- COMPUTER PROGRAMMING
- "Applied
XML: A Toolkit for Programmers"
by Alex Ceponkus and Faraz Hoodbhoy
XML
is the next new thing, but the hype sometimes outpaces the reality.
The authors of "Applied XML: A Toolkit for Programmers" seek to
restore the balance. "Our objective ... is to show you how to
apply XML to real world scenarios. Yes, we spend time covering
the conceptual details of XML--but that's the easy stuff." They
show off tools and techniques for using XML to build "real-world
applications," including Java used with XML in today's browsers.
Read this title to catch up on XML and see what today's XML tools
can do.
- "Automating
Windows with Perl"
by Scott McMahan
"Emerging
from my own hacking efforts with Perl under Windows, the topics
in this book have been almost totally undocumented, or documented
in a scattered or disconnected way," says Scott McMahan, author
of the new "Automating Windows with Perl." Written for the Windows
administrator or advanced developer, this book shows how to think
like a "real" Perl programmer in a Windows setitbusng. Short examples
explain how to use Perl to accomplish a variety of common administrative
and programming tasks. This title will be appreciated by anyone
who has ever wanted to automate the Windows desktop. Win32 Perl
is a powerful tool, and the author shows you how to get started
using it effectively for everyday computing tasks.
- "The
Complete Java 2 Certification Study Guide"
by Simon Roberts, Philip Heller, and Michael Ernest
Sun Java certification
is no picnic, so a thorough study guide is essential. Look no
further than "The Complete Java 2 Certification Study Guide" for
formal, structured preparation. This colossal reference offers
comprehensive coverage of the objectives you must attain to pass
both the Programmer's Exam and the more demanding Developer's
Exam.
- "Professional
Java Server Programming"
by Andrew Patzer et al.
Wrox specializes
in books written by programmers, for programmers, and "Professional
Java Server Programming" is no different. All 12 authors are developers
and consultants--including some who've been part of Sun's own
Java team. The Web is becoming more and more of a way to deliver
applications rather than just static Web pages. Java is becoming
more and more popular as a tool for building Web applications,
thanks to Java servlets and Java Server Pages.
- "Learn
to Program Databases with Visual Basic 6"
by John Smiley
Computer author John Smiley continues his tradition of making
Visual Basic accessible to beginners with his new book, "Learn
to Program Databases with Visual Basic 6." "Databases are difficult,
aren't they?" he asks. "Well yes, they are, but with a little
work you'll be up and running with the best of them." His tour
of fundamental Visual Basic database programming features a simulated
training course, in which students ask questions and he provides
the answers in an ever-patient and comprehensible style. Those
new to Visual Basic should take a look at this title--it puts
the database features of VB within reach of virtually any reader.
- "Business
Modeling with UML: Business Patterns at Work"
by Magnus Penker and Hans-Erik Eriksson
Publication date: January 2000
Until now, the Unified Modeling Language (UML) has been used primarily
to design software, but should you use it to model your entire
business as well? That's the intriguing argument of "Business
Modeling with UML," a text that combines leading-edge enhancements
to UML with solid thinking about business. Written for any manager
with some technical background, this book looks at the possibilities
of UML used to model entire organizations.
- "The
C++ Programming Language, Special Edition"
by Bjarne Stroustrup
Publication date: January 2000
Covering every
element of C++, Bjarne Stroustrup's "The C++ Programming Language,
Special Edition," is a collector's gem. Stroustrup, the creator
of C++, has updated his classic text with clarifications drawn
from reader feedback and also two new appendices on ISO/ANSI C++,
internalization, and exception safety. Like its predecessor, this
enhanced version tackles everything from core language and basic
development techniques to the Standard Library and effective program
design. The updated text includes Standard C++ locales that enable
developers to build code for easy customization in worldwide markets.
-
"Introduction to Expert Systems, 3rd Edition"
by Peter Jackson
Computers
can now beat the very best human chess players. How is this possible?
Peter Jackson's "Introduction to Expert Systems, 3rd Edition"
surveys the entire field of expert systems and finds out how they
work. "An expert system is a computer program that represents
and reasons with knowledge of some specialist subject with a view
to solving problems or giving advice." Besides a review of several
decades' worth of research in AI, this book surveys techniques
and strategies for adding real expert intelligence to today's
software. Written for the computer science student or the advanced
programmer, this book also offers a good perspective on the changing
aims of AI over the years and the prospects for even smarter software
in the future.
