Exports Books

All too often novices wanting to use R for an analysis never get to the analysis because they can't successfully import, clean-up and restructure their data for the analysis functions. This book prevents those problems by telling you the critical data and file manipulation materials that are usually briefly (and inadequately) covered in stat books. It is a short easy read that will give you the tools to get your data ready to go.

You can see the table of contents and read the other reviews but areas that really shine include: dealing with categorical (named or ordered) factor variables, recoding numeric data into categorical variables, and also making and working with summary tables.

When it comes to data manipulation and clean-up Spector has the best coverage of any book or web FAQ. This book is very expensive for its size but it is worth every cent.

This concise 150 page book contains a wealth of information, writen clearly and with many well-chosen examples. I liked it a lot. It covers reading and writing data in/out of the R workspace, including access to databases. The names of other chapters suggest the topics covered: "Dates", "Factors", "Subscripting", "Character manipulation", "Data aggregation", "Reshaping data".

This book will be helpful to any but the most absolutely new to R, and even the seasoned user will find interesting hints and examples. I cannot recommend it enough.

One minor qualm I have is the absence of references. Some topics (for instance, regular expressions) are fairly complex, and well documented elsewhere: a pointer or two would be helpful. Same with, for instance, SQL, which is mentioned and demonstrated briefly.

Another not-so-minor qualm is price. A book of this size from, for instance, Dover classics collection, with similar paper quality and covers, is about a third or fourth of the price. Although this is a new book I find the $54.95 tag (Amazon discounted price is about $44.50) fairly high. But this has nothing to do with the quality of the book, rather it has to do with the Springer pricing policies.

All in all, if you don't mind the price, this is a good buy.

Data manipulation can often take as long as or longer than the actual analysis. The ability to manipulate data is not emphasized enough. This book gives a great introduction to this skill set. It is clearly written and provides good examples.

The title of the book implied a lot and the book did not deliver. If the book had twice as many pages it would have come close to the title's promise because the author would have had enough space to cover the broad area of manipulation of data in R. I felt as if the author was forced to discuss a topic in as little space as possible. Some the discussions where cursory at best. There was just enough information to leave you wandering what could have been said to give the reader a more in depth understanding of the topic.

I think the author knows this material "like the back of his hand", but, he forgot that the readers do not.

This book along with Jim Albert's should be read by every statistician that does a lot of statistical computing. Both books help you learn R quickly and apply it to many important problems in research both applied and theoretical. Albert emphasizes applications in Bayesian statistics whereas Spector is teaching how to do data manipulation, things like merging and transposing data sets. These techniques can be easy to do in a language like SAS after a little training but in other programming languages it can be very difficult.

The continuing saga of Aurora Greenway, her friends, and her family is a random, lengthy read without much purpose and very little direction. Most of the 637 pages vacillate between Aurora's selfish, laughable, and audacious behavior, and that of her strange, absurd family members. Because there is so little emotional development, it is difficult to sympathize with any of the characters being presented. They fall in love quickly but somehow do not seem to really care about anyone but themselves. This makes the reader less inclined to be concerned about how any events will affect anyone else due to the cavalier attitude toward others or their plights.

Unlike other McMurtry books, I was not drawn into the world being portrayed and did not enjoy the quirky behavior or the stories being presented. McMurtry's normally masterful story-telling did not find fruition in this book. Aside from the last 80 pages or so, most of the book seemed random and non goal-oriented, without any sense of mystery or tension or even curiosity as to what will happen, making the story and the people sort of lifeless. I was happy to be done and generally disappointed with the book.

But not all was vapid, for some of the characters did grow through their experiences and improve their own lot in life. Aurora was a complex person and it was fun seeing her adjust through the challenges of life's battles and deal with the aging process. I still laugh when I try to figure out why she won't sing while stopped at stoplights! Many of the minor characters were introduced through their odd past and their current reactions to the situations in which they found themselves, and many were quite enjoyable people and very funny at times. The pervading sadness of the book, the deaths and the tragedies, was balanced with personal victories and positive circumstances, making Evening Star a fascinating study in people's motives as well as the bittersweet realities of life.

