Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Administrator's Companion Review

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(More customer reviews)There is a reason why SharePoint 2010 is called a "Platform" and not an application. It is because SharePoint has more to it than anyone could imagine. It is the same with this book. This is the type of book I was looking for to handle the administrative side of SharePoint for SP 2010. I would imagine that if your only focus is to develop web parts, or set up web pages, that you will eventually be looking for an Administrator's book for SharePoint. This would be your book! Additionally, it is impossible to cover every aspect of this book due to its depth. We will look at some of the important concepts covered.
The authors of "Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Administrator's Companion" are: Bill English, Brian Alderman, and Mark Ferraz. It is typical nowadays for all of us to Google the name of any person whom we want to know more about. I did that for these three authors. Each of these three gentlemen has extensive and impressive knowledge and credentials. You can trust what they have to offer in this book. I now have more sources for information as a result of Googling them.
The purpose of SharePoint is collaboration and the very first chapter I found was on collaboration. Then the 2nd chapter covered SP 2010's architecture. In my opinion, these are the two most important concepts about the SP 2010 Platform. In the collaboration chapter, I found this important comment: "Some of the most notable new Web Parts released with SharePoint 2010 are, Silverlight viewer, Media Web Part, Chart Web Part, HTML for Web part, iView Web Part, and Search Web Parts." Can anyone deny the huge increase in development capabilities with SharePoint, You already have the ability to create web sites through SharePoint; however, you now have more options on how and where you will make those modifications which will make yours or your client's sites more interesting and appealing.
A good note for administrators trying to find their way around in SharePoint 2010: "When you are evaluating SharePoint 2010 or performing testing/development activities, a small farm deployment should be sufficient. In fact, you may elect to go with a single server farm configuration for development or configuration testing. Often a developer will elect to use a virtual machine for testing because it's less expensive and can be brought up and down as needed." We had a presentation on how to do this in one of our recent Inland Empire SharePoint User Group meetings. See Chapter 2, Page 83.
Chapter 3 covers optimizing SQL Server 2008 R2 for SharePoint 2010. Chapter 4 covers how to prepare for the SharePoint 2010 installation.
Chapter 22 covers how to upgrade to SP 2010. This is THE chapter to review before you do an upgrade. The steps you must take for a successful upgrade are all spelled out. Chapter 23, Creating and Managing Workflows is a hot topic. Every time I speak to a recruiter about SharePoint, the first two items up for discussion are upgrading and workflows. These are another set of chapters any worthy SharePoint Administrator must know.
Lest this review grow too large, I will stop here and finish with the statement that the basics are all covered from an Administrator's viewpoint, covering the preliminary subjects leading up to the installation upgrading, securing your sites and data, and modifications to the sites, web parts, SQL Server optimization, lists, and so on. No review can do justice to this extensive book, but you can be assured that if you have questions, a majority of them will be answered from this book's content, as it is rich in administrative content for SharePoint 2010. This really is THE book to get.


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Get the critical, in-depth information you need to administer SharePoint 2010. Led by SharePoint MVPs and featuring insights from the SharePoint community and members of the SharePoint Team at Microsoft, you'll discover how to plan, design, deploy, and manage strategic solutions using SharePoint 2010, Microsoft SQL Server®, Windows PowerShell™, and other key technologies. Topics include architecture, deployment scenarios, design considerations, security best practices, high availability, performance, centralized administration, disaster recovery, customization, solution development, and upgrade and migration strategies. Key solutions include building and managing a server farm, automating tasks, FAST search application management, enterprise and web content management, and business intelligence. A Note Regarding the CD or DVD The print version of this book ships with a CD or DVD. For those customers purchasing one of the digital formats in which this book is available, we are pleased to offer the CD/DVD content as a free download via O'Reilly Media's Digital Distribution services. To download this content, please visit O'Reilly's web site, search for the title of this book to find its catalog page, and click on the link below the cover image (Examples, Companion Content, or Practice Files). Note that while we provide as much of the media content as we are able via free download, we are sometimes limited by licensing restrictions. Please direct any questions or concerns to booktech@oreilly.com.

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CCNP Practical Studies: Routing Review

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(More customer reviews)CCNP Practical Studies: Routing skips over all the ISO, TCP/IP and Basic Subnetting chapters that appear in every network book printed since the invention of the Cisco router... If you are reading this book you probably don't need them anyway. It covers Subnetting and VLSM in context of route summarization only.
The practicals are labs that you can do if you have the equipment. If you don't have the equipment, there are all the screenscapes you would normally see on the router console printed in the book. The only complaint I have about the book is that there is no "suggested equipment" list that lets you know what equipment is used throughout the exercises. I don't think the author expected all the configurations to be done in a home lab as he suggests a 6509 as the switch used in CCNP Routing Self-Study Lab. It would definitely help us crazyfolk that scour ebay for network equipment to keep next to our stereo, TV, and entertainment center.
Practicals included:
RIPv2
Basic OSPF
OSPF w RIP Redistribution
EIGRP
EBGP
Advanced BGP
Route Redistribution
And Finally the CCNP Routing Self-Study Lab that ties it all together
There are also many scenarios in each chapter that are almost as useful as the labs.
Although, it's possible to pass the exam without ever looking at a Cisco router, BUY THIS BOOK anyway. If you have been collecting Cisco equipment, and are looking for some exercises that will help you learn, this is a must have.
Finally, the chapter on advanced OSPF covers a bit of Integrated IS-IS and IS-IS redistribution. For those of you that know the new Cisco exam that recently replaced "Routing" (Called BCSI or Building Cisco Scalable Internetworks) has quite a bit about IS-IS on the exam. That is not covered at all in the BCSN books. Todd Lammle has got a book out that covers the new exam material

