EG Books

Bruce Arnold's method for ear training is effective, and following his course will benefit your musical ability with hard work and commitment, but there is a problem with his business methods and the lack of clarity (which may I beleive is part of his business model) in progressing through his course. Improvising musicians in the past developed their ears by transcribing and lifting solos off of recordings by ear. All the tools for developing the ear are in your brain and CD cabinet already, but Arnold's books do get you primed for listening correctly, and they give musicians without natural ability good guidence on how to hear music. Beware however, that Mr. Arnold has chosen to spread the course out over many books and CDs - a bit like taking private lessons. This material could have been easily fit in one method book and about six CDs for a reasonable price. Mr. Arnold's has a profitable business model, which is supported by him online as another method of promoting and distributing his books and internet downloadable materials. I don't blame him for trying to make as much money out of his knowledge, and it's up to the musician to determine whether it's necessary to lay out the money for his information. However, there may be a bit of a Ponzi scheme going on here, except for the fact that with work you will see improvement, so maybe that's a bit harsh. If you buy the One Note Method, Fanatic's Guide, Key Recognition, Two Note Method, and on and on, you'll begin to notice that much of the material offered in these books is repeated, and the actual new material in each book is thin at best. If Mr. Arnold was more clear about how to progress through his method I'd give him four stars. I think he would do well by combining his methods into one volume and take more time and put more thought into how to logically present his methods.

This book has a good idea at it's core, train your ear to recognize notes against a key center as opposed to an interval. However, the presentation and 'method' are done terribly. To start with, according to the author the interval method of ear training is useless. So just about every music school and ear training class is wrong and wasting your time except Bruce Arnold. He then goes even farther and mentions how he had to spend years unlearning the interval training he had, and you might too if you've had standard ear training. So if you hear two notes in a row and can tell their a major third, then you have to forget that somehow.

From there Arnold goes to his method, which involves listening to a CD of 3 chords and then a random note and then trying to guess the note. Throughout the book he keeps mentioning that you should go to his website and read the information there to understand what to do. Why he didn't just include this information in the book itself I don't understand. The rest of the book is then Arnold answering questions from method users, of which the main question is usually 'help, I'm having no luck with this method'. Arnold's answer is usually 'go to the website' or 'your lazy and not working hard enough'. For example, someone who asks whether your supposed to actually think about what the note is or just answer spontaneously, gets told that's a good question and to go read the website. Someone else asks if this method works with Atonal music that has no key center, to which Arnold says there's no such thing as Atonal music. Apparently he's a music historian as well and everyone else is wrong on that too.

Despite his presentation, I think the basic idea is good. Its harder then interval training but easier then Absolute Pitch training and the benefits line up the same way. I wouldn't recommend it as its difficult enough that you might as well get a perfect pitch program instead, also the presentation is terrible, and in addition your supposed to buy about 8 books to get the whole method.

I have been working with Mr Arnold's ear training methods for just over two years now and would like to share with you some of my experiences over that time.

There is no other system of ear training i know that constantly pushes the boundaries of your aural perception. Working with his is as Mr Arnold reminds us a "lifetime's journey". Over the years i have steadily gained the ability to recognise any pitch in relation to a key center and sight-sing any required pitch readily (including chromatics). That is what one note complete and the fanatic's guide seeks to achieve.

The above lays the foundation for further development. In December of 2007 I finally completed key note recognition, that helps you to learn to adapt to various modes(major and minor) and recognise the key by listening to how notes function in relation. Now I am beginning work on two note that builds recognition for multiple notes and following complex modulations.

All this is impossible without dedication and an intense commitment to practice, practice,practice. As a guage i have worked at this at least an hour a day broken up into short sessions over the last two over years. And without keeping to this and really working at it, you won't be able to really understand what this method is all about. But IF you do, this will really change the way you are involved with music.

Just to describe a few simple experiences...

- Early on i began to gain a deeper sense of the music i was listening to. Suddenly everything opened up what can only be described as a kaleidoscope of colours.

- As an active musician, people began commenting on how musical and expressive my performances were getting and always "spot on" with pitching.

- Am now coming to grips with progressively more harmonically complex melodic forms such as modern jazz and funk.

