..I realized just how badly stochastic differential equations and stochastic integration are treated in Hull's popular book Option, Futures, and other Derivatives. The problem with Hull is that Ito's lemma is only stated, not proven, and it's the proof that shows one how to formulate correctly the stochastic integral equations that Hull calls 'stochastic difference equations'. When volatility depends on returns and/or time, then the errors made from following Hull's oversimplified treatment become serious.

My first impression of Baxter & Rennie's 'Financial Calculus' was that it was unnecessary and a waste of money. My opinion reversed completely after realizing (under prodding by a physics colleague who's an expert on sde's) how badly Hull's approach to sde's really is. Also, the systematic derivation of Black-Scholes from the assumption of a replicating, self-financing strategy is very nice. As Feynman said, we don't really understand a result until
we can derive it from many different viewpoints. The method is not really different in principle from the standard short derivation given in Hull, but it does provide a nice, clear example of what is meant by replication and self-financing in the terminology of Brownian motion/sde's. A problem with the book is that one must first learn the rudiments of options elsewhere (Hull, Bodie & Merton): this is not a text for beginners.

A word of warning: empirically seen, the results presented by the book (Black-Scholes and near-B-S) are empirically wrong. The authors present the theory as if it would be biblical, handed down by god, giving the reader no hint that the economic-financial problems discussed there merely abstractly-mathematically are not at all solved by the models presented in the text. For example, the empirical returns distribution is very far from Gaussian and is volatile (the empirical returns diffusion coefficient depends on both returns x and time t) whereas the returns pde in the B-S model has a constant diffusion coeficient. In other words, typical of mathematicians and 'financial engineers' who are not concerned with fundamentals, B&R seem not to be bothered by the fact that the B-S theory cannot be patched up and saved by a perturbative approach. Instead, a completely different starting point than lognormal pricing is required (see my paper with Gunaratne on the empirical distribution of returns and correspondingly correct option pricing).

I find this book definitely the best textbook available for a student with a quantitative background wishing to understand the basic ideas behind the theory of arbitrage pricing of derivative assets. Includes advanced topics such as HJM models for interest rates but remains understandable throughout the text. The book succeeds in maintaining a nice equilibrium between mathematical formalism and results of practical relevance.

One very important problem though is the TOTAL LACK of empirical examples and comments on the practical relevance of the various models introduced, which is crucial in any applied field. The text does not give any insight into the limits of the models presented and may lead the uninformed reader to jump to dangerous conclusions as to the applicability of some of the models presented.

There is also a certain amount of lack of scientific transparency involved: the reader is shown two similar-looking curves, one representing geometric Brownian motion and one representing the FTSE index as a 'justification' of the lognormal model for stock prices. The inadequacy of the lognormal model for stock prices is a well known fact with important consequences and should be mentioned in a text meant for students and beginners. For example, little is said about the volatility smile, market imperfections and related issues.

In short, this book is a good introduction to "mathematical finance" -considered as a branch of probability theory, probably the best introductory text written to this day. However it remains a book written by mathematicians with little relevance to finance or (real) financial markets.

Nevertheless, I enjoyed reading it!

Baxter & Rennie are the clear descendents of Silvanus P. Thompson(Calculus Made Easy). A pair of Brits with an engaging style and clear expository prose. They take the reader on a tour of some heavy duty mathematics, without excessive formalism. The basics of arbitrage pricing, binomial branch models, the Ito calculus, and the martingale representation theorem are contained in 100 pages. The second hundred pages are devoted to the construction of models for contemporary financial derivatives in foreign exchange, stock, and fixed income markets. This book is a must read for practitioners of, and students in financial engineering.

