5 comments about ppk on JavaScript, 1/e (VOICES).

1. PPK's website is probably the most authorative and up-to-date ressource on internet, but when it comes to JavaScript, one could not be less interesting. The book contains a few tips on accessibility but look no further.



2. PPK on JavaScript by Peter-Paul Koch might just be the most thorough JavaScript book I have read. Through the use of eight real-world example scripts, PPK walks us through JavaScript from the very beginning. Over the years JavaScript has had its ups and downs. This is mainly due to the flux of poorly optimized scripts that are scattered around the Internet. So how do you know what source to trust? What are some best practices for JavaScript? How can you utilize JavaScript to add enhancements to your site without breaking in the browser? How can you create scripts that will enhance the user experience and not hurt it? All of these topics and more are discussed in this book.
   
   Throughout the ten chapters and 499 pages of this book, there is very little that isn't covered on the topic. Let's take a look at the organization and flow of the book:
   
   Purpose
   This chapter paints the big picture for us. There is no jumping into scripts or coding in the first few chapters. Here we get an overview of some important aspects of JavaScript. One of the most important aspects is the coverage of the history of JavaScript. Though some might find this to be boring, I believe it to be invaluable. Understanding the history of JavaScript gives you a better idea of how it has formed into the language it is today. This is one of the most valuable parts of the book. It sets a solid foundation for everything else that is covered.
   
   Context
   Along with understanding the history, it is good to see where JavaScript fits into the big picture of web development. Here we take an in-depth look at HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. There are many distinctions to be made here as each could potentially mix with the other. It is important to keep a clean separation of your structure (HTML), presentation (CSS), and your behavior (JavaScript). At some points the line may become blurry on mixing the two, which is why each aspect is discussed in detail. These include separation of presentation and structure, separation of behavior and structure, and separation of behavior and presentation.
   
   Not every user or device has JavaScript enabled. Moving forward we look at the impact on accessibility and how it affects things such as no mouse, screen readers, and usability. These are all important pieces that must be addressed as we begin adding advanced functionality to our website.
   
   Lastly we are introduced to the eight example scripts that we will encounter: Textarea MaxLength, Usable Forms, Form Validation, Dropdown Menu, Edit Style Sheet, Sandwich Picker, XMLHTTP Speed Meter, and Site Survey.
   
   Browsers
   This chapter provides a little more context and history into the different browser families. We look not only at browsers but other devices such as mobile phones and screen readers. We look at each of these and are then shown some of the incompatibilities that they suffer. We address the problems and look to build solutions to patch the holes. Next we look at solving problems by using two different techniques: object detection and browser detection. Object detection works by checking if the methods you are using are supported before you use them. Browser detection tries to detect the current User Agent and then build from there. Browser detection has many flaws associated with it. One specifically is browser spoofing where you can send a different User Agent string to the server, lying to the application about the available technology. There are correct uses, but this should mostly be avoided.
   
   If you have been developing JavaScript for a while then you are probably used to using the alert method to help in the debugging process. Here were are introduced to debugging, figuring out some of the cryptic messages returned by the browser, and how we can deal with browser bugs.
   
   Preparation
   Planning is important for all projects. Here we are introduced to preparing our application for enhancements. This involves having the proper placements of hooks. Hooks are found by using an ID, class, custom attributes (not a widely accepted solution), and name/value pairs.
   
   Once we have our hooks in place, we have to get access to them to make our modifications. Having access is only part of the process. We also have to learn how to generate content when necessary and understanding the relationships inside of the DOM. We get a brief primer on setting up our script tag and how we can utilize multiple scripts if necessary.
   
   Our hooks are in place, and we know where we want to apply our effects. How and when should they fire? We stop to take a look at the initialization of scripts and the load event. This method has its pitfalls, which are discussed and alternate solutions are addressed. We take a look back to the example scripts for some more insight and real-world use cases.
   
   Core
   Everything we have done to this point hinges on our ability to actually program the functionality we are trying to achieve. This section walks through the basics of programming in JavaScript. We look at statements, comments, code blocks, operators, values, and case sensitivity. Next we look at the six different data types that are available to us, and how JavaScript handles conversion and concatenation. We look at ways to explicitly convert our data types when necessary. After looking at the data types we look at some of the common operators. These are inherent to every programming language, so there isn't much new in this area. We've looked at the constructs, now we move to discussing variables: proper naming, the var keyword, and variable scope. This is very important to grasp as we move forward and create our own functions to achieve our tasks. Next we look at working with numbers, strings, and booleans inside of our scripts. We have a good foundation, now we move to control structures such as if, switch, for, while, do/while, break and continue, and try/catch. The next few sections focus on defining and working with custom functions, creating and defining objects and their methods and properties, and finally dealing with arrays. The section on arrays is especially helpful as it discussed how you can loop over them and how you can add, delete, and locate specific sections inside of an array.
   
