Book Description
Printed entirely in color, with helpful figures and syntax coloring to make code samples appear as they do in Visual Studio.
Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) is a key component of the .NET Framework 3.0, giving you the power to create richer and more compelling applications than you dreamed possible. Whether you want to develop traditional user interfaces or integrate 3D graphics, audio/video, animation, dynamic skinning, rich document support, speech recognition, or more, WPF enables you to do so in a seamless, resolution-independent manner. Windows Presentation Foundation Unleashed is the authoritative book that covers it all, in a practical and approachable fashion, authored by .NET guru and Microsoft developer Adam Nathan.
· Covers everything you need to know about Extensible Application Markup Language (XAML)
· Examines the WPF feature areas in incredible depth: controls, layout, resources, data binding, styling, graphics, animation, and more
· Features a chapter on 3D graphics by Daniel Lehenbauer, lead developer responsible for WPF 3D
· Delves into non-mainstream topics: speech, audio/video, documents, bitmap effects, and more
· Shows how to create popular UI elements, such as features introduced in the 2007 Microsoft Office System: Galleries, ScreenTips, custom control layouts, and more
· Demonstrates how to create sophisticated UI mechanisms, such as Visual Studio-like collapsible/dockable panes
· Explains how to develop and deploy all types of applications, including navigation-based applications, applications hosted in a Web browser, and applications with great-looking non-rectangular windows
· Explains how to create first-class custom controls for WPF
· Demonstrates how to create hybrid WPF software that leverages Windows Forms, ActiveX, or other non-WPF technologies
· Explains how to exploit new Windows Vista features in WPF applications
Customer Reviews:
Best Book Out There.......2007-10-19
I am starting to wear this book out because I am using it so often as a reference while I program. I own three WPF books and this is the only one I constantly refer to. It's worth every penny. Don't hesitate to buy it.
Excellent Reference Guide.......2007-10-09
Windows Vista is not only a great Operating System but also includes advanced graphics capabilities. Microsoft has developed new languages and frameworks that target Vista. Windows Presentation Foundation (XAML) helps you to build true, classic Vista style applications for Windows and Web environments. Many developers are eager to learn about this new technology and they are in search of good learning material. Adam Nathan has indeed done a good job by examining the complete features and functionalities of WPF in his latest book "Windows Presentation Foundation Unleashed."
The book consists of five parts including an Appendix. The first part provides a solid explanation to WPF, XAML and some of the important concepts in WPF. The second part introduces you to the controls shipped with WPF and various features, such as Sizing, Positioning, Transforming elements, and Panels. The final chapter discusses the deployment aspects of a WPF application. The third part provides a comprehensive overview about the various features, such as Resources, Data Binding, Styles, Templates, Skins and Themes. I feel that these chapters will be of great use for advanced developers.
Some of the interesting features of the book are colored screenshots and source codes, useful tips and FAQs at relevant pages, and additional reference material under the banner Dig Deeper. I feel that colored screenshots help a reader to taste the real essence of the code output. Moreover, the author has labeled certain portions of the source code, such as in Page 289, which will surely help a reader to understand the code much better. I must say that the book is highly code intensive. All the concepts have been examined only with codes and not using any development environment. I believe that tools such as Orcas and Expression Blend were not available at the time of the release of the book.
Part 4 explores the usage of Graphics (2D/3D), Animation and Audio/Video speech capabilities of WPF with the help of complete source code along with relevant explanation. I am amazed to see the kind of effort the author has put in to compile the facts in a meaningful manner. The final part delves deep into some of the advanced topics such as Interoperability, User custom controls and development of layout with custom panels.
The source code for all the examples along with complete table of contents, sample chapter and a list of errata can be accessed from the publisher's website. Moreover, you can also view the related information on the website maintained by the author at http://adamnathan.net/wpf/. The book also includes one Appendix which contains a list of tools and utilities available for WPF development. I would suggest the author publishes information about new tools available currently, such as Expression Blend on the Publisher's website so that readers can know about them as well.
I feel that the book will be of real value for all developers who wish to master the nuances of Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF).
I recently came to know that Adam's Silverlight Unleashed book will be released around the week of October 12. I look forward to read his book.
Anand Narayanaswamy (Microsoft MVP and Chief Technical Editor, ASPAlliance.com) is the author of Community Server Quickly
Community Server Quickly: A Concise and Practical Guide to Installation, Administration, and Customization
Great.......2007-08-25
Great book: a fast and well written introduction to WPF. I think it's a must for anyone is thinking to start with this technology.
From basic to advanced topic.......2007-07-30
This is a complete book on WPF. It start with the basic of XAML and then it introduce the new concept that WPF use (dependency properties, Routed events and Commands).
It give an introduction to the WPF controls and the layouts mode available.
Then it goes deep with databind, theming and skinning, drawing (2d and 3d) and finally animations.
It is The Book for WPF.
Great unleashing of WPF.......2007-07-16
From Resource binding to databinding and beyond, pretty much every bit of WPF that you need to know to get started well is covered.
The "full color" is awesome. The examples are great. The explanations are very clear with great comparisons to the "old" winforms way of doing things.
Book Description
The market leader among all books for Step 3, Crush is an easy-to-use and effective high yield review for USMLE Step 3. The concise presentation is perfect for the busy house officer who needs a review that hits all the commonly tested concepts. The coverage also weaves in the case-based scenarios that are important part of Step 3.