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Practice for the CCNP BSCI exam with hands-on, networking lab scenarios
Ramp up your routing know-how with more than 40 practical lab scenarios
Reinforce your CCNP exam preparation with step-by-step, hands-on router configuration
Get up to speed with advanced OSPF and IS-IS configuration, summarization, and redistribution
Gain proficiency in an advanced BGP environment with synchronization, communities and peer groups, and static and policy-based routing
Perfect your EIGRP configuration and summarization skills
Apply proficiency gained throughout the book with RIP to OSPF migration
Use VLSMs to extend the use of IP addresses
Test routing connectivity using accepted troubleshooting techniques
Take your preparation to the next level with a bonus CCIE lab, written by a prominent member of the CCIE team at Cisco Systems

Indispensable as both a router configuration guide and a preparation tool for the CCNP BSCI exam, CCNP Practical Studies: Routing will prepare you for the exam and give you the hands-on experience to apply your knowledge on the job. CCNP Practical Studies: Routing provides you with routing and configuration information from IP basics to advanced routing concepts and protocols, such as BGP and IS-IS, which is the newest addition to the BSCI exam. Each chapter focuses on a specific routing technology or protocol with a battery of scenarios and practical exercises that you can either configure using your home, work, or remote-access lab equipment or follow along by reviewing the book's example tasks. The five lab scenarios in each chapter serve to challenge your understanding of the chapter topics and measure your aptitude as a CCNP candidate, while providing concrete examples of the challenges faced in real-world configuration.

CCNP Practical Studies: Routing provides you with practical information on all of the important concepts central to the CCNP Routing exam, including basic and advanced BGP and OSPF, EIGRP, route reflectors, IP routing principles, and IS-IS. Begin with basic lab scenarios that cover displaying and analyzing IP routing tables and using show and debug commands. Then graduate to more advanced lab scenarios, such as routing between a classful and a classless network; configuring VLSM; and working with multihomed BGP and connections to ISPs. Lab scenarios at the end of the book take you step-by-step through route optimization and redistribution. This book also contains a bonus CCIE®-level lab, which takes you beyond the professional level labs and onto the next step in becoming a hands-on routing expert.

Whether you are seeking practical knowledge to enhance your preparation for the CCNP BSCI exam or you are a newly minted CCNP looking for hands-on experience to hone your on-the-job skills, CCNP Practical Studies: Routing has what you need to take your practical routing skills to the next level.

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MPLS VPN Security Review

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(More customer reviews)MPLS VPN Security (Paperback)
by Michael H. Behringer, Monique J. Morrow ISBN 1587051834
As Multiprocotol Label Switching (MPLS) is becoming widely deployed for providing virtual private network (VPN) services. Security becomes a major concern for companies planning to migrate from the legacy VPN's to MPLS VPN's. This book provides an indepth look at what are the real security issues that both service providers providing MPLS VPN's and companies utlizing such services face. The authors provide a clear understanding of how the MPLS VPN's work differently from other VPN technologies.
The book is divided into four parts MPLS VPN and Security Fundamentals form Part One. The first part of the book provides an excellent overview on the three basic components of security: the architecture, design and operations and defines the "zones of trust" for an MPLS VPN environment. It provides an excellent Security Reference Model for MPLS VPNs. The various threats to a VPN are broken down into parts for better understanding, like threat, intrusion, Denial of Service against a VPN. Threat against an Extranet site. Threats against the core, and from within a Zone of trust.
Part Two of the book provides an analysis of Advanced MPLS VPN Security Issues like VPN Seperation (Address Space and traffic), Robustness against attacks (where and how), protection against spoofing, Specific Inter-AS considerations and comparisons. And other issues not addressed by the MPLS Architecture. It examines in detail Secure MPLS VPN designs and shows how to design a DOS resistant network and the tradeoffs between DOS resistance and network cost. The security recommendations provide tips on general router security, basic templates and ACL Examples. CE-Specific router security and topology design considerations. LAN Security Issues. CE-PE routing Security Best Practices. IPSec both CE to CE and PE to PE. And a comprehensive checklist for securing Core and Routing.
Part Three provides practical guidelines to MPLS VNP Security and shows how IPSec complements MPLS. It explains the deployment of IPSec on MPLS and use of other encryption techniques. It underlines the importance of security of MPLS Layer 2 VPNs and the various generic Layer 2 security considerations. The section ends with providing a plan for the operation management and maintenance of a MPLS core. It deals with the secure management of CE devices, management of VRF and VRF details.
Part Four provides deployment examples and lessons learned, highlighting theoretical discussion points from the previous chapters. It also provides various scenarios for internet access and points out security considerations for each example.
The coauthor Michael H. Behringer is an active member of the IETF and has published work on MPLS VPN security since 2001.
The coauthor Monique J. Morrow (CCIE # 1711) is active in both IETF and ITU-T SG 13 with a focus on OAM. She is currently engaged in MPLS OAM standards development.
I feel this book would be extremely useful for security and operations staff of enterprises that deploy MPLS or subscribe to a service based on MPLS.
I give this book 5 stars on a scale of 5, 5 being the highest. I strongly recommend this book.
Niloufer Tamboly, CISSP



