Invisible Engines: How Software Platforms Drive Innovation and Transform Industries : 9780262050852

Winner of the Business, Management & Accounting category in the 2006 Professional/Scholarly Publishing Annual Awards Competition presented by the Association of American Publishers, Inc.

Software platforms are the invisible engines that have created, touched, or transformed nearly every major industry for the past quarter century. They power everything from mobile phones and automobile navigation systems to search engines and web portals. They have been the source of enormous value to consumers and helped some entrepreneurs build great fortunes. And they are likely to drive change that will dwarf the business and technology revolution we have seen to this point. Invisible Engines examines the business dynamics and strategies used by firms that recognize the transformative power unleashed by this new revolution--a revolution that will change both new and old industries.

The authors argue that in order to understand the successes of software platforms, we must first understand their role as a technological meeting ground where application developers and end users converge. Apple, Microsoft, and Google, for example, charge developers little or nothing for using their platforms and make most of their money from end users; Sony PlayStation and other game consoles, by contrast, subsidize users and make more money from developers, who pay royalties for access to the code they need to write games. More applications attract more users, and more users attract more applications. And more applications and more users lead to more profits.

Invisible Engines explores this story through the lens of the companies that have mastered this platform-balancing act. It offers detailed studies of the personal computer, video game console, personal digital assistant, smart mobile phone, and digital media software platform industries, focusing on the business decisions made by industry players to drive profits and stay a step ahead of the competition. Shorter discussions of Internet-based software platforms provide an important glimpse into a future in which the way we buy, pay, watch, listen, learn, and communicate will change forever. An electronic version of this book is available under a Creative Commons license.

About the Author

David S. Evans is Managing Director of the Global Competition Policy Practice at LECG LLC. Andrei Hagiu is Assistant Professor of Strategy at Harvard Business School. Richard Schmalensee is John C. Head III Dean and Professor of Management and Economics at MIT Sloan School of Management. Evans, Hagiu, and Schmalensee are also with Market Platform Dynamics, a management consulting firm that focuses on strategic analysis and product design for platform-based firms. Richard L. Schmalensee is John C. Head III Dean and Professor of Management and Economics at the MIT Sloan School of Management. He is co-editor of Management: Inventing and Delivering Its Future (MIT Press, 2003).

Implementation and Applications of DSL Technology : 9780849334238

This book offers deep industrial insight into the development of DSL technologies and their related applications in the telecommunications industry. It compiles the expertise of industry specialists from various perspectives, including chip designers, information theorists, systems engineers, service providers and more. It addresses in a rigorous manner specific issues that have been fundamental in the success of DSL technology, including insights into the theory that sustains DSL development, constraints, and challenges. It also offers a vast array of information not currently in the public domain, including the results of many years of practical experience that has never before been put to paper.

IC Interconnect Analysis : 9781402070754

As integrated circuit (IC) feature sizes scaled below a quarter of a micron, thereby defining the deep submicron (DSM) era, there began a gradual shift in the impact on performance due to the metal interconnections among the active circuit components. Once viewed as merely parasitics in terms of their relevance to the overall circuit behavior, the interconnect can now have a dominant impact on the IC area and performance. Beginning in the late 1980's there was significant research toward better modeling and characterization of the resistance, capacitance and ultimately the inductance of on-chip interconnect.

IC Interconnect Analysis covers the state-of-the-art methods for modeling and analyzing IC interconnect based on the past fifteen years of research. This is done at a level suitable for most practitioners who work in the semiconductor and electronic design automation fields, but also includes significant depth for the research professionals who will ultimately extend this work into other areas and applications.

IC Interconnect Analysis begins with an in-depth coverage of delay metrics, including the ubiquitous Elmore delay and its many variations. This is followed by an outline of moment matching methods, calculating moments efficiently, and Krylov subspace methods for model order reduction. The final two chapters describe how to interface these reduced-order
models to circuit simulators and gate-level timing analyzers respectively.

IC Interconnect Analysis is written for CAD tool developers, IC designers and graduate students.

IBM On Demand Technology Made Simple, Third Edition : 9780977356911

The Fastest Way to Learn about IBM Strategy and Technology Since October 2002, IBM has been laser focused on a sweeping strategy known as "On Demand Business." Since then, every IBM product line and service offering has been steadily infused with the technology and function necessary to support the On Demand Business model. In this freshly updated "Third Edition" of "IBM On Demand Technology Made Simple," popular technology author Jim Hoskins starts by describing the IBM vision known as On Demand Business so you can see the big picture and understand how your business can benefit. We then move in for a closer look at the computing infrastructure necessary to support an On Demand Business. You will come away with a new understanding of how you can evolve your current computing infrastructure to achieve the flexibility so vital in the on demand era.

This MaxFactsTM Guidebook presents an easy-to-read overview of key building block products such as IBM servers, storage, printer, and software including WebSphere, DB2, Tivoli, Lotus, Rational and Linux from an On Demand Business perspective. You will learn about the IBM Systems Agenda which guides the development of all IBM server and storage product lines. You will see how virtualization can be leveraged to improve utilization and reduce costs. You will see how to evolve your infrastructure towards the goal of end-to-end integration by leveraging hardware and software that adheres to open standards. To help you stay current, this book provides you with a personal password for accessing the companion Web site which offers up-to-the-minute On Demand Business news, "More on the Web" links highlighted throughout the book, and additional resources. This book will help you:

* Get inside IBM's companywide On Demand Business strategy

* See how best to evolve your infrastructure for the future

* Update your knowledge on key IBM server, storage, printer, and software product lines

* Understand where IBM is headed with Linux

* Stay current through the "members only" companion Web site

IssueWeb: A Guide and Sourcebook for Researching Controversial Issues on the Web : 9781591580782

What student has graduated from col lege with out writing an opinion or position pa per? We dare to venture that the num ber is quite small. After all, opinion papers are an av enue for teaching critical think ing skills. They can help stu dents understand whether their opin ion on a topic has a bias, is based on suf ficient information, and falls within a continuum of widely held be liefs. It is a way for individuals to be gin play ing lifelong val ues and be liefs off those of so ciety as a whole, to evaluate their own be liefs, and to de termine what roles they wish to play in society. However, to accomplish all these things, one must be exposed to new and dif ferent ideas. One important route to this exposure is research.

The idea for this book came from an on line Internet course in which we teach students to use the Web for research pur poses. Top ics that lend themselves well to our assignments are those that are con troversial in na ture. We have discovered in the years of teaching this course that not only do students need to learn about search techniques and tools they also require instruction in the evaluation of pub lished or on line materials. Put simply, what the student knows or believes colors his or her un derstanding of the sig nificance or pur pose of what he or she reads. For instance, if we ask students to judge whether a Web site is trying to sway opin ion, one student might think it is not if the Web site corroborates his or her own worldview, while an other stu dent might think it is if the view stands in opposition to his or her own beliefs.

We have also found that the ease of us ing search en gines, such as Google or AltaVista, en courages students to take a noncontextual, key word approach to research. Spit in a word and see what co mes out. Not only does this present the student with an overwhelming amount of material, it pro vides a hap hazard lump made of pieces that are unrelated in context. An ad might ap pear in the same re - sult list as a scholarly ar ticle. An ex tremist in dividual's Web page might be grouped with a student assignment posted to a course Web site. How do we get past this? How do any of us move from be ing in dividuals who can only see con troversial in formation we read through the lens of our own bias? And how do we find material that is grouped ap propriately by type? This is the process we are at tempting to address here.

About the Author

KAREN R. DIAZ is an Instruction Librarian at the Ohio State University Libraries, Columbus. She currently teaches online courses on research skills for college students. She has held positions as Web librarian, reference librarian, and online coordinator in academic libraries. Karen holds a Masters of Library Information Science from Louisiana State University. Other publications include articles and an edited book about online reference and research. NANCY O'HANLON is currently an Instruction Librarian at the Ohio State University Libraries, Columbus, where she is responsible for developing and managing online information literacy programs. Nancy received an M.S. in Library Information Science from University of Illinois, Urbana, in 1983. In addition to holding various library positions at Ohio State, she was Associate Director of the Eisenhower National Clearinghouse for Mathematics and Science Education, and has also worked as a freelance Web developer. She has published a variety of articles on instruction-related topics.

Introduction to Probability with Statistical Applications : 9780817644970

This book provides a calculus-based introduction to probability and statistics. It contains enough material for two semesters but, with judicious selection, it can be used as a textbook for a one-semester course, either in probability and statistics or in probability alone.

Each section contains many examples and exercises and, in the statistical sections, examples taken from current research journals.

The discussion is rigorous, with carefully motivated definitions, theorems and proofs, but aimed for an audience, such as computer science students, whose mathematical background is not very strong and who do not need the detail and mathematical depth of similar books written for mathematics or statistics majors.

The use of linear algebra is avoided and the use of multivariable calculus is minimized as much as possible. The few concepts from the latter, like double integrals, that were unavoidable, are explained in an informal manner, but triple or higher integrals are not used. The reader may find a few brief references to other more advanced concepts, but they can safely be ignored.