I'm now embarking on the next phase in my ear training that is two note and beyond. I know it's going to be nothing short of gruelling, but with the positive changes that I have experienced in aural perception, I really can't wait to discover what else happens along the way.

Many thanks to Mr Arnold for his fantastic work, gift to aspiring musicians and continuing commitment to music education.

Bruce Arnold's series of books are designed to achieve one and only one purpose: to teach...and to teach each subject the right way and in the most rational manner. He makes mention in different books and interviews to the fact that most music books or methods are designed for students to get good grades in school (I can't see how this method could be easily grade-able) or to offer the consumer a quick fix of success to feel that the book has worked and they haven't wasted their money, while in fact they will not really retain much of the information at all in the long run and the whole experience will have been a waste of time and money. I personally in my quest for good books on the subject of music have found this to be true, and I think that most of these books are made solely for the purpose of generating money (as most things are these days) and not really achieving their true purpose...the ones that seem to try to go past this I have found to be filled with half baked ideas and hazy methods.

I am a professional jazz/classical saxophonist and an composer. I have a degree in music composition and performance and studied with some of the greatest teachers that I believe that are out there. For me, disappointment with music study books, whether they be for improvisation, ear training, composition, has been a normal experience and I have been mainly writing and inventing my own exercises,techniques, and practice routines for lack of finding anything that made any more sense from any "educational book". This ended when I found Bruce Arnold's series of books. I am in awe of the infallible logic behind every method in every book. I have been working out of many different books of his: the ear training books, the sight singing books, the Rhythm series, Big Metronome and Time Transformation, and they all WORK. I mean they really, REALLY work, as long as you follow the instructions and have patience and make up your mind before you start that you are going to stick with it. When I first found the books I instantly knew that I finally stumbled across something finally that made sense...but have refrained from writing a review anywhere until I thoroughly tested the products out. I believe that many of the more negative or indifferent reviews you will find here or on other sites are from recent buyers who have not yet started to see the results or are from people who have not made the decision to follow the directions and truly have the patience to follow through.

I have been working with the Ear Training Method for some time now and am in the Two Note Series now, and my ears are at a level that I never thought possible. The concept of relative pitch as opposed to interval training is dead-on and if you study the method diligently you will see why it makes so much more sense. I have been working from THE BIG METRONOME every day and going through the rhythm books...and I am feeling rhythm in a way that is so effortless. When I play or compose music now it becomes more of a joy every day rather than a strenuous effort.

If you want to learn music the right way, so that every aspect of music from theory to transcription to rhythm is like a second nature, then I recommend Bruce Arnold's books. As an added plus, you can (and are encouraged) to email him about any problems you are having or just even on your progress and he is very prompt and thorough in his responses. This is clearly a person who truly cares about what he is teaching and who has limitless integrity in his methods.

If you ask me, the series of Bruce Arnold's Books and CD's are a goldmine, priceless treasures that can be bought for an incredibly low price considering the immense benefit that can be reaped from them.

Bruce Arnold is a teacher, not a writer. Don't think of this as a book, or really even as a CD. Think of this product as an approach to training your ears. It's a discipline that will probably take me years of effort to see results, if I'm good and do it every day for 10 minutes or so at a time. I'm not sure what I expected, but I think this point should be right up front.

It is the opposite approach to that used in my college level skills class. At my school they used an interval approach. Sing a note and then sing the note a major 3rd above that. Now up a tritone, down a minor second, etc. Frankly, I was thrilled at my progress with this method, but at the same time, frustrated at what I couldn't do and felt that there was something not quite right about it. It felt artificial and limiting, and somehow disconnected with true music. I believe that this approach to ear training (though hard) is the right one, and will (eventually) bring me to the skill that I want to possess.

This part of his training method focuses on hearing what the fifth (for example) sounds like in a key, if I understand it right, not in relation to the tonic, but in relation to the whole context. Well, that "recognition" extends eventually to all 12 semitones within the context of the key. Establish a key in your head, then hear a note and realize that it is the raised fifth, or the 7th or whatever. All octaves, even ones that you cannot sing. You're not to recognize the note out of context...that would be more of a perfect pitch. Not by the physical feeling of the note as you try to sing it. Similar to how you see a color and learn that it is blue, you would hear a tone and learn that it is the raised 5th. I can imagine hearing a tune on the radio or something, and then knowing that the melody started on the 6th, or that this passage had a significant word on the 2nd. Also, I can imagine making up a melody, and realizing that this note "sounds like" a 3rd...therefore I would know the key of the melody much faster than any technique I might have used in the past to finally figure out the harmonic context of a melodic line.

