3 comments about Practical Django Projects (Pratical Projects).

1. This book certainly doesn't disappoint. The examples are excellent, and can easily be abstracted and applied to just about any Django project. I found the TemplateTag examples to be particularly helpful.
   
   The book is an easy read, and is a great companion to The Deinfitive Guide to Django. Two thumbs way up.



2. The final, and best, section of this book covers a few topics that have personally revolutionized my understanding and how I think about developing my Django applications. James goes to great lengths to explain the philosophy behind Django's concept of reusable applications.
   
   The idea here is that one should strive to develop small, tightly-focused, and loosely coupled applications (or modules) that can be plugged into any application to add instant functionality. In fact, a large portion of what makes Django such an attractive framework--it's auto-generated admin interface, and copious add-on library--are developed in this exact same fashion. It's one of the reason's Django is so powerful and easy to adopt.
   
   With few Django books on the market at this point, I would recommend Practical Django Projects to anyone who has at least cursory experience with web development or web frameworks. By going through the two substantial projects in this book, a competent developer can hone their Django skills to a level that some have reached only after months or years. This book is short for the amount of useful information it will impart on you; at a thin 256 pages, you'll be speeding through chapters at a nice brisk pace that satisfied my scatterbrained personality.
   
   [...]



3. If you found that you have worked through the tutorial on the official Django website and are still wanting more, this is the book to get. I started working with Django about 2 months ago and first purchased The Definitive Guide to Django. I am not to familiar with any type of web or other programming and definitely not familiar with web frameworks. After working through the guide and reading some of the online documentation, I found that I was still confused in some areas.
   
   Make sure you work through some of the basics of Django before reading this book. While it does take you step by step through making different projects, you may be confused if you have never seen Django before. There are a ton of great applications out there already developed with Django and this book takes you in to a few examples of them.
   
   In my eyes, James Bennett is the leading authority on Django tutorials. I find myself finding more and more great examples on his personal blog every day. I would highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn more about Django.

5 comments about Pro WPF in C# 2008: Windows Presentation Foundation with .NET 3.5, Second Edition (Books for Professionals by Professionals).

1. Please buy this book if you haven't explored Windows Presentation Foundation. The separation of the UI (with XAML) and the code-behind page controller (C# or VB.NET) will revolutionize .NET development. If you don't have a designer you must learn Microsoft Expression Blend, but a UI designer will push your view (from Model-View-Controller) to the extreme.
   
   The browser-based XBAP works like a Winform app, but it can be viewed in Internet Explorer. If you've ever tried to create a dirty flag to denote changes in form data in ASP.NET, you know how superior Winforms are for this purpose. XBAPs give you the ability to access the textbox text changed event like Winforms. This takes a ton of JavaScript to accomplish the same programming task in ASP.NET forms.
   
   The update of the application to the client machine (the XBAP runs on the client) can be done with new technolgy called ClickOnce. What a technology!
   
   I've even tried to learn the XAML markup from a very good chapter on this.
   
   This book is really well done. Kudos to the author.



2. I've bought three books about WPF, including Windows Presentation Foundation Foundation Unleashed and Silverlight 1.0 Unleashed. Matthew MacDonald's book is for developers and is what I needed. It uses Visual Studio 2008 and is up to date with current development tools. I've also read his books on ASP.NET and this is one top-notch author. I fully recommend this book.



3. The book is good so far. Only about 150 pages into the book, but so far easy to read, examples range from simple to more advanced. I will post another review upon completion.



4. I generally like Matthew's writing, but this one really fell short of my expectations, esp considering it's a 2nd edition (I've never read the first edition, though).
   
   Pros:
   - it gave a good overview of what WPF is all about(the underlying DirectX etc), and why we need yet another Windows GUI technology.
   
   Cons:
   - it lacks substance, each chapter mostly contains a shallow description of a "feature" of WPF, with some code snippets. The content feels more like a showoff of what WPF can do + some tips & tricks.
   
   - there is no central theme in the book, ie. the author doesn't hold your hand and build a non-trivial app using the key features of WPF. So at the end of the book, i'm still at a loss as to how to re-write some of my Windows Forms apps in WPF.
   
