economics-software

There are a few tips and shortcuts in the book that are handy but don't look to it to help you figure out how to use Quickbooks to customize your business. There are few examples of how the various features can actually be used and, most dismaying of all, no analysis of how the things you're instructed to do actually affect your accounts.

The best thing about this book is all the great information that isn't available from QuickBooks -either the help files or the support site. Miss Ivens shows you how to work around the QuickBooks limitations, how to do things the help files say aren't supported in Quickbooks, and even gives realworld examples to make it easy to do the same things on your own books.

Her writing is clear as crystal and very conversational, so it's a pleasure to read the book. My accountant loved the fact that she explained what QuickBooks is doing in the background with the General Ledger when you create transactions. He went out and bought himself a copy, and is now recommending it to all his clients.

This book, filled with great tricks to get more out of Quickbooks, is also a good basic primer on understanding bookkeeping. This is the only book you need if you're running a business with Quickbooks - you can throw away the books that came with the software.

The best thing about this book is that it saves you money on accountant fees. The writer explains the bookkeeping processes so well that you don't have to keep asking your accountant to set up the way transactions are handled, you can figure it out for yourself (and it's so clearly explained, you'll be right).

The next best thing about the book is all the tricks to get the software to do things exactly the way you need it to. If you're not a bookkeeper (and most small business owners aren't), some things aren't self-explanatory, such as how do I handle sales tax in more than one state. Not only does this book show you how to set up your books to handle these problems, but the writer walks you through the steps, explaining why you do it the way you do it.This is a bookkeeping education in addition to learning the ins and outs of Quickbooks.

May be it's personal but I believe that those who are not geeks of their professions - shouldn't
teach others as well. If you're not fascinated by the topic you talk about - how do you expect
to write a good book ?! I think that this book was written by someone who learned Enterprise Java
just to pay his rent. Writing a book seemed just another possible income ..

Why do I think so ?

Well, topics are explained on the very primitive level and I can actually "smell" that authors
just don't know the material good enough to dig in - they repeat the same basic ideas many times
but leave lot's of questions unanswered (like "Why do some methods in this table return a variable
of a primitive type and others their object wrappers ? Is it just typo or something else ?"),
their code examples take pages but contain only couple of useful (and, again, trivial) lines and ..
typos everywhere (make up your mind already - is it "javax.naming" or "java.naming" ?).

Whatever I look at - I see Java dilettantes, not Java geeks and not even Java professionals
(excuse me, but one who compares two Strings for equality using compareTo() instead of equals()
doesn't have a clue about Java for me !).

I think it is still useful for getting the idea about major J2EE technologies (JDBC, JNDI, servlets,
JSP, RMI, EJB, JMS and JTA) but *on the very basic level*. That's what I keep it for.

P.S.
The title should be changed to "Developing Java Enterprise Applications *for dummies*" because
authors DO treat their readers like a 14-year old kiddies - "type and press ENTER".
Folks, who do you think you're talking to in this book that you need to remind me about pressing ENTER ?

It covers the most important Java APIs that the enterprise developer who uses Java.

The books covers JDBC, RMI, JNDI, JTS, JMS, JSP, EJB, and a few other technologies. The book tends to alternate between explanatory and example chapters. So first, JDBC is discussed and then the next chapter walks through an example.

Given the number of topics in this book, each topic is not covered in full detail as most of the topics are worthy of a book all their own (and many of them already have one). However, this book's goal is to cover just enough so you can understand the technology and get started using its core features.

Therefore, this makes the book excellent for trying to figure what these technologies do. In fact, this book is readable by managers as well as developers, if the managers skip the example chapters.

From reading this book, you get the impression that the authors have quite a bit of experience, have used the technologies discussed, and know what they are talking about. On the whole, this is a great book for getting your feet wet with Enterprise Java.

This book is well designed and well written. It covers every topic needed for Java Enterprise Development. Topics like Java Message Service and Java Mail are covered quite extensively, not to mention JSP, XML, and Enterprise JavaBeans. Every topic needed to do real Java Enterprise development is here in this book.

Each topic has several chapters dedicated to that subject as well as an application chapter which builds on previous chapters. Each chapter shows the needed diagrams and code samples to build the required implementation. Chapter 11 shows how to create a basic JSP Bug Tracking tool, which is one of my future projects that I am interested in doing.

This book will make a great reference manual because it is well laid out and the index is extremely accurate. The book does have a lot of tables, diagrams, and code samples. The tables describe the methods, properties, attributes and packages covered in the book.