This book was a huge disappointment. Sure, it lists prices for thousands of autographs, but the "facsimiles" section is a joke. I highly doubt anyone is losing sleep wondering if their "Peggy Moran", "Bill Withers" or "Marjorie Ann Kent" (who?) signatures are authentic or not, yet space is wasted with these names, while more famous, more collectable ones (Garland, Astaire, etc.) are left out. And to top it off, some of these examples are captioned with glaring typos: "Michael Cain", instead of "Caine", "Kristy MacNichols", instead of "MacNichol". And this guy's an expert?

The book is great in showing the values of many famous people's autographs of pictures, letters, or just signatures on index cards. The only downfall of the book is that it doesn't have any sports athletes listed in the book.

This book is exactly what I've been looking for!!? It lists the values of names I couldn't find anywhere else, as well as displaying informative data on collecting!!

Not much to rave about regarding this book. It tackles a very narrow subcollecting area of homefront collecting and consequently there are not a lot of items to show. The good news is its inexpensive and does show some really uncommon if not rare pieces albeit mostly in B&W. The insert paper priceguide is a joke and I'd scrap that. The collectors who contributed the photos were asked to price their own items hence the prices are inaccurate secondary to bias. If youre gonna buy it, buy it for pics of some pretty hard to find items and a trip down memory lane. Not much else to say otherwise.

This is a great new 88 page book loaded with photos of every type of Pearl Harbor memorabilia. It features more than 300 large, sharp, black and white and over 80 full color photos. After the brief introduction, each page is full of memories. Major catetories include newspapers, decals and patches, postcards, gum cards and matchbooks, post cards, pennants, banners, letters, postal covers, 3-D items, jewelry, movies, books, magazines, plaques and plates, and more. Items are described as appropriate. A separate price guide identifies each item by page number and description, along with the current value. WW II collectible fans will enjoy seeing the featured items and the memories that go along with them. Add it to your collection.

The Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor compelled American into World War II and also resulted in a flood of items acknowledging this critical and pivotal event. Over the ensuing decades, a collector's market has sprung up based on the wealth of variety of materials from the period. These range from posters and placards to postcards and pins, from banners and stationary, to cigar wrappings and ladies underwear. Highly recommended for both nostalgic reminiscing and collector references, Remember Pearl Harbor Collectibles is an impressive, 88-page compendium surveying these special collectibles through a wealth of both black-and-white as well as full-color photographs.

Jacobs must be given credit for producing the very first priceguide on homefront collecting. And Jacobs has assembled photographs of some fairly uncommon items from his pool of experienced contributors. But thats where the kudos end. It is mostly all B&W with just a few color. The organization makes it almost impossible to identify an item that does not have a picture. He lists two different prices for the same item on different pages. His coverage of the homefront area is poor. He wastes several pages on listing gum cards while completely failing in the areas like anti-axis where covers, cinderellas and postcards are just about all that is listed missing ceramics, toys etc in that subcategory. He has a slug of jewelry photos that someone obviously spent a great deal of time shooting but they are all in B&W completely subduing that contribution. And his prices are plain and simply not credible especially when compared to his V For Victory book which has many of the same items but radically different prices without explanation. Overall I'd say buy it just for the pics but throw out the price guide part. Its a woefully error ridden text. An obvious rush job. I give it two stars for being the first.

World War II Homefront Collectibles: Price & Identification Guide presents more than 2,000 items known in antique collector circles as "homefront collectibles" originally produced in the United States to bolster civilian moral during the years of World War II. Profusely illustrated with 600 photos (including a section of full-color photography), World War II Homefront Collectibles is a unique, invaluable aid and guide for both beginner and experienced collectors and dealers. From jewelry, postcards, movie posters, and matchbooks, to toys, games, trading cards, and anti-Axis memorabilia, this definitive, authoritative, reliable, highly recommended guide is an essential addition to any personal, professional, or community library antiques/collectibles reference book collection. Send for the free Krause Publications catalog for a complete listing of fine antique/collectible price guide titles.

