A Good Value Book on PRINCE2, 06 Nov 2008
This book is easy to read and a very good overview of PRINCE2. At the price, it is very good value as well.

Prince2 Review, 24 Oct 2008
An excellent well written structured overview of the international Project Management methodology. Author makes a pretty light-hearted read of a difficult subject. Recommended.

Experience learning made easy - and quickly teach yourself how tomanage your projects with Project 2007. With Step By Step you setthe pace - building and practicing the skills you need just whenyou need them!

A Good Value Book on PRINCE2, 06 Nov 2008
This book is easy to read and a very good overview of PRINCE2. At the price, it is very good value as well.

Prince2 Review, 24 Oct 2008
An excellent well written structured overview of the international Project Management methodology. Author makes a pretty light-hearted read of a difficult subject. Recommended.

Very Useful Instruction, 27 May 2008
As the title suggests, the book is a step by step guide to Office Project 2007. It walks you through all of the different aspects of Project that a new or intermediate user could be expected to know or benefit from. It also provides a number of "tips" where a more advanced or enquiring user may want to find further information. The layout and structure of the book is very good, which could reasonably be expected, with "Chapters at a Glance", "Summaries of topics covered", "Key points" and very clear formatting to help the reader/user.

As a previous user of an older version of Project, I bought the book as both a refresher to Project and an introduction to the new 07 version. It has certainly delivered on both these counts. However, I would imagine that if I need to develop a more detailed level of knowledge about the software I would probably end up buying a supplemental book as well.

I will be using Project professionally and will need to share my project plans with other stakeholders, in light of this I found the following chapters particularly useful:
*Organising and Formatting Project Details
*Printing Project Information
*Sharing Project Information with Other Programs


Top drawer, 06 Jun 2007
Exceptionally well-written book which almost falls over itself to be helpful, with the Chapter At A Glance page at the start of each chapter and the Quick Reference pages at the beginning.

I've got three other books on Project 2007 and this is easily the most readable and enjoyable. It keeps you interested with the well-worked examples on disc for you to follow along with and imparts a very good depth and breadth of information.

I was uncomfortable with Project before reading this book and tried a lot of tinkering with the software in an attempt to ease my uncertainties. This book takes a lot of the donkey-work out of that process by giving solid exercises to guide you each step of the way.

It gets you up and running in no time and leaves you keen to explore even deeper. The last 50 pages introduce Server but the main thrust is with the desktop application; perfect for my working requirements.

One of the few books which takes the frustration out of the learning process - no hesitation in giving it a maximum 5 out of 5.

A Good Value Book on PRINCE2, 06 Nov 2008
This book is easy to read and a very good overview of PRINCE2. At the price, it is very good value as well.

Prince2 Review, 24 Oct 2008
An excellent well written structured overview of the international Project Management methodology. Author makes a pretty light-hearted read of a difficult subject. Recommended.

Very Useful Instruction, 27 May 2008
As the title suggests, the book is a step by step guide to Office Project 2007. It walks you through all of the different aspects of Project that a new or intermediate user could be expected to know or benefit from. It also provides a number of "tips" where a more advanced or enquiring user may want to find further information. The layout and structure of the book is very good, which could reasonably be expected, with "Chapters at a Glance", "Summaries of topics covered", "Key points" and very clear formatting to help the reader/user.

As a previous user of an older version of Project, I bought the book as both a refresher to Project and an introduction to the new 07 version. It has certainly delivered on both these counts. However, I would imagine that if I need to develop a more detailed level of knowledge about the software I would probably end up buying a supplemental book as well.

I will be using Project professionally and will need to share my project plans with other stakeholders, in light of this I found the following chapters particularly useful:
*Organising and Formatting Project Details
*Printing Project Information
*Sharing Project Information with Other Programs


Top drawer, 06 Jun 2007
Exceptionally well-written book which almost falls over itself to be helpful, with the Chapter At A Glance page at the start of each chapter and the Quick Reference pages at the beginning.

I've got three other books on Project 2007 and this is easily the most readable and enjoyable. It keeps you interested with the well-worked examples on disc for you to follow along with and imparts a very good depth and breadth of information.

I was uncomfortable with Project before reading this book and tried a lot of tinkering with the software in an attempt to ease my uncertainties. This book takes a lot of the donkey-work out of that process by giving solid exercises to guide you each step of the way.

It gets you up and running in no time and leaves you keen to explore even deeper. The last 50 pages introduce Server but the main thrust is with the desktop application; perfect for my working requirements.

One of the few books which takes the frustration out of the learning process - no hesitation in giving it a maximum 5 out of 5.

Take cover, 16 Mar 2006
This is a really fascinating read.
Strong emphasis is placed on safety and is ideal for Parental supervision of all the projects.The story of the atomic spud gun is worth buying the book on it's own.

Unbelievably mad, incredibaly fun, 19 Jan 2005
Unlike most books like it this is a manual is genuinely full of easy to do projects. If you looking for something special in coimbination with this I reccommend "Home Workshop Explosives" by Uncle Fester. This combination is not for the faint of heart! Overall an excellent addition to my collection.

Wow., 30 Jul 2004
A superb, but sadly probably marginally legal in my jurisdiction, introduction to the destructive delights of the hairspray powered potato gun amongst many, beautifully detailed little projects.

For all of us who watch "junkyard wars", or as we have it "Scrapheap Challenge", this book is a rallying call to visit the plumbers supply house and detonate some spuds.

The book is strong on details, suggestions for further "research" and lots of pertinent history.

Highly recommended.

Step-by-step mad stuff to make, or, toys for the boys., 07 Nov 2001
A handbook for bored, thirty-something children (like myself) on how to make potato cannons, tennis ball mortars, catapults and the like from the comfort of their garden shed.
Twelve projects from the ridiculously easy to the fairly time consuming, packed into 169 pages of juvenile playhem. Good instructions, clear pictures and photos, and all done with the emphasis on safety.
There is also a fair amount of explanation concerning the actual physics behind the projects and a look at historical figures such as Newton and Archimedes.

A Good Value Book on PRINCE2, 06 Nov 2008
This book is easy to read and a very good overview of PRINCE2. At the price, it is very good value as well.

Prince2 Review, 24 Oct 2008
An excellent well written structured overview of the international Project Management methodology. Author makes a pretty light-hearted read of a difficult subject. Recommended.

Very Useful Instruction, 27 May 2008
As the title suggests, the book is a step by step guide to Office Project 2007. It walks you through all of the different aspects of Project that a new or intermediate user could be expected to know or benefit from. It also provides a number of "tips" where a more advanced or enquiring user may want to find further information. The layout and structure of the book is very good, which could reasonably be expected, with "Chapters at a Glance", "Summaries of topics covered", "Key points" and very clear formatting to help the reader/user.

As a previous user of an older version of Project, I bought the book as both a refresher to Project and an introduction to the new 07 version. It has certainly delivered on both these counts. However, I would imagine that if I need to develop a more detailed level of knowledge about the software I would probably end up buying a supplemental book as well.

I will be using Project professionally and will need to share my project plans with other stakeholders, in light of this I found the following chapters particularly useful:
*Organising and Formatting Project Details
*Printing Project Information
*Sharing Project Information with Other Programs


Top drawer, 06 Jun 2007
Exceptionally well-written book which almost falls over itself to be helpful, with the Chapter At A Glance page at the start of each chapter and the Quick Reference pages at the beginning.

I've got three other books on Project 2007 and this is easily the most readable and enjoyable. It keeps you interested with the well-worked examples on disc for you to follow along with and imparts a very good depth and breadth of information.

I was uncomfortable with Project before reading this book and tried a lot of tinkering with the software in an attempt to ease my uncertainties. This book takes a lot of the donkey-work out of that process by giving solid exercises to guide you each step of the way.

