5 comments about X Power Tools.

1. I have been using X11 with OpenBSD for at least 5 years now. I have
   become knowledgeable about using KDE, less so about using X by itself.
   
   This book filled in quite a few gaps in my knowledge of X, but it did not
   provide me with the information I need to solve a problem making a new
   monitor run at its rated maximum resolution.
   
   I had been running with a 21" crt at 2048x1546, but the 9-year-old crt
   was wearing out. So I bought a 19" ACER lcd display with maximum
   resolution of 1440x900. The new display would not work at all with the
   default xorg.conf generated by "X -configure". The problem turned out to
   be the driver, which was specified as "ati". When I changed the driver
   spec to "vesa", X came up at 1280x1024 and worked well. But I have so
   far not been able to get the monitor to run in 1440x900.
   
   The book does a pretty good job of explaining the xorg.conf file.
   Modelines are mentioned briefly in the text, but not in the index. There
   are no formulas given for computing modeline data to be included in the
   xorg.conf file. No mention is made of the various values (eg ati, vesa)
   that can be specified for X drivers. There is no list of validated modes
   in the Xorg.0.log file. So after reading the book I still have not
   figured out how to make my monitor run in 1440x900.
   
   The book describes how to support keyboards for multiple countries, but
   it was not clear to me after reading it how to display the corresponding
   characters for (eg French,German,Russian) characters in addition to
   English.
   
   That said, I give the book a 4-star rating. There seems to be no other
   current, up-to-date book on X. I'm glad I have a copy to study and write
   notes in.



2. According to the author of the book in review:" This book is written for experienced
   computer users...".
   
   Nothing can be further from the truth. In reality this is a very elementary
   text on X window system that probably would not be worth of buying if not for the excellent Chapter 3 which does a great job in systematically explaining
   structure of xorg.conf file. It is also the only book written in the past ten years entirely dedicated to X window system.
   
   At the beginning of the chapter 6 the author brags about the
   fact that he will discuss often ignored utility programs which ships with X window
   system. That is quite an overstatement as after the reading of chapters 6, 7, and 8
   one would not be able even to configure mice for a left-handed person.
   
   The book in review is just a part of the general trend which can be summarized in the following observation:" As the use of computer technology has seen unprecedented
   expansion in the past 20-30 years the computer literacy of an average computer user
   has shrunk to zero". I can just add that above observation seems nowadays apply
   to so called "power users" too.
   
   At the end, I shell mentioned that the book is written by a GNU/Linux user but the
   author made a genuine attempt to write in a fashion which would make the text useful
   to Unix users. In an era of great ignorance by a large part of GNU/Linux
   community about Unix the author's approach should be commended.



3. The X Window System is the foundation of graphical desktops on both Linux and Unix systems and supports advanced features of modern graphics cards, so X Power Tools' articles on the topic are a top pick for any advanced computer library specializing in Unix. It offers an introduction to how the system works, considers useful utility programs and applications, covers software that work with X, and reviews the basics of building networks and systems with X. Any advanced Unix or Linux computer reference library will find it useful and specific.



4. Ever since making Linux my primary OS of choice, I have found it impossible to find a cogent explanation of the different pieces of software that result in the graphical desktop. There are X, session managers, window managers, compositing managers, and desktop environments. Happily, this book explains these pieces of software, their purpose and the way they interact, and does it in a way that is accesible to the intermediate *nix user while still providing a satisfying amount of technical detail. It also provides tools for managing the software and tweaking it to make it do what you want.



5. 'X Power Tools' is a book for Linux admins and developers who want to learn how to use Linux better than ever before. With 250+ pages of material spread over 15 chapters and close to 200 recipes, this is perfect for anyone looking to do more with the X Windows system.
   
   Great book, great resource, easy recommendation
   
   ***** RECOMMENDED

3 comments about Faster Smarter Beginning Programming (Faster Smarter).

1. I am a Systems Admin who knows networking like the back of my hand and support hundreds of systems running numerous OSs. I can develop dynamic web sites using PHP & mySQL, and I use javascript. But as most of you know, those in the development community don't consider those true programming languages (since they're just scripting languages), thus it doesn't make you a true programmer. I have always been interested in 'someday' learning to program. Well, I finally decided to start the process. I first tried to tackle what language to choose. Since VB is so widespread and (enter comment here) Windows does command a very high percentage of the desktop arena, I chose VB .NET.