   - it's completely focused on the WPF technology, with hardly any information on the fundamentals of Computer Graphics theory and how it's related to WPF. I guess for most folks who just want to cobble togther a form with a few data bound controls in it, this prob isn't a problem. But to create commercial apps in WPF, this book is just not enough.



5. I love the Petzold book Applications = Code + Markup, but it covers a subset of WPF and is out of date now. Pro WPF in C# 2008 is up-to-date, covers a much larger subset, and doesn't shy away from the hard stuff. Almost every time I turn to this book, I find either an answer or a new pointer that leads to the answer on-line. Yesterday, I found a method called TemplatedParent that is ill-covered in my other books. Today, I found IScrollInfo. Highly recommended as a well-written, comprehensive, up-to-date WPF reference for intermediate to advanced developers. For starting out, I still recommend the Petzold book, which really tries hard to build understanding.

3 comments about Dojo: The Definitive Guide.

1. I'm up against a deadline for a web application. The going is slow when you
   have to hand-carve the HTML, JavaScript, CSS and PHP. Dojo saves you at least
   two-thirds of the work, so I'm very grateful for it. But it takes some getting
   used to, and the on-line documentation is, well, succinct.
   
   Russell's book came along just in time. It's a lifesaver.
   
   The Introduction alone is worth the price. I found out about
   some invaluable Web development debugging tools that I'd never seen before.
   Russell provides a clear, concise explanation of some very important JavaScript
   notions: Closures, Context, and Anonymous Functions. And all of this before
   we even get to the toolkit!
   
   The book makes the Dojo easy to use and easy to understand. There's a wealth
   of coding examples, as well as complete lists of objects, methods, and so forth.



2. Dojo is a comprehensive JavaScript toolkit that provides a layer of insulation between you and browser inconsistencies by leveraging JavaScript and other web technologies. Dojo is very good in situations where YUI is already being used. Dojo has a standard JavaScript library with a collection of drop-in replacements for customized HTML controls and CSS layout hacks, build tools, and unit tests.
   
   Part 1 of this book is a standard library reference that exposes you to the various nooks and crannies of Base and Core, the parts of the toolkit that comprise a JavaScript standard library. Base contains rich functionality as diverse as AJAX calls, DOM querying based on CSS selector syntax, standardized event propagation, and functional programming utilities like map and filter. Core includes lots of additional features for operations like animations and drag-and-drop. While this can be incredibly useful, these features just aren't as common to all use cases as the features in Base.
   
   Part 2 explores the rest of the toolkit, including complete coverage of Dijit, the rich layer of drop-in replacements for customized HTML controls. Dijit is designed so that it can be used in the markup with little to no programming required, and makes it possible to build attractive web pages that already look and behave much like user interface controls from desktop applications.
   
   Part 2 concludes with a discussion of the build system and unit testing framework provided by Util. The build system includes a highly configurable entry point to ShrinkSafe, a tool that leverages the Rhino JavaScript engine to compress code by as a third or more. DOH stands for the Dojo Objective Harness, and provides a standalone system for unit testing your JavaScript code. This is also discussed here.
   
   This book assumes that you've done some web development with client-side technologies such as HTML, JavaScript, and CSS. You by no means, however, need to be an expert in any of these skills and you really don't need to know anything at all about what happens on a web server because Dojo is a client-side technology. Just knowing what they are and how they are used is more than enough. As in most O'Reilly applied programming technology books, there are plenty of code examples. The book just doesn't talk about all of this stuff, it actually shows you the technology in action.
   
   If you are an existing web developer or even a hobbyist who is able to construct a very simple web page and apply a little JavaScript and CSS to brighten things up a bit, then you are qualiified to read this book. If you haven't even heard of HTML, JavaScript, or CSS, and have never written any code that works with any of these languages and technologies, then you might want to consider picking up a good introduction on web development before tackling this book.
   