   BOM
   This section looks at the Browser Object Model and the window object. We take a look at the global window object and its impact on creating new pages and cross communication between windows. We then look at navigation within the window and the location and history. We learn how to manipulate the geometry of the window, and how to retrieve information about the current window dimensions.
   
   The chapter rounds off with discussion of some miscellaneous functions such as alert, confirm, prompt and timeouts and intervals. We take a closer look at some of the available methods for the document object. Finally, we take a look at working with cookies and utilizing/managing them within our application.
   
   Events
   This is probably one of the most important sections of this book. This section gives a thorough look at all of the available events. The chapter first starts by looking at some compatibilities and how to resolve them case by case. We take an in-depth look at all of the available events at our disposal and how they work. We look at event registration and the best way to handle it. The rest of this chapter discusses event bubbling and capturing and the browser support related to each, the event object and its properties available to us, targeting your elements, and then implementing some of our new-found knowledge in the example scripts. Sometimes grasping events and event registration can be tough, but this chapter makes it easy through illustration and the example scripts.
   
   DOM
   We have come a long way to this point. We have set our foundation, looked at the core of JavaScript, examined the browser window and its properties, and learned how to set our events in motion. Now it is time to look at the Document Object Model. The DOM holds all of the information inside of our pages. It is comprised of all elements and attributes and their relationship to one another. They are commonly referred to as nodes that build the family tree. Understanding of this structure is what gives us the power to build elements and insert them or delete them. We have full control over our internal structure.
   
   However, it is never that easy. Traversing the DOM can sometimes be painful, especially when you see some of the differences between browsers. We take a look at how to find our nodes, how we can retrieve information about those nodes, and how we can change our document tree through appending, inserting, removing, and replacing. We are also introduced to creating elements and creating text nodes, and then how we can achieve some of the above tasks.
   
   This chapter rounds off with the always heated discussion of the use of innerHTML, finding attributes and setting their values, dealing with text nodes - even empty text nodes that sometimes cause confusion, understanding and traversing the nodeLists, and dealing with forms and the Level 0 DOM. All of these pieces help us put together the big puzzle as we are using JavaScript to manipulate our pages.
   
   CSS Modification
   Earlier we discussed the aspect of keeping your presentation separate from your behavior. This chapter discusses best practices for working between the two. We learn how to get style information from our elements, and then how we can add classes dynamically. We take a brief look at the possibility of changing the entire stylesheet via JavaScript. While this is a nice introduction, I think it would require a specific project.
   
   The last parts of this chapter look at some examples of keeping the clean separation, but applying some visual enhancements. We work through some examples of toggling display of elements, animating elements, and changing the dimensions and position of elements.
   
   Data Retrieval
   This chapter is all about AJAX. We look at the XMLHttpRequest object and how to make it work cross browser through some conditional checks. Once we have sent the request, we need to know how to handle the response. We look at the different statuses and response codes that we will be dealing with and how to set callback functions to handle the response. We look at the available return formats such as XML, HTML, JSON, and CSV. The final part to this chapter looks at the impact that AJAX has on accessibility.
   
   This review alone does not do this book justice. This book thoroughly discussed each and every aspect to JavaScript, from its history to looking to its future. The example scripts helped to grasp the different concepts, but the real meat of the book was in the specific coverage of each aspect. There are many books about specific aspects of JavaScript, but this book combines them all into one resource. If you are just getting your feet wet in JavaScript, then this book is the perfect book to help take you to the next level.



3. Javascript has been around for a while but it is still going places. ppk on Javascript sorts through all the fluff to deliver rock solid information. The author is using a very clear language to express his deep experience in this field.
   
   Javascript is moving fast and the book does not cover some of the recent advances like the rise of Ajax, ActionScript, Tamarin. It is still a must read for any serious (javascript) programmer.



4. This book talks about scripting the DOM. Everything is clearly exposed : the history that make browsers like they are and not better, the tree behind an HTML document and the nodes behind tags and attributes, how to use css properties for the best, and how to manage events and their properties in all browsers, and of course the core of the javascript language.
   There is nothing about objects and all other OOP stuff, so I think this book is very well suited for beginners. But specialist will also find a lot of interesting things.
   One more advantage, the presentation and layout are really more pleasant than what is generally found in this category's books.



5. I bought this book because I was familiar with the author and his website, quirksmode. I figured this guy was a master of JavaScript and a book written from him would be a solid resource to learn from.
   
