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The Inmates Are Running the Asylum: Why High Tech Products Drive Us Crazy and How to Restore the Sanity (2nd Edition)

Average customer rating:

No Cognitive Friction Here..
an essential handbook for designing software
Great writing, very illustrative examples, definitely not a detailed how-to
this book changed my life
Blown out of proportion

The Inmates Are Running the Asylum: Why High Tech Products Drive Us Crazy and How to Restore the Sanity (2nd Edition)
Alan Cooper
Manufacturer: Sams
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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About Face 2.0: The Essentials of Interaction Design
The Design of Everyday Things
Don't Make Me Think: A Common Sense Approach to Web Usability, 2nd Edition
Observing the User Experience: A Practitioner's Guide to User Research (Morgan Kaufmann Series in Interactive Technologies) (Interactive Technologies)
Paper Prototyping: The Fast and Easy Way to Design and Refine User Interfaces (Interactive Technologies)

ASIN: 0672326140

Amazon.com

The recurring metaphor in The Inmates are Running the Asylum is that of the dancing bear--the circus bear that shuffles clumsily for the amusement of the audience. Such bears, says author Alan Cooper, don't dance well, as everyone at the circus can see. What amazes the crowd is that the bear dances at all. Cooper argues that technology (videocassette recorders, car alarms, most software applications for personal computers) consists largely of dancing bears--pieces that work, but not at all well. He goes on to say that this is more often than not the fault of poorly designed user interfaces, and he makes a good argument that way too many devices (perhaps as a result of the designers' subconscious wish to bully the people who tormented them as children) ask too much of their users. Too many systems (like the famous unprogrammable VCR) make their users feel stupid when they can't get the job done.

Cooper, who designed Visual Basic (the programming environment Microsoft promotes for the purpose of creating good user interfaces), indulges in too much name-dropping and self-congratulation (Cooper attributes the quote, "How did you do that?" to Microsoft chairman Bill Gates, upon looking at one of Cooper's creations)--but this appears to be de rigueur in books about the software industry. But those asides are minor. More valuable is the discourse about software design and implementation ("[O]bject orientation divides the 1000-brick tower into 10 100-brick towers."). Read this book for an idea of what's wrong with UI design. --David Wall

Topics covered: User interfaces--good ones and bad ones--and where they come from. Also, how to improve the ones you create.

Book Description

Imagine, at a terrifyingly aggressive rate, everything you regularly use is being equipped with computer technology. Think about your phone, cameras, cars-everything-being automated and programmed by people who in their rush to accept the many benefits of the silicon chip, have abdicated their responsibility to make these products easy to use. The Inmates Are Running the Asylum argues that the business executives who make the decisions to develop these products are not the ones in control of the technology used to create them. Insightful and entertaining, The Inmates Are Running the Asylum uses the author's experiences in corporate America to illustrate how talented people continuously design bad software-based products and why we need technology to work the way average people think. Somewhere out there is a happy medium that makes these types of products both user and bottom-line friendly; this book discusses why we need to quickly find that medium.

Download Description

Imagine, at a terrifyingly aggressive rate, everything you regularly use is being equipped with computer technology. Think about your phone, cameras, cars - everything - being automated and programmed by people who in their rush to accept the many benefits of the silicon chip, have abdicated their responsibility to make these products easy to use. The Inmates are Running the Asylum argues that, despite appearances, business executives are simply not the ones in control of the high-tech industry. They have inadvertently put programmers and engineers in charge, leading to products and processes that waste money, squander customer loyalty, and erode competitive advantage. Business executives have let the inmates run the asylum! In his book The Inmates Are Running the Asylum Alan Cooper calls for revolution - we need technology to work in the same way average people think - we need to restore the sanity. He offers a provocative, insightful and entertaining explanation of how talented people continuously design bad software-based products. More importantly, he uses his own work with companies big and small to show how to harness those talents to create products that will both thrill their users and grow the bottom line.