He's got more method than just this, which also needs to be going on at the same time. The Fanatic's Guide to Sight Singing and Ear Training (and be sure to get the CD that comes with this book--there are versions of the book available that don't include the CD. I suppose you could make your own). This is the other side of this coin. Given a key, produce (as opposed to recognize) this semitone and that semitone. This guide has exercizes that take you through collections of 2 semitones up to 6 semitones. Really, lots of exercizes there. My intuition tells me that producing and hearing the notes against the tonal center will complement the other book/CD where you're asked to recognized the isolated tone within it's context. He also recommends that you do these 2 exercises together for best progress.

Other books/CD's that he has are for later, so don't make the "mistake" that I made and buy those up front. You really have to master the basic levels before you'll be ready to tackle the more advanced phases of the method.

This time only short review. All has already been written. The book is suitable not only for exam but also for beginners. It is thoroughful guide how to develop windows based applications. As usually working examples on concluded CD makes this book two times valuable. After reading and playing with samples you will certainly know all the important aspects of development.

I always use the MS Self-Paced kits for my certification exams. So far I have passed the exams. This particular book was annoying in that there were quite a few editing mistakes and the errata website only had information for the first half of the book. As usual, the index and glossary were useless for me in most cases. Nevertheless, the mixture of facts with practical exercises made it possible to absorb the material with a minimum of pain.

I'm puzzled why this book has a 4.5 star rating and the 70-536 book has only three stars. The biggest criticism of the 70-536 was the amount of errors, however this 70-526 book also has many errors, including many that are not on the errata sheet.

Anyway, this book will get you pointed in the right direction. If you are a C# developer, you will may notice the sample C# code has some interesting characters - this is because they have intermingled VB.NET syntax in the C# code. Not a big deal to me, but some people may find this distracting.

You may want to be aware that another book exists that provides comprehensive coverage and is a better read, although there are no labs or sample questions:

Windows Forms 2.0 Programming, by Chris Sells and Michael Weinhardt
http://www.amazon.com/Windows-Forms-Programming-Microsoft-Development/dp/0321267966

After reading this book and passing 70-526 exam, I found the book has 3 problems at least.

1. The book might cover all topics against the exam but doesn't include all necessary information for you to pass it. For example, a question in my real exam asked a question about Thread Monitor. However, the book doesn't mention anything about Monitor.
2. The book has at least 2 different writing styles.
3. The book can't include enough pictures to illustrate what controls it is talking about, how controls are related to one another or how they interact. This leads that sometimes I lost what the book tried to tell me.

It is impossible for you to pass the exam with a high score only by this book.
You might pass the exam with fears by the book.

The purpose of the book is to prepare you for the certification exam. For me it didn't meet that requirement.

The book does have a section for each of the objectives Microsoft has defined for the exam. But is FULL of errors (typos and concepts too!!), lacking good examples, concepts are defined vaguely and there is A LOT left out.

I took the exam and passed but I don't feel it was because of the book. I had to do additional research on each topic because the book wasn't enough. And in the exam there is definitely much more than the book covers.

The 2 stars are because:

1. The CD that comes with the book. The practice tests are very helpful to prepare for the exam, not only because they are exam-like questions but because you see some topics that weren't even mentioned on the book.
2. Considering is the only preparation guide for this exam, it at least guides you very briefly on the topics of the exam.

It goes in better depth with hands on labs to work with while you learn or fine tune for the test.

Great written book, easy to understand and if you are new into windows 2003, then this book will be a good way to begin with. Then, if you want to pass the 70-290 exam in your first try please do practice,practice while reading it.

This book is a little strange organized(chapters order) and some exercises cannot be completed due to additional configration steps needed that were supposed to be done in prior exercises, but they were omitted. Not to mention there is no chapter for GPOs.

This product is far superior to the proscribed Microsoft course books that you will get in a classroom setting. I basicly tossed them aside and concentrated on using this before I took my exam. Guess what, I passed with flying colors! Take this book and run, It's the best source out there.