Not my favorite McMurtry book for sure, but enough redeeming qualities and interesting people to make it worth reading.

In typical McMurtry style, there is a good deal of humor and whimsy in this novel. For the first 400 pages or so I felt it was a bit overdone, but once I saw where the novel was headed, it made perfect sense. About the ultimate destination of the novel: it packs quite an emotional punch. Rare indeed is the novel that can make me cry, but this one did it.

Larry McMurty gives us another masterpiece of humor and tears in the continued saga of Aurora Greenway

McMurtry's characters become so real to me that I can barely stand to let them go at the end of his books. I am so glad that I got to see what happened to the people from Terms of Endearment.

No writer in the last half of the 20th century was better at character development than McMurtry. In "Terms" he introduced us to Aurora Greenway; here he he expands and burnishes her character while he folds in a supporting cast of almost equally fascinating lesser characters. This was one of those rare tomes I wished would never end. You don't have to like her, but if you finish this book unaffected by la Greenway, you'd best read it again. Aurora's successful plan to ensure her young Grandson would never forget her is one of the most moving sequences I have ever read. Two years after first reading this novel and I still well up just thinking about it.

i got this book in good time and in good condition the seller wasalso amazinly curteous thank u

Great Book, information is updated on the 5th edition.. I personally use it for MY MBA.. there are a lot of books out there, the reason i bought this one is because i had to (PART OF MY MBA) none the less .. its a good textbook and a keeper

Book came in great time and was in the condition they said it was in. 5 stars.

Amazon shipped this item in a very thin bubble mailer -- new book was not shrinkwrapped, mailer was thin and beat up, and USPS *FOLDED* the book to stick in the mailbox rather than putting it in the package box or on doorstep. binding now has a crease in it that I would not consider "new" quality.

Poor shipping quality.

This was a text used in class, and while the teacher did mostly lecturing without the text, it was a great resource-easy to understand, and highly applicable. THe text does a great job of really explaining the material in a clear and concise manner.

These 73 pages kept this layman engrossed and enlightened. You learn why World Peace through World Trade ain't necessarily so, but can be a win-win situation for nations who understand the theory of the Global Trade game.

In cogent and concise language,the two gifted authors upset the notion that a dollar of National Trading Income is indifferent to what is being traded. National Trading Income from a "retainable" industry like computer chips produce strategic strengths for a nation compared to the same amount of National Trading Income from potato chips.

This new vector on Global Trade alerts business leaders to rearrange intellectually their risk-reward equation to secure a more favorable outcome.

Gomory and Baumol are two heavy-weights from the world of Economics, Industry and Mathematics who have made use of a lifetime's worth of observations to create a new theory of international trade. Their work is truely original, theoretically rigorous, and highly applicable to real-world problems: A powerful combination. As a graduate student in economics, I have found few books so compelling.

The first thing that struck me was the large number of typo's.
Starting with page 4: "when we does development abroad help"
and on through the rest of the book. Also, the graphics appear
crude.
In part 1, I could not find any reference to the fact that
"free" trade does not exist in the real world. Countries use
tariffs, taxes, subsidies, etc. to further their own interests.

Don't be put off by the title. This book should be called "Trade for Dummies." The authors kindly start where most of us left off in Econ 101 - with comparative advantage. We all remember that nature endowed England with a comparative advantage in wool, and Portugal in wine, so that this trade was an obviously good thing.

But what about today's vastly more complex economy where considerations go far beyond the mere geography of natural resource distribution? What about the role of industrialization? Or technology? Or information? Who has what advantage? And how to measure it? The authors have solved this seemingly daunting task, and present their conclusions in a few simple graphs that could fit easily onto Mr. Laffer's napkin.

How do I know that they solved the problem of reducing all the complexities of international trade to a few simple graphs? Well, I really don't know because I am not enough of an economist or mathematician to follow the technical stuff, but the authors very kindly put all that in the second half of this slim volume as kind of an appendix for the professionals. That the two authors are a leading economist and a leading mathematician is obvious from the brief biographies. And that the work passes professional muster is obvious from the blurbs. So while I can't personally check the authors' assumptions and methodology, I can accept and fully understand their conclusions as set forth in the first half of the book - the only part I read.

