the EOCs have achieved their elite status. Easy reading, practical advice supported by diverse cases from leading companies. The summaries of best practices alone are worth reading. Readers wanting more detail can refer to the chapter notes citing specific bibliographic sources.

The chapters on Culture and Enlightened Leadership contain insights into what leaders personally and specifically can do to create the kind of organizational environment that is attractive to employees. Those chapters would be useful to those leaders who sincerely want to "walk the talk." The chapters on Growth and Opportunity and Compensation & Benefits provide poignant "how-to" tips for addressing some of the key advancement, development and pay-related reasons that younger employees are defecting to other competitors. The chapters on Care of People and Meaningful Work would be useful to HR officers wanting to improve employee relations and job design to help reduce the skyrocketing cost of undesirable turnover.

In sum, Herman & Gioia's book is a cornucopia of pithy, actionable suggestions based on relevant EOC case examples. Any leader "worth his/her salt" should reap a significant ROI by effectively implementing even a few of those ideas to help attract and retain talented people.

How to Become an Employer of Choice was published in a year when the biggest problem most companies had was hiring and retaining talented people. Reading the book today it strikes me as a shame that companies are not as eager to pursue the excellent advice given in this book on building strong devotion to your company in the workforce. The problem may seem very far from your mind right now, but being an employer of choice has a tremendous value even when the labor market is easy.

The book starts with a good explanation of why you would want your company to be an employer of choice. One of the nice things in this book is that each chapter is peppered with sidebar anecdotes about real world examples of the concepts being discussed. Most of these anecdotes come from Herman and Gioia's personal research and consulting work, and they are quite helpful.

In the next chapter, there is a survey of the attributes of a company that is an employer of choice. This is probably the least prescriptive of the chapters, but it does offer useful ideas. The succeeding three chapters, on culture, enlightened leadership and care of people give very specific advice about things you can do to work on your company from the inside. There is a wealth of practical material here, and I find much of it as useful for smaller companies as for large ones.

The chapter on growth and opportunity gives excellent advice on nurturing your best people through education. I like the fact that the chapter gives an appropriate balance of suggestions about using both internal and outside educational resources.

The chapter on meaningful work emphasizes the usefulness of measurement and the use of culture to help employees get a sense of satisfaction from their jobs - no matter how small.

In the chapter "Compensation and Benefits" Herman and Gioia offer a wealth of ideas that go beyond the obvious "pay for performance". In particular, the ideas about making the benefits package fit well into your employees' lives are well founded. The whole chapter is a really good survey of ideas for rounding out your benefits package that I have found useful both for my own company and for my strategy clients.

The chapter on "Making a Difference" focuses on community involvement. This creates a strong sense of pride in the companies that do it, and the chapter has a number of excellent ideas for companies of any size or budget.

The last chapter, "Getting Started", unfortunately offers the least practical advice. This is a shame because I think for most of us, the challenge of applying the great ideas in this book will be daunting. Fortunately, there is a great appendix with some techniques for measuring your performance as an employer of choice, so we are left with what I would consider the most important tool for getting started.

Overall, this is a super book with good concepts, supporting anecdotes, and a treasure trove of useable, practical advice on becoming an employer of choice. Even if you are having an easy time with hiring right now, you will be much better off for applying the great stuff in this book!

(Robert Bradford is CEO of the Center for Simplified Strategic Planning and co-author of Simplified Strategic Planning: A No-Nonsense Guide for Busy People Who Want Results Fast)

Despite the "employers' market" created after thousands of layoffs since the tragedy of September 11, companies must work harder than ever to become an "employer of choice." Herman and Gioia have developed what is sure to become a standard for how to get and keep your most valuable employees.

With case studies from a variety of organizations that include actual accounts of what works--and what doesn't, Herman and Gioia have managed to walk the fine line between research and reality. In simple, everyday language, this practical, hands-on how-to guide explains the process of developing an "employee-centered culture" that allows employees and their businesses to thrive.

"How To Become an Employer of Choice" is a must-have for any business seeking an edge in today's ever-competitive marketplace.

Dianna Booher
Author of communicate with Confidence, E-Writing, and Get a Life

How to become an employer of choice is a well organized compendium of timely suggestions for things organizations can do to attract, retain and motivate high quality employees in this volatile labor market. The authors use clear, straightforward langage to identify the business rationale for creating and maintaining a work environment that invites and rewards the best and the brightest, and encourages them to stay, even in the face of other offers. The suggestions the authors make don't require a major overhaul or reorganization of your company. Instead they present common sense alternatives to the traditional business model that are relatively easy to implement. Good ideas here for all kinds of companies and other organizations.

This is a general comment regarding Hacking Exposed series. I owned Hacking Exposed (first edition) and then I moved to the more specific Hacking Exposed books, so now I've got Hacking Linux Exposed, Hacking Windows 2000 Exposed and hacking web Applications exposed. All those books absolutely worth it, do not hesitate to buy any of them.

