Product Description
Fostering Companywide Creativity

Innovations, by definition, change and improve the status quo. Mostly, they do so in small ways, such as a twist on an already existing idea. But when they do so in big ways—such as a new idea altogether—innovations can catapult the inventing company years ahead of competitors.

Those kinds of innovations—from the wheel to the assembly line, from the pen to the PC—are born of creativity. And many companies are allowing this critical wellspring to run dry. In Creativity, Inc., Jeff Mauzy and Richard Harriman marshal forty years of research into how creative ideas happen and how they become innovations to reveal a set of fundamental principles for infusing creativity into every aspect of an organization.

The authors argue that sustained leadership comes from making creativity a broad, enterprise-wide capability that is "on" all the time—to fuel day-to-day innovative responses, to imagine multiple future possibilities, and to develop the foundation from which fundamental, purposeful innovations can be launched. Through vivid examples from a wide range of industries, they show how companies can rework organizational climate, structures, and procedures to build systemic creativity in individuals, in teams, and at the corporate level.

The book’s creativity framework—designed to be customized to a company’s unique needs—walks readers through four interacting dynamics that make up the creative process: motivation, curiosity and fear, the making and breaking of connections, and evaluation.

Individuals will learn how to:
• Reclaim their own creative wellspring
• Exercise creativity in all aspects of their work
• Strengthen their ideas to address corporate response

Leaders of teams and organizations will learn how to:
• Build a climate that supports constant creativity
• Fuel daily creative response and long-term vision
• Develop a ready foundation for transforming ideas into innovations

Marrying practical strategies with theoretical research, Creativity,Inc. shows how entire organizations can embody and implementcreativity and innovation. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

An essential resource
Watch Video Here: http://www.amazon.com/review/R3UF9WHDUVZX6M An absolute wonderful resource for anyone leading with creative people.

Also recommended The Disney Way, Revised Edition: Harnessing the Management Secrets of Disney in Your Company

Fair content. Flat and unimaginative.
There is some fair content, however I was not inspired or blown away so-to-speak with the presentation and usefulness of the book. It felt high-level, flat and academic at best.Shouldn't a book on creativity be creative?

Cabbages, Kings, and Creativity
There are so many other books now in print which offer valuable guidance to those who wish to increase creative and innovative thinking within their own organizations. I identify several of them at the conclusion of this brief commentary. Include Mauzy and Harriman's among them. In fact, it is one of the most thoughtful and thought-provoking books on the separate but related subjects, creativity and innovation. Mauzy and Harriman agree with Teresa Amabile that creativity is the generation of novel and appropriate ideas whereas innovation implements those ideas "and thereby changes the order of things in the world." They carefully organize their material as follows:

Part I: Creative Thinking (The Dynamics That Underlie Creative Thinking, Becoming Creatively Fit as an Individual;l, and Breaking and Making Connections for an Enterprise)

Part II: Climate (The Climate for Creativity in an Enterprise and Personal Creative Climate: The Bubble)

Part III: Action (Leadership: Fostering Systemic Creativity, Purposeful Creativity, and Sustaining the Change)

I agree with Mauzy and Harriman that, "When systemic creativity is in place, creativity flourishes from top to bottom and across all functions. People and teams come up with blockbuster ideas that turn into multimillion-dollar products or even billion-dollar new businesses. Or they create ingenious marketing campaigns that ratchet up revenue, or lead process improvement programs that delight customers and empower employees alike, or implement restructuring initiatives that maximize cost reductions but minimize layoffs. And systemic creativity does not apply just to the big creative triumphs: People in organizations daily spark thousands of ideas that provide value in themselves and also build a higher plateau from which greater peaks of creativity can rise." I agree with Mauzy and Harriman that there is no "recipe" for systemic creativity but that most people within almost any organization (regardless of size or nature) can -- and will -- think more creatively if what Mauzy and Harriman characterize as "four critical dynamics" are present: motivation, curiosity and fear, the breaking and making of connections, and evaluation.

True, there are individuals who -- almost single-handedly -- have generated novel and appropriate ideas or implemented someone else's ideas and thereby changed "the order of things in the world." However, there are more instructive examples of how important, climate, environment, culture, etc. are to nourishing creative thought by members of teams or coalitions. Perhaps the most widely cited example is the world's first research and development center which Thomas Edison established in West Orange, New Jersey, in 1887.Others exceptionally creative "communities" include the Disney studios which produced so many animation classics; Xerox's Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) which developed the first personal computer; Apple Computer which then took it to market; the so-called "Skunk Works" where so many of Lockheed's greatest aircraft designs were formulated; and Los Alamos (NM) and the University of Chicago where the Manhattan Project eventually produced a new weapon called "The Gadget."