   The following is a detailed table of contents:
   
   Part 1: Base and Core
   Chapter 1. Toolkit Overview
   Chapter 2. Language and Browser Utilities
   Chapter 3. Event Listeners and Pub/Sub Communication
   Chapter 4. AJAX and Server Communication
   Chapter 5. Node Manipulation
   Chapter 6. Internationalization
   Chapter 7. Drag-and-Drop
   Chapter 8. Animation and Special Effects
   Chapter 9. Data Abstraction
   Chapter 10. Simulated Classes and Inheritance
   Chapter 11. Dijit Overview
   Chapter 12. Dijit Anatomy and Lifecycle
   Chapter 13. Form Widgets
   Chapter 14. Layout Widgets
   Chapter 15. Application Widgets
   Chapter 16. Build Tools, Testing, and Production Considerations
   Appendix A. A Firebug Primer
   Appendix B. A Brief Survey of DojoX



3. Matthew Russell has captured what makes Dojo the "magic sauce" of the Ajax world. As he indicates in the book's dedication, Dojo can be your friend in combating browser idiosyncrasies. Since Russell has been an active participant in the Dojo development community for a long time, he's in an excellent position to write from an expert's viewpoint. Another Amazon reviewer has covered the book's contents thoroughly. "Dojo: The Definitive Guide" is very well-organized and covers lots of ground. I appreciate the fact that the author doesn't simply rehash online documentation; instead he provides real insight and coherent explanations. Like most O'Reilly books, the table of contents and index are invaluable in rapidly honing in on a particular subtopic.
   
   To get the most out of this book, you do need to have some web development background (JavaScript, CSS, HTML), but then who else would be purchasing this book? While the book might have benefited from a discussion of Dojo use with YUI, Google Gear, or other toolkits, the author points out this is out of scope. I imagine this saved more than a few trees. (Check out the ongoing efforts of the OpenAjax Alliance if you need to combine multiple frameworks.) I would have preferred access to the code examples packaged in a convenient zip file; perhaps the author will add that to his O'Reilly catalog page (URL given in the preface or just search for "Dojo" at oreilly.com). However, these points do not detract from the thoroughness in which Russell has covered a difficult and rapidly changing topic.
   
   This book is certainly worthy of the fine O'Reilly imprint. The fact that it is edited by the always discerning Simon St. Laurent is definitely a plus. If you are a web developer who needs cross-browser support, you need this book in your library.

5 comments about Programming WCF Services (Programming).

1. WCF is one of the four major application programming interfaces introduced as part of .NET Framework 3.0. With its enormous power and flexibility, WCF has a very complex and multilayered architecture. After reading some nice overviews on WCF and even writing some simple code with out-of-box facilities provided by WCF, one may get a misleading impression of it being simple and straightforward. Once to delve into real world programming, you would be exposed to huge number of issues and complexities that in most cases may not be overcome without thorough understanding of the subject.
   Juval Lowy's book does an outstanding job ob systematically and thoroughly uncovering practically all aspects of WCF programming. Not only it presents a simple to understand architectural picture of WCF in general and various architectural and functional subsystems, but also abandons with practical and thorough explanations of the details of virtually all aspects of WCF.
   This book is not a beginner book. For starting with WCF I would recommend Michele Bustamante's book "Learning WCF". Lowy's book is a thorough reference on WCF that soon becomes your primary source of information.
   I would like also to note that it does not seem to be the intent of the book to reflect on all internal plumbing of WCF, which realistically needs lot of experimentation. You may find Justin Smith's book as a good supplement to Lowy's book on custom channels and behaviors.



2. This book was actually my first exposure to WCF. Many people describe it as a more advanced WCF book than the other more basic ones out there. Although I tend to agree that it is more advanced than other books, I disagree with the implicit suggestion that you shouldn't start with this book if your a beginner. I generally gain better command over a subject by going deep enough to understand what's going on, and what capabilities I have at my disposal.
   
   "Programming WCF Services" does just that. It starts with the simple basics which is important for the novice. But as soon as you understand the basics, you yearn for much more deeper content, which follows in the chapters to come. Although I wish the book would have had a chapter devoted completely to Channels, the overall depth of the book is enough for most use cases that WCF developers will encounter.
   
