This is an excellent biography of one of the greatest lawmen in U.S. history. I've heard a lot of rants from misguided Bonnie and Clyde fans about the book's alleged inaccuracies. Well, there hasn't been a book on Bonnie and Clyde or Depression outlaws published to date (including my own!) that hasn't had some drastic errors in it, one reason being that most of the books, including I'm Frank Hamer, draw heavily from the Fugitives, the ghosted 1934 memoirs of Bonnie's mother and Clyde's sister. I'm not one of these people who presume to know who killed the two highway patrolmen at Grapevine. It may have been Henry Methvin, Clyde Barrow, Bonnie Parker, or all three for that matter (ballistics evidence indicated three guns were fired). Nor am I one of those misguided worshippers of Bonnie and Clyde, who were really nothing more than a pair of two-bit, scatter-brained, trigger-happy psychos. But all that is neither here nor there, as this is not simply a "Bonnie & Clyde book." This is a biography, and a damn good one, of the man who tracked them down--Frank Hamer, who captured or killed dozens of other criminals and carried with him the scars, and much of the lead, from many gunfights with maggots of the Clyde Barrow sort. Hamer came out of retirement to run down the Barrow gang. The ambush of Clyde and Bonnie was the perfect closing of Hamer's career and a great service to America as well. It was the job he was made to do and one that had to be done. Forget Hollywood. The real Bonnie and Clyde were murderous criminals who deserved just what they got. And Frank Hamer was just the man to give it to them.

It has been many years since I first read this book and I found it very informative. I am sure there are bound to be some errors but on the most part it is historically accurate. It is not only about ending Bonnie and Clyde's murderous spree but about the man that did it and how he became a Texas Police Officer and came up through the ranks to become one of the greatest Texas Rangers who ever lived. The review written by anomie@mail.com, is total bull written buy someone who evidently prefers to believe the glamorized version of the Bonnie & Clyde movie. I have been a Texas State Police officer for 23 years and have read some of the actual reports of Bonnie and Clydes exploits and to contradict anomie@mail.com, Bonnie and Clyde deserve no respect as stated by anomie. Anomie needs to be better informed of the facts before making reviews. Sorry for the rant but I hate for anyone to bad mouth a great man and take up for a couple of cold blooded illiterate killers who were glamorized by Hollywood as a cute loving couple out for a Sunday drive.

ITS BEEN THIRTEEN YEARS SINCE I INITIALY READ THIS BOOK. I HAVE BEEN DYING TO READ IT AGAIN BUT CANT FIND A COPY TO PURCHASE. BEING AN AMETUER HISTORIAN ON LATE NINETEENTH AND EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY LAWMEN AND OUTLAWS I FOUND THE INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THIS TEXT TO BE ACCURATE AND AUTHORATATIVE. A LOT OF MY INTEREST COMES FROM BEING A TEXAS PEACE OFFICER AND AN AFFICIIANADO OF FIREARMS BOTH MODERN AND HISTORICAL. THIS BOOK IS PREDOMINANTLY WRITTEN IN THE INFORMAL AND WESTERN COLOCIAL WHICH FITS THE SUBJECT MATTER. IT IS A WELL VERSED BIOGRAPHY ON ONE OF THE MOST INTERESTING AND COLORFUL FIGURES IN WESTERN HISTORY. IT IS A SHAME THAT MORE WRITERS AND OR MOVIE PRODUCERS HAVE NOT TAKEN INTEREST IN THIS UNIQUE AND POTENT FIGURE. THIS WOULD BE A GOOD SUBJECT FOR A DIRECTOR OF THE ILK OF SAY JOHN MILIUS. BEYOND THAT LET ME SAY IF THAT IF YOU ARE TIRED OF THE TRUMPED UP BONNIE AND CLYDE FLUFF AND WOULD LIKE TO GET A REALISTIC AND HEROIC ACCOUNT OF THE GENTLEMAN LAWMAN THAT ASSISTED IN RIDDING SCOCIETY OF THESE AND OTHER NO ACCOUNTS, THIS IS THE BOOK FOR YOU. THE GOOD GUYS STORY, FOR A CHANGE.

"Constants of Nature" is an excellent overview of a fascinating topic--the origins and significance of the constants of the universe. It prompted me to spend a great deal of my free time digging around for more information on many of the topics it addresses, which is always a ringing endorsement for a work of non-fiction.

However, it's not perfect. The book's subtitle ("From Alpha to Omega") is somewhat deceptive--the "meat" of the book (after the first few chapters) deals almost entirely with the fine structure constant (alpha). Barrow talks a great deal about constants in general, but never devotes much time to any of the others specifically. Furthermore, at times, Barrow seems to become sidetracked--an inexplicable discussion of the value of contemplating "alternative histories" (i.e., speculating what would have happened if Germany had won World War II, and similar endeavors) awkwardly interrupts the flow of one chapter, for instance. Also, the book has several errors that were immediately obvious to me (for instance, it says light from the Sun takes 3 seconds to reach the Earth; the correct value is more than 8 minutes), which makes me suspect that there are probably many more errors that I missed, but which would be obvious to someone with a marginally greater degree of physics sophistication.