   The problem was that I have no formal programming experience, and most books on VB .NET tried to teach you by comparing it to VB6. Also, since VB6 was not fully OO, I didn't want to learn a programming paradigm just to use it as a stepping stone to another, when the first is clearly phased out. Either that, or I would find books or online tutorials that would explain the IDE and say OK that's it. Just put your code in here and you're good to go. But what if you don't know how to code?

   I needed a book that taught a technically proficient professional how to program from the ground up using the most recent version of VB without reference to other versions.

   That is exactly what you get and more. It gives you everything you need from the very basics and builds on the skills you learned. It also gives great code examples then walks you through every line of code explaining exactly what it did. Finally, it offers a tutorial on the subject you just learned using the code it just explained line by line.

   This is not for intermediate programmers or experienced programmers that are new to VB. It truly is what it says in the Intro of the book...

   If you are an experienced PC user who's never delved into programming but now has the itch, this is the book that will get you started. It presumes you're proficient with Windows & Windows Apps but wouldn't know a line of code if it came up and bit you.

   Highly recommended.




2. Although I'm only 80% finished with the book, I believe I can review it now.
   
   The reason being that the remaining chapters (9-12)
   pertain to non-groundwork topics
   (i.e.designing windows forms, web page programming).
   Obviously an intro. to more advanced uses of programming.
   
   The author, Jim Buyens, consistently writes in a clear, modern, and organized way.
   He lives up to teaching the basics (plus techniques!).
   I have only found 1 mistake in his sample code, and it was an uncritical piece.
   
   There is even some sincere humor in chapter subtitles.
   i.e.
   Chapter 7 subtitle "a touch of class[*]".
   *group of properties and methods.
   
   If you buy, a real learning effort is a must.
   
   definitely a five star!



3. While only having been through the first couple chapters, this book is written like it is referring to Microsoft Visual Studio 2005, but some of the menus referred to actually are for an earlier version of Visual Studio, so you have to do some investigation of what is available from the program that matches the text.
   The first program did not work as the author predicted; I followed directions but running the program led to errors.

5 comments about Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) Compass: Business Value, Planning, and Enterprise Roadmap (developerWorks Series).

1. The whole subject of SOA, or Service Oriented Architecture, is getting to be ever-more mainstream in IT organizations. Being able to build systems using a web services architecture presents some very real advantages, but how do you know where to begin? From an architecture and structure viewpoint, this book does a pretty good job... Service-Oriented Architecture Compass: Business Value, Planning, and Enterprise Roadmap by Norbert Bieberstein, Sanjay Bose, Marc Fiammante, Keith Jones, and Rawn Shah.
   
   Contents: Introducing SOA; Explaining the Business Value of SOA; Architecture Elements; SOA Project Planning Aspects; Aspects of Analysis and Design; Enterprise Solution Assets; Determining Non-Functional Requirements; Securing the SOA Environment; Managing the SOA Environment; Case Studies in SOA Deployment; Navigating Forward; Glossary; Index
   
   Given the right audience, this has a lot of valuable information. If you're a developer looking for information on how to code a web service, then you'll likely be highly disappointed. This book is *not* a coding tutorial, nor does it profess to be. It really serves as a guide on how an SOA environment can be built and leveraged within an organization. I would see this as being a great book for an application architect trying to position an organization's overall application strategy. For a person like that, all the important concepts are to be found here. There's the "why"... why be concerned with SOA? There's the "who"... Who in your organization plays a part in designing and building these services to be used by the business? And of course, there's a lot of "what"... What are the parts that make up an SOA implementation, and what does an organization have to take into account to make it all work together? It's easy enough to build a web service to look up a name or something, and to think you're now leveraging SOA. The reality is much deeper and more fundamental than just rolling out a web service here and there... An additional feature of the book that makes it unique is that it references online developerWorks articles on the IBM web site in order to add more information to the mix. Oh, and I probably should mention that since it's an IBM Press book, there's a heavy slant towards IBM examples and software. But overall, the core information is vendor-neutral, and it's material you'll need to understand in order to make an SOA implementation a success.
   