Introduction to Discrete Event Systems : 9780387333328

As its title suggests, this book is about a special class of systems which in recent decades have become an integral part of our world. Before getting into the details of this particular class of systems, it is reasonable to start out by simply describing what we mean by a “system”, and by presenting the fundamental concepts associated with system theory as it developed over the years. This defines the first objective of this chapter, which is for the benefit of readers with little or no prior exposure to introductory material on systems and control theory (Sect. 1.2). Readers who are already familiar with concepts such as “state spaces”, “state equations”, “sample paths”, and “feedback” may immediately proceed to Sect. 1.3.

The second objective is to look at useful classifications of systems so as to reveal the features motivating our study of discrete event systems. Historically, scientists and engineers have concentrated on studying and harnessing natural phenomena which are well-modeled by the laws of gravity, classical and nonclassical mechanics, physical chemistry, etc. In so doing, we typically deal with quantities such as the displacement, velocity, and acceleration of particles and rigid bodies, or the pressure, temperature, and flow rates of fluids and gases. These are “continuous variables” in the sense that they can take on any real value as time itself “continuously” evolves. Based on this fact, a vast body of mathematical tools and techniques has been developed to model, analyze, and control the systems around us. It is fair to say that the study of ordinary and partial differential equations currently provides the main infrastructure for system analysis and control.

Introduction to CDMA Wireless Communications : 9780750652520

The book gives an in-depth study of the principles of the spread spectrum techniques and their applications in mobile communications. It starts with solid foundations in the digital communications that are essential to unequivocal understanding of the CDMA technology, and guides the reader through the fundamentals and characteristics of cellular CDMA communications.

Features include:

* A very clear and thorough description of the principles and applications of spread spectrum techniques in multi-user mobile communications.

* Matlab-based worked examples, exercises and practical sessions to clearly explain the theoretical concepts.

* An easy-to-read explanation of the air interface standards used in IS-95 A/B, cdma2000, and 3G WCDMA.

* Clear presentations of the high speed downlink and uplink packet access (HSDPA/HSUPA) techniques used in 3G WCDMA.

The book is a very suitable introduction to the principles of CDMA communications for senior undergraduate and graduate students, as well researchers and engineers in industry who are looking to develop their expertise.

Introduction to Bayesian Scientific Computing: Ten Lectures on Subjective Computing : 9780387733937

The book of nature, according to Galilei, is written in the language of mathematics. The nature of mathematics is being exact, and its exactness is underlined by the formalism used by mathematicians to write it. This formalism, characterized by theorems and proofs, and syncopated with occasional lemmas, remarks and corollaries, is so deeply ingrained that mathematicians feel uncomfortable when the pattern is broken, to the point of giving the impression that the attitude of mathematicians towards the way mathematics should be written is almost moralistic. There is a definition often quoted, “A mathematician is a person who proves theorems”, and a similar, more alchemistic one, credited to Paul Erd˝os, but more likely going back to Alfr´ed R´enyi, stating that “A mathematician is a machine that transforms coffee into theorems1”. Therefore it seems to be the form, not the content, that characterizes mathematics, similarly to what happens in any formal moralistic code wherein form takes precedence over content.

This book is deliberately written in a very different manner, without a single theorem or proof. Since morality has its subjective component, to paraphrase Manuel Vasquez Montalban, we could call it Ten Immoral Mathematical Recipes2. Does the lack of theorems and proofs mean that the book is more inaccurate than traditional books of mathematics? Or is it possibly just a sign of lack of coffee? This is our first open question.

This book has been written for undergraduate and graduate students in various areas of mathematics and its applications. It is for students who are willing to get acquainted with Bayesian approach to computational science but not necessarily to go through the full immersion into the statistical analysis. It has also been written for researchers working in areas where mathematical and statistical modeling are of central importance, such as biology and engineering.

Introduction to Artificial Neural Systems : 9780314933911

The recent resurgence of interest in neural networks has its roots in the recognition that the brain performs computations in a different manner than do conventional digital computers. Computers are extremely fast and precise at executing sequences of instructions that have been formulated for them. A human information processing system is composed of neurons switching at speeds about a million times slower than computer gates. Yet, humans are more efficient than computers at computationally complex tasks such as speech understanding. Moreover, not only humans, but even animals, can process visual information better than the fastest computers.

The question of whether technology can benefit from emulating the computational capabilities of organisms is a natural one. Unfortunately, the understanding of biological neural systems is not developed enough to address the issues of functional similarity that may exist between the biological and man-made neural systems. As a result, any major potential gains derived from such functional similarity, if they exist, have yet to be exploited.

This book introduces the foundations of artificial neural systems. Much of the inspiration for such systems comes from neuroscience. However, we are not directly concerned with networks of biological neurons in this text. Although the newly developed paradigms of artificial neural networks have strongly contributed to the discovery, understanding, and utilization of potential functional similarities between human and artificial information processing systems, many questions remain open. Intense research interest persists and the area continues to develop. The ultimate research objective is the theory and implementation of massively parallel interconnected systems which could process the information with an efficiency comparable to that of the brain.

Intelligent Sensor Design Using the Microchip dsPIC (Embedded Technology) : 9780750677554

In this book, readers will find:

In-depth design techniques, real-world examples, detailed figures and usable code

Application chapters thoroughly exploring temperature, pressure and load, and flow sensors

A FREE CD that provides a toolkit of software models in both C and assembly language

Intelligent sensors are revolutionizing the world of system design in everything from sports cars to assembly lines. These new sensors have abilities that leave their predecessors in the dust! They not only measure parameters efficiently and precisely, but they also have the ability to enhance and interpret those measurements, thereby transforming raw data into truly useful information.

Within the pages of this book, expert designer Creed Huddleston teaches readers to become quickly proficient in the application of the most popular digital signal controller on the market, the Microchip dsPIC, which handily marries beefy DSP processing power to the ubiquitous PIC. Digital signal controllers have proven to be an optimal way of adding intelligence to sensors because they combine the control advantages of a microcontroller with the speed of a digital signal processor. Through concrete examples and in-depth information on real-world sensor systems, Intelligent Sensor Design Using the Mircrochip dsPIC enables designers to easily produce more accurate code, even while slicing time off product design cycles!

Unlike many embedded systems books that confine themselves strictly to discussing software, this book also delves into the supporting electronic hardware, thereby providing a complete understanding of interfacing to three specific types of sensors (temperature, pressure and load, and flow sensors). This practical, easy-to-read resource offers insight into the real problems designers face in the course of their daily work, and guides readers toward solutions that will help them to take advantage of the powerful tool that is the intelligent sensor.

Intelligent Agents for Telecommunication Environments (Innovative Technology Series) : 9781903996294

Mobile agents are program instances (or processes) capable of moving within the network under their own control. They consist of three parts: code, data state, and execution state. Migration of mobile agents takes place between hosts. These hosts execute the agents and provide functionality to them. This functionality includes communication with other agents and users, migration to other hosts, and other services such as persistency (i.e. storing data or agent snapshots), services lookup (i.e. finding agents that offer a service), location of agents (either locally or on a larger scale), integration of legacy systems such as databases, and the like.

Being the technical basis for applications, mobile agents offer a number of advantages. These include the saving of network bandwidth and increase in the overall performance by allowing the application to process data on or near the source of data (e.g. a database), asynchronous processing, i.e. the possibility to fulfil a task without the need to have a permanent connection from the client to a host, achieving true parallel computation by employing a number of agents working on different nodes, the replacement of a fault model where network failures can interrupt every phase of the computation by one where network failures can influence only the migration of an agent (as the rest is then done locally on the same node), and so on. Additionally, mobile agents "inherit" the advantages of mobile code systems, especially the possibility to transport functionality automatically to nodes where it has not been installed before.

For mobile agents, security is a very important aspect since neither the provider of a host or an agent-based service, nor the owner of an agent wants to be harmed by employing this technology. This is a non-trivial requirement in mobile agent systems, because firstly, the executing party has no vital interest in executing a program correctly, and secondly, the employer of a program has to give away the control over its execution.

Inside the Publishing Revolution: The Adobe Story : 9780321115645

Tech journalist Pamela Pfiffner explores the rich history behind the modernpublishing revolution, as seen through the lens of one of its most importantplayers. In the past 20 years, Adobe Systems has become synonymous withgreat design tools, and the company's impact on how we work in publishing,graphic arts, and on the Web is unmatched. Join Pfiffner on a colorfuljourney from the roots of the desktop publishing revolution through the riseof the Web and interactive design. Along the way, you'll witness the birthand evolution of PostScript, the explosion of the Photoshop market, therealization of the paperless office, and other events that have shaped theway we communicate.

Inside the Publishing Revolution is not one of those dull historicaltomes you know and loathe from high school. Pfiffner packs its pages withlively, insightful interviews with world-class designers and illustrators,as well as personal insights and recollections from John Warnock, ChuckGeschke, Jonathan Seybold, and other publishing luminaries. Richlyillustrated and beautifully designed, the book features galleries ofhistorically significant work by leading artists and rare photographs fromthe Adobe archives. For added perspective, Pfiffner walks you through anillustrated timeline of the publishing revolution. As with history, thefinal chapter of the Adobe story remains to be written, so the book endswith an eye toward the future: an exclusive overview of the company'svision of publishing in the next decade.

