George Page has taken on an enormous undertaking and has done an outstanding job. I made a point of reading "Inside the Animal Mind" before watching any of the television program, to see if the book would stand on its own. It does. Mr. Page presents an excellent overview of the issues of the animal mind, and presents a good representative selection (though not a comprehensive view) of the research and consciousness. Of the many animals whose minds have been studied, all are expertly described, including not just the well known such as Kanzi the bonobo, Alex the parrot, and the infamous Clever Hans the horse, but also many of the lesser known. The author also skillfully utilizes the work and personal comments of most of the recognized experts in the field. Especially commendable is the author's presentation of opposing viewpoints, which gives the reader enough information to critically assess the information and come to his or her own conclusions.

I did find a number of weaknesses in the book, however.

My main criticism is that the section on emotions is poorly organized and not fully developed. For example, on page 187 a paragraph begins with "Animals get bored and distracted", followed by no evidence or discussion of boredom in animals (for which there is, I might point out, an abundance of evidence). The discussion of the emotions of social bonding and affiliation could be better organized, such that the power (and evolutionary logic) of these emotions is clearer to the reader. There is excellent evidence to show that social bonding is of such selective value that bonds are enforced by both strong negative emotions (feelings of loneliness, isolation, separation anxiety, and grief) and positive emotions (feelings of social companionship, friendship, and possibly love). Moreover, the evidence for the neurochemistry of the emotions of social bonding is limited to a discussion of the role of oxytocin, omitting the important findings regarding the role of endorphins.

Although minor, certain factual inconsistencies detract from an otherwise well-written book. For example, on page 102 is the statement that "chimpanzees...are our closest relatives in the animal kingdom, sharing 98.7 percent of our genetic "The bonobo, our closest relative in the animal kingdom, shares 98.7 percent of our human genetic material."

A final criticism is that the author makes the error that many other writers on the subject do, and that is to use the term "instinct" as an equivalent to "mindless" or "thoughtless". This is evident by the repeated dichotomy of whether a certain behavior is conscious OR instinct. This occurs throughout the book (although he does include a brief comment on page 213 that acknowledges that instinct may have a conscious component). This dichotomy of instinct and conscious behavior is not only false, it is an impediment to the advancement of our understanding of the animal mind. The fact is, emotion IS instinct, and not only is there no mutual exclusivity between instinct and conscious behavior, but it is through emotions (instinct) that conscious behavior is motivated. The feeling of fear is instinct, the object of fear is part innate and part learned, and the feeling of fear motivates the individual to consciously opt for a certain course of action. To draw a line between conscious behavior and instinct forces a choice for any specific animal behavior to be on one side or the other, when in fact the evidence is strong for many animal behaviors (like human behaviors) to be BOTH conscious and instinct.

The above-mentioned faults do not outweigh the positive attributes of the book. I recommend it strongly and commend the author on a valuable contribution to the literature on the animal mind.

Frank McMillan, DVM

This is a terrific, heartwarming book. Filled with incredible facts, a great sense of humor, and a lot of interesting verbs, George Page does a super job of making the subject even more interesting than it is on it's own. Do animals think? Feel? Communicate? The answers to these and other fascinating questions can be found inside these pages. You will be amazed at what you learn. I think George Page knows his stuff, and I think his years with the PBS Nature series has paid off in a fabulous display of animal empathy, inquisitiveness, and knowledge. After perusing this book, you will never look at an animal in the same way, be it house pet, zoo creature, or wild beast. Take the time to explore each wonderful page, and learn a lot about animal nature, and maybe even human nature. I would read this book again and again and again!

Bravo! I had finished reading this fascinating book about the same time the PBS special of the same name was airing on TV. I was trying to get through the latter parts of the book before the three parts were broadcasted. Mr. Page does an excellent job of explaining animal minds in lay terminology for the less scientific reader, and gives insight on the history of anthropomorphizing the thoughts and intelligence of all animal species. I was entralled with the history behind such practices throughout civilization. It is also interesting to think that smaller creatures do have remarkable intelligence, like honeybees, birds (especially clever), ants, etc. A very entertaining read, some good observations on chimpanzees by Jane Goodall. This book held my interest. Page demonstrates that animals are capable of learning complex tasks, and learning from memory. Hopefully this book will enlighten more people to think of animals not merely as pets or lower species, but to think of them as smart in their own way. Highly recommended.

This book covers everything too fast. If you already have a good knowlege of Java this book, you will be able to apply your knowledge and learn JSP. Unfortunately I don't know much Java and this book covers the examples so fast, that I have no idea how to apply to my own work. I think I'll wait till the JSP Fast and Easy Web Development book comes out. I have the Coldfusion and PHP books in this series. Both are quite good.