   Don't think you'll sit down, read the book in a couple of hours, and then be all-knowing when it comes to SOA. The material takes time to read and understand. But once you make it all the way through, you should be well-grounded in the fundamentals behind it all.



2. I enjoyed the book. It was well-written in clear language, presenting a concise set of principles for a successful SOA strategy.
   
   This book was an eye-opener for me. It presents SOA as something that you grow into. It described SOA in terms of the business benefits that it leads to, namely agility and flexibility. The authors filled the book with wise advice. It opened my eyes to the path that lay ahead of me.
   
   The authors suggest a close working relationship between business process owners and the technical staff. They claim this is a critical foundation for being able to create services which are indeed flexible and lead to business agility.
   
   The 2 case studies at the end of the book could have included more details.
   
   If you're looking ahead for your own SOA development efforts, definitely pick up this book as you plan projects, evaluate staffing needs, design your architecture, and consider
   software purchases.



3. This new book from IBM Press released in October 2005 provides valuable inputs for someone looking for an authentic source to obtain a roadmap on SOA. Having said that, the 11 chapters present only a high level view of the topics. For instance, it clarifies that SOA is Platform, Protocol and Programming language independent. These and other aspects relating to backward and forward compatibility, the Enterprise Service Bus, the On Demand Operating Environment (ODOE) are all compressed into one chapter, Chapter-3 titled "Architecture Elements". Chapter-4 presents the SOA Adoption Roadmap with a brief set of tips for success which make interesting reading. Chapter-4 also takes a look at existing roles in IS projects and redefines some of them and introduces new ones. The UDDI Designer, UDDI Administrator and the Services Governor are new roles that I found interesting. Chapter-5 deals with Analysis and Design of Service layers through abstraction and how to categorize them. Chapter-6 carries the interesting analysis and design discussion forward and states that finding the correct asset to solve the enterprise architechture problem is difficult. The chapter discusses 2 scenarios with pros and cons and consequences of each approach with diagrams that are good.
   
   I found these 4 chapters (3-6) of the 11 the highlights of the book. I am looking forward to delving deeper into SOA architecture from other books. This book provided a good foundation for understanding SOA.



4. I enjoyed this book and found a lot of valuable information and insight into SOA concepts and issues.



5. I read this book after reading Enterprise SOA: Service-Oriented Architecture Best Practices By Dirk Krafzig; Karl Banke; Dirk Slama. That is the best book on SOA in my opinion. So may be I am a little biased, but following are my comments:
   1. I found it highly theoretical. It tries to explain a lot of concepts, but does not use practical examples. This is in total contrast to the book I mentioned, which keeps the information interesting and readers can relate to it easily.
   2. The case studies sections seem to be done hastily and there is no practical knowledge which you can get from them. They seem to be simple applications of web services. The authors use buzzwords like hub centric architecture etc. to make them look different.
   3. Authors use all available opportunities to promote IBM products.

No comments about Desktop GIS: Mapping the Planet with Open Source Tools.

5 comments about The Computer and the Brain: Second Edition (Mrs. Hepsa Ely Silliman Memorial Lectures).

1. Perhaps the most famous and often quoted line in this remarkable book appears on page 39, where von Neumann declares that "The most immediate observation regarding the nervous system is that its functioning is prima facie digital."

   The "prima facie" modifier is commonly taken to mean von Neumann saw the brain as "obviously digital," or "patently digital," and that it therefore must resemble a digital computer. But as you read the rest of the book, you quickly discover that this is not what John von Neumann intended. Von Neumann uses words cautiously and precisely, and to him, "Prima facie" means exactly what it says: "on its face."

   In 1956, the brain appeared digital. But von Neumann thought this impression might be superficial. He thought that deeper biological investigation might well demonstrate that the nervous system is not, in fact, digital, or not completely digital. He believed it might work in some more sophisticated way, and suggests that perhaps some intermediate signaling mechanism, a hybrid between analog and digital, might be at work in the brain. For this and other reasons he actively resisted labeling the brain as a digital computer.

