This book explains the gaming industry, beyond, how to program or the history of games. I have been interested in how the gaming industry works as a whole, and have not been able to find a book on it. I think this a great book for anyone interesting in working in the game industry.

Until I read this book the world of computer gaming seemed mysterious and impenetrable--an elite group of smart, young people having a great time at "work." Well, it's still clear that an elite group of smart people get to do this kind of work, but GAME PLAN shows you how to join them. Barajas, Gershenfeld and Loparco demystify the process of breaking into the game business and break it down into useful information, concrete steps and practical advice that anyone serious and dedicated can--and will want to--follow.

Tom and his bear's story has helped my 3 year old child better understand and cope with her father's visititation schedule. When a Daddy lives out-of-state, it can be difficult for a young child to say good-bye, because they may not be together again for several weeks. This book helped my child to talk about her feelings. She was able to identify with Tom.

The story of Tom quickly became my 4 year old son's favorite bed-time story. Especially following visitation days. It thoughtfully explains the problems that most kids have during and after a divorce, without placing blame on anyone. It also does not give any false hopes about the parents getting back together. The illustrations are beautiful. I highly recommend this book.

This is the twelfth of the Alan Watts' books I've read. The final chapter, "The Practice of Meditation," reproduced Watts' own caligraphy (he did this very well it seems) and was interesting enough to read, but the rest of the book covered pretty much the same thing from the same perspective as the first eleven books I read by him. Book by book, he is getting less interesting and more predictable. On page 27, in the "Play and Survival" chapter, he quotes Albert Camus in "The Myth of Sisyphus": "The only real philosophical question is whether or not to commit suicide." Well, I would expect that from Camus and his ilk. There are many many other legitimate philosophical questions besides that one, ones more interesting and beneficial than that. But it does seem to fit in with Watts' perspective on life. The darkness descends. One more book by him and then my reading project will be finished.

In 'The Way of Liberation', Alan Watts offers a "rich selection of literay works and transcribed lectures", according to his son Mark Watts. Chapter 1, The Way of Liberation in Zen Buddhism, is an essay written in 1955 which was prior to his extensive work, The Way of Zen. Following this is Play and Survival: Are they in Necessary Contradiction? Watts offers much playful synthesis of philosophical insight and gives us some idea of how his 'thought evolved through all that followed.' With Chapter 3, The Relevance of Oriental Philosophy, Watts discusses the fundamental questions posed by Eastern Religions to Westerners of Christian background. After 'Suspension of Judgement', we get an interesting section on Chuang-tzu, a Chinese philosopher who Watts states is "one of the only philosophers from the whole of antiquity who has any real humour, and therefore, he is an immensely encouraging person to read." The book ends with 'The Practice of Meditation' which is delightfully written in his own calligraphy and stands as a fantastic essay for beginners. Quotes from mindful individuals like Bodhidharma, Mumonkan, Rinzai Roku, and Zenrin Ruiju give this book high markings. Much talk on Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, and the essence of liberation within those faiths. Mark Watts gives a special thanks to Rebecca Shrophire George Ingles. Dedicated 'to our fathers and our mothers.'

This books is a great book. I don't like the fact that on EVERY page of the book it either says Eco-challenge or Survivor. This is also a biography of him as much as it is a self-help book. Very interesting reading. Hope you enjoy this as much as I did.

Mr. Burnett is a true adventurer and someone to be admired. I am inspired not only by his ability to reinvent TV programming, but also by his drive to create and build the best expedition race in the world. This book is a great read for everyone, including adventure racers, producers, parents, corporate executives, college students and more.

Author Burnett is behind the "Survivor" television series and is a fine TV producer, but he has his own story to tell, and Alan Shearman narrates it in Dare To Succeed. The author's daring experiences and autobiography come alive under Shearman's hand.

You should not publish the two existing reviews, written by the daughter of the author and probably another relative for the sole effect of giving a five star rating

I used this book while attending college and it really helped me to better understand concepts of Physical Anthropology. Overall good book.

This book is great for understanding basic and more difficult aspects of Anthropology...definitely a must have for all students.

The audio book do not tell you anything that help with meditation It may have been good in its day.

STILL THE MIND, cassette version, uses Alan Watts' grace and good humor as an aid to teaching meditation. On Side A, his major ideas are presented with emphasis on "What is meditation?", "Why should I do it?" and "How is meditation carried out?".