- POLITICS
- "Culture
Jam"
by Kalle Lasn
In his magazine Adbusters, Kalle Lasn attacks the culture of consumerism
by turning its own tactics against it--employing the glossy methods
of advertising to encourage people to take part in "Buy Nothing
Day" and "TV Turnoff Week." Lasn's new book, "Culture Jam," takes
the revolution to another level, issuing a call to arms to "the
advance shock troops of the most significant social movement"
of the early 21st century.
- "India's
Nuclear Bomb"
by George Perkovich
Nobody expected India--the country that produced pacifist leader
Mahatma Gandhi--to go nuclear so soon or so suddenly. But that's
what it did in May 1998, detonating five nuclear weapons, to the
world's astonishment. George Perkovich offers a comprehensive
survey of how India got the bomb, starting with early technical
efforts dating back 50 years and concluding with a full treatment
of exactly what India did in the Rajasthan desert and why.
- "Fortunate
Son"
by J.H. Hatfield
This controversial biography of George W. Bush, which alleges
that the Republican frontrunner used drugs and finagled his way
out of the penal system, was recalled by its first publisher--but
Soft Skull Press has not only brought it back into print, they've
added some new charges against Bush as well. Due to its controversial
nature, interest in "Fortunate Son" is so strong that the publishers
may not be able to meet the immediate demand. But you may choose
to place an order now, and we will ship your copy as soon as it
becomes available.
- "Hillary's
Choice"
by Gail Sheehy
Vanity Fair writer Gail Sheehy's engrossing biography of Hillary
Clinton is a refreshing departure from the political hit jobs
that have appeared elsewhere in print. That's not to say "Hillary's
Choice" is a pro-Clinton book--Hillary herself would probably
bristle at reading it, and her husband comes off as a bright but
demented cad.
- "Secrecy"
by Daniel Patrick Moynihan
Daniel Patrick Moynihan was one of the first members of the United
States government to predict openly the imminent collapse of the
Soviet Union. Had we spent less time trying to gather secret information
about the Soviets and more time discussing rather easily interpretable
data, he argues in "Secrecy," we might have been far less paranoid
about the supposed Red menace. The problem, he writes, lies in
the essential nature of government secrecy: "Departments and agencies
hoard information, and the government becomes a kind of market.
Secrets become organizational assets, never to be shared save
in exchange for another organization's assets.... The system costs
can be enormous. In the void created by absent or withheld information,
decisions are either made poorly or not at all."
- REFERENCE
- "Encyclopedia
of Murder and Mystery"
by Bruce F. Murphy
The mystery buffs in the office are all kvelling about this weighty
new encyclopedia by novelist and essayist Bruce Murphy. Thoroughly
cross-referenced, invitingly solid, and unapologetically opinionated,
this tome gives theme encyclopedias a good name.
- "National
Geographic Atlas of the World"
From settling a friendly argument to completing a school report,
the potential uses of "National Geographic Atlas of the World"
for a family are vast, indeed. In the end, though, the atlas is
still mostly about maps. Pages and pages of maps. Maps that force
us to see how wonderful and dynamic our world is. Maps that remind
us of where we've been and where we'd still like to go.
- "The
Complete Idiot's Guide to Cultural Etiquette"
by Carol Turkington
There are so many ways to embarrass yourself in this world. It's
easy enough in your own culture, where you know most of the rules,
but when you visit a foreign country, social interactions are
fraught with gaffe potential. Luckily, Carol Turkington's "The
Complete Idiot's Guide to Cultural Etiquette" offers enough pointers,
reminders, and general cultural sagacity to save you from creating
an international incident.
- "Atlas
of the Year 1000"
by John Man
The title is disingenuously precise. Around the turn of the last
millennium, time bore a different complexion; indeed, it was expressed
through a variety of calendars. The notion of a millennium would
occupy a book in itself, so rather than box himself in, anthropologist
John Man wisely attempts a general appraisal of the late-10th-and-early-11th-century
world, and how it hung together.
|