Customer Reviews:
Preparation for Step 3.......2007-09-12
I am finishing my preparation for Step 3. It's September. The application process started already. I am doing a rotation in Mount Sinai Hospital Miami in Critical Care and at the same time I am studing for my Step 3, which I must take before January to have chance of H Visa. I have done Qbank with USMLE World and Kaplan, I have read First Aid and I bought Crush Step 3 as one the the last points before getting ready to take the exam. Pleasantly, I found this book very helpful. I really recommend it.
concise, quick, sufficient.......2007-05-22
crush is a well-written, succinct, adequate step 3 review source. i used it along with some online questions, and after having taken the exam, feel that it prepared me well.
Good, but overrated........2007-03-31
This book has been the "gold standard" for USMLE step 3 for a long time, mainly due to its size. It is a good book and contains a lot of information in a small volume, but it is NOT enough. The pediatrics and OB&GYN parts are very incomplete, and unless you are a resident in those specialties, you will have problems. The pictures are not enough. In my opinion, Kaplan Notes are better. If you have time, it is better to read Peds and OB&GYN from Step 2 Kaplan notes, and then review Step 3 Kaplan notes. At the end, use this book for rapid review. It would be nice if this book had a CCS section like "First Aid to USMLE Step 3"First Aid for the USMLE Step 3 (First Aid). Bottomline: Don't rely on it as the only source for preparation.
Nice concise read.......2007-03-28
A great, fast, and easy review. Great for step 2, not just step3.
Quick review for USMLE Step 3.......2007-03-09
Crush Step 3 is an excellent book for rapid, high yield review of material commonly tested on the exam. The material is presented in a nicely organized semi-textbook format which makes for easy reading. This is in contrast to the material in First Aid for Step 3 where the material is poorly presented although high yield as well. In summary, Crush Step 3 is an ideal book for last minute review for the USMLE Step 3 and a great add on to more substantial preparatory material.
Book Description
A new take on the classic, definitive text on the full spectrum of neurology. Reflecting a modern approach to neurology, Adams and Victor’s Principles of Neurology, 8/e new format highlights a more complete and accessible approaches to treatment and clinical management strategies. This thoroughly revised edition features more coverage of treatment and neuroimaging, renown signs and symptoms sections integrated throughout, and over 800 illustrations.
Customer Reviews:
Excellent Book.......2007-05-07
Detailed book in Neurology. This book is wealth of new information and researches in Neurology. I would recommend this book for who is interested in Neurology as reference and text book.
An ideal and a superb text.......2006-04-08
This book is a classic reference text in neurology surpassing any other book in the field . Every resident in neurology should possess one and neurologists are no exemption . The minute details in genetics are kept to the bare minimum and at the same time the clinical aspects are stressed . The neuroanatomy and physiology at the beginning are simply fantastic. Kudos to Professor A. Ropper .
Professor K.N.Viswanathan, AVMC, Pondicherry, India.
good reference.......2006-02-21
It's not the most complete reference in neurology, but it's objective, go straight to the point, suitable clinical information. I recommend.
A classic text........2005-04-29
The book is a "must have" item for those interested in neurology.
It is written beautifully, and in my opinion it is one of the best texts of neurology ever written. The only suggestion I have for the next edition is NOT to use a font which is significantly smaller and harder to read.
Book Description
"What is abstract art good for? What's the use--for us as individuals, or for any society--of pictures of nothing, of paintings and sculptures or prints or drawings that do not seem to show anything except themselves?" In this invigorating account of abstract art since Jackson Pollock, eminent art historian Kirk Varnedoe, the former chief curator of painting and sculpture at the Museum of Modern Art, asks these and other questions as he frankly confronts the uncertainties we may have about the nonrepresentational art produced in the last five decades. He makes a compelling argument for its history and value, much as E. H. Gombrich tackled representation fifty years ago in Art and Illusion, another landmark A. W. Mellon Lectures volume. Realizing that these lectures might be his final work, Varnedoe conceived of them as a statement of his faith in modern art and as the culminating example of his lucidly pragmatic and philosophical approach to art history. He delivered the lectures, edited and reproduced here with their illustrations, to overflowing crowds at the National Gallery of Art in Washington in the spring of 2003, just months before his death.
With brilliance, passion, and humor, Varnedoe addresses the skeptical attitudes and misunderstandings that we often bring to our experience of abstract art. Resisting grand generalizations, he makes a deliberate and scholarly case for abstraction--showing us that more than just pure looking is necessary to understand the self-made symbolic language of abstract art. Proceeding decade by decade, he brings alive the history and biography that inform the art while also challenging the received wisdom about distinctions between abstraction and representation, modernism and postmodernism, and minimalism and pop. The result is a fascinating and ultimately moving tour through a half century of abstract art, concluding with an unforgettable description of one of Varnedoe's favorite works.
Customer Reviews:
Pictures of Nothing.......2007-10-13
This is a very good collection of lectures given about abstract art. It gives some valuable clues as to the genealogy of modern art.
overrated and wordy.......2007-09-19
a disappointing book - pretentious and unenlightening - get hilton kramer's "the trium of modernism" instead!
They really need a Zero Star category for books like this one.......2007-07-24
I watched the excellent series on art on DVD called "Power of Art" by Simon Schama. The last episode of the series is on Mark Rothko, an abstract painter. It made me want to learn more about abstract art, so I bought this book. Annnt! Thanks for playing. This book is a dog. It didnt help me understand abstract art one bit . In fact, it goes on and on about pieces of "art," but does not explain them beyond being smears or smudges or works of technique. The basis of abstract art is not explained at all.
BTW, it appears from this book that these guys were often making paintings just as rude jabs at one another's work.
I found the book a total waste.
Review by P Hutchings, Melbourne, Australia.......2007-06-13
Kirk Varnedoe's Pictures of Nothing is a masterpiece of empirical art chronology/criticism. It is gritty and on the ground. This is a relief after Danto's warmed-over Hegel and Clement Greenberg's star-spangled marx with a small M. If one might venture any hypothesis about the artists about whom Varnedoe wrote it would have to face, square on, any counter-instances. No Zeitgeist, just Popperian falsifiablility. Good. It is of course a pity for those of us who were not in New York at the right time. But, that's life.
