The A+ jumpstart professes to be an introduction to the basic info you'll need to know for your A+ exam. If you don't know what the A+ exam is, this book will tell you, and even if you arent interested in getting certified ever, you'll learn a lot of basics about PCs. Those who are serious about getting A+ certitified however should beware and take note that this is NOT an all in one guide. For that I would reffer you to the "All in One A+ Certification Exam Guide" By Michael Meyers. So don't expect to learn it all in this one book.

What this book will do is give you a pretty good place to start if you have no idea where to begin on your quest to getting A+ certified. It tries to "jumpstart" you, by giving you the basic run down of many key concepts and facts. Generally it does a pretty good job of this, but in some places it falls short.

Where? Well.. it's tough to write a book at this level. In some places the book tells you stuff that is so basic it's almost common sense, and in other instances the book assumes you already know things that many people may not (such as the fact computers use binary numbers to process and store data). It's a bit akward, and some of the more basic computing concepts are ignored, it's difficult to tell whether they were left out by chance, or were left out because the author considered them "advanced" and unnecessary to begin with.

The book also has a habit of asking you to remember stuff it never talked about. It will say things like "remember when you learned such and such from chapter 2" when in reality chapter 2 only made a passing comment about what it's reffering to. It almost seems at times as if the book is a chopped down version of an all in one, more coprehensive book. But this doesnt detract too much from the over all experience.

I did notice one major typo on page 98... In the paragraph it says "with 16 bit color you get 256 colors"... then in the table right below it, it clearly shows 16 bit color as having 65,536 colors. It's a good thing I already understood color depth enough to notice the mistake and know which was correct (the table). Many introductary tech books dont get enough attention from the editors, and I could just imagine how confusing this may be to someone who didnt already know about color depth. Come on guys, do better editing!

Yet still, the book is a pretty good place to start if you're looing into A+ cert and don't know where to begin and want a quick overview or intro. But I would strongly suggest Mike Meyer's book as a second step or to anyone REALLY serious about A+ Cert.

Studying for the A+ Cert Exam? Start with this book definetely. Everything is well written and easy to understand. Wished more books were written like this. Then from here go to the Michael Myers Book. Good luck!!!

This is not the only book you'll need to study for the A+ exams, but it's definitely the first book you should read if you don't have much background in PC hardware yet. It lays out the basics for every exam objective in language that anyone can understand. If you would like to get A+ certified but you find those big 1000-page books intimidating and confusing, try this book first. After you read it, the bigger books will make much more sense.

While much (1/2) of this book deals with the literary career of Saro-Wiwa, there is sufficient balance in those essays to give a rounded, contextulaized sense of the work's impact on the community. Political essays by McLaren, Bastian, and Nixon are scupulously balanced. The popular culture section is disappointing only in Le Blanc's use of one children's book to illuminate the body of children's writing. He misses the tight connection with S-W's television series. The annotated bibliography is a gold mine; it will remain definitive for several years to come.

Ken Saro-Wiwa: Writer and Political Activist, edited by Craig McLuckie and Aubrey McPhail. "This work constitutes an important resource for those interested in Saro-Wiwa and Nigerian Politics."-Morawedun Adejunmobi, Journal of Modern African Studies.

"By doing justice to both the writer and the activist, this volume constitutes the dangerous supplement to Manfred Loiemer's untranslated Zum Beispiel: Kan Saro-Wiwa (1996)." --Chantal Zabus, ARIEL: A Review of the International English Language.

"The McLuckie-McPhail volume [strikes] ... the right balance between honoring the man and criticizing his patent excesses. The detailed bibliography, careful organization of essays, and diversity of information in this volume also make it an outstanding contribution to Africa literary studies, the best resource on Saro-Wiwa to date."-Christopher Wise, Research in African Literatures.

"Of the four [books on Saro-Wiwa], McLuckie and McPhail, despite a few weak chapters, is clearly the strongest and most consistent overall volume." ---Scott Pegg, Third World Quarterly.