This is an excellent book that will prepare you for the exam. I used it as my only source and passed the test on the first try. The 70-290 is a very easy exam but regardless of that the book prepares you very well.

Ms. Ganim's wealth of experience, fluency in art, and intuitive understanding of the human experience comes through in this book. Case studies and excellent color plates help to put life into the points and exercises she gives. There is a tendency to hyperbole and sometimes what seems too good to be true may be just that. But I concede that tendency to anyone who is enthusiastic about their work. This book is made to be used. The exercises are doable and procede in a logical, stepwise fashion. No one needs to be an artist to benefit from these exercises. Ms. Ganim's definition of healing as opposed to cure puts this work in perspective and gives it validity. I would highly recommend it to anyone seriously looking to experience healing in mind, body, and spirit.

As a survivor of serious illness, I was really disappointed by the message of this book that art making would help to reveal the hidden metaphors of illness. Ideas such as cancer results from emotional repression of anger and heart disease is the lack of ability to love are insulting,frankly, to people who have serious medical conditions. The information in this book, while presented in an easy-to-read format, is simplistic in its tone and content. The author spends more time talking about herself and her workshops than giving the reader some real guidance on art making for healing. Illustrations are beautiful, but the content was less than satisfying

This is a great book for lay people. Many books of this type are too academic, densely written or boring to the average non-professional reader who might be interested in this topic. The writer makes the concept so easy to understand. It's filled with examples of interesting (and often beautiful) art work with words and stories by the creators. Very powerful to have the individuals who themselves have gone through life-threatening illnesses and traumatic situations talk about the healing power of art. Particularly fascinating to see examples of how art can be used globally and with the environment. Kudos to the all the people who shared so honestly their intimate stories and viewpoints, and congratulations to the author for compiling such a compelling body of work.

As an artist and teacher who has personally experienced the powerful healing benefits of the creative act, I applaud this book! I believe it can serve many who would not otherwise seek out an art therapist or art therapy texts. Don't dismiss it as "New age hogwash" until you try it yourself -- the proof is in getting those creative juices going and seeing where they take you. You can change and learn in ways that will amaze you --- and the best part is that YOUR creative spirit will show you the way, with a little help from guidebooks such as this.

This is a very good book to help anyone learn about expressive arts and to use them for healing of self or for others. Simple and yet deep at the same time. Ganim takes us on a jouney and show us how to approach our emotions through the art work. The examples of visual pieces are just wonderful.

Excellent for individual work, group therapy, and most definitely children. This book is a very fast read and you may find yourself flying a little to fast through the pages...but I would have to say this is a worthy book to any clinician or client who want to gain understanding for themselves and others.

This is a story of a poverty-stricken school-teacher and her quest to fulfill the terms of a inheritance. She is to deliver a dragon egg (ready to hatch), from England to a monastery cliff in china (where it will hatch) in 3 months or she will loose her sizable inheritance. The egg was obtained by her uncle at auction accedentally, with a ki-lim statue (sort of half horse half human). The statue turns out to be troublesome, pridefull deciple of budha who is to be her companion on the trip, along with a gambler and a drunk. Men her uncle hired to accompany her. She must travel thrugh deserts, outsmart bandits, and get to destination before the egg hatches. They make it in time and she retruns to england except ki-lin who hopes to assend in the near by monastery. But surpsise surprise, the egg hatches twins, one dragon baby and one human baby. The dragons are pissed and dump the human baby on ki-lin. The end. The book is unfinished and even though the telling is good the story is down to earth. I rate it good reading but not something I would read more then once.

I found this book to be quite enjoyable. I picked this book up out in the bush of Alaska where I was working at the time and needed something to keep my mind occupied. I found this book quite enjoyable. I aggree with the other reviewers that the beginning was quite well thought out but the ending a bit rushed. I wanted to know what happened to the human twin and also curious as to whom she looks like. I hope that there will be a next book to see what happens to her. I am hoping that Toby will be involved, I became rather attatched to the young man and hope that he will be able to overcome his poverty and become an "xplorer" Dragonnes Eg was my first introduction to the series and I look forward to reading the others.