About the Author

Pamela Pfiffner's 14-year career in publishing encompasses print, Web, and television. She has been editor in chief of such magazines as MacUser and Publish, working to extend the publications' brands to the Internet. She joined the launch team of the 24-hour cable television station ZDTV (now TechTV) in 1997 as executive producer of its dynamic media Web site. In 1999 she launched creativepro.com as an independent portal for creative professionals.

Inside SQLite : 9780596550066

SQLite is a small, zero-configuration, custom-tailored, embeddable, threadsafe, easily maintainable, transactionoriented, SQL-based, relational database management system. There is no separate install or setup procedure to initialize SQLite before using it. There is no configuration file.

SQLite is open source, and is available in the public domain (for more information on open source, visit http:// opensource.org). You can download SQLite source code from its homepage http://www.sqlite.org, compile it using your favorite C compiler, and start using the compiled library. SQLite runs on Linux, Windows, Mac OS X, and a few other operating systems. It has been widely used in low-to-medium tier database applications.

This Short Cut discusses design principles, engineering trade-offs, implementation issues, and operations of SQLite. It presents a comprehensive description of all important components of the SQLite engine.

Information Theory and Statistics: A Tutorial : 9781933019055

Information Theory and Statistics: A Tutorial is concerned with applications of information theory concepts in statistics, in the finite alphabet setting. The topics covered include large deviations, hypothesis testing, maximum likelihood estimation in exponential families, analysis of contingency tables, and iterative algorithms with an "information geometry" background. Also, an introduction is provided to the theory of universal coding, and to statistical inference via the minimum description length principle motivated by that theory. The tutorial does not assume the reader has an in-depth knowledge of Information Theory or statistics. As such, Information Theory and Statistics: A Tutorial, is an excellent introductory text to this highly-important topic in mathematics, computer science and electrical engineering. It provides both students and researchers with an invaluable resource to quickly get up to speed in the field.

Information Systems Reengineering and Integration : 9781846283826

The strategic importance of information systems is now widely accepted, and over the last three decades these systems have received considerable investment. Systems have evolved from file systems, through database systems, to the emergence of Management Information Systems (MIS) and more recently Executive Information Systems (EIS). With the advent of each new form of the technology there has been a need to redesign and re-implement existing systems. Hence the dramatic increase in the amount of resources put into the area of reengineering.

Reengineering involves the re-design of an existing Information System, whilst utilising as much of the existing system as possible. This text takes a practical approach to re-engineering existing systems and looks at data integration, and focuses on proven methods and tools for:

• the conversion of hierarchical or network database systems into relational database technology, or from relational to object-oriented and XML databases


• the integration of database systems and expert systems to produce MIS and EIS systems

Taking a very practical approach, the book describes in detail database conversion techniques, reverse engineering and forward engineering, and re-engineering methodology for information systems, offering a systematic software engineering approach for reusing existing database systems built with "old" technology, Many examples, illustrations and case studies are used, making the methodology easy to follow, and a CD is included containing solutions to problems.

This book is used for a text book of undergraduate and first year graduate students, and also for a reference book of computer professionals.

An Instructor's Guide is available on web site: www.springer.com for lecturers, and a help desk for using the CDROM is available on web site: www.udw.com.hk/helpdesk.

About the Author

Professor Fong teaches a course for which the book is required reading, which attracts between 80 and 90 students.

Information Retrieval for Music and Motion : 9783540740476

A general scenario that has attracted a lot of attention for multimedia information retrieval is based on the query-by-example paradigm: retrieve all documents from a database containing parts or aspects similar to a given data fragment. However, multimedia objects, even though they are similar from a structural or semantic viewpoint, often reveal significant spatial or temporal differences. This makes content-based multimedia retrieval a challenging research field with many unsolved problems.

Meinard Müller details concepts and algorithms for robust and efficient information retrieval by means of two different types of multimedia data: waveform-based music data and human motion data. In Part I, he discusses in depth several approaches in music information retrieval, in particular general strategies as well as efficient algorithms for music synchronization, audio matching, and audio structure analysis. He also shows how the analysis results can be used in an advanced audio player to facilitate additional retrieval and browsing functionality. In Part II, he introduces a general and unified framework for motion analysis, retrieval, and classification, highlighting the design of suitable features, the notion of similarity used to compare data streams, and data organization. The detailed chapters at the beginning of each part give consideration to the interdisciplinary character of this field, covering information science, digital signal processing, audio engineering, musicology, and computer graphics.

This first monograph specializing in music and motion retrieval appeals to a wide audience, from students at the graduate level and lecturers to scientists working in the above mentioned fields in academia or industry. Lecturers and students will benefit from the didactic style, and each unit is suitable for stand-alone use in specialized graduate courses. Researchers will be interested in the detailed description of original research results and their application in real-world browsing and retrieval scenarios.

About the Author

Meinard Müller is a Member of the Multimedia Signal Processing Group, Bonn University, working as a Researcher and Assistant Lecturer. His research interests include digital signal processing, multimedia information retrieval, computational group theory, and combinatorics. His special research topics include audio signal processing, computational musicology, analysis of 3D motion capture data, and content-based retrieval in multimedia documents.

Infection and Local Treatment in Orthopedic Surgery : 9783540479987

Bone infections involve enormous social, economic and human impact. Despite improvements in surgical techniques, asepsis and prevention, the increasing use of surgery in orthopaedics and trauma means that the absolute number of bone infections is progressively increasing in western countries.

The work of orthopaedic surgeons is increasingly assisted by industrial innovation designed to meet new requirements and achieve what clinical and scientific evidence indicates in terms of prevention and treatment of bone and joint infections.

In particular, new technologies in recent years, such as those allowing local treatment with antibiotic-loaded cements and preformed spacers, havemade it possible to improve substantially the effectiveness of infection treatment in orthopaedics. This book collects the scientific contributions of eminent European and International scientists, which were presented during the International Congress organized by Tecres Spa (Verona, Italy) and held in Verona at the “Palazzo della Gran Guardia” (7–9 September 2006).

Specialists of surgery and medicine (orthopaedic, trauma and infection surgeons, microbiologists and pharmacologists) from all over the world met to exchange the latest information. This is a collection of their personal clinical experience in the treatment of orthopaedic implant infections.

With the hope that this book may represent a useful tool for updating those who dedicate themselves to the difficult art of treating osteo-articular infections, we wish a good reading!

Indian Medicinal Plants: An Illustrated Dictionary : 9780387706375

In 2004, Springer-Verlag Heidelberg published C.P.Khares "Encyclopedia of Indian Medicinal Plants" which contained 400 monographs comprising classical as well as contemporary research findings.

"Indian Medicinal Plants. An Illustrated Dictionary" is the second major one-volume reference work by C.P.Khare which has been dedicated to the distinguished scientist, Dr. A.P.J.Abdul Kalam, who did pioneering work by reviving the glory of medicinal and aromatic plants in Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Scientific monographs of "The Wealth of India" series (17 volumes) have been capsulised in the dictionary and corroborated with the judicious findings of German Commission E, European Cooperative on Phytotherapy (ESCOP) and WHO. Therapeutic leads, active indications and contraindications are salient features of the core text. These are based on herbal pharmacopoeias, compendiums and latest editions of standard reference works like "PDR for Herbal Medicines," "(Laurance) Review of Natural Products", "Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database". Leads for further research have been provided at a number of places.

The Dictionary is the first updated source of Ayurvedic, Unani and Siddha synonyms of their botanical counterparts, after a gap of more than 30 years. The synonyms which appeared in "The Wealth of India" series (1948-1976) and in Chopras "Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants" (1956) have been updated till January, 2007.

More than 2000 medicinal plants of "The Ayurvedic Formulary of India" and "The Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India" and more than 100 species of non-Indian origin, incorporated in "National Formulary of Unani Medicine" have been covered in the Dictionary. Divergent sources of Ayurvedic, Unani and Siddha herbs have been identified and a number of controversies have been sorted out.

Pharmacognosy experts have selected important herbs, which were specially collected from leading pharamaceutical companies and pharmacopoeial laboratories and included in the dictionary as four colour photographs under the "Crude Herb Identification Guide" section. This is a unique feature and makes it an exclusive treat.

The Dictionary has been presented in a user-friendly format, as a compact, handy, easy to use and moderately priced one-volume reference work. It unfolds hidden virtues and potentials of Indian herbs for busy professionals, researchers, practitioners of herbal as well as modern medicine, and library frequenters. It will prove a ready information source for students of botany, economic botany, pharmacy, agricultural and medical sciences, who aspire to have an edge over others and are keen to keep themselves abreast of the times.

In The Name Of Terrorism: Presidents On Political Violence In The Post-world War II Era : 9780791466179

No book like this could have been written without the generous assistance of the staffs of Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library, the Jimmy Carter Presidential Library, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, and the George Bush Presidential Library. Going far beyond providing normal access to internal documents, the staffs of these libraries helped me puzzle through various issues that crossed the administrations covered in this book.

