5 comments about Building Scalable Web Sites: Building, scaling, and optimizing the next generation of web applications.

1. Given the complexity of addressing 'scalability', Cal Henderson has done an amazing job of producing 348 information packed pages that will keep you glued to the end. This book is a ground up overview of the construction, security, architecture, monitoring, and yes, even scaling processes. Rarely do I find technology books that are cover-to-cover material, but this one had me asking for more, chapter after chapter. Given the scope, some of the sections are brief, but they give you just enough to kick-start your research and fill in the blanks.
   
   If you're wondering which tools the big players use, how they scale their databases, how they monitor their servers, or even how they go about their daily life - this book is worth every penny.



2. Very good material, specially in the current world where people think that their out-of-the box Java application servers will do the job of serving tons of pages a day.



3. Despite its small page count this book both covers the basics for building a web application (i.e. how to pick a hosting service) and advanced topics such as cutting edge techniques for scaling out. Great as an introduction to building web applications and as a reference.



4. This book is a very useful guide for the professional web developer whose goal is to produce larger database-driven web sites in a scalable, debuggable way. Topics such as how to handle more web requests than a single web or database server can handle are covered thoroughly, in the usual easy-to-follow style that all O'Reilly books seem to possess.
   The author has some good experience with scalable web apps, too, having been part of the development team for the Flickr web site. Think about what it must take to receive, store, and display all the pictures that Flickr has to offer nowadays. Many of the chapters contain some behind-the-scenes descriptions of how Flickr handled the given chapter's topic, which is very interesting to read. Web application development, really any large-scale web site development, is not simple - there are a lot of things to consider. This book can help you track the major details you should be thinking about for such a project, predict scalability issues that may arise, and design for maximum scalability and flexibility in the future.



5. The book introduces the tools, processes, and high level architectures used in building large websites like Flickr, Youtube, etc. It is short enough to give you the high level framework and send you to explore various other books, software tools, etc to get more depth as needed. I found it very valuable.

5 comments about Agile Software Development with SCRUM (Series in Agile Software Development).

1. Helping the people who DO the work understand the value of simplicity. Take in context of the other Schwaber books, this book is intended to lead a developer/technologist down the path of evolving a lens of simplicity. Even greater value can be applied should one synthesize the data from Mike Cohn's two books, as well as, Weinberg and McBreen. Evolving something useful is not a book, degree or company reputation ... rather it is artful, experienced, pragmatic and thoughtful, context-driven decisioning with the sole purpose of making a customer smile.



2. Ken Schwaber provides a hands-on and succinct introduction to the Scrum philosophy - albeit, it is a little idealistic at times. Where XP focuses on enhancing the quality of the software, Scrum acts as a management wrapper for streamlining the overall process.
   
   Beginning with the history, you'll learn about the key positions, team interaction and structure, the timelines, and the tools involved in the process. This is, arguably, the de facto source of information on Scrum, and it is well worth the time given the relatively modest size of the book. This is a great book to pass around the office, so order a few copies, at least!



3. This book provides an excellent road map for the Agile development.
   Must have on every manager's book shelf.



4. I'm the resident 'Scrum Lord' at my company and I purchased this book early on in my 'Scrum' travels. It's been a handy quick read resource for our entire company. We bought a 1/2 dozen to pass around when we got new hires so they could read up a bit before they went to our in-house training in Scrum/Agile. For folks with just a little time, we suggested they read chapters 2 and 3 to get the gist of it. If they had more time...we suggested the read the whole book. Our in house training was inspired by some of the concepts used in this book. Its a great one! All of my 'loaner copies' are checked out somewhere here at work!



5. 
   This is the one book you buy everyone on your team and tell them to read as the first step to implementing scrum. It's well written, clear, and consise. Most people only need to read chapters 2-4, 5-7 are on control theory, etc that is interesting but not required.
   
   This is good stuff 'straight from the horses mouth'.

5 comments about Zag: The Number One Strategy of High-Performance Brands.