   Well, I was half-right. Early on in the book he presents a script and says that you should know what it does before reading his book. Well, I knew what it was, but it's not the truth. This book is all about technique and execution. He shows innovative and great ways to implement code, but you have to know how to write javascript first. If you're not an experienced programmer or are unfamiliar with javascript, you may want to consider this book...after you've gotten a proven beginner's manual and gone through that first. Head First Javascript or Javascript in 21 days are good examples.

5 comments about Microsoft Windows 2000 Scripting Guide.

1. Este libro es una muy buena opción si deseas conocer en profundidad los secretos del "scripting" bajo entornos Windows.
   Me ha sido muy útil para poder diseñar scripts de gestión para redes de PCs. Creo que es una guía muy útil para el administrador de redes Windows.



2. I'm now up to Chaper 17 (of 18) and have read, highlighted and annotated my through the book. I've learned a tremendous amount, and have impressed my boss and coworkers with the great scripts I've been able tp put together with the aid of this book.
   Pros: Great in depth coverage of of many topics.
   Cons: It helps that I've had some minimal programming experience in college, but without ANY programming experience, this might not be the book to start with.
   
   I'm moving on to Advanced VBScript for Microsoft Windows Administrators Next.
   
   http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0735622442/qid=1143080820/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/002-6942852-0115207?s=books&v=glance&n=283155



3. Now I remember (again) why I hate Microsoft. First, they come up with a terminology all their own, then they pretend that's the standard. Like a "scripting host". Because Microsoft has a product (an add on to fix the shortcomings of DOS, as I see it) called "Windows Scripting Host", suddenly scripting hosts are standard teminology. I don't know about you, but to me a host is a machine on a network, usually a server of some kind. No, to Microsoft the Unix Boune shell is a scripting host!
   The kicker is, even though they are promugating inferior products, simply by virtue of their marketing inertia, the products are sucessful and aided by all the third party software developers, consultants and writers/reviewers who bow at the altar of corporate myopia -- usually becaus eth products cannot stand on their own. But this book makes no attempt to give an overview of how everything fits together: VBScript, WSH, WMI, Active Directory, etc., etc.
   This book is so inane, it doesn't even explain how to run the examples it is providing, until much later in the book (as another reviewer thankfully pointed out: chapter 3). This chapter, by the way, is written in the same style as the rest of the book: it sets up a straw man then argues against that. For example, in the first chapter the book makes the idiotic point that people hate scripts and think they are difficult. Who are they talking about? In chapter 3 they explain how difficult it is to use cmd.exe and how WSH is so much better. Who cares? Just explain what WSH does, period. My thinking is that the authors probably bashed cmd.exe but that was censored by corporate.
   I only use Microsoft because I have to. But I am still hoping against all odds that Linux and Mac put them out of business. Read this book only if your have to. Everything is there, just mixed up and convoluted like the Windows OS itself.



4. This book does a pretty good job of starting you out in Windows scripting. I purchased it because I am a Windows server administrator and it looked like it would help - and it did. It has to be said that the entire text of the book is on Microsoft's web site in the Technet Scriptcenter, but sometimes you want the paper in your hands as well. Another recommendation is Advanced VBScript for Microsoft Windows Administrators (also MS Press, ISBN 0735622442) if you are looking for some goodies for Windows admin like me.



5. Like most reference books from MS Press, this is the Swiss Army Knife for the professional developer and systems administrator. Everything is presented in a clear and concise manner which is easy to follow. There are many examples which can easily be adapted to your needs.

4 comments about Instant InDesign: Designing Templates for Fast and Efficient Page Layout.

1. InDesign is an extensive and powerful program which can be used for the layout and design of any project from business cards to catalogs. Those who have used InDesign for years, know it quite well and have even mastered the use of Master Pages, have not used the total power of Adobe InDesign until they have added templates to their InDesign toolbox.
   
   This book by Gabriel Powell teaches the reader how to build a template customized for any project. However, this is also a great book for InDesign novices. Powell takes a comprehensive look at the InDesign tools and techniques in general as well as how they relate to the specific task of designing templates.
   
   As you would expect, Powell begins with an explanation of what a templates is and how it can be used to the best advantage to increase consistency and production. He discusses the principles of good template design while examining the mockup for a project. Next, he uses InDesign's built-in templates as a teaching tool to explore the many elements of a template. Once you have learned how to edit existing templates, Powell moves on to the major part of his book which guides the reader step-by-step through the template design process.
   
   He begins by discussing frames and how they are the building blocks of InDesign and how page dimensions, margins, columns and grids are the framework for your template. Next are master pages, libraries, layers and text variables. When color is added to the mix, Powell explains how the all-too-familiar elements such as fills, strokes and styles apply to template design. Finally, he covers text and table formatting with paragraph and character styles.
   