"Libraries . . . will find McLuckie and McPhail's collection of essays by 12 scholars and valuable appendixes worthwhile for its overall treatment of Saro-Wiwa's life and the events of the Biafran War". -P. W. Stine, Choice.

"McLuckie and McPhail's volume . . . contain[s] a good deal of value, including an extensive annotated bibliography." -Jonathan Haynes, African Studies Review.

"Le livre édité par Craig W. McLuckie et Aubrie McPhail dote les lecteurs avertis d'un savoir monumental sur le trés regretté écrivain et sur le sort d'un peuple en agonie." --Henri Boyi, Literary Research/Recherche Littéraire.

"A third recent collection of essays is Ken Saro-Wiwa: Writer and Political Activist, edited by Craig McLuckie and Aubrey McPhail and published by Lynne Rienner. In terms of documentation this is the strongest of the three collections, including chronologies and a comprehensive bibliography. All but one of its 15 pieces are new and the survey is wide-ranging." -Chris Dunton, Daily Mail and Guardian (Johannesburg).

This book shows an awful lot of Saro Wiwa that is not readily available in the library material. Hanged for his effect on exposing the environmental and Ogoni exploitation in Nigeria, in life, saro wiwa was a prolific writer of television, radio, for theatre, novels .... What energy and what a gift this book's pulling it altogether does.

Mary Craig has done a wonderful job in depicting the family struggles of the present Dalai Lama. How DOES a peasant family resolve the situation of having an enlightened being born into their simple abode? In any culture this would be a great honor, but in Tibet this was honor beyond belief - a pressure which the family do not appear to have fared well from. While Mary Craig depicts the already known information in an efficient and succinct manner, she does avoid the controversial issues surrounding the Dalai Lama's brothers and their present artificially 'elevated' positions. Craig would have done well to read the wonderful and recently published "The Autobiography of Jesus of Nazareth and the Missing Years" by Richard G. Patton. In this, she would have seen how another great writer deals with a parallel situation, yet instead of avoiding the controversies, Patton meets the bull head on and delivers! If only you had gone that extra mile Mary? It is great to see how Hollywood has finally woken up to the people's need for material beyond mere bubble-gum for the eyes. I hope all those writers keep these exceptional books coming. In the meantime, I'm off to see how they work out on screen!

The Dalai Lama is leading the greatest David and Goliath struggle in world history and he doesn't even own a sling shot. His weapons of choice against China, the most brutal government on the planet, are words and truth. This book is worth a read as is Tears of Blood by Mary Craig. Forget trying to pit one religion against another or saying your god is better than my god. That is all foolishness. This book and Tears of Blood are stories of trying to save the human soul...And the human spirit and neither have a religion.

I've read 5 books on Tibet recently, and this one was perhaps the best. It is full of factual history of life before, during and after the Chinese occupation of Tibet, but it also includes personal recollections of the Dalai Lama and his family members, and anecdotes from other key individuals. The story itself is fascinating. If you're interested in finding out what happened to the Tibetan people, you will be well-informed by reading "Kundun." By the way, it is not the same as the movie "Kundun," which was based very closely on the Dalai Lama's autobiography. Very enjoyable to read. Thanks, Mary!

A general overview of neat 3D tricks that could be tackled on any computer, not just Mac, provided that it isn't a dinosaur.

My only problem is that I wish the tutorials would be more specific about which applications they could be handled on, as provided on the accompanied CD.

With that I'd like to say that I wish these CD accompanied books could sell alternative, lesser priced, non-CD versions for people who already own the 3D software or are willing to take the time to download the demos from individual software company sites. $50 is a bit pricey!!!

An excellent book on 3D on the Mac. Written in a very systematic and clear order, taking you from an overview into deep water. I'll recommend the book to any Mac user who aspires to became a 3D artist. The book is suitable for the absolute beginner as well as for the advanced amateur.