Patrick Hutchings
Department of Philopsophy
University of Melbourne
Australia
Abstraction clarified.......2007-02-07
A brilliant and thorough explication of contemporary abstract art. The lectures were not intended for
arts professionals but are a literate and enjoyable guide to the visual arts since Jackson Pollock.
Customer Reviews:
A Classic Work!.......2007-10-10
A Review by Seth Kerin, author of The Elder Worlds: Book One
The Hitchhiker's Guide series, in a stunningly bound leather binding, sits on my bookshelf in a place of honor between The Complete Works of Shakespeare, and The Complete Works of Edgar Allen Poe. Truly Adams was a literary genius.
If you have not read the Guide, "Don't Panic." Just pick up this lovely edition and enjoy the entire series - you will have trouble putting it down. Seriously, it's not only tremendously funny, but also remarkably deep and inspirational. Fellow readers will recognize the multitude of ways one can read into the final thoughts of the bowl of petunias...
This is an absolute must read for any fan of sci-fi/fantasy or general humor. This entire series is the comedic answer to Lord of the Rings, and certainly if they had been contemporaries, Adams and Tolkein would have likely been best of friends.
Buy it. Read it. And don't forget your towel!
Not quite "leather" bound -- but a great collection!.......2007-10-09
This is a nicely bound, leatherette covered book. Great to have the series together for easy access. Unlike another reviewer, I really liked the little ribbon marker! Beware though -- it looks a little like a Bible when you carry it around -- ! But I got a kick out of that. I felt the typesetting could have been a little nicer than what looked like just a photocopy of the pages of the original printing. All in all though, I am very happy with the purchase. A really great value.
For those who love hardbacks.......2007-08-31
Most of us who have read and enjoyed the Hitchhikers books (I won't say trilogy) have reached a point in life where getting by on 30 Altarian dollars a day and reading paperbacks has lost some of its charm. I'm in the process of cleaning up my bookshelves by replacing all the battered paperbacks of my youth with real books. I saw this omnibus edition and thought it was the perfect thing. One book with a pleasant appearance to displace a large number of ratty paperbacks. I almost didn't buy it because the price seemed to low. I thought it would sit pleasantly on my bookshelf until I was in the right mood, but I found myself diving right in and enjoying things I remembered and remembering things I forgot. The quality is much higher than I expected. The binding is very solid and the pages supple. I consider this one of my best book purchases of the year.
Great Quality Book.......2007-08-08
For the price, this book is incredible. It's a nice leatherbound copy, and shipping and everything was extremely quick. Couldn't be happier.
Incoherent is the best!.......2007-07-31
This book was introduced to me by one of the craziest persons I will ever meet in my life: My good canadian friend Amber. Once I read the first page, I was hooked. It's so incoherent, it makes you see your life in another perspective, plus the new vocabulary it uses makes you want to review your dictionary! If you have an open mind, read this whole book. Only one isn't enough (this book has 4 stories and one novel). Amazing, just amazing
Book Description
The Wealth of Nations
by Adam Smith
It is symbolic that Adam Smith’s masterpiece of economic analysis,
The Wealth of Nations, was first published in 1776, the same year as the Declaration of Independence.
In his book, Smith fervently extolled the simple yet enlightened notion that individuals are fully capable of setting and regulating prices for their own goods and services. He argued passionately in favor of free trade, yet stood up for the little guy.
The Wealth of Nations provided the first--and still the most eloquent--integrated description of the workings of a market economy.
The result of Smith’s efforts is a witty, highly readable work of genius filled with prescient theories that form the basis of a thriving capitalist system. This unabridged edition offers the modern reader a fresh look at a timeless and seminal work that revolutionized the way governments and individuals view the creation and dispersion of wealth--and that continues to influence our economy right up to the present day.
Customer Reviews:
Surprisingly readable.......2007-09-12
If you have any interest at all in Economics, you'll want to go to the source. This is the source. Adam Smith lays the groundwork for the study of Economics in this very readable treatise.
Though he is discussing 18th century Britain, the topics he discusses have direct analogs in the modern American economy. Taxes, trade, money, monopoly, tarrifs, and international trade balance are all tackled with aplomb.
He really lays into Mercantilism and blasts the protectionism it engenders. Never anything less than a champion of the common man, Smith decrys monopolies and other taxes on those most unable to afford them. Though he seems to be a total free marketeer, he takes great pains to examine the types of taxes which would be useful and prudent for a government to levy.
Once or twice may be fine, but Smith uses this construction for almost every sentence in the book. It is just a stylistic gripe, but the length and complexity of each sentence make digesting the information quite a bit more difficult than it otherwise could have been. I would not be at all disappointed to see this book translated to a more modern style.
Again, if you're interested in Economics at all, this book is the place to start. There is so much good information here to be absorbed and pondered. I recommend it highly.
Adam Smith was a fabulous writer!!.......2007-08-13
Do not be dismayed by the book's substantial girth! The Wealth of Nations is not only an essential, brilliant, philosophical read for anyone interested in economics... but, it is also thoroughly entertaining and even humorous at times.