** I would highly recommend this book to an intermediate to advanced Java Programmer looking to do enterprise level development work. I rate this book at 4.5 stars.

Jerry
Member of Colajug - www.colajug.org

Buy it only if you are a beginner.

This is a good book to people who want to have an overview at a glance about call centers features and problems. But, according to new economy habits, it is not a technological issue. So, if many points are discussed, such as human resources, real estate, organisation, hardware and products, none of them is focused in a detailed way. It is surely a very good introduction to people starting a new job in call centers environments, but do not expect too much by readin it.

This is a definite Must Read for any Call Center professional! All those questions about what system/technology does what and how are answered in one fact-based publication. If you want to avoid the headache of time-consuming hunts through web-sites and talking with marketing reps to learn which product works best for your company, this book is for you. If you are looking for a bubble-gum view of call center management, don't read this book because you just might learn the truth! By the way, get a Call Center Magazine subscription to continue the information flow started by reading this book.

If you have much experience developing CBTs or multimedia projects, this isn't the resource for you. It's better for aspiring managers or managers of training depts. It's a good book to read if you want to know a whole lot ABOUT the field of WBT. The CD-ROM is not a model of good design. It provides a list of URLs but does not categorize the list. Unless you're very familiar with the training world, you don't know which are links to resources (most aren't) and which aren't. The NASA link takes you to a login page for NASA employees and contractors (I assume most of us are not either of these). All in all, I regret buying the book. It does have useful information and interesting asides, but I did not use it in developing my department or WBT strategy.

It wasn't what I thought it would be. I took a class last summer and this was the book we used. If you are a technical type of person, you might understand it, or even a business person. The first half of the book talks about how you need a proposal and how to write one, why web training is ideal for business, etc. The last half is about how to set up a training website.

The book uses a lot of case studies, which seems like a good idea, but the book uses too many, and not enough concrete examples.

I don't really know why this is called a cookbook, it isn't set up like that at all. While it does have some interesting features, I think it's a little outdated and really should be revised to discuss some of the newer technologies available to trainers. This, and because it covers a lot of the very basics, might be why it seems to be filled with too much common sense and not enough truly innovative ideas. I've seen Brandon Hall speak at training shows, and he's obviously a leader in the industry. I just didn't think this book was worth (the money). I'd say only about a quarter of the book is useful. To top it off, the CD-ROM is a waste. I wouldn't recommend this book to trainers or instructional designers with any amount of real-world experience.

If you want to read a book on the egotistical founders of DirectX and Chrome and learn how NOT to manage a technology and your employees then this book is for you. They just happened to be at the right place at the right time and rode the msft wave. Save your money.

This book is a fascinating read, especially for anyone in the fast-growing and ultra-competitive computer game industry. If you've ever used DirectX, you owe it to yourself to buy this book.

It's all here: the creation of the wildly successful DirectX software platform; the humiliating WinG fiasco; Alex St. John's outrageous publicity stunts to promote DirectX (including the crisis with the cancelled alien spacecraft, or when he convinced several game industry executives to streak through Seattle GameWorks); the obnoxious coders who began the OpenGL wars; and St. John's raucous but ultimately career-limiting final letter to Gates & Co.

Although the book reads at times like an Alex St. John biography, the book's mix of wild stunts, software eccentrics, and high technology is enough to keep any reader thoroughly entertained.

Perhaps the most astonishing and terrifying revelation of all is how long it took Microsoft to take the multi-billion-dollar computer game industry seriously, even after the conception of DirectX . . . a mistake the company surely won't make again.

Must read for any game developer. Exposes the secret history of one of the best things Microsoft has done in the last ten years (DirectX) - a technology that has truly made life better for everyone, itself, game developers and especially customers. DirectX is the very definition of "Not Re-Inventing the wheel"

Yes the book is a little disjointed in places, but if you are familiar with the industry you'll find a lot that rings true in here. If you've read "Microsoft Secrets" which details the order then read this book which details the chaos.

My only real criticism is that the book is told solely from the perspective of the renegades and doesn't go into as much depth as I'd like on the part of the poor managers who had to "herd these cats".

If for no other reason, buy this book for the some of the funny anecdotes. I found myself laughing out loud many times while reading this.

Bottom Line: Not a classic but still a darn good read.

If you have an inclination to buy this book, look at ACT! or MS Outlook instead of Goldmine. These books are written by Goldmine Certified Consultants. Do you really believe they are going to give their secrets away...when they charge thousands a day?