This book is great for anyone wanting a quick understanding of Java and JavaServer Pages. I came away from the book with a great start creating JSPs and a good idea on setting up the Tomcat web server.

This one is for Beginners and for those who want to have a quick overview of JSP.It comes with Tomcat's Java Server which is easy to install and understand.

I'm not a web developer or designer by any stretch of the imagination, but I do a lot of HTML page development and maintenance, with some light javascript programming thrown in on my own web site. I started in January 2000 with an account for a personal page, Notepad.exe and a quick reference card. I learned basic HTML in the process, but also created an eyesore. As my technical skills evolved the ugliness of my creation remained the same. I swallowed my pride and got this book. It was one of the best purchases I ever made.

For a total beginner this is a good first book because it steps you through creating your first page, then adding features and using advanced HTML as you progress. For someone who is already proficient with HTML and has developed a few pages, you may find something useful in the advanced techniques and will certainly receive an education in good web page design. Some of the highlights of the authors' approach to design are in the examples. The accompanying CD ROM has every example in HTML format so you can see how they will display in your particular browser brand and version, and you can look at the code and play with it to see how your changes will display. This alone is a real time saver, and it makes this book all the more useful.

If you are a technical writer the examples for web pages that provide how-to procedures, troubleshooting procedures, on-line lessons and survey forms reflect good page design and the example files on the CD ROM can be immediately used as templates.

The only thing that detracts from this book is that it's woefully out of date. Some of the tools provided on the CD ROM are ancient, as are the discussions on various desktop operating systems. For example, Windows 95 was not even on the market when this book went to press and the authors' discussion on network issues were educated guesses. Now the network facilities built into desktop operating systems are so transparent that this section of the book can be safely ignored. However, we also live in a world where HTML has evolved to version 4, cascading style sheets are used on many sites (not to mention Macromedia Flash, Active Server Pages, more sophisticated java and javascript, etc.), rendering a lot of the technical aspects of this book quaint. On the other hand, that might not be such a bad thing since the best web pages are simple and more focused on design instead of a bunch of technical razzle-dazzle. But, I would love to see this book updated to reflect contemporary tools and techniques for web page design because I like the way the authors' impart their knowledge. This book would make an excellent text for a web design 101 class, and is one of the best for those of us who play around with this stuff. I'm subtracting a star because the book sorely needs to be updated, but am still giving it my highest recommendation.

I love my computer! My eight to twelve hour working day is spent in front of it. Much of my home time is too. But when I read a book I don"t want it to be about computers. Thats why "The Web Page Design Cookbook" really filled the bill for me.

My web page has been under construction for more months than I care to mention. Too busy to learn html, too mind boggled to read a technical book, my page was a constant reminder of my procrastination. This book and the CD that comes with it provided the incentive. Want music, animation, video on your web page - its all here. With easy to use templates and examples its a cinch. This one is a winner!

If you have never written in Hypertext or you are now using Hypertext, this is the book that gives you not only basic HTML usuage but also advanced techniques to help you create cool WEB site pages. The CD accompanying the book is worth the price alone. Simple easy to understand with outstanding specific examples of how to create Web pages. We learned HTML with the cookbook in a few days.

I bought this book because I wanted help working with Netscape Composer. The reviews indicate that this book focuses on this shortware. Unfortunately, the Second Edition (1999) does mentions Netscape Composer twice and includes ONE page discussing Composer. The rest of the book deals with use of FrontPage Express. I'll be returning this disappointment.

This is a great book to learn how to create your own website. It teaches you all the basic skills in 24 chapters of 1 hour each. However, if you have any basic knowledge of MS office programs, you can do each chapter in about 30-45 minutes. Also, because of the rational order of the chapters, you do not have to wait for the last chapter before you can start creating your own web pages.
The Dutch version that I was using came with FrontPage Express on the accompanying CD-Rom and even though my website is by this time already 8 megs, it is still the program I am using instead of the very expensive full version of FrontPage. So this book was awfully good value for money. And making a website is real fun, so try it!

From an earlier review: <>

Had to laugh; that's me! I've got grandkids this kids age. I checked this out at the library, renewed it twice, and had to HAVE it. I especially liked that it's equally good for Macs and those others. This got me through getting my first web site up and running -- I don't intend to use it for marketing or anything else high traffic. This book gave me everything I needed as well as some pointers about how to go further if I ever want to.