It gets you up and running in no time and leaves you keen to explore even deeper. The last 50 pages introduce Server but the main thrust is with the desktop application; perfect for my working requirements.

One of the few books which takes the frustration out of the learning process - no hesitation in giving it a maximum 5 out of 5.

Take cover, 16 Mar 2006
This is a really fascinating read.
Strong emphasis is placed on safety and is ideal for Parental supervision of all the projects.The story of the atomic spud gun is worth buying the book on it's own.

Unbelievably mad, incredibaly fun, 19 Jan 2005
Unlike most books like it this is a manual is genuinely full of easy to do projects. If you looking for something special in coimbination with this I reccommend "Home Workshop Explosives" by Uncle Fester. This combination is not for the faint of heart! Overall an excellent addition to my collection.

Wow., 30 Jul 2004
A superb, but sadly probably marginally legal in my jurisdiction, introduction to the destructive delights of the hairspray powered potato gun amongst many, beautifully detailed little projects.

For all of us who watch "junkyard wars", or as we have it "Scrapheap Challenge", this book is a rallying call to visit the plumbers supply house and detonate some spuds.

The book is strong on details, suggestions for further "research" and lots of pertinent history.

Highly recommended.

Step-by-step mad stuff to make, or, toys for the boys., 07 Nov 2001
A handbook for bored, thirty-something children (like myself) on how to make potato cannons, tennis ball mortars, catapults and the like from the comfort of their garden shed.
Twelve projects from the ridiculously easy to the fairly time consuming, packed into 169 pages of juvenile playhem. Good instructions, clear pictures and photos, and all done with the emphasis on safety.
There is also a fair amount of explanation concerning the actual physics behind the projects and a look at historical figures such as Newton and Archimedes.

Useful property tables, 17 Jul 1999
his is not a 'book' in the traditional sense. It is more of an engineering reference table, giving specific properties of substances in different states.

A very useful purchase for anyone connected with engineering calculations (including students) in thermodynamics and aerodynamics.

A Good Value Book on PRINCE2, 06 Nov 2008
This book is easy to read and a very good overview of PRINCE2. At the price, it is very good value as well.

Prince2 Review, 24 Oct 2008
An excellent well written structured overview of the international Project Management methodology. Author makes a pretty light-hearted read of a difficult subject. Recommended.

Very Useful Instruction, 27 May 2008
As the title suggests, the book is a step by step guide to Office Project 2007. It walks you through all of the different aspects of Project that a new or intermediate user could be expected to know or benefit from. It also provides a number of "tips" where a more advanced or enquiring user may want to find further information. The layout and structure of the book is very good, which could reasonably be expected, with "Chapters at a Glance", "Summaries of topics covered", "Key points" and very clear formatting to help the reader/user.

As a previous user of an older version of Project, I bought the book as both a refresher to Project and an introduction to the new 07 version. It has certainly delivered on both these counts. However, I would imagine that if I need to develop a more detailed level of knowledge about the software I would probably end up buying a supplemental book as well.

I will be using Project professionally and will need to share my project plans with other stakeholders, in light of this I found the following chapters particularly useful:
*Organising and Formatting Project Details
*Printing Project Information
*Sharing Project Information with Other Programs


Top drawer, 06 Jun 2007
Exceptionally well-written book which almost falls over itself to be helpful, with the Chapter At A Glance page at the start of each chapter and the Quick Reference pages at the beginning.

I've got three other books on Project 2007 and this is easily the most readable and enjoyable. It keeps you interested with the well-worked examples on disc for you to follow along with and imparts a very good depth and breadth of information.

I was uncomfortable with Project before reading this book and tried a lot of tinkering with the software in an attempt to ease my uncertainties. This book takes a lot of the donkey-work out of that process by giving solid exercises to guide you each step of the way.

It gets you up and running in no time and leaves you keen to explore even deeper. The last 50 pages introduce Server but the main thrust is with the desktop application; perfect for my working requirements.

One of the few books which takes the frustration out of the learning process - no hesitation in giving it a maximum 5 out of 5.

Take cover, 16 Mar 2006
This is a really fascinating read.
Strong emphasis is placed on safety and is ideal for Parental supervision of all the projects.The story of the atomic spud gun is worth buying the book on it's own.

Unbelievably mad, incredibaly fun, 19 Jan 2005
Unlike most books like it this is a manual is genuinely full of easy to do projects. If you looking for something special in coimbination with this I reccommend "Home Workshop Explosives" by Uncle Fester. This combination is not for the faint of heart! Overall an excellent addition to my collection.

Wow., 30 Jul 2004
A superb, but sadly probably marginally legal in my jurisdiction, introduction to the destructive delights of the hairspray powered potato gun amongst many, beautifully detailed little projects.

For all of us who watch "junkyard wars", or as we have it "Scrapheap Challenge", this book is a rallying call to visit the plumbers supply house and detonate some spuds.

The book is strong on details, suggestions for further "research" and lots of pertinent history.

Highly recommended.

Step-by-step mad stuff to make, or, toys for the boys., 07 Nov 2001
A handbook for bored, thirty-something children (like myself) on how to make potato cannons, tennis ball mortars, catapults and the like from the comfort of their garden shed.
Twelve projects from the ridiculously easy to the fairly time consuming, packed into 169 pages of juvenile playhem. Good instructions, clear pictures and photos, and all done with the emphasis on safety.
There is also a fair amount of explanation concerning the actual physics behind the projects and a look at historical figures such as Newton and Archimedes.

Useful property tables, 17 Jul 1999
his is not a 'book' in the traditional sense. It is more of an engineering reference table, giving specific properties of substances in different states.

A very useful purchase for anyone connected with engineering calculations (including students) in thermodynamics and aerodynamics.

Excellent product, well supported by both Mathworks and the community, 14 Dec 2007
Matlab has become very popular in the engineering field. Whilst both Maple and Mathematica have stronger symbolic capabilities, Matlab excels in the numerics and so tends to be used for engineering more than pure maths.

The Matlab documentation is built into the program and is also available online. There is a very active newsgroup comp.soft-sys.matlab where Matlab users can ask for help. It is read by a lot of staff from Mathworks and they, or other Matlab users, answer questions quickly. The importance of good support on this sort of software can not be overstated. This is a serious issue with Mathematica, which is a similar(ish) product to Matlab. The Mathematica newsgroup is moderated, so help requests can take a day before anyone sees them. To get a satisfactory answer to a question can often take a long time.

Matlab is excellent value for money for students, being cheaper than the student versions of either Maple or Mathematica. Although this is is a "sprat to catch a mackerel", as the commercial version of Matlab is expensive. This student version includes various toolboxes and Simulink, all of which are optional extras if you buy the commercial version.

The commercial version of Matlab is available on Solaris, but only Windows, Linux and Mac are supported on the student version. Since I used Solaris as a student, I would have found this annoying. There would be no harm in asking if they would give a license for Solaris.

A Good Value Book on PRINCE2, 06 Nov 2008
This book is easy to read and a very good overview of PRINCE2. At the price, it is very good value as well.

Prince2 Review, 24 Oct 2008
An excellent well written structured overview of the international Project Management methodology. Author makes a pretty light-hearted read of a difficult subject. Recommended.

Very Useful Instruction, 27 May 2008
As the title suggests, the book is a step by step guide to Office Project 2007. It walks you through all of the different aspects of Project that a new or intermediate user could be expected to know or benefit from. It also provides a number of "tips" where a more advanced or enquiring user may want to find further information. The layout and structure of the book is very good, which could reasonably be expected, with "Chapters at a Glance", "Summaries of topics covered", "Key points" and very clear formatting to help the reader/user.

As a previous user of an older version of Project, I bought the book as both a refresher to Project and an introduction to the new 07 version. It has certainly delivered on both these counts. However, I would imagine that if I need to develop a more detailed level of knowledge about the software I would probably end up buying a supplemental book as well.