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A practical guide to hardening MPLS networksDefine "zones of trust" for your MPLS VPN environment Understand fundamental security principles and how MPLS VPNs work Build an MPLS VPN threat model that defines attack points, such as VPN separation, VPN spoofing, DoS against the network's backbone, misconfigurations, sniffing, and inside attack forms Identify VPN security requirements, including robustness against attacks, hiding of the core infrastructure, protection against spoofing, and ATM/Frame Relay security comparisons Interpret complex architectures such as extranet access with recommendations of Inter-AS, carrier-supporting carriers, Layer 2 security considerations, and multiple provider trust model issues Operate and maintain a secure MPLS core with industry best practices Integrate IPsec into your MPLS VPN for extra security in encryption and data origin verification Build VPNs by interconnecting Layer 2 networks with new available architectures such as virtual private wire service (VPWS) and virtual private LAN service (VPLS) Protect your core network from attack by considering Operations, Administration, and Management (OAM) and MPLS backbone security incidentsMultiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) is becoming a widely deployed technology, specifically for providing virtual private network (VPN) services. Security is a major concern for companies migrating to MPLS VPNs from existing VPN technologies such as ATM. Organizations deploying MPLS VPNs need security best practices for protecting their networks, specifically for the more complex deployment models such as inter-provider networks and Internet provisioning on the network. MPLS VPN Security is the first book to address the security features of MPLS VPN networks and to show you how to harden and securely operate an MPLS network. Divided into four parts, the book begins with an overview of security and VPN technology. A chapter on threats and attack points provides a foundation for the discussion in later chapters. Part II addresses overall security from various perspectives, including architectural, design, and operation components. Part III provides practical guidelines for implementing MPLS VPN security. Part IV presents real-world case studies that encompass details from all the previous chapters to provide examples of overall secure solutions. Drawing upon the authors' considerable experience in attack mitigation and infrastructure security, MPLS VPN Security is your practical guide to understanding how to effectively secure communications in an MPLS environment."The authors of this book, Michael Behringer and Monique Morrow, have a deep and rich understanding of security issues, such as denial-of-service attack prevention and infrastructure protection from network vulnerabilities. They offer a very practical perspective on the deployment scenarios, thereby demystifying a complex topic. I hope you enjoy their insights into the design of self-defending networks."—Jayshree V. Ullal, Senior VP/GM Security Technology Group, Cisco Systems®

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Information Security Policies and Procedures: A Practitioner's Reference, Second Edition Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)This is a useful book for me to reference, especially when I deal with challenges in security policy framework review. The most impressive pages include the tier 1-2-3 framework, proper wordings in policy, policy sample studies and analysis, complete checklist and questionnaire.
After reading this book or on-and-off reference, I always remember four major elements in a policy:
1.Topic
2.Scope
3.Responsibility
4.Compliance
In addition, I have shared this book with an IT supervisor, he always go for this book for the team reference. I do feel happy to recommend it. Moreover, it readily happens to me I could apply the hints and tips from this book to the revised policy. Meanwhile, compared with the company's policy, it is undoubted organized and logical.
Be honest, in reality, many people still always mix up policy, standard and procedures as well as guidelines and produce a "Spaghetti-like" document to deal with auditor and compliance once a year only, you could say, many companies treat it as a last-minute homework.


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Information Security Policies and Procedures: A Practitioner's Reference, Second Edition illustrates how policies and procedures support the efficient running of an organization. This book is divided into two parts, an overview of security policies and procedures, and an information security reference guide. This volume points out how security documents and standards are key elements in the business process that should never be undertaken to satisfy a perceived audit or security requirement. Instead, policies, standards, and procedures should exist only to support business objectives or mission requirements; they are elements that aid in the execution of management policies.
The book emphasizes how information security must be integrated into all aspects of the business process. It examines the 12 enterprise-wide (Tier 1) policies, and maps information security requirements to each. The text also discusses the need for top-specific (Tier 2) policies and application-specific (Tier 3) policies and details how they map with standards and procedures.
It may be tempting to download some organization's policies from the Internet, but Peltier cautions against that approach. Instead, he investigates how best to use examples of policies, standards, and procedures toward the achievement of goals. He analyzes the influx of national and international standards, and outlines how to effectively use them to meet the needs of your business.