Everyone seems to agree that having creative and innovative people throughout all levels of any organization is highly desirable and substantially beneficial. To achieve "systemic creativity," the question remains: HOW? The book which Mauzy and Harriman have written is their response to that question. I especially want to commend them on the fact that they devote much less attention to principles and much more attention to implementation than do most other books on this subject. With due respect to their talents as creators and innovators, I appreciate the fact that they are also pragmatists. No doubt each bears some scar tissue from combat with those who felt threatened by what is new or what is different.

When nearing the conclusion of their book, Mauzy and Harriman assert that information "is the fluid expression of knowledge feeding the creative effort. Keep it available, keep it rich and diverse, keep it flowing. And remember to keep it flowing up to leadership, not just horizontally or from the top down....If you and your organization have the resolve to carry on, the creative effort you undertake now will continue. In evolving forms, the effort will begin again and still continue. The rewards that creativity brings will continue and renew as well." To paraphrase Henry Ford, whether you think you can or think you can't think creatively, you're right. Most limits really are self-imposed.

For many of those who read Mauzy and Harriman's brilliant book, this will be the most exciting intellectual experience they have had in years.

Those who share my high regard for it are urged to check out EvanSchwartz's Juice: The Creative Fuel That Drives World-Class Inventors. Also Harvard Business Review on Innovation and Harvard Business Review on Breakthrough Thinking as well as Tom Kelley's The Art of Innovation: Lessons in Creativity from IDEO, America's Leading Design Firm, Robert I. Sutton's Weird Ideas That Work: 11 1/2 Practices for Promoting, Managing, and Sustaining Innovation, Roger Von Oech's Expect the Unexpected or You Won't Find It: A Creativity Tool Based on the Ancient Wisdom of Heraclitus, Joey Reiman's Thinking for a Living: Creating Ideas That Revitalize Your Business, Career, and Life, Doug Hall Jump Start Your Business Brain: Win More, Lose Less, and Make More Money with Your New Products, Services, Sales & Advertising, and Michael Michalko's Cracking Creativity: The Secrets of Creative Genius.

From The Innovation Road Map Magazine
Because I've studied and read so much about creativity I must admit that I approached this book with a certain amount of trepidation. I wasn't sure that I wanted to read it. I told myself, just read the intro and the first chapter and then stop if you don't like it. Well, I didn't stop. It was an enjoyable read throughout with many insights along the way. What the authors bring forward in this book is a methodological approach to creativity in organizations, more particularly corporations. They describe a system that seems to touch all the right points in order to increase creativity in an organization. In addition, they provide some helpful information for individuals who want to improve their own creativity.

The book is broken into three parts and eight chapters:

Part 1 - Creative thinking

 The Dynamics That Underlie Creative Thinking
 Becoming Creatively Fit as an Individual
 Breaking and Making Connections for an Enterprise

Part2 - Climate

 The Climate for Creativity in an Enterprise
 Personal Creative Climate: The Bubble

Part 3 - Action

 Leadership: Fostering Systemic Creativity
 Purposeful Creativity
 Sustaining the Change

When an organization has systemic creativity, the authors write "systemic creativity becomes an integral part of everyday operations and spawns new thought, from small changes to breakthroughs, that organizations now need in every activity that makes a competitive difference.

For this to happen, creativity must become the responsibility of everyone - every leader and senior manager as well as every employee. Systemic creativity is only systemic when everyone in an organization learns how to practice it and then promotes it constantly."

This is not an easy task in today's short-term, bottom-line, stockholder-value driven organization. The authors point out "The behaviors required for successful creativity are out of tune with the behaviors that make a company operationally efficient, well-organized and clear-sighted on its mission and goals."

The authors also correctly point out that there is no "right way" to foster creativity in an organization. The approach depends upon a number of factors. "There are, however, basic principles and practical techniques that have stood the test of time." This book is a great contribution that goal.

The book is informed by six basic understandings:

1. There is no recipe for systemic creativity.
2. Creativity and innovation are two distinct concepts.
3. Creativity happens with individuals, coalitions and teams, and organizations.
4. There are four critical dynamics.
5. Creativity depends on climate.
6. Systemic creativity asks everyone to be a leader.

According to the authors, the four inter-linking dynamics of creativity are motivation, curiosity and fear, making and breaking connections, and evaluation.