You will find the only real solution to any problem beyond the GoldMine Unknowledgeable Base (which I believe they purposely do not update) or their Customer ...Department is as basic as it gets. FrontRange (owner of Goldmine) constantly refers you to Goldmine Certified Consultants. It is obvious that FrontRange is leaving individuals and small business owners...

I don't know why I buy these "Dummy" books. If you're a semi-literate computer user, it's not going to help much. If you're a neophite, then Goldmine probably isn't the program you should be using for contact management. Goldmine is powerful but complicated. To use it, a relationship with a consultant who knows the program inside an out is the way to go.

I miss the old 3 inch thick "Que" books and wish there was a manual of that nature available for GM. This one only scratches the surface and that will leave you hanging. If you have an inclination to buy this book, look at ACT! or MS Outlook instead of Goldmine, or hire a Goldmine Certified Consultant.

After installing Goldmine 5 I bought this book when it first became available. I was not new to CRM software but found this book very useful. If you are new to Goldmine you will not be disappointed with this book. It can teach you a lot,even beyond the essential basics of this software. Read the book with your software running and apply what you just learned. After this foundation you should have little or no problem making the software do what you want. However, if you objective is to customize the software for your business, get a professional.

The suits give each other millions of dollars.

Robert Young styles himself as a salesman, not a technical type, and it shows.

Meanwhile the real story goes untold.

You can be a Linux enthusiast yet still find this book about as dull as the instruction booklet for your microwave oven. It's a combination of corporate cheerleading, meeting minutes, and open-source propagandizing. I approve of Young and his efforts, but this badly written, chaotically organized, and totally colorless book gives them a bad name. It has none of the atmospherics and vivid personality of, say, a book like BURN RATE. I cringe to say it, but even Bill Gates's THE ROAD AHEAD was more interesting...

This is the story of Red Hat through its public offering in 1999. Red Hat is the largest provider of fee-based Linux products and services in the world. The book emphasizes the economic model advantages of creating a company based on providing open source software to established companies.

Linux is an operating system for computers that offers many advantages for users by typically being faster, more reliable, less expensive, and easier to improve. It is an open source program, which means that you get all of the software (including the source code) for free and you are licensed to make any changes you want to it for your own use and to share or resell. Unlike other operating systems, this one was developed by the volunteer work by thousands of contributors around the world. Their motivation came from the desire to have a better computer environment to work in, to be able to do their own work better, an altruistic desire to help others, and for personal recognition. Through Red Hat and other Linux providers, Linux is becoming the major alternative operating system to Windows in personal computers.

Think of Linux as being somewhat like creating the world's largest free electronic library for accessing information, by having people with the copyrights on all of the most valuable information share it for free on-line with volunteer librarians to put it all into shape and to create the Web site.

I strongly urge you to read Eric Raymond's excellent book, The Cathedral and the Bazaar, before reading this book. Although the open source software movement is accurately summarized in Under the Radar, you will not fully understand its development and potential power without more background. With that background, this book deserves four stars. Without that background, this is a three star book.

If you are like me, what interests you about Linux is whether it will spread beyond advanced users in scientific laboratories. The first sign that that could happen was when ISPs (Internet Service Providers) began favoring Linux for their servers.

In Under the Radar, you will learn a great deal about the reactions at Microsoft, Intel, Netscape, Dell, and other major computer industry companies to the news of Linux's success in these environments. To me, this information confirmed that Linux's best days are ahead of it, as Microsoft's are behind it. While most people are focusing on the Department of Justice's case against Microsoft, the real action is in the development of Linux-based competition for Microsoft. That is where the break-up of the Microsoft monopoly will come from. Now that you can get personal computers with Linux preloaded from Dell and others (and a Windows clone of Linux is just down the road), the monopoly is doomed. That will be good for us all.

What will even be better for us is if Linus Torvald's vision of eliminating all software patents occurs. Then open source will become the standard for software rather than the exception.

I also learned a lot about how Red Hat will be important in taking Linux into the corporate market by making people feel comfortable with its reliability and predictability. I wish the book had spent more time in discussing how current and potential customers evaluate Red Hat's version of Linux. That would have made this a five star book, assuming you already had the open source software background to understand how the development process works.

Where else is secrecy delaying human progress? (I call this the trade secret stall.) Could it be that this will be the case with patents on genes? How can the equivalent of open source development of gene therapies be pursued to accelerate healthy progress?