   Now that the basics of template design are covered, Powell moves on to production issues for complicated documents such as large catalogs and how to build a template that will control elements that span throughout these documents such as running lists, footnotes and table of contents. Next, he discusses the markup rules for XML for data merge. Finally, its time to test and implement your new template. Powell walks you through the finishing touches such as deciding on default settings, integrating with Adobe Bridge and creating a style guide for your template.
   
   Gabriel Powell is the Senior Training Director for Metafusion Training, an Adobe Certified Instructor and a contributing author to InDesign Magazine and The Illustrator CS2 WOW! Book.



2. Just received this book and I can't believe how well-structured this is. There is a lot to say for how information is presented and this looks and feels like a professional trainer put this together. Wait! The author IS a professional trainer! The examples and text are clear and what's so cool is that he actually used InDesign CS3 to create this.
   
   So - buy this book and don't forget to retrieve the goodies by registering the purchase on the publisher's web site.



3. A few years ago I started producing a monthly newsletter for a nonprofit while getting my feet wet with Adobe InDesign. Although I had a rough idea of what I wanted to do, and refined certain elements over time, this was a very inefficient way to produce the newsletter and took much more time than I anticipated. So much so that at times I wanted to back out of the project.
   
   If I had a copy of Instant InDesign back then and followed its guidance to the letter, it would have saved me a tremendous amount of time. And because I was receiving a flat-fee, my per-hour compensation would have increased greatly by virtue of how much quicker I could have completed the task.
   
   This well-organized book takes the reader through the step-by-step process of creating templates. This is a great way to learn InDesign and reinforce earlier training. With this method, you can see how all the elements--style sheets, grids, object styles, etc.--fit into the whole process of creating a publication. With standard instruction books, the various elements of InDesign seem disjointed, so it's tempting to skip or gloss over some of them. Yes, it can be tedious to create a template, but the payoff is well worth it and a good return on your time investment.
   
   While the book makes mention of InDesign CS3, the underlying concepts apply to all versions of InDesign. Bonus chapters and tutorials from the publisher's website make this book even more compelling. The bonus files are in CS3 format, so you can't open them with earlier versions of InDesign. However, if you can get someone with CS3 to convert the files to the INX format, you can open them in earlier versions such as InDesign CS2. Considering the overall value of the book, this is a minor inconvenience.
   
   In short, this is easily one of the top three books on InDesign that I've seen. If you want to save time, boost productivity and produce more professional publications, this book is for you.



4. Good , I expected more about this book, is not that explicit on their tutorials.

5 comments about Learn to Program (Pragmatic Programmers).

1. My goal is to learn Ruby on Rails in the next year, so I wasn't disappointed that this book focuses on learning Ruby. If you want a general purpose 'learn to program' book, this book may not be for you.
   
   I liked the practices. They are particularly challenging, because no solutions or index are provided. If you get stuck on a practice, you may have to reread the chapter and still refer to your copy of the PickAxe book ("Programming Ruby" by Dave Thomas). It took me hours to discover that I needed to use the 'push' method to complete an array practice, but I _do_ remember that lesson.
   
   At times the humor is a bit adolescent, the tone too casual, but the conversational tone relaxes those of us who may be intimidated about learning a programming language. This would be an excellent starter for a high school student interested in learning to program.
   
   So, I deducted points for no practice solutions, no index, and occaisional lapses in humor, but overall it's worth the money if you want to learn Ruby.



2. I picked up this book several times at the bookstore but never purchased it until... I read the first chapter. I had always flipped through the book and thought that all of it looked like greek to me, and that I would never be able to understand it.
   
   Once I started reading it, I enjoyed it, I understood it, and I learned the concepts.
   
   I got excited and I bought the ultimate reference to Ruby the "Pick Axe" guide, and I also bought Agile Web Development with Rails.
   
   If Learn to Program would have been bad or badly written I probably would have given up on ever learning to program.
   
   If you are a web developer you owe it to yourself to check out this book. I tried to learn PHP first, but with Ruby and this beginners book to program, I am actually learning it.
   
   It would be even better if it had an index and there was a website you could go to, where you could find help/answers to the extra end of chapter questions.
   
   This is a great place to start to learn how to program.



3. While looking for a book on entry level ruby programming I came across this. The reviews were good so I bought it. I was extremely disapointed however. First, the book is very small. There simply is not a lot of content here. I did like the type and text and layout.
   
   But the biggest problem and the one not mentioned anywhere is that this is not an entry level programming book. This is one step before that. It simply is "extremely" basic. What I mean by that is that is written for someone who probably has never even messed around with any programming language at all or has a lot of computer knowledge at all. It's like a junior high course to students who don't have a clue. This is great for some, but not mentioned anywhere and surely a disappointment and worthless to anyone who has even wrote a simple hello world program before.