My ability to complete the manuscript was possible due to the professional  leave, the travel support to the various libraries, and the graduate research supportthat I received from Ahmed Abdelal, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Georgia State University. I am particularly grateful to Mary Ann Romski and Carolyn Codamo, who assumed the Georgia State Department of Communication chair duties in my absence. The patient administrative hand of Dean Lauren Adamson allowed me complete final revisions. Many colleagues have contributed thoughtful comments in an effort to improve this book. My initial interest in terrorism was spawned when I was conducting research for Dr. Chuck Kaufman at the University of Maryland.

More recently, Mary Stuckey offered not only expert editorial commentary, but  knowledge of resources from allied professional disciplines that spoke to themesof the manuscript. Other important commentaries were provided by Marilyn Young, Celeste Condit, Karlyn Campbell, James Darsey, Thomas Goodnight, David Cheshier, Robert Newman, Cori Dauber, and Gordon Mitchell. I am also grateful for the comments from the anonymous reviewers of SUNY Press who provided detailed commentary throughout the manuscript, the watchful eyes of my copyeditor, Wyatt Benner, production editor Diane Ganeles, production assistant Ryan Hacker, and the assistance of Michael Rinella, who shepherded me through the first part of the publication process at SUNY Press.

Image Analysis: 15th Scandinavian Conference, SCIA 2007, Aalborg, Denmark, June 10-24, 2007, Proceedings : 9783540730392

This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 15th Scandinavian Conference on Image Analysis, SCIA 2007, held in Aalborg, Denmark in June 2007.

The 66 revised full papers and 33 revised poster papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 228 submissions. The papers are organized in topical sections on computer vision, 2D and 3D reconstruction, classification and segmentation, medical and biological applications, appearance and shape modeling, face detection, tracking and recognition, motion analysis, feature extraction and object recognition.

IM Instant Messaging Security : 9781555583385

Securing Instant Messaging (IM) is one of the top three priorities for IT managers to consider in the next 12 months. If IM security problems have been keeping you up at night . . . they should! According to research firm IDC, corporate IM users will jump from nearly 50 million in 2003 to over 181 million by 2005.

If your company is like many others, contributing to that exponential growth in IM usage, it likely means that the potential for major security breaches in your organization is very high. By their very nature, popular IM services can introduce major security vulnerabilities to the organization. Once used simply to send short notes out among computer experts at MIT and other institutions of higher learning, IM is now a widespread, efficient medium for everyday business users to collaborate, organize strategy meetings, and share internal files and information. According to the analyst firm Yankee Group, IM will continue to grow at an explosive rate of 150 percent per year between 2003 and 2005.

I Married an eBay Maniac : 9780789735621

Has your spouse been spending more and more time on the computer? Do they hide the screen when you walk in the room? Have new items been appearing in your house while your older possessions seem to disappear? Perhaps the explanation is in "it" - eBay mania! 

 

I Married an eBay Maniac offers a glimpse into the world of eBay. Get up to speed on the basics of buying and selling on eBay, and find how to bring every family member to eBay so that you no longer have to eat dinner with your spouse clicking away on the keyboard. Turn their obsession into a family affair. This book describes how to play off one another's strengths and weaknesses, how to divide tasks to maximize efficiency, fun, and profits, and how to arrange a household to separate eBay from the non-eBay life. You'll be able to keep frustration levels down and income levels high! With tips, tricks, and insight from an experienced eBayer, this book shows how much family fun and income can be had when the Maniac is no longer alone.

About the Author

Jayne Perry went from eBay Novice to pro when she helped propel her husband's eBay mania into a full-time home business. They soon reached an upper-tier PowerSeller rating, the frequent-flier tier of eBay sellers. They hired two part-time employees. They maximized their income. All with the help of her insight. Her husband, Greg Perry, has since become an eBay Education Specialist trained by eBay and they both write and teach others how to excel at eBay now that both of them enjoy eBay together. With her help, they've learned ways to minimize the time they spend on eBay so the rest of their priorities remain top priorities.

Iwork '05: The Missing Manual : 9780596100377

Introduced by Apple in January 2005, iWork '05 is an innovative new suite of document and presentation software that's the same caliber as Apple's groundbreaking digital media applications and that's wholly dedicated to what Mac users like you care about most: artistry and creativity. iWork '05 isn't about "office productivity"--it's about creating slick and stylish documents and cinema-quality digital presentations that say precisely what you want them to say.

While iWork '05 helps you create stunning documents and presentations, the suite doesn't come with any in-depth documentation of its own. That's where iWork '05: The Missing Manual comes in. The book that should have been in the box, it gives you everything you need to master iWork '05.

Seamlessly integrated with the wildly popular iLife '05 and designed to take advantage of the advanced typography and graphics engine of Mac OS X, iWork is actually two separate programs: Pages and Keynote 2. Pages is a brand-new, streamlined word processor and page layout program that allows nonprofessionals to quickly and painlessly produce gorgeous brochures, newsletters, letters, invitations, product data sheets, and more. You can start documents from scratch or use one of the 40 professionally designed templates as a starting point. Keynote 2 is a significant upgrade to Keynote, Apple's PowerPoint-like presentation software that allows you to build unique presentations, demonstrations, storyboard animations, interactive slideshows, and more.

Like every Missing Manual, this one is refreshingly entertaining and scrupulously detailed. iWork '05: The Missing Manual gives you all the essentials of Pages and Keynote 2, including an objective look at each program's capabilities, its advantages over similar programs, and its limitations. The book delivers countless goodies that you won't find anywhere else: undocumented tips, tricks, and secrets for getting the very best results from both exciting new applications.

With the iWork '05 suite and iWork '05: The Missing Manual, you are totally equipped to give your work the style it deserves.

Ivor Horton's Beginning Visual C++ 2005 (Programmer to Programmer) : 9780764571978

You'll learn the essentials of Visual C++ 2005 and get a thorough introduction to the techniques used for accessing data sources in both Microsoft® Foundation Classes and Windows® Forms applications. Plus, the exercises included at the end of most chapters will help you apply what you've learned as you make your way to becoming an effective C++ programmer.

What you will learn from this book

• How to use the capabilities of Visual C++ 2005 to create applications


• Unique aspects and new features of Visual C++ 2005


• The basic ideas and techniques involved in debugging


• Ways to build a graphical user interface for your application


• How Microsoft Windows applications are structured


• Tips for understanding the nuances of C++ without getting confused by the complexities of Windows GUI programming

Who this book is for

This book is for novice programmers who are looking to write C++ applications for the Microsoft Windows OS. No previous programming experience is required.

Wrox Beginning guides are crafted to make learning programming languages and technologies easier than you think, providing a structured, tutorial format that will guide you through all the techniques involved.

About the Author
Ivor Horton is one of the preeiminent authors of tutorials on the Java, C and C++ programming languages. He is widely known for the tutorial style of his books, which provides step-by-step guidance easily understood even by first-time programmers. Horton is also a systems consultant in private practice.

Ivor Horton's Beginning Java 2, JDK 5 Edition : 9780764568749

Combining simplicity with power, Java has become the object-oriented language of choice for Internet programming and cross-platform applications. This comprehensive and easy-to-use guide provides you with the essential information you'll need to know in order to develop dynamic programs using the Java 2 Standard Edition 5.0 or later.

You'll be introduced to the fundamental ideas about the structure of Java programs and how they work. You'll gain a clear understanding of all the latest features of the Java language as well as the key packages in the Java class library. And with the help of numerous working examples, you'll find out how to apply the material so you can write your own full-featured applications and applets.

This book teaches you how to start programming in Java, covering everything from putting together statements and performing calculations to applying the capabilities provided by the Java class libraries, and much more.

What you will learn from this book

• The basics of how the Java language works


• Ways to apply key language elements


• Methods for storing data in a program


• How to define and utilize classes


• How to create applets for use in interactive Web pages


• Techniques for implementing an application with a graphical user interface


• How to use the JDBC capability to work with relational databases


• All the skills to become a knowledgeable Java programmer

Who this book is for

This book is for anyone who wants to explore how Java works and discover how to write fully featured and effective Java programs. No previous Java experience is necessary.

ITV Handbook: Technologies and Standards : 9780131003125

Interactive television (iTV)—an evolutionary merging of digital TV and the Internet—is set to take the world by storm! For consumers, iTV technology offers powerful new ways to interact with content providers and merchants. These include enjoying video on demand; participating in online shopping, banking, and gambling; and taking advantage of bonus multimedia features and controls added to news, sports, entertainment, and educational programming.

Organizations assembling the technologies and agents needed to deliver the content, though, find that providing iTV service is a monumental, multifaceted task. The sheer complexity also means that those proficient in one area of the service are often unfamiliar with the workings of other areas. iTV professionals seeking a better understanding of how it works and how it all fits together will find that iTV Handbook: Technologies and Standards, by topic authority Edward M. Schwalb, provides a welcome introduction to all the key issues, technology solutions, and standards surrounding the service.

