I have a brief rule-of-thumb for evaluating techincal books; "If it saves me an hour, it was worth the price". This book saved me an hour. However, if you have a fast, reliable internet connection (ie. T1 or better) then I would recommend just using Netscape's Online Developer Reference and save a few bucks. By the way, Netscape has done a first class job with their online techincal references. This book is really just selected sections from there. I do like having a good ole book for late nite reading and the material is relative, but somewhat shallow. This book is advertised as a Windows NT and Unix reference, but it's really targeted to the NT users. I have not read any competing books and the only thing I can compare it to is Netscape's Web Pages which really out-shine!

Dear Amazon.Com,
I wrote the one star book review for this book which is currently on file. The review is incorrect and should be deleted or modified. I ordered "A Short History of Western Civilization (paperback), but received "A Short History History of Western Civilization since 1600 (paperback)". I wrote the review and then discovered that I had the wrong book. I have returned the book for a refund and reordered the hardback book of the same title. You might want to note that the paperback version is a Study Guide and not a History Book. If you wish you can move the review to the correct book or delete the entry. Thank you

A Short History of Western Civilization (paperback) is a study guide and not a history book. It's great if a study guide, complete with questions, is what you are seeking. The volume was written by Joyce E. Salisbury, not Richard Sullivan as listed in the web site and published in 1994, not 1993. It's Volume Two: since the year 1600, and not a complete guide to the hardback book. The guide is about 128 pages and includes some maps. I give it one star because a study guide is not what I'm seeking.

This book traces the history of the western world, from ancient Egypt up to the fall of the Berlin wall.

The book is divided into periods of history, then further subdivided into sections about that period. You can 'dip-in' to a section easily, I find myself picking the book up for a light spot of reading with a cup of tea. I also use this book heavily in my Classics course - so it has a multitude of uses.

Overall, a thorough, unbiased, but easy to read account of western civilization. If you live in the western world, and are wondering where you came from or why things are the way they are, then get this book!

The author, using a self-fooling technique transparent to outward observers, attemps to convince himself that to speak of "Gypsy crime" is not a racist slur on an entire ethnic group, because he doesn't say "Romani Crime" or some other atrocity of the sort.
That really is his problem though, and should not be a reason to let potential readers also be fooled by this pathetic scam and part with their money.

Well, if you can't blame anyone else, blame the Gypsies. Dennis Marlock is doing very well probably, using Gypsies as his career enhancer. However, replace Gypsies with Jews, Hispanics, Blacks, Asians, and you would have a libel lawsuit on your hands. Dennis, keep talking about Gypsies, and you true racism continues to show through.

I manage an insurance investigation department. Though this book did not cover the many insurance fraud schemes, it was very accurate in describing the culture of this group of fraud artists. Invaluable reading for a fraud investigator.

While most of John Ostrander's work is superb, Penguin Triumphant is somewhat of a let down. This is the only story I know of that takes a look at the life of the Penguin. Sadly, there's not too much of a life there. The comic just doesn't compare with Ostrander's other works. I can only recommend this to die hard Batman fans.