4. I absolutely love this book! I have tried time and time again to get different books and take different classes to learn how to program. Everything from Unix courses to Java, C++, Scripting and many more that were just plain over my head! There are too many "beginner" books that just aren't Beginner enough! I stumbled upon this book in a book store--sat and read 4 pages and knew this would be the book to finally get me programming. I sit and read a chapter or two a day with my laptop and work my way through different exercises. The wonderful thing about Ruby is that it is so versatile. The book can explain the basics and with a little imagination you can come up with your own programs that are slightly different that the exercises given. (Basically each chapter gives building blocks to teach you, but there are more than one way to stack the building blocks and you can make different style buildings with those blocks.) For instance, one assignment was to make a program ask the name of the person typing at the keyboard, then it should repeat the name and say something like, "Oh, BLANK is such a nice name..."
   
   With the building blocks of the chapter, not only was I able to create a program that did just that, I created a program that said,
   "Hi, my name is X."
   "What's your name?"
   [your typed name]
   "Wow! [your typed name] is very pretty."
   "What is your middle name?"
   [your typed middle name]
   "And your last name?"
   [your typed last name]
   "I must say, [your first][your middle][your last name] is absolutely stunning!"
   "It was nice chatting with you [your entire name]."
   
   
   
   That's one thing I love about this book. It give you the building blocks, and without too much work (because it's so well written,) you build!



5. I bought this book a couple of summers ago. My son and I (he was 11 years of age at the time) worked through most of the exercises in the book together. I took a C programming class years ago. My son is good at math and has solid logic skills. I did a web-search for books focused on teaching kids to program - and I talked to a programmer friend who said that Ruby would be a good first language - so I bought this book. I've looked at some of the recent negative reviews - and while I do think there's room for improvement (such as an answer key) here's the differentiating element: my son and I got stuck on an exercise, so Matt wrote Chris Pine (the author) an email asking for help - a personalized answer was forthcoming the next day! Bottom line: Ruby is an entirely appropriate first language to learn, and this book is extremely applicable to the beginner with no programming background. Will you have to buy a second book to continue your learning after you complete this book? Sure. But isn't that usually the case? I don't know too many books that are appropriate for both beginner and expert - this book helps one do exactly what the title states: Learn to Program. Enjoy!

5 comments about M Is For Mitten: A Michigan Alphabet Edition 1. (Discover America State By State. Alphabet Series) (Discover America State By State. Alphabet Series).

1. Amazing illustrations...great poetry...interesting facts. You'll find all three in this alphabet book about Michigan. Great to read aloud and great to read alone (again and again)....I highly recommend this book (and future books in the series) to all elementary school teachers. My second graders hurried to grab this book after I read it aloud. Unique and such a high-quality book! BUY IT!



2. "M is for Michigan" makes a wonderful coffee table book, in my opinion. I don't have young children in the home anymore, but someday hope to have grandchildren and will greatly enjoy reading this lovely book to them. While we were in Whitehall, Michigan my mother bought a copy for herself as she loves well-written children's books. Later I went back to the same store and bought one of my own. I do refer to it from time to time and although I don't have a coffee table I keep it on display on my living room bookshelf!



3. Like all of the Sleeping Bear Press books this one is also fabulous! I used this book for a literature lesson with a Michigan unit. The kids love the poems and I like the facts that go along with them. This is a delightful story that any child (especially a Michigan child) will enjoy.



4. I am a Pre-K teacher and we did a study of Michigan. I chose this book because I was familiar with it when I taught higher grades. I wasn't sure how the younger kids would repond but they really enjoyed it. Our students love this book. I do a trivia game with them every week and they can still remember what they learned. What I love about the book is that it presents the facts in a fun manner and they love the colorful and detailed pictures. I feel that this is an awesome book for any age!



5. We love this book with the way it teaches the history of Michigan to children of all ages. We buy it often as a baby gift for families with ties to Michigan who now live in other states. We want their children to know more about their parent's roots here in the beautiful state of Michigan!

4 comments about Professional ASP.NET 2.0 Special Edition (Wrox Professional Guides).

1. This is a monumental book. Almost sixteen hundred pages of hi-tech stuff. It is not for the faint of heart. It is intended for people who have at least a general understanding of how the web works with particular attention as to how a database driven web site is set up and works. Knowledge and experience with earlier versions of ASP (Active Server Pages) would be very helpful, but so would experience using other technologies such as Cold Fusion, PHP, or Java. Such knowledge is to provide you with the concepts of doing a dynamic web page consisting of a framework or template with the actual data being displayed coming from a database.
   