   Something i really like about Juval Lowy's writing specifically is that he walks you through the thought process of the underlying problem. He shows you the different options that are possible, and then gives his final opinion, thus leaving you satisfied as to why a particular methodology is better than another.
   
   If Juval would consider a 2nd edition, I would recommend a chapter on custom Channel development, and RESTful web services.
   
   All in all, a great book for beginning and intermediate WCF service developers.



3. Absolutely the best book I've read on Windows Communication Foundation. A must have book. Juwal explain every single WCF detail in a very well simple form but this don't break the value of this excellent book. A book written for beginners, intermediate and professional WCF developers.
   
   Well done, Juwal.



4. I have previously read Juval Lowy's Programming .NET Components and it was one of few excellent books which gave deeper explanation about .NET. This book is as great as that one and only one of the few books giving a good explanation about WCF and its internals.



5. I've been a fan of Juval ever since I took an al-day seminar with him at DevConnections a few years ago. He's a great teach and a great writer. However, he is not for beginners.

5 comments about User Stories Applied: For Agile Software Development (The Addison-Wesley Signature Series).

1. Mike does a great job explaining user stories and agile principles. Very readable and even enjoyable. This book concerns itself mainly with the 'ideal' situation: brand new product development, and does not focus on other nuances such as improvements to existing products, customer-reported defects, validated environments. That's not a criticism, as this book isn't supposed to be the unabridged encyclopedia of user stories, but I plan to read some of Mike's other books... where, hopefully, he will cover such topics



2. As you'll read in other reviews this book does a great job of laying the foundation on how to implement XP as a development process using user stories, iterations, and other concepts used in XP.
   
   Where the book goes a little overboard is with some drawn out stories and examples that could be cut down. In reality I think this book could almost have 1/3 less long and been a 5 star book.



3. I'm pretty much allergic to any form of requirements documentation. Change control makes my skin itch, and big up front planning makes me vomit. But I also am not totally comfortable with winging it all the time. As a project manager, I need to get a sense of how big the project is, what are the pieces and parts, and how will the product be used. And I need it fast, flexible, and without much overhead. Oh yeah, don't forget I have to also be able to use it to plan iterations, drive development and testing, and report status. All without making comprehensive documentation more important than working software or processes and tools more important than individuals and interactions.
   
   That's why I'm glad I discovered User Stories Applied: For Agile Software Development by Mike Cohn. It is a short, practical explanation of how to plan, estimate, and execute an agile project with user stories. These lightweight requirements never get in the way or replace conversations with users and customers. Instead, they help you keep track of what you're going to build and serve as a reminder to talk to SME's about what they mean. You can use them to report status, to plan iterations, and to get an overview of the product's feature set.
   
   I wholeheartedly endorse this book for all project or product managers.



4. I have seen other presentations and publications from this author and he really seems to know his stuff, plus it's really easy to read. I'm a consultant and trainer and find this to be an excellent reference. There are lots of examples and the book is very easy to read. You also don't have to be involved in Agile development to find this useful, as I also use the concepts for developing user roles and focusing on user goals as a primary function even in a Waterfall development world.



5. This book is one of the better collections of how-to's and practical applications I've read on Agile user stories. It mixes in just enough of the theory to understand the importance and distinctions of epics, stories, tasks, and spikes without overly focusing on them. Then, it uses real-world examples in common language to walk you through some of the messier implementations of Agile, and provides specific guidance on how to make things work in less than ideal situations. I found this book particularly helpful for me personally, as well as for one of our less experienced Scrum Master's at work.

5 comments about Apple Training Series: Mac OS X Support Essentials (2nd Edition) (Apple Training).

1. I thought this was lightweight.
   
   It probably meets its goal of preparing you for the test, but I think most who are already doing tech support (even if they haven't done much OS X) will find this superficial.



2. This is a review of Mac OS X Server Essentials second edition.
   
   The one thing I found confusing about this book is it starts off telling you about standard, workgroup, and advanced installations, and then doesn't really guide you through the install in either. It jumps around, and then goes into remote installation.
   