Open your mind to the full potential for cooperation!

The book provides good insight into project management. Suitable for beginning or intermediate level. A few of the concepts and readings are quite out of date. The third edition was last copyrighted in 1995. This can be an eternity in the fast changing project management arena. An update, to include current (1999) concepts and techniques, could make this an excellent text instead of a good text.

I bought this book because it was required for a class I am taking. I had the 3rd Edition already and wasn't too impressed. But this 5th Edition is much more appealing. I just became PMP certified and reviewing this book before taking the exam was a great primer to get my head out of pure PMBOK and into real world Project Management. The case studies and Directed Readings are great for seeing real world PM activities. I would suggest the book for guidance and classroom type learning. If you're an experienced PM then this book is too academic and won't feed your intellect. Buy something else.

This book handles all PM wk, covers basis,not for the contractor,or const. worker trying to be PM...in construction

Don't let the title mislead you: Statistics for Managers Using Microsoft Excel (Student Solutions Manual) has almost nothing to do with Microsoft Excel. This book is useful IF and only if you are using it as a companion to the Statistics for Managers Using Microsoft Excel text book in a statistics class.

The book provides ANSWERS. It does not provide any how-to; it does not provide any Excel formulas/etc. But is does provide the answers to all of the even-numbers problems in the companion text book. That's the only reason it got as much as a "3 stars" rating from me -- it was helpful for feedback.

While I used the first edition of this book (1997) with delight and great admiration, I was disappointed when I bought the second edition (1999). The main reason was that the authors had indicated in a small top right hand corner on the cover that the book uses PHSTAT as an an Excel Add In. (Not very useful for online purchases). Amazon mentioned PHSTAT in one review as an "Add In included on the CD", ie, it seemed optional. The examples solved in the 1st edition used native Excel methods. In edition 2, they were solved using PHSTAT. All screen captures, worksheets, etc, were in PHSTAT. If one does not wish to use PHSTAT, the second edition would not be useful at all. It would have been leading (Opposite of misleading) to entitle the book "Statistics for Managers Using PHSTAT, an Excel Add In". I am hence confused about the number of stars : first edition : 5 and second edition only 1.

This textbook combines good readability and yet is also relatively detailed. Statistics For Managers Using Excel 3E is well organized, with plenty of examples that make understanding the concepts easy. The problems at the end of the Chapter are excellent at drilling the concepts in student's heads, and the companion CD is also useful.

I will agree with the reviewers that mentioned the errors. There ARE some errors in this book, but overall compared to most other texts there are NOT a lot of them relatively speaking.

Overall, an excellent textbook for students taking a beginning undergraduate level Stats course.

This book is very difficult to read. The authors say very little in hundreds of pages. I was looking for more content. The data mining techniques are explained in detail, but they are very difficult to understand. Perhaps this could also be because I am new to data mining. This is definitely not a book for someone looking for a quick introduction to data mining.

This book gives an overview of what data mining is and the tools available to perform it; Market Basket Analysis, Memory Based Reasoning, Automatic Cluster Detection, Link Analysis, Decision Trees, Artificial Neural Networks. Genetic Algorithms are also included, which, while not a data mining tool, are being used to train neural nets.

In each case the authors describe the principles behind the tool, its strengths and weaknesses and applications were it is applicable. The authors give tips on what data preparation is required for the tool, both in terms of data "massaging", (which is required for neural nets) and indicate were it is important to select training sets that have approximately equal proportions of "good" & "bad" outcomes, in order for the tool to predict correctly.

The descriptions include simple examples of the tool to give an overview of how the tool works. But as the title indicates, this book is for users who are considering using data mining tools. It does not describe how to use particular applications, neither does it include code examples (pseudo or actual) if you are interesting in developing your own tools.

The book is easy to read and includes many examples from their experience of data mining in the real world.

The authors explain in a detailed way the most popular Data Mining techniques. The topics about Neuronal Networks, Decision Trees, Market-Basket Analysis and Memory-Based Reasoning are excellent. I think the topic Genetic Algorithms could be a bit more developed, but for the beginner is a good first overview. I have missed a topic about fuzzy logic. Given that the 90% of Data Mining projects are based on Marketing (1:1), the book is absolutely suitable for starting with these concepts, although I feel the book can be used in any other field (Just-In-Time Inventory, Demand Forecasting, Supply Value Chain, etc.) In my opinion, it was very useful for my work and I considered it as a reference book.