   The book builds on this basic understanding to start with a very simple page and go on to much more complex tasks such as the building XML web services. Along the way every aspect of ASP.NET 2.0 is discussed.
   
   ASP.NET 2.0 is the second major release of ASP.NET, Microsoft's main concept for programming dynamic web pages. The focus of the new release is on productivity. A major goal of the development team was to reduce the number of lines of code needed to program a page by two thirds. On the whole they suceeded.
   
   In addition, the book contains two CD-ROMs. One is a 180 day trial version of Visual Studio 2005. The other has about a thousand pages from about 15 other WROX books that you may find helpful in looking up background information. The book is in reference format rather than tutorial. It will be very helpful for quite a long time.



2. Wrox is a great publisher of quick and massive volumes with multiple authors. I'm a teacher and look for good values that combine clear technical information and a broad range for a low cost. This is a good choice if you have experience with ASP.NET, know your web architecture (query strings, cookies, sessions, etc.), and don't want an extended tutorial. The reasoning for why you use these things wasn't clear but the details on how to use them exceeded most of the current fare which is why I chose to teach from the text recently. The quantity of code that was provided in VB and C# was excellent but the topics were out of order for classroom use. For the ASP.NET beginner, I feel it needs to be supplemented with a more tutorial based text and then this makes an excellent companion volume.



3. This is a great ASP.NET 2.0 reference book. It is absolutely packed with information covering all areas of the product. The book is also somewhat unique in that all code snippets are provided in both VB and C#, making it useful to all developers.
   
   The authors are fantastic technical experts and speakers on .NET and ASP.NET. I think you can learn a lot from this book.



4. This is a nice book for people who have the basic idea of ASP.NET. This Book covers almost all topics for .Net2.0 . It is a very good reference book for newbie.
   Unfortunately, this book isn't in-depth for lots of topics, basically it just introduces most common cases, and you probably can't find what you want for some topics. (Eg implement Sorting and Pagation for ObjectDataSource, Crystal Report, memory management, ADO.NET in depth, .Net Virtual Machine etc). The source code is another down side for this book. Most of the code doesn't run, also the connection string wasn't right at the first place, I have to spend hours and hours to get it right.
   In conclusion, it worth to buy, if you just want learn asp.net in a fast way. It will give you the solution for most tasks. Pretty good reference book.

3 comments about Creating Cool MINDSTORMS NXT Robots (Technology in Action).

1. I have been waiting for this book even before it was wrtitten because I have wanted to build JohnNXT5 ever since I saw it posted on the Internet. This book is probably the best book so far for the Mindstorms NXT robotic system. I have purchased most of the books available for the NXT. I like Jim Kelly's books too, but this one has moved from wheels to robots that use tracks to get around and walk. It is well written and well illustrated even though the building instructions aren't in color. The author has a sense of humor as well as being well versed in the NXT system. I like the fact that he continues to refine and redevelop his creations and try to make them the best they can be. I hope to see more books from him, especially one covering the Rubic Cube solver. I congratulate the author for a job well done and highly recommend the book to all robotic nthusiasts.



2. Hi,
   
   One of the better books at this moment for the Lego Mindstorms NXT robotic set. This book is clearly written and despite the black and white images, the building instructions are also very clearly written.
   
   This book is obviously written by people who know what they are doing and motivated to reach the highest standards.
   
   After a short program in the Nxt-G programming language, they started to use the NXC programming language for the rest of the book. What makes this book so outstanding, everything is very well documented and everything is explained in great detail.
   
   This is also an easy and pleasant to read book. And many times you find here what is missing in other books. For me, esspecially the introduction of NXC was very usefull. I wanted to use C for a long time, but I did not found the answers I was searching. This book takes its time to show you the mechanics behind th programming language. It teaches you clearly how to construct event tables and how you can visualise the design process, structuring your thaughts.
   
   Also the walking models are very interesting. It gives you a clearly understanding about the problems of let a robot succesfully walk.
   
   What I do missing is coverage of the acceleration, gyroscopic and compass sensors. It should be nice if those sensors also where covered in this book. But it is almost impossible to cover everything and an author has to draw a line.
   
   The projects are well choosen and all very interesting. Personally Quasimodo I find the less interesting robot. While NXT AT-ST is in my opinion a very nice project to understand a walking robot. But I have to be honest, at this moment I am building the AT-ST robot. I did not have the time to build the other robots. Nevertheless, I took a quick look and i found the other projects also very impressive.
   
   This book is a must have for every serious Lego Mindstorms NXT builder. You definatelly will refer back when building your own creations. I gave it five stars because it is well deserved.
   