   What the book should of said is if your'e setting a server from scratch use the advanced install, and guide you through that.
   
   As mentioned in other reviews, there are typos and I thought that was pretty darn unacceptable.
   
   Overall its got some good technical information, but lacks coherency. It seems to be all over the place and not well put together. I wouldn't suggest for a newbie to mac os or mac os x server.
   
   I would give this a three out of five stars, could be a great book, but lacking a lot of structure.



3. complete reference for fixing iMac for non tech and could be helpful for a professional
   some features of the iMac are not discussed though



4. I saw a Macworld talk by the author (Neutered Admins, from the 2008 MacIT conference), and learned some really useful things. He mentioned that he'd written this book, and I bought it hoping for more information that would be useful to me in my system administration job supporting Mac and Linux users.
   
   Alas, this book is aimed at help desks providing tier-one support, new users, or maybe Windows power users who are switching to the Mac. It has lots of coverage of the GUI and how to use a Mac for routine tasks and very little else. If, for example, you wanted to learn how a Leopard system sets a user's path (for use in the Terminal), you won't find that information here. You also won't find any information on how the system handles NFS mounts, how Leopard handles X11 and SSH agents with launchd, how you would set a Mac up to authenticate from another machine, or any other topic beyond what a reasonably experienced Mac user would probably already know or be able to figure out pretty quickly.



5. I purchased this book to prepare myself for the OS X Support Essentials 10.5 Exam, I PASSED and PASSED WELL! Everything that you need to know is in this book. If you want to pass the exam and can't afford to attend a training course this book is all you will need. It covers every topic in sufficient detail, it is easy to understand and I would wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone wishing to embark on a career supporting OS 10.5 machines. Please make sure you read the Knowledge Base References at the end of every chapter. They will give you greater background on each topic area. Kevin M White has produced a great text here, well done!.

5 comments about Access 2007: The Missing Manual.

1. The book does what it promises: explains to you in a fun and engaging way how to use access and explaining you the most important features while at the same time giving you the tools to learn about the least important features by yourself. An excellent book to start working with access and making very decent databases.



2. I bought this book to go straight to the information I need when I need it. It is well organized and clear. Would recommend.



3. This book is perfect for the novice. It guides you to the key components for MS Access without all the "techie" language. It also points out informative tips and clues to improve your database. This is specific for 2007, which really does make a difference since the security features have changed dramatically. There is a website for the examples. It is easy to download. The book states you have access to the online version or a CD of the book. This is misleading. There is one available but it requires you to sign up for it.



4. I'm not a complete newbie to Access or to database design, but I would still qualify as a beginner. This manual spent too much time on things I already know how to do (like set up a table with basic relationships) and not enough on the things I have not quite figured out (like how to create subforms that pop up at helpful intervals).
   
   I bought this Missing Manual after having a really good experience with the Missing Manual to Dreamweaver CS3, but while the Dreamweaver book had helpful step-by-step tutorials to cover concepts that would apply to a wide range of websites, this book seemed to only cover the specific case of building a customer/sales database.



5. This is one of the best technical manuals I have read. Everything is easy to find and easy to understand. I have several manuals where you spend hours trying to find the answer to a question only to be frustrated in either not finding the answer or the answer being so vague that it makes no sense. This book does not do that; answers are both understandable AND quick to find. I highly recommend this book.
   
   Access 2007: The Missing Manual

5 comments about Head First Servlets and JSP: Passing the Sun Certified Web Component Developer Exam (Brain-Friendly Guides).

1. The recently released edition of the book is a great improvement - there is less errata and the Q&A is much more tied into the Sun Web Component Exam.
   
   One of the challenges with picking up Servlets & JSPs is the mass of acronyms and figuring out how it all relates to Java. The Head First book is here to help pick-up the technology as fast as possible and in a fun way.
   
   This book has some of the best tutorials to get from zero to a working web application - and have fun learning along the way. Many readers will probably also want to use the book to cram for Sun's web component exam.
   
   I would highly recommend the book but please do your due diligence: Have a look at the content section. Evaluate if the contents cover what you hope to learn. Read through some of the sample pages and make a decision.