How's it going, Craig

This book is the reprinted translated diary of a Samurai in Japan in the early 1800's. It gives the reader a unique look into Japanese society at that time. The samurai in question, Katsu Kokichi, is not a very good samurai which makes this book all the more interesting to read. The reader is drawn into the dilemmas of Katsu and his times. The book also includes beautiful ink drawings and full color plates of tokyo and its environs. This adds to the fullness of the story. This book is perfect for anyone who likes autobiographies or who is interested in Japanese and Asian culture

This book is one of the funniest I've ever read -- no joke. I was laughing in tears when Katsu fell from a cliff and injuried his genitals, and then his son almost died when his were bitten by a wild dog. Also, he was insulted once by a drunk Shinto priest, pleased the peasants by lying about their koku output, and locked in a cage by his own family for several years. In addition to the above humors, he was involved in numerous comical fights, such as one at a Shrine and another involving his entire neighborhood.

Katsu, a low-ranking Samarai during the late-Tokugawa Era, was a man without the traditional Samarai ethical code. He worked in Edo's "redlight district," stole from family members, beat his wife, and insulted his nephews regarding their dead brother. Katsu was a skilled swordsman, however, having defeated countless enemies. Katsu learned to read and write at age 20, and the book reflects his low-level of literacy. He wrote it in recollection after having taken the religious name "Musui." Katsu died right before the Meji Restoration, so the book offers a good glimpse into a secluded Japan.

i need 3 to 4 pages of review

I read this book long ago, and once I grew up and joined the elite Rangers, I appreciated it more. It has some symbolysim for today, as there are many people who look at military types and expect knuckle dragging ape men, and who think that the world is as they see it.. But many times events take place that make them realize that all is not safe in their world. This is an excellent book, although I do believe it was drawn out in other sequels. Read it and imagine what could happen........

This is the first book in series chronicling Martin Stone's search for his sister after the end of WW3. The action's good and the story takes us from Stone reluctantly joining his family in a shelter until he has destroyed the leaders of the gang holding his sister. It's told in a straight forward realistic style, although there are people affected by radiation there are no mutant superbeings or monsters.

I recently picked up these and re-read the whole series. I make custom 1/6th scale figures. This story inspired me to begin a new project designing a Martin Stone action figure and his motorcycle. I highly recommend you go out and pick these up anywhere you can find them. Here or on ebay, you won't be dissapointed!!

Being one of Mr. Stuart Emmons's past professors, I was especially intrigued and fascinated by his straightforward, open, and touching account of his encounter with schizophrenia. Whenever a bright, conscientious student disappears abruptly after finishing a course, one ponders about his sudden departure and wonders what has happened to him. For this reason Stuart's candid and illuminating story was especially welcomed. Craig's experience is equally insightful. Together they give the layman a rare opportunity to probe into the inner thoughts of intelligent and articulate men as they cope, relate, create, exist with paranoid schizophrenia. Most laymen, including me, are terribly uninformed, even misinformed, and sometimes insensitive to this mysterious illness. The book should be read at least twice, the first time ignoring the psychologists' repetitious notes which disrupt the flow of the images, thoughts, and actions of the narrators. Their notes can be read! as a whole. Then each of the stories can be reread. The book reintroduced Stuart Emmons to me and we have subsequently exchanged many letters. I highly recommend this relatively slim volume with its tremendous impact and positive message. And congratulations to two courageous and compassionate writers--Stuart Emmons and Craig Geiser.

Mysteries of schizophrenia still perplex family members, therapists and researchers today. "Living with Schizophrenia" (Emmons,Geiser et al.) gives those wanting to know more about the cognitive processes of schizophrenics more than just a glimpse into this disorder. Two first-person accounts are represented by Stuart Emmons and Craig Geiser. Both offer significant insights and rather apt descriptions of personal experiences. Poetry by Emmons and unique artwork by Geiser are also included. However, interspersed throughout the text, one will find unmerciful redundancies in the form of(PN's) or psychologist's notes. The book succeeds as Two first-person accounts without overbearing technical jargon often debated,and offers the layperson or psychology student a good adjunct reference.

