No comments about Presentation Drawings by American Architects.

No comments about Construction Materials Manual.

3 comments about Solar House: A Guide for the Solar Designer.

1. If you're looking for the story of one house being built with solar and other "green" technologies, this is a pretty good one. Examples are sometimes the best way to learn. The dedication to scientific perfection in the design and construction of this single house (tile, windows, concrete, automation systems, etc) is what really excited me from chapter to chapter.
   
   However, the book gets a little off-track in several areas. In one section there is at-length discussion about growing vegetables in your solarium. It also veers off into hydrogen and hybrid gas/electric cars for a few pages, which is not really helpful since we've purchased a book entitled "Solar House".
   
   I'd also be inclined to think that a better-organized book with more examples, in more of a "how to" form, would be more useful for the average solar home designer.
   
   I could have used more pictures of the project, too. They never really give us a full 360 view of the house, which, if the book is going to be about one house and how it was built, seems pretty important.
   
   It's a cool book, but there are probably better options out there for those who are going to be getting their hands dirty in the near future.



2. This book describes a single solar house development in 1998. The book is highly academic and written more like a university graduate publication, then a helpful guide for today's "solar designer." There are better books on the market that are better organized and more up-to-date. The book is over-priced for the material presented. I have given it a 3-star review so as not to be too critical. It's an average book at best. The book misleads the potential buyer with it's 2004 publication date.



3. This is a complete guide to the solar house, with super-efficiency built in! It is a very well thought through design for a super efficient modern solar home. Has a comprehensive menu of things to deal with when designing/building a solar home, including "smart" house features like computerized controls. Very scientific, very informative with lots of examples, photos, charts and graphs.
   
   A must for solar home designers/builders or the interested.

No comments about Tropisms: Fascinations 10.

No comments about Mapping in the Age of Digital Media: The Yale Symposium.

1 comments about Stone Buildings.

1. In connection with a construction project at Princeton University I searched hard, with assistance of the University's Library and interlibrary transfers, to identify the BEST resources on traditional masonry construction. STONE BUILDINGS, and its cohort IRISH STONE WALLS by the same author and publisher, are truly outstanding. One should not be distracted by the word Irish in a title. I'm not an art historian, but expect the principles and techniques described apply to any traditional masonry construction with English or Irish (and to some extent any European) cultural heritage. These are NOT field manuals for modern masonry construction using portland cement, steel reinforcing, assemblies and details now in widespread commercial use. Rather McAfee focuses on load bearing stone, dry laid or with lime mortar. Thorough knowledge of these "outdated" materials and techniques are of critical import in conserving and restoring old buildings. But the value of McAfee's work is not exclusively historical. Some of the principles we admire in old stone walls and historical buildings are properly applicable to new construction. McAfee's books will benefit any architect in using (or recognizing) traditional and "vernacular" building styles; to any mason working in stone; to anyone concerned with quality craft in masonry construction; to anyone else who appreciates historical building forms, materials and methods of construction. If bigger, Patrick McAfee's books would qualify as "coffee table" items; they are certainly beautiful enough. For those who are interested they also appear intensely practical, whether or not one is in a position to use the methods elucidated. The author dares to posit (rarely) a few aesthetic judgements, with which a reader might disagree or might find inconsistent with local project considerations. But even these opinions are valuable to anyone who strives to understand, or judge the qualities of, historical structures. Architects, trade craftspersons, preservationists, and all others interested in traditional masonry should have STONE BUILDINGS, along with its sibling IRISH STONE WALLS, in their libraries.

No comments about Window Systems for High-Performance Buildings.

No comments about Green Buildings Pay.

4 comments about Architecture Residential Drawing and Design.

1. The workbook is useless without the text book. It was unclear when ordering that I had ordered a workbook which had no information.



2. EXCELLENT. I'd have rate it 7 stars if it was also available in metric dimensions.



3. After I finished the book, I understood what residential architecture was truly about. A must read for a student of architecture. The book taught me the following: Architecture= The blending of Art, Engineering, and Construction with the responsibility of protecting the health, welfare and comfort of the public. With this premise, a residential architect designs a "work of architecture" by gracefully merging the Blend of ART/ENGINEERIN/CONSTRUCTION with public requirements to create a homogenious seamless solution that meets public need.



4. Covers all the basics of architecture in a logical manner. Great detail on specifying building materials. My only complaint is the chapter on drafting tools is aged and obsolete.

No comments about Elizabethan House & Garden.