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Windows Server 2008 Unleashed Review

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(More customer reviews)I went to the Windows 2008 launch event and got excited about migrating our company to Windows 2008, but wanted to get a third party book to help me better understand the REAL features, functions, and experiences of the product (rather than Microsoft's rendition of it). I jumped on Amazon and searched for a book, and this Windows 2008 Unleashed book was already rated with a couple 5-stars, so I bought it. I just got it last week.
At first, I was a little overwhelmed as the book is almost 2-inches thick and hard bound (definitely worth the cost for the shear volume and amount of paper it took to print this book)! I read the introduction chapter and got a lot more comfortable with Windows 2008 as the author provided a really good comparison of Windows 2008 to Windows 2003 (which I already know pretty well). The intro chapter also gave me links to different parts of the book that helped me organize the way I was going to review the text of the book (I prioritized chapters in the book based on my interests, which was outlined and highlighted very well in the first chapter).
I was most interested some of the new things I've heard about Windows 2008 such as the security stuff, Windows virtualization, terminal services, and Active Directory Federation. I flipped to each of the chapters that covered these topics, and I found the content very easy to follow. Each chapter started off with an overview of the topic (like an introduction of the concepts) and then as I got further into the chapter, it got more into the details on how to implement the technologies, and it had notes and tips throughout the chapters that made it obvious to me the authors have worked with Windows 2008 for a long time and provided great guidance!
After reading about 5 chapters, I then focused on what it would take to implement and migrate to Windows 2008 and flipped to the chapters on installation and on migration. Those chapters also were VERY well structured and helped walk me through what was involved. I was greatly relieved to read that the migration process from Windows 2003 to Windows 2008 wasn't that complicated. And while I have only been fiddling with Windows 2008 for about a week in the lab here at the company I work for (which is a pretty extensive lab with over 30 servers mirroring a portion of our production environment), I've gone from being overwhelmed to pleasantly relieved that our migration to Windows 2008 will be well planned, staged, and executed thanks to the content of this book!
I am grateful to the authors of this book! I just bought the books on Exchange 2007, SharePoint 2007, and Windows Vista written by the same authors (Rand Morimoto and Michael Noel) as I think their writing style and the value of the content is wonderful!
B

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CCNA Exam Cram (Exam 640-802) (3rd Edition) Review

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(More customer reviews)While I am a big fan of the exam-cram series, this is a let down. It still has all the information summarized as much as possible without losing detail but the errors are simply appalling.
As the 640-801 exam has been retired in favour of the 640-802 exam, it seems that the publishers,writers (or whoever) decided to quickly rewrite the previous edition with a few updates and get it out as quick as possible. It seems a shame that they couldnt delay its release by a few weeks and proof read it. Wrong diagrams, missing diagrams and some explanations that are just plain wrong are amongst the errors. Probably most frustrating are the review questions with the wrong diagrams or answers displayed.
Do not use this book without having plenty of other Cisco material handy.

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CCNA® Exam CramThird EditionMichael ValentineAndrew WhitakerExam 640-802The Smart Way to Study™"The CCNA exam is difficult and I would not have passed it if I did not have this book with me. The CCNA Exam Cram is an indispensable resource that guided me from the introduction of networking fundamentals to the application of networking theories. Whether you need to learn from scratch or just need a quick reference, this book is an excellent guide that will definitely reinforce your knowledge of Cisco networking and prepare you for the CCNA."–Vincent Gov, CCNAIn this book, you learn how to:Develop perfect fluency in subnettingConnect Cisco® equipment, make initial configurations, and connect to other devices to build a networkConfigure Cisco routers and back up and restore your Cisco IOS® Software configurationsExplain the functions of Ethernet switching and the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP)Configure PPP and Frame Relay for WAN connectivityUnderstand and apply wireless LAN conceptsMitigate network security threats and secure network devicesBuild scalable routed systems using dynamic routing protocols including RIPv2, EIGRP, and OSPFCreate VLANs and distribute VLAN information using the VLAN Trunking Protocol (VTP)Filter traffic from one network to another with access control lists (ACL)Understand and implement IPv6Deploy Network Address Translation (NAT)WRITTEN BY CCNA Experts!Mike Valentine has been in the IT field for 12 years, focusing on network design and implementation. He is currently a Cisco trainer with Skyline Advanced Technology Services and specializes in Cisco Unified Communications instruction as well as CCNA® and CCNP® courses.Andrew Whitaker is the director of enterprise InfoSec and networking and senior training instructor for Training Camp. He has achieved several Cisco certifications and has written on several Cisco topics.CD features new simulation questions!This book includes a CD-ROM that features:Complete coverage of CCNA exam objectivesRealistic exam questions for effective practiceDetailed explanations of correct and incorrect answersMultiple exam modesFlash Card formatAn electronic copy of the book