In the authors' model, making and breaking connections within an enterprise is the pivotal dynamic of the creative process. To foster this, they encourage conflict of ideas, encourage risk taking, the promotion of diversity, organizing for intrinsic motivation, the development of information flows that support creativity, and the utilization of more and less information.

The "conflict of ideas" concept is one of the few areas in the book that I find myself disagreeing. I have found that the metaphor of battle in creativity to be de-motivating for many people. There may be certain personality types that enjoy competition over new ideas, but there are even more people who find this stressful and a turnoff. I think what needs to be fostered in organizations to promote creativity is the development and facilitation of conversations about ideas. Non judgmental conversations about ideas usually generates new ideas that quite often are better than the originals. To converse is to turn around together.

The authors make a distinction between climate and culture. The difference according to their definition is understandable. Many models of culture include a hierarchy of philosophies, beliefs, values and behaviors. Values set expectations and therefore the author's definition of climate encompasses values and behaviors.

The concept of a personal creative climate, a "bubble" is an extremely powerful one. There are many distractions, conflicting priorities, and decentives to creativity in organizations. I have always found for myself, as well as observing the behavior of others, that those who can create this "bubble" are the most productive and the most creative.

The authors end the book with some wise advice to would be promoters of creativity in organizations. They write "As the change to systemic creativity goes forward, everything covered in the introduction and the first seven chapters - from the dynamics of the creative process and their relationship to individuals and companies, through personal; and corporate climate, through leadership and innovation - requires continued attention, reinforcement, exercise, follow-through, and reinvention." They explain that the forces against creativity are so strong, that without continued reinforcement and reinvention, any approach to systemic creativity will fail. Their advice:

 Plan ahead
 Record results
 Expect resistance
 Encourage the flow of information

"More than forty years ago, in The Human Side of Enterprise, Douglas MacGregor challenged the command-and-control assumptions about the business establishment: `The distinctive potential contribution of the human being...at every level of the organization stems form his capacity to think, to plan, to exercise judgement, to be creative, to direct and control his own behavior.'

MacGregor was arguing on behalf of the creative climate. Today, while there has been much progress, too few leaders ask and expect creativity of their employees; too few leaders provide the climate in which creativity can flourish."

How true!

Jeff Mauzy is a Consulting Manager and Richard Harriman is Managing Partner at Synectics, a pioneering consulting firm specializing in business creativity and innovation.

Exemplary creativity
Jeff Mauzy and Richard Harriman's seminal volume on systematic creativity garnered a lasting impression largely due to his gift for making the corporate world intelligible.The book is not solely intended for the tenacious "higher-ups" that dictate the feel of the workplace, but instead tends towards the hands-on approach that is the hallmark of the individuated sucessful corporation.

The main thrust of his approach is to create a kind of learning environment that allows for "growth" and "specialization" in a particular field.Mauzy's knack for egalitarian leadership is firmly based in his experience in child-rearing.Allowing a young person to mature into a specialized and highly competant individual is analogous to the process that Mauzy and Harriman espouse.

I found it to be especially useful when the book described the creative process as being like the teaching of mathematics.It seems counter-intuitive to link creativity to mathematics, but in fact one can be expressive within a rigidly defined field, much like the corporate world itself.I highly recommend this book for its emphasis on the educational and mathematical aspects of corporate creativity. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

Woman according to Roy
The catalogue for an exhibition held at the Gagosian gallery in NYC in 2008, this wonderful book focuses on a major 1962-1964 series by Roy Lichtenstein, in which he concentrated exclusively on the feminine face. The book starts with an interview by Jeff Koons of the artist's widow, Dorothy, who gives a fascinating account of Lichtenstein's working method and ideas and is complemented with an artist's book by Richard Prince who thereby delivers his own reinterpretation of the Girls series.The illustrations are first-rate, often with magnified details, and the exhibition not only covers the paintings, but also the rarely-seen preparatory drawings and source materials, all of which are illustrated in the book. A must-have for any Lichtenstein fan. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Suicide by Life and a Slow Death: An American Story
Picture this: A barely clothed Black man, running out of the gate of his multi-million dollar Spanish styled home, pass his convertible Rolls Royce into the tree-lined streets well above North Hollywood, Ca., "on fire," fully ablaze, with a phalanx of police, firemen and an ambulance chasing him in order to get him to the hospital. Once you have this picture firmly in mind, you now have a metaphor for Richard Pryor's life: I call it "life by suicide," and this book by Jeff Rovin tells why he had no other route.

