This book has been informative in that I have learned a great deal about the political and militaristic problems Washington endured during America's push for independence. I have a feeling that, without Washington's sacrifice, America as we know it probably wouldn't occur. However, I also think of the famous quote attributed to Napoleon that "History is the myth men choose to believe." While Thomas Paine wrote about independence for the colonies, he also tore into the concept of slavery as immoral, so it wasn't as if no one was talking about this issue. If Washington would have "stepped up" and abolished slavery then and there, so that all men (and women) were truly created equal, as I said before, America might not be here. It was a politically divided and bankrupt country. I don't consider those reasons justification for sacrificing another person's human rights. The racial problems we face today stem from a lack of identity stolen from a stolen people

who did much of the work to build this country in its early days and, while the opprtunity was there, given nothing in return. "Patriot Sage" is an excellent insight into many aspects of Washington's life of which I was ignorant (like his influence on the Constitutional Convention) Sadly, some of its essays are too right-wing, to the point of Clinton bashing. What modern era president could really live up to the accomplishments of the one who defined the job's parameters ? One essay focuses on the moral symbolism of Washington now devoid in today's presidents, while another openly admits he gambled and sought prostitutes. To be read overall with some perspective.

While Lucock's beautifully illustrated book clearly marks him as a good naturalist and an excellent photographer the book falls far short of offering any real instruction (save flash photography) on the matter of nature photography technique. The book reads more as Lucock's personal log on trips to Turkey, Grand Canyon, etc. The book serves more as a cursory study on the natural history of his subjects rather than as a serious photographic instructional book. Too bad because his photos are spectacular and if only he had shared his "thinking" behind the shots the book would have been much more enjoyable.

Lucock clearly is a master at close up photogaphy, making the photos themselves, worthy of buying the book. Do not expect to learn a lot though.

A good source of quick information, especially for beginners, including knots, equipment and water situations.

The book doesn't try to be the last word on wave soaring, just the opposite, it's stated pupose is to be a good introduction to it. At that, it suceeds very well. Each chapter has footnotes referring to other books and magazine articles,( which is why I dialed up Amazon.com). One thought: do not show up at a wave camp with no knowledge whatsoever of wave other than it's cold and you need oxygen and you can go very high. This book is filled with all kinds of information: tips, hints, warnings, diagrams, pictures, descriptions, what to wear, what to eat, what to expect, what to watch out for. All kinds of stuff, enough so you want to book a reservation and get the heck up there. A very fast read with almost no ' wings of angels' type prose, just a straight-ahead approach, I strongly recomend it for novice wave pilots.

This is better than your average gay murder mystery. Parts are funny, and nothing sticks out as being particularly bad. Not the best Zubro, but one to read after you've finished all the others. Good beach reading material.

This book is an expert treatise on the Roy Moody case. Any person who is interested in Explosive Investigations would find this book a compelling read. Several photogrgaphs, including device xrays are included. It would be a good used reference book for a library on the subject.

There are only two book in print on programming DirectShow -- this one and Michael Linetsky's "Programming Microsoft DirectShow." The good news is that this book is substantially better than Mr. Linetsky's. The bad news is it is still not very good. The basic problem with this book, as with many programming books, is that it is structured around the API instead of around the task that you are trying to do.
To elaborate, consider a common task that you would want to do with DirectShow capture. How do you ensure that your application sets the capture input to 24-bit RGB at 640x480 pixels? The answer is, "it depends on the capture filter." If the capture filter is a Video for Windows (VfW) wrapper filter, you set these properties in the capture filter itself. If you are using a WDM driver, you need to access the crossbar to set them. In general, VfW filters remember the settings between runs and the WDM drivers do not. Programmatically, it isn't even obvious how you know which kind of capture filter is being used by any given system. The differences between filters, and how to plan for them in your application, is completely ignored in this book.
How to create an app that works the same way with both these common drivers is a signficant issue. But this book is not structured around developing applications -- it's structured around documenting the API. That seriously limits the value of this or similar kinds of programming books.
There are some substantial oversights even in explaining the API. For example, when Mr. Pesce describes saving a GraphEdit filter graph to file, he fails to mention that this file is valid only for the system on which it was created. This is a significant point -- one that every DirectShow programmer ends up rediscovering for himself the hard way. This is just the kind of "hard knocks" experience that a book like this should ease you over.
If you need to learn to program DirectShow using C++, get this book. But don't expect too much help from it.

Tabb takes each line of the 23rd Psalam and sheads thoughtful and humorous light on its background and significance today. He weaves in the Christian perspective and gives real life examples to demonstrate why David's words are still pertenant today. This easy-reading book provides a fine reference for a sermon or church school lesson, and a fresh perspective and personal reflection on a passage many of us have recited our entire lives.

A good read if you are a seasoned traveller in India and a fan of 'Travels on My Elephant' the cracking original which inspired this follow-up. However the book is disappointing in many ways as it seems to repeat the story of Shand's apprenticeship as a Mahoot only under new circumstances and a new teacher. Much of the mystery and adventure of the first novel could not translate into this sequel. On the plus side the prose, the plot and the writing craft unfold in a very readable way and one wonders why this author has not published more than three books.