1. Zagging is not a new concept. If you like business and performance management readings, probably you are familiar with it already, especially if you've read books by authors like Jim Collins (hedgehog concept), Chan Kim (blue ocean) or Seth Godin (purple cow).
   
   This book provides a unique approach from a marketer's point of view to the concept of real differentiation in the marketplace. "When everybody zigs, zag". Stop being a follower, an imitator, and start being different, start zagging.
   
   You can't stop reading this book, once you get started. It will take you one or two hours, which doesn't mean the author is not providing details and deep insights. In fact, he gives what it takes to make his points clear, captivating, and consistent.
   
   David Aaker says in the back cover of this book: "The presentation alone is worth the price of the book". He is absolutely right. This book zags.



2. Knocked this one out in a single flight. Well written, easy to follow. Maybe a little too easy. Would have liked a little more meat. Consider this the Cliff's Notes to Differentiate or Die. Both great books, this is easier to digest. Neumeier is a brand genius, he gets it and he can present it well in a concise format.



3. I purchased this book at the same time as the Brand Gap, being confident in the fact they'd both be helpful, well-written, yet densely packed tomes of information - and I was right!
   
   Zag hones in on one element discussed in the Brand Gap - differentiation - and expands it into a 200-so page book. According to Neumeier, differentiation, or creating zag, is one of the most important elements of branding - and it needs to happen at every step of the way, from conception to naming to marketing.
   
   The great thing about Zag is the way it presents the information - much like in the Brand Gap it follows a 'whiteboard', graphic-heavy, basic (but important) facts. This time around however, it pairs the basic format with a strong, easy-to-follow example through the faux development of an educational wine bar chain.
   
   Neumeier then takes the reader through 17 steps (including some helpful exercises) you should take as a business owner, venture capitalist, or advertising professional when determining whether your product is zagworthy - or how to make it so it is.
   
   In terms of why I gave the book 4 stars as opposed to 5...The last section of the book - once the 17 steps are completed and the wine bar is 'fully developed' - is a little bit dense/doesn't seem to flow as well as the rest of the book/series.
   
   Also there is a decent amount of repetition between Zag and the Brand Gap, and I am hesitant in believing that people would pick up one without the other. Although it makes sense to reinforce the principles (and sell more books I'm sure) in some cases, it almost made it hard to differentiate some of the messages between the books, making me feel a bit cheated in that I paid money to read the same pages over.
   
   I have a hunch Neumeier might take the 5 main principles found in The Brand gap and expand each of them into books like Zag did for differentiation - and I can't fault him for doing so. Zag is definitely an improvement on The Brand Gap in that it offers a focused "here's exactly what you can do" strategy, but it still remains general enough that virtually any level of professional (student, beginner, executive etc.) can sit down and walk away a couple of hours later feeling like they learned something.



4. Excellent Book!
   It is:
   - Fun to read
   - Openminding
   It provides great practical ideas. You can apply the 17 steps to differentiation in your work place righ away.
   I could not stop reading it.



5. You have to read Zag like you read the bible- it tells a great story but you often are better served not delving too deeply into the statements made by the author to support his points (i.e. the fact that 11 million people went to Europe in 2006 versus 8 million in 1964 as evidence of a shift in American society- though as a percent of the population it is almost no change at all in Americans traveling abroad).
   
   Such is the nature of writing about a topic where 1) the author makes his money selling branding services; 2) he doesn't believe in hard numbers to prove points, harboring the predictable anti-research position that is both a great strength and weakness of this book and books like this (i.e. Blink). It also may be the most acceptable way to write a book that is not so dry and academic that nobody would want to read it.
   
   But the story being told is a great one and it is really well told. Neumeier needs to get a lot of credit for presenting ideas simply (not simplistically) which many other authors would make very complicated. The book is also just really well thought out so that it is thoroughly enjoyable to read even as you get into some pretty important topics that others might get bogged down in jargon or overly long explanations. The book also gets high markst for not only discussing what a "zag" is but also showing you how you can get there if you follow his clearly outlined process.
   