   In the mid 90s, evidence began to appear that von Neumann was probably right to reserve his judgment. These curious new results show that a single nerve impulse is somehow able to convey information to the brain. This signal seems distinctly un-digital. A number of theories have popped up, some attempting to explain this whopping new mystery, others attempting to explain it away. But its impact on neurophysiology, and on conventional computer models of the brain, is pretty shocking. Not to say, devastating. (See Spikes, by Rieke et al, for a readable account of this story.) When the smoke clears, it would not be surprising if people go all the way back to John von Neumann, looking for traction, fresh starting points, and for von Neumann's wonderfully broad sense of what is possible in neurobiology - a sense we have evidently lost to progress in the years since he wrote this splendid essay.

   Von Neumann did not include in this book his interesting views on the nervous system of the eye. He was an early adopter of visual memory systems in digital computers, and he was evidently intrigued by the way the retinal cells of the eye are arranged to look backward, that is, toward the screen of the back wall of the eye. Possibly he thought the retinal cells saw back there a thin film diffraction pattern. You can find his interest in the nervous system of the eye remarked in his brother Nicholas Vonneumann's book, John von Neumann as seen by his Brother, and this reminiscence is also paraphrased in Poundstone's Prisoner's Dilemma. Finally, some of the worldly story of von Neumann, his digital computers, and their role in the creation of the hydrogen bomb can be found in MaCrae's biography.




2. Perhaps the most famous and often quoted line in this remarkable book appears at the beginning of Part II, where von Neumann declares that "The most immediate observation regarding the nervous system is that its functioning is prima facie digital."

   The "prima facie" modifier is commonly taken to mean von Neumann saw the brain as "obviously digital," or "patently digital," and that it therefore must resemble a digital computer. But as you read the rest of the book, you quickly discover that this is not what John von Neumann intended. Von Neumann uses words cautiously and precisely, and to him, "Prima facie" means exactly what it says: "on its face."

   In 1956, the brain appeared digital. But von Neumann thought this impression might be superficial. He thought that deeper biological investigation might well demonstrate that the nervous system is not, in fact, digital, or not completely digital. He believed it might work in some more sophisticated way, and suggests that perhaps some intermediate signaling mechanism, a hybrid between analog and digital, might be at work in the brain. For this and other reasons he actively resisted labeling the brain as a digital computer.

   In the mid 90s, evidence began to appear that von Neumann was probably right to reserve his judgment. These curious new results show that a single nerve impulse is somehow able to convey information to the brain. This is distinctly un-digital. A number of theories have popped up, some attempting to explain this whopping new mystery, others attempting to explain it away. But its impact on neurophysiology, and on conventional computer models of the brain, is pretty shocking. Not to say, devastating. (See Spikes, by Rieke et al, for a readable account of this story.) When the smoke clears, it would not be surprising if people go all the way back to John von Neumann, looking for traction, fresh starting points, and for von Neumann's wonderfully broad sense of what is possible in neurobiology - a sense of possibilities we have evidently lost in the years since he wrote this splendid essay. He is eloquent on the problem of selecting a memory "organ," and evidently thought the worst choice would be a neuron.

   Von Neumann did not include in this book his interesting views on the nervous system of the eye. He was an early adopter of visual memory systems in digital computers, and he was evidently intrigued by the way the retinal cells of the eye are arranged to look backward, that is, toward the screen of the back wall of the eye. Possibly he thought the retinal cells saw back there a thin film diffraction pattern. You can find his interest in the nervous system of the eye remarked in his brother Nicholas Vonneumann's book, John von Neumann as seen by his Brother, and this reminiscence is also paraphrased in Poundstone's Prisoner's Dilemma. Finally, some of the worldly story of von Neumann, his digital computers, and their role in the creation of the hydrogen bomb can be found in MaCrae's biography.




3. Von Neumann was one of the most celebrated and prolific mathematicians of the 20'th century; his contributions were legion, and always bore unmistakable creativity and elegance. "The Computer and the Brain" is a record of a lecture series that von Neumann delivered at Yale University in 1957. In these lectures, von Neumann set out to explore connections between computing hardware and their biological counterparts; brains. Von Neumann compared neurons with physical computing elements in terms of size, speed, heat dissipation, capacity, etc., in an attempt to discover what, if anything, could be said to unite them or to set them apart. He drew from what had been learned in designing computer instructions and memories in an attempt to glean some insight into what the brain might be doing. Ever the consummate mathematician, von Neumann was guarded in his statements, never over-reaching or confusing speculation with fact.