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Official (ISC)2 Guide to the CISSP CBK, Second Edition ((ISC)2 Press) Review

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(More customer reviews)Many people have commented that the Second Edition of the Official (ISC)2 Guide to the CISSP CBK was a big improvement over the first edition. I have to wonder how bad the first edition must have been?
Before getting into the details of my concerns, let's look at the layout of this hardbound, 968 page "brick".
The book is organized in a 1:1 correspondence with the 10 Domains of the CISSP CBK (i.e. one chapter per domain). This organization is nice as compared with the All-In-One CISSP 4th Edition, which has something like 12 chapters to cover the 10 domains (which can make it hard to cross reference concepts).
Each domain is written by a different author (or authors) who are CISSP's and experts in the field covered by the domain. In concept this is a good idea, and in a few places it was clear that the authors tried to impart some real-world knowledge and experience (such as the BCP/DRP chapter). However, it also leads to contrasting writing styles and some issues with "continuity".
As one might expect, many domains have concepts that overlap. On occasion, the text of the book will call attention to areas that relate or overlap with other domains, but this is inconsistent and sometimes results in the reader having some questions in their mind about the 'big picture' of the concepts. Given the CISSP is primarily a managerial level certification, understanding the big picture is critically important.
In general, the content seemed relevant, though the organization left something to be desired (more on that later). However, I was a bit surprised to see quite a bit of disparate information in this book when compared with the official (ISC)2 Review Seminar course material. There were at least a few topics covered in one, but not the other. I would have expected there to be better alignment between two current and "official" (ISC)2 sources, and it left me somewhat questioning which resource to focus on.
Speaking of the content, as compared to the All-In-One CISSP (Shon Harris) book mentioned above, this book is more of a traditional technical guide. Shon Harris' books occasionally interject opinion that borders on 'soapbox' material. And I find her "jokes" to generally not be funny, and often distracting. Some might consider the Official (ISC)2 Guide to be dry in comparison, but in technical reference books I prefer clear and succinct writing.
As mentioned, the layout of the individual chapters could be improved. The book does follow a typical hierarchy for introducing concepts (i.e. the main topic introduced with large, bold font, sub-topics using smaller fonts, italics, etc). However, in many cases the context of the material was not introduced well at the start, leading the reader to question whether a "sub-heading" represents a new topic, or a topic relating to the previous topic. In many cases the material gets nested 5 or 6 layers deep, making it hard to differentiate whether a new section is a sub-topic or a new upper level topic. This is a bit hard to explain so I hope that is clear. Again, this certification is not about memorization, but rather concepts and how they interrelate, so the book's organization is important.
Another area that was lacking was the use of tables, figures, and diagrams. There are some tables, etc, but there really should have been a few more. This could have really helped in providing additional context for some of the topics (see previous paragraph). This is an area where the Shon Harris All-In-One CISSP is better.
I also wish the editor/publisher would have taken a bit more time to improve the index. How can key elements such as "Software Development Lifecycle" and "Common Criteria" not even have index entries? My recommendation is when reading this book and taking notes, be sure to notate page numbers in your own notes for future reference.
There were also the usual amount of typo's and a few technical errors. The quantity of errors in tech books seems to be on a slow, steady rise, so I'd consider this book to be typical or maybe only slightly worse than typical.
Ultimately, for those studying for the CISSP I would recommend this book simply because no single book covers the entire CISSP scope. Couple this book with either the CISSP All-in-One Exam Guide, Fifth Edition, or perhaps the CISSP For Dummies 3rd Edition if you are looking for a cheaper option that might serve an an easier introduction to the material.
UPDATE: I forgot to add that I did pass the CISSP using primarily this book, coupled with the Review Seminar mentioned above. Took the test August 8 of 2010, received notification that I passed in September, and received my certificate in October.
My approach was as follows:
I started studying for the exam in late May, targeting a test date of August 8 (note the date on my review was August 7). I basically counted the number of days I had to prepare, subtracted 1 week for review time and about 7 "off" days to allow for days off or catch up. I also subtracted one week for the review seminar course that I took the week prior to the exam. I then took the number of remaining days an divided the number of pages in the book by that to set a pages per day goal. I think the result was something like 18 or 19 pages per day.
That was my goal - read 19 pages per day and take notes as I read. The next day I'd review the previous day's notes, and read another 19 pages and take notes. I used the Shon Harris book as a supplement to fill in gaps that I felt were unclear.