Tom Brokav said it all in his best selling novel, The Greatest Generation: "The World War II Victory era from 1941-1945 will undoubtably be forever known as the 'Greatest Generation' in America history! My book is a visual journey into the most humerous, often outlandish, and fascinating World War II collectibles ever assembled.206 pages.Over 2000 listings, 600 wonderful detailed photos,chapter biographies,with a price and identification guide for each collectible. Chapters include: V for Victory, Remember Pearl Harbor, Patriotics, Civilian Defense, Anti-Axis, and Wartime Kids. Homefront hobbyists as well as collectors of Americana will treasure this book.

In this modern online auction driven antique and collectibles market, a book like this can not keep up with values, descriptions, what's hot etc. by the time it comes to your local book store. I have bought and sold antiques and collectibles over the internet and in an antique mall and have found the best way to determine value, standards and validity TODAY as opposed to 5 years ago is to go to E-bay where you will find even the most high-brow of auctioneers and sellers plying their wares.

Now if you are looking to sit down, relax, and peruse over the collectibles market, this book is fun to read

If you are a collector, amateur or serious then this book is for you. It is one of the best around simply because it is easy to use, concise, colourful and downright practical. Okay, so it doesn't list every collectable in the world but no one book will do that. What this book will do for you is give you an idea of the cost of many popular collectibles as well as one offs that occasionally come on to the market. This is also a fun book just to browse through to see what is "in" and what is "not in" in the heady world of antiques-to-be and antiques that are already established. A good all round book on a hard to write about subject. As an added bonus it comes out each year so the suject is constantly being updated.

Ever confused with prices and functions of the different options and accessories of your loved truck to buy? Does it make you wandering how much the dealer want to profit with a specific option? This book can answer all these questions. It provide a comprehensive list of these options and accessories-- their function, description, invoice price and MSRP price. Also extremly useful is the review section for each model. It is very helpful for me as a novice to truck. But I think even if you have a long experience, you will also find the review section a good assistant for deciding your next truck to buy.

I like this book a lot. It covers stock selection using a sector rotation and intermarket-analysis methodology. I think everyone who has read John Murphy's classic Intermarket Technical Analysis should go out and buy this book. Murphy gives you the theory, Pring gives you the execution -- both are needed.

I think the book shows a lot about antiques and good price guides.

This book covers some topics such as code access security really well but others like ASP.NET security really badly.

The ASP.NET section is almost useless - so few pages and so little information.

It would have been better if the book had been called .NET code access security and didn't bother with the other stuff.

This book is an excellent starting point for understanding the .NET framework security mechanisms. Especially code access security.

Its only real failings are the lack of depth in a few obscure areas (details around simulating permissions that might be granted to an app deployed via the Internet and hosted in IE).

You could glean most of this information from the internet and spend a month doing it, like I did. Or spend $$$ and few hours reading this well written book.

Make no mistake,as you will get your hands wet programming Micrsosoft's "managed code" (C#, VB or ASP.NET apps), you will eventually encounter the all pervasive and extensive security system that is integrated in .Net.
This book is the definite security reference and guide to the new programming platform that Micrsosoft has shipped - and the only book of its kind on the market as far as I can see. It has been written by the people who have designed and implemented the security features and infrastructure in the .NET Framework that ASP.NET, C#, VB or Managed C++ applications run on.
Its stuffed with sample code and hands-on tips, and comes with extensive sections geared specifically towards developers and admins. Chapters are well contained and you get the kind of insider information only the people who have actually build and designed the system would be able to give you.
800 plus pages of security information for the Amazon price is quite a good bang for the buck,so I highly recommend this book as I think it will be a good learning aid in trying to understand .NEt security and remain valuable as a reference work afterwards.

This is a good resource. I used it for research on my own new car. Good source of information.

I purchased this book for details and comparison reviews of 1998 suvs. This book does not contain any although the book summary led me to believe that it did. Now I must buy a Trucks review book, because that's the category of vehicle suvs fall under.

This book had every thing that had to do with new cars