This is one of the best books I have read, and THE best one dealing with mental illness. The inside look at the thought processes of two men with the illness is totally eye-opening because you see it from THEIR perspective, not the rest of society's. I recommend this book highly. After reading, I still feel like I'd like to give each of these men a hug.

And that is descriptions of longer treks.
There are a few described as 4-8 days long in this book, but when walking I found that that would have been at a snail's pace and the times given had to be halved. Even a quick look at the regional maps will confirm that all hikes described only cover relatively small areas.
So those planning a longer trek through the backcountry of Japan might be disappointed, but I understand there aren't many of those.
On the other hand, those looking for advice on short hikes in national parks or near the major cities will find lots of good ideas, and practical details that tend to be amazingly correct by guidebook standards!

I found that you really don't have much of a choice if you are going to Japan and are interested in recent comprehensive English hiking guides. There is a lot of information once you get to Japan on day hikes available from the tourist information places in each town. I found that for a survey trip, this book was just extra weight in my pack. (I ended up using this book thrice for 1-2 days trips on a 3 week trip to Japan, and that was pushing it.)

I did read it and looked at the pretty pictures to get an idea of where to go during my Japan trip planning phase. It is useful to the person focused on hiking around Japan. This may seem obvious, but it's basically a trail guide. It gives great information (including translations of hiking signs) that isn't found in other more general guide books. It tells you how to get to a trailhead, and where to go once you get there, and has some sections on floura, etc. native to Japan.

Although they are great (just because they exist), I found the trail maps lacking at times, especially (and surprisingly) for the everybody-does-it Mt Fuji trek.

Good reading if you're thinking about multi-day treks. Otherwise, skip it for a more general (regular Lonely Planet) guide since it will just weigh down your pack.

Very well written and detailed description of the trails of Japan. Excellent resource to prepare potential hikers and walkers for the task of exploring the hinterlands of Japan...

The cases studied are very updated and they analyze several situation at many countries(on unusual economics situations).

This survey is an essential resource for tourism supporters, opponents, regulators, and anyone else wants to understand what can happen and what can be done when the rest of the world finds out what a nice place you have.

It's basically a casebook, with a sturdy analytical framework to help you compare the cases. The authors describe regulatory systems for managing community tourism resources to control quality, to control quantity, to enhance the market, or some combination of these. Examples are provided from about 30 communities in the U.S. and around the world.

The book includes a particularly valuable collection of notes that should help readers track down further resources and contacts.

I'm a local government staffer for a city of 30,000 that has seen its tourism traffic swell to 700,000 people per summer, with daily loads up to 10,000. This book provides some comfort in knowing that we are not alone in this remarkable experience, and we can learn from what others have tried.

The book suffers somewhat from mediocre typography, but the layout is clean, the maps are helpful, and there's a sprinkling of photographs to give you a feel for some of the places under discussion. You may not need a copy for each of your planning commissioners, but you will probably want one or two to loan out and one to keep in your desk.

The Colaborative Vision applied to tourism planning process:

This book talk about the tourism growth to the perspective of sustanaible development, but give the global VISION. This VISION is very usefull because is based on System General Theory, and plus to this logic structure the COLABORATIVE activities establishing dynamic relationship between the components of Industry Tourism-System, the core of this book is the Community Participation towards to Common-Pool Resuorces Paradigm,in all cases relationated to tourism, for instance: in development, in perception , in behavior , and so on. For other hand, the management process is presented like the vehicule to perform any activitie or program or project in this study-object. My atention for this book was determine by the "system-process of management" , structured by a set of administrative conceptual focus: overall RESILIENCY and sustainability, efficiency and equity too. And in the Management is very important understand in really dimension the Strategies Process. So on..