since master of many treasures left me unsure of what had REALLY happened to the heroine i was hoping some of that would be reveiled. i agree with the others that the characters werent well developed (i really only read this book to see what happened to the egg.) i was happy when Ky-Lin was reintroduced cause it was a familiar character like summer and growch were. and cried at the very end because of what happened to the dog :( (im lame arent i) but anyways the book was okay enough just didnt like that she didnt have a direct link to the egg she just happened to be someone who was related to the person that bought it off an auction and was marveling at it.. i wanted someone more caring of the egg or more related to it..book really disappointed me...maybe there will be a next one with ky-lin and the twin hatchling hopefully

Hello! I read this book when it came out in 1999. I've read some of the other reviews and while I share some of the same opinions regarding character development, I have different feelings regarding the book. I'm not one who follows the SF&F genre, generally preferring period romances, or true historical novels. That being said, I am an admirer of Mary Brown and will read anything she writes........even if it is directions to boil water!

When I received this book, I eagerly dove into it. It started out okay, the female lead character was nicely developed. However, every other character was flat. I wondered whether they were really travelling along with the female lead at times! To see an example of how well Ms.Brown can develop on characters, refer to The Unlikely Ones, Strange Deliverence, or Playing the Jack.

As usual, Ms.Brown was extremely good with the plot, and descriptions of the adventures. This kept me going, until the end.....and what I consider the best part, the epilogue! It was written with such excitement and enthusiasm that I finished with my heart pounding! The book is worth the journey to the epilogue, readers! And that epilogue is written in true Ms. Brown style - a blast of fresh air!

What can I say about this book (and the two previous) other than, "My God! This is pure genius!"

I, personally, had never heard of this author until I stumbled across her book entitled "Unexpected Dragon"...the accumulated three stories "Pigs Don't Fly", "Master of Many Treasures", and "Dragonne's Eg". Having read all three books from first cover to last was a long and arduous journey, but none-the-less well worth it. I admit that at times it was a trial to have to read about the petty actions of the characters...but I assure you that without her acknowledgement of those actions the story would be broken and jagged. She had the genius idea to put an extremely dramatic and eye-catching opening line in the first book...I admit that I laughed many times reading that line. I had never before read something so bold as the first sentence to began an epic journey. The only thing that confused me was the fact that I didn't realize the true proportions and weight of the heroine until the story had progressed deeply...I had assumed she was smaller and, well, skinnier. As the story went on I found the romance of Summerdai and her knight to be very sweet...and then dissappointed at the unexpected twist that took. I believe the author could have made more of an effort to make sure the reader understood that Jasper and Summerdai had a "romantic encounter" at the circle of stones. In her second book I think there should have been a resolution between Mr. Spicer and Summer. I found Summer's actions to be a teensy bit rude toward him. I felt sorry for the poor man. In the second book we are introduced to new characters that I feel should have stayed longer...their part in the story was incredibly short, but that is how life is sometimes! I, personally, was very annoyed with Ricardus...his bull-headedness was vexing. I also felt that there were way too many thefts of Summer's supplies and money...those experiences were becoming monotonous, but not to the point that they were expected and predictable. The second book ended on a very unemotional note, and leaves the reader wondering. Her series could have ended there, but this, the third book, opens the story yet again. I truly believe that Sophie is somehow connected to Summer, perhaps through her father, or her uncle. I am perplexed at the (what appears to be) pointless action of Ms. Lee's employer...was she attracted to women? Is that why she did what she did? In otherwords, I think the story could have done without its mention. In the third book there was a lacking of the characters' development...I feel Danny, young Toby (is that his name?), and the third young man (I forget his name) could have done with more insight into their personalities. The re-introduction of Ky-Lin into the story was a bit questionable...one reviewer said he was "annoying"...I disagree with that word, but he was a bit out of place. This book ended openly...it leaves room for a continuation to find out what happens to the dragon/human twins and the role that Ky-Lin plays in the humans safekeeping...the comment of how the child looks like 'her' is perplexing to me...which 'her' is he speaking of? Summerdai or Sophrinisbe?

All in all these books make for a fun and interesting read. I enjoyed how the story read quite like a journal...much like Summer's own "Boke". I would also like to note that the ending to this book is quick and rushed...I feel like the author didn't put a lot of time into its conclusion...there was no exploration of what the characters were doing after their adventure...just some basic information.

I loved all three books...I could not put down that huge single book, "Unexpected Dragon". The world that was woven was so immense that I would have wanted to jump into the story to meet the beautiful Summerdai! It is now one of my 'all-time' favorites!!!