Seminal work from the father of economics.......2007-05-25
Nobody seriously involved in economics can do without this exhaustive work, originally published in five volumes as An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations. This classic is a pragmatic and accessible milestone in the history of economics. Its author, Adam Smith, is woven into every economics textbook. However, Smith's theories, which today often are recounted mostly in fragments, frequently incorrectly, reveal their entire social and economic innovative power only in context. Smith burst onto the scene at a time when absolutist national states monopolized the world's precious metal reserves and tried to increase their own wealth through stringent export policies. These states were motivated by an entirely new concept about national wealth: that it stemmed from the work of the country's people, not from gold. Based on that idea, economic markets should balance themselves as if guided by an "invisible hand," impelled by each individual's self-interest. The state has to provide only an orderly framework and specific public goods and services. Even though Smith's image of idealized economic and social harmony may have developed a few cracks over the course of time, his ideas have inspired many well-known economists during the past 250 years, including David Ricardo, Vilfredo Pareto, Friedrich August von Hayek and Milton Friedman. We highly recommend this seminal work.
Go with Bantam.......2007-02-12
If you're wondering which Wealth of Nations to purchase, get the Bantam paperback. This is Smith's complete and unabridged final version of the Wealth of Nations. It provides footnotes on Smith's wording, the historical context, and the differences between Smith's 5th edition and previous editions. In addition, the margin of the pages contain useful notes which summarize Smith's writing. For the price, this is clearly the superior choice.
Now, if you're wondering whether you should undertake such an endeavor, let me just say that Adam Smith was a professor of rhetoric. He explains everything so precisely, yet so comprehensible. Smith's writing is by no means difficult; I actually found it a surprisingly easy read given its antique nature. Once you get through the first chapter, you get quite used to Smith's writing style. If you put adequate time and energy into it, it's not hard at all.
A must read if you are in economics.......2006-09-02
The works of Adam Smith are an essential part of universal culture, especially for economics. The introduction to the book places you at the time it was written, which makes it even more valuable.
Book Description
In this groundbreaking new history, Adam Tooze provides the clearest picture to date of the Nazi war machine and its undoing. There was no aspect of Nazi power untouched by economics—it was Hitler's obsession and the reason the Nazis came to power in the first place. The Second World War was fought, in Hitler's view, to create a European empire strong enough to take on the United States. But as The Wages of Destruction makes clear, Hitler's armies were never powerful enough to beat either Britain or the Soviet Union—and Hitler never had a serious plan as to how he might defeat the United States. The Wages of Destruction is an eye-opening and controversial account that will challenge conventional interpretations of the period and will find an enthusiastic readership among fans of Ian Kershaw and Richard Evans. BACKCOVER:
Advance praise for The Wages of Destruction:
“One of the most important and original books to be published about the Third Reich in the past twenty years. A tour de force.”
—Niall Ferguson, author of Colossus
“Unputdownable epic history . . . Transforms not only our reading of Hitler's sordid regime, but the history of the twentieth century itself. Brilliantly written, its original scholarship is telling and lightly borne on every page.”
—John Cornwell, author of Hitler's Pope: The Secret History of Pius XII
Customer Reviews:
An enlightening analysis of economic factors behind the Third Reich.......2007-10-08
Tooze occasionally mentions in passing how companies or individuals benefited from fueling the Third Reich's war effort, but his real topics are far broader and more interesting: showing how economic factors drove Hitler's war goals and timing and how the continual feedback between industrial needs and war goals drove war strategy.
Tooze starts by describing the quandary which faced Germany in the late 1920's. Germany was not self sufficient in either food or raw materials and needed to be able to export in order to finance essential imports. Germany also needed to be able to sell its exports in order to obtain hard currency to pay the reparation demands from the World War I victors. Despite these difficulties, the German finance ministry was managing to navigate Germany through a slow and painful recovery from WWI. Then disaster struck with the Great Depression. First there was an inevitable shrinking in export markets and then, much more seriously, there were conscious protectionist decisions in America, Britain, and France to block German exports in order to protect home employment.
Before reading The Wages of Destruction, I had loosely understood how the Great Depression had been a key factor in Hitler's rise to power, especially due to widespread unemployment. But Tooze clarifies that Germany was facing a much deeper strategic dilemma than a simple economic depression. Germany was dependent on the goodwill of other powers for its export markets and for its essential food and material imports, but those powers were demonstrating that in a crisis they would look entirely to their own interests and would quite cheerfully close their markets and let Germany suffer. Given this behavior, the long-term economic and political future for Germany looked extremely grim. Hitler offered a radical solution to this problem: Germany needed to expand to the East and become self sufficient in resources in the same way as the British Empire or America. Given the depth of Germany's problem, it becomes easier to understand why many thinking Germans either enthusiastically or reluctantly accepted Hitler's solution.
In succeeding chapters, Tooze describes how Hitler rapidly switched the Germany economy to focus on rearmament. He argues that while the Nazi propaganda machine emphasized efforts to increase employment and visionary projects such as the autobahn system, this was really mere window dressing and the regime was massively focused on military preparations for war. More interestingly, he also highlights how the continual shortages of hard currency (and thus of key materials) continually constrained and shaped rearmament. By 1938 lack of currency and other economic constraints were limiting further military expansion. Hitler was thus faced with a situation where Germany could see its own military abilities peaking and simultaneously see other powers starting to accelerate their own rearmament, weakening Germany's relative advantage. Hitler being Hitler, this drove an impatience for war, while Germany had its best relative position. As the war progresses, Tooze revisits this theme from several angles. Hitler was continually faced with situations where enemy military production would quickly eclipse Germany's and he reacted by trying to knock particular opponents out of the war quickly.
Tooze's major focus is on the operations and outputs of the German wartime economy. Overall, he shows us an economy that was reasonably well run and efficient but where production was dominated by shortages of key resources, especially steel and skilled manpower. By making high-level decisions about reallocations of these resources the Reich leadership could cause major leaps (or declines) in production in target sectors such as aircraft or tanks or munitions. Typically these resource shifts would take about six months to work through the system. The lucky Nazi bureaucrat who happened to be in charge of a target sector at the end of the six months would then happily boast of his productivity miracle as his sector suddenly produced startling jumps in output.