   So while the book is clearly a campaign for what he believes versus an objective look at branding, it is great read and I would recommend it for anyone working in marketing/branding that wants a refresher or reminder about what you should be thinking about in our ever-changing world.

3 comments about Visual Basic 2008 Programmer's Reference (Programmer to Programmer).

1. Ever since Visual Basic 6 I have purchased Rod Stephens books to stay current with the latest changes in Visual Basic. Again, with "Visual Basic 2008 Programmer's Reference" he has written an excellent reference for the current state of Visual Basic.



2. You might initially think that this is going to be one of those big books with a few examples and a lot of fluff; well, you'd be wrong. This is a big book because it's absolutely packed with really useful examples. Rod takes you through just about every feature of Visual Basic 2008 and he does it with examples. These aren't just the usual academic sort of examples either; you'll be able to use many of them as a source of code for your own applications.
   
   Of course, there are also books on the market that do have good examples, but the explanations stink. Rod takes time to thoroughly explain the examples and the explanations are clear, so you won't have any trouble understanding them. In short, this book has the best of everything.
   
   You probably won't need another book for common business programming needs. That said, some specialty items are missing. You won't find a lot about PInvoke in this book, but then again, most people don't need PInvoke for their business applications. The LINQ coverage is also a tad light, but this technology is only now taking off, so Rod is right in keeping the various coverages in perspective. Overall, this is the book to get if you want to know how to work with Visual Basic!



3. This is a great book. Starting for the simplicity and going strong describing in simple language the complicated topics for the beginner to the advanced programmer in VB 2008(VB 9).
   
   I enjoyed the reading and I am not done yet with the book. And after reading some paragraphs again, have been able to find new details that allow me to improve my routines.
   
   Thank you Rod for the book.

5 comments about Mastering Regular Expressions.

1. Before reading this book, I would have considered myself an intermediate regexer. After the first 2 chapters, I realized how novice I really was. Having only made it through 5 chapters of this book, I can't say enough about it. The detail and step-by-step analysis that Mr. Friedl takes to describe the regex matching process is the best I've ever seen. It's little things that make the analysis easy to follow -- like the brackets he uses to mark the regex, and the small triangle cursor to show where the engine is in the matching process. I continue to look forward to each new chapter. Thank you for a wonderful work of art.



2. I have been in computer software developer over 7 years now and never really used regular expression until a year ago. True, you can live without it. But, with regular expression at hand, you climb up another level of programming. Code will be much concise and code research will be like a breeze.
   
   Anyway, I didn't read this book entirely since later chapters explain intricacies and subtle differences of each specific language, e.g., java, perl, php, etc. It didn't take long to apply the knowledge I gained to real work and benefit. By the time I completed the first chapter, I already started to get rewards. My life is a lot easier now.
   
   Even with only the first 3 chapters, this book is well worth its price. The author did superb job explaining what's going on behind the scene and guide you through the right way of constructing regular expressions for various situations. Of course, he will show you common pitfalls to avoid, too. Very detailed and comprehensive.
   
   Highly recommended.



3. This book is seriously worth the money. I knew just enough regular expressions to get by, then I started reading this book and it has paid off already; saving me time on several long, arduous tasks.
   
   The book is really well written, very interactive w/ quick, quizzing questions mixed throughout the chapters. The authors writing style is very effective and surprisingly entertaining.
   
   If you don't know much about regular expressions or even if you think you do, purchase this book. It will be well worth it.



4. An incredible book. Absolutely incredible. It will take 200 lines of your code and reduce it to 1 or 2 lines. It will open your mind to search and replace possibilities. Your life will change (just kidding). It's a great deep book.
   
   However, I agree with the comment that one should not begin learning regex with this book. it's a little too advanced. Go on the internet, get an introduction. Or else, buy one of the introductory books on the subject first. But definitely get around to buying this book!



