Enjoyable enough read but peppered with inaccuracies, 25 Jan 2007
It's a perfectly fun book to dip into and easy enough to read, but there are too many factual errors, evidence of lack of proof-reading and generally simply not answering the questions, for a pedantic scientist to be able to entirely enjoy it.

Examples:
- claiming nettles sting with formic acid
- confusing galaxies with the universe
- claiming the distant planet Sedna is a mere 10 million miles from the Sun
- determining fingernail growth of 0.5mm/week to be 2.16mm/month, ignoring significant figures

Ultimately it mainly does what it says on the tin in terms of its recycling of the source material, but that source material really should have been checked better.

Enjoyable enough read but peppered with inaccuracies, 25 Jan 2007
It's a perfectly fun book to dip into and easy enough to read, but there are too many factual errors, evidence of lack of proof-reading and generally simply not answering the questions, for a pedantic scientist to be able to entirely enjoy it.

Examples:
- claiming nettles sting with formic acid
- confusing galaxies with the universe
- claiming the distant planet Sedna is a mere 10 million miles from the Sun
- determining fingernail growth of 0.5mm/week to be 2.16mm/month, ignoring significant figures

Ultimately it mainly does what it says on the tin in terms of its recycling of the source material, but that source material really should have been checked better.


A feast for the eyes, 27 Jan 2008
This is a seriously beautiful book and only published in translation by
Thames and Hudson in 2003.

Large in format with 190 colour plates, many of them are fold-out pages giving a huge three-sheet view of some of the library interiors. The photography is sumptuous and a feast for the eyes - the text describing the twenty-three libraries features is brief but very interesting.

An absolute treat. Highly recommended for a gift to a bibliophile.

Enjoyable enough read but peppered with inaccuracies, 25 Jan 2007
It's a perfectly fun book to dip into and easy enough to read, but there are too many factual errors, evidence of lack of proof-reading and generally simply not answering the questions, for a pedantic scientist to be able to entirely enjoy it.

Examples:
- claiming nettles sting with formic acid
- confusing galaxies with the universe
- claiming the distant planet Sedna is a mere 10 million miles from the Sun
- determining fingernail growth of 0.5mm/week to be 2.16mm/month, ignoring significant figures

Ultimately it mainly does what it says on the tin in terms of its recycling of the source material, but that source material really should have been checked better.


A feast for the eyes, 27 Jan 2008
This is a seriously beautiful book and only published in translation by
Thames and Hudson in 2003.

Large in format with 190 colour plates, many of them are fold-out pages giving a huge three-sheet view of some of the library interiors. The photography is sumptuous and a feast for the eyes - the text describing the twenty-three libraries features is brief but very interesting.

An absolute treat. Highly recommended for a gift to a bibliophile.




Clearly presented and authoritative guide, 27 Oct 2008
From the perspective of working for an organisation with a very old and inaccessible records management system, this book has been invaluable in making the case for bringing our records management processes into the 21st century.

Written in very clear and accessible language, each chapter sets out the basics for the stages involved in putting together a records management programme and building a system that is fit for purpose. Cross-references to previous chapters are appropriately placed throughout the text, as are references to future chapters where issues are dealt with in more detail.

Complex issues are made easy to understand and examples given are directly applicable to most working environments.

As someone who hasn't carried out any detailed records management for a while, this was a good refresher on principles as well as a source of information on changes that have occurred in the RM sphere.

Enjoyable enough read but peppered with inaccuracies, 25 Jan 2007
It's a perfectly fun book to dip into and easy enough to read, but there are too many factual errors, evidence of lack of proof-reading and generally simply not answering the questions, for a pedantic scientist to be able to entirely enjoy it.

Examples:
- claiming nettles sting with formic acid
- confusing galaxies with the universe
- claiming the distant planet Sedna is a mere 10 million miles from the Sun
- determining fingernail growth of 0.5mm/week to be 2.16mm/month, ignoring significant figures

Ultimately it mainly does what it says on the tin in terms of its recycling of the source material, but that source material really should have been checked better.


A feast for the eyes, 27 Jan 2008
This is a seriously beautiful book and only published in translation by
Thames and Hudson in 2003.

Large in format with 190 colour plates, many of them are fold-out pages giving a huge three-sheet view of some of the library interiors. The photography is sumptuous and a feast for the eyes - the text describing the twenty-three libraries features is brief but very interesting.

An absolute treat. Highly recommended for a gift to a bibliophile.




Clearly presented and authoritative guide, 27 Oct 2008
From the perspective of working for an organisation with a very old and inaccessible records management system, this book has been invaluable in making the case for bringing our records management processes into the 21st century.