   The ideas contained in these lectures will come as no great surprise to most scientists today; indeed, I would expect most to simply nod in agreement at most of von Neumann's observations. For example, von Neumann notes that neurons are essentially digital in that they have an all-or-nothing activation energy. However, it is interesting to see how seriously he pursues the idea that the brain may rely upon a mixture of analog and digital encodings; he took absolutely nothing for granted, and may well have been vastly ahead of his time.

   Although von Neumann's many references to vacuum tubes and differential analyzers may seem archaic today, his central points remain essentially intact. I'm certain that von Neumann would have felt somewhat vindicated by the explosive advances in semiconductor devices (in both digital and analog incarnations), as well as in machine learning and neurobiology. One can perhaps view von Neumann's lectures as the first glimmerings of what would eventually become fruitful exchanges between computer science and various biological disciplines.

   If you are looking for a discussion that will give you some insight into artificial intelligence, neural networks, or brain physiology, then I'm afraid you will likely be disappointed with this book. While many of von Neumann's observations may have been controversial at the time, they have for the most part moved quietly into the collective consciousness of scientists. However, if you have interest in either the historical development of these ideas, or in seeing how one of the preeminent minds of the 20'th century approached this vexing new problem, then it will be worth your time.

   What I most enjoyed about this book is von Neumann's methodical and exceedingly cautious approach, coupled with his occasional willingness to speculate. As the vast majority of von Neumann's writings are accessible only to a very small audience, such as his enormously influential treatises on quantum mechanics, geometry, and game theory, and his pioneering work in areas such as functional analysis and operator theory, this little book is perhaps unique in that it lets you in on the ground floor.




4. After the quick read that it was this morning I am left uncertain as to exactly how I feel about this book. On the positive side even though one does get the feeling that The Computer and the Brain is slightly dated (1958) it has held up remarkably well despite the extreme rate of technological development. On the negative side though it is a bad sign when the most enjoyable part of a book is the foreword.
   
   The cover of the book basically tells the whole story, apples and oranges- for while as von Neumann recognizes that "the most immediate observation regarding the nervous system is that its functioning is prima facie digital" the connection between them is not as strong as a first glance might suggest.
   
   There doesn't seem to be too much that a study of one can teach us about the other but maybe finding out that lack of an underling connection is just as useful as finding such a connection. While this book is a fairly good recitation of the facts (at least as they were known in 1958) I can't say there is really much here to recommend it to the casual reader- think that only as a reference work can this book gain high praise.



5. The Computer and the Brain, by John von Neumann, is theoretical work which examines mathematics, logic's, and statistics as the basic tools of information. The book explores how these subjects make up the entirety of the planning, usage and coding of computers. The author explores how mathematics and logic are related to the functions of the organic human brain in the same way they are applied to the artificial automated computer processor.

1 comments about Google Maps Mashups with Google Mapplets.

1. This is a pretty good intro book for Google maps. I was hoping for a little more depth, though. If you know nothing about Google Maps Mashups this is a good place to start but know that you may need a more advanced reference once you've been introduced. Well written and illustrated. Code examples are good. I went through the examples in the book and they all worked.

2 comments about Effective Prototyping for Software Makers (Interactive Technologies).

1. As a visual interface designer (and a reviewer of this book while in its manuscript stages), and as someone who has worked for fifteen years in software interface design, I recommend this book. The authors are experienced designers themselves, and this book is strong on both theory and practical advice. It can be read through in page order or used as a reference for just-in-time help. The text provides detailed advice about how to select and use appropriate tools for building various kinds of prototypes, how to plan for the full range of prototyping activities, and guidelines for basic visual interface design. As far as I know, there is no other text available covering this range of topics.
   
   The authors also talk about important process issues, and talk about how prototyping is used to learn not only about product features but also about users and markets. They argue that prototypes are a risk-reducing activity, and this business case for prototyping may the best way to promote adoption of more and better prototyping practices.
   
