1 comments about Introduction to PSpice Using OrCAD for Circuits and Electronics (3rd Edition).

1. This book is horrible. This person has no idea how to present matter in clear, concise english. Thoughts skip around. OrCad is almost entirely menu driven these days and yet the book constantly refers to hand-coded text files which, besides being irrelevant, are difficult to even get to. From the first several chapters it appears to me the bulk of the material is written for prior versions of OrCad/Pspice and if you actually try to use the book you will become highly confused since none of the screen captures match the version of OrCad that is included on the CD (version 9.2). Without being rude, you can also tell it is written by someone who struggles with English, and the publisher should be ashamed that more of an effort was not made to provide relevant screen captures and logical subject matter presentation. Do NOT buy this book if you really want to learn Pspice - which is an excellent tool if you know how to use it.

No comments about Industrial Ethernet on the Plant Floor: A Planning and Installation Guide.

1 comments about The Green Braid (ACSA Architectural Education).

1. THE GREEN BRAID: TOWARDS AN ARCHITECTURE OF ECOLOGY, ECONOMY AND EQUITY is a pick for any college-level arts or architectural library; It draws from over fifteen years of peer-reviewed essays and design awards published by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) and provides writings that challenge and revise modern thinking on the topic. Scholarly essays come packed with design innovations, insights, and more.

5 comments about Hybrid Space: New Forms in Digital Architecture.

1. The images are very dated, and one has to wonder how anyone would consider it a good read. Perhaps, the reviewer(s) that rate it well could very well be the author himself trying to up his sells cause its bad.



2. This is one book that slipped under my radar screen. I passed it up several times but once you get past the cloyingly bright graphics and the unfortunate coffee table format this volume is well worth the effort. As it turns out, Hybridspace delivers what might be seen one day as the first accessible account of the impact of digital technologies on architectural design. The introduction is particularly clear, intelligent and succinct and the firm profiles are condensed, neat introductions to the works of an emerging and talented generation of architects.

   To boot, if you get rid of the silly jacket, you'll have a handsome, black cloth bound volume that will sit nicely your shelves.




3. I read this book when it first came out, and my initial reaction was that it was an overhyped piece of trash. Nowhere in the book is there one piece of relevant information, with regard to the world of architecture (or anything else, for that matter). I decided to give it some time and try rereading it, to understand what my colleagues saw in it. I still can't figure it out. This book was extinct the moment it hit the public realm. I'd suggest spending your time (and money) elsewhere.



4. Unfortunately, this book is, almost exclusively, one of the worst attempts at analytic architecture that I have ever read. It oversimplifies and underestimates the depth of sensitivity with which architects are using emerging computer technologies to explore new domains of design philosophy. Having quite a familiarity of the the firms that the author hurriedly squimmed over in his text, I found no new insights or comprehensive frameworks with which to view the current architectural landscape. If you are looking for attractive, computer renderings, then by all means purchase this book. But if you are searching to refine your understanding of the current architectural culture, find a different author.



5. On first glance of the title i knew i was in for something good. This book provides a good analysis of the present work of worldwide architects that employ the computer as a 'means to the end' of architecture for the next millennium. I was already familiar with the architecture firms of today that are on the cutting edge of computer design work. So it was nice to see that this author is able to acknowledge these architects and present their architecture story in the form of this book. The luscious illustrations and graphics that this book presents are plentiful, informative and in other terms unique. The information is theorectical and practical which compliment the illustrations which gives this book the depth required for the serious architect. I dont hesitate to recommend this book for the future architects that intend to take their designs to a new level, the computer level.

1 comments about Curves and Surfaces for Computer-Aided Geometric Design: A Practical Guide (Computer Science and Scientific Computing Series).

1. An excellent, in-depth treatment of the subject of representing curves and surfaces on a computer. Written in a clear expository style, it covers the mathematics and algorithms behind Bezier and related classes of curves. Contributed sections on the differential geometry of curves and surfaces provide an excellent introduction to the mathematical framework behind the algorithms. Though not for the casual reader, Farin's book is a perfect reference for the programmer or architect of computer aided design software. I recommend it highly.

5 comments about Developing Microsoft Visio Solutions (Pro-Documentation).

1. If you really want to become an expert this is the book to have. It is full of detailed approaches to typical Visio applications.



2. This book is worth its weight in gold if you intend to develop Visio solutions with automation. The Microsoft Website presents the entire Visio model, but doesn't compare to this book as a reference when it comes to understanding the sometimes arcane syntax of the Visio brand of Visual Basic. I highly recommend this to anyone trying to add automation to Visio solutions.



3. If you have limited Visio or VBA experience, this book might be worth the money. But if you have worked with Visio for a while, have written VBA code in other applications, and you know how to use MSDN, spend your money elsewhere.
   
   This book only touches basics of Visio VBA, it doesn't show any brilliant, heavyweight techniques.