This book covers:

• 
  

  Issues concerning the most links in the iTV "food chain"—content authors, producers, distributors, broadcasters, cable system operators, receiver manufacturers, and viewers

  
  


• 
  

  Details of the hardware, software, technologies, protocols, and standards that define iTV

  
  


• 
  

  Graphics, audio, video, and asset-management formats used in iTV, as well as security considerations, the broadcast file system, and more

  
  

iTV Handbook: Technologies and Standards provides a thorough overview of the iTV service and shows how everything fits together—it's the ideal introductory reference for technical managers, technical sales people, engineers, executives, content authors, and consumers interested in iTV technologies.

It's Not About the Technology : 9780387233505

This book attempts to answer the question: “What is that mindset, that particular kind of thinking, that is required of us to be successful in a high technology company and why?”

To be sure, the “high” in the high technology does not accord the company any special place in the market. But a unique ingredient distinguishes a high technology company: the culture of innovation that leads to new, often highly complex, technologies. The flip side of this unique culture is the excessive fixation of these companies on the technology superiority. The baggage of this excessive fixation has quite often led these companies to disconnect from the end customer, unwittingly so. Hence our question and this book.

A series of semiconductor startup experiences spurred me to write. The bizarre life in the high technology profession, always precariously disconnected from the world at large, provided the problematic. And a rush to connect back lead to this book.

If you are not careful, this profession can make you feel isolated from the rest of the world. What starts off as a genuinely rewarding career of learning new technologies, creating new designs, coming up with products that people liked and bought, can quickly turn into a schizophrenia of a respectable sort. How we purport ourselves at work, the extreme stress we undergo to achieve that teamwork spirit, the unending project deadlines that we are always scrambling to meet, seem to put us on a tangential path from the every day life of our families, our children and parents. When this happens, the disconnect is near-complete.

Truly great corporations have become so by attending to this single trait. Leadership at these companies, at every level up and down the hierarchy, are unusually sensitive to this disconnect. Genuinely spirited startups are this way. But these sensibilities do not come packaged in best practices, nor found in the quality assurance manuals. None of this is part of any engineering or business school curriculum, at least not in a way that is impressive. Perhaps the simplicity of this sensibility is not rigorous enough to be included in the academics.

On the contrary, these sensibilities are a direct manifestation of a particular kind of mindset of a few random individuals. Drawn from their own personal experience, these leaders often are not, at first, conscious of the culture they germinate. Nor do they consult manuals to cross-check if their thinking is correct.

It's Never Done That Before: A Guide to Troubleshooting Windows XP : 9781593270766

Most computer problems aren’t that violent or that dramatic, but the
immediate result is often the same: you sit there in a state of shock, staring at
the computer, saying to yourself, “What happened? What should I do now?
It’s never done that before!” This book will tell you how to understand and
fix most personal computer failures, whether they were caused by the
computer hardware, by the Windows operating system, or by some other
program running on the computer.

There’s not much you can do when your computer explodes except to
sweep up the remains and open a window to let the smoke out of the room.
But if Windows won’t start, or your hard drive breaks down, or you get a
cryptic Blue Screen error message, or any of a jillion other things go wrong,
you can almost always restore the machine to useful operation and recover
most of your data if you take an organized approach to troubleshooting.
The tools for understanding most computer problems are out there on the
Internet, in manuals and user guides, and through both on- and offline
communities of people who use similar equipment and programs. But they
won’t do you any good unless you know where to find them. That’s what this
book is for.

This is a book for people who use their computers all the time but who
don’t always know how to deal with the major and minor problems that
eventually seem to attack most computers. It will tell you how to apply
troubleshooting techniques and methods to evaluate and solve computer
problems, with an emphasis on computers running Windows XP. It won’t tell
you exactly what to do for every possible problem that might appear, but it will
tell you where to find detailed explanations of most problems and instructions
for fixing them. I will also show you how to recognize specific symptoms
and how to understand and use error messages, beep codes, and other
diagnostic tools that aren’t always clear on first inspection. I’ll also show you
where to find help from Microsoft, from other manufacturers and users, and
from the Combined Wisdom of the Internet. And finally, I will tell you how
to decide if the time and cost of a repair just isn’t worth the effort.

iText in Action: Creating and Manipulating PDF : 9781932394795

Imagine a publisher who wants to "stamp" his ebooks on the fly with the name of the buyer (to discourage sharing). Such a publisher would (and we know one who does) use iText for the task. Developers looking to enhance web- and other applications with dynamic PDF document generation and/or manipulation will find this book unique in content and readability. Based on ongoing examples that encourage learning "in action," they will finally understand PDF and learn how to build applications that produce professional, high-quality PDF documents. While the basic functionality of iText is easy to acquire, this book lowers the learning curve for more advanced functionality. It explains how to use iText to create/manipulate PDF documents on-the-fly in one or more of the following situations:

Due to time or size, the PDF documents can't be produced manually

The content of the document must be calculated or based on user input.

The content needs to be customized or personalized.

The PDF content needs to be served in a web environment.

Documents are to be created in "batch process" mode.

All the examples are written in Java, but they can be easily adapted to .NET by developers using one of the .NET ports: iTextSharp (C#) or iText.NET (#J). While iText is a free Java library and the examples are written from the point of view of the Java developer, nine out of ten examples can be run by .NET developers with only minimal changes.

Iterating Infusion: Clearer Views of Objects, Classes, and Systems : 9781590595374

Iterating Infusion: Clearer Views of Objects, Classes, and Systems is a one-of-a-kind book, not dependent on any single technology. Rather, it provides a way to integrate the most efficient techniques from a variety of programming methods, in a manner that makes designing and programming software look easy.

Iterating Infusion presents comprehensive tools for you to best manage and work with object orientation. These include simplified fundamental concepts, popular language comparisons, advanced designing strategies, a broad usage progression, thorough design notations (interaction algebra), and data-oriented (fundamentally-OO) languages.

The title, Iterating Infusion, alludes to the fact that any system has multiple, coexisting functional levels and that new levels--both lower and higher--are continually added to the same functional area. The practical effect is to bring processes into more focus, always clarifying the vague. The extreme form of this is when separate but compatible technologies are brought together to create advancements; these can be baby-steps or great leaps, with varying amounts of effort. In more general terms, the same thing in a different context can take on much more power. And actually, this phenomenon is at the heart of object-oriented software.

Readers have been confirming that, compared to books on just low-level details, Iterating Infusion presents cohesive insights that allow you to solve more problems with the same effort in more key places.

Iterated Function Systems for Real-Time Image Synthesis : 9781846286858

Natural phenomena can be visually described with fractal-geometry methods, where iterative procedures rather than equations are used to model objects. With the development of better modelling algorithms, the efficiency of rendering, the realism of computer-generated scenes and the interactivity of visual stimuli are reaching astonishing levels. Iterated Function Systems for Real-Time Image Synthesis gives an explanation of iterated function systems and how to use them in generation of complex objects. Contents include: Discussion of the most popular fractal models applied in the field of image synthesis. Presentation of iterated function system models, including recent developments in IFS representation. Exploration of algorithms for creating and manipulating fractal objects, and techniques for implementing the algorithms. Use of practical examples to demonstrate the implementation and application of IFS models.

The book contains both a description text and pseudo-code samples for the convenience of graphics application programmers.

About the Author

Slawomir S Nikiel is an assistant professor of Computer Science at the University of Zielona Gora in Poland. He received his MSC in computer and information science in 1991 and his Ph.D in computer vision in 1995 from the technical University of Wroclaw, Poland. In 1997-1998 he received a one year post-doc NATO fellowship in Hull, UK. His current research interests include fractals, rendering and animating complex structures for real-time computer graphics and virtual environments. His research area is related to Digital Cultural Heritage. Dr Nikiel is an author of over 30 papers in these fields.

Itanium Architecture for Programmers: Understanding 64-Bit Processors and EPIC Principles : 9780131013728

• Step-by-step guide to assembly language for the 64-bit Itanium processors, with extensive examples


• Details of Explicitly Parallel Instruction Computing (EPIC): Instruction set, addressing, register stack engine, predication, I/O, procedure calls, floating-point operations, and more


• Learn how to comprehend and optimize open source, Intel, and HP-UX compiler output

Understand the full power of 64-bit Itanium EPIC processors

Itanium® Architecture for Programmers is a comprehensive introduction to the breakthrough capabilities of the new 64-bit Itanium architecture. Using standard command-line tools and extensive examples, the authors illuminate the Itanium design within the broader context of contemporary computer architecture via a step-by-step investigation of Itanium assembly language. Coverage includes:

• The potential of Explicitly Parallel Instruction Computing (EPIC)


• Itanium instruction formats and addressing modes


• Innovations such as the register stack engine (RSE) and extensive predication


• Procedure calls and procedure-calling mechanisms


• Floating-point operations


• I/O techniques, from simple debugging to the use of files


• Optimization of output from open source, Intel, and HP-UX compilers

An essential resource for both computing professionals and students of architecture or assembly language, Itanium Architecture for Programmers includes extensive printed and Web-based references, plus many numeric, essay, and programming exercises for each chapter.

