This book is basically a summary of a whole bunch of management books. None of the ideas offered any new insights into productivity.

In certain chapters of the book, the author(s) lack of real-world experience is clearly visible. From my years of experience in human-resource management, I find many of the ideas and suggestions offered in the book are already well known management methods that do not work in today's world. At best, the book is suitable for the consumption of naive business students.

Does not deserve the 4 star rankings. Who wrote the earlier reviews? The authors?

Not helpful for someone who knows a lot about hiring, recruiting, and retaining. It has nice concepts, but most would be difficult to apply without completely changing the organizational culture. There are a few nice tables and diagrams, and the paper is nice, but that hardly adds up to its being a great buy.

"For most of the twentieth century, the primary tools for the creation of wealth were physical: land, natural resources, human labor, and machines. The worth of a company was determined in large measure by the sum of its tangible resources." Gregory G. Dess and Joseph C. Picken write, "In recent years, however, companies like Microsoft, PeopleSoft, America Online, and Amazon.com have turned this model inside out. These companies, dealing in software and services and built on a foundation of intellectual capital with little or no tangible investment, have created extraordinary value for their investors, far in excess of the worth of their physical and financial assets. Traditional industries based on tangible assets, such as oil, autos, steel, and financial services, have lagged far behind, reinforcing the argument that value is determined not by the sum of an organization's resources but by how efficiently those resources are used and redeployed into new opportunities over time...(Thus, today) management faces two key challenges. The first is to address the quality and capabilities of the human capital resource itself: to recruit, develop, and retain the best talent available. The second is to design and configure the organization's structural capital- the key processes and structures that link its human, knowledge and information, and tangible resources to each other and to its core value-creating processes- so as to maximize the potential and performance of the entire entity. Our focus throughout this book is on how leading companies are meeting these challenges in a changing competitive environment" (from the Preface).

In this context, in Chapter One, they firstly define two key management challenges:

I. Structural Capital: They argue that the principal role of structural capital is to link the resources of the organization together into processes that create value for customers and sustainable competitive advantage for the firm. And hence, they identify key components of structural capital as follows:

1. Core Value-Creating Activities

* Core business processes

* External relationship with customers, suppliers, and alliance partners

* Reputation, brand loyalty, image, and legitimacy

2. Organizational Structure, Systems, Processes, and Culture

* Organizational and reporting structures

* Operating systems, processes, procedures, and task designs

* Information and communications infrastructures

* Resource acquisition, development, and allocation systems

* Decision processes and information flows

* Incentives, controls, and performance measurement systems

* Mechanisms to promote sharing, collaboration, and organizational learning

* Organizational culture, values, and leadership

II. Human Capital: They argue that our definition of human capital focused primarily on capabilities, knowledge, skills, and experience, all of them embodied in and inseparable from the individual. And hence, they identify eight key categories, or elements, of human capital as follows:

1. Motor skills: The ability to grasp, place, move, and manipulate objects in coordinated movements

2. Information-gathering (perceptual) skills: Sensory, perceptual, and interpretative capabilities

3. Information-processing (cognitive) skills: The ability to reason, analyze, and make decisions

4. Communication skills: The ability to listen, communicate, and share information and ideas

5. Experience: Know-how from having done the task before

6. Knowledge: Knowledge of self, the job, the organization, and the environment

7. Social skills: The ability to interface, coordinate, and collaborate productively with others

8. Values, beliefs, and attitudes: Personal values that shape perceptions, performance, and attitudes

I highly recommend to executives and HR practitioners.

This book I though would give me inside out of the C#. However, half of the book is filled with excerpts of the full source code that is available on the CD. I tried an example code in Chapter 5 that creates a TCPClient, it did not work. The website [website] where the member area is located, doesn't contain any usefull links rather update your profile. While registering, the website gave a SQL Server ODBC error that it could not save the record. However strangely I received confirmation e-mail even after the ODBC error occured. Overall, I am not satisfied with this book. Its just waste of money.

This text is meant as a general overview of the .net framework but it also delves into source code to provide more detailed examples. Unfortunately, this only serves to confuse the reader as many of the examples are not cohesive or clearly explained. There is little benefit in smearing examples over half the textbook if you are not going to take the time to explain them properly. It seems as this was a rush to market product where the examples only serve to make the book thicker. The authors should have made up their minds initially if the text was meant to be an overview or a detailed "how-to" book.

For topics that I am not familiar with I feel that a lot of details are missing. As such I read the new topic's chapter up to 4 times to ultimately feel that I need another source. As such I consider this book to be a good reference book.

On a more positive note the examples that the book gives are abundant and could serve as a starting point for your own development.