Pryor was born in 1940 in a brothel that his grandmother ran, and in which her daughter, Richard's mother, was a whore. His father, of course was her pimp and all of their clients were respectable white men from across the tracks in Peoria, Ill. No one thought this social tableau of life in the American heartland in anyway out of the ordinary. This life, "below the dignity line," which is still a fixture for most blacks in America, set the parameters and became an existential straightjacket for Richard Pryor's life. Except for how he was to navigate these treacherous social waters, everything else in his life was but inessential details.

Most blacks that live "below the dignity line" have the luxury of a life of lying to themselves about their reality; they instinctively "pretty it up," "pretend it is otherwise." They "front each other off," as we say, and otherwise remain in denial throughout their lives. It is a survival strategy, often the only coping mechanism to retain a life with some semblance of equanimity. Richard's grandmother, the Madam, for instance was as big a churchgoer as Peoria had, and she already had her tickets punched enroute to heaven. But Richard was a precocious child, who learned to trust his instincts and what he saw before he ever learned to "disbelieve his lying eyes." His eyes became his windows for making sense of the world. Later, once he fully understood the truth of his social situation, he had nowhere to turn. He was locked in to a situation entirely not of his making. As he tells in one of his jokes when his mother says to him: You see what having you has done to me?" He says, "Okay, I'll go back."

Growing up in a black community with a mother a whore and a father as her pimp, and the grandmother the madam, did not leave Richard much room for existential maneuvering, no angles left to play, not many options for psychic escape. Everyday his eyes taught him the brutal bitter truth of his existence. As bitter as it was, the truth was all he had. Everyone in Peoria knew his biography before he was born and even before he understood its full meaning.

He literally and figuratively had nowhere to hide. He was naked from birth and throughout his life. The truth, through comedy was the only existential escape or companion there was for him. The utter terror and pain of his very existence could hardly be confronted. But Pryor was no liar he confronted his truth anyway, and it was destined to gain him success and fame, and also to destroy him.

That is the subtext of this book.

When I first saw Richard in a club on Adams Boulevard. in LA in 1967, his act was so "raw" or "blue" that he was only allowed to come on stage after one AM. The house was packed just waiting for him to come on. I still remember it as if it were today, for it was the first time I had ever seen a man truly possessed: a man literally trying to exorcise his demons by way of comedy, on stage. His act was his life, pure and simple. His pain was so deep that it had to be expelled That's is Pryor's life story.

I was like everyone else in the club, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. At the club, of course we all laughed, but we came there to share Richard's pain and thereby better be able to touch our own pain. That was Pryor's gift to the world: A "truth teller" sharing his pain so that others might learn how to deal with theirs.

That picture of Pryor standing on that stage emptying his soul to us through comedy is as vivid a picture as him running down a street in the hills above Hollywood, half-naked, and on fire. The only thing that comes close to it is one of John Coltrane's demonic solos: Trane is reaching for pain that is so deep inside his soul that it cannot be touched, but he must try nevertheless - even if it means going outside the bounds of normal musical conventions and beyond the structural abilities of the tenor saxophone. That is what Richard was doing that night on Adams Boulevard with his comedy, and that is what he did throughout his life. As miles Davis once said, when he was asked how he made such beautiful music. He said: I play what I know and then I go above it. Pryor always went well above what he knew so that he could get to the pain he did not know.

It was "life by suicide" all the way. He kept trying to kill himself early, but his comedy kept him alive, until in the final days of his life when it did seem that he found a brief corner of peace.

Jeff Rovin was the right man to tell this story, for he just gets out of the way and allows the story to tell itself. This is an unforgettable book about an unforgettable American institution: Richard Pryor.

five stars. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

An Amazing Scrapbook of Two Prolific Composers
Walt's Time - From Before to Beyond by Robert B. Sherman & Richard M. Sherman. 1998, 252 pages.

The Sherman Brothers need little introduction to Disney fans. Prolific composers of music for films and theme park attractions, they have written some of the most memorable songs in Disney history.

This book, which looks at their long career, finally saw the light of day after the Sherman Brothers met Bruce Gordon and Dave Mumford. Just like The Nickel Tour, publishers felt that there was no commercial appeal in this book. Bruce and David had self-published The Nickel Tour and thought that they could do the same with Walt's Time. The Sherman Brothers, after shopping the book around since 1981, had worked with Jeff Kurtti to have a majority of it written. Bruce and Dave met with Jeff and they agreed to self-publish. The Sherman Brothers were thrilled to work with Bruce, David and Jeff.