However, perhaps the biggest disappointment was in the introduction of the values of the Planck length, Planck time, etc., all of which are central to the book. Barrow justifies the signifiance of these values simply by stating that they are the only values of the appropriate dimensions that can be derived by combining certain other physical constants straightforward ways. However, from there he makes the logical leap that the Planck distance, for instaince, is the "natural" measure of length in the universe. This is certainly a fair statement, but it's hardly justifiable to make that statement based simply on the fact that it can be derived from a number of other constants--one could have selected another collection of fundamental constants and come up with a completely different "natural" unit of length. In short, the line of reasoning does not justify the conclusion.

In all, this is a thought-provoking work, but it's often short on detail and had a tendency to leave me with more questions than answers. The more technical reader will probably wish for more thorough arguments throughout; however, it's still an enjoyable read and a fine attempt at popularizing a difficult area of physics.

Prof. Victor V. Vasiliev from Moscow, Russia

In the whole the book of the author is interesting enough, cognitive, and duly.

It is possible, that schoolboy addresses to me with the question: how I do better understand the physics? I, certainly, have advised him to keep in mind, and still remember in his memory, and stuck in his memory THE CONSTANT OF PHYSICS, and to understand this constant, which exist in this remarkable science. It is OK! But that can do the specialist on physics, or teacher of physics - yes it is simply must to have this small book on his worker table always, and perforce peek in it.

The constants in NATURE - this not simply numerals, this salt of physics, its supporting points, its history of approach of our knowledge of nature to truth, and to possibility of nature management, and a great deal another.

As a whole it is simply interesting. Well if some person knows or heard that there is a proton and a electron - it is good. But if one knows, that the proton is heavy of electron in 1836 once it is simply good lad!

The book is do good, useful and instructive.

We couldn't expect, inhabitants of any other world to know what a meter is. But we could expect them to know pi, or the ratio of the weight of a proton compared to an electron; that's a number, about 1836, without any meters or grams behind it, and it is considered one of the "constants of nature." There are other such constants, and they form the subject of _The Constants of Nature: From Alpha to Omega - The Numbers That Encode the Deepest Secrets of the Universe_ (Pantheon Books) by John D. Barrow. The book, which is the sort to be enjoyed by anyone who liked puzzling through such works as _A Brief History of Time_, paradoxically has a main topic about the constants: What if they are not constant?

If, for instance, the proton / electron ratio were all of a sudden a little different, atoms might fly apart instead of maintaining their tiny orbital systems on which matter as we know it depends. There are other important numbers that we think are constant, like Planck's constant, the charge on the electron, and the speed of light. These three are linked within another constant, the fine structure constant. All these constants seem to have turned out just right for humans to have evolved to be investigating their physics. They all seem to be surprisingly bio-friendly. As surely as some insist that a conscious designer made the wonderfully baroque varieties of living things on our planet, others (who may admit that evolution rather than a conscious designer was at work) will say some godly entity picked the constants. But Barrow explains many alternatives, universes with the constants possibly turning out in some other way, and also explains ways that these universes might have come into being. If there are lots of universes out there, with lots of different constant combinations, it is no longer surprising that we are in one of them with the constants tuned just right to produce life, and intelligent life at that.

But in our own universe, are the constants constant? There have been some very interesting and comforting confirmations of constancy which are reported here. Barrow himself, however, has been a member of a team using a different technique to spot a shift, over a longer period of time, and, well, a shift seems to be there. There is not much you can count on in this strange universe; whether our strange universe is more strange or less for having produced us is not a question that science can answer. There are plenty of others pending; this engrossing and clearly-written book brings lots of them up. Are our constants linked to an expansive universe? Do they evolve or cycle? Are there plenty of other universes out there already, in a multiverse of possible worlds? The current view of cosmology is clearly presented here, although it is very peculiar; and the answers to these questions will be more peculiar still.

This book is for die hard fans only. Lets face it, Magical Mystery Tour has some great songs, but the film plays like a bad acid trip. And maybe it was! Brian Epstein had recently died and the Beatles were managing themselves. Tony Barrow takes you "behind the scenes" of this disjointed film. True fans of the group will enjoy the book.

Full of great insider info on how the Beatles managed to create a masterpiece of psychedelic cinema despite poor planning, total chaos and a complete lack of directing experience. The book does much to show just how brilliant the Fabs were, that they could basically take a camera and an idea and create a film that's just now getting the recognition and critical kudos it deserved 30+ years ago. Mr Barrow writes a cool deliberate prose and successfully captures the mood of a long-gone era when inventiveness meant more than big budgets. Full of great pictures as well, most never-before published. It's a fairly short read, but focused, and totally entertaining. Buy it and revisit a time when there was still such a thing as "Beatle magic."