A disappointing book, so convoluted even the most devoted conspiracy theorist could not follow all the twists, turns, and double-crosses. This would be fine if this was a novel, but it is portrayed as fact.
In addition to a host of Agency officers that the author accuses of being Soviet spies (all conveniently dead, making a lawsuit for libel unlikely), the author claims that a string of Soviet defectors were all in fact directed and controlled by the Soviets in a plot of such deviousness that even the author does not seem to understand it - and the reader certainly cannot. Oleg Penkovsky, the best Western penetration of the Soviet Union during the entire Cold War, is described (with no proof offered for the claim) as being directed by the Soviets as part of a bizarre effort, never adequately explained, to bring about Khruschev's downfall.
The author's accusations rely primarily on "secret" Russian intelligence files, although he never says how he got them nor provides any proof that they even exist, and the suspicions of James Jesus Angleton, whose information and assessments were, according to the author, so consistently wrong the reader is left wondering how the author can then turn around and rely on Angleton and his disciples so completely. As for the author's own level of "expertise" on the CIA, an indication of the depth of his knowledge can be found on Page 192, when the author, attempting to demonstrate the extraordinary level of secrecy surrounding a newly approved assassination program directed by the famous William Harvey, writes:
"The CIA was never mentioned by name in any ZR/RIFLE documents or oral communications; instead, Harvey mandated that the Agency be referred to as KUBARK."
That sentence alone would be enough to induce hysterical laughter in any Agency veteran. Among the author's credits is employment as an "investigative reporter" for Penthouse magazine. It shows.
Readers interested in this subject would be better advised to read "Molehunt," "Wilderness of Mirrors," or even "Blonde Ghost."

I could not put this book down. I kept reading it as if it was a fictional thriller, and kept having to remind myself that everything in this book--double agents/triple agents, moles, bribes, murder--is absolutely true and a part of the history of the CIA/FBI. I read this book well before the events of September 11, but it now seems particularly compelling (yet frightening) as the CIA and FBI try to rebuild themselves. If you want to be an informed American--or just want a riveting read--get this book! See for yourself what this book is about!

There's a wealth of previously unavailable information here. This history explains a lot about our current relations with other countries. A must read for anyone interested in history and the truth.

I agree with the other 1 star reviewer in that this book very poorly illustrates proper technique and is very, very basic. Fortunately, I read it at the book store and therefore did not waste any money.

When I found the book on Amazon while searching for other Wing Chun books, I was very surprised to see such good reviews for it. Of course, it could just be the author or friends of the author ;)

Especially watch out for anybody who tries to tell you you can learn the martial arts from a book - you can not. You can learn about it, but without qualified instruction, you can't learn how to do it.

I don't know why I keep on buying this kind of manual and after having read this book I've got a good reason to stop. 70 pages of chatting that 'any master' can do. The pictures don't show what the written should want to explain. They don't have a dynamical sequence and it's difficult to realize the words' author. 1 star is enough.

A good book in series. Same open mindedness of the others.
Well written easy to read and understand. I will probably buy more of his works.

I can't say definitely because I am just a student, but this book wont get you far, it is full of Italianism (which may be current in Sicily, but so is Standard Italian) or maybe I began with an archaic dialect and that makes such impression.

If you know nothing of Sicilian language, this book may help you pick up a little vocabulary. But as a Sicilian, and as a professional editor for 5 years, I have to say that I wouldn't look to this book for any definitive answer to anything.

There are typos everywhere you look, not to mention layout and formatting issues. Was an editor or proofreader -- or ANYONE -- ever employed to read this before it went to press? I'd be mortified as the author to see a book of mine published with such a disregard for content and style -- particularly since it's an educational book, and a language book to boot.

You may get some benefit from this book, simply because I have never seen another book on Sicilian out there, but that's where my recommendation stops.

Dr. Privitera does a decent job of introducing basic Sicilian in this book. Each chapter begins with a conversation in Sicilian, followed by the English translation, and then it moves on to the vocabulary used in the chapter. After the vocabulary comes a brief grammar lesson. The conversations are not very creative, and I can't imagine Sicilians actually having conversations like some of the ones used. Like another reviewer said, the chapters are a bit repetitive, but I think that's intended in order to enforce memorization. The only problem I had with book is that there wasn't enough grammar provided. I wish he went into more detail about verbs, and that he had provided some grammar about prepositional contractions. I managed to come to the conclusion on my own that a circumflex signified a contraction, but this was never actually explained. Another problem is that people who don't have a knowledge of Italian might get lost quickly. All in all, however, I've learned quite a bit of Sicilian, and thanks to this book I can now communicate with my Sicilian friends in their own dialect, instead of standard Italian.

This book reaks. It's about half full with almost true-to-life generalizations. The other half is weighted down with overly detailed jargon intelligible only to working systems analysts. If you're a student, don't sign up for any class using this text. You'd be better off spending a couple of days with a real analyst (cheaper and faster, too). Other than that, it makes a great hundred dollar paper weight. Save your money!