Pure Genius

This is clear and concise. Topics are organized very well. You can't beat the price. Put this one on your shelf and keep it handy.

The book arrived on schedule and as advertised. Exactly what I wanted. Very satisfactory purchase.

This is a useful, short dictionary, probably worth its modest price.

It is by no means a complete reference work on music notation. Instead, it covers most of the basics, and also a more-or-less random, small selection of less basic topics. This is not a guide for reading music; it is a handbook for people preparing notated scores and parts, whether by hand or by computer. It is unlikely to answer all the questions that would come up in notating any reasonably complicated piece of music. It will suffice, however, to notate a simple piece professionally, in either classical or pop/jazz style.

All of the entries accurately describe standard notational practice. Precise guidance is often given as to exact positioning and size, e.g. whether a given articulation is centered on a note stem or a note head, what angle of beam to use for different intervals, and where to place dots. The sections on topics like meter, rests, slurs, and ties are lucid and thorough.

On the other hand, precise guidance is often absent. For example, correct notation of the treble and bass clefs requires knowing that they are also, respectively, a "G" and an "F" clef, and should be positioned in a specific way to mark those pitches. The entry on "glissando" fails to explain how to notate the precise rhythm of a glissando (in the sense of its duration, and at what point in the measure it ends). The positioning of accidentals in chords of more than 3 notes is explained ambiguously, but not illustrated. No guidance at all is given on how to notate an interval of an altered unison (e.g., a B-flat/B-natural pairing.)

Little guidance at all is given on notating wind or percussion parts.

By contrast, several pages are given over to repetitive explanations of the various permutations of "D.C./D.S./coda/fine" combinations. Complete charts of key signatures in treble, bass, alto and tenor clefs use up more pages (even though the pattern is the same in every clef.) Oddities like flutter-pedaling on the piano damper and heel-toe technique on the organ pedals are illustrated. Overall, the choices of what to cover outside of the basics have a random feel.

Large print is used, which means less material is covered, but subtle details of notation are easily seen.

Baisc & concise; but, not as informative as I'd hoped. Satisfactory introductory booklet.

I use this constantly in my piano teaching studio. It is basic, easy to understand, and has large enough print to be read in a hurry. Good for adults and children from age 10 or so.

I have MCSA in Windows 2000, and I work daily with most aspects of Server 2003. The upgrade (MCSA 2000 -> 2003) exam was recently retired, so I am taking the 290 and 291 to upgrade. I read this book in 2 days, and passed the test with a 960. (700 is required to pass). If you already know Server 2003 - this book very quickly and easily will fill in any gaps in your knowledge. I found the actual test to be quite a bit easier (mostly, just much less specific) than the sample tests in the book.

My major quip has to do with typos. They were so prevalent that I started underlining them and marking the pages. There wasn't a single chapter that I didn't spot at least one, sometimes two or three(!!) typos. They were all relatively benign, but there were some annoying typos in sample questions and answers. In one case, the question didn't specify how many answers to select (most tell you if you should mark more than one answer, or "all that apply") but then the answer key had two answers. Another question had the exact opposite; the question asked you to mark two answers, but the key only had one answer listed.

Overall, while I was reading the book I was annoyed by it, but my test score was the highest I've ever had, so apparently despite its shortcomings, the book works.

I used the Exam Cram series to pass my SQL tests some years back. I'm finally starting to update my MCSE and purchased the exam crams for 290 and 291 (I haven't opened the 291 book yet). There are a handful of typos and mistakes (AGUDLP is referenced once in the wrong order) but nothing you'd miss if you have used the product before. The key is what others have said -- its a cram guide for the test, not a book on Windows 2003. If you have experience with the product, this will help you pass. If you are new to Windows 2003, you'll need more than this book.

For example, command-line utilities like csvde, ldifde, dsget, dsquery and the like are covered along with descriptions of when to use them and what they do. Instead of printing out every switch and usage for each utility, it simply shows you how to get help (dsget /?). If you don't take a moment to check the syntax or don't understand concepts like piping ("dsquery user -name Tim* | dsget user -title") you might miss a question or two.