Not surprisingly, the graphs show that most international trade is indeed mutually beneficial. But not all. The graphs also reveal what the authors call a zone of conflict. It is to this area that attention needs to be paid. What attention do the authors suggest? Well, they are a little coy. I suspect that at this stage they are just trying to get acceptance for their framework of analysis. Anyone questioning any aspect of unrestricted free trade today is subject to being labeled a protectionist, which is only one step above racist, so the authors understandably tread very carefully.

A splendid and provocative little book dealing with a very big subject.

A must read book for anyone with an interest in International Trade. Gomory and Baumol take an insightful look into trade in this era of multinational companies, expanded trade and developing countries. They develop a technique to determine whether a trade decision is mutually beneficial (or detrimental) to the parties. While no "magic" formula to precisely determine the benefits of an individual trade decision, at least there is a cogent framework to start from.

As a lay reader it was apparent that to assure our continued growth and successes that we must continually innovate to create the next big retainable industry as well as continue productivity gains to compete with low wage developing countries in easy to enter industries where we have a major interest.

An exceptionally thorough analysis of today's world of trade.

I traveled to Mexico with Dr. Heusinkveld as a participant on one of her study abroad trips to the city where she wrote the book. I soon found out that not only is the book a must read for anyone interested in visiting or doing business in Mexico, but that the information that was published over 10 years ago is still very accurate in much of the country.

The book is a very easy read and not long at all. Its small size is very deceptive because the book is crammed with information that one should not go without.

Do not travel to Mexico without this book.

I love this book, as much for its conciseness and economy of words as well as all the sensitively considered advice and invaluable tips.
Though it is a deceptively thin book, it seems to touch on all areas of likely concern to one who visits or moves to Mexico. I wouldn't travel to Mexico without it, now.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED--should be required reading for every American so they have a better understanding of our neighbors to the south. I bought this when I first met my wife who is from Mexico. I found it very enlightening and worth every cent. It's easy to read since it is not in-depth, however, it is still very enlightening. It talks about real Mexico and real Mexicans--not the life and culture that surrounds resorts. It may need to be updated (10 years old) cause the youth in Mexico are greatly influenced by media (TV, movies, etc) today just as American youth are--however, it still provides great insight of where Mexicans are coming from.

I've read and re-read this short book, and it has helped me tremendously to understand Mexico and Mexicans. Their culture is different enough from ours that our habits don't always work.For example, in the chapter on manners, the author points out that people often thank shop clerks when leaving a store. I tried this on a recent trip and discovered that it could lead to enjoyable short conversations.

Published in 1994, I found it very timely in 2003.

...but if you know anything at all about the culture or have visited non-tourist spots you probably know a lot of this stuff already. I'm looking for something more in-depth, so I didn't find this book very helpful.

All cultures are unique, and it is often hard to understand the subtle and significant differences between ones own culture and others that are encountered through the business needs of today's global economy.

This book lays out the fundamental drivers of the Japanese culture in a way that is accessible to the American reader. It allows one to understand the motives behind Japanese business etiquette. Reading this book will shine a light on a culture that stands in vast contract to the American way of doing business. It will help the reader to navigate the river of Japanese business practices by understanding what lies underneath the surface.

This is one of the best books I have read on Japanese Business and Ethics. The author gives an explanation on the character of the japanese. Explains the differences between doing business the japanese way and the western way.The author gives a history of the japanese and gives stories on how the japanese think and act. You will gain so much knowledge from this book about the japanese. I will recommend this book to anyone that is going to do business in Japan or with the japanese in their own country. A must read.

Not only is the author knowledgable about the topic, but I like the manner in which he makes his points through real life anacdotes. I use the same technique in my book: The Constant-Sum Approach to Business Success".

Content: DeMente seems to know what he's talking about (this author was recommended to me by an instructor in Chinese culture). Although I've dealt with Japanese business people for many years, I've not been to Japan, and therefore have no basis to completely judge the book's content. Based on what I do know, though, this book is best read as instruction in how to deal with Japanese business people when doing business *in Japan* (as opposed to doing business with Japanese companies and their representatives in the U.S.).