2. This book really sucks up all your motivation. The almost cartoon like format makes searching and a broader understanding almost impossible. The book is not just bad for the reader when he reads it. The worst part is: If a young reader (say a newbi at some university) actually use this book as a course book, he might pass the course but he won't be able to share his thoughts in writing in a common writing language. What's worse he won't understand the next course when reality steps in with a format that the rest of the world is using.
   
   So teachers at universities all over the world. If you ever use this book as a course book at a bigginners level. Be aware that you will missguide the whole class at a time when the students needs guidance the most. This book is like beer, most of the students will like it because it gives them a nicer yet wrongfull picture of the reality at uni. However, it will also make passing the university much harder in the long run.
   
   The only time when this book can be of use is if you have a crazy father that thinks that just because you are in computers you are into computer viruses. if you give this book to him he will. One: Not understand a thing. Two: Think that you are to stupid to code viruses.



3. On time delivery (even early), and great condition. Thank you once again! I will continue to use Amazon in the future.



4. 'Head First Servlets and JSP: Passing the Sun Certified Web Component Developer Exam' is another gem from the Head First library that makes it a priority to not only publish books with good content but keep the word FUN close to the brain and mouse!! If you have never seen a Head First book before you are truly missing out. The content is written in a way that is present day hip but at the same time it delivers content that matches or rivals all other related books out on the market. With HFSAJSP, you get 850+ pages of uber content wrapped in a slick package that is essential for anyone that is learning or looking to learn this important tech topic of interest. If you like/use JSP/Servlets and want a fun way to improve you skillset, this is a home run of a purchase!
   
   ***** HIGHLY RECOMMENDED



5. One of the best series in educational technology books. It's an easy reed and a book with a sense of humor!

5 comments about The Ruby Programming Language.

1. This is an excellent reference book on Ruby, if you already know Ruby this book will help you a lot, but if you are looking for a tutorial on Ruby this book should not be your first choice.



2. For a long time now Dave Thomas' Programming Ruby: The Pragmatic Programmers' Guide, Second Edition (aka. The Pickaxe) has been the standard in the Ruby community as the book to learn Ruby from. Unfortunately the Pickaxe is not the best programming book ever written. In fact, its bulk and slowness almost killed my inspiration to learn Ruby. I respect Dave Thomas a lot for what he does for the Ruby community but the Pickaxe and I just did not click.
   
   Since I didn't find the Pickaxe to be excellent reading material, I had been eagerly anticipating David Flanagan's The Ruby Programming Language to come out and unseat The Pickaxe as the de facto book to recommend to newcomers to Ruby.
   
   I am happy to say that The Ruby Programming Language did not disappoint. I picked up this book solely expecting to just review it since I already comfortable programming in Ruby. However, once I started reading the book I found myself frequently learning things about Ruby that I didn't know before. Not like little things either like, "oh that's interesting". I'm talking significant things like "holy crap that's sweet!".
   
   This book covers both Ruby 1.8 and Ruby 1.9. Initially this concerned me because as impressive as it is, it must have been quite a headache for the authors and was not sure how they were going to pull it off. It turns out to be pretty much a non-issue. The authors make a note of what is 1.8 or 1.9 only and it does not disturb the flow of the book since it doesn't come up too frequently. I do hope though that after Ruby 1.9 stable is released they upgrade the book and tear out all the 1.8 specific material. Since I currently use 1.8 on a daily basis I don't mind having 1.8 material in there but after everything has shifted to 1.9 it would be rather irksome.
   
   The style of the book is fairly straightforward. It starts with an introduction to how Ruby programs work and then goes into an explanation of Ruby datatypes and objects. The later chapters cover advanced topics like reflection and metaprogramming. The authors opted not to go the tutorial route, which I think, was a good approach since the book is not designed to be an "intro to programming" text.
   
   In the preface of the book, the authors state:
   > [The Ruby Programming Language] is loosely modeled after the classic C Programming Language (2nd Edition) (Prentice Hall Software) by Kernighan and Ritchie and aims to document the Ruby language comprehensively but without the formality of a language specification. It is written for experienced programmers who are new to Ruby, and for current Ruby programmers who want to take their understanding and mastery of the language to the next level.
   