5. How deep down the rabbit hole do you really NEED to go? I had a serious need to get on top of regular expressions to solve one particular problem. I looked at several online tutorials which didn't take me where I needed to go, so I ordered Mastering Regular Expressions after reading the Amazon reviews. I always look at the negative reviews first. In spite of the negative reviews I ordered the book with an open mind.
   When the book arrived I began reading it with enthusiasm. In the preface there is a small section on "How to Read This Book". I bought into the author's suggestion to read the book's first six chapters first. I was captivated through the first three chapters, and then somewhere in chapter 4 I began to get very weary with information overload. After putting the book down for a couple of days I decided to skip the rest and use what I needed to write the one regular expression I had need of. The book did successfully help me accomplish this, so I gave it 3 stars. Not only did it give me the information I needed that the online tutorials didn't, it also gave me the confidence I needed. For that, which I am grateful, I would have liked to have given it more stars. I think many of those in need of learning about regular expression could be well served by a "lite-edition" of this book. Perhaps someday when I have the time and the need I may try to wade through the rest of the book, but as it is now Mastering Regular Expressions took me far farther down the rabbit hole than I really needed or wanted to go.
   If you need to get on top of Regular Expressions, I would recommend this book, however just be ready to be taken far deeper than the average coder probably needs to go.

5 comments about Microsoft Visual Basic 2008 Step by Step.

1. I really like the book so far. I've taken VB classes in the past (over 10 years ago) but wanted to get a refresher on the changes in VB, especially with .NET.
   
   I've worked up to page 84, the MyCheckBox exercise. I'm running Visual Studio 2008 with Windows Vista and I'm getting the following error (building for .NET Framework 3.5):
   
   "A first chance exception of type 'System.IO.FileNotFoundException' occurred in System.Drawing.dll"
   
   I'm not sure what I've done wrong to this point. Is my .NET framework hosed or did I save my exercise in the wrong place? Perhaps the author can chime in on this and let me know how to proceed. Is there a website we can go for a bit of support?
   
   Overall it's a great book for beginners.



2. I have found many books from this publisher (Microsoft Press) to be helpfull in learning a programming language. This title, "VB 2008- Step by Step", I've found to be a very good book to learn VB. Easy to read and understand (Better than the "Dummies" books). Would not use as my first book to learn VB from scratch. But if you know the basics. This is the book to get! A very good investment as well as a addition to your collection!



3. Very poor product. Could not get the software to work in two of my computers. I recommend that you move on to some other product and stayaway from books by Michael Halvorson.



4. I am new to Visual Basic.
   I've taken a couple of programming classes, but still have had a hard time grasping all of the little nuances.
   
   I recently started as an intern working with developers in the medical field. I found myself completely overwhelmed and started buying and reading every programming book I could get my hands on, specifically Visual Basic.
   
   This book is great! I'm half way through the book and haven't gotten lost yet! Halvorson walks the reader through each and every process and does it in the correct order. The order in which he presents the materal and the way engages the reader is critical to success! For the first time, I feel like I can jump in and get programming.
   
   This is the best book if you are trying to learn Visual Basic!



5. Michael H. is now an old hand at producing VB Step by Step books, and it shows. His treatment of the subject is thorough and to-the-point, as you can see by looking inside the book at the Table of Contents (above). His style is easy to follow, and your confidence level at the end will be high if you carefully follow his lead through this book. If his "Database and Web Programming" section at the end of the book doesn't pique your interest, nothing will. By inserting this section he shows you where VB 2008 is headed.
   
   My biggest complaints are minor: 1) he wasted too much ink telling us how things were done back in the days of VB 6.0. Programmers have had about four years to get over that, Michael, but thanks for an otherwise very useful book, and 2) a few menu calls were to menu functions that don't exist. (That's inevitable when a book is based on pre-release software. None of the errors were difficult to overcome.)

No comments about Beginning ASP.NET 3.5: In C# and VB (Programmer to Programmer).

5 comments about Build Your Own Website The Right Way Using HTML & CSS.