Structure: Overly repetitive, poorly structured and in some places, clearly outdated. The last criticism is to be expected given the dramatic change of status Japan has undergone in the past decade. The first two criticisms might be ameliorated by two factors: One, my own preferences are certainly playing a large role here. I prefer to have information delivered in a logical (to me) and concise manner. This is especially true for an instructive book -- one would expect creative writing to contain flourishes. Two, perhaps this *is* creative writing, and DeMente is showing the reader what dealing with a Japanese mindset is really like.

Superficially, Japan and the US are quite similar: In their cities, there are tall modern buildings, well dressed people hurrying to appointments while talking on cellular phones as well as the hustle and bustle of any large Western city. These similarities will seduce nearly every American who seeks to do business in Japan into thinking that the business practices of the country will be the same as in the US. The truth is that the cultural differences are so vast and subtle that they are often beyond the comprehension of the majority Americans. In Japan, there is a high expectation of a certain standard of business etiquette and failure to achieve this standard could doom any hopes of doing business in that country. And, unfortunately, many Americans, unknowingly, are unable to avoid this pitfall. The Japanese language is rich with expressions that conceptualize certain feelings or attitudes that are literally very foreign to Westerners but are key to the Japanese way of seeing things. De Mente's explanations of these phrases and sayings are both useful vocabulary lessons as well as effective insights into the Japanese business mentality. When my friends ask me for advice on conducting business in Japan, I regularly refer them to this book for a quick heads-up on business etiquette and ethics prior to their visit. Without exception, everyone reported that the book gave them the additional perception and savvy that was especially helpful in understanding and dealing with their Japanese counterparts. In addition to giving basic insight on the how-to's of doing business in Japan, De Mente's book could a valuable primer for our diplomats and trade representatives who seek to improve relations with our important Asian neighbor. I have read many books on this topic and have found none to have the depth and the richness as this one. After reading this book, one will naturally seek additional information in De Mente's many other books on this subject. Even if you are able to afford a cultural consultant to dispense expensive advice you will find Japanese Etiquette and Ethics in Business to be a thoughtfully written handbook that gives much insight into the ways of doing business in that country.

This book is a bit unfocused, but even its tangents are interesting. You get a few pages here on Chinese history, a few pages there of polemic about rich nations' unfair trading practices, here a digression, there a ramble. It's not completely about China and it's not completely about the WTO, though those bases are covered, and the other subjects it touches upon - including Asian regional economics - add to its value. The authors put both sides of the debate over trade in reasonably fair focus. We confirm that what they say about China, while not new, merits mulling over by anyone affected by globalization.

This book is a bit unfocused, but even its tangents are interesting. You get a few pages here on Chinese history, a few pages there of polemic about rich nations' unfair trading practices, here a digression, there a ramble. It's not completely about China and it's not completely about the WTO, though those bases are covered, and the other subjects it touches upon - including Asian regional economics - add to its value. The authors put both sides of the debate over trade in reasonably fair focus. We confirm that what they say about China, while not new, merits mulling over by anyone affected by globalization.

I'm a Vietnamese student in Boston-USA, I have been haunted by the quest of knowing more of the impacts on the southeast asia region once China entered the WTO. I hoped to predict what would happen in Vietnam once it enters the WTO because VN is likely to follow China's track and how she would deal with it. And this book says it all, it helps me so much in looking for the near future of VN, and what sector of VN needs to be fortified to be ready for the economic fight in the globalization process.

This is a well-written book with illustrations and proofs of points. The authors are well-respected in the economics community, as one of them will be the WTO Director General in Sep, 2002, and the other is the Regional Editor for BusinessWeek.

The economic impact of China accession is so profound that the book shouldn't be overlooked. This book will help you see the conflicting aspects of state-owned and private-held enterprises in China and the prospect of continuing administrative and economic reforms through the binding of WTO trade laws.

I gave the book 5 stars because it deserves to be the best.