This book is one of those that you buy and shelve due to lack of samples and references.. If you already know VB then this might help you. However, I find the ASP books by "Wrox" to be a better investment for my money, in addition they also have a website and a message board that provides you with ongoing support. It's not one of those I got your money and run situation. We're not asking for the history of the Internet.. but some decent samples and explanations would be nice..The author of this book should ask himself one question..why would someone buy a computer related "How to book"..

I found the book useful when I started in writing ASP, however, after I got through the book, I found it lacking as a reference and choose a more detailed reference to keep on the shelf.

This book is the greatest ASP book of all time (in my opinion). Many people have seen my copy and bought their own due to its excellent content. It is a great book for VB developers to start out with ASPs. The only negative point is that interdev 1.0 is used in the examples instead of 6.0. It is better to understand the code though.

I already had good success learning HTML and Javascript from other Weekend Crash Course books and put it to use at work. So I expected the same from this book. After 23 chapters of things I already knew about HTML and Visual Basic, Mr. Smith begins his application. Like another reviewer here, I was absolutely lost. (The errors in the book don't help.) I loaded his eOrganizer example from the CD, changed the connection to the Access database I built according to chapter 22, and I can't get any further.

His insistance on structured programming is the death of his lesson. I know the value of structured programming, but structure has no value if I can't write a program. The basics should be taught before forcing style upon the reader.

I need to connect web pages to databases. Sorry, Mr. Smith, I'll have to buy a different book to learn how.

ASP 3 Weekend Crash Course by Eric A. Smith is a good book to teach a beginner how to get started with Active Server Pages. The early chapters do a good job to ease the reader into ASP and provide him or her with a good foundation to build upon. Unfortunately this book has fallen victim to a number of typos, which can frustrate the reader. The approach of the book is to build up one's skills and then utilize each in an application (called eOrganizer). Unfortunately there are problems with some of the code and even the application that can be downloaded from the web site needs to be tweaked to work right.

In summary- I feel that this book needs to be corrected and reissued. If all revisions are done, this book will be an excellent resource and worthy of more than 2 stars.

Perhaps the words "Crash Course" in the title are just a bit to seductive for the newbie to ASP and VB Script. As a reader of many programming and application books over the years, (but in no way a professional programmer), I flipped through the book at the store and was pleased to find a "spoonfull" approach to the coverage of material. As a professional trainer, this was really a good sign so I bought the book.

First the good news. For someone who needs a brief yet understandable introduction to HTML, SQL, and Database design, this book was up to the challenge. The explanation of the role ASP plays in Web development was also clear. So I entered the material on VBScript with high hopes. That's when things began to go downhill.

First, if I had not had some knowledge of what a function or subroutine is I would have been totally lost. As it was I was stretching to understand. When I hit the section on "structured code" I really hit the wall. Here I was, coming from learning HTML and some JavaScript, being presented with the idea of generating all of my pages in ASP! (I don't dispute the advantage of this approach but this was not the place to put this material! (Just looking at all the "Write Lines" stressed me out!

I then began to run into many instances where I think the author assumed I knew concepts and terms. A whole bunch of information on server variables, "includes", and error handling blew me away, so by the time I got to databases and the application piece (eOrganizer)it was all over. Nothing really hung together at all. Objects, methods, collections, includes, etc.,all fogged my brain. How do they work together?

In all fairness, my rating is based on how the book met my needs as a non-professional programmer with limited experience in writing code. I was interested in learning the concepts involved in creating database driven web pages for training and educational purposes. I had a basic working knowledge of HTML,exposure to Javascript and Access, and WYSIWIG editors like FrontPage, so I wasn't completely ignorant. I believe learners like me would benefit from a more comprehensive book that adequately covers the vocabulary,concepts,proceesses involved in developing ASP. I would also suggest an approach that builds an actual application throughout the book (similar to Paul Wilton's excellent book "Beginning Javascript". I just don't think the "examples" throughout the book are robust enought to teach a concept.

I am convinced that there is no way for the "beginner" be ready to do anything productive after reading a "crash course"type book. They may be fine, however, for developers who already understand quite a bit about application development. I know the siren song of titles like "learn in a weekend" or "21 hours" may be smart marketing ploys but not very effective as training tools.

A while ago, when this book was in its first edition, my neighbor lent me this book. I never really looked at it until one snowy day when I couldnt leave the house. I read it, and with in hours I made my first website! I know run a web design company ... , and am working on launching a start-up. I owe it all to this book!

I have all of Lauras books and this by far is one of the best. Covers a-z of the essentials. Highly recommended

Top notch book for web design and graphics. Loved the full colo

This book gives you a great look into the implementation of ASP, and its conciseness is appreciated.