Tooze does not shy away from describing and condemning the many darker aspects of the Third Reich's war economy. A major aim of the expansion to the East was to improve Germany's food supplies. But that land was already inhabited and that food was already being consumed. So the Nazi solution was the "Hunger Plan" which quite casually assumed that food would be diverted from Poland and the Western USSR to Germany and that many millions would be deliberately starved. Tooze argues that this appalling plan was widely circulated, understood and accepted among the German political and military leadership in 1941. Thankfully, it proved difficult to execute and while there was widespread suffering, the East avoided the systematic mass starvation called for in the plan. However, in subsequent years the same desire to remove what were seen as "useless mouths" and free up food supplies was one of the many input factors towards the holocaust. In parallel, Germany manpower shortages led to large drafts of forced labor from occupied countries to German factories. Tooze illustrates both the appalling conditions of the laborers and the folly of a regime that for ideological reasons oppressed and starved the very labor it was trying to exploit.
Overall, I found this book a very enlightening read. Tooze's thorough analysis of the details of exports, imports, and production constraints provides a convincing base for his explanation of how the constraints and limits of the German economy drove high level German economic and military planning.
A PROFOUND AND FAR-REACHING STUDY.......2007-09-17
I certainly agree with other reviewers who give "Wages of Destruction" highest praise. The only wonder is why it took so long to get the story out. We've been reading histories of the war for more than sixty years, and yet I cannot recall reading anything that lays out the economic choices and consequences as well as Adam Tooze has done here. My only criticisms in this regard would be that Tooze tends to look through a lens of economic determinism, as though weight of resources would inevitably result in Germany's defeat, no matter who was in charge. What Tooze does not delineate with any degree of specificity is Hitler's confidence in the risk aversiveness, if not downright cowardice, of the Western democracies. That was certainly the case with France, which went to war profoundly divided, and whose failure of leadership echos to this day. Great Britain under Nevelle Chamberlain was hardly better. As late as May, 1940, members of the Cabinet were still debating whether to try to cut a deal with Hitler. As for the Soviet Union, the idea that Germany could defeat the Red Army in the field and expect to hold onto captured territory was wishful thinking at its worst; even if Moscow had been captured, which Napoleon did in 1812, Hitler had to know that in Stalin he faced a man as ruthless as himself. The idea that he could repeat the German Imperial Army's success against Russia in 1917, and then confront the Western Allies, throws all rational calculation to the wind. The only other comment I would make about Wages of Destruction would be that Tooze tends to summarize the events between the Summer of 1943 and May, 1945, as though that 18 month period simply followed on what had been in the pipeline before.
Profound Analysis of Nazi Germany's Economic Situation.......2007-09-11
Recently, there has been a spate of excellent books arguing that Germany was a much weaker state than it has generally been thought to be, and that the tactical brilliance of its military obscured economic inadequacies and strategic incompetence. Isabel Hull's "Absolute Destruction," Ian Kershaw's "Fatal Decisions," and now Adam Tooze's "Wages of Destruction" all make a similar point in their very different ways. They also suggest something very interesting -- that given the insane premises that Germany should be a hegemonic power and that war and conquest were the means to attain that power, Germany's military decisions in World Wars I and II made sense.
Tooze points out in convincing fashion that not only was Germany an economic basket case compared to the United States (capable of produing perhaps 1,000 warplanes at the same time the United States could produce perhaps 50,000), but that even if it were matched against the British Empire alone, its long-run prospects were little better than 50-50.
Tooze goes on to show that after France fell and Britain would not make a separate peace, Hitler faced an economic and strategic dilemma. The United States was not likely to stay out of the war indefinitely; when it inevitably entered the war on the allied side, Germany would be grossly outnumbered and outproduced.
The only possible answer was Russia, either as an ally or as a colony. As an ally, the Soviet Union was unreliable, opportunistic, and probably treacherous. Moreover, Germany would have to bend a great deal to Stalin's wishes to keep the Soviet Union happy. As a prostrate colony, Russia might just provide the material to resist Britain and the United States. So, Tooze suggests, Hitler was not so irrational when he invaded Russia (provided, of course, one does not ask the question "If Hitler faced such a daunting situation even after France was unexpected defeated, how could he ever have figured on winning the war while France was still in the allied camp"?)
If anything, Tooze suggests, Germany got lucky -- it had no business being as successful as it was by June 1941. Even at that, so many things had to go right for Germany to come out of the war in any decent shape that total victory was an impossibility. Could he successfully invade England? Little or no chance. Could he starve England out? Not with the United States on Engalnd's side. Even if he had conquered Russia where would he be -- Facing the United States across a narrow strait with his army streched from the Bering Sea to the English Channel. This was not a winning hand.
Tooze presents plenty of evidence to show that the Nazis ran a miserable war economy; that it had no idea how to put together a coherent economic or military strategy; that its solutions were ad hoc, duplicative, inefficient, and ultimately monstrous. The famous "German efficiency" takes a terrible hit, at least on the strategic level. In sum, Tooze concludes, absent a complete collapse of allied will, Germany never had a chance. But given the fact that it never had a chance and chose to take one anyway, its seemingly irrational moves made a certain kind of mad sense.