In December 2001, China agreed to join the World Trade Organization. According to projections, economic reforms undertaken since 1978 will help China to increase its GDP to $2.2 trillion by 2010, standing behind the United States, Japan and Germany. This progress raises many serious questions for its internal transformation and her role in the global economy.
The book considers carefully the economic, social and political consequences of this event. The phenomenal success of recent economic growth is attributed to high savings rates, protective laws and strong and effective government policies. However, the great challenges facing China to become a truly modern state are institutional reforms for sustained economic growth.
Based on the World Bank's projections, China would become the world's second largest economy in 2020 with 8% of global output, trailing the United States with a 19% share. If this happens, China's skilled workers would also see the world's highest wage gains, nearly a double increase! Consequently, the great challenge China's government and the World Trade Organization will face is to make sure that all levels of society receive a fair share of its economic growth.
Supachai Panitchpakdi and Mark Clifford correctly believe that globalization and trade promoted by the WTO for all nations, many of which are small, are equally important for China as well. Numerous studies indicate that there is a strong correlation between free trade and growth. Finally, it should be recognized, that China's entry into the WTO will dramatically raise the stakes for its Asian neighbors and rivals. It would attract more foreign investment followed by a higher sustained rate of growth and in turn would increase international trade and development and help other countries to develop their economies as well.

First, this book is absolutely spectacular. Well thought out and thoroughly presented.

If you expect to interact with people and exchange information, you need to read this book. Being part of society is what makes societies and governments function. Without some level of connection/involvement between people, nothing would be accomplished.

Read and re-read... it will change the way you think, and even possibly make you a more enriched person...

Connexity presents invaluable and different tastes from the windows of Mulgan. While reading this book, you feel yourself in the jungle of real life.

This is yet another tome on how and why it's best for us all to live together on the fragile planet. His ancient thesis articulated, Mulgan (part of the Blair Braintrust in Britain) takes the scatter-gun approach to, well, just about everything--and nothing in detail. Mulgan's book comes off as more a Statist Apologia than an interpretation and explanation of "connexity." He grapples little with the forces of "connexity," such as the Internet, and what they'll make of decidedly Modern inventions (such as the welfare state). Instead, Mulgan argues that some governments really can have positive effects on their people. No argument there, but how does "connexity" impact the role of government? That seems to be what Mulgan is trying to answer amid the pretensions to technological and sociological expertise. "Connexity" comes off as well in some ways as Mulgan's greatest fear: in one place he declares that too much freedom is a very bad thing. Again, no argument, but it begs numerous questions--apparently too many for Mulgan to answer. If you really want to know what's going on in the connected world, read Wacker and Taylor's "500-Year Delta." It takes nothing as given.

Mulgan asks "are the achievements of freedom and the growth of independence compatible, or are we doomed to a classical tragedy in which our love of freedom destroys our capacity to be independent?" He then argues both sides of this question from an economic, sociological, and moral perspective.

In the end, the moral imperative of reciprocity (give and take, the golden mean) fuels his optimism for a self-organizing moral and societal order without the constraints of traditional methods of governance. However, Mulgan is no Pollyanna. He concludes with an optimistic view of the future tempered with a dash of realism. "The classical idea of progress as the unfolding of a grand plan or the expression of a higher intelligence is as doubtful as the much more recent faith that the world might have immanent properties that drive it towards complexity, integration, and self-organization. [...] There may be no destiny, and no certainty, nothing determined, only choices and chances. But life is all the better for that, because that is what leaves room for people to make their own history."

Mulgan's explanation of how we arrived at this point in the history of the world makes his analysis of the future more credible. For most of human history, a few traders linked the great trade centers but most economic life was local, face-to-face, and small scale. Larger social units were broadly defined and self-contained. Each unit could be mapped as a series of concentric circles of decreasing power radiating from the centers. Citizens at the centers of power were more cosmopolitan by virtue of their connectivity with other centers of power while residents of the distant regions were provincial.