The book was created to resemble a scrapbook of their career. It starts with their first day on the Disney lot where they land the title song for the Parent Trap while auditioning a song for the Horsemasters. It then launches through the highlights of a majority of their Disney work. The middle section is dedicated to their father, Al and looks at everything that he published and his successes. During the section on their father, they look at their family history and how Al Sherman influenced his children. It is obvious from Walt's Time that the Sherman Brothers were profoundly influenced by their father and Walt Disney. When the brothers speak of either man, the text is filled with love, gratitude and wonder.

The third section details more of their work with the Disney Company, before and after Walt's passing. It also looks at the body of work they have done since leaving the company. Stage productions, theatrical work and animated films make up the bulk of their work in the '70's, 80's and 90's.

The Brothers spend a lot of time discussing their interactions with Walt Disney and how Walt was an amazing and optimistic person. The song There's a Great, Big Beautiful Tomorrow was inspired by Walt Disney. Their proudest moments include It's a Small World and Mary Poppins. They wrote the songs for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang after receiving Walt's blessings to work on the outside project. Albert Broccoli (producer of the Bond movies) also owned the rights to Fleming's children's novel about the car. Broccoli brought the idea to Walt, who declined saying he had too much on his plate and wanted more creative control. After the success of Mary Poppins, Broccoli gathered most of the creative team that had worked on Mary Poppins. The Brothers were also involved with two of the biggest animated films of the 60's as well: The Jungle Book and Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree.

Obviously, the Sherman Brothers' influence has been felt greatly in the theme parks. The Tiki Tiki Tiki Room, Magic Highways, Magic Journeys, Makin' Memories, Astuter Computer Review, the Best Time of Your Life and Miracles From Molecules.

Looking at everything the Sherman Brothers have done is a tad bit overwhelming!

Bottom Line: I enjoyed this book and was completely astounded by how prolific the Sherman Brothers actually are. The book is designed beautifully and features awards, personal recollections and photos from every period of their career (just like a scrapbook!). This is book is clearly for music fans, fans of the Sherman Brothers and fans of Disney films from the 1960's.

Unique Volume Loaded With Disney Memorabilia !!
Every one of the more than 250 extra large Disney scrapbook pages is filled with unique, full color memorabilia from Walt Disney, and Robert and Richard Sherman, the song writers that created a world of popular music.Everything from pictures and memorabilia of Annette, Haley Mills, and Julie Andrews, to Tommy Sands, 101 Dalmations, The Carousel of Progress, and the Enchanted Tiki Room are featured. Items are grouped by decades.You can spend endless, enjoyable hours just looking in this huge volume that weighs 4 pounds !!Well worth adding to your Disney or music or movies or entertainment library.

It's docious-ali-expi-listic-fragi-cali-roopus backwards!
What a great book about in my opinion the best songwriters!The Shermans had the opportunity to be with Disney during what I believe was the peak of the Disney Co.Their songs have warmed the hearts of millions of peopleacross the world.My mother had never heard of the Shermans but whenever Ising their songs she says "I love that song, I didn't know they wrotethat..."I can count on their songs being family friendly and joyful. I love Winnie the Pooh was not at all surprised when I discovered whowrote the songs!I never get tired of reading Walt's Time.The picturesare great and layout is so different.It is fun to read the backgroundstories that is behind each song.Such as A Spoon full of Sugar and howRobert's son gave them the inspiration.I know the price makes itdifficult for some of us. I personally do not own the book, but I love toborrow it from my library.It is a must read for every Disney and Shermanfan out there!

It's supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!
This book is truly the gem of my library... A beautiful look at the careers of Robert B. and Richard M. Sherman!Reading this book brought back so many memories! Little did I realize that so many of my favoriteDisney (and even non-Disney) musical films all had one special thing incommon... the music of the Sherman Brothers.

This wonderful book isformatted like a huge scrapbook... its fun to read, and just packed withrare photos, cartoons and other memorabilia that would delight any reader.

"Nowhere is there a more happier book!"
Wow!, What a feast of fun!Here's the story of two of this century's most prolific and popular songwriters, the Sherman Brothers, finally cronicled in a superb scrapbook.Discover the Sherman Brothers' insights into theenigma that was Walt Disney, and learn of their dream job with this man..who nurtured their talent, producing a sound that is truly instantlyrecognisable, the world over.These are the guys who created "thebiggest word you ever heard", who left us singing of a "small,small world".. and gave lyrical life to a "fantasmagoricalmachine" called Chitty Chitty Bang Bang!