Wages is Scholarly Blut Dull.......2007-07-21
Adam Tooze has made a great contribution to the history of Germany under Nazi party rule, breaking into territory trod by few hisorians. His scholarship is superior. Few have found a way to enliven economic history and Toonze has failed to break that barrier. This along keeps the book from a five star rating.
great book.......2007-07-07
Germany lost the Second World War was because the allies out-produced them. I've known that for a long time -- but until I read The Wages of Destruction I never really understood what that statement meant, and all that it entailed. The Wages of Destruction explains, in gripping, readable detail, how the Nazi war machine worked, how it failed, and how it shaped the strategy and some of the worst crimes of the Third Reich.
So let me add to the chorus of five-star reviews. I consider The Wages of Destruction required reading if you want to understand Nazi Germany, particularly if you have an interest in economics or business. Also, if you have read Albert Speer's Inside the Third Reich, you'll be interested in this book for the counterpoint it provides.
Book Description
If you know all of the concepts in this book, you should do much better than pass USMLE Step 2: You should CRUSH STEP 2! Bestselling author Adam Brochert, MD, who scored in the 99th percentile in Steps 1 and 2 of the USMLE, offers you high-yield coverage of all of the specialty and subspecialty knowledge tested on the most recent administrations of the USMLE Step 2 exam. A well-written, easily accessible approach, with plenty of helpful lists and tables, makes studying easy. You'll also find numerous tips, insights, and guidance on maximizing your score and on getting the most benefit from computer-based simulations.
Customer Reviews:
Just what I needed!.......2007-07-08
This is a great review book. It isn't swarming in details and really outlines the high yield stuff for step 2 without being overwhelming. Format is similar to a text book...but there are lots of memorization charts that are helpful.
I LOVE IT!!!!!!!.......2006-11-30
This book is amazing. I used for the USMLE Step 2 CK and get a 220. I used with the First Aid, because this book has different information than the FA. I highly recomend to read chapter 29-34 a couple of time they are very helpful.
Good Luck!!!!!
Well presented chapter but .............2006-11-06
If you are looking to add further information to this book ( as is needed from other sources ) the fact that the contents are not in alphabetical order might waste allot of time flipping back and forth and on every occassion having to look to the content table. Unlike First Aid, where the contents are in alphbetical order ( ex: Cardiovascular, Dermatology, Endocrine .... etc.). If it was alphabetical it would allow for faster and more efficient stydying as is needed in preperation of a Step exam. Best of luck.
useful book.......2006-08-07
The format is excellent. Concise and easy to read; a lot of pertinent information for the step 2 preparation.
great book.......2006-07-10
everything it claims to be, and a great brush up before step 2.
Book Description
As one of the first titles in Atlantic Monthly Press’ “Books That Changed the World” series, America’s most provocative satirist, P. J. O’Rourke, reads Adam Smith’s revolutionary The Wealth of Nations so you don’t have to. Recognized almost instantly on its publication in 1776 as the fundamental work of economics, The Wealth of Nations was also recognized as really long: the original edition totaled over nine hundred pages in two volumes—including the blockbuster sixty-seven-page “digression concerning the variations in the value of silver during the course of the last four centuries,” which, “to those uninterested in the historiography of currency supply, is like reading Modern Maturity in Urdu.” Although daunting, Smith’s tome is still essential to understanding such current hot-topics as outsourcing, trade imbalances, and Angelina Jolie. In this hilarious, approachable, and insightful examination of Smith and his groundbreaking work, P. J. puts his trademark wit to good use, and shows us why Smith is still relevant, why what seems obvious now was once revolutionary, and why the pursuit of self-interest is so important.
Customer Reviews:
A Waste of Time if You Want to Understand Adam Smith.......2007-10-02
I got this book because I wanted to read something on Smith, an author who is not, contrary to what is repeatedly said by other reviewers, difficult to read or superseded by later writers. What I quickly realized was that O'Rourke has no intention of seriously engaging with Smith at all and that the book might easily have been written without his having read the Wealth of Nations at all using a research assistant to pull out some quotes to sprinkle around. That he didn't read the book is the only explanation for the presence of so many gross errors in the book, such as when O'Rourke lumps labor unions together with chartered companies, etc. as a market distorting institution that Smith abhors; whereas, as any reader of the book knows, Adam Smith is quite explicit in his defense of collective bargaining for workers and condemns the laws of his day that impede workers' ability to organize. Whatever one thinks of these matters, Smith was clear as to his own view.
There is also a generally philistine and puerile element to O'Rourke's style and humour which I found extremely grating. If you are interested in work of Adam Smith, don't waste your time with this book. Just because O'Rourke didn't read the original doesn't mean you ought not to. So save your money and but a copy of the Wealth of Nations itself if you haven't read it already.
Recommend highly.......2007-09-02
P. J. O'Rourke makes Adam Smith's master work come alive with witty asides and modern examples to succinctly illustrate principles that Smith had expanded upon at daunting length. Everyone who thinks they might someday want to go into business, run for office, vote, or engage in intelligent conversation should read it, as should those who just want thought-provoking entertainment. The lengthy "dictionary" of quotations in the back is an added bonus.
A terrific guide to the ideas and writings of Adam Smith - with some jokes, too.......2007-08-13
Adam Smith has been written off my many people who find themselves too sophisticated for his 18th Century views. Each time, it is they who prove themselves and their ideas dispensable. Adam Smith continues to influence new generations of people trying to understand not only economics, but what Smith called Moral Sentiments. Was Smith a Prophet? Of course not. Did he get everything right? No. But there is more right there than you will likely find in a library full of most other writers on economics who think they know more than Smith.
However, there are many fundamental concepts that have become central to our understanding of how human beings interact and create wealth that some of us treat him with a kind of devotion and veneration. We probably overdo it. Still, like scripture, he is more often talked about than read. And that is why the wonderful humorist P.J. O'Rourke wrote this book. It is a short guide through Smith's "The Wealth of Nations" (a much shortened title).