I will be using Project professionally and will need to share my project plans with other stakeholders, in light of this I found the following chapters particularly useful:
*Organising and Formatting Project Details
*Printing Project Information
*Sharing Project Information with Other Programs


Top drawer, 06 Jun 2007
Exceptionally well-written book which almost falls over itself to be helpful, with the Chapter At A Glance page at the start of each chapter and the Quick Reference pages at the beginning.

I've got three other books on Project 2007 and this is easily the most readable and enjoyable. It keeps you interested with the well-worked examples on disc for you to follow along with and imparts a very good depth and breadth of information.

I was uncomfortable with Project before reading this book and tried a lot of tinkering with the software in an attempt to ease my uncertainties. This book takes a lot of the donkey-work out of that process by giving solid exercises to guide you each step of the way.

It gets you up and running in no time and leaves you keen to explore even deeper. The last 50 pages introduce Server but the main thrust is with the desktop application; perfect for my working requirements.

One of the few books which takes the frustration out of the learning process - no hesitation in giving it a maximum 5 out of 5.

Take cover, 16 Mar 2006
This is a really fascinating read.
Strong emphasis is placed on safety and is ideal for Parental supervision of all the projects.The story of the atomic spud gun is worth buying the book on it's own.

Unbelievably mad, incredibaly fun, 19 Jan 2005
Unlike most books like it this is a manual is genuinely full of easy to do projects. If you looking for something special in coimbination with this I reccommend "Home Workshop Explosives" by Uncle Fester. This combination is not for the faint of heart! Overall an excellent addition to my collection.

Wow., 30 Jul 2004
A superb, but sadly probably marginally legal in my jurisdiction, introduction to the destructive delights of the hairspray powered potato gun amongst many, beautifully detailed little projects.

For all of us who watch "junkyard wars", or as we have it "Scrapheap Challenge", this book is a rallying call to visit the plumbers supply house and detonate some spuds.

The book is strong on details, suggestions for further "research" and lots of pertinent history.

Highly recommended.

Step-by-step mad stuff to make, or, toys for the boys., 07 Nov 2001
A handbook for bored, thirty-something children (like myself) on how to make potato cannons, tennis ball mortars, catapults and the like from the comfort of their garden shed.
Twelve projects from the ridiculously easy to the fairly time consuming, packed into 169 pages of juvenile playhem. Good instructions, clear pictures and photos, and all done with the emphasis on safety.
There is also a fair amount of explanation concerning the actual physics behind the projects and a look at historical figures such as Newton and Archimedes.

Useful property tables, 17 Jul 1999
his is not a 'book' in the traditional sense. It is more of an engineering reference table, giving specific properties of substances in different states.

A very useful purchase for anyone connected with engineering calculations (including students) in thermodynamics and aerodynamics.

Excellent product, well supported by both Mathworks and the community, 14 Dec 2007
Matlab has become very popular in the engineering field. Whilst both Maple and Mathematica have stronger symbolic capabilities, Matlab excels in the numerics and so tends to be used for engineering more than pure maths.

The Matlab documentation is built into the program and is also available online. There is a very active newsgroup comp.soft-sys.matlab where Matlab users can ask for help. It is read by a lot of staff from Mathworks and they, or other Matlab users, answer questions quickly. The importance of good support on this sort of software can not be overstated. This is a serious issue with Mathematica, which is a similar(ish) product to Matlab. The Mathematica newsgroup is moderated, so help requests can take a day before anyone sees them. To get a satisfactory answer to a question can often take a long time.

Matlab is excellent value for money for students, being cheaper than the student versions of either Maple or Mathematica. Although this is is a "sprat to catch a mackerel", as the commercial version of Matlab is expensive. This student version includes various toolboxes and Simulink, all of which are optional extras if you buy the commercial version.

The commercial version of Matlab is available on Solaris, but only Windows, Linux and Mac are supported on the student version. Since I used Solaris as a student, I would have found this annoying. There would be no harm in asking if they would give a license for Solaris.


I have the THIRD EDITION, 18 Sep 2007
I bought a second hand copy of the third edition, so I can't comment on the new online chapters that appear to be the main criticism of the book. What I can say is that the quality of the existing chapters is impressive. The material was suitable to entirely teach myself the syllabus of a second year undergraduate module in materials science as part of my mechanical engineering degree, whilst being refreshingly concise.

Excelent book, but online nightmare, 14 Jan 2007
This book is a must have for anyone who is studying engineering. I have found it an invaluable source information as my lecturer in the subject is often confusing and the notes poor. I do have to agree sadly though with a past reviewer about the online portion. I registered online then didn't receive an email so now I am unable to access any of the online content. For this I am giving the book a 3, if only they could fix the web portion this book would be an easy 5.

Students worst nightmare, 10 Nov 2006
The parts of the book they give you are fine, but the publisher is greedy at the students expense. First off, the last five chapters are NOT included in the text! You have to go 'online' to get them. I bought a new copy with the access code, there is no longer any CD that comes with it, it is all 'online'. I use quotes b/c 'online' means registering your info with the publisher and then being allowed to get the material. I did this and had to carefully avoid checking all the right boxes to avoid spamming, which still didn't stop it. But after all that is done, they send you a confirmation email, an email I didn't get. Gmail might rightfully trash this companies emails. The result is denial of trying to register a second time with the same code, and nullification of that code if you don't authenticate within a week. So now I don't have access to any of the material and have to pay for the price of the book again to get a new access code. My other choice is to fail the quizzes!

If you are a student, don't buy this book for reference, as it is incomplete, and the website will probably only function until the next edition comes out. You can't buy it used as you have to pay for the access anyway.

Professors who are interested, please do your students a favor and stay away from this book. If you like the way it works, look into using the sixth edition, as I am pretty sure it has every chapter in it even if it is slightly outdated and it is still sold on Amazon. Your students can also buy a used copy. Even if they buy a new copy, they don't risk being sucked dry from this greedy publisher.

Spot on!, 12 Feb 2006
This is a must for any student studying not just material science but any form of engineering. Well written and easy to understand, Well worth the money.

Brilliant, just BRILLIANT!!!, 10 Jan 2006
I cannot fault this text book in any way possible! It is just perfect!! Every day after leaving my Chemical Engineering lecture, i would review what was taught by reading the text book, and i just cannot emphasise enough how much it engraved all the essential concepts in my brain!! I wish i could give it more than 5 stars!!

A Good Value Book on PRINCE2, 06 Nov 2008
This book is easy to read and a very good overview of PRINCE2. At the price, it is very good value as well.

Prince2 Review, 24 Oct 2008
An excellent well written structured overview of the international Project Management methodology. Author makes a pretty light-hearted read of a difficult subject. Recommended.

Very Useful Instruction, 27 May 2008
As the title suggests, the book is a step by step guide to Office Project 2007. It walks you through all of the different aspects of Project that a new or intermediate user could be expected to know or benefit from. It also provides a number of "tips" where a more advanced or enquiring user may want to find further information. The layout and structure of the book is very good, which could reasonably be expected, with "Chapters at a Glance", "Summaries of topics covered", "Key points" and very clear formatting to help the reader/user.

As a previous user of an older version of Project, I bought the book as both a refresher to Project and an introduction to the new 07 version. It has certainly delivered on both these counts. However, I would imagine that if I need to develop a more detailed level of knowledge about the software I would probably end up buying a supplemental book as well.

I will be using Project professionally and will need to share my project plans with other stakeholders, in light of this I found the following chapters particularly useful:
*Organising and Formatting Project Details
*Printing Project Information
*Sharing Project Information with Other Programs


Top drawer, 06 Jun 2007
Exceptionally well-written book which almost falls over itself to be helpful, with the Chapter At A Glance page at the start of each chapter and the Quick Reference pages at the beginning.