1. I loved this book, and I'm a pretty experienced web designer. There are a lot of other reviews saying how great it is, so I thought I'd add a few comments not mentioned. First, this book is really intended for people who are starting from the ground up. As such, it only describes strict XHTML, so if you're going to be working on an existing site, you're not going to learn about a lot of what is out there, like frames and using tables for positioning elements on the page. It describes an elegant design philosophy that will get beginners on the right track. It also covers, in just enough detail, finding a web-hosting site, getting a domain, using FTP, etc. Second, as others have mentioned, it is not a reference manual. Third, it assumes the web tool you are going to use is Notepad, or a similar editor. Personally, I think that's the best way to go, but it's good to know before you buy the book. In other words, you are going to be writing XHTML and CSS to build your pages, not using some fancy tool. Lastly, where I think the book really shines is in the sections describing how to add extras to your web site, like search, blogs, and getting web statistics. It does all this only describing free utilities.
   
   As I read this review, I've actually come to appreciate the book better. I can think of no other book that takes a complete novice from almost nothing to a complete, rather sophisticated web site that meets CSS and XHTML strict standards and even has a few bells and whistles, all in about 400 pages. There's even a bit of humor, and the author has a relaxed easy-going, re-assuring without pandering tone.



2. I had already built a website using a "user-friendly" site builder offered by the hosting service. However, it was almost impossible to make changes to the site and the markup created by the program was bloated and often contained errors. So when I bought this book I was desperate. Within two days I had completely re-done the markup for the site so that it's now compliant with all current standards.
   
   The book lays out in simple terms, with great examples, exactly how to use CSS and XHTML to design a website that meets your needs. It's easy to read, offers good tips, and you can customize the look of your site by simply playing with the examples to see how they appear on a page and then adapting the markup. Using a style sheet, as illustrated in the book, makes it VERY easy to change the look of all pages in a site with one or two alterations in markup.
   
   I recommend this book highly for anyone who knows little or a moderate amount about using CSS and XHTML.



3. I attempted to learn web page development self study beginning with a couple of " for dummies " books. They were interesting - and had some value - but the information within these books were not as well organized to learn from. There was also important issues for beginners in web page development that were left out of the book. Things like selecting a website - and loading files etc. I had gotten to the point where I created a very basic site with my text editor - but when I went to upload it to a web host - I could get the pages uploaded / but I could not figure out where to put things - how exactly everythign works.
   
   I'm only on page 80 - but so far I've learned some basic HTML - inline style - Embedded style elements - and External Style sheets - with brief projects using each of these structures. It's very hands on and basic to learn so far, I'm quite satisfied with the purchase.
   
   I don't expect it will teach all teh tricks of the trades and how to work with each and every element throughout the book - but it sets you up with the basic framerwork of knowledge and structure of which to build upon and the hands on approach is very user friendly for learning markup.
   
   I'd recommend this to anyone interested in learning web page markup and CSS from scratch.



4. It's been such a long time since I did anything with HTML and I needed a no nonsense approach to brushing up on it. Well, this book is right on target for me. The hands-on method of teaching in this book is so great that it feels like you are taking a course on HTML. The format is like a work book so you are always working with the material as you learn it. This author does not dumb it down to make you feel like if the material is for "Dummies" either. There are a few puns in there to maintain levity but the author is always on task.
   So far I am in Chapter 4 and have learned quite a few fundamental techniques in CSS that I will use on my work center intranet. I definitely recommend this book to get the basics of HTML and as a bonus being taught to do things the right way to meet standards, what a concept! I tell you if the rest of the Sitepoint books are like this one, then they have just earned themselves a loyal customer!!



5. I am a novice. If you are a novice, have never built your web page and you want now to do it and you are computer savvy look no further. What you learn here are the basics that you will have to learn no matter which book you choose. Do not waste your time learning just HTML, it has to be XHTML from the start which is easier and the latest so your Web Page downloads fast. The author, Ian Lloyd, knows how to keep your attention and writes in an easy and non-technical way. He shows you by example, step by step instructions to build a real Web Page, from the 1st brick until fully functional. He gives you a lot of information were to go after you read this book if you want to progress more. Believe me Mr. Novice, this is it.

5 comments about How to Cheat in Flash CS3: The art of design and animation in Adobe Flash CS3.