   Congratulations for the author and everybody worked behind the scenes of this book. A job very well done!
   
   I wish you all very much reading and building pleasure. This book will surely touch your creativity and imagination.
   
   Friendly greetings,
   
   Bad_Wolf



3. I've been waiting for more than 2 months to get this book. Finally I got it from amazon a few days after the book released.
   
   I have 8 NXT book, nothing is as details as Daniele's Book. The best NXT book so far.
   
   There are 6 robots describes in this book. From the concept and then step-by-step assembly it and even the guide line to program it. So you not only able to build the robot, but also teach you how it works.
   
   The cream-of-the-soup of this book of course is the JohnNXT ...... About 1/3 of the book focus on this great Robot. If you plan to build JohnNXT, this is the only book you need.
   
   I'm really impressed with Daniele, I cant wait to the next book "Lego Rubik Utopy (LRU)".

4 comments about Adobe RoboHelp 7 HTML, Essentials of.

1. Because of a new job I started a month ago, I was confronted with RoboHelp 7 HTML. After browsing around a bit, I found this workbook by Kevin Siegel. Fortunately, I was given the time at work to work through the whole book, which I did, and, believe me, I'm glad I did. The book is very informative and also interesting. It took me about 2 1/2 days until I was through, and I was never bored. Every exercise is always described step by step, which I found particularly helpful. At one point, I got a strange error in RoboHelp and wrote a mail to Iconlogic, asking for help. About 15 minutes later, I already got an answer from Kevin himself (and I learnt, that the cause for the error was myself). So, if you are in the same position as I am, order this book and work it through. It's also a great reference book afterwards, since (in my opinion) the help in RH itself is not very helpful.



2. I've worked with RoboHelp for years with no training; just learn as you go. I recently changed from using RoboHelp for Word to using RoboHelp HTML and this book has been such a help. It's full of information on the little things I didn't learn on my own. And I too have found Kevin Siegel to be exceedingly helpful when I've had questions.



3. This book is written for 8th graders. Granted, there's not much RoboHelp material out there, but don't bother with this one, or v6 or v5. 200+ pages, I lasted maybe 90 seconds.
   
   It's not a users manual, it's a tutorial, and as a tutorial you're better off clicking around the product to see what a click gets you.
   
   This is an exercise in technical writing pre-101.
   
   Every 10th word is in bold, big case, and the smallest font size anywhere looks to be about 16 pt. And the belaboring. It will bore you. To get from Step 1 to Step 2, you've got to read through 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d, and 1e replete with unnecessary screen shots with circles and ovals, like you can't find a button or a select menu by yourself. It's a children's book.
   
   If you are comfortable with, or need, or are patient with a condesceningly if not insultingly informal tone, or instructions like "maximize the window," or "save your work," or "close the browser," or "exit" then maybe the personality of this book will work for you.
   
   Else fire up the Robo interface, click around, and figure it out yourself. Use the built in tutorial, and there is always, of course, what you should expect, the RoboHelp Help.
   
   To be fair, there are good instructions, informative asides, and nuggets and Easter eggs here and there.
   
   The lasting impression, though, this book should have come with a box of crayons.
   
   



4. I would like to counter the negative criticism that this book is too simple and that it was written for children.
   I knew before I bought it that it was a tutorial, and I thought it was extremely effective at teaching the basics of a very complex product. Maybe my experience was so positive because I had never worked at any company that was generous enough to buy RoboHelp for its writers, so I had to buy the Technical Communication Suite myself.
   If someone needs a RoboHelp reference manual -- write to Adobe and tell them to get on the stick. Don't expect this book to be something it never aspired to be.

5 comments about Practical Rails Social Networking Sites (Expert's Voice).

1. Great book. It's specific enough that it can be used to develop, as the title suggests, social networking sites, but it's also a modular enough approach that it's feasible to fit the examples into a wider framework, such as adding social networking features to an existing site.
   
   (In the interest of full disclosure, I write books for Apress, who publishes this title. I didn't write *this* book, though, and I don't know the author.)
   
   David Berube
   Berube Consulting



2. I've purchased almost every Ruby on Rails book that Amazon sells as I am forced to be 'self taught' and thus must 'slug through' every book. This book is a godsend! Alan Bradburne's book is some of the finest and cleanest code I have witnessed and his approach to this book is fine. Unfortunately, I also purchased the RailsSpace - Building a Social Networking Website and this was conversely TERRIBLE. No RESTful routes, lack of direction on where they intended to go, etc.
   I heartidly recommend anyone that has to really produce a working product in Rails purchase this fine book and 'Hat's off!' to Alan Bradburne.