Features I never use like Volume Shadow Copy and NTBackup (thankfully backup isn't part of my duties) were covered well enough and where the book fell short on a subject I just supplemented the material with a quick google query. Thankfully there wasn't much of that.

The book does have gaps -- the two tests at the end of the book asked questions that weren't even covered in the book (again, quick google query to the rescue). The book includes a link to online tests which were only valid for 14 days or something like that but it did cover items the book didn't. I do recommend at least taking one of the online tests to prepare you for the actual test as it will teach you to look for key words to limit choices for right answers (volume instead of disk, etc...). Neither of these resources prepared me for the simulations when I took the test, but that's to be expected. Its a cram guide, not a class.

This book is not a good resource for studying for 70-290. It covers a lot of material but leaves out all of the little details that are on the actual test. Unless you already know server VERY well and are just brushing up on a few general topics this book will not help you pass the test.

The sample questions and practice tests are nothing like the Microsoft test. The book's questions are short and simple. The actual test is made up of scenarios and trick 'gotcha' type questions.

The book assumes you have too much background to be useful to a beginner. It is too general and simplistic for someone with experience. Not really sure who (if anyone) would benefit from this book.

this book is direct and too the point. Will prepare you to pass the exam and has a many tips and info.

I'd combine it with other resources available. Personally I used this in conjunction with MS Press book on 70-290 and the Sybex book. Using all 3 you can;t go wrong. Exam Cram is good up to a point, do all the quizzes at the end of each chapter, it'll help reinforce what you should've learned from the first two. I used this one last to round off my learning. Can't say enough about study study study. It'll pay off in the end.

A great general book for hobby artists but not quite what I was looking for at the time. It provided some great tips and information for the at home craftsperson, who wants to make one-off designs.

Recommend it for that purpose highly.

There is some good information in this book but it is poorly organized. Sections seem to jump around sometimes leaving out important information, but wait, there it is a couple of pages later. The book needs a good editor and complete redesign. I found it frustrating to tease out the information I needed. Good luck on the next edition.

This is an excellent resource for anyone who is interested in screenprinting. Not only does it review great safety tips and technqiues but there are many inspiriational images which show the full potential of screen printing.

this book is a good book if you would like to get into screen printing. this book focuses more on the art of screen printing(art prints etc..)and not t shirts. if you wantto print tshirts, get scott fresners book on screen printing. this book covers alot of ground and its detailed quite well.doesnt tell you how to separate colors using a computer.

Good basic info for beginning screenprinters and more advanced screenprinters who want to set up their own studio.

This book has many creative and engaging activities to use with children in therapy. The activities can be used with many treatment populations and settings.

Get the workbook instead, by the same authors. It has pretty much identical information, and includes reproducible handouts. Some exercizes only work with older kids...

This book is a great companion to my psychotherapy treatment planner. Although I have worked in social service for many years I was new to clinical work with children and adolescents. The activities in this book helped the children that I work with open right up about their therapeutic issues, and gave great ideas of how to address them in a non-threatening way.

Excellent book! I am a doctoral student in Clinical Psychology just starting to work with children. This book is full of good ideas.

I purchased this book while in grad school because I had a difficult time developing my own ideas. I have to say that I still reference this book when I need a quick activity. Although the activities are designed for chlldren I have had great results tailoring them for adults and older adults. This can be a good basic resource to build on.

I think Tim Rudman is a great photographer and teacher. However, the whole point of this book is pretty thin. Back when I was in grad school, I thought I would impress Nathan Lyons by telling him that I wanted to do an entire portfolio in Bromoil prints. "At some point, you have to decide if you want to be a technician or a photographer." Was his typically clipped reply.
It was good advice that has stuck with me all these years though.

As a big fan of darkroom photography, I nearly choke on the words "Better in Photoshop". But truthfully, most of the lith printing techniques outlined in this book can be duplicated using Photoshop at 1/10 the price and time. Sure, you may be able to finally make something interesting out of that photo of your cat, but chances are you'd be better off spending time and money making more photographs and thinking about why you actually make them.
Not a bad diversion for those who like darkroom work, but a dangerous distraction for those attracted to making images with content.