About the Author

JAMES S. EVANS is Professor of Computer Science and Chemistry and Director of Information Technology Planning at Lawrence University, Appleton, WI, where he teaches courses in computer architecture, hardware organization, and operating systems. He is also lead author of Alpha RISC Architecture for Programmers (Prentice Hall PTR). He holds a Ph.D. from Princeton University.

GREGORY L. TRIMPER is Principal of viika, a consultancy specializing in portable technology and field computing, software design and implementation, and project management. He holds a B.A. from Lawrence University and pursues further studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

IT Services Costs, Metrics, Benchmarking and Marketing : 9780130191953

IT Services is the first 100% customer-focused guide to satisfying the consumers of your company’s IT services -- and building the loyalty your IT organization needs. In this book, three leading IT professionals present a fully integrated, comprehensive approach to service delivery in today’s global, distributed environments.

You’ll discover how to establish processes, service and cost models, performance measurements, and "stretch" goals that achieve clear business benefits-and then transform those goals into reality.

• 
  

  Proven results, benchmarks, and case studies -- not just theory!

  
  


• 
  

  Linking goal-setting, process development, and metrics to the goals of the enterprise -- step-by-step

  
  


• 
  

  Gaining buy-in from management, internal customers, and external suppliers

  
  


• 
  

  Building stable, predictable and cost-effective application support infrastructures

  
  


• 
  

  Structuring support services for maximum effectiveness

  
  

Applicable to both in-house and outsourced operations, IT Services offers a total roadmap for executives building enterprise-wide operations centers; practical help for managers seeking to deliver cost-effective support; and invaluable insight for IT "customers" who need to know what they can expect from their technology professionals.

IT Security: Risking the Corporation : 9780131011120

Even the world's largest and most sophisticated networks are vulnerable to attack-and so is yours. The scenarios described in IT Security:Risking the Corporation expose crucial flaws in operating systems, networks, servers, and software-as well as the vulnerability caused by poor training, corporate politics, and careless management.

In the previous version of this book, originally published as Intranet Security:Stories From the Trenches, Linda McCarthy drew on her experience penetrating thousands of corporate networks to identify key security risks and practical solutions. This timely update is even more compelling and offers a clear plan for improvinhg the security of your systems. You'll find useful tools and preventive measures you can take right now. In addition, McCarthy's security checklists and resource listings can help you tighten security throughout your entire IT infrastructure.

IT Security Interviews Exposed: Secrets to Landing Your Next Information Security Job : 9780471779872

It's not a job. It's THE job, and here's how to get it.

What does your ideal IT security job look like? What will prospective employers expect you to know? What affects how they view you and your skills? What if you haven't had much experience? What if you're not 30 anymore?

Here's the crash course in how to discover, apply for, and land the IT security job you want. Written by a squad of highly credentialed security professionals, this guide prepares you with the technical knowledge, interview skills, strategies, and job search techniques you need to find and get the perfect job.

Meet every job search challenge

• What does — and doesn't — belong on your résumé


• 
  

  How to survive a telephone interview

  
  


• 
  

  All about firewall technologies, devices, deployment strategies, and management

  
  


• 
  

  A review of security essentials, regulations, legislation, and guidelines

  
  


• 
  

  The effects of state cyber security laws, Sarbanes-Oxley, and international standards

  
  


• 
  

  A refresher course in network fundamentals

  
  


• 
  

  Everything you should know about wireless, security posture, and tools

  
  


• 
  

  When and how to say "no"

  
  

IT Project+ Study Guide : 9780782140682

Here's the book you need to prepare for the latest version of CompTIA's IT Project+ exam. This Study Guide was developed to meet the exacting requirements of today's certification candidates. In addition to the consistent and accessible instructional approach that has earned Sybex the "Best Study Guide" designation in the 2003 CertCities Readers Choice Awards, this book provides:

* Clear and concise information on IT project management
* Practical examples and insights drawn from real-world experience
* Leading-edge exam preparation software, including a test engine and electronic flashcards
You'll also find authoritative coverage of key exam topics, including:
* IT Project Initiation and Scope Definition
* IT Project Planning
* IT Project Execution, Control and Coordination
* IT Project Closure, Acceptance and Support

This book has been reviewed and approved as CompTIA Authorized Quality Curriculum (CAQC). Students derive a number of important study advantages with CAQC materials, including coverage of all exam objectives, implementation of important instructional design principles, and instructional reviews that help students assess their learning comprehension and readiness for the exam.

Note: On August 10, 2004 CompTIA changed the name of the IT Project+ certification to Project+, "in order to better reflect the title's application beyond IT professionals." Neither the exam objectives nor the exam questions were changed. The CAQC appoved content found in this edition of the IT Project+ Study Guide therefore remains valid and suitable for candidates preparing for the Project+ certification.

IT Project+ Study Guide, 2nd Edition (Exam PKO-002) : 9780782143188

Here’s the book you need to prepare for the latest version of CompTIA’s IT Project+ exam. This Study Guide was developed to meet the exacting requirements of today’s certification candidates. In addition to the consistent and accessible instructional approach that has earned Sybex the “Best Study Guide” designation in the 2003 CertCities Readers Choice Awards, this book provides:

• Clear and concise information on IT project management


• Practical examples and insights drawn from real-world experience


• Leading-edge exam preparation software, including a test engine and electronic flashcards

You’ll also find authoritative coverage of key exam topics, including:

• IT Project Initiation and Scope Definition


• IT Project Planning


• IT Project Execution, Control, and Coordination


• IT Project Closure, Acceptance and Support

Look to Sybex for the knowledge and skills needed to succeed in today’s competitive IT marketplace.

IT Project Portfolio Management : 9781580537810

While consulting for a large company’s information technology (IT)
department, I was asked to help find a way to better manage the various
IT projects that were spread among all of its business units. The executives
wanted me to research tools that would help them prioritize the
projects so they would know which ones were healthy contributors to
the corporate strategy and which ones could be axed. The market in
which they were selling their products was slowing down, and they
wanted to centralize corporate governance and trim unnecessary IT
projects. Because they also knew that some IT projects were critical to
the growth and ongoing operations of the company, they couldn’t simply
eliminate a random sampling. Though we had experiences in IT
program management and executive information systems (EISs), we
had little experience in project portfolio management (PPM). After
some research, we realized that implementing a project prioritization
tool would be just the tip of the iceberg in providing a successful and
lasting solution to their problem.

This was a very project-centric company with over 250 ongoing IT
projects running at one time. The market was constantly forcing the
product line to change. Such pressures to decrease the life cycle and
increase the quality of their products directly affected how the executives
wanted IT to improve the efficiencies of their units. This ultimately
made the company a prime candidate to adopt IT project-centric
management techniques. Combining such a need with the realization
that the company had dispersed IT governance across all of
the business units highlighted the notion that this initiative would be
an organizational change exercise similar in scale to an enterprise
resource planning (ERP) or customer resources management (CRM)
implementation. As it turns out, the long-term solution to centralizing
IT project control was too much of a bite for them to take at
once—organizational change needed to come piecemeal if it was going
to succeed.

IT Project Management : On Track from Start to Finish, Second Edition : 9780072232028

Get expert advice on planning and steering a successful IT project using PMBOK-driven principles. Expert author and PMI certified Project Management Professional, Joseph Phillips, walks you through each step of the IT project management process, and shares critical strategies that engender smoothly-run, on-time, and within-budget projects. Find the best path to initiate a project, uncover techniques for project planning, focus your managing skills on picking the most qualified team members, and discover ways to deal with management. Then, establish communication channels and realistic timetables and learn how to track financial obligations. These concepts are also illustrated through interviews with leading IT project managers.

• Define a project goal and create the project charter


• Create a feasibility plan and establish a priority list


• Determine strategy and obtain budget dollars


• Work with management and define their role


• Determine project expenses—including estimated required hours


• Organize a project team—assess internal skills as well as utilize external resources


• Delegate responsibilities and manage project schedules


• Resolve disagreements—as well as address delays and budget increases


• Track progress and implement quality testing


• Maintain leadership and keep your team focused

IT Project Management Handbook : 9781567260984

Now you can manage IT projects quickly, easily, on time, and on budget!

IT project management has developed into a complex process with a broader scope of responsibilities than ever before. Here is the newest and most comprehensive book to offer winning insights and strategies on how to manage every step of the process. Written by two of this country’s leading experts on IT Project Management, this extensive yet easy-to-use volume will give you the tools you need to successfully navigate your next IT project.

You’ll learn how to avoid cost overruns and schedule delays, meet customer requirements, take control of budgets and resource allocation, build a successful team, and put to use many more tried-and-true methods of project management. The handbook includes a completely up-to-date overview of the best Internet services, current software, and repositories available via the Internet along with networking, e-commerce, reuse, prototype, modeling and simulations.

It’s all contained in this user-friendly handbook that will soon become the foundation for every IT project you manage … or take part in. Based on real-world practical experience and case studies, the Handbook will give you the framework to manage, improve, and build greater accuracy into every phase of your IT project management.

