Pitt Books

This CD may have had a lot of good practice questions, but I'll never know since I couldn't stand the format. Answers to the questions are provided, but they are long-winded and address a whole block of questions (not just the question you are working on). The display is too small to display all the choices, making it difficult to compare answers. If you're looking for a practice CD that simulates Step I conditions, this isn't it.

i LOVED STUYING FROM THE PROGRAM BETTER THAN ANY BOOK

1) Begin with the flag-bedecked grasshopper on the front cover. 2) Be aware that the plot concerns a bunch of politicians arguing about DDT and other assorted rodenticides. 3) Be informed that the "tome" is written in turgid prose as exciting as Lemon Jello for dessert and as subtle and supple as a quartz quarry. 4) Don't say you weren't warned

So my husband hands me this book, says, "Honey, I know you planned to clean the house and cook my dinner and raise my children this weekend, but you're going to have to put all that on hold. THIS CAN'T WAIT." I look at this book by Dr. Bosso, thinking, well, "Ewww," because bugs disgust me, but I love my husband and more or less trust his taste in books, so I poured a cold one and sat down with the worthy tome. **HOURS LATER** when all my limbs went numb from lack of movement, I realized that I was holding a modern-day classic. This is one heck of a read, and I don't use those words lightly. Though I'm more a children's literature-kind of girl, "Pesticides and Politics" had me in stitches. Suspenseful, yet strangely moving -- I can't recommend it highly enough. And (I write these words with a blush) the sensual charisma of Dr. Bosso shines through every word. My life goal is to meet this man someday...

This book does what few have been able to do well: it showcases and explains two dramatic, but largely unrecognized trends in Latin America -- decentralization and democratization -- which, when taken together. have been truly revolutionary in their impact. Campbell, an astute Latin American specialist, argues that policy responses to them by big institutions (both national and international) may be smothering the reform process at the local level. He demonstrates that these reforms are vital to long term sustainability in the region. Since both trends only emerged in the past decade or so, both were inconceivable just 30 years ago. And both trends have reshaped the very nature of governance - all without a single drop of blood being shed anywhere in the hemisphere.

"The Quiet Revolution" is not the work of a theoretician, and that is precisely its great strength. Campbell spent 20 years working -- and often living -- with Latin America's civic learders, elected officials, community workers, and a host of others. He has clearly developed some powerful answers to the one crucial question which is so often missing from such books as this one: "what really works in Latin American cities, and why does it work?".

In the urban arena, the World Bank all too often gets a bum rap. Their Latin America projects -- clean water, new schools with running water and electric power, teacher training, public health, HIV clinics, etc -- are, in most cases, totally indispensable.

When Latin America decentralized and power shifted from the center to the cities, it happened partly in response to the massive population shift. The World Bank was one of the few organizations that considered decentralization as a potentially powerful force for good, and as this book shows, Campbell has followed the trend with great interest -- and a very sharp eye for what's really importannt. Even as globalization and external economic forces have been extraordinarly difficult for Latin Americans, this book shows that some of the region's cities have managed to elect leaders (or find un elected ones) who can see over the horizon, create coalitions (economic, political, culutral) and navigate through the rough times.

This is an ideal book for university classroom use, but it is also an excellent guide for anyone who wants to truly understand the underlying dynamic that has reshaped Latin American cities.

In his introduction Tim Cambell states that "this book is not a report based on systematic data gathering....nor is it based on published quantitative data.." If it was actually based on data it would make it much harder for him to be so glibly positive about the results of his employer, the World Bank, and the structural adjustment programs it forced on Latin America. Not only are the SAPs hardly mentioned, but he comes close to denying that the Bank had anything to do with decentralization, which he attributes to all loan recipient countries spontaneously decided to copy Spain. Statistics now show that the bank's politicized neoliberal agenda has exacerbated the difference between the rich and poor, increased violence, done very little in the way of reducing poverty, destroyed entire economies (like Argentina's) and transfered staggering amounts of capital into the hands of multinational corporations. Furthermore, Latin American growth rates under neoliberalism have proved to be lower than they were during the period of centralized state economies and their import substitution industrialization (1930-1980). Cambell sidesteps all of this, cheerleading what he calls a new, innovative generation of political outsider mayors (from the same elite families that have been running Latin America forever) as they do things like privatize their water systems and come up with programs to put poor people in debt, charging them for things like sewage systems that should be basic human rights. Cambell downplays anything that has become worse since the structural adjustment programs were implemented.
"Homicide rates in Rio, Bogotá and other cities," he says, "are now or have been at or near 90 per 100,000 population, putting them in the same range as the highest ranking cities in the United States (e.g. Washington D.C.)". This is a lie which irresponsibly downplays a big and increasing problem. Washington's murder rate is about 43 per 100,000 within its city limits, which make up a small percentage of its metropolitan area. There were over 5000 murders in Rio de Janeiro last year, compared to 262 in Washington in 2001. It's pretty irresponsible to downplay thousands of deaths, but what does death matter compared to the smug logic of the invisible hand job of the market?