1. Hello, I bought the book How to Cheat in Flash CS3: The art of design and animation in Adobe Flash CS3, and I mean the whole ones that is the best book on the Flash that I already had opportunity to read. The examples, the form as they are presented, the easy language, everything wonderful. It is worthwhile to acquire that book, and to know Chris Georgenes's work later, visiting its site. I really have 3 special books on as to do cartoons using Flash, and that belongs one to them. Congratulations to who acquiring. You will acquire an excellent book



2. If you wish to animate on the web with flash, this is the five star book to buy. Everything is there. Get inspired with the friendly manner of how the whole book was laid out. So happy to get hold of a copy.



3. It is rare to find a professional who's willing to share such a wealth of knowledge built over the years. Most pro's in any field will write books full of fluff to satisfy their egos.
   Not Chris! This book is absolutely amazing. It is chock full of incredible techniques and tricks that will take your animations to the next level AND save you lots of time.
   
   ***To all beginners***: I am a beginner myself -I'm learning Flash on my own and have only used it for a few months. Even though this book does not start from zero, don't bother buying anything else. Do the basic Macromedia tutorials (for free) to learn the environment and then go straight to Chris' book. Of course, there's a lot of stuff that you will not get until you become more profficient, but that's the beauty of the book: that it'll grow with you. Trust me, if you're buying a book on Flash animation, make it this one!



4. Don't pay attention to comments about having 2 years Flash experience and this book is too advanced or whatever the comment was. If you have 2 years experience and cannot use this book then you are doing something wrong. I signed up for a free week trial at [...] and went through Chapters 3 through 10 and I bought this book the week after and I'm already creating my own characters and composing simple flash animations with lip synching and panning backgrounds. I've been working on Flash for about 2 months and this book boosted by productivity ten fold. This is the first review that I've ever written and it was so good that I decided to write on. No, I do not have any affiliation with the author or Lynda.com, I'm just telling you my opinion and experience in relation to using this book. I used the free trial week and didn't even have to pay for Lynda at all. This a great book if you know the basics of Flash such as creating and working with keyframes, tweens, etc.



5. How to Cheat in Flash CS3: The art of design and animation in Adobe Flash CS3
   This book have REAL helpful hits and tips to increase your productivity. I continual use this book as a resource and am think of buying How to Cheat in Photoshop CS3: The art of creating photorealistic montages (How to Cheat in)

5 comments about Hacking: The Art of Exploitation, 2nd Edition.

1. Its important to understand what this book tries to cover. Erikson covers specific hacking techniques. He stays close to Linux and C to illustrate the techniques and he exploits a lot of open source software. The goal is to familiarize the reader with the different types of exploits.
   
   In Chapter 6, the author explains: "The state of computer security is a constantly changing landscape...if you understand the concepts of the core hacking techniques explained in this book, you can apply them in new and inventive ways to solve the problem du jour. Like LEGO bricks, these techniques can be used in millions nof different combinations and configurations. As with art, the more you practice these techniques, the better you'll understand them." Clearly, Erickson is passionate about the subject matter he covers in his book.
   
   Any ability to exploit vulnerabilities requires a thorough understanding of the underlying subject. Here Erikson's book offers a number of quick primers on topics such as C programming and network protocols. These introductions are valuable because they introduce the subject and give you deep dives into specifics. They give you some sense of how hacking can lead to a greater understanding of the system under exploit. For example in Chapter 4, Erikson goes from introducing us to the OSI model to socket programming in four pages. But because of a very engaging writing style, it doesn't feel like a hurried course.
   
   After the introduction in which he covers C programming language basics, Erikson introduces us to exploitation via a buffer overflow example. He covers network hacking techniques such as denial of service, TCP/IP hijacking and port scanning. He delves into the more involved topic of spawning shell code to gain control of a system. And in a very entertaining Chapter 6, he shows you how to bypass security measures that detect and track hackers. In the final chapter, he covers hacking techniques for cryptography.



2. This book is great, it says everything in detail if you're into programing. And with the cd you can follow along with the exercises.



