I collect books. While the Internet has many resources, printed books are still enormously valuable.
Most of the books I read are of a technical nature, and I am particularly fond of these publishers:
Microsoft Press (initially because of Steve McConnell’s books)
O’Reilly Media (tie for #1)
The MIT Press (tie for #1)
Wrox
The Pragmatic Bookshelf
Google’s web search algorithm.
Algorithms for calculating the likelihood of medical challenges based on genetic traits.
Algorithms for contextual advertising.
Driving directions.
Flight safety procedures.
Financial audit guidelines.
I am preparing to take the Macroeconomics CLEP test.
Two figures that dominate the literature of economics are Adam Smith and John Maynard Keynes.
While this is an oversimplification, it is generally accurate to describe Smith as a proponent of free market economics and Keynes a proponent of governmental economic interventionism.
Keynes believed free markets incapable of self [...]
I have a mantra on reviews: Rave reviews are really worthless (RRARW).
They are usually irrelevant because they are most likely to come from people whose opinions are uninformed or excessively favorable.
Rave reviews teach the recipient nothing.
They serve only to bolster the ego of the recipient, and egos are naturally oversized.
Rave reviews fail to address specific [...]
Jason Fried spoke at the Good Experience Live conference in 2006:
“Less” is a competitive advantage, explains Jason Fried, especially in software development. Fried’s company 37signals, which authored the book Getting Real and has created several popularWeb applications, lives this philosophy and has enjoyed great success as a result.
While I would have selected different language at times, [...]
These are partial notes from the primary sermon given at the morning meeting of Grace Bible Church in Tulsa, Oklahoma today.
1 John 4:7,8
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God [...]
Twitter is a popular microblogging platform at the moment.
Many users (or potential users) of the service are confused as to how to use it.
Twitter is presented as a means for answering the question “what are you doing?” but is really primarily a tool for real-time communication and search.
The most effective users of Twitter are doing [...]
Google is the world’s most important search engine.
Its search engine is without rival, and with good reason. Perhaps Bing will become that rival, but I doubt that it will.
Search is not the only avenue in which Google has excelled; it produces highly popular and usable web applications for various users.
Google is innovative and seems to [...]
Mastery of musical instruments is challenging.
The discipline of skilled music performance does not develop haphazardly.
What are essential considerations in its pursuit? Some candidates include:
Practice with definite objectives for each practice session.
Select learning projects based on need, not unrealistic ambition.
Establish a reliable personal practice routine.
Track progress in specific technical challenges.
Form a clear mental image of the [...]