This book isn't that bad. Unfortunately, the author's lack of writing skills mask the quality of his work.

Robert Stein (Rice University Professor of Political Science) has written a comprehensive study of how municipalities deliver their various public services and what difference does this variation imply for urban public policy. Stein grounds his study thoroughly in theory: Cities must provide services, not all citizens use these services but must contribute to the financing of these services through taxation; this generates an incentive for those who can afford to do so to move out of the city's borders, leaving behind an increasingly dependent population; this will eventually hurt the very fiscal capacity of the city to provide said services: a true urban dilemma. Stein argues that alternative service delivery, services delivered to citizens through a variety of organizational structures, allows cities with more extensive service commitments to meet their service delivery responsibilities while maintaining and adequate balance between their social function and their fiscal or economic function.

Stein adopts a rigorously empirical approach, employing a variety of data sources, but primarily relying on an International City Managers Association survey and Census Bureau data. Stein finds that, indeed the organizational structure of urban service delivery matters for the fiscal performance of municipalities. Alternative service delivery will, in general, reduce expenditures, lower employment rates and reduce wage rates for municipal governments. The primary mechanism for this is the lower benefit and wage packages offered to workers by non-municipal service providers. Stein concludes that these mechanisms offer municipalities a method for continuing to deliver public services even when these services conspire against their fiscal well-being.

Stein makes a real contribution to our knowledge of urban management and policy in this study. This is a book that should be read by anyone with an interest in the future of American cities. However, the methodological and theoretcial sophistication of the tome will prevent a wider audience. The exhaustive quantitative aspect of the study at times threaten to overwhelm the reader. Further, the theoretical arguments are such that the book could be troublesome for use in all except the most advanced undergraduate courses. Graduate courses in urban policy, however, should benefit greatly from this book. Finally, a minor criticism: the index is a bit less detailed that that called for by such an incisive and in-depth contribution.

This book will be an ispiration to anyone interested in making truly great advertising - that works!. No, it's not a 'how-to' guide in the purest sense, but if you have a clue, this book is amazing. Inspirational stories of the creation, selling and making of some the great campaigns on the 20th century, and an insight into the mind of the one of the best Art Directors of all time. Get this book if you have a passion for advertising and want to learn more, or if you just like a well written inspirational read. You should also look up 'The Art of Advertising" by Lois.

George Lois is rightfully an advertising legend, but anyone hoping to learn how to find the "big idea" from this book will probably be disappointed. The book is mostly a series of ad biz reminiscences, in which Lois talks about what a crazy, clever fellow he is. As a historical overview of 50s, 60s and 70s advertising, it's interesting -- but for a better "how to" book, I'd recommend "Hey Whipple Squeeze This" by Luke Sullivan or "Cutting Edge Advertising" by Jim Aitchison instead.

After being a Clive Cussler fan for many years and looking forward to his next novel in breathless anticipation, i could not have been more disappointed if my cat had died!
The grammatical mistakes are one thing, but the blatant lack of research and complete lack of proof reading makes you wonder if this was turned out by a bunch of monkeys on typewriters.
It is written for an audience of pre-teens, as anyone more intellectually advanced would throw it out the window or give it to their dog to play with.
Obviously, Cussler did not have much input in this novel and it reads like it was written by someone trying to imitate his style, and doing a lousy job of it.
If the book was 150 pages in length, it would have been a tolerable read, mistakes and all, but as a novel of this length it does a great disservice to an author i have admired over the years.
I don't think i will be buying any more Clive Cussler books unless i check the ratings first and ensure that he is writing it himself.

This book was good as are all Dirk Pitt novels but this book just seemed like every other book out there with this genre. At certain points I could of sworn that I had read this book before. Still it is a good pickup for a hardcover bargain book.

I bought the book because I have read most of the earlier novels from Cussler and loved them. But this book falls far short of the standard set by the earlier novels. I had to force myself to finish reading the whole book. The writing in places was terrible, almost amateurish in style and substance. There were many places where there were technical mistakes in the operation of simple machines such as a camp stove for one. Other mistakes in aircraft structure, assualt team tactics and others. I will say that the premise of the story was a good one, its just too bad the writing fell short.

If the person reading the book had no knowledge of any of the various tools, aircraft, weapons and such, and also no experience with military training or tactics.....then they may enjoy the book.

I'm a Clive Cussler fan and have been for fifteen years or so. While this book is a typically good Cussler read, I just found it a little long-winded for the story content. I think the book would have been much more gripping and engaging if it were about 150 pages shorter. I like long books, but only if the story warrants it.