3. 
   Contents
   This is the second edition of a well known book about hacking and contains a lot about hacking. Jon Erickson has expanded the book from the first edition doubling the number of pages to 450 pages and a Linux based Live-CD is also included.
   
   I don't own the first edition, since I had to choose between Hacking by Jon Erickson and The Shellcoders Handbook (first edition, it is also in 2nd ed. now). I choose the Shellcoders handbook, which I have considered my bible for buffer overflows and hacking.
   
   Now that I have read Jon Ericksons book about hacking I have two bibles, both excellent and well written, both covering some of the same stuff - but in very different ways.
   
   This book details the steps done to perform buffer overflows on Linux on the x86 architecture. So detailed that any computer science student can do it, and they should. Every computer science student or aspiring programmer should be forced to read this book along with another book called 19 deadly sins of software programming.
   
   That alone would improve internet security and program reliability in the future. Why you may ask, because this book teaches hacking, and how you can get started hacking.
   
   Not hacking as doing criminal computer break ins, but thinking like an old-school hacker - doing clever stuff, seeing the things others don't. This book contains the missing link back to the old days, where hackers were not necessarily bad guys. Unfortunately today the term hacker IS dead in the public eye, it HAS been maimed, mutilated and the war about changing it back to the old meaning is over. (Actually this war was fought in the 1990's but some youngsters new to hacking still think it can be won, don't waste your time.) The word hacking can still be used in both ways, just make sure the receiver knows what you are talking about :-)
   
   This book teaches hacking in the old sense of the word and contains the explanation that most others books don't - and at the same time it introduces all the basic skills for performing various types of overflow attacks. Then the book also digress into some wireless security and even WEP cracking, but this part is pretty slim, not bad, just only a few pages. This is OK, since I think of this more as an example of extending the hacking into new areas and hopefully inspires more people to look into wireless security.
   
   The best part about this book is that it is not just a book with a random Live-CD. It is an inspiration and your fingers will itch to get started trying the examples explained and experiment with the programs. This alone is the single feature that makes this book worth it, you will do the exercises and learn from them. Learn a lot.
   
   To sum it up this books contains clever tricks and easy to follow exercises, so you can learn to apply them.
   
   Target audience
   This book is for anyone interested in hacking and developing exploits. While the primary target audience is newcomers to this field I benefitted from the thorough walkthrough of the basics once again. This book kept reminding me about things I have forgotten and also some new things and tricks I hadn't thought of myself.
   
   
   Conclusion
   If you are a beginning hacker and want to get started, but was confused
   by various text files found on the internet, this is the book to buy.
   
   If you want to learn how to do basic stuff and get started thinking like a hacker, this is the book to buy.
   
   If you are a software programmer that has started to think about software security, this is the book to buy.
   
   This book goes from beginning hacker to inspired intermediate hacker and explains everything in depth and is well planned and you will be able to extract an awful lot of information about the way programs really work after reading this book.
   
   If you read this book from cover to cover you will be able to follow most other references about hacking, books, papers, zines etc. from the internet.
   
   So this book is recommended for anyone interested in hacking and could be a nice start to having your own library about hacking. Reading this book first will also help you understand other books about hacking better and get more information from them by thinking in the right way.
   
   Then later you could expand this library with books like, Steven Levy Hackers, Steven Levy Crypto, Shellcoders Handbook, Clifford Stoll Cuckoos Egg and other references.
   
   I am not missing much from this book, but a short explanation how you could run this CD along with your usual operating system, using something like VMware Player would have been nice.
   
   Links:
   The home page for this book is: http://www.nostarch.com/hacking2.htm



4. The first edition of this book seemed to be written in code (hexadecimal), but the second effort explains the common software vulnerabilities much more clearly.



5. Hacking, 2nd edition features an extensive overview of C and x86 Assembly, Linux, and slowly steps through major functions of GDB. It's a bad idea to read this book without a Linux distro at hand, but thankfully one is included.
   
   I'd buy this again in a heartbeat.