I've got three other books on Project 2007 and this is easily the most readable and enjoyable. It keeps you interested with the well-worked examples on disc for you to follow along with and imparts a very good depth and breadth of information.

I was uncomfortable with Project before reading this book and tried a lot of tinkering with the software in an attempt to ease my uncertainties. This book takes a lot of the donkey-work out of that process by giving solid exercises to guide you each step of the way.

It gets you up and running in no time and leaves you keen to explore even deeper. The last 50 pages introduce Server but the main thrust is with the desktop application; perfect for my working requirements.

One of the few books which takes the frustration out of the learning process - no hesitation in giving it a maximum 5 out of 5.

Take cover, 16 Mar 2006
This is a really fascinating read.
Strong emphasis is placed on safety and is ideal for Parental supervision of all the projects.The story of the atomic spud gun is worth buying the book on it's own.

Unbelievably mad, incredibaly fun, 19 Jan 2005
Unlike most books like it this is a manual is genuinely full of easy to do projects. If you looking for something special in coimbination with this I reccommend "Home Workshop Explosives" by Uncle Fester. This combination is not for the faint of heart! Overall an excellent addition to my collection.

Wow., 30 Jul 2004
A superb, but sadly probably marginally legal in my jurisdiction, introduction to the destructive delights of the hairspray powered potato gun amongst many, beautifully detailed little projects.

For all of us who watch "junkyard wars", or as we have it "Scrapheap Challenge", this book is a rallying call to visit the plumbers supply house and detonate some spuds.

The book is strong on details, suggestions for further "research" and lots of pertinent history.

Highly recommended.

Step-by-step mad stuff to make, or, toys for the boys., 07 Nov 2001
A handbook for bored, thirty-something children (like myself) on how to make potato cannons, tennis ball mortars, catapults and the like from the comfort of their garden shed.
Twelve projects from the ridiculously easy to the fairly time consuming, packed into 169 pages of juvenile playhem. Good instructions, clear pictures and photos, and all done with the emphasis on safety.
There is also a fair amount of explanation concerning the actual physics behind the projects and a look at historical figures such as Newton and Archimedes.

Useful property tables, 17 Jul 1999
his is not a 'book' in the traditional sense. It is more of an engineering reference table, giving specific properties of substances in different states.

A very useful purchase for anyone connected with engineering calculations (including students) in thermodynamics and aerodynamics.

Excellent product, well supported by both Mathworks and the community, 14 Dec 2007
Matlab has become very popular in the engineering field. Whilst both Maple and Mathematica have stronger symbolic capabilities, Matlab excels in the numerics and so tends to be used for engineering more than pure maths.

The Matlab documentation is built into the program and is also available online. There is a very active newsgroup comp.soft-sys.matlab where Matlab users can ask for help. It is read by a lot of staff from Mathworks and they, or other Matlab users, answer questions quickly. The importance of good support on this sort of software can not be overstated. This is a serious issue with Mathematica, which is a similar(ish) product to Matlab. The Mathematica newsgroup is moderated, so help requests can take a day before anyone sees them. To get a satisfactory answer to a question can often take a long time.

Matlab is excellent value for money for students, being cheaper than the student versions of either Maple or Mathematica. Although this is is a "sprat to catch a mackerel", as the commercial version of Matlab is expensive. This student version includes various toolboxes and Simulink, all of which are optional extras if you buy the commercial version.

The commercial version of Matlab is available on Solaris, but only Windows, Linux and Mac are supported on the student version. Since I used Solaris as a student, I would have found this annoying. There would be no harm in asking if they would give a license for Solaris.


I have the THIRD EDITION, 18 Sep 2007
I bought a second hand copy of the third edition, so I can't comment on the new online chapters that appear to be the main criticism of the book. What I can say is that the quality of the existing chapters is impressive. The material was suitable to entirely teach myself the syllabus of a second year undergraduate module in materials science as part of my mechanical engineering degree, whilst being refreshingly concise.

Excelent book, but online nightmare, 14 Jan 2007
This book is a must have for anyone who is studying engineering. I have found it an invaluable source information as my lecturer in the subject is often confusing and the notes poor. I do have to agree sadly though with a past reviewer about the online portion. I registered online then didn't receive an email so now I am unable to access any of the online content. For this I am giving the book a 3, if only they could fix the web portion this book would be an easy 5.

Students worst nightmare, 10 Nov 2006
The parts of the book they give you are fine, but the publisher is greedy at the students expense. First off, the last five chapters are NOT included in the text! You have to go 'online' to get them. I bought a new copy with the access code, there is no longer any CD that comes with it, it is all 'online'. I use quotes b/c 'online' means registering your info with the publisher and then being allowed to get the material. I did this and had to carefully avoid checking all the right boxes to avoid spamming, which still didn't stop it. But after all that is done, they send you a confirmation email, an email I didn't get. Gmail might rightfully trash this companies emails. The result is denial of trying to register a second time with the same code, and nullification of that code if you don't authenticate within a week. So now I don't have access to any of the material and have to pay for the price of the book again to get a new access code. My other choice is to fail the quizzes!

If you are a student, don't buy this book for reference, as it is incomplete, and the website will probably only function until the next edition comes out. You can't buy it used as you have to pay for the access anyway.

Professors who are interested, please do your students a favor and stay away from this book. If you like the way it works, look into using the sixth edition, as I am pretty sure it has every chapter in it even if it is slightly outdated and it is still sold on Amazon. Your students can also buy a used copy. Even if they buy a new copy, they don't risk being sucked dry from this greedy publisher.

Spot on!, 12 Feb 2006
This is a must for any student studying not just material science but any form of engineering. Well written and easy to understand, Well worth the money.

Brilliant, just BRILLIANT!!!, 10 Jan 2006
I cannot fault this text book in any way possible! It is just perfect!! Every day after leaving my Chemical Engineering lecture, i would review what was taught by reading the text book, and i just cannot emphasise enough how much it engraved all the essential concepts in my brain!! I wish i could give it more than 5 stars!!

Useful analysis of the ongoing transformation of business, 25 Sep 2008
Unlike many books on new economies or global changes, this work cites examples from around the world. C. K. Prahalad and M. S. Krishnan provide illustrative case studies from firms in India, Canada, the United States, Europe and elsewhere. They examine the various interactions among these firms and locales, grounding their theoretical discussions in reality. To add even more clarity, they also include many drawings and charts; unfortunately, these tend to force a simplistic Cartesian graphing system onto complex changes. Likewise, their abbreviations are more memorable than clear. Overall, though, these are minor glitches in an innovative and useful study. The authors' analyses of how firms are interacting internationally, and redesigning themselves and the nature of business in the process, are both interesting and valuable. Its discussions of broad trends are unusually well-informed. getAbstract recommends this book to executives and others committed to keeping up with change, especially on a large, even global, scale.

Prahalad NEEDS Gary Hamel, 20 Jul 2008
Well, i bought this book with great expectations. However after reading it, i was very disappointed with it. Hardly any interesting insights and i was falling asleep reading this book. The absurd use of this phoney management formula really started to get on my nerves i.e. n=1 etc. Yawn yawn. I can see why Prahalad wrote with Gary Hamel- HE NEEDED Gary Hamel probably more than Gary Hamel needed Prahalad. This book is apauling so take my advice and DONT BUY IT

How to prosper in the "N = 1 and R = G" world, 02 May 2008

I have read and then reviewed all of C.K. Prahalad's previous books and thus was especially interested in reading this book, co-authored with M.S. Krishnan. As they explain in the Introduction, "We view innovation as shaping consumer expectations as well as responding continually to the changing demands, behaviors, and experiences pf consumers. We must do this by accessing the best talent and resources available anywhere in the world. These two ideas must be connected - the resources of many to satisfy the needs of one.. We suggest that this is possible only if we pay attention to the glue that enables ideas to be transformed into operations. We will focus on the business processes and analytics as the glue."