O'Rourke also gives us a brief view of Smith's "The Theory of Moral Sentiments" and a very brief look at Smith's life and times. As O'Rourke quote William Kristol, most of us only read in Smith. It is just so long and dry and tied to his times, it takes a special reason to read every darn word. O'Rourke did so he could write this book.
While there is much to enjoy in the book, O'Rourke has created a dictionary of Smith's best sayings (lightly edited). He also provides a list of other readings and points you to the best editions of Smith's works.
This book isn't just a funny book that riffs on Smith. Yes, O'Rourke is great at making things funny, to the point you will laugh out loud. But his humor is most often insightful rather and it is a way of getting the reader to take in the point thinking he is getting dessert. I like this insight from page 62:
"A recurring lesson in "The Wealth of Nations" is that we shouldn't get greedy. And no people are as rapacious and grabby as those who work for the public good. They don't want mere millions or billions of dollars to satisfy personal avarice. They seek the trillions of dollars necessary to make life on earth better for everyone. The World Bank should content itself with private good, from which all good things flow"
Yeah, it isn't that funny. But it is concise and right with a nice bite.
Get it, read it and enjoy it. And, hey, you will probably learn something. Especially if you haven't read Smith (or even read much in his writings).
This was my O'Levels assignment!.......2007-07-25
This is the best book I have read so far this year. The author succeeds in presenting this heavy work in an entertaining and humorous way. I think anyone reading this book will be encouraged to read the Wealth of Nations and inquire more on Adam Smith, if they haven't already done so.
The Wealth of Nations, a book of free-market thinking and a book that shapes the world to this day, was first published in 1776, the year The United States of America gained its independence from Britain. The book was instantly recognized as being fundamental to an understanding of Economics. The original edition totaled over nine hundred pages in two volumes, which was considered long. It is a large volume because Adam Smith felt he was at the end of his life and he wanted to say all he could. In fact, The Wealth of Nations was orally dictated, significantly contributing to its length.
According to P.J. O'Rourke, to understand The Wealth of Nations, you also need to read Smith's first book, The Theory of Moral Sentiments. But now with On The Wealth of Nations, you don't need to read either, or so the book back cover claims. In fact, this book reads like a Cliff Notes, with laughter added.
Adam Smith only wrote three books, the third, on law, being left uncompleted.
P.J. Rourke shows us why Smith is still relevant today, why what seems obvious now was once revolutionary, and how the division of labor, freedom of trade, absence of government interference (the famous two words, `invisible hand'), and pursuit of self-interest espoused by Smith are vital to the welfare of mankind. There is nothing inherently wrong with the pursuit of self-interest. That was Smith's best insight. Smith further gives suggestions on how governments should be run, and how various classes of men should behave. Smith illuminated the mystery of economics in one flash: "Consumption is the sole end and purpose of all production."
Far from being an avatar of capitalism, Smith was actually a moralist of liberty. O'Rourke says, "it's as if Smith, having proved that we can all have more money, then went on to prove that money doesn't buy happiness. And it doesn't. It rents it." (I just love this quote!)
I had to read Wealth of Nations for my O-Levels, and I got a B, the highest score in my class. I was hoping for an `A' actually, but I didn't have O'Rourke's book at the time.
Some interesting quotes from the book:
"Every tax, however, is to the person who pays it a badge, not of slavery, but of liberty. It denotes that he is subject to government, indeed, but that, as he has some property, he cannot himself be the property of a master."
"To improve land with profit requires an exact attention to small savings and small gains, of which a man born to a great fortune...is very seldom capable."
Never complain that the people in power are stupid. It is their best trait. In recent years we've seen a variety of powerful figures barter their authority for the gratification of childish vanities. Perhaps the Saudi royal family will be next to suffer the fate that Adam Smith described: "Having sold their birth-right, not like Esau for a mess of pottage in time of hunger and necessity, but in the wantonness of plenty, for trinkets and baubles, fitter to be the playthings of children than the serious pursuits of men, they became as insignificant as any substantial burgher or tradesman in a city.
In 1776, Britain was the most powerful country on earth. The reason for this, wrote Smith, was plain: "That security which the laws in Great Britain give to every man that he shall enjoy the fruits of his own labour, is alone sufficient to make any country flourish."
Military power depends on economic success. Economic success depends on freedom. "No regulation of commerce," Smith wrote, "can increase the quantity of industry in any society... It can only divert a part of it into a direction into which it might not otherwise have gone."
The rulers of Great Britain have, for more than a century past, amused the people with the imagination that they possessed a great empire on the west side of the Atlantic. This empire, however, has hitherto existed in imagination only. It has hitherto been, not an empire, but the project of an empire; not a gold mine, but the project of a gold mine...It is surely now time that our rulers should either realize this golden dream, in which they have been indulging themselves, perhaps, as well as the people; or, that they should awake from it themselves, and endeavour to awaken the people. If the project cannot be completed, it ought to be given up...Great Britain should free herself from the expence of defending those provinces in time of war, and of supporting any part of their civil or military establishments in time of peace, and endeavour to accommodate her future views and designs to the real mediocrity of her circumstances."
"What institution of government could tend so much to promote the happiness of mankind as the general prevalence of wisdom and virtue? All government is but an imperfect remedy for the deficiency of these."
One reviewer on Amazon.com had the following to say:
"Socialism can work, but it requires people with the qualities of saints. The difference between O'Rourke's rant and the reality of earthly socialism was aptly seen by Leacock, who explained `socialism won't work except in Heaven, where they don't need it, or in Hell, where they already have it.' "
Adam Smith died on July 17, 1790, leaving us a book that is still shaping our way of thinking! His stoic attitude toward death, recorded in his Moral Sentiments, was as follows: "Walk forth without repining; without murmuring or complaining. Walk forth calm, contented, rejoicing, returning thanks to the Gods, who, from their infinite bounty, have opened the safe and quiet harbor of death, at all times ready to receive us from the stormy ocean of human life."