I believe that this book is very usefull to create an advanced VISION of the component of Tourism Industry and the Management Process towards Sustainable Development. The book require previous studies about Management, Administrative Science, System Theory, System Analysis and Game Theory.

Thanks!.

"The field needs more humorists of this caliber," says Robert Asprin on the first page. Indeed! This is definitely better than Asprin's Myth.

This is the third book in a trilogy, and I haven't read the first two, but Craig Shaw Gardner does a commendable job in introducing the characters and their problems. Sure, they are caricatures, but that's what you'd expect from this kind of parody.

The good thing about the book is that it has a plot, that keeps moving, and things build upon one another. The story returns to things you've seen before, and there's some sense of anticipation. Why am I all enthusiastic about this? Because Asprin's Myth books lack these features.

So there it is - a book with silly characters, that encounter silly situations, and handle them with all the required seriousness. That's a good recipe for some laughs. Although I didn't get the "wow, this man really understands what people are about and how stupid they are" feeling that I get from a Douglas Adams or Terry Pratchett book, the book is enjoyable, mildly funny, and manages to keep the interest level high (unlike some Pratchett books).

This is the conclusion (well, sort of) of the Ebenezum trilogy. Here Gardner overcomes his slight roughness from "Multitude," and returns to top form.

Vushta, City of Forbidden Delights, is gone: demons have dragged it down into the Netherhells, and with it any hope of a cure for Ebenezum. Only a few wizards are left in what remains of it. Guxx Unfufadoo plans to invade the upper world. And, perhaps worst of all, two of Wuntvor's girlfriends have found out about each other!

What can be done? Wuntvor must lead a special expedition to the Netherhells, consisting of Hendrek, Snarks, Norei, and Cuthbert the talking sword. (Ebenezum is absent for most of this adventure) Among the problems: Commercialization has hit the Netherhells (much to Snarks' horror), Guxx plans to take over the world, Vushta is in the slimy hands of the demons, and Wuntvor has this magical hat that keeps spitting out ferrets, flowers and scarves...

The lunatic funniness of this one is too good to be described. The Netherhells are a hilarious spoof of the generally-accepted vision of hell and demons, coupled with a few sly jabs at commercialization and massive construction. We also have the climax of Wuntvor's very complex love life (I was afraid those girls were going to duke it out over him). We even have Cuthbert, a cowardly and fastidious talking sword who listens in from inside his scabbard and squeals in dismay when used to kill an enemy. And Wuntvor's army of ferrets is too hilarious for words, as is how he manages to mass-produce them ("Yes! No! No! Yes! Yes! Yes! No!").

The characters are still fun! (Hard for any author to keep up) Wuntvor is required to grow a little more in this book, since he has to LEAD an expedition, rather than bouncing around with his master. Snarks and Brax are three-dimensional in a delightfully two-dimensional manner; as is doom-speaking warrior Hendrek, and the psychotic Dealer of Death (yes, he's back, and he's squishing demons). The weak link is Norei, who doesn't have any of the quirks of the other characters. But if you bypass her, the cast is just perfect.

As ever, it's sparingly-written; we aren't overloaded with detail or unnecessary dialogue. Parents can utter a sigh of relief, since this trilogy is fine for kids. And any kid or teen who's read fantasy (or even fairy tales) will laugh themselves silly, just as well as the adults.

Wonderful conclusion (sort of) to the Ebenezum trilogy. (Reprint "Song of Wuntvor"! I want more of this kooky little universe)

As with all the other books included in the much-lauded 'Ebenezum' series, this book does not let the reader down in the least! Each character is beautifully represented by Mr. Gardner, who shows his remarkable grasp of a world knocked slightly askew...one might draw parallels between this work and Douglas Adams' 'Hitchiker's Guide' series. A truly remarkable book on it's own, and much better when you read it's predecessors! Definately recommended reading!