Prahalad and Krishnan acknowledge that there is a fundamental transformation now underway, worldwide, that will radically alter the very nature of an enterprise and how it creates value. This foundation of this transformation has two basic pillars:

1. "Value is based on unique, personalized experiences of consumers. [begin italics] The focus is on the centrality of the individual. [end italics] We will designate this pillar as N = 1 (one consumer at a time.)"

"2. No firm is big enough in scope and size to satisfy the experiences of one consumer at a time. [begin italics] The focus is on access to resources, not ownership of resources. [end italics] We will designate this [pillar as R = G (resources from multiple vendors and often from around the globe)."

There are several key elements of this transformation. Prahalad and Krishnan focus on five: Value is shifting from products to solutions to experience; all companies seek access to the talent, components, products, and services they need from the best sources; flexible systems are a prerequisite and must be developed; resources in a company's ecosystem must be continually configured; and finally, specific models must be developed that enable a company to focus on one consumer from among the millions. These are indeed formidable challenges. Prahalad and Krishnan suggest a number of strategies and tactics to consider when responding to them. When proceeding through the rigorously and eloquent narrative of this book, it is imperative to keep in mind that their ultimate objective is to help companies to prosper in this "N = 1 and R = G" world. To that end, they share the most important business lessons learned from a number of exemplary companies that include Amazon.com, Apple Computer, eBay, Google, ICIC Bank, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Unilever, and United Parcel Service (UPS).

To me, some of the most valuable material is provided in Chapter 5 (Pages 109-145) as Prahalad and Krishnan discuss the requirements of an information and communication technology (ICT) architecture and the governance mechanisms that can connect business processes and analytics to data and applications. In one of several graphics, Table 4.1 (Pages 124-126), they summarize the specificati9ons of the new ICT architecture in terms of four categories (i.e. "buckets"): Confronting Reality (e.g. capacity to link large systems and multiple databases), Compliance and Change (e.g. regulatory compliance and change), Evolving Capabilities (e.g. Security and privacy of data), and Enabling Foundations (e.g. from transaction-driven to event-driven systems).

Given the fundamental shift in the focus, the sources, and the processes of innovation and value creation, what do suggest for an agenda for managers to consider? They respond to that question in the final chapter. Specifically, they invoke a metaphor --- The New House of innovation - whose design and construction must be viewed as an "integrated package" in terms of its architecture, construction materials, and subsequent maintenance. The organizational transformation process must also be comprehensive and cohesive during a transition period (i.e. a "migration") of management practices to develop new skills, attitudes, and behaviors. It remains for decision-makers in each organization to design and then build its own new house pf innovation. Fortunately, they can use the information and counsel that C.K. Prahalad and M.S. Krishnan provide to guide and inform those initiatives.

Those who share my high regard for this brilliant volume are urged to check out Competing in a Flat World: Building Enterprises for a Borderless World co-authored by Victor Fung, William Fung, and Yoram (Jerry) Wind as well as Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning co-authored by Thomas Davenport and Jeanne Harris. Also Enterprise Architecture as Strategy: Creating a Foundation for Business Execution co-authored by Jeanne Ross, Peter Weill and David Robertson and Dean Spitzer's Transforming Performance Measurement: Rethinking the Way We Measure and Drive Organizational Success.

This practical hands-on tutorial expertly builds your skills with Microsoft Project 2003#one step at a time! With STEP BY STEP you work at your own pace through easy-to-follow lessons and practice exercises to learn exactly the tools and techniques you ne

A Good Value Book on PRINCE2, 06 Nov 2008
This book is easy to read and a very good overview of PRINCE2. At the price, it is very good value as well.

Prince2 Review, 24 Oct 2008
An excellent well written structured overview of the international Project Management methodology. Author makes a pretty light-hearted read of a difficult subject. Recommended.

Very Useful Instruction, 27 May 2008
As the title suggests, the book is a step by step guide to Office Project 2007. It walks you through all of the different aspects of Project that a new or intermediate user could be expected to know or benefit from. It also provides a number of "tips" where a more advanced or enquiring user may want to find further information. The layout and structure of the book is very good, which could reasonably be expected, with "Chapters at a Glance", "Summaries of topics covered", "Key points" and very clear formatting to help the reader/user.

As a previous user of an older version of Project, I bought the book as both a refresher to Project and an introduction to the new 07 version. It has certainly delivered on both these counts. However, I would imagine that if I need to develop a more detailed level of knowledge about the software I would probably end up buying a supplemental book as well.

I will be using Project professionally and will need to share my project plans with other stakeholders, in light of this I found the following chapters particularly useful:
*Organising and Formatting Project Details
*Printing Project Information
*Sharing Project Information with Other Programs


Top drawer, 06 Jun 2007
Exceptionally well-written book which almost falls over itself to be helpful, with the Chapter At A Glance page at the start of each chapter and the Quick Reference pages at the beginning.

I've got three other books on Project 2007 and this is easily the most readable and enjoyable. It keeps you interested with the well-worked examples on disc for you to follow along with and imparts a very good depth and breadth of information.

I was uncomfortable with Project before reading this book and tried a lot of tinkering with the software in an attempt to ease my uncertainties. This book takes a lot of the donkey-work out of that process by giving solid exercises to guide you each step of the way.

It gets you up and running in no time and leaves you keen to explore even deeper. The last 50 pages introduce Server but the main thrust is with the desktop application; perfect for my working requirements.

One of the few books which takes the frustration out of the learning process - no hesitation in giving it a maximum 5 out of 5.

Take cover, 16 Mar 2006
This is a really fascinating read.
Strong emphasis is placed on safety and is ideal for Parental supervision of all the projects.The story of the atomic spud gun is worth buying the book on it's own.

Unbelievably mad, incredibaly fun, 19 Jan 2005
Unlike most books like it this is a manual is genuinely full of easy to do projects. If you looking for something special in coimbination with this I reccommend "Home Workshop Explosives" by Uncle Fester. This combination is not for the faint of heart! Overall an excellent addition to my collection.

Wow., 30 Jul 2004
A superb, but sadly probably marginally legal in my jurisdiction, introduction to the destructive delights of the hairspray powered potato gun amongst many, beautifully detailed little projects.

For all of us who watch "junkyard wars", or as we have it "Scrapheap Challenge", this book is a rallying call to visit the plumbers supply house and detonate some spuds.

The book is strong on details, suggestions for further "research" and lots of pertinent history.

Highly recommended.

Step-by-step mad stuff to make, or, toys for the boys., 07 Nov 2001
A handbook for bored, thirty-something children (like myself) on how to make potato cannons, tennis ball mortars, catapults and the like from the comfort of their garden shed.
Twelve projects from the ridiculously easy to the fairly time consuming, packed into 169 pages of juvenile playhem. Good instructions, clear pictures and photos, and all done with the emphasis on safety.
There is also a fair amount of explanation concerning the actual physics behind the projects and a look at historical figures such as Newton and Archimedes.

Useful property tables, 17 Jul 1999
his is not a 'book' in the traditional sense. It is more of an engineering reference table, giving specific properties of substances in different states.

A very useful purchase for anyone connected with engineering calculations (including students) in thermodynamics and aerodynamics.

Excellent product, well supported by both Mathworks and the community, 14 Dec 2007
Matlab has become very popular in the engineering field. Whilst both Maple and Mathematica have stronger symbolic capabilities, Matlab excels in the numerics and so tends to be used for engineering more than pure maths.

The Matlab documentation is built into the program and is also available online. There is a very active newsgroup comp.soft-sys.matlab where Matlab users can ask for help. It is read by a lot of staff from Mathworks and they, or other Matlab users, answer questions quickly. The importance of good support on this sort of software can not be overstated. This is a serious issue with Mathematica, which is a similar(ish) product to Matlab. The Mathematica newsgroup is moderated, so help requests can take a day before anyone sees them. To get a satisfactory answer to a question can often take a long time.