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Writing Secure Code, Second Edition Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)The title of the book is misleading to begin with. The book is not about writing secure code. It's about (1) not writing non-secure code and (2) using Windows specific security APIs.
(1) Not writing non-secure code. Covers several issues, some more obvious, like buffer overruns and validating user input, some more complex, like escaping URLs and socket security. I thought the book would teach me best practices about organizing code, as in "do like I do". Instead it goes like "don't do like I'm telling you".
(2) Using Windows security APIs. This is THE BEST part of the book. Gives you a very good overview about several different APIs, including ACLs, protecting sensitive data, securing DCOM and .NET code, excellent tips on installing programs etc. etc.
Keep in mind that this book is said to be used internally within Microsoft with "security pushes", with the audience of 8000 people, including not only developers of all levels, but managers as well, therefore the book is by definition a high level overview.
Sometimes the book feels like MS educational course. Ex. (tip on p.77) "I created the ... diagrams ... using ... Microsoft Visio Professional 2002". That's cool, but what does it have to do with security ?
Some topics should never be there. How about 3 pages of tips for a kernel driver writer ? It's a huge topic in itself and how many readers outside MS do this anyway ? Privacy issues are covered idealistically. Yeah, sure, if you put a specially crafted XML to the special place on your site, the users magically start trusting you... I'd better read about real situation with privacy, not how the government rules it to be. Oh, and how about 40 pages about cryptography ? Please...
The book tries to show you the security process with development and testing. I can easily see they use this process in Microsoft, with 8000 people. For a small team it's completely useless. How about using 4 (!) people for a code review ? Sure, upon reading this book you will know that security code review is a must (if you have enough resources). Didn't you know that before ?
The code samples are ugly. How about this: "... X is cool ... several pages of Perl (!) ... see what I mean ?". Ok, one of the authors admits to be a Perl fan, but how am I supposed to read through all this gibberish ? C(++) samples are not much better. May be they are fully functional and compilable and all, but please, they are huge and inconsistent in themselves.
All in all, 5 stars for Microsoft, 3 stars for the rest of the world.

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Kalman Filtering: Theory and Practice Review

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(More customer reviews)Many books exist that are titled as being the castles of Ireland and in reality are coffee table books on the rebuilt banquet venues on scant castle remains or grand manor homes. While those have their place, this book remains on the subject and with complete authority on castles~ despite the opening disclosure of the author. McNeill has done his homework with prodigious diagrams throughout. Heartily and highly recommended by The Castle Lady !

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A thorough exploration of the theory and application of Kalman filtering to real-world situations.*book contains a floppy disk with C++ and MATLAB algorithms.*offers a heuristic treatment of essential material.*includes many often ignored design and implementation techniques.*explores the appropriate numerical methods for reliable implementation.*contains a variety of examples and problems taken from real-world application situations - e.g., modelling of gyros, accelerometers, inertial navigation; freeway traffic model; a harmonic oscillator; radar tracking; Global Positioning System (GPS) aided Inertial Navigation System (INS).*includes companion software to solve large dimension problems in the text.

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Cryptography : Theory and Practice Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)As other people have pointed out, this is not a mathematics book, and it is not an algorithm (recipies) book. It could be a great book for people that are interested in learning these tools to actually use them, either in a research or product development context (something besides homework). Unfortunately, the number of typos, in key mathematical expressions AND PORTIONS OF THE EXPLANATIONS is staggering. Go to the author's web page and you will find that some chapters, like 4 for example, average more than one typo per page (and some of these 'typos' are full sentences, or math expressions that do not look like anything that is actually printed on the page). If you do not have that errata sheet handy, you will waste a lot of time trying to understand the text, or trying to solve the exercises. If you are trying to learn from this book, without attending a class and without the errata, you will simply give up. It is a real shame because it has all the makings of a great book.

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HTI+ Home Technology Integration All-in-One Exam Guide (All-in-One) Review

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(More customer reviews)"Authorized" is misleading ---This book is an "authorized" training material, which signifies that it covers the content of the relevant certification exams. The accuracy and delivery of the content, however, have not necessarily been reviewed or approved by the certifying agencies.
A review of the Table of Contents (16 pages worth) leads one to believe this book (800+ pages worth) will cover it all and with great detail. From there to Chapter 4 (where I decided the book wasn't worth completing), it was mostly downhill. Here are some examples of what I found:
- terms not introduced or not introduced at the first use, and/or not identified in the glossary
- layout and delivery of information difficult to follow, repetitious of some information, while not including other pertinent information
- errors (bandwidth of Cat 5e cable listed at 200 Mbps (Table 1-5, pg 11) and at 100 Mbps (Table 4-2, pg 101))
- errors (pg 24: Chapter 1 test question # 4 directs to Table 1-2 rather than Table 1-3 to reference for answering)
- why?! (includes text, tables and figures with details on voltage/plugs/etc. used by other countries, yet is incomplete on the products used in the US)
- errors (pp 83-84: identifies the "minimum" bend radius for Cat5 to be 1 inch, while Figure 3-7 depicts the diameter)
- errors (pg 85: last paragraph refers to Figures 3-11 and 3-12, rather than Figures 3-9 and 3-10)
- errors (pg 93: Answer #1 is identified as "C, User Training Guide", but the answer text expands on "D, Wire Chart".
I highly recommend persons desiring the CompTIA HTI+ and/or CEDIA Installer I certifications, as well as those wishing to simply increase their knowledge base, look elsewhere for study materials.
Some of the information provided in this book may truly be of value (i.e. accurate and complete), however, with all the errors I've found, I am unable to rely on this book as a good resource.