Here are just some of the systems, methods, tools, case studies, and techniques covered:

* IT Project Planning and Development Life Cycle Phases * Identifying Users, Customers, and Stakeholders * Customer Requirements Management * Project Modeling and Simulation * Customer Acceptance Criteria * Project Control and Recovery Mechanisms * Project Budgeting, Staffing, and Scheduling * Function Point and Earned Value Methods * The Gantt Chart, PERT Chart, and CPM * Risk Management – Assessment, Mitigation, Monitoring, and Reporting Plan * System Management Standard * Project Measurement Schema * Project management Tools – Microsoft Project, Kidasa Software’s Fast Track Schedule * Project Management Quality Control Mechanism * IT Networks and Internet Taxonomy * Wireless Technology, E-Commerce, and M-Commerce * System Software LifeCycle Model * System Integration Techniques * System Testing and Evaluation * Customer Satisfaction

About the Author

Jag Sodhi, MS, is a professor associated with the Defense Acquisition University. He has 32 years of combined experience as a well-known author, software developer, consultant, instructor, and project manager for defense products and commercial business applications. He has been a computer specialist and project manager and a member of DOD’s advanced technology team. He specializes in the best commercial practices and COTS tools for systems development and maintenance. Mr. Sodhi evaluated the Integrated Computer Aided Software Engineering (I-CASE) pilot project and is a member of the team for the DII COE project. He was the project leader for migration of his systems to the Joint Technical Architecture standard.

Prince Sodhi is a senior management consultant for Proxicom Int'l Corp. He is an expert in project management, several programming languages, and in distributed computing applications in a multiple-tier, client-server environments. He is co-author of the books Software Reuse: Domain Analysis and Design Process (1999) and Object-Oriented Methods for Software Development (1996), McGraw-Hill. He has a bachelor’s degree in computer/mathematics from the University of Minnesota.

IT Project + CoursePrep ExamGuide : 9780619063498

Provides the essential information you need to ace CompTIA?s IT Project+ Certification Exam. Each certification objective is covered in a unique two-page spread that highlights the key points of the objective.

Prepare your students for CompTIA's new IT Project + exam in this prep guide. Devotes two full pages of material to every IT Project+ exam objective. Softcover.

About the Author

Kathy Schwalbe is an associate professor at Augsburg College in Minneapolis and teaches project management, problem solving for business, systems analysis and design, information systems projects, and electronic commerce. Kathy worked for 10 years in industry before entering academia in 1991. In addition, Kathy is an active member of PMI (Project Management Institute). Kathy earned her Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota, her MBA at Northeastern University, and her B.S. in mathematics at the University of Notre Dame.

IT Problem Management : 9780130307705

The complete "best practices" guide to IT problem resolution!

No matter how professional your IT organization, if you can't resolve problems quickly and effectively, you'll lose your stakeholders' confidence—and fail. Nowadays, help desk s aren't enough: companies want true service centers capable of delivering complex, strategic solutions. IT Problem Management is the first single source for building world-class problem management processes. Drawing upon his extensive consulting e xperience, Gary Walker presents specific improvements you can make to achieve breakthrough results in any help desk or service center—in-house or out-sourced. Coverage includes:

• Problem identification, customer validation, problem lo gging, service delivery, knowledge capture and sharing, and management oversight


• The Immediate Response Model: accounting for problem variability, complexity, and volume


• Detailed metrics for measuring your responsiveness


• Bett er ways to create and use service level agreements


• State-of-the-art tools for customer interaction, service delivery, and proactive monitoring


• New Internet and knowledge base systems: empowering users to solve their own problems


• The human side: staffing, retention, and motivation

IT Problem Management isn't just theory: it delivers real-world case studies, detailed benchmarks, and practical solutions for turning your help desk into a high-performance I T service center, starting today.

About the Author

GARY WALKER is a leading IT consultant, helping Fortune 500 and emerging growth companies focus on the people, processes, and technology required to operate a highly reliable and cost effective infrastructure.

IT Portfolio Management: Unlocking the Business Value of Technology : 9780471649847

This book provides a pragmatic, step-by-step road map, describing IT portfolio
management and its major elements. Chapter 1 provides an overview of IT
portfolio management. Chapter 2 describes the planning aspects of IT portfolio
management. It explains the IT portfolio management maturity model and the
key people, process, and technology aspects at each of five levels within the model.
Chapter 3 describes the IT governance aspects of the IT portfolio. It discusses the
relationship between IT and corporate governance, and the impact of legislation
and compliance rules, such as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, on the IT portfolio. Chapter
4 covers the IT life cycle and IT subportfolios. Chapter 5 provides step-by-step
aspects of building the IT portfolio. Chapter 6 describes the request for information
and the request for proposal parameters that companies should consider when
evaluating and assessing IT portfolio management software providers. Chapter 7
covers the way forward, discussing the impact that adaptability and new technologies
have on IT portfolio management. The book concludes with detailed case
studies of Cisco Systems, In-Q-Tel, and Xcel Energy, which are exemplar companies
that actively practice IT portfolio management.

About the Author
Bryan Maizlish is Chief Technology Officer-Program Team at Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems & Solutions' GeoSpatial-Intelligence Solutions line of business. He is also the Chairman for the annual Strategic & Operational Portfolio Management conference cosponsored by the PDMA and IIR. He has served in management roles for companies that developed the Internet strategy, design and architecture, and systems integration and implementation for many global 2000 companies. He received his MBA from The Wharton School of Business, and was a member of the 1983 Rose Bowl Champion UCLA football team. He lives in Potomac, Maryland with his wife and three children.

Robert Handler is Vice President at META Group, Inc., one of the leading IT research firms. Robert led the IT portfolio management research for META Group and is a sought-after speaker and author of numerous research papers on the topic. He has over fifteen years of experience in all aspects of information technology, and has worked at such esteemed organizations as IBM and Ernst & Young LLP. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Pepperdine University and an MBA in Information and Decision Systems from San Diego State University. He lives in San Diego with his wife, two children, and two golden retrievers.

IT Innovation for Adaptability and Competitiveness : 9781402079993

IT Innovation for Adaptability and Competitiveness addresses the topic of IT innovations that can further an organization's ability to adapt and be competitive. Thus we address the problem at an earlier starting point, that is, the emergence of something innovative in an organization, applied to that organization, and its process of being diffused and accepted internally.
Topics covered in the book include:

• The role of IT in organizational innovation,
  


• Innovating systems development & process,
  


• Assessing innovation drivers,
  


• Innovation adoption,
  


• New environments, new innovation practices.

This volume contains the edited proceedings of the Seventh Working Conference on IT Innovation for Adaptability and Competitiveness, which was sponsored by the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP) Working Group 8.6 and held at Intel Corporation, Leixlip, Ireland in May-June 2004.

IFIP WG 8.6 has as its focus diffusion of technological innovation. In this conference we have solicited papers on the topic of IT innovations that can further an organization’s ability to adapt and be competitive. Thus we address the problem at an earlier starting point, that is, the emergence of something innovative in an organization, applied to that organization, and its process of being diffused and accepted internally.

A further extension of this would be the propagation of a successful innovation outside the originating organization as a product, service or example of technology use that builds the firm’s markets. In this discussion we are supposing that said innovations are indeed a contribution. In reality, an idea is only labeled an innovation once it is accepted. Before that time, it can be just an idea, a crackpot idea, a disturbance, obsession, distraction or dissatisfaction with the status quo. Many innovations are of course deliberately cultivated in research labs, but again their success is the determinant of their eventual designation as “innovative”.

Conversely, some ideas really are crackpot concoctions or technologies in search of a use that linger in the environment as potential innovations long after their use is discredited. Case in point: voice recognition software, which does have some applications but has been over hyped and over applied for about 20 years. Today some call centers won’t let users punch a single button on their telephone sets; they MUST tell the voice recognition program what they want. Some of these systems will revert to an operator if the voice recognition system doesn’t understand, while others will just hang up. We were relieved to note the following title in the March 5 Financial Times: “To speak to an operator, start swearing now.” Someone has developed an innovation to recognize user frustration and bypass the prior innovation of persistent automated voice “response”!

IT-Enabled Strategic Management: Increasing Returns for the Organization : 9781591409083

We live in an age in which the value of information and knowledge has far surpassed that
of physical goods. Information resources have become a key differentiator of successful
businesses. Information technology (IT) and information systems (IS) are now integrated
in almost every aspect of business, from planning to analysis and design,
operations management and strategic decision making. Even for those businesses not
in information industries, information plays a vital role in supporting their business
functions, from routine operations to strategizing. John Naisbitt (1982) theorized that
information would be the driving force for organizations. Companies that manage
information well are more likely to maintain a competitive advantage against their peers.
Because information has become a major force in driving business activities, Evans and
Wurster (2000) proclaimed that every business is in the information business.

