A great bridge between a sometimes confusing text presentation and conceptual understanding. I will recommend Barron's as a must for my Algebra 1,2 and Honors students. Barron's is a valuable supplement for any secondary or post secondary mathematics program, keep it by your side.

I am a second year Math/Physics student in college and this book is an invaluable resource for just about any formula, trig. subsitution, integral/derivative identity, mathematical terminology or concept in general. If you've ever found yourself searching for some mathematical expression, or the meaning of some obscure symbol, chances are it's in this book. Breif, clear, and concise definitions along with simple, yet descriptive visual aids. A must for any undergraduate science student.

I am an undergraduate engineering student, and I use this dictionary often. The entries vary in length from a sentence to a few pages. The explanations are well-written and understandable. All in all, a useful reference.

Most of my students have purchased the 7th Edition. They say, this Dictionary is very good and comes in handy for class and homework assignments.
The definitions used are clear enough for new computer enthusiasts; as well as the more advanced student. I like it.

A wonderful reference book as you muddle through the jorgon of the computer world. This book offers short and concise explainations needed to understand the growing technology surrounding computers. A must for any home or business computer.

I read this book just before starting an MBA course called "Basic Statistics". I found the book to be clear, intuitive and it certainly covered all topics we discussed in class. In my opinion, this book presents an easy way to understand Statistics by applying them to real business situations. I still use it as reference at work. Highly recommendable for business people interested in Statistics and with no much background in Math (just make sure you know how to add)

This review book is formated in such a way that I can actually help my child with homework. I go directly to the section she's learning, and can quickly review the section that's current to her learning needs. She and I can do the reviews together and this wouldn't be possible without this book. I especaily like that I don't have to refer to hundreds of pages before being able to help my child.

This is an excellent refresher for Statistics, laid out logically and with ideas clearly illustrated graphically. Published by Barron's, these "Forgotten" books are nicely oriented toward the professional who needs to brush up on a subject in order to make competent decisions and communicate intelligently.

"Statistics and Probability" is one of those amazing sciences that we take for granted from childhood, but the more we think about it (as we get older, regrettably), it begins to dawn on us that this is the catalyst of many mysterious processes, such as the forces of life overcoming entropy. Science has rather recently discovered that there is really no such thing as "randomness", with the advent of Chaos Theory bringing down the walls of the last bastion of that idea. Statistics and Probability then become the focus of means by which some form of Higher Intelligence manages to do its business under our noses without us having a clue as to its presence!

As a general computer dictionary I would rate this as 3/5 stars. Although, all-in-all, this is suppose to be an up to date terminology reference for Internet terms as well...not really up to date in that department unfortunately either. As for a programmers reference...look elsewhere! For example, there is a definition for CORBA; but no definition for COM or COM+! Not very well thought out...look to another book for a more complete vocabulary.

Barron's Dictionary of Computer and Internet Terms is a good computer/internet dictionary and rather inexpensive. Although there are not some updated terms in the dictionary, I'm sure they will be included in the next edition. I believe the context is comprehendable for beginner computer users up through near-advanced computer users.

This pocket book contains clear and simple explanations and illustrations. This dictionary is probably ideal for the beginning to strong intermediate user who wants to have a reference at hand which gets to the point and leaves you feeling informed. It is well cross referenced, and strong on Internet terminology. Despite its very manageable size one rarely has occasion to look up terms not described in the dictionary. If you were to have just one computer dictionary then, for most users, this would be it. Users who feel very ill at ease with computer terminology may however want to consider 'Webster's New World Dictionary of Computer Terms', a equally good book which written with a slightly more experienced audience in mind.

This 'Barrons Dictionary of Computer and Internet Terms' is one of the best dictionaries of computer terms I've seen on the market. But as any other computer dictionary this one is also difficult to keep current and updated. The subject changes too much to have a good guide in printed form. But I love this book very much and recommend it to everyone.

This book teaches you, at an elementary level, how statistical formulas are derived and how they are used. You do not need to be mathematics savvy. All you need is calculus background.

Nearly every formulas are presented with very readable proofs (e.g., derivation of multinomial formula, derivation of Poisson distribution formula, derivation of moment generating functions, derivation of Chi-square distribution formula, proof of Markov's inequality, proof of Chebyshev's inequality, proof of central limit theorem, and many many others).

If you are unhappy with other statistics books that merely show you formulas and make you plug in numbers, or with books written in mathematics beyond your education, then this book is for you. Read the introduction and you will get an idea. It is an amazing piece of pedagogic work.

There are, however, many typos in the book (I found 30 typos and reported to publisher). Further, there is no web site for errata correction. If it were not for errata, I would have given 5 stars.

If you find this book is too elementary for you, I would recommend "Probability and Statistics" by DeGroot and Schervish.

I used this book to prepare for the probability and combinatorics sections of a Discrete Math exam, so my comments only involve the corresponding parts of the book.

The cover says, "All the essentials in one clear volume", and yes, it does seem to cover the essentials. Of note however, and why I'm writing this review, is that the book also offers some interesting C & C++ code snippets which relate to selected statistics problems. These may be of interest to some students trying to learn these languages along with statistics.

Also noteworthy is that Appendix 2 offers a table of statistical functions available in Microsoft Excel, which many of us may not have been aware of.

The beginning of the book is a good intro for those who have never, ever programmed before, but it steadily loses value after that. By the time you get to windows programming with AWT (halfway through the book) the author has apparently lost interest in instructing on the subject of Java and decided to do many other, irrelevant things instead (he prefers to discuss algebraic equations, code generators, and "outline code" rather than how to create buttons and other controls and setup their actions in response to events. He uses his code generator to gloss over these details to free up room for his own meandering babble). Get another book or use the free instructional material at Sun Microsystems' java.sun.com website.