I am disappointed with this book.
I have already included it in my "BOOKS FOR SALE" list.

I am disappointed because
(1) Not enough details;
(2) Not enough examples.

I am quite disappointed with this book.
I have already included it in my "BOOKS FOR SALE" list.

Although it covered many many topics , but it doesn't provide enough details on each topic. There are not enough examples, too.
I really have doubt on the authors' knowledge.

I found the tips and helpful hints to be very useful. It is written in a way that even "regular" people can save money and save time. I am thankful for this information and am recommending it to all my friends.

This book is for the person that simply wants to understand the basic common sense of household appliances. In reading the book I felt as though my father was sitting next to me advising me as to what to do next. The recipe for cleaning the dishwasher and the insights about keeping the fridge running are worth the price of the book (and there's a whole lot more besides that in the book)! If you are like me and not too knowledgable about home appliances then I highly recommend this book. It will be one that will be open often.

I cannot believe the other negative reviews. This book was written for people like me. I didn't have a whole lot of knowledge of how things worked around the house growing up and this book is like having my father next to me advising me on what to do next. There is a lot of common sense things in this book that will assist the common person in the house about how to fix the little things that can cost so much. I needed it. If you are a do-it-youself person and already have a lot of knowledge concerning household products then this may not be the one for you. If you want to know more about how your appliances work in your house and also learn to discover a rip-off when you see one - then this book is for you. It is a must for every household. The procedure for cleaning the dishwasher is worth the price of the book!! EXCELLENT STUFF!!! HIGH RECOMMENDATION!!!!

While this book is interesting to read, written in a prose style that keeps one reading, and flows logically through a wonderful historical framework, I felt at the end of every chapter that the author should have done a more thorough job. He should have developed his theses more, provided more depth to his topics, and offered information that is less general and more useful. This is an excellent introduction to the history of cocktails and drinking in the United States, but as a useful research tool, "The Cocktail" is of little value. But, as a strong point, I doubt that there are historical errors in the book - Lanza did do some research, that much is certain. But I still have the inclination that Lanza wanted to get another book in print without having to strain too hard writing it. I give this book two stars under the assumption that two stars means "okay reading for the subway", and one star ratings are solely for romance novels.

Somehow I expected more. Why? I don't know but it seemed the cocktail might present someone which a very interesting and diverse subject on which to write. Don't get me wrong there are some interesting things here both of an observation nature and some interesting historical facts but it just didn't keep my attention. The author has covered pretty much what I expected but not in a very interesting and enjoyable way. On the good side, it's not expensive.

This fun book has it all: histories of popular drinks, recipes, rituals. Written with humor and a unique perspective, Lanza's book explores the cocktail culture and its influence on America. From James Bond to Hugh Hefner, Elizabeth Taylor to the Rat Pack, this book charts how cocktails have influenced everything from politics to popular songs. Learn about Atomic Cocktails, see a Human Cocktail Shaker, and puzzle over Girl Drinks. For drinkers and tee-totalers.

I am totally disappointed in this book. I was very anxious to learn ASP.NET and I wanted to find an inexpensive book to help me get started, but the only thing this book did was frustrate me with horrible examples. Almost every single example in the book contained an error. Very disappointing.

The overall coverage was OK for developers looking to get a glimpse of what ASP.NET is about. However, the publishing of the book was rushed and filled with typos. I downloaded the source code from the Sams web site to attempt to follow along with the examples in the book only to be disappointed with code that did not follow the examples in the book. Even with the typos and inconsistent downloaded code, the book gave me a general understanding of what ASP.NET was about. My next step is to purchase an ASP.NET book from Wrox.

This book has a few typos but if you can overlook those it is full of excellent examples for a beginner learning how to use ASP.Net.

I liked it because the examples are complete, while there are at times better ways to do many of the processes that are featured the examples are written in a manner that assures you grasp the concept behind the process. For example on Web Form Server controls it shows the progression of converting an HTML form to a server controlled form handling the button click in the code behind then it goes on to show you how you would dynamically create that form with tr, td objects in the code behind.

The book covers a lot of beginner information...server controls, validation, security, reading and writing text & binary files, email, debugging... pretty much all of the stuff you would use in a real world implementation of a conversion to ASP.Net. It even covers installation of a security certificate (which is not ASP.Net specific but very handy for beginners nonetheless).

I think it is a very comprehensive beginners book and should be considered for anyone just starting out in ASP.Net. The book also gives some good information on getting your Visual Studio.Net set up and all of the examples are stepped through with the assumption that you are using VSNet for development.

My favorite book is the ASP.NET Unleashed so I suggest you consider them both as you will work your way through this book quickly...