Don't run Windows without it. An in-depth windows security book written for those who do not understand geek. Easy to read and chocked full of info provided to save you from common (and not so common) windows sins. Definitely for the home and enterprise network user/admin.

If you are responsible for a Windows 2000 server and do not have this book, you are asking for trouble. Get it today!!!!

Excellent book which helps you secure your system from the attacker's point of view. It makes you think as a hacker to be able to find the vulnerabilities in your machine/network.

My security officer loves this book because it allows him to send me emails guaranteed to keep me up at night. ;-)

Wow! Book arrived in perfect condition and delivered as promised.
I couldn't ask for more.

Thank you.

This book shares with the reader the incredible ability of one woman to take all of the bumps that life has to offer and to never give up. The importance of a name and the need to hear it spoken is powerful.

This book was excellent it told the story of slavery from an female point of view "Roots" was from a male point of view. It taught me so much I would definetly use this book for students in African American studies classes. GOOD JOB! If you are interested in African Americans past and what we went though as a whole get this book it teaches very well! It is a BIG book I loved it so much I read it in 3 days!

I read this book for my book club. I wouldn't have chosen it myself. I read the book with the same obligation that you take medicine - you know you should to make you feel better. I felt like this was a "should" book.

I like historical fiction, but I really don't enjoy reading about the torture and killing and slavery of other human beings. I think that Hill did an incredible job with his historical facts, but I found the main character implausible.

This book is amazing. It is incredibly well written and the storyline is envoking. Once you start, you'll find you can't put it down. The author does an amazing job at describing events and situations. And when you read about those events you really feel the emotions with each scenario. Wonderful book!!

Este libro contiene información de vanguardia y vital en el desarrollo de las prácticas avanzadas de dirección por procesos. Cualquier ejecutivo que se considere experto en operaciones, deberá incluir este documento como base para sus trabajos.

This book is really impressive. Is an eye opener. Must read for Industrial Engineering Students, must have for professors and great addition for a professional looking for new ideas.

"Business Dynamics" is a great book leading the knowledge seeking "fresh" system dynamicist into the field of SD and the experienced system dynamicist can use it as a knowledge pool.

John Sterman removes the theoretical barriers and brings SD to real life as he goes along known complex questions in order to understand them through the use of System Dynamics and Systems Thinking.

Learning and getting more experienced in System Dynamics and the use for daily problem solving is a dynamic and evolving process of wisdom with lots of feedback and "Business Dynamics" is the right companion in getting deeper insights in order to achieve the goals.

Best regards

Ralf

Excellent guide to systems thinking, clear examples, clear thinking and very interesting conclusions reached. highly recommended

como parte de la materia lo llevo, me salio mas barato que en mexico y me es util para mi carrera

This is a charming but unsentimental view of animals on Maple Hill Farm. Through wonderful drawings and brief text, animals are portrayed as individual personalities, each with a role to play in farm life through the cycles of life from birth to death. One of my favorite characters is Willow, the cat, who "is not very interesting" because she spends all her time just being beautiful. It is a valuable book for teaching young children that animals should be cherished and cared for for many reasons, that animals are deeply entwined in our lives. It is a deceptively simple book that children and adults can enjoy together and discuss on many levels.

Quite a bit has changed about the world we live in, but it's wonderful to know that our friends at Maple Hill Farm are still keeping it real. This was one of my favorite books as a child and I can't wait to read it to my son (due in January.) I just ordered a new copy of this book and was so pleased to read it again and realize how fun it is to read as an adult. I love that there's no quest, no competition, no major challenges- it's just life on a farm with lots of real animals that have unique personalities.

It's exciting because all of animals are fun and goofy and they do all the usual things that chickens, goats, cats, horses, dogs and sheep do. The cats catch snakes and move kittens around, the horses get dirty and chase each other, the chickens eat ants and take sun baths, the dogs bark at geese and chew up pillows. None of them wear clothes, talk or drive cars, and I kind of find it refreshing. Not that there's anything wrong with fantasy, but I love that reality can be just as entertaining for kids and adults.

And, yeah, I did start crying when I got to the end- the quiet corner of the woods where the animals of the past were buried. It's not maudlin or overtly tugging on your heartstrings- it's just real. That's what makes this book such a great read.

my kids love this book and the other in the series. the illustrations are true and simple-just what today's kids need. i would recommend it to any family who has an appreciation or is part of a more meaningful, homegrown lifestyle.

I remember the very first time I read this book...over 30 years ago. I had my infant son sitting on my lap and we were both delighted by the different animals from the farm. I remember going from laughing to holding back tears. It is so true. Our own animal friends have the same affect...from laughter to tears.