   The text is well organized and does a good job of identifying appropriate techniques for early, mid-term, and late development phases. This won't substitute for actual professional experience, but it will undoubtedly save many readers from choosing the wrong method at the wrong time. The book is a virtual template for best practices in software prototyping.
   
   Another important aspect of the book is the author's attention to the value of prototyping in supporting collaborative work and building a shared sense of purpose and strategy among teams. It's another argument that ought to appeal to management.
   
   This is an ideal text for software engineers and designers who have not done much prototyping as well as students in engineering, design, and human factors. I recommend it to my own clients who are still developing their capability in this area. A basic familiarity with the aspects of prototyping presented in this volume should really be considered a part of the fundamental knowledge base of anyone in the software development field.



2. Two stars to the publisher. This book is verbose, as most American books are. It is good of course to clarify concepts and to repeat them in different chapters, but my impression after having read a part of it is that it is definitely too much, as the same concept is repeated three or four times withing two-three pages.
   I am sure that this 560 pages book could have been published on 200-250 pages. Not only because the text could have been shorter. Some images are used two or three times in the book even unnecessarily, and some of them provide a little value add to the comprehension. Moreover, a large amount of space is being used for visual maps that represent steps in the process, as if designers were children who need large coloured titles repeated throughout the whole book extensively as signposts.
   Quite a good reference to all different prototyping techniques, but as a professional IA and UI designer, I am sure that this stuff is obsolete compared to what one can find on the web.

5 comments about Agile Modeling: Effective Practices for Extreme Programming and the Unified Process.

1. For those few places left that steep themselves in documentation and don't have a legally-required reason to do so (do they exist?), this book should help motivate why producing too much documentation and doing too much modeling up front can hurt rather than help. Even for a company that sees itself as lightweight, he's got some rough assessments you can do to see if you're overdoing things, which were relevant even where I work.

   The only bad thing is that it was a very theory and ideal oriented book. It didn't contain concrete examples of what Agile Modeling would look like on a real project, how it would feel, and how what models were produced would evolve. This made it a bit difficult to verify my interpretation of the book.




2. Good book with lots of behind the scenes process info about how to implement agile modeling techniques. If you are looking for step by step instructions to modeling or how to model, look elsewhere. It doesn't cover specific modeling, but techniques. Some of the techniques are common sense, but there were lots of suggestions of how to apply them in a difficult political environment. I did not completely agree with the often repeated
   statement that unless you apply all of the techniques you cannot truly claim agile modeling success, which I think is a somewhat arrogant statement. Agile modeling is a huge cultural change and implementing as much as possible, if not all, is still a great idea.



3. Agile modeling is about the latest approach to the modeling of Business Information Systems. This book focuses on the Agile method and also describes how to incorporate the strong points of UML. The book will be an aid to "survive" in the jungle of developing modern BI Systems. There are IT decision makers that are not aware of Agile, since Agile is a mind shift, be careful how you introduce the new ideas to these decision makers. The book is for the IT professional (all levels), who wants to be in the forefront of software development. If you are in the "nuts and bolts" of systems development, do yourself a favour and look also at "Agile Database Techniques", by the same author.



4. This is a mix of good, bad, and annoying
   
   Good: the author really does know a lot about modeling (except data modeling, see "Bad") and gives good explanations and examples of many aspects of modeling at many stages in the development process. If you can plough through his 350+ pages, you will have found many stimulating and practical concepts and some good advice on implementing them.
   
   A very good chapter is Chapter 29 - a discussion of how to implement Agile Modeling - or really, any agile practice - in a usually hostile world. Some battle scars showing here!
   
   I also like that he does not consider the UML the be-all and end-all of modeling tools. Like him, I've found good use for the trusty old DFD (Data Flow Diagram) of the 70's, where appropriate.
   
   And his overall message - that the agile approach can extend to your design and modeling task, not just code, and the implications for minimizing the documentation effort - is very strong.
   
   I find his reference to quick diagrams "on the back of a napkin" a bit overdone. Sure, the quick informal diagram is excellent, but paper napkins are not the best medium! Hand-drawn on a piece of paper, or a card, sure...if you are discussing models in a bar or restaurant with that degree of focus...get a life!
   