It's always a pleasure to read Cussler, and this one is still worth a read.

How To Keep Your Man: And Keep Him For Good

Real Life Dramas - Volume One

Darren G. Burton

Clive Cussler continues to produce well written yarns with Dirk Pit and crew. I was initially concerned with the introduction of Dirk Jr. and Summer. Clancy was not able to pull it off very well, but Cussler improves the story by adding the kids. It is somewhat confusing tracking the two Dirks, but that does not really detract from the story. Well Done!

Cussler continues to be the master story teller. This book had a far ranging plot that keeps you engaged all the way to the end.

Other reviews for this book tear it apart for its goofiness - and they're right. The last quarter of the book is based on a truly goofy premise, and the final paragraph was the goofiest! But throughout the book are exciting action scenes and it was able to keep my attention. All in all, not a wasted time spent reading, but if my next Cussler is like my first, it will be my last...

Dirk Jr. and Summer Pitt are just not as enjoyable reads. I kept waiting for Dirk Sr. and Al to get into the picture. I would pass on this one unless you can get the hardcover at bargain price which is what I did. Keep to the earlier stuff.

Why is the author slowly letting the superstars Dirk and Al fade away???? Dirk's children are very, very boring. Please stick with Dirk & Al. I am sure there are many capers and adventures still left for the two heros. Please, let the children become doctors or architects. :)

My exposure to this author prior to reading this book was very limited, having seen only the movie "Sahara" (which I enjoyed immensely). My expectation that this book would be as enjoyable as the aforementioned Dirk Pitt movie was simply not borne out. Don't get me wrong, this is not a total flop, but neither will it impress very many readers.

On the plus side, I thought the general storyline was quite creative and engaging. The various elements drawn into the nefarious plot of Specter, such as the foray into Homer, Celtic history, and modern issues of Chinese ascendancy and Western energy dependence, were skillfully crafted, in my opinion. Also, I enjoyed the flavor provided by Cussler's technical knowledge of all things nautical. It was reminiscent of a Tom Clancy novel in that sense.

Where the story falls flat is pretty much everywhere else. I thought the characters were too shallow and too slick -- which is really sad considering how many novels this author has written about them. One would expect much better character development at this late stage in the series. Also, the dialogue seemed a bit stilted and unrealistic. Finally, there was very little suspense, which is a key element in stories of this nature. Pitt and Giordino made everything look too easy. Their seemingly flawless handling of every tight situation made James Bond look like a bumbling moron by comparison. As a result the ending was more than a little predictable and therefore disappointing.

To summarize, I think Cussler is a talented writer who simply didn't deliver in this novel. I will likely read more in the Dirk Pitt series, but if the next one or two novels don't excite me any better than this one did, that will be the end of it for me.

haven't gotten that far in the book. But so far so good. I give it an A+

I'm never disappointed with Dummies books and this one is no exception. Great read, easy to learn.

As a novice or someone thinking about working with HTML, I think this book was over my head. If one had some background in HTML they could probably make full/better use of its content. Pork Chops and Applesauce: A Collection of Recipes and Reflections

This is not a book for jumping into WEB development. It claims to be but it really is not.

It's a good intro book for HTML for the absolute beginner. But, I must mention you have to be a reader versus an examples person. There is a great deal of discussion and only so much code examples. However, it did answer a couple questions.

I found this book good for getting to know what is out there. The book offers useful links to sites for getting more information. This saved time and it offers a "warm fuzzy" since it is suggested versus wandering around the Net.

The book also suggests some tools to use which again saved a little time.

I don't know if I would call this a good reference book. For example, it lightly touches CSS, XHTML and CGI and the design suggestions? Well you probably could get a design book to handle that better as I think they are rather basic in this book.

If you can get it from the library or get it used, it might be worth a look.

If you understand basic HTML, you might avoid it.

Caveat emptor to the absolute beginner. This book is not written for the beginning web page creator. It is not written in a tutorial style. It is good as a reference source as you study a true tutorial type book. It discusses tags and their attributes one at a time without showing you how they fit into your web page code. The beginning chapters throw lots of advanced features at you and tell you they will be discussed in chapter 19 etc.
I was completely overwhelmed after 20 min of reading. So what's a beginner to do? I recommend Create Your First Web Page in a Weekend. By the time you get half way through that book then you can use this dummies book as a reference.
william

This book is not for the person who wants to use Fedora as an OS. It is geared for someone who is into programming and is very complicated. It assumes you have a doctorate in Computer Science. I would never recommend anyone to buy this book. Fedora Core for dummies would be a much better bargain than this book.

This review is for Red Hat Linux and Fedora Unleashed. When I was considering purchasing this book, I had mostly come across inaccurate reviews referring to older editions that bear no relevance to this one. I am writing this review (the first one I have EVER written) in support of this particular edition of the book.