Matlab is excellent value for money for students, being cheaper than the student versions of either Maple or Mathematica. Although this is is a "sprat to catch a mackerel", as the commercial version of Matlab is expensive. This student version includes various toolboxes and Simulink, all of which are optional extras if you buy the commercial version.

The commercial version of Matlab is available on Solaris, but only Windows, Linux and Mac are supported on the student version. Since I used Solaris as a student, I would have found this annoying. There would be no harm in asking if they would give a license for Solaris.


I have the THIRD EDITION, 18 Sep 2007
I bought a second hand copy of the third edition, so I can't comment on the new online chapters that appear to be the main criticism of the book. What I can say is that the quality of the existing chapters is impressive. The material was suitable to entirely teach myself the syllabus of a second year undergraduate module in materials science as part of my mechanical engineering degree, whilst being refreshingly concise.

Excelent book, but online nightmare, 14 Jan 2007
This book is a must have for anyone who is studying engineering. I have found it an invaluable source information as my lecturer in the subject is often confusing and the notes poor. I do have to agree sadly though with a past reviewer about the online portion. I registered online then didn't receive an email so now I am unable to access any of the online content. For this I am giving the book a 3, if only they could fix the web portion this book would be an easy 5.

Students worst nightmare, 10 Nov 2006
The parts of the book they give you are fine, but the publisher is greedy at the students expense. First off, the last five chapters are NOT included in the text! You have to go 'online' to get them. I bought a new copy with the access code, there is no longer any CD that comes with it, it is all 'online'. I use quotes b/c 'online' means registering your info with the publisher and then being allowed to get the material. I did this and had to carefully avoid checking all the right boxes to avoid spamming, which still didn't stop it. But after all that is done, they send you a confirmation email, an email I didn't get. Gmail might rightfully trash this companies emails. The result is denial of trying to register a second time with the same code, and nullification of that code if you don't authenticate within a week. So now I don't have access to any of the material and have to pay for the price of the book again to get a new access code. My other choice is to fail the quizzes!

If you are a student, don't buy this book for reference, as it is incomplete, and the website will probably only function until the next edition comes out. You can't buy it used as you have to pay for the access anyway.

Professors who are interested, please do your students a favor and stay away from this book. If you like the way it works, look into using the sixth edition, as I am pretty sure it has every chapter in it even if it is slightly outdated and it is still sold on Amazon. Your students can also buy a used copy. Even if they buy a new copy, they don't risk being sucked dry from this greedy publisher.

Spot on!, 12 Feb 2006
This is a must for any student studying not just material science but any form of engineering. Well written and easy to understand, Well worth the money.

Brilliant, just BRILLIANT!!!, 10 Jan 2006
I cannot fault this text book in any way possible! It is just perfect!! Every day after leaving my Chemical Engineering lecture, i would review what was taught by reading the text book, and i just cannot emphasise enough how much it engraved all the essential concepts in my brain!! I wish i could give it more than 5 stars!!

Useful analysis of the ongoing transformation of business, 25 Sep 2008
Unlike many books on new economies or global changes, this work cites examples from around the world. C. K. Prahalad and M. S. Krishnan provide illustrative case studies from firms in India, Canada, the United States, Europe and elsewhere. They examine the various interactions among these firms and locales, grounding their theoretical discussions in reality. To add even more clarity, they also include many drawings and charts; unfortunately, these tend to force a simplistic Cartesian graphing system onto complex changes. Likewise, their abbreviations are more memorable than clear. Overall, though, these are minor glitches in an innovative and useful study. The authors' analyses of how firms are interacting internationally, and redesigning themselves and the nature of business in the process, are both interesting and valuable. Its discussions of broad trends are unusually well-informed. getAbstract recommends this book to executives and others committed to keeping up with change, especially on a large, even global, scale.

Prahalad NEEDS Gary Hamel, 20 Jul 2008
Well, i bought this book with great expectations. However after reading it, i was very disappointed with it. Hardly any interesting insights and i was falling asleep reading this book. The absurd use of this phoney management formula really started to get on my nerves i.e. n=1 etc. Yawn yawn. I can see why Prahalad wrote with Gary Hamel- HE NEEDED Gary Hamel probably more than Gary Hamel needed Prahalad. This book is apauling so take my advice and DONT BUY IT

How to prosper in the "N = 1 and R = G" world, 02 May 2008

I have read and then reviewed all of C.K. Prahalad's previous books and thus was especially interested in reading this book, co-authored with M.S. Krishnan. As they explain in the Introduction, "We view innovation as shaping consumer expectations as well as responding continually to the changing demands, behaviors, and experiences pf consumers. We must do this by accessing the best talent and resources available anywhere in the world. These two ideas must be connected - the resources of many to satisfy the needs of one.. We suggest that this is possible only if we pay attention to the glue that enables ideas to be transformed into operations. We will focus on the business processes and analytics as the glue."

Prahalad and Krishnan acknowledge that there is a fundamental transformation now underway, worldwide, that will radically alter the very nature of an enterprise and how it creates value. This foundation of this transformation has two basic pillars:

1. "Value is based on unique, personalized experiences of consumers. [begin italics] The focus is on the centrality of the individual. [end italics] We will designate this pillar as N = 1 (one consumer at a time.)"

"2. No firm is big enough in scope and size to satisfy the experiences of one consumer at a time. [begin italics] The focus is on access to resources, not ownership of resources. [end italics] We will designate this [pillar as R = G (resources from multiple vendors and often from around the globe)."

There are several key elements of this transformation. Prahalad and Krishnan focus on five: Value is shifting from products to solutions to experience; all companies seek access to the talent, components, products, and services they need from the best sources; flexible systems are a prerequisite and must be developed; resources in a company's ecosystem must be continually configured; and finally, specific models must be developed that enable a company to focus on one consumer from among the millions. These are indeed formidable challenges. Prahalad and Krishnan suggest a number of strategies and tactics to consider when responding to them. When proceeding through the rigorously and eloquent narrative of this book, it is imperative to keep in mind that their ultimate objective is to help companies to prosper in this "N = 1 and R = G" world. To that end, they share the most important business lessons learned from a number of exemplary companies that include Amazon.com, Apple Computer, eBay, Google, ICIC Bank, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Unilever, and United Parcel Service (UPS).

To me, some of the most valuable material is provided in Chapter 5 (Pages 109-145) as Prahalad and Krishnan discuss the requirements of an information and communication technology (ICT) architecture and the governance mechanisms that can connect business processes and analytics to data and applications. In one of several graphics, Table 4.1 (Pages 124-126), they summarize the specificati9ons of the new ICT architecture in terms of four categories (i.e. "buckets"): Confronting Reality (e.g. capacity to link large systems and multiple databases), Compliance and Change (e.g. regulatory compliance and change), Evolving Capabilities (e.g. Security and privacy of data), and Enabling Foundations (e.g. from transaction-driven to event-driven systems).

Given the fundamental shift in the focus, the sources, and the processes of innovation and value creation, what do suggest for an agenda for managers to consider? They respond to that question in the final chapter. Specifically, they invoke a metaphor --- The New House of innovation - whose design and construction must be viewed as an "integrated package" in terms of its architecture, construction materials, and subsequent maintenance. The organizational transformation process must also be comprehensive and cohesive during a transition period (i.e. a "migration") of management practices to develop new skills, attitudes, and behaviors. It remains for decision-makers in each organization to design and then build its own new house pf innovation. Fortunately, they can use the information and counsel that C.K. Prahalad and M.S. Krishnan provide to guide and inform those initiatives.