IT and IS have experienced dramatic changes in the last few decades. Their major role in
business has shifted from tools to support “back-office” operations to an integrated part
of business strategies and the maintenance of core competencies. Strategic management,
as the process of business strategy formulation and strategy implementation, is concerned
with establishing goals and directions, and developing and carrying out plans to
achieve those goals. As organizations evolve, so do their strategies and strategic
management practices. In recent years, IT has become increasingly important in strategic
management. IT and IT-enabled systems are now indispensable in supporting business
strategies. In this chapter, we examine the evolution of information technology and
strategic management, and their interplay in the last 50 years. We start with a review of
major theories and development in both strategic management and IT, and then explore
how IT has become an enabler for strategic management. We also discuss research issues
in IT-enabled strategic management, and suggest future directions in this crossdisciplinary
research field.

IT Auditing: Using Controls to Protect Information Assets : 9780072263435

Plan for and manage an effective IT audit program using the in-depth information contained in this comprehensive resource. Written by experienced IT audit and security professionals, IT Auditing: Using Controls to Protect Information Assets covers the latest auditing tools alongside real-world examples, ready-to-use checklists, and valuable templates. Inside, you'll learn how to analyze Windows, UNIX, and Linux systems; secure databases; examine wireless networks and devices; and audit applications. Plus, you'll get up-to-date information on legal standards and practices, privacy and ethical issues, and the CobiT standard.

Build and maintain an IT audit function with maximum effectiveness and value

• Implement best practice IT audit processes and controls


• Analyze UNIX-, Linux-, and Windows-based operating systems


• Audit network routers, switches, firewalls, WLANs, and mobile devices


• Evaluate entity-level controls, data centers, and disaster recovery plans


• Examine Web servers, platforms, and applications for vulnerabilities


• Review databases for critical controls


• Use the COSO, CobiT, ITIL, ISO, and NSA INFOSEC methodologies


• Implement sound risk analysis and risk management practices


• Drill down into applications to find potential control weaknesses

About the Authors

Chris Davis, CISA, CISSP, leverages his experience auditing IT systems for Texas Instruments. Mr. Davis has trained and presented in information security, advanced computer forensic analysis, and hardware security design. He actively teaches auditing and certification curriculum for Southern Methodist University and is the author and contributor to several books and publications. His contributions include projects and presentations for SANS, Gartner, Harvard, BlackHat, and 3GSM. He has enjoyed positions at Texas Instruments, Austin Microsoft Technology Center, and Cisco Systems. He holds a bachelor's degree in nuclear engineering technologies from Thomas Edison, and a master's in business from the University of Texas at Austin. Chris was a U.S. Navy submariner, and served on the deep dive Submarine NR-1 and the ballistic missile OHIO class USS Nebraska, SSBN 739, Blue Crew.

Mike Schiller, CISA, has 14 years of experience in the IT audit field, most recently as the worldwide IT audit manager at Texas Instruments(TI). Prior to that, Mike served as the IT audit manager at The Sabre Group, where he served as the company's first-ever IT audit manager, creating the IT audit function, team, and processes from the ground up. Mike also has several years of experience as a senior IT auditor, programmer/analyst, and manager of IT support teams. He is involved in multiple industry IT audit organizations and has been a presenter at IT conferences such as ASUG. In addition to his years of experience in corporate management, Mike is also heavily involved in leadership at his church, Richardson East Church of Christ. He has a bachelor's degree in business analysis from Texas A&M University.

Kevin Wheeler, CISA, CISSP, NSA IAM/IEM, is the founder and CEO of InfoDefense, an information security consultancy. Mr. Wheeler's project and employment portfolio includes organizations such as Bank of America, EDS, McAfee, Southern Methodist University and the State of Texas. He has performed information security audits and assessments as well as information security design, computer incident response, business continuity planning, and IT security training for both government and commercial entities in the financial services, healthcare, and IT services industries. He holds a bachelor of business administration degree from Baylor University and is an active member of ISSA, ISACA, Infragard, the North Texas Electronic Crimes Task Force, and Greater Dallas Chamber of Commerce.

IT Administrator's Top Ten Introductory Scripts for Windows (Administrator's Advantage Series) : 9781584502128

A key problem with Microsoft Windows is that its friendly user interface can get in the way of efficient system administration. There's no easy way, for example, to use the graphical administration tools to determine which of your users have passwords that will soon expire. The answers to such problems of administration come in the form of scripts written for the Windows Script Host (WSH), which are what IT Administrator's Top 10 Introductory Scripts for Windows aims to teach its readers about. It succeeds; Jeff Fellinge takes on 10 significant administration challenges (getting a list of a machine's local user accounts remotely, comparing successive weeks' computer rosters, getting a concise report of users and groups on Active Directory, and so on) and shows how to solve them. It's a handy resource for an administrator who's not fond of trooping across the office (or, all too frequently, the country) to do menial tasks.

This book should also prove useful to programmers interested in integrating their products with Active Directory. Fellinge takes care to document his scripts in detail--he does not commit the popular sin of presenting the user with giant, unexplained code listings--and it's usually easy to figure out why he's designed his code as he as. Combined with a reference that details JScript for WSH, this book will prove especially valuable. --David Wall

Topics covered: How to use JScript and the Windows Script Host (WSH) to write time-saving administrative scripts for Microsoft Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003, and (to a far lesser extent) Windows NT.

The IT Administrator's Top 10 Introductory Scripts for Windows helps administrators learn, and quickly implement, new scripting tools to increase productivity and reduce redundancy. It teaches readers scripting basics by explaining and breaking down real-world examples, and focuses on harnessing scripting power for IT systems administrators and systems engineers. The book is built around 10 fully-functional scripts that will help IT administrators manage their environment right "out of the box." Administrators also learn the strategies and tactics surrounding the development and implementation of these real-world scripts. Additionally, the chapters cover hypothetical, real-world business needs and explain how to map a script-based solution, including a discussion of the preferred language, tools, and technologies.

Issues of Human Computer Interaction : 9781591401919

The interaction between humans and computers is evolving rapidly, impacting every aspect of human and organizational life. This book presents the latest developments in this field of Human Computer Interaction (HCI). It discusses issues related End User Computing, as well as issues related to the human side of IT. This book will set a framework for the social and organizational issues related to IT, giving emphasis to its role as facilitator of social relationships, enabling the development of the organizational and individual intelligence and helping to improve human conditions. In Issues of Human Computer Interaction, models and theories are presented together with practical cases that will help students, lecturers, researchers and managers to have a clear idea of what is going on in HCI, today.

About the Author
Anabela Sarmento is a professor at the Institute of Administration and Accountancy (ISCAP)/Polytechnic School of Porto (Portugal). She is also an invited researcher at the Algoritmi R & D Center, Information Systems Group, at the University of Minho (Portugal). She lectures courses related to business communication, information society, and interactive marketing. Her primary area of research is the impact of information systems on organizations, namely in the domain of communication, knowledge and organizational learning, as well as in the role of the context in the use of information systems. She is also interested in knowledge management and its relation with information systems. She received her doctorate in information systems from the University of Minho (Portugal) in 2002.

Issues of Human Computer Interaction: Opportunities and Challenges : 9781591402350

The interaction between humans and computers is evolving rapidly, impacting every aspect of human and organizational life. This book presents the latest developments in this field of Human Computer Interaction (HCI). It discusses issues related End User Computing, as well as issues related to the human side of IT. This book will set a framework for the social and organizational issues related to IT, giving emphasis to its role as facilitator of social relationships, enabling the development of the organizational and individual intelligence and helping to improve human conditions. In Issues of Human Computer Interaction, models and theories are presented together with practical cases that will help students, lecturers, researchers and managers to have a clear idea of what is going on in HCI, today.

Human Computer Interaction (HCI) has its roots in the main areas of industrial engineering, human factors and cognitive psychology with the focus on the development of user-friendly IT. Traditionally, the research in this area has emphasised the technological aspect of this relationship (the Computer). More recently, other aspects concerning the organizational, social and human context also began to be considered (the Human). Today, one can say that any attempt to facilitate the relationship between the machine and the user must consider not only the technological perspective (e.g., promote the usability) but also, for instance, the way the user is going to use the technology and his or her purpose as well as the social and cultural context of this use (the Human and the Computer).

Another issue that should be considered in this interaction is the impact that information systems/technology may have on humans and organizations. There is general consensus that the adoption of any IT/IS brings change. Furthermore, IT/IS and organizations have a mutual influence on each other, meaning that this technology affects organizations and that organizations necessarily affect, for instance, the design, the choice and the management of those systems. The adoption of an IT/IS is, thus, mediated by factors that will influence the interaction between the sectors involved. It is also generally agreed that the adoption of a certain IS by different organizations does not give rise to the same changes; that is, the same technology might engender different impacts and these differences are due not to the characteristics of the technology itself, but to the characteristics of the context and the relationships that are established among all the factors involved.

About the Author
Anabela Sarmento is a professor at the Institute of Administration and Accountancy (ISCAP)/Polytechnic School of Porto (Portugal). She is also an invited researcher at the Algoritmi R & D Center, Information Systems Group, at the University of Minho (Portugal). She lectures courses related to business communication, information society, and interactive marketing. Her primary area of research is the impact of information systems on organizations, namely in the domain of communication, knowledge and organizational learning, as well as in the role of the context in the use of information systems. She is also interested in knowledge management and its relation with information systems. She received her doctorate in information systems from the University of Minho (Portugal) in 2002.