Side B is concerned with the practical aspects of meditation; but always referring the practical back to theory. After some thoughts on breathing and posture, Alan Watts progresses to his main technique--the use of sound. In a comment made more than 30yrs. ago, he points out that the abudance of professional music has caused us to lose confidence in our melodic (spiritual) voices. He restablishes this confidence through a unique "free-form" mantra, which can be used by an individual or in a group. Finally he uses these experiments in sound to form the basis of "deep listening", effectively bringing the focus back to his starting thesis.

Mark Watts has done an excellent job of editing his father's material, seamlessly combineing segments into a coherent whole, without the use of commentary or musical intervals.

Alan watts is a brilliant writer and this book is nothing short of extraordinary. It is a compilation of speeches and seminars the late Alan Watts gave during his lifetime. I read the book knowing little about Zen, but found after reading it that I always knew. That is the beauty of Zen. We have always known the truth - there is a better way to live - only we have been socialized to feel as though we are seperate and need to conquer something or everything. Mr. Watts points out that this is a fallacy and that there is no need to feel seperate. Instead, he offers that we are a part of one organism and there is no need to conquer. Life is just being in the moment. This book really has made a difference for me.

I found this book while on vacation in a beach house and I was looking forward to a good book to escape with. Too bad this wasn't the book. The plot was weak -- too cliched and too convenient. ...And Styles?? Jiri must not be that good of a terrorist if his two attempts on Styles still haven't finished the job. Maybe I missed something since most reviewers enjoyed the book. But as a German and History teacher, this novel really left something to be desired.

I was expecting big things from this thriller, set amidst the fall of the Berlin Wall and subsequent uprisings in Eastern Europe--and found it all rather disappointing in the end. One problem is that there were way too many characters bouncing around all over the place, and while some felt real, far too many others were simply too cardboard for me (especially the main villain Styles, and the spunky young reporter Jodie). Marks does manage to introduce the reader to the major events of those months, and captures the aura fairly well--but at the expense of any kind of plausibility in many of the characters' actions, and certainly at the expense of the weak plot. Although strong on atmosphere, overall comparisons to Greene and LeCarré are way off-track.

Rewarding reading for those interested in Eastern Europe and the reunification of Germany. Terrific characters and authentic atmosphere. A great start by a talented writer.

Super! This is the best DCU story ever since Kindom Come. The story ask the question what if Superman was not discovered bt the Kents? See what happens to other characters such as Lex Luthor, Lois Lane, Batman & the JLA if they haven't meet with Supes. Metropolis is a police state & the world is about to be invaded by an unknown alien enemy. The superheroes are not what you expect then to be nor are the supervillians.

Alan Davis provides smooth and beautiful rendering of the DCU character and its like Crisis in Infinite Earths once again! Grab this book, you won't regret it!

A lot of the reviews of this book seem to center around the fact that they believe Alan Davis, writer and penciller of this book, lied to them by saying the premise is a world without a Superman, then having Superman show up eventually. What they're forgetting is that Superman isn't Superman when he shows up. This is a world without Superman, but not a world without Kal-El. To say any more would be spoiling the fun, and I wouldn't do that.

Alan Davis is, for lack of a more flamboyant word, great. His pencilling skills have been honed over years of work, the best being on Captain Britain, Excalibur and Clandestine. His writing skills came into play on the two latter works. He has always had a knack for displaying both humor and serious overtones, sometimes at once. This has never come more into play than on "The Nail."

This is perhaps the most enjoyable Silver Age book I've ever read, even if it was made in the Modern Age. That's because it isn't silly, it isn't campy, and it isn't one to avoid serious themes. A grand amount of DC's Pre-Crisis history is used (if you don't know what I'm talking about, I'm sure you can find a synopsis, as it's too confusing to explain here), and used well. The characterization is excellent, especially that of Hal Jordan and Hawkwoman, two characters who I've felt never had the chance to truly shine. The artwork is vivid and magical, just like his other works, and the splash pages of each of the JLA members are something to behold.

If this comic is anything, it's a deep admiration for what has come before. It's a man in love with the stuff he read as a kid, and now using it to write one last grand drama with it. If you like this, you'll like the books I listed above, and vice versa. Pick it up and see why the kingdom was lost.

The main focus of this story was to see how the other heroes of the DC Universe would function without Superman to help them win public approval and win acceptance from the public. Without Superman to lead them the heroes were slandered by the press and their lives were made miserable by the government. A different look at the DC Universe. Everything was changed all because there was no Superman.