Those who share my high regard for this brilliant volume are urged to check out Competing in a Flat World: Building Enterprises for a Borderless World co-authored by Victor Fung, William Fung, and Yoram (Jerry) Wind as well as Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning co-authored by Thomas Davenport and Jeanne Harris. Also Enterprise Architecture as Strategy: Creating a Foundation for Business Execution co-authored by Jeanne Ross, Peter Weill and David Robertson and Dean Spitzer's Transforming Performance Measurement: Rethinking the Way We Measure and Drive Organizational Success.

Bite-sized basics, 14 Dec 2003
This book assumes no prior knowledge and is great for novice project users. It has small self contained lessons that guide the reader through creating, refining, pubishing and managing projects using Project 2003. It concentrated on the tool and unlike some books doesn't tell you how to manage your project which I think makes it quite well focussed.
However, if you have used project to manage even a few projects, 50% or more of this book is no good to you.
I have used Project for many years and bought the book to exploit some advanced features of this version and found myself more than a little disappointed.
There are some advanced techniques that are not in the book, which surprised me. The book concentrates a fair proportion to Project Server which I don't think is necessary for most.
Buy this book if you want excellent basic trainig at your own pace. Don't buy it if you want to learn advanced hints and tips.

A Good Value Book on PRINCE2, 06 Nov 2008
This book is easy to read and a very good overview of PRINCE2. At the price, it is very good value as well.

Prince2 Review, 24 Oct 2008
An excellent well written structured overview of the international Project Management methodology. Author makes a pretty light-hearted read of a difficult subject. Recommended.

Very Useful Instruction, 27 May 2008
As the title suggests, the book is a step by step guide to Office Project 2007. It walks you through all of the different aspects of Project that a new or intermediate user could be expected to know or benefit from. It also provides a number of "tips" where a more advanced or enquiring user may want to find further information. The layout and structure of the book is very good, which could reasonably be expected, with "Chapters at a Glance", "Summaries of topics covered", "Key points" and very clear formatting to help the reader/user.

As a previous user of an older version of Project, I bought the book as both a refresher to Project and an introduction to the new 07 version. It has certainly delivered on both these counts. However, I would imagine that if I need to develop a more detailed level of knowledge about the software I would probably end up buying a supplemental book as well.

I will be using Project professionally and will need to share my project plans with other stakeholders, in light of this I found the following chapters particularly useful:
*Organising and Formatting Project Details
*Printing Project Information
*Sharing Project Information with Other Programs


Top drawer, 06 Jun 2007
Exceptionally well-written book which almost falls over itself to be helpful, with the Chapter At A Glance page at the start of each chapter and the Quick Reference pages at the beginning.

I've got three other books on Project 2007 and this is easily the most readable and enjoyable. It keeps you interested with the well-worked examples on disc for you to follow along with and imparts a very good depth and breadth of information.

I was uncomfortable with Project before reading this book and tried a lot of tinkering with the software in an attempt to ease my uncertainties. This book takes a lot of the donkey-work out of that process by giving solid exercises to guide you each step of the way.

It gets you up and running in no time and leaves you keen to explore even deeper. The last 50 pages introduce Server but the main thrust is with the desktop application; perfect for my working requirements.

One of the few books which takes the frustration out of the learning process - no hesitation in giving it a maximum 5 out of 5.

Take cover, 16 Mar 2006
This is a really fascinating read.
Strong emphasis is placed on safety and is ideal for Parental supervision of all the projects.The story of the atomic spud gun is worth buying the book on it's own.

Unbelievably mad, incredibaly fun, 19 Jan 2005
Unlike most books like it this is a manual is genuinely full of easy to do projects. If you looking for something special in coimbination with this I reccommend "Home Workshop Explosives" by Uncle Fester. This combination is not for the faint of heart! Overall an excellent addition to my collection.

Wow., 30 Jul 2004
A superb, but sadly probably marginally legal in my jurisdiction, introduction to the destructive delights of the hairspray powered potato gun amongst many, beautifully detailed little projects.

For all of us who watch "junkyard wars", or as we have it "Scrapheap Challenge", this book is a rallying call to visit the plumbers supply house and detonate some spuds.

The book is strong on details, suggestions for further "research" and lots of pertinent history.

Highly recommended.

Step-by-step mad stuff to make, or, toys for the boys., 07 Nov 2001
A handbook for bored, thirty-something children (like myself) on how to make potato cannons, tennis ball mortars, catapults and the like from the comfort of their garden shed.
Twelve projects from the ridiculously easy to the fairly time consuming, packed into 169 pages of juvenile playhem. Good instructions, clear pictures and photos, and all done with the emphasis on safety.
There is also a fair amount of explanation concerning the actual physics behind the projects and a look at historical figures such as Newton and Archimedes.

Useful property tables, 17 Jul 1999
his is not a 'book' in the traditional sense. It is more of an engineering reference table, giving specific properties of substances in different states.

A very useful purchase for anyone connected with engineering calculations (including students) in thermodynamics and aerodynamics.

Excellent product, well supported by both Mathworks and the community, 14 Dec 2007
Matlab has become very popular in the engineering field. Whilst both Maple and Mathematica have stronger symbolic capabilities, Matlab excels in the numerics and so tends to be used for engineering more than pure maths.

The Matlab documentation is built into the program and is also available online. There is a very active newsgroup comp.soft-sys.matlab where Matlab users can ask for help. It is read by a lot of staff from Mathworks and they, or other Matlab users, answer questions quickly. The importance of good support on this sort of software can not be overstated. This is a serious issue with Mathematica, which is a similar(ish) product to Matlab. The Mathematica newsgroup is moderated, so help requests can take a day before anyone sees them. To get a satisfactory answer to a question can often take a long time.

Matlab is excellent value for money for students, being cheaper than the student versions of either Maple or Mathematica. Although this is is a "sprat to catch a mackerel", as the commercial version of Matlab is expensive. This student version includes various toolboxes and Simulink, all of which are optional extras if you buy the commercial version.

The commercial version of Matlab is available on Solaris, but only Windows, Linux and Mac are supported on the student version. Since I used Solaris as a student, I would have found this annoying. There would be no harm in asking if they would give a license for Solaris.


I have the THIRD EDITION, 18 Sep 2007
I bought a second hand copy of the third edition, so I can't comment on the new online chapters that appear to be the main criticism of the book. What I can say is that the quality of the existing chapters is impressive. The material was suitable to entirely teach myself the syllabus of a second year undergraduate module in materials science as part of my mechanical engineering degree, whilst being refreshingly concise.

Excelent book, but online nightmare, 14 Jan 2007
This book is a must have for anyone who is studying engineering. I have found it an invaluable source information as my lecturer in the subject is often confusing and the notes poor. I do have to agree sadly though with a past reviewer about the online portion. I registered online then didn't receive an email so now I am unable to access any of the online content. For this I am giving the book a 3, if only they could fix the web portion this book would be an easy 5.

Students worst nightmare, 10 Nov 2006
The parts of the book they give you are fine, but the publisher is greedy at the students expense. First off, the last five chapters are NOT included in the text! You have to go 'online' to get them. I bought a new copy with the access code, there is no longer any CD that comes with it, it is all 'online'. I use quotes b/c 'online' means registering your info with the publisher and then being allowed to get the material. I did this and had to carefully avoid checking all the right boxes to avoid spamming, which still didn't stop it. But after all that is done, they send you a confirmation email, an email I didn't get. Gmail might rightfully trash this companies emails. The result is denial of trying to register a second time with the same code, and nullification of that code if you don't authenticate within a week. So now I don't have access to any of the material and have to pay for the price of the book again to get a new access code. My other choice is to fail the quizzes!

If you are a student, don't buy this book for reference, as it is incomplete, and the website will probably only function until the next edition comes out. You can't buy it used as you have to pay for the access anyway.

Professors who are interested, please do your students a favor and stay away from this book. If you like the way it works, look into using the sixth edition, as I am pretty sure it has every chapter in it even if it is slightly outdated and it is still sold on Amazon. Your students can also buy a used copy. Even if they buy a new copy, they don't risk being sucked dry from this greedy publisher.