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The most comprehensive on the job resource for professional installers of home automation technology. This book also provides coverage of both the HTI+ and CEDIA Installer Level I certifications...Features include:..�In-depth coverage of home system integration technologies and practices make this book an indispensable working reference. .�100% coverage of all exam objectives for CompTIA�s HTI+ Certification and CEDIA�s Installer Level I exam..�Includes Expert Discussion and Case Study sidebars, and Note, Tip, Exam Tip, and Caution icons highlighting important text throughout the book. .�CD-ROM includes 3 practice exams � 2 for each of the HTI+ exams and 1 for the CEDIA Installer Level I exam. The CD-ROM also includes a PDF document of CEDIA�s home system planning icons..�Foreword by Ray Lepper, President of CEDIA..

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Construction Project Scheduling and Control (CourseSmart) Review

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(More customer reviews)There are several points that make this book the best in the market in its field. Simplicity and step-by-step approach is one. The book has many examples and exercises in each chapter. The author's construction experience is reflected in the examples and arguments. The list of chapters is logical and comprehensive. I recommend this book as a reference and as a college textbook.

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Neural Path Therapy: How to Change Your Brain's Response to Anger, Fear, Pain, and Desire Review

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(More customer reviews)I don't usually read self-help books. My girlfriends give them to me (implying there is something seriously wrong with me) and I read them out of respect. I find the area sometimes interesting but rarely useful. The problem, as I see it with most of these books, is that either they are so academic that you can't apply what you learn to your own life, or they are so filled with stories about "people just like you" that you spend most of your time self-diagnosing from someone else's life. Neural Path Therapy goes straight to the issues: it is one of the few therapy books that provides a useful and practical plan for the stresses in life that often overwhelm us. This is a book you can use.
Neural Path Therapy begins by explaining how our sometimes puzzling brains work, on a neurological level. When we think, when we respond to outside stimuli, we develop neural pathways: neurological routings in our brain for all those thoughts. I tried to think of this as if the brain was setting up it own postal delivery system. The thoughts/emotions had to be driven from point A to point B for delivery. The more you drive from A to B the deeper the ruts in the road get. But what if the "package" being delivered is the equivalent of a letter bomb? How many of our thoughts are unwanted: stressful thoughts, angry thoughts, depressive, disturbing thoughts, thoughts of self-doubt or ugly self-image thoughts - thoughts that undermine who you are and what you achieve. How do we stop the delivery of negative thoughts - how do we get out of those ruts we've created? The authors McKay and Harp don't try to steal you away from other methods of professional therapy or treatment you might be following, they just want to supply you with a simple, readily available tool to manage these thoughts.
The authors first help you become aware of the thoughts that act as "triggers" to emotional discomfort; they encourage you to recognize the mental pathways that engender self-destructive thinking. Through simple breathing exercises you are taught to step back and observe these thoughts, to see them as "mental objects" which are within your ability to manipulate. Then you choose how to react to these thoughts. As simple as this sounds, it is extremely effective. While the book goes into greater depth later about how to "react" when you are examining these thoughts, just getting to the point where I can see my anger, or pain, or angst as only a damaging "object" inside my mind has been extraordinarily helpful to me. The system McKay and Harp have provided in their book expects only that it be applied - like any good methodology it requires practice. I can't recommend this book strongly enough.


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When we set out to describe the problems this book can help fix—the stressful and anxiety-provoking conditions of everyday living—we quite simply ran out of space. It's no secret that life is tough, and that each passing year isn't making it any easier. Whether you're more stressed by politics, the environment, your relationships, major life changes, or just the daily task of keeping food on the table, it's easy to let life knock you down and hard to get back up again. But this book offers readers a chance at a different way of life. It shows them how to accept their lives as they are, regard the events of each day with nonjudgmental awareness, and stop obsessive thoughts from compounding their feelings of helplessness and frustration. The first part of the book introduces you to the basics of neural network learning theory. The basic idea is that neural pathways strengthen with use and weaken with disuse. While certain events are likely to provoke a hardwired neural response in us, we are capable of creating new neural paths with no more than a thought. Instead of letting automatic triggers dictate our responses to painful events, we can use this characteristic of our nervous systems to short-circuit the responses that lead to painful thoughts and emotions. The second part teaches you five easy-to-learn skills for dealing with stress—breath counting, thought watching, compassionate awareness, softening to pain, and wise mind. Together, they make up a set of skills that readers can take with them anywhere, a kind of portable therapy.Once learned, the techniques in this book can be used to cope with many different situations. Combined with each other, they become a powerful tool for creating happiness, compassion, and well-being.