This is a lovinglyremembered book by the Dick and Bob, put together with the help of a fewamazingly dedicated fans.Bruce & David and Jeff have produced anothergem of a book. With them, too much is never enough.. the photographictreasures, the office cartoons all give the impression of being invited todinner with the Shermans. I was lucky enough to hear the Shermans at thepiano for a preview of this book at a Disney fan's convention last year. That was a night I'll never forget.. as the brothers sang their way throughthe songs of my childhood.Now the feeling of that night (and mychildhood) has been captured in print, and I can't be happier! Thanks guys,it's supercalifragilisticexpialidocious ! ... Read more

Product Description
As Linux increases its presence throughout the world as atarget platform for professional application development, its growthas a powerful, flexible system offering many free development toolsassures its place in the future. By giving you easy access to thiscomprehensive range of tools, supporting new and nascent technologies,at little or no cost, developing with Linux allows you to apply thesolution that's right for you.

In this follow-up to the best-selling Beginning Linux Programming, youwill learn from the authors' real-world knowledge and experience ofdeveloping software for Linux; you'll be taken through the developmentof a sample 'DVD Store' application, with 'theme' chapters addressingdifferent aspects of its implementation. Meanwhile, individual'take-a-break' chapters cover important topics that go beyond thebounds of the central theme. All focus on the practical aspects ofprogramming, showing how crucial it is to choose the right tools forthe job, use them as they should be used, and get things right firsttime.

Who is this book for?

Experienced Linux programmers and aspiring developers alike will finda great deal of practical information in this book on libraries,techniques, tools and applications. You should be familiar with asimple Linux system, have a good working knowledge of programming inC, and a basic understanding of object-oriented programming with C++for the Qt/KDE chapters.

What does this book cover?

Product Description
What is the impact of open access on science communication? How can scientists effectively engage and interact with the public? What role can science communication have when scientific controversies arise?

Practising science communication in the information age is a collection of newly-commissioned chapters by leading scholars and practitioners of science communication. It considers how scientists communicate with each other as part of their professional practice, critically evaluating how this forms the basis of the documenting of scientific knowledge, and investigating how open access publication and open review are influencing current practices. It also explores how science communication can play a crucial role when science is disputed, investigating the role of expertise in the formation of scientific controversy and consensus.

The volume provides a theoretically informed review of contemporary trends and issues that are engaging practitioners of science communication, focusing on issues such as the norms and conventions governing the practices of science communication, and how scientists communicate between disciplines. Other topics that receive critical treatment include: peer review, open access publication, the protection of intellectual property, the formation of scientific controversy and consensus, the popularization of science, and the practices of public engagement.

A companion volume, Investigating science communication in the information age, provides an ideal introduction to anyone wishing to study contemporary science communication. topics as diverse as peer review, open access pulication, the protection of intellectual property, the popularization of science and the practices of public engagement. ... Read more

Product Description
In this collection of 22 essays, the editors have brought together some of the best--and most insightful--writing on ranching in the West. These writers explore the changing landscape of the West, and how, in an age of huge, corporate-owned ranches, the small rancher can survive.This book brings together the best writers in the West today----including poets, ranchers, and conservationists----in a one-of-a-kind, unique look at the West. ... Read more

Product Description
Bold,striking full size images,original interviews with some of racing's most successful drivers and informative analysysmake this book a "must have' for the growing legions of stock car racing fans. ... Read more

Product Description
In eastern California, four hours north of Los Angeles,lies a long, trough-shaped valley bordered on either side by massivemountain ranges. Valley and mountains together form a region ofsuperlatives. Here you will find our highest peak outside Alaska,Mount Whitney; the oldest of all living things, the bristlecone pine;and our deepest valley, the Owens. Completely revised after fifteenyears of additional research, this cherished guide is now back inprint, thirty-three years after its original publication. The bookcontains thirty pages of photographs by America's premiere landscapephotographers; rare historic photographs; drawings of wildflowers,trees, birds, and mammals, as well as a road and trail map, geologicand mountain drawings, old mining, and railroad maps. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Great Choice
As a long time visiter to the Owens Valley I found this book to beexcellent. Its great for the first time traveler or the person who has beento the valley many times. Its section on side roads is good for thosepassing through the area and wanting to explore a bit. The history andgeology areas are current and answer those questions that arise whenencountering the vast numbers of different geological features. While noone guide does it all this book comes close. A great book for those whowant a general guide to the valley, its history,geology,flora and fauna. ... Read more

Product Description
iLife 08
iPhoto, iMovie, GarageBand, iWeb, iDVD

Inthe only Apple-certified guide to iLife '08, the authors have youworking miracles with iLife within the first few pages. Featuringfootage and images from around the world, this book/DVD combo usesreal-life material and practical lessons that you can apply immediatelyto your own projects. Focused lessons take you step by step through allaspects of iLife '08--everything from organizing and sharing your photo library to creating polished video and soundtracks. Along theway, you’ll produce podcasts, websites, blogs, video blogs, and customDVDs.