If you find The Wealth of Nations too long or too hard to read, then read P.J. O'Rourke's On The Wealth of Nations, and you will understand all the major concepts of Smith's book.
Interesting and VERY funny.......2007-07-12
I really, really enjoyed this Book on CD.....I think it made it much better than if I had just read the book. Listen to the jokes was really cool. Lots of very good information.
Book Description
It's little wonder that longtime Windows users are migrating in droves to the new Mac. They're fed up with the virus-prone Windows way of life, and they're lured by Apple's well-deserved reputation for producing great all-around computers that are reliable, user-friendly, well designed, and now--with the $500 Mac mini--extremely affordable, too.
Whether you're drawn to the Mac's stability, its stunning digital media suite, or the fact that a whole computer can look and feel as slick as your iPod, you can quickly and easily become a Mac convert. But consider yourself warned: a Mac isn't just a Windows machine in a prettier box; it's a whole different animal and a whole new computing experience.
If you're contemplating--or have already made--the switch from a Windows PC to a Mac, you need Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Tiger Edition. This incomparable guide delivers what Apple doesn't: everything you need to know to successfully and painlessly move to a Mac.
The latest reprint of this book has been updated to reflect the new generation of Mac models that run on Intel chips. There's even a new appendix that guides you through the installation of Windows XP on your Macintosh (using adapter software like Boot Camp or Parallels), so that you have the best of all worlds: a single, beautiful machine that can run 100 percent of the world's desktop software. (Note to people who've already bought the book: This appendix is available as a free PDF download from missingmanuals.com.)
Missing Manual series creator and bestselling author David Pogue teams up with 17-year-old whiz kid and founder of GoldfishSoft (www.goldfishsoft.com) Adam Goldstein to cover every aspect of switching to a Mac--things like transferring email, files, and addresses from a PC to a Mac; getting acquainted with the Mac's interface; adapting to Mac versions of familiar programs (including Microsoft Office); setting up a network to share files with PCs and Macs; and using the printers, scanners, and other peripherals you already own.
Covering the latest in Mac OS X v.10.4 "Tiger," Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Tiger Edition explains the hundreds of innovative new features to the Mac OS and how you can understand and make the very most of each.
Whether you're a novice or a power user, Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Tiger Edition, teaches you how to smoothly and seamlessly replace (or supplement) your Windows machine--in a refreshingly funny and down-to-earth style--with a mighty Mac.
Customer Reviews:
Perfect companion.......2007-09-26
Until a few months ago, I would never have bought anything but a PC. For some reason, I decided to buy an iMac. I love it now. But this book made it possible. At first, I was confused and knew I had made a monumental mistake by not buying yet another trusty PC. Oh, yes, I looked back wistfully and yearned for the weekly (if not more frequent) updates to keep those pesky viruses, worms, maggots, whatever out of my computer. But then I found this book, and combined it with one other (MAC OS X, Tiger Edition) and discovered another dimension of computing. I love my iMac. I love these books. And if you are new to the Mac, they are invaluable!!! I even bought a set for my son in college, who also decided to surrender his idolatry of the PC and switch to a Mac Book. He feels the same! Easy to read. Easy to find what you need. Easy to follow directions!!! They're great!
Very Useful for New Intel Mac Switchers.......2007-09-21
This book will save you time in the transition from PC to Mac, now increasingly common as buyers are attracted to the new Intel Macs. You can probably figure out most of the operating system differences on your own, but the hints in this book justify the price.
The switch, by the way, is also worth it.
Switcher's manual.......2007-09-18
Switching to the Mac: The Missing Manual, Tiger Edition
Great book!
It tells you all the things us poor PC users would take ages to learn.
The language is easy, fun and very, very clear, although sometimes it tends to err on the verbose side of life.
Good buy for the money
Not exactly What I Expected.......2007-09-09
I haven't read the entire manual. Due to some cerebral related problems, I have a very short attention span, and short term memory loss. So I was really hoping for some sort of clear cut index comparing Microsoft OS to Tiger OS. There was an index, but it wasn't wired that way. Other then that, It seems to be a comprehensive publication. Since the problem really sits with me, I guess I should have given it a better score.
Tedious........2007-08-23
I have seen so much hype about the Pogue "Missing Manual" books that I had to try this one having just switched to the mac after being a long time PC user. This book helped me in some ways but was tediously written. I don't like the author's writing style and some of the contents were irrelevant to me. I would try another book if one were available.. Writing a 500 page book on how to use a computer for a person already able to operate a PC seems like overkill to me. I read about half of it while awaiting being called for jury duty but by the second half had to skim it. It is more like a boring textbook than a primer and transition book. I wouldn't recommend it to the average reader making " the switch".
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- A Thomas Jefferson Education: Teaching a Generation of Leaders for the Twenty-first Century
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- All of the Women of the Bible
- America's Wilderness: The Photographs of Ansel Adams
- American Mourning: The Intimate Story of Two Families Joined by War, Torn by Beliefs
Books Index
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Windows - General
| Operating Systems
| Microsoft
| Computers & Internet
| Subjects
| Books
Applications = Code + Markup: A Guide to the Microsoft Windows Presentation Foundation (Pro - Developer)
Windows Communication Foundation Unleashed (WCF) (Unleashed)
Programming WCF Services (Programming)
Essential Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) (Microsoft .NET Development Series)
Essential Windows Workflow Foundation (Microsoft .NET Development Series)