Before I had purchased this book, I considered myself to be just an average user of Linux. Coming from years of experience in the "Windows" world, including knowledge of scripting and programming languages, I felt that I was ready to explore the Linux world. Sure, I managed to get along rather well, but there was still more that I wanted to know about Linux. This book provided me with the knowledge I needed to get to the next level.

Red Hat Linux and Fedora Unleashed is a book that no Linux wannabe expert should be without. It covers basically everything from installing and configuring a Linux workstation to writing shell and Perl scripts. I could never have done the things that I do now in Linux without the help of this book. You can tell how useful this book is just by paging through the index!

Don't get me wrong, I am still learning as I go along here. But now I have an advantage. In fact, I plan to set up a couple of Linux servers in the near future and I am looking forward to utilizing the several chapters in this book that cover server configuration.

Linux books tend to fall into two categories:

1. How-to books for beginners
2. Reference books

I am already fairly comfortable in linux, but most of my experience is with distributions that do things differently than the "Red Hat" way. When I decided to try out Fedore Core 2, I realized I would need to either spend a lot of time online in forums, or get a book. But I didn't need a beginners book, and I wanted more than a simple reference.

I looked through many, many linux books on the shelves of my local brick & motor bookstore, but they almost all fell into one of the two catefories I mentioned above. Luckily, I then found "Red Hat Linux Fedora unleashed". This book has the perfect combination of background and reference material that somebody who has a little bit of linux experience needs. In fact, I would also recommend this book to beginners as well, because if you stick with linux you move out of the "beginner" stage fairly quickly, and would then need a book like this one. Better to have spent your $$ on this book to begin with.

Oh yeah - the index is also great. A good and usable index is a hard thing to produce. Most publishers seem to be letting software build the index and then never bother to have a human check it out. I don't need index references that point me to every single page that mentions the word or topic I'm trying to look up, but that's what you get with most linux books. For the index in "Red Hat Linux Fedora unleashed" the publisher either used a human being or has smarter indexing software.

I was just amazed that some of the reviews were from Red Hat 5.2, and the Year 1999.

I agree with the author, you do think twice about buying a book with inaccurate reviews?

I suggest the author contact his publisher, as in most places it how much you money you have that counts. And I am sure the publisher will know who to phone to get the reviews checked.

I am up to page 190 and am extremely unimpressed with this book. So far it seems to be about 95% padding or waffling, 4% telling you to read the ReadMe's, HowTo's, Tutorials, Manpages, various websites (which any new Linux user has already found, and found wanting, hence buying a book), and maybe 1% useful information.
I wanted a book to teach me Fedora - this is not it.
I feel I have been duped by the authors and the publishers and would very much like my hard earned money back.( It goes without saying that my opinion of Amazon.com has dropped drastically also ).
I live in Africa so I have to go by the reviews I read on line. Maybe those for this book were ramped up.

Martin Williams.
Port Elizabeth.
South Africa.

Understand HTML already? Just need to be able to look up the details of a specific tag from time to time? Then this will work well for you. If you're like me and every once in a while get tripped up by a syntax nuance, then this will be just what you need. The examples are occasionally unclear, and it's missing a few details here and there, but for the most part, it has exactly what you need. Its compactness also means that it doesn't waste your time trying to teach; the conciseness is a breath of fresh hair in a world of "Astrophysics for Drooling Morons" books.

Even though it's slightly flawed, I use it constantly.

This is a great reference book for 95% of the HTML that you will use. The remaining 5% is that arcane stuff that you can get in the 500-page $50 books. Wish it would note IE & Netscape extensions/problems. I keep this one in my briefcase.

I find this book a great compact reference. It's unfortunate that it has a number of errors, and some missing information.

For me, The compact size is of more importance than a few small errors, which I try and mark up anyway.

Its a bit annoying that the web site is STILL NOT available (Dec 1999)

I havent found another book that comes close to being as useful as a handy reference.

What I really want though, is a book that discusses not just the standard, but what each browser actually supports at each version!

This is NOT a beginners book. If you can write the basics of HTML but find yourself stumbling on various attributes, this is the book you need. This guide provides an easy list of tags, indexed on the inside covers for quick reference to page numbers. Point and click is the only thing easier! This is HTML to GO! Loose the mondo source books! This one fits in my PURSE!

This is an exceptionally useful reference to HTML 4 that I keep on my desk for looking things up as I work on my web sites. It's also a book I recommended highly to customers when I sold computer books in a previous job. If you're somewhat familiar with HTML, this is a perfect reference, and has the advantage of being comb bound so it doesn't snap shut while you're using it. If you want a book with which to learn HTML, this isn't it (Elizabeth Castro's "HTML 4 Visual Quickstart Guide" is), but if you use HTML daily, this is a necessary book to have and keep handy.