4. This is a good starting reference source for anyone interested in doing more advanced VBA development with Visio. This is not a book for the average Visio user who wants to use Visio as a presentation tool like Powerpoint.

   This book lays the foundation for using Visio as an automated development tool, it introduces many of the advanced features of Visio and provides some samples. You need to have a solid understanding of VBA before you use this book.

   The overall quality of the book is good. Samples are good, it has a CD that includes all samples, so you can cut and paste. The only negative that I have about the book is that it does not go into enough detail with the Visio VBA properties or the Visio Object Model.

   This book is very much like a sampler platter. It gives you a little bit about everything. It is 10 feet wide and 2 feet deep. Needless to say, this book is still better than most that are available on Visio and VBA. There is another book that might be of interest to you and seems to have much compliment from other developers. Look for book by Graham Wideman.




5. Don't let the modern-looking cover fool you. This book has been around for almost every version of Visio, and has been continually updated for every subsequent product release.

   This is the quintessential reference book for Visio developers. A complete ShapeSheet and Object Model reference, this book will cover every object, method, property, event, and ShapeSheet formula you would ever want to know. In particular, much attention is paid to creating "SmartShapes", meaning using less "code", but taking advantage of the ShapeSheet and it's power to create highly intelligent Visio shapes. While most coders jump right in to coding, they do not realize that in Visio, good applications start with "shapes first", then "code later".

   This book doesn't cover automating Visio's extra dll's and vsl's, like the UML, Organizational Chart, and Database Modeling solutions, but those add-ons are not really part of Visio's native object model (you'll have to dig a little harder for info of those).

No comments about Gamble House: Greene and Greene (Architecture in Detail).

No comments about Assessing Building Performance.

1 comments about Leakage in Nanometer CMOS Technologies (Series on Integrated Circuits and Systems).

1. I am usually a little concerned about edited books. Often they are not coherant. So, I was reluctant to buy this book. But given the topic and some well knownn authors I decided to give it a try. The material is not only cohesive, but also very educational, especially for someone who is new to this area. Right from the introductory material of the first chapter to the detailed methods covered makes this an excellent book for someone who wants to learn about leakage. I foun d the case studies very useful as well.

4 comments about Critical Modernism: Where is Post-Modernism Going What is Post-Modernism.

1. 'Post Modernism' often just sounds like an excuse to ramble incessant contradictory bs to justify the meaning behind why things are the way they are. It's some stupid alternative term for the cycle of evolution. The fact that the world is growing and ideas are changing. It's an interesting, yet very puzzling and irritating topic. The bottomline is - Post Modernism is open to personal interpretation and it's meaning is based on your own understanding and perceptions in response to it. You don't have to influenced by college textbooks or the typical cocky college-educated smart-@$$. Anyone who truly appeciates 'art' (I believe) should be open-minded and accepting towards different ideas and responses, and not constantly bitching and whining, trying to reinforce their own presumedly educated understanding of the ideals and aesthetics behind Post-modernism or whatever. As far as I am concerned, 'Post-bloody-Modernism' is over (if it ever existed) and we should all just enjoy art for what it is and not what it must be.



2. This wonderful book has helped me understand the word "post-modern", which has replaced "serendipity" and "oxymoron" as the word I spew out when I am intimidated by how clever other people are and panic.



3. I have great respect for Charles Jencks as an architect, and as a critic of art relating to such. Therefore the book should be retitled, What is Postmodern Architecture? Or what is everything about Post-Modernism except the art? The main focus seems to be on the industrial world which created the art, rather then the art. Seems hardly revolutionary or even relevant since everyone and their brother and sister has written on that subject since 1820. I was hoping for something which would address the art, but I was sorely disappointed. The constant focus on the world around the buildings of postmodernism dragged and was inebriatingly dull (It got to the point where the author was forced to contradict himself to make the book interesting). The focus of Postmoderism was once architecture, however, now the focus has shifted, it seems everyone except the academics know this. Not only was his sections on art and literature stupid, but incorrect, and blunderingly light. I expected more from Jencks, being the great mind of the century he was. If you want to know anything helpful and relevant pretaining to Post Modernism today, do not read this book. But hey if you want to know about your father's post modernism, read this book!



4. From the architect who played a vital role in the formation of "Second Modernism" ("Post-Modernism"), here is a book that explains it all: why Modernism failed and why the polemical "post" was a necessary addition. Anyone who has been baffled by the vague connotations of either term will be enlightened with sufficient examples. This book lives up to its title; it is mandatory for anyone attempting to understand the rise of multiculturalism and self-consciousness. As such, it provides a great "lens" for viewing all works of the 20th century; and although it doesn't focus per se on Modernist literature (cf. Rand's The Fountainhead), WHAT IS POST-MODERNISM crushes any out-dated philosophers under its powerful weight.