Tony Barrow has captured this one-of-a-kind extravaganza which, despite its age, still remains fresh in the minds and hearts of true and new Beatles fans. How could he, or indeed anyone know the impact of this piece of work, so ahead of its time, even now. Angie McCartney

Book was well organized, and delivered promptly.

However, was disappointed in that the book did not address many areas of interest for me, such as setting up security, protecting against errant/accidental data entry into exisitng records.

Book would be useful to user with very little experience.

My family wanted to try out the different software on thier new computer. They had a sparked interest in Access. I use Access at work on a dily bases, so after many nights of phone calls I bought my parents this book. My parents, who have never used Access, are able to create tables, queries, reports and forms with ease. All I have to worry about now is them applying for my job.

. . .for more than 20 years. I'm as familiar with the story as any, and more familiar than most. Recently, I had the opportunity to read Sir John Barrow's account of the mutiny and its aftermath and found the book an extremely interesting historical read. Sir John wrote his book at a time when many of the participants were still living. He addresses every major controversy surrounding the mutiny and subsequent adventures and his perspective, while a bit preachy and moralistic at times, is invaluable. While utterly condemning the actions of Fletcher Christian (and blaming the mutiny entirely on him) Barrow is also hard on Captain Bligh, showing him to be an excellent seaman but a poor leader of men (under everyday circumstances). In a crisis, Bligh was able to rise to the occasion (the open sea voyage in the Bounty's launch) but as an everyday commander of men, Bligh was found wanting. Barrow also casts doubt on Bligh's integrity during the trial, suggesting that he deliberately withheld information which could have led to the acquittal of a midshipman against whom he bore an unjustified grudge. Barrow also condemns the behavior of the captain of the Pandora as inhumane (as it was without doubt) and unreasonable, especially to those who were not mutineers, but voluntarily surrendered. Barrow's description of the trial is extremely detailed. He goes to great lengths to demonstrate that in spite of appearances, the guilty were punished and those who were truly innocent were acquitted (or eventually exonerated). He also had an interest in the eternal souls of the mutineers, recording with satisfaction that the three men eventually hanged for the crime showed evidence of repentance and contrition. All in all, this book was a fascinating read, and provided a different perspective than the 20th century movies and popular novels. I hope it comes back into print.

I have the 1980 hardback edition. It is without a doubt one of the best books on the subject of the bounty. The illustrations are great.

Maybe this is the book that should have come with Windows ME, since using help in Windows is maddening. I perused several books and this looked like the best of the bunch. It does cover tha basics fairly well. However, if you want more than that, and you want to know the what, where, how, and why of ME, get another book. The CD that comes with the book is essentially the book (only) on CD and it lacks an index, which (IMHO) is a glaring omission. I guess this can happen to any book, but after using it a few times the spine broke and only the cover was holding the two halves together. I'm a tweaker by nature, and I wanted more than general information. In spite of it's size (almost a 1000 pages) and its title ("The Complete Reference") it's not as complete as I need. It may be for you.

I'm one of the authors, and the CD that comes with this book contains the complete text of the book as an e-book. This means that you can keep the CD in your drive as you use your computer, and look items up in the CD's glossary, which serves as its index.

When we wrote the book, we had in mind intermediate Windows users -- people who already know the basics, but need to look up seldom-used commands and troubleshoot problems. We've included lots of step-by-step procedures as well as explanations of Windows concepts.

If you use Windows 98 or Windows XP, we have editions for those versions as well ("Windows 98: The Complete Reference" and "Windows XP: The Complete Reference") -- they also come with complete e-book editions on their CDs.

Enjoy!

Barrows' "Quick Reference" is a very readable resource indeed. OTOH, I graded "four stars" because of its treatment of macros (read: none!). Still, it's worth the money. Recommended.

These earth science experiments demonstrate the properties of rocks and minerals and how they relate to important environmental concerns such as earthquakes, erosion, acid rain, and water pollution.

The experiments are a little more in-depth than some others I've seen, which would make them particularly useful for classroom or group situations. Even so, they don't require a lot of specialized equipment or supervision.

Each experiment includes a list of materials, detailed procedures, drawings, observational tips, topics for discussion as well as other similar experiments to try.

If you are responsible for an animal you need this book. Whether you are a owner, trainer, petsitter, groomer, boarder, behaviorist, veterinarian or other caregiver, you must have this book on your shelves and within reach.

The author, Edward M. Barrows, has done an outstanding job in walking the fine line between writing for the general reader and the professional in this field. As a reference, it is a "must read" for all.

Steve Rafe steve-rafe@erols.com

This is a good book about Barrow, Alaska. It covers a lot of information on the city. However, I didn't quite like the format of the book. It is put together in an A-Z format. You look up what you want to know, such as "Schools" and the information is there. But other than that, the book has all the information you would need if you wanted to learn about the town of if you are planning on going there.