I wanted to find a worthwhile text to supplement the Access 2.0 introductory courses I developed. For beginners, this is the best of the bunch. Many introductory database books immediately dive into the specific program they are about. I think this is a disservice to the beginning reader. There are a few things which everyone needs to know about relational database design before even thinking about using such a program. One of the best things about this book is its initial chapter on the essentials of database analysis. It doesn't get into so much detail as to scare people away, but it successfully emphasizes the benefits of developing a plan before building an application. With this book as a start, the reader is less likely to develop the bad habit of "shooting from the hip". The remaining chapters cover tables, queries, forms, reports, and macros. The book includes useful exercises to develop the rudimentary skills that anyone needs to know in order to work with Microsoft Access. In fact, the exercises are unified in that they all revolve around a common theme: developing an application for a bookseller to track customers and inventory. It's a good example, since many aspects of the sample application can be used elsewhere. There is one major topic this book doesn't address, and that's how to write Access Basic code. But then, coding isn't a suitable topic for an introductory text, is it? If you're at that stage in your Access career, you need to look elsewhere for guidance. For absolute beginners, though, this is the only book I recommend. Steve Swope (Microsoft Certified Trainer, Microsoft Certified Solution Developer

I bought this book for its snappy cover and intro on Hammett's fascinating life. But the stories themselves are mostly a let-down. Hammett really hit his stride with the novels, and it's hard to tell from these early magazine pieces how good a writer he'd become. Still, the violence, corruption and sexy seediness that make his other work so much fun are here in embryo. If you're already a Hammett fan, reading these stories is like watching an all-star's warm up swings before he nails a home run. If not, let "The Maltese Falcon" or "Red Harvest" knock your socks off before you make the trip to Nightmare Town.

As a long-time fan of 'classic' noir/detective fiction (Hammett, Chandler, MacDonald, Thompson) and it's stylistic roots in the pulps, I have to say I'm somewhat disappointed with this volume. There's alot here in terms of sheer number of stories, but aside from the very worthwhile Sam Spade shorts (which bump it to 3 stars), it's very uneven in quality. Your taste buds will like the delicious descriptive and atmospheric elements (particularly for hard-core Chandler fans like me...his inspirations via Hammett are in good supply) but the story construction leaves much to desire. The better part of the book is made up of hastily conceived vignettes that will remind you just as to why most of 'pulp' writing was considered disposable.

These stories were printed in the 1920s by "Black Mask" magazine, one of the monthly pulp magazines that entertained America before radio and television. Some of the stories were repeated in later works ("Who Killed Bob Teal") and never reprinted in Samuel Dashiell Hammett's lifetime. The stories are still entertaining today, and also provide a glance at a life that few of us know.

SDH worked as a Pinkerton detective for years, seeking fun, travel, adventure. The stories reflect his life as a private detective would see it: a world of crime and corruption. Would this work damage an operative expecially when de didn't have a normal family and home life? Does this reoccur today?