"The Master Photographer's Lith Printing Course" is a beautiful comprehensive guide to Lith printing. Not to be confused with ultra-contrasty lith film, Lith printing is a technique by which a print is overexposed and then partially developed in Lith developer to produce a print that is colored monochrome. Prints typically have black shadows, colored mid-tones and burned-out highlights. The photographs must be printed on lith or other suitable black-and-white paper, and the colors produced vary according to the paper and technique. Lith prints may also be toned for additional color effects. Lith printing can be done from color negatives, but normally black-and-white negatives are preferable.

A photography book should be illustrated with example photographs that the reader can admire and would want to emulate. Author Tim Rudman must agree. "The Master Photographer's Lith Printing Course" contains about 125 example photographs, nicely reproduced, that are inspirational. The book is also very well organized. It starts with an introduction and FAQ. Chapter 1 provides an overview of lith printing which explains what effects lith printing produce, why, and to what subjects it might be suited. Chapter 2 talks about the equipment and materials you will need, including the qualities of each paper and developer that may be used in lith printing. Chapter 3 explains how to make a basic lith print. Chapter 4 goes into more detail about controlling printing and developing for various effects, including dodging, burning, and selective development. Chapter 5 talks about the whys and wherefores of pepper fogging, among other difficulties, and offers solutions. Chapter 6 is a short course in the chemistry behind lith printing, an understanding of which will help you prevent and solve problems. Chapter 7 is about controlling color in prints during development. Chapter 8 discusses toning lith prints, specifically with gold, selenium, and selenium plus gold toners for stunning effects. Chapter 9 talks about redeveloping conventional prints in lith developer. Chapter 10 introduces some "lith look-a-like effects" that can be achieved with sodium-hydroxide enriched developer, split-thiocarbamide toning, and various bleaching techniques. Some of these produce breathtaking results. Everything is generously illustrated. Tips and cautions are displayed in conspicuous colored boxes. The topics covered in each chapter are set out at the beginning of the chapter. The only fault I have with the book is minor: The captions that explain the photographs are quite good, but they are so small as to be difficult to read.

It should be noted that Tim Rudman is British, and he uses the British names for lith papers. UK/US/Australian paper equivalents are given in the excellent appendices in the back of the book. Also found in the appendices are: a troubleshooting guide, paper characteristics for 19 papers discussed in the book, a color guide that tells us which papers produce which colors under what circumstances, a paper speed reference table, an f-stop chart for printing, a glossary, and a list of US, UK, and Australian suppliers.

Some photographers might like to duplicate the style of lith prints in the digital darkroom. It would certainly be safer. If you're committed the digital darkroom, Tim Rudman's breathtaking prints can still serve as an inspiration. I generally prefer traditional prints for black-and-white photographs, as they convey a depth that is easily distinguished from digital prints when examined closely. And all lith prints will be one-of-a-kind, which could be a source of great pride or great frustration, depending on your mood. In any case, "The Master Photographer's Lith Printing Course" is a comprehensive, easy-to-follow, beautifully illustrated manual of Lith printing. I'm sure that wet darkroom printers of all levels will find this an interesting technique to try.

Very well organized and written, this book is a must for beginners and advanced lith printers alike. I am new to the process and found the book was easy to follow with great examples. The author provided lists of supplies and suppliers to make it even easier to get started as well as charts of specific papers and the effects of various developers so the beginner would know what to expect. This is not just a how-to book, but instead the author encourages exploration within the process.

I can't imagine what posessed the last reviewer to complain about the print size of this book. It's the content that matters! This is a superb book that opens up this beautiful photographic process and makes it real, understandable and 'doable' for the first time. It is really an inspirational book as well as being practical and instructional. Tim is a great teacher and communicator. Wonderful stuuf. Thank you.

Harry

I really wanted this book. I have tried to read it! The print is so very very small that it is impossible to read without a magnifying glass. I just can't do it. The sad part is, there is plenty of room on most of the pages for a larger print to have been used. It looks like it was printed with a size 8 font and maybe a size 6 under the photos. I cannot in all honesty say that I have read this book. I have looked at the photos only. If the type were readable, it would have been read cover to cover by now and I would have implemented what I had learned! What a shame that the publisher let this go with such small print. Maybe when the second edition comes out, they will print it larger. I will buy that edition when it comes out. Tim Rudman worked very hard putting this wonderful book together, only for the publishers to blow it. This will be the first book I have ever returned to Amazon.com. Geri Moore, photographer earthdancerimages.com