This book is a great choice for someone who doesn't have any education on programming at all.
It begins by covering very basic concepts of Java/object-oriented programming well and then extends into several different aspects of the Java language to show how to create simple programs that use text/fonts, various GUI/windows, file storage/retrieval, audio and graphics capabilities. The original included CD is out of date now (2003), but none of it is required to use the book examples and the current JDK is available for free on the web anyway.
There are very few Java books that a total beginner can pick up and learn from; this is one of them.

I am taking computer science at university. Because it was my first time to program in Java, it was very hard to understand the subject and was very confusing. The textbook didnt help me either because it was written very hard. After I read this book, everything became so clear and I got so muvch confident in programing in java. I really think this book can help someone who doesn't have background in computer programing.

I am also an adult wanting to refresh long unused skills. One good thing about this is that each chapter has a reasonable number of problems and answers, so it's not intimidating in that way. But I could also do without the fantasy story. This would probably appeal to a young person in JHS or HS who's taking algebra and needs to review, but I just want to cut to the chase and will be looking for another book.

If you have (or are) that extra smart young kid, who always seems to be a grade (year) or two ahead of his/her class in maths, this book is certainly going to be perfect for him/her (as it was for me). This was the book that got me interested in Algebra. Downing takes the reader on an adventure, explaining the basics of algebra through a story, and progressing almost to the very apex of general algebra. (He doesn't cover every single aspect of general algebra - I recall one example: Synthetic Division, there are others.) But for a child, who's ahead of the rest, you don't need to have everything just yet.

This book certainly won't appeal to adults or older teens (who will easily get bored and turned off by the underlying story), but it was a great introduction for me when I was just turning the decade mark. It really helps you to understand Algebra as more than a bunch of things to memorise; it makes you see applications in every aspect of life. Once you (or your child) have finished this book, you'll be thirsting for more, and that's when you move on to a more traditional textbook to fill in the "blanks". After that, algebra will be running through your veins. With this solid foundation, trigonometry and calculus will be much easier.

(The author also wrote similar books on Trigonometry and Calculus. The Calculus book was quite poor because the story began to intrude on explaining the concepts properly. [By the time you are ready to take calculus on, you should use a traditional textbook - like Anton or Thomas.] The trigonometry book was quite good, but I feel none can match the brilliance of this book.)

The device of attaching math problems to a story line, and showing the efforts of the characters to solve them, is the key to this book's unique appeal for younger kids who want to get into algebra (and can handle the abstract thinking required). It captures their interest and can be read relatively fast, though the algebra is not watered-down so the book naturally does require intelligence and careful attention. The story line presentation guarantees that the focus is on insight, a characteristic that sharply distinguishes this "Easy Way" series of books from typical high-school or college texts.

this book bytes the big one

For what you want to do, you are probably bestoff using MS Access. You can't have all that much experience programming, and Access will let you fudge your way through a simple database/data entry program. Have fun keeping track of your teams

i have a question about programming in pascal. i'm trying to write a program in pascal that will keep track of a sports. for example if will keep track of the team record and the stats of each team. do you have any easy way to write this program. could you give me a idea on how to write this program. thank you.

It sometimes reads like it's written for 7th graders, but explaining calculus within a fairy tale does have advantages. What other calculus book would you read in the bathroom? I've found it helpful, but wouldn't recommend it as your only supplementary text. Buy it, by all means, but also get the meatier Schaum's outlines or REA's Calculus problem solver

...I had taken two years of calculus about 15 years before I decided I wanted to know again what I had once known. My old calculus text book looked threatening so I went to a local bookstore to see what was available. To my surprise, I found "Calculus The Easy Way" by Downing. It was in story book form, with cartoons, and humor. Unlike many texts, before it explains a mathematical concept, it relates a practical need for it. "Calculus The Easy Way" hits the concepts lightly, while managing to be the most user friendly book on calculus that I have ever seen. However, I did not care for the section on volumes of revolution, or what little was included on related rates. Harcourt Brace Jovanovich College Outline Series "Calculus" does a much better job in these areas. But I was able to go to the latter due to having read the former. After perusing these two inexpensive paperbacks, hardcover calculus texts no longer appeared ferocious.
In "Calculus The Easy Way," you won't get much depth. I doubt that depth is one of the intended functions of the book. It may better be described as a tool by which to access the subject with the least amount of pain, and the greatest amount of pleasure. It helps you make a beachhead. If you want more, there are other books that will take you inland. As an additional resource, which is packed with examples, including detailed solutions, you might want REA's "Calculus Problem Solvers." Try not to be the captive of any one book because another book may explain a particular concept in a way that speaks more clearly to you. A used bookstore is an affordable source of many different treatments.
I once wrote to Professor Downing pleading that he write a second, more advanced calculus book, and use his considerable talent to render other esoteric subjects understandable. I don't recall having received a reply. But if you are seeing calculus for the first time, or if you want to review, you could hardly make a better, more enjoyable choice.

(Disclaimer) Supposedly this covers first-year calculus. I don't know, I'm a freshman in high school.

With that being said, this is a great book. The story begins in the magical land of Camorra, where several strong personalites are scratching their heads over a calculus problem they must solve. They eventually discover the solution, supplying the reader with a good, easy-to understand explonation, and eventually discover a whole bunch of other stuff. I'm a freshman and I understood most of it (still scratching my head about the connection between areas and integrals, though.)

The book has its shortcomings, e.g. its being a bit ambiguious sometimes, but it's much better than a textbook. If a fourteen-year-old can get it, you should be able to too!