However, two factors prevented me from giving it a higher rating: (1) No pointers to where the source code may be available. (If the code is not publicly available, please say so in the book). I did send the publishers email asking them about this, but never heard back. (2) Numerous typos - these were more of an annoyance, but were surprising given the consistent high quality of other books in the Developmentor series.

A few years ago, I started an introductory course in Active Server Pages and wrote my own instructional material. Although it has always gone well, until now, I had never made the attempt to get deep under the hood and examine what is happening behind the scenes. It always seemed that delving into the C++ code would be a low Return On Investment (ROI) operation. When I first received this book, I read the blurbs and was somewhat skeptical. However, once I started, the reading was completed in less than a day, and the ROI was rather high.
It was gratifying to learn that some of the implementations were as I had always suspected. The basics of underlying data transfer are thoroughly introduced and several of the points made in the book will be incorporated into the next rewrite of my ASP material. While it does help to understand C++, particularly Visual C++, it is not an absolute requirement.
I learned more about the underlying mechanics of IIS and ASPs in the reading of this book than I have in over six sessions of a class where students and I always tinker with the code. If you have more than a passing interest in coding ASPs, then this is a book that will be of enormous value in learning how things are executed. The knowledge will also help you understand some of those infuriatingly cryptic errors.

Come on you bad reviewers. This book is pretty good. No, it's not end to end ASP Internals, but IIS isn't open source either. Interesting and informative coverage of SOME aspects of ASP. Transaction coverage is particuarly good.

I was very disappointed! This book simply restates Oracle's documentation. Very little was included that was not in the written or on-line documentation and much less than the Oracle course on developing applications with Oracle PL/SQL.

I reviewed all of the Oracle Web books, and while there are no wonderful books, this was by far the best. I like the section of updating from a Web page the best. This book has paid for itself many times.

To address a few points made in some of the reviews of 'Oracle Databases on the Web', I would like to first point out that this book was written PRIOR to most of Oracle's own written documentation on Oracle WebServer and prior to any online documentation. This book was the first released for Oracle WebServer and so was the pioneer on this subject. Consequently, the book was targeted for beginner to intermediate development using Oracle WebServer. It was reviewed by an Oracle VP who was thrilled with its content, which led to subsequent major orders for the book by Oracle's Business Partner Alliance. If any written Oracle documentation did exist at the time, it was at best scattered and incomplete. Many documented code examples and product features did not work and had to be refined as presented in the book. The publication has already sold out 2 printings and I continue to receive positive comments even though it is based on OWS 2. All-in-all, this book serves well as the introduction into this new technology.

If you wish to understand the IBUY Portal, don't count on this book to help you. I didn't like the style and structure of this book. I got the sense that this book was just another rush publication with a group of programmers getting together, assigning chapters with desired content and then got down to pulling and writing code.

WROX needs to do a better job of controlling quality and up front planning for their books. Sorry, but this book shows none of that. The design of the existing site was mostly crammed into a single chapter. A decent database diagram was not included and no UML or other diagrams were presented so we could easily understand the Object architecture. Instead, the documentation was simply a straight lift from sql server table descriptions. I found myself drawing my own diagrams as I went through the book. An architect's perspective was desparately needed in this first chapter.

I won't be buying any more WROX books if things don't improve by enforcing good technical writing standards for their publications.

I didn't much care for this book. It never really explains the how or why, it just lists code. "Now we'll add an edit button: Now we'll add a delete button: ". There's no explanation of what the code means, how the ASP pages link to the code-behind pages, etc.

I'm not sure who the target audience is. It's not technical enough for geeky types, but too technical for administrative types. I guess it's aimed at script kiddy types who want to copy code without really understanding how it works.

I bought this book because I have been thrust into the Intranet development world, and I really don't have a lot of experience building multi-functional web pages. I bought this book to really help me understand the IBuySpy portal, and I have used it to customize that package for a couple of different web sites now.

The Good:
The book is very good at explaining the various components of the IBuySpy Portal. It's a lot like a tourist map; highlighting certain pieces (while complete overlooking other aspects).

The Bad:
As others have noted, this book doesn't go deep into explaining ASP.NET, or how to use classes in the .NET architecture. It merely allows you to copy a lot of code, cross your fingers, and see something work.

The Ugly:
As with most "best-of-breed" solutions from Microsoft, stuff breaks. While this particular manual does point out why some stuff doesn't work as well as intended, it doesn't go into a lot of detail (and don't expect it to catch everything).

In Sum: Buy this book if you have a need to get an intranet up and running quickly, and want to impress your non-developer friends. Don't buy it if you're expecting to use it to learn ASP.NET.