   O'Reilly is hoping that The Ruby Programming Language becomes the equivalent of K&R's The C Programming Language for Ruby and I hope it succeeds. I think that every language needs their own K&R book for people to turn to as the definitive authority. That's something that I feel like the Java programming language never had and it creates something of a hurdle when browsing for a Java book.
   
   The third edition of the Pickaxe is in beta and will be coming out soon. I really hope it makes a strong showing when it hits the press because after the bangup job Flanagan and Matz did with The Ruby Programming Language, there is no reason to look at the Pickaxe till then.



3. This is well written, well organized, and covers the whole core language. It isn't a cookbook, and it isn't an API reference, but for what it is, it's excellent.
   
   The organization makes sense, the index is usable, and the writing is precise enough to leave no ambiguity.
   
   My only complaint would be too much space spent on differences between 1.8.6 and 1.9, and too much attention to text encodings.



4. Very, very dense reading, but very complete as well. Aspects of the language that were only glanced over (or even ignored entirely) by the "pickaxe" book are covered in great detail. The only downside is that you have to look at several of those horrible high school notebook doodles the wannabe Murakami "Why" produces whenever people convince him that he's either "clever" or "talented."



5. I wish every book about a programming language was written like this one:
   
   First, it is fairly compact and doesn't waste space (and your time) explaining to you what is a byte or a register, like some 800 page "volumes about everything" do. It correctly assumes that the reader is a programmer and explains the language, not the programming.
   
   Second, it covers Ruby in depth. Read this book and you'll easily understand the most craziest Ruby code examples that could be found inside of Rails and other popular libraries. Moreover, I've found a few tricks in the book that I don't believe I saw in the wild.
   
   And finally, author's language is very clean, free of buzzwords and needless repetitions. As always with O'Reilly books, this one is also very neatly structured and makes an excellent reference book.
   
   Buy it.

5 comments about AdWords For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech)).

1. This is a very good book with full of good in-depth insights into Google's Adwords. I strongly recommend Google advertisers to buy this book.



2. I originally read this book to specialize in Google. I read this book 3 times before I started my Adwords account. I use Adwords as a vehicle to sell product through the internet. Howie makes sense. He shows you the good and the bad side of Adwords. Before trying to take on Adwords, read this book first; it'll save you a lot of money!
   Since reading this book, I have become a Certified Google Advertiser, thanks to Howie. He always updates his students (fans) with the latest Google news. This book could get a lot of people out of corporate world and work for themselves. I am almost making just as much money using Adwords as I do at my regular job. Don't dive in headfirst into Google Adwords, read the Adwords for Dummies first!!!



3. This book is outstanding. I give it my highest rating. The Author (Howie Jacobson) has taken a massive topic, cut it up into bite sized pieces and served it up in business boosting scoops. I have a tendancy to buy everything, and frankly, I was shocked with the quality of this book. Because of the "Dummies" brand I had totally underestimated the quality of this book. I own a number of similar books that cover the same ground but NONE that are as valuable as this one.
   
   This book is EXCELLENT! Best I have EVER read for google, analytics, etc.
   
   The reason I found so much value with this book is that it offers:
   
   * actionable ideas (no guessing what I'm suppose to do)
   * easy to digest material ( great job teaching)
   * entertaining as hell (keeps me going)
   
   Many books of this nature are dry and filled with lots of technical jargon. I found this book like a ray of light... a breath of fresh air for non-tech people like me in a TECH world.
   
   If you want a book that you will actually understand, that will get you excited about these topics and that you will actually implement, buy this book today.



4. I read the whole book in two nights. It's now next to my desk as a first hand reference.
   
   Very good for anyone that want to understand the full potential of Adwords.
   
   J.I. Hernandez
   [...]



5. So far this book is right on the money and has helped me set up a couple of campaigns already and I knew nothing from the start. I highly recommend this book both as a learning tool and a reference. The authors website has alot of cool stuff too.