Spot on!, 12 Feb 2006
This is a must for any student studying not just material science but any form of engineering. Well written and easy to understand, Well worth the money.

Brilliant, just BRILLIANT!!!, 10 Jan 2006
I cannot fault this text book in any way possible! It is just perfect!! Every day after leaving my Chemical Engineering lecture, i would review what was taught by reading the text book, and i just cannot emphasise enough how much it engraved all the essential concepts in my brain!! I wish i could give it more than 5 stars!!

Useful analysis of the ongoing transformation of business, 25 Sep 2008
Unlike many books on new economies or global changes, this work cites examples from around the world. C. K. Prahalad and M. S. Krishnan provide illustrative case studies from firms in India, Canada, the United States, Europe and elsewhere. They examine the various interactions among these firms and locales, grounding their theoretical discussions in reality. To add even more clarity, they also include many drawings and charts; unfortunately, these tend to force a simplistic Cartesian graphing system onto complex changes. Likewise, their abbreviations are more memorable than clear. Overall, though, these are minor glitches in an innovative and useful study. The authors' analyses of how firms are interacting internationally, and redesigning themselves and the nature of business in the process, are both interesting and valuable. Its discussions of broad trends are unusually well-informed. getAbstract recommends this book to executives and others committed to keeping up with change, especially on a large, even global, scale.

Prahalad NEEDS Gary Hamel, 20 Jul 2008
Well, i bought this book with great expectations. However after reading it, i was very disappointed with it. Hardly any interesting insights and i was falling asleep reading this book. The absurd use of this phoney management formula really started to get on my nerves i.e. n=1 etc. Yawn yawn. I can see why Prahalad wrote with Gary Hamel- HE NEEDED Gary Hamel probably more than Gary Hamel needed Prahalad. This book is apauling so take my advice and DONT BUY IT

How to prosper in the "N = 1 and R = G" world, 02 May 2008

I have read and then reviewed all of C.K. Prahalad's previous books and thus was especially interested in reading this book, co-authored with M.S. Krishnan. As they explain in the Introduction, "We view innovation as shaping consumer expectations as well as responding continually to the changing demands, behaviors, and experiences pf consumers. We must do this by accessing the best talent and resources available anywhere in the world. These two ideas must be connected - the resources of many to satisfy the needs of one.. We suggest that this is possible only if we pay attention to the glue that enables ideas to be transformed into operations. We will focus on the business processes and analytics as the glue."

Prahalad and Krishnan acknowledge that there is a fundamental transformation now underway, worldwide, that will radically alter the very nature of an enterprise and how it creates value. This foundation of this transformation has two basic pillars:

1. "Value is based on unique, personalized experiences of consumers. [begin italics] The focus is on the centrality of the individual. [end italics] We will designate this pillar as N = 1 (one consumer at a time.)"

"2. No firm is big enough in scope and size to satisfy the experiences of one consumer at a time. [begin italics] The focus is on access to resources, not ownership of resources. [end italics] We will designate this [pillar as R = G (resources from multiple vendors and often from around the globe)."

There are several key elements of this transformation. Prahalad and Krishnan focus on five: Value is shifting from products to solutions to experience; all companies seek access to the talent, components, products, and services they need from the best sources; flexible systems are a prerequisite and must be developed; resources in a company's ecosystem must be continually configured; and finally, specific models must be developed that enable a company to focus on one consumer from among the millions. These are indeed formidable challenges. Prahalad and Krishnan suggest a number of strategies and tactics to consider when responding to them. When proceeding through the rigorously and eloquent narrative of this book, it is imperative to keep in mind that their ultimate objective is to help companies to prosper in this "N = 1 and R = G" world. To that end, they share the most important business lessons learned from a number of exemplary companies that include Amazon.com, Apple Computer, eBay, Google, ICIC Bank, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Unilever, and United Parcel Service (UPS).

To me, some of the most valuable material is provided in Chapter 5 (Pages 109-145) as Prahalad and Krishnan discuss the requirements of an information and communication technology (ICT) architecture and the governance mechanisms that can connect business processes and analytics to data and applications. In one of several graphics, Table 4.1 (Pages 124-126), they summarize the specificati9ons of the new ICT architecture in terms of four categories (i.e. "buckets"): Confronting Reality (e.g. capacity to link large systems and multiple databases), Compliance and Change (e.g. regulatory compliance and change), Evolving Capabilities (e.g. Security and privacy of data), and Enabling Foundations (e.g. from transaction-driven to event-driven systems).

Given the fundamental shift in the focus, the sources, and the processes of innovation and value creation, what do suggest for an agenda for managers to consider? They respond to that question in the final chapter. Specifically, they invoke a metaphor --- The New House of innovation - whose design and construction must be viewed as an "integrated package" in terms of its architecture, construction materials, and subsequent maintenance. The organizational transformation process must also be comprehensive and cohesive during a transition period (i.e. a "migration") of management practices to develop new skills, attitudes, and behaviors. It remains for decision-makers in each organization to design and then build its own new house pf innovation. Fortunately, they can use the information and counsel that C.K. Prahalad and M.S. Krishnan provide to guide and inform those initiatives.

Those who share my high regard for this brilliant volume are urged to check out Competing in a Flat World: Building Enterprises for a Borderless World co-authored by Victor Fung, William Fung, and Yoram (Jerry) Wind as well as Competing on Analytics: The New Science of Winning co-authored by Thomas Davenport and Jeanne Harris. Also Enterprise Architecture as Strategy: Creating a Foundation for Business Execution co-authored by Jeanne Ross, Peter Weill and David Robertson and Dean Spitzer's Transforming Performance Measurement: Rethinking the Way We Measure and Drive Organizational Success.

Bite-sized basics, 14 Dec 2003
This book assumes no prior knowledge and is great for novice project users. It has small self contained lessons that guide the reader through creating, refining, pubishing and managing projects using Project 2003. It concentrated on the tool and unlike some books doesn't tell you how to manage your project which I think makes it quite well focussed.
However, if you have used project to manage even a few projects, 50% or more of this book is no good to you.
I have used Project for many years and bought the book to exploit some advanced features of this version and found myself more than a little disappointed.
There are some advanced techniques that are not in the book, which surprised me. The book concentrates a fair proportion to Project Server which I don't think is necessary for most.
Buy this book if you want excellent basic trainig at your own pace. Don't buy it if you want to learn advanced hints and tips.

perfect for first time users!!, 02 Jan 2007
when i read the instructions and learnt all of the different techniques for my course, i was amazed at the simplicity shown to me in this book. i feel that it is a good all round book, and the advice on some of the techniques is brilliant! i want more!!

Good information and tips for the potter moving away from conventional kilns, 19 Jul 2006
This book offers a multitude of tips, photos and help with saggar, raku, barrel and pit firings. It also has recipes for glazes, terra sigillata and includes advice on burnishing that is more detailed and sophisticated than other books I have encountered.

I found this book so full of well-written advice and easy to follow steps that it has inspired me to try some of them out. Few books have this effect on people so I would recommend it without reservation.

A Good Value Book on PRINCE2, 06 Nov 2008
This book is easy to read and a very good overview of PRINCE2. At the price, it is very good value as well.

Prince2 Review, 24 Oct 2008
An excellent well written structured overview of the international Project Management methodology. Author makes a pretty light-hearted read of a difficult subject. Recommended.

Very Useful Instruction, 27 May 2008
As the title suggests, the book is a step by step guide to Office Project 2007. It walks you through all of the different aspects of Project that a new or intermediate user could be expected to know or benefit from. It also provides a number of "tips" where a more advanced or enquiring user may want to find further information. The layout and structure of the book is very good, which could reasonably be expected, with "Chapters at a Glance", "Summaries of topics