Besides being very entertaining, I find a bit of widsom there that is priceless for dealing with the loss of a pet. It has become a tradition over the years to read from the book at our "pet funerals" and I took the book down from the shelf just for myself after the recent loss of a 16 year old cat.

Like many others here, we've worn out our original copy. Mom made sure each grandchild had a copy in their homes and I've done the same with my own grandchildren. We loved it so much, we've had many pets named after the characters in the book.

My mom saved the original book for me, and we purchased a new copy (paperback) only after our suitcase containing the original hardback was stolen (!) Our girls (ages 3 and 7) adore this book - and so do we.

The book tells about the different animals on the farm. Over several pages, for example, Mrs. Provensen tell about the four cats who live at Maple Hill farm: Gooseberry, who is a good mother; Eggnog, who is beautiful but not interresting; Willow, who is old; and Max, who is big, likes cottage cheese, but is not very clever with his claws. In a series of drawings, we see what the cats do around the farm. The girls love it - they laugh and giggle and listen intently.

The dogs, horses, sheep, and chickens all get similar treatment. We give this book to friends, as it is off the mainstream 'radar' of good books: we are sure they won't have it, and we are sure their kids will love it as our do.

This had some great old school recipes. However, if you are an Italian American you do not need this book. Had stuff my Great Grandmother and Grandmother have passed down.

Hill's book is extremely insightful. It's very descriptive and chocked full of authentic Italian recipes and stories from Hill's gangster life. The recipes range from very simple to somewhat complicated, depending on the reader's preference. I highly recommend it to anyone wanting to learn about the real-life, but old style of Italian cuisine.

A colorfull presentation of some excellent recipes, I truely value this book, in my collection. Try his shrimp receipe for the grill, excellent, my guests loved it and I the simplicity.

I've made a few of the meals in here, and they were very good. Not all that different from the way I cook anyway, but a few differences made the meals better. No problem with the recipes.

My problem is with the marketing of gangster life. This isn't a merely an Italian cookbook-- this is promoted as a MAFIA cookbook ("cooking on the run"?). His life stories are told in euphamistic and humourous fashion, but the reality is very different. The end of the book is almost enraging-- Henry says he he sees pierced and tattoo'd kids eating dinner at McDonald's, and wonders where their parent are-- they ought to be having a nice family dinner at home.

PUHLEEEEZE!!! Read his childrens' book-- "On the Run--A Mafia Childhood". Years of drinking and drug related abuse, not coming home for days at a time, turning his home into a drug and sex den, both before and after his bust-- and much worse stuff-- if you find yourself getting amused by his engagingly told tales of gangster glory or if you find his stories of his Broolyn childhood endearing, then you need to read his childrens' book for balance. See the link below.

Buy this book used. I wouldn't put a dime in Hill's pocket.


On the Run: A Mafia Childhood

I got this for my husband last Christmas and we haven't found anything that wasn't totally delicious. The only problem is, we can't eat Italian in a restaurant anymore! We cook better at home!! With Henry's precise step-by-step directions, and his delightful autobiographical inserts, this is our favorite cookbook.
If you can stomach it, a viewing of "Goodfellas" really makes the cookbook a lot of fun and brings the voice of Henry Hill to life. Sometimes we can feel him running around our kitchen in his drug-induced haze, preparing his Michael's favorite meatballs just like in the movie!

I highly recommend this book. It is an easy read and very interesting. I find that dieting is very difficult so I will never "diet" again. Learning how foods work in the body has been helpful in my weight loss plan. I have now lost 20 lbs simply following common sense and good information about food. This book has been a great help. I will buy them for gifts as well.

I have not read the whole thing, but I skim through and it tells all about many foods I already love, but need to incorporate more into my diet. Great guide book.

I think this book is pretty good and makes you feel more confident in your selection of foods with caveats. I would recommend the book but it should probably sell for about $10.00.

I thought it very interesting and wasn't really aware of what I was doing to my body. I have since with a couple of my friends revised the way we eat know. No bread (yeast) products have gone past my lips in over a month now. I have also tried different things like seaweed and dulse and just add more protein to my diet. I haven't been able to fit into many things at the beginning of spring/summer but can now. I never feel as full any more and I only eat when hungry not when I just crave something.
thank you so much.

Classic herbs which help to flush fat are flaxseed oil, anise,
cayenne, cinnamon, cumin, fennel seed, garlic and parsley.
Apple seed vinegar, cranberry , B12 and flaxseed oil help to flush
cholesterol. Lemons act as a detoxifier. Lamb acts to stabilizer
blood sugar, as well as salmon and whey protein.

Other fat flush foods are fresh veggies,asparagus, broccoli, cabbage,
cauliflower, jicama (potato and apple cross) and cucumber.
The acquisition would be perfect to supplement any formal diet plan.
As such, it would be a good value for the price charged.