This would be a great reference manual, but I am using this test in my parallel processing course and the pseudocode is confusing and the MPI functions are introduced with poor descriptions.

The book does quite well in explaining the concepts of parallel computing and programming, and I have very few complaints about anything actually written in the book. (A companion CD with some sample MPI/PVM programs would have been nice.) However, as well as this book is written and organized, it is almost comical to have this size of book (paperback, at that) costing nearly $... If the book would have cost about $.. less and had the companion CD, it would have been five stars.

Clusters of Computers have become an appealing platform for cost-effective parallel computing and more particularly so for teaching parallel processing. At Monash University School of Computer Science and Software Engineering, I am teaching "CSC433: Parallel Systems" subject for BSc Honours students. The course covers various communication models and languages for parallel programming. Cluster Computing is one of the focused topics of this course and I found two books that suits well for this course--both published by Prentice Hall in 1999. The first one is: "High Performance Cluster Computing" by R. Buyya (editor) that I use for teaching cluster computer architecture and systems issue. The second one is "Parallel Programming" by B. Wilkinson and M. Allen that I use for teaching programming clusters using message-passing concepts. I found both books complimentary to each other.

B. Wilkinson and M. Allen book discusses key aspects of parallel programming concepts and generic constructs with practical example programs. Each concept has been explained using figures and flow diagrams. The programs illustrated mostly in C using generic parallel programming constructs and popular parallel programming interfaces such as Threads, PVM, and MPI. The authors have also created an excellent web resources home page that offers presentation slides, program source codes, and instructors manual. All these tools make teaching parallel programming course, a pleasing experience. I have no hesitation in recommending this book for anyone serious about teaching parallel programming on clusters.

This is the most inaccurate piece of literature I have ever encountered. As someone who was involved in the Polly Klaas case, I was able to find 13 inaccuracies in the first 5 pages of the book. The tabloid-style sensationalism that this book embraces not only emphasizes it's poor quality, but is offensive to Polly's legacy.

I think the book was ok.I wish they would have spoke about the girls life a little more.It is tragic that those kind of things happen in the world today. It makes you feel that your not safe anywhere.