The rise of rapid, economical, and global travel and digital communication (connexity) has reduced the hold of provincialism upon the outlying citizens and enabled a more cosmopolitan attitude to permeate throughout society. The trade networks and free-flowing information that liberated people f! rom the previous bonds of settled agriculture and industry produced a modern nomadic mobility. On the downside, connectivity promotes a sense of timeless time and of spaceless space that favors economic transactions over relationships and withdrawal from communities rather than staying engaged.

Mulgan contends that our freedom is intimately linked with that of the State. Fortunately, the State's very success in delivering both external and internal security has made new forms of government possible. Much of the baggage of sovereignty and power that that we have inherited from the days when the main role of government was to protect us from danger is now obsolete. Mulgan explores the impact of discarding this baggage (taxation, social order and control, and bureaucracy) in discussion of the rise of the city-state, assumption of pseudo-governmental roles for global corporations, and the relegation of national governments to figurehead status. Whatever form the new social order takes, it will require an environment where individuals define strength as the capacity to internalize interdependence and freedom as the achievement of individual well being in the context of attaining shared goals.

As a Realtor I had a week to learn about the business when I became involved in the sale of a manufacturing business. Zodl thankfully does not dwell on theory or historical origins but jumps right into the nuts and bolts of transactions from both the import and export side. Almost written in a cookbook style that quickly brought my understanding from nearly zero to a high level of confidence, leaving no questions in my mind how these transactions successfully take place. There are no wasted sentences in this book and if you skip one sentence you might miss a piece of valuable knowledge that could take months of trial and error to obtain.

This is very well written, and explains how things actually work in international business. It explains the terminology and how to do the documents, and where to get the documents done for you (third party providers that you can hire). The chapter on Getting Paid is especially useful. The chapter on Terms of Sale explains how to avoid a lot of mistakes you could make really easily.

This book provides some good information for anyone new to the area of import/export and small businesses, but it lacks the comprehension that can be found in other comparable books on this subject matter.

Zodl's book was one of many Ex/Im books I've looked at. His book is a quick read and one can easily finish it in one sitting. He has enough detail to give you an excellent overview of ExIm and also plenty of guidelines and pointers to strong resources. With this book, you should have enough to take your business into ExIm without much difficulty. You will have to learn more, or course, but Zodl gives you enough information to seek the right team and expert advice (many times free expert advice) and ask the correct questions. He also covers complex topics like NVOCCs, Shipper Export Declaration Forms, and other things that one should look out for when getting into this type of business. He writes with authority, common sense, and an easy style. He gives very practical advise and easily digestable advice on legal issues with ExIm and also plenty of examples of important documents you must use in the process.

A book worth the money, but since it is relatively short (170 pages), I would suggest borrowing it from a library and reading it while taking notes in a small notebook. That way you'll remember what you've learned and have an organized way of accessing it later.

Finally, a book that provides a counterpoint to Tom Friedman's "Flat Earth" Theory. Extracts and distills the boring economic statistics from the government publications, and guides the reader to understanding and conclusions on what the financial future is going to be like. It is not a "Happy Ending" scenario, but essential reading for the people who care how their children will live in twenty years. Has some irritating typos, but is a landmark attempt by a respected engineer to use his technical skills in order to make some sense out of this economic morass.

Ned Lamont, Democratic candidate for the U. S. Senate wrote in a letter to the author, "Your insights and predictions about the future of manufacturing in the American economy are thought-provoking." (Mr. Lamont offered no overall ranking.)

Is the United States of America the richest nation on earth or are we living an illusion financed by foreign debt with ominous implications for the future? Dr. Cunningham explores this question and makes a very convincing case that the United States is on an economic path that will result in a major economic correction - a correction that will significantly degrade our way of life. His conclusions are well supported by voluminous data presented in an easy to read and understand graphical format. Everyone with a concern about the ability of the United States to maintain its standard of living in an increasingly competitive world should read this book, consider Dr Cunnibngham's recommendations, and write their congressman.

Dr Cunningham does a very thorough job of examining the issues related to the loss of manufacturing in the USA. His sound reasoning and impeccable data help the reader understand the problem ... plus ... he offers a convincing step by step solution! This book should be read by anyone who cares about the economic future of our country. It's easy to follow, keeps your attention, has incredible insight, and a real vision.