Written in very clear and accessible language, each chapter sets out the basics for the stages involved in putting together a records management programme and building a system that is fit for purpose. Cross-references to previous chapters are appropriately placed throughout the text, as are references to future chapters where issues are dealt with in more detail.

Complex issues are made easy to understand and examples given are directly applicable to most working environments.

As someone who hasn't carried out any detailed records management for a while, this was a good refresher on principles as well as a source of information on changes that have occurred in the RM sphere.

Good but not comprehensive, 11 Jun 2002
This is a useful reference for anyone working in the banking industry. However it is not that comprehensive and a number of fairly standards strutures such as CLNs, CDOs, FRODOs, TRSs are not touched on at all. "Credit Derivatives" gets a very broad definition with very few specifics. It may be more appropriate to more traditional banking as it is strong in the area of mortgages, loans, deposits etc, but even here some common terms such as MOR don't get a mention.

Also in this day and age an electronic version with hypertext would be more appropriate - cross referencing is remarkably difficult now that we are all used to the web!

To conclude, the format and content could do with a little modernisation.

Good reference., 03 Jan 2001
Very useful reference for both learners and profesionals

Enjoyable enough read but peppered with inaccuracies, 25 Jan 2007
It's a perfectly fun book to dip into and easy enough to read, but there are too many factual errors, evidence of lack of proof-reading and generally simply not answering the questions, for a pedantic scientist to be able to entirely enjoy it.

Examples:
- claiming nettles sting with formic acid
- confusing galaxies with the universe
- claiming the distant planet Sedna is a mere 10 million miles from the Sun
- determining fingernail growth of 0.5mm/week to be 2.16mm/month, ignoring significant figures

Ultimately it mainly does what it says on the tin in terms of its recycling of the source material, but that source material really should have been checked better.


A feast for the eyes, 27 Jan 2008
This is a seriously beautiful book and only published in translation by
Thames and Hudson in 2003.

Large in format with 190 colour plates, many of them are fold-out pages giving a huge three-sheet view of some of the library interiors. The photography is sumptuous and a feast for the eyes - the text describing the twenty-three libraries features is brief but very interesting.

An absolute treat. Highly recommended for a gift to a bibliophile.




Clearly presented and authoritative guide, 27 Oct 2008
From the perspective of working for an organisation with a very old and inaccessible records management system, this book has been invaluable in making the case for bringing our records management processes into the 21st century.

Written in very clear and accessible language, each chapter sets out the basics for the stages involved in putting together a records management programme and building a system that is fit for purpose. Cross-references to previous chapters are appropriately placed throughout the text, as are references to future chapters where issues are dealt with in more detail.

Complex issues are made easy to understand and examples given are directly applicable to most working environments.

As someone who hasn't carried out any detailed records management for a while, this was a good refresher on principles as well as a source of information on changes that have occurred in the RM sphere.

Good but not comprehensive, 11 Jun 2002
This is a useful reference for anyone working in the banking industry. However it is not that comprehensive and a number of fairly standards strutures such as CLNs, CDOs, FRODOs, TRSs are not touched on at all. "Credit Derivatives" gets a very broad definition with very few specifics. It may be more appropriate to more traditional banking as it is strong in the area of mortgages, loans, deposits etc, but even here some common terms such as MOR don't get a mention.

Also in this day and age an electronic version with hypertext would be more appropriate - cross referencing is remarkably difficult now that we are all used to the web!

To conclude, the format and content could do with a little modernisation.

Good reference., 03 Jan 2001
Very useful reference for both learners and profesionals

A book lover's book, 15 Mar 2007
The 'vanished' Library of Alexandria was one of the greatest cultural achievements of the ancient world. Comprising many thousands of scrolls of Egyptian, Greek, Hebrew and Mesopotamian learning, it drew the greatest scholars of its time, and its loss has been lamented ever since. The nine essays in this book examine various aspects of the founding and functioning of the Library, and are fascinating for the general reader as much as for the scholar.

This said, the essays will be of varying interest to any reader. I am not especially bothered about the methods of transmission of Aristotle's scientific works, or whether medical doctors held especial prestige within the Library. I am, on the other hand, very interested in the Mesopotamian antecedents of the Alexandrian library, and in a sort of travellers' guide to Ancient Alexandria, as well as in the legacy left by the institution, and all of these are more than amply covered here. And who can resist the charms of the final piece in the book, where John O. Ward considers the legacy left by Alexandria to the greatest medieval library that never existed, the one in Umberto Eco's The Name of the Rose, which manages to be equally enlightening for both the fictional and the historical foundations.