Customer Reviews (8)

Great Seller
Everything I thought it would be.Now I will never have to have a girlfriend.Product as described in great condition.

A good book for beginners
I went through the entire book without the least difficulty and got a lot out of it. It is well organized going through a logical workflow of iPhoto -> iMovie -> Garageband -> iWeb and finally ending with iDVD. If you have never used iLife before, then this book is an excellent first step.

Solid Introduction to the iLife 08 suite
It's not too difficult with the iLife suite to open up the apps and work your way around: connect a camera and phots import, open GarageBand and you can generally work out how to play a note. But the iLife suite, with just a little more research, becomes much more powerful and each application becomes far more productive.

Each iLife application is, in this publication, discussed: you begin with the very basis and, by the time each application has been reviewed your in a position to understand what each can do to the point where you're at that 'comfortable' point of being able to do the majority of things you'd like to do on a daily basis. Edit photos, print them, etc. Know how to edit a movie and burn it to DVD.

While those with particular interests are likely to move to titles focused on a particular application, if you're interest is in just using the iLife suite to more fully utilise the applications that come with the mac then this is a book well placed to help you achieve that.

Great Book
Since iLife 08 comes with very little documentation, it is necessary to purchase something to help you along.This book is very good at getting you started.I am sure there are more in-depth books about certain subjects of iLife 08, but this is a great overall book that includes follow along lessons in each chapter.Very good book.

Did other reviewers even read the book description?
According to the description, this book is a training tutorial to familiarize new users with the product suite. Complaining that it is not an in-depth iPhoto reference indicates that the reviewer didn't even read what the book is supposed to be. (Yes, Pogue's Missing Manual is a better fit as an in-depth iPhoto reference, but that's not the point.) The authors do a good job of introducing the products and their functionality to the reader and show how the applications interact. While I might quibble with the approach of focusing on the end-to-end integration, at least I knew that approach was being taken before I got the book. The book delivers what it promises. ... Read more

Product Description
On few occasions in the history of modern management have leadership skills been in such sharp focus as they are now. The ability to direct often very large and diverse organizations; to make sense of the complex and turbulent markets and environments in which you operate; and to adapt and learn seems at an all time premium. The premise behind the fifth edition of this influential Handbook is that leadership, management and organizational development are all parts of the same process; enhancing the capacity of organizations, whatever their size, and the people within them to achieve their purpose. To this end, the editors have brought together a who's who of current writers on leadership and development and created the definitive single volume guide to the subject. The perspectives that the text provides to leadership, learning and development, embrace the formal and the informal, cultures and case examples from organizations of all kinds; and offers readers a rigorous, readable and, where appropriate, ground-breaking book. In the 14 years since the fourth edition of this classic book, very much has changed.But the need for this Handbook is as strong as ever and the Fifth Edition of "Gower Handbook of Leadership and Management Development" is set to become a definitive read for senior managers and those who develop them and an essential reader for the management students aspiring to become the next generation of leaders. ... Read more

Product Description
Hybrid zones--geographical areas in which the hybrids of two races are found--have attracted the attention of evolutionary biologists for many years, both because they are windows on the evolutionary process and because the patterns of animals and plant variation seen in hybrid zones do not fit the traditional classification schemes of taxonomists. Hybrid zones provide insights into the nature of the species, the way barriers to gene exchange function, the genetic basis of those barriers, the the dynamics of the speciation process. Hybrid Zones and the Evolutionary Processsynthesizes the extensive research literature in this field and points to new directions in research.It will be read with interest by evolutionary biologists, geneticists, and biogeographers. ... Read more

Product Description
The years between the end of World War II and the mid-1960s saw a flowering of railroad photography in America, particularly that which captured the railroads at night. Starlight on the Rails, a stylish and moving book of gorgeous duotone photography, offers a poetic glimpse of silent stations, lonely motormen, and the last great steam engines. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Night-time motives

I'm surprised that there haven't been more reviews of this beautiful book, especially as the paperback edition has been available for some time and it can be picked up quite cheaply if you look around the net.The comments by `A customer' are spot on when referring to the majority of transport books always looking rather bland because they are produced for enthusiasts rather than readers who want something more challenging.