   Whiteboard and digital camera can certainly be used much more than they are. But the overall point is excellent: that when you are documenting (and he has some difficulty separating out "modeling" from "documenting" and acknowledges the problem) you are not creating the end-product, and there is a cost for that. "Travel light" - yes. As Einstein said "Everything should be as simple as possible, but no simpler."
   
   Bad: his data model example is terrible. What's with adding surrogate keys to every table? This is a pernicious practice that has become all too common from people who never learned relational theory and try to fit relational into the object model. A giveaway is that he calls his "identity" columns "persistent object identifiers." Yes, sometimes they are necessary or useful, but in general the natural key is way better. In his Customer table, there is a customer number - but it's not the primary key, a pesky OID is! He himself acknowledges that this may give performance problems, or at least not be optimal. It implies more indexing and triggers...oh well, enough already. Just don't let RDBMS gurus like Fabian Pascal or Joe Celko see that chapter.
   
   Slightly annoying: A few little niggles about English usage etc - by now you would think that any publisher's editor would know that "supersede" has no "c" in it, and that you can't be "reticent to" something - the word is "reluctant. Odd. On the other hand, thank goodness for someone who understands why it's "co-located" not the bizarre "collocated" that I see far too often.
   
   Really annoying: Basically, Einstein's phrase above could have replaced about half the book. It's incredibly repetitious, and also over-organized, over-conceptualized, over-categorized, generally over-inflated. We need a discipline of Agile Communication! An end to ListMania! A thoroughgoing refactoring of the contents is in order. His four Parts and thirty Chapters contain massive redundancy. The matching of agile modeling precepts, in finest detail, to the equally excruciating detail of the RUP, is really an unnecessary exercise. We don't have TIME for this!
   
   As someone else said, a short White Paper could have replaced the entire book. Hence the two stars, good though some of the material is.



5. Not much information other than what you can read on his website. I was looking for something much more prescriptive in terms of how to model in an agile way and how to communicate the model.

5 comments about Podcast Solutions: The Complete Guide to Podcasting (Solutions).

1. I started out knowing diddly squat about podcasting. I read "Podcast Solutions" by Michael Geoghegan (what's up with that name?) and Dan Klass and now I know everything. But much more important than my over-generous opinion of myself I got my podcast up swiftly, easily and on time thanks to this incredible book.
   
   They answer questions with the insight of someone who really knows all the angles, who really knows what they are talking about, who has actually done it. The book will take you through the entire process and get you up and running. And isn't that what it's really all about?
   
   I especially enjoyed Chapter 10 "Getting Heard" which offers rich detail and many astonishing ideas about how to get people to actually listen to your podcast. And isn't that what it's really all about?
   
   Finally, the price on this book is right. Just right. Enough to make you realize you're getting something valuable (which you are) and low enough that it's well within reach of anyone who's ever splurged on a cup of Starbuck's coffee. And isn't that what it's really all about?
   
   Buy the book. Do it now! Buy a brand new book all for yourself. Don't chintz out and get a used one from Amazon. There's a CD inside that you need and it will probably be missing from any used copy.



2. Yes, it's true. I'm contemplating adding a podcast to my blog. So, I bought "Podcast Solutions" on Amazon and read it, front to back. This is a very useful book, and it comes with a CD of demo software you can use for podcasting.
   
   Anyone who is thinking about podcasting should read this book BEFORE they start purchasing any equipment. One of the most valuable things I found in this book was information about the equipment you will need to get start. A large portion of this book is devoted to getting good quality recordings from your recording sessions so that it doesn't turn potential listeners off with popping, clicking, hissing, etc.
   
   One of the other great things I found in this book is podsafe music. Never heard of it? Podsafe music is music from independent artists that is licensed for you to use it free of charge in your podcasts. Check out these sites: GarageBand and PodShow. The music is really good. I'm digging it.



3. Until someone writes something really comprehensive, this is the best there is in podcasting.



4. Michael Geoghegan and Dan Klass have done a great job in this 240 page book on podcasting. A great book for any podcaster. They do a good job of taking you through all of the steps necessary to learning podcasting. The book runs the gamut of the steps you'll need to preparing your podcast, to recording and subsequently publishing your podcast on the web.The book is easy to follow and has lots of links to websites for additional reference. Overall the best book on the market for podcasting.