3. Taking readers step-by-step through the creation of the RailsCoders.net website, Practical Rails Social Networking Sites is a well paced guide to building web applications that tick many of the boxes of the moment.
   
   The book starts with basics, giving simple instructions for installing Rails on a variety of platforms, and then steps through simple content management, adding users and groups, building a blogging engine, adding a discussion forum and photo gallery, integrating with Google Maps and Flickr, and deployment. Along the way the various aspects of rails' testing framework are introduced as they're used. The style isn't test-driven, and it would have been nice to see that style introduced, but tests are written after each piece of functionality, demonstrating some of their use and importance.
   
   Judicious use is made of plugins with a number of recommendations made throughout the book. restful_authentication is referred to, but its functionality is largely duplicated in the code. That's probably a sensible move so early in the book as it's important that developers understand what the code is doing even if they're going to employ a plugin for the implementation. YM4R/GM is used to implement the Google Maps functionality and it's good to see that getting some attention in print.
   
   Readers who have already built a couple of rails apps may well find themselves skipping large chunks of content as a lot of the code will be familiar. As other reviewers have noted, it is a little curious that "The Apress Roadmap" suggests this as a more advanced title when it would probably work better for an engaged beginner than an experienced developer.
   
   Of course, the great problem with publishing any rails title right now is that version 2.0 is just around the corner, and with its release we'll see the end of built-in pagination and a few changes to the routes. As a consequence there are likely to be a number of readers who find that the examples in the book fail to run on the latest stable rails by the time they come to try them. Hopefully Apress will be able to offer a brief supplement with the book or online to help readers update the code for the new features.
   
   Practical Rails Social Networking Sites is a solid introduction illustrating how simple it can be to build useful web applications with Ruby on Rails. I'd hesitate to recommend it to anyone with rails experience, but it will be high on my list of recommendations for beginners who are wanting to dive straight in.
   
   Disclaimer: I was sent a copy of this book for review by the publisher.



4. I recently read four books on Ruby on Rails so I could ramp up on this super new framework quickly. Past experience has taught me that four books will result in at least one gem, and a dud. This one was the dud. The gem was RailsSpace: Building a Social Networking Website with Ruby on Rails (Addison-Wesley Professional Ruby Series) - which also teaches ROR through building a social networking site. I will review RailsSpace on its Amazon page.



5. If you're contemplating or actually building a social-networking website in Rails this book is worth buying. You can learn a lot by going through it from start to finish, or just take a gander at the chapter(s) that concern you.
   Alan writes well and you get a chance to see how things are done in the real world as opposed to a tutorial.
   If your site is social-network related, I also recommend RailsSpace. These two books should give you a great head-start or the final answer on any "How do I do that"? type of question.

3 comments about Teach Yourself VISUALLY Flash CS3 Professional (Teach Yourself VISUALLY (Tech)).

1. Where to start? For openers, this line from the above product description is a lie:
   
   "* Demonstrates what readers need to know about Flash to build animation sequences as well as more advanced features like using ActionScript to create an interactive Web experience"
   
   Why? Allow me to spoil the ending for you by typing in the only reference to Actionscript in the book. Ready?
   
   "Actions and Actionscript
   Flash actions are built on a programming language called Actionscript. This scripting language allows you to write instructions that control a movie. If you know how to write scripting programming code, you can certainly write your own actions in Flash. However, you do not need to know a scripting language to create actions. Flash includes hundreds of prewritten scripts, or actions, you can assign."
   
   I kid you not, that is the entire section on Actionscript, taken from the bottom left corner of page 238. To be fair to Amazon and the publisher (who puts out great books), the book itself does not boast Actionscript! It is a fabrication created by the person who put it here on Amazon-a place I trust less and less to describe books here accurately.
   
   Sorry, but its the truth.
   
   This book gets 2 stars because it is a good first glance at flash for someone who has never heard of, or seen, flash before.



2. 'Teach Yourself VISUALLY Flash CS3 Professional' is a good guide with full color throughout its ~350 pages spread over 15 chapters. If you are looking to do BASIC Flash development this is a great resource to have by your side. If you are looking to do advanced Flash development with ActionScript this book isn't for you. AS is barely discussed and is just glossed over. Good for the beginners, not for people looking to become experts. You have been warned.
   
   Still not a bad book though!!
   
   **** RECOMMENDED



3. I found this book to be the perfect tool for starting out trying to learn the Flash program. It's simple, easy to understand, and straight to the point. I needed some help in a hurry, and didn't have time to wade through a bunch of text. If you're visually inclined, then this book may appeal to you. I'm not ready to start writing my own scripts in Flash yet, but that's best suited for another book anyway (gotta crawl before you walk).