Brouws and Delvers have edited what is probably the best book about night-time railroading after Winston Link's extraordinary `Steam steel & stars' and oddly there are no Link photos in Starlight, though they are well known I would have expected to see at least one included.

The ninety duotones (in 175 screen) present a fascinating cross-section of night action concentrating on gritty freights (steamers and diesel) rather than passengers' trains.The six chapters start at sunset and follow the hours through to daybreak with the majority of photos taken in the US with one color exception taken at Tokyo Central Station in 1982.Fortunately the photos are not static on the page but show how railroads work at night with interesting captions and there several atmosphere shots to help the flow of images over the pages.

Overall, a perfect book of railroad photos.You can't really go wrong when creative folk like Boyd, Benson (no relation) Gruber, Shaughnessy or Steinheimer (who wrote the book's excellent introduction) are included and in particular Mel Patrick who has several included which are my favorites.

***SEE SOME INSIDE PAGES by clicking 'customer images' under the cover.

superbly produced, beautiful photographs
There are two types of books concerned with railway photographs.The first consists of photographs of trains taken by enthusiasts, for enthusiasts.These generally have little aesthetic value, and consequently a low shelf life.

The second type is concerned with the context and atmosphere of the railway scene, and reaches its most supreme expression with scenes taken in rain, snow, fog, and after dark.This splendidly produced and presented (and most reasonably priced) book falls into this category most firmly.The range of images are stunning, as is the quality of reproduction.Particularly noteworthy are the inclusion of (far too few) photographs from Japan, to compliment the broadly American coverage.

My personal view is that some of the over descriptive captionscould have been edited - the photographs speak for themselves quite easily.Also, Brouws' turgid and portentous prose really does take up too much space, I would happily forsake this in favour of having some of the postage stamp sized images reproduced at a decent size. ... Read more

Product Description
Richard B. Russell, a Southern Democrat, was arguably the most influential senator for much of the 1950s and 1960s. The senior senator from Georgia used his positions of power to force an otherwise liberal internationalist foreign policy establishment to heed his non-interventionist, militarist, and Southern nationalist approaches to international crises, including the conflicts in Vietnam, Panama, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Congo. For better or for worse, Russell helped to encourage the nuclear arms race, protect and empower the CIA, enforse the Monroe Doctrine, and define the limits on American engagement in Vietnam. And while Russell mastered the powers of advice and consent enough to alter tactical Cold War decisions, his strategy of containment would never become mainstream. In this engaging new book, Jeff Woods reconsiders Russell's role as foreign policy maker during the Cold War. Making use of recently released presidential tape recordings and Soviet archival material, Woods offers new evidence and insights into this southern senator's influential career. ... Read more

Product Description
Here is the most complete exam prep package on the market for the new Citrix MetaFrame XP 3.0 for Windows Administrator Exam written by a recognized Citrix expert. Use the integrated study system based on proven instructional methodology (step-by-step exercises, Exam Watch, On-the-Job notes and Scenario and Solution table quick references). Get even more exam practice with the CD-ROM filled with hundreds more questions, flashcards, and more. ... Read more

Product Description
This multi-level English course is for teenagers.English in Mind Combo 3A offers the first eight units of the Level 3 Student's Book and Workbook. It includes corresponding material from the Level 3 Audio CD / CD-ROM. ... Read more

Product Description

This book explores the changes that are leading to a new century of natural resources management. It places the current situation in historical perspective, analyzes the forces that are propelling change, and describes and examines the specific changes in goals, policy, and practice that are transforming all aspects of natural resources management.

A New Century for Natural Resources Management is an important overview for wildlife biologists, foresters, and others working for public land agencies; professors and students of natural resources; and all those whose livelihood depends on the use of public natural resources. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

amazing, but ...
in the ten years since this was published, there still hasn't been a book (that I know of) published that is better than this one at putting public lands management in an historic-then-contemporary context. it's also nice that it's an edited collection, b/c readers (i.e, students!) don't get lulled into complacent reading by single sytle or approach. highly recommended, though of course, needs to be supplemented with newer readings, particularly dealing with collaborative conservation and political ecology. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Masterpiece of Color Photography about Fire Island
This book is a work of love by a long time visitor to Fire Island. Mr. Richards has done a magnanamous and magificent job of capturing this famous barrier island in all of its moods and seasons. It is to be recommended toall who visit the island or wish to. I can only hope Mr. Richards willtrain his camera on more topics in the future and that the public will beable to purchase his work. ... Read more