I had mistakenly thought that Wrox books were held to a higher standard. First getting a taste for them going through both of Rob Vieira's two SQL Server Programming books and regarding them as the finest technical books I've ever seen. However this Professional SQL Server 2000 XML is a disappointment. Part of the problem lies with having 12 different authors because it seems a bit jumpy. I think I'll really try to limit my future purchases to single source efforts. Also, no care was taken with the code examples that you can download from the Wrox website. The book shows the source but there is really no way of really matching the example to the source other than guessing the name. Often I've needed to open up all 15 or so files in the directory to realize that the particular example is not included. I'm picking my way through but it is not pleasant.

It is a good book as far as explaning what SQL Server has to offer regarding XML capabilities but it should have covered the case studies fully with the .Net Framework. Also, it covers very good the IIS configuration, and how to manage XML Templates, XPath and Schemas. The book has a migration example from ASP to ASP.Net which does not cover ADO.Net. If you want a rich source on how to integrate SQLXML and the .Net Framework THIS IS NOT THE BOOK.

I looked at two other SQL Server 2000 XML books, but found this one to be the best - covering almost everything on SQL Server 2000 XML. Very well written, nice examples help understand the technology better. The chapter on Updategrams is very useful. I wanted to learn updategrams and this chapter covers it nicely to get started using them in production.

First of all your ideas are not well founded since you did not live in Haiti long enough to place a judgement or an opinion.Your grounds are very weak when you see only one part of Haiti. Being like a horse on a race track, the author is only focusing on what you may consider the worst, I would like to know when writters are going to start publishing the right stuff about a third world country.

This is an amazing book. I have traveled to Hait 5 times, my longest stay being four months. This book made me feel as if I was back in the country I love so much. I would recommend this book to anyone who's heart has been grasped by this country.

This is one of the most compelling book that I ever read about Haiti. Mr. Gold is funny and objective. One could feel his love for Haiti popping out of the pages; he is not just another foreigner out to make a quick buck. Although his experiences in the book were limited to the capital, he gave a vivid account because he was in the thick of things. When I checked with family and friends on the veracity of some of Mr. Gold's claims, he seemed to have hit right on the money. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves Haiti.

Morris uses this book to take cheap shots at America and America leaders. Obviously, she has no personal knowledge of Lincoln. Her attacks are based on hearsay and stereotypess of America. Like many English writers, she thinks we are all yahoos and cowboys. Someone should remind her that those yahoos and cowboys have been subsidizing England since 1916, saved it from defeat in WW I and WW II, rebuilt its economy, landed men on the moon and won the cold war. A recent poll showed that 45% of the English would move to America if they had an opportunity. Instead of attacking us, Morris should focus her ascerbic wit on the degenerate Rnglish royal family and landed aristocracy. and the feckless Labour Party.

I have had a vague dislike of the English literary class for so long, I sometimes forget why. Jan Morris is a good reminder. The main thrust of her book is that she once believed that Abraham Lincoln was like the grape jelly she found in American restaurants; generally liked by Americans but lacking all character and certainly inferior to marmalade. In her "quest" she makes the amazing discovery that Lincoln was a somewhat complex man who was more mature at 50 than at 20 and who found the strength to take this country through the Civil War...and that's not bad for an ugly piece of trailer trash. In the course of her meanderings, she takes gratuitous potshots at various aspects of what she sees as America. Twice, with no support, she refers to Lincoln's probable homosexuality and even identifies his lover for us. The book is almost readable when Morris doesn't intrude on her writing but, without her intrusions, it is just a standard bio and probably wouldn't have been published. So the literary hook here is that we get to see an interesting contrast between a great person and a trivial one, with the author's complete lack of self-awareness serving as a running, inside joke.

a late 1990's exploration and analysis of lincoln from the eyes and research of a british writer. why she includes grape jelly inthis book may be a clever writing tool but it was a more of a put-off than a lead-into the book. her reference to lincoln possibly having homosexual tendicies as a result of his awkwardness with women is an eye opener. some good stuff is how she reveals that lincoln was a little more cut throat than what history portrays him as and that is a refreshing peice of information because you had to always wonder if lincoln was a shrewd and cunning enough type of guy to maneuver thru the politicis of his day. obviously he was. also--where we learn that there may have been a northern backed assasination attempt on jefferson davis' life that failed but may have resulted in booth's vengeful inspiration to assasinate lincoln is very interesting. not a bad read really if you are open to a different viewpoint.