What Alan Davis's goal of the Nail was to bring back the fun of the Silver Age of comics. The age where everything was simple and the characters were happy. Since Davis was raised on the heroes that appear in this book he uses them to the best of their ability. From Hal Jordan and Barry Allen still being alive to Hawkwoman having a very strong roll. A fun story with a little camp (See Villian at the end of story) and a lot of wonder. The best characters, amazing art, and a story with intrigue.

My only gripe is that it was not long enough. It felt rushed and hurried and the beginning left you more confused then needed. I would have liked a little more depth on either end of the book. But all in all a great read.

When I first got a look at the contents and sampled a few pages, I was eager to read this book. Ultimately, I too came to the conclusion that it is too biased towards the British Pop scene.

Not to fault Mark Cunningham, after all he's British, but a lot of the artists he spends time on, have had little impact on the history of record production, at least on this side of the pond.

Ron and Russell Mael? Chris Rea? Slik? Interesting to read about, perhaps, but hardly of the same caliber as Trevor Horn, The Police, Peter Gabriel and U2.

Mainstream American artists such as Fleetwood Mac (yes, American!), Prince, Paul Simon, Billy Joel, Springsteen, Toto and The Cars are largely ignored if mentioned at all. Equally absent are prominent American producers, such as Phil Ramone, Russ Titelman, Richard Perry, Jam & Lewis, Reid & Babyface, Nile Rogers and the like.

Still, what it does discuss is interesting. There are whole chapters on The Beatles, Brian Eno and the making of "Bohemian Rhapsody." There are substantial sections devoted to The Beach Boys' "Good Vibrations," Jeff Lynne, Leiber and Stoller, Motown and Carol Kaye, Joe Meek, "Heroes," and Flood.

There are interesting discussions of the specific technologies used in producing the records. But unfortunately, beyond a certain time period in the book, just at the point where the use of technology gets really interesting in music production, the book fails to explain its influence. For example, one might assume that an Anglophilic book might wax poetic about how automated mixing changed the way records were made and how it was introduced by British mixing desk manufacturers Solid State Logic (SSL) and Neve. Not a word.

I think it would be most useful as a companion to a book that focused mostly on what was happening in the States. But as a general history of Record Production, it is somewhat weak.

I used it as a textbook for a course I teach in Record Production Techniques here at Mercy, but after one semester, I am looking for a replacement text. Perhaps the Wadhams....

Stephen B. Ward
Mecry College, White Plains, NY

This books is a well-written history of record production. I was impressed at the amount of content for the price.

This book is truely an amazing work. It covers so so very much in history of Production and it covers not only whom, what, where but with all the microphones used, names of studios, artists and time, and what happened behind closed doors and why, and so very much more. I highly suggest this to anyone going into recording and into anyone with a love for music. It tells you all the things you want to know!!

Your Employee Stock Options is a useful book for someone with options. It provides an interesting approach to making decisions on when to exercise options and when to sell. As an engineer that received pre-IPO options, the concept of leverage wasn't relevant to my case. When your exercise price is less than a dollar a share, the decision of when to exercise is almost purely a tax issue. Leverage may be more important to others. The concept of securing your critical capital is excellent. Just going through the planning process of deciding what you want with your life makes this book worthwhile. Considering cost vs. benefit, I recommend someone buy this book and use it to help define what end result they want. I also recommend that the reader search for alternate opinions and do a dry run through the tax calculations before they exercise options. Don't blindly put you financial future in the hands of financial professionals. (If they really know what they're doing, wouldn't they be too busy making money for themselves?) Decide what YOU want and run the numbers.

Everyone who has been granted stock options should have this book. It is relatively easy-reading on a subject that is typically perceived as very complex and mysterious. The authors set out a "Critical Capital" strategy that provides a foundation for making decisions about when to exercise options and when to sell option shares. I looked at the companion website...and thought that it was very handy and helpful in supporting the decision process. As a CPA, I will strongly recommend the book to all of my clients who are involved in stock option programs.

I am re-reading "Your Employee Stock Options" by Alan Ungar and Mark Sakanashi to sharpen my stock option knowledge.

This book is not only a must-read for anyone who owns options, but it is invaluable to me in my financial planning practice. The concept of "Critical Capital" is the most common sense way to look at the timing of cashing in options that I have seen. My clients benefit by having a rational way to look at how options can best be used to reach their financial goals.

Throw in the tools available on the website, and you have a complete resource for guiding yourself or your clients through the complicated maze of stock options. I highly recommend this valuable book.