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Coaching by the Book Review

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(More customer reviews)Very good book and just what the title is about. A couple of the chapters are a little too elementary for someone who's a mature Christian but overall I would recommend it.

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Coaching by the Book is the first book to illuminate the rich relationship between Biblical teaching and coaching concepts.It is an essential reference for those who want to coach -- or be coached -- from a Christian perspective.

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Wireless Communications Review

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(More customer reviews)The book gives a fairly good breadth of subject, but is lacking in depth, and also does not give good intuitive sense of the subject. The book contains lot of typos and numerical errors that need to be addressed.
The book seems more intent on giving a lot of formulas and wireless situations, instead of enabling the student to think independently, and giving the tools for the student to think and derive the answers to issues.
The chapter on channel models for example gives a bunch of models for different fading conditions, but does not even clarify when the models apply, and how to apply them. After reading the chapter, I am not sure when each model applies and how to apply them.


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Wireless technology is a truly revolutionary paradigm shift, enabling multimedia communications between people and devices from any location. It also underpins exciting applications such as sensor networks, smart homes, telemedicine, and automated highways. This book provides a comprehensive introduction to the underlying theory, design techniques and analytical tools of wireless communications, focusing primarily on the core principles of wireless system design.The book begins with an overview of wireless systems and standards. The characteristics of the wireless channel are then described, including their fundamental capacity limits. Various modulation, coding, and signal processing schemes are then discussed in detail, including state-of-the-art adaptive modulation, multicarrier, spread spectrum, and multiple antenna techniques. The concluding chapters deal with multiuser communications, cellular system design, and ad-hoc network design. Design insights and tradeoffs are emphasized throughout the book. It contains many worked examples, over 200 figures, almost 300 homework exercises, over 700 references, and is an ideal textbook for students. The book is also a valuable reference for engineers in the wireless industry. Andrea Goldsmith received her Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, and is an Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering at Stanford University. Prior to this she was an Assistant Professor at the California Institute of Technology. She has also held positions in industry at Maxim Technologies and AT&T Bell Laboratories. She is a Fellow of the IEEE, has received numerous other awards and honors, and is the author of over 150 technical papers in the field of wireless communications.

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CCNA Voice Official Exam Certification Guide (640-460 IIUC) Review

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(More customer reviews)Awesome Book !!!!!! worth the money for sure guides you step by step setting up call manger express and UC500 for small business.
even for people who dont wanna go for CCNA-V certification this book will help for setting up voice infrastructure for small office.

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Master IIUC 640-460 exam topics with the official study guideAssess your knowledge with chapter-opening quizzesReview key concepts with Exam Preparation TasksPractice with realistic exam questions on the CD-ROMCCNA Voice Official Exam Certification Guide is a best of breed Cisco exam study guide that focuses specifically on the objectives for the CCNA Voice IIUC 640-460 exam. Senior voice instructors and network engineers Jeremy Cioara, Michael Cavanaugh, and Kris Krake share preparation hints and test-taking tips, helping you identify areas of weakness and improve both your conceptual knowledge and hands-on skills. Material is presented in a concise manner, focusing on increasing your understanding and retention of exam topics.CCNA Voice Official Exam Certification Guide presents you with an organized test preparation routine through the use of proven series elements and techniques. "Do I Know This Already?" quizzes open each chapter and allow you to decide how much time you need to spend on each section. Exam topic lists make referencing easy. Chapter-ending Exam Preparation Tasks sections help drill you on key concepts you must know thoroughly. The companion CD-ROM contains a powerful testing engine that allows you to focus on individual topic areas or take complete, timed exams. The assessment engine also tracks your performance and provides feedback on a module-by-module basis, presenting question-by-question remediation to the text and laying out a complete study plan for review. Well-regarded for its level of detail, assessment features, and challenging review questions and exercises, this official study guide helps you master the concepts and techniques that will enable you to succeed on the exam the first time.CCNA Voice Official Exam Certification Guide is part of a recommended learning path from Cisco that includes simulation and hands-on training from authorized Cisco Learning Partners and self-study products from Cisco Press. To find out more about instructor-led training, e-learning, and hands-on instruction offered by authorized Cisco Learning Partners worldwide, please visit www.cisco.com/go/authorizedtraining.The official study guide helps you master all the topics on the IIUC exam, includingConnecting IP phones to the LAN infrastructureCisco Unified CME installationCisco Unified CME IP phone configurationCisco Unified CME voice productivity featuresGateway and trunk concepts and configurationCisco Unity Express concepts and configurationSmart Business Communications SystemConfiguring and maintaining the UC500 for voiceCompanion CD-ROMThe CD-ROM contains an electronic copy of the book and more than 250 practice questions for the IIUC exam.

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Essentials of Health Behavior: Social and Behavorial Theory in Public Health (Essential Public Health) Review

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(More customer reviews)
I purchased this textbook for one of the courses I am currently taking. I find this book to be concise and interesting to read. The chapters are of a reasonable length and when an assignment is given to read two or three chapters it is doable.

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