5. What is podcasting?
   
   If you don't know by now - what's wrong, have you been living under a rock? ;)
   
   A little over a year ago, I had no clue. I actually thought it was using an iPod to broadcast mp3s over FM waves to a radio (which is actually done quite often, but has nothing to do with podcasting). In fact, podcasting has little to do with iPods at all. If I had had a copy of this book a year ago, I would have know that - and a whole lot more!
   
   "Podcast Solutions: The Complete Guide to Podcasting" is just that - a complete guide. Have no idea what podcasting is? This will tell you. Know what it is, but not how to listen to them? This book will tell you. Would you like to know how podcasting started? Look no further. Ever wondered what the relationship between podcasting and blogging is? You can find out. Want to start your own podcast? Then this is the book for you! It even comes with a CD with all the software you'll need to start podcasting right away, and it doesn't matter if you use Windows, Mac OS X, or even Linux - the CD has software for all three platforms. The book even tells you how to start making money with podcasts!
   
   From recording the audio to publishing the XML to getting your podcast heard - it's all in the book. You should really pick this book up if you have any interest at all in podcasting. Highly recommended!

5 comments about Managing Gigabytes: Compressing and Indexing Documents and Images (The Morgan Kaufmann Series in Multimedia Information and Systems).

1. As others have said, MG is a good introductory text for Information Retrieval. However I think it spends a little too much time on compression techniques and lacks a good discussion of incremental or on-line indexing. The book tends to assume that the set of texts to be searched is static - if new documents can be added or old ones deleted it makes the whole problem much harder and many of MG's techniques are no longer relevant. That said, I strongly look forward to Managing Terabytes (if it ever appears).



2. This is the only book there is that will actually teach you how to build an information retrieval system (aka search engine). It discusses all the algorithms and tradeoffs, and comes with free downloadable source code to experiment with. Some of the material is standard, but covered in more implementation detail here than anywhere else. Some of the material is novel: you won't find better coverage of compression unless you hand-assemble twenty research papers, and reverse-engineer them to figure out how they're implemented. But with "Managing Gigabytes", it's all here. (Although, after a particularly envigorating discussion of how to string together a bunch of techniques to compress their corpus and save a couple 100MB, I did a check and found you could buy 512MB of RAM for less than the cost of the book. Knowledge is Power, but sometimes a little cash is more powerful.) The only negative is that this book is not called "Managing Terabytes", as the first edition promised/threatened it might be. RAM and disk are cheap, but not that cheap, and for now terabytes (and sometimes petabytes) are managed only by NASA, Google, and a few others. I can't wait to see the third edition!



3. Managing Gigabytes is the best book out there on information retrieval. If you're interested in implementing your own IR system, there's nothing available that comes close to this book. But the book is good not just because it's the only one out there: the writing is excellent, the algorithms are presented clearly and explained well, and the coverage is thorough. Additionally, the coverage of compression algorithms is the best I've found in any book. All algorithms and pseudo-code in the book are presented clearly enough such that any competent programmer should be able to implement them. If all else fails, however, the free downloadable source code for the mg system can fill in any gaps.

   All in all, this is the best computer science book I've purchased in years. I wish all CS books were written like this one: it doesn't skimp on the theory or on the implementation details.




4. A wonderful feature of this book spans out practicality for various topics including compresion algorithms and theory, document and imaging system and information retrieval. On my personal interest, the authors highlight a vast list of not only the theory but present it in a simple common sense logic.
   
   There are several examples that break down complex processes into simple and easy to understand logic and the pages provides a smooth flow of the structured topics. Well organised, presented and fully informative.
   
   Truly an ideal book. This serves as a superior text for students studying document and imaging systems, processing and information and multimedia retrieval subjects. Beautiful!!!
   
   Just on a personal note, it would be great to see some emphasis in the future editions in regards to web mining applications.



5. It has been 8 years since it was published and I could see it is still one of the best in IR field. Without much long magic equations, it is not hard for common user to pick it up. There are mainly 2 parts in the book, the first book is compression, most of them are just principle introduction since it does not make sense for the read to invent or implement an algorithm. The second part is indexing (plus some query) which I highly recommended because it is "practical".
   The authors are smart guys who could do sth, google mg for their website and mg4j for the ported java implementation.