Customer Reviews:

No Cognitive Friction Here.. .......2007-06-12

Alan Cooper gives the reader insight into why so many of today's technological products frustrate and confuse users. Yet he goes past this to discuss a methodology for keeping it simple and designing for the user i.e. avoiding cognitive friction. This book has changed the way I will develop products and should be a must read for product managers of application developers. Just learning Mr. Cooper's vocabulary is worth the read. The ideas such as personas, keywords, and designing for an individual push the book way above average. This is an easy read that should be done in your spare time if you want to avoid cognitive friction with your users. It has changed the way I view technology and brought a new awareness to thoughtless technology implementation which often cause failure or misuse. The only reason I gave this book a 4 out of 5 as I feel it could have been reduced a little bit more, certain points I felt like the author was rambling about personal fustrations.

an essential handbook for designing software.......2007-06-11

Cooper's argument in this book is simple: you have to know your users, and you have to understand what they're trying to accomplish with your software. The method that he puts forth for achieving this understanding is personas, richly-described archetypical users.

The book is easy to read and understand. He begins with a detailed description of the problem with software design as carried about by programmers who can only imagine themselves as the users of their software, resulting in software that makes really difficult things possible but doesn't bother to make easy or common things quick and easy.

After making the argument that programmers shouldn't design interfaces and making the case both for usability and interaction design, he lays out the personas concept. Cooper's guidelines for creating personas and using them are well-written and well-thought-out. However, his examples of applying them to some of his own customers are rather repetitive, and sometimes come across as somewhat whiny.

Now that it's time for my group at Microsoft to revisit our personas and determine what needs to be tweaked for our next version, I decided that I should revisit the book that first advanced the idea. It has stood up well to the test of time (something that not many computer books can do). I highly recommend it, both to usability and design professionals, as well as programmers.

Great writing, very illustrative examples, definitely not a detailed how-to.......2007-05-13

The strength of this book its clear and easy-to-read writing. Cooper's examples are instructive and the theory of why design-centric business approaches are the most powerful. It's supposed to be a business-case book but I'm quite sure all programmers and even designers would find the read very worthwhile.

My only wish for the book would be that Chapter 10 onwards seemed to be the really exciting stuff, detailing the how more than the why of design-centric approaches. This part feels like a rushed summary in comparison the the attention paid to the why aspect in the rest of the book. You may want to consider Cooper's newly revised "how" book although it is mainly a designer's handbook: About Face 3: The Essentials of Interaction Design

I'm not done with that About Face 3: The Essentials of Interaction Design but I'm starting to worry it's going to leave me wishing it had more specific methodologies as opposed to theories. Of course, it has much more methodological attention than The Inmates Are Running the Asylum: Why High Tech Products Drive Us Crazy and How to Restore the Sanity (2nd Edition) and there's no fault in what is written, only in what is omitted.

If you're really looking for the ultimate how-to, you might want to consider attending the four-day "Cooper U". Case in point: I had the chance to ask Alan Cooper where I could learn more about how to create the design documents he writes about in the last part of The Inmates Are Running the Asylum: Why High Tech Products Drive Us Crazy and How to Restore the Sanity (2nd Edition) and he really couldn't say what books would be able to instruct that (including his own) and that it would be covered in his course.

this book changed my life.......2007-02-22

I was a well-paid systems administrator/help desk guy until I read this book. This book really did inspire me to change careers!

The book basically outlines why engineers (and people who think like engineers) are INCAPABLE of designing effective interfaces. It delves into specifics and supplies some great examples.

I am amused by some of the reviewers here who display the same sort of arrogant contempt that the book outlines. OF COURSE programming a VCR is easy for YOU--you're a person with an "engineer mind". My mom can't program a VCR at all, and that's not because she didn't try hard enough or read the instructions. She can't use it because everything about it's interface is counter-intuitive to someone who does not understand machine/code logic.

Just because it's easy for you doesn't mean it doesn't stink. Just because it makes sense to you doesn't mean it can't be made better--to work intuitively for "regular" people. Buy this book. Read it. Demand more from your products. It's time to end the insanity.

Blown out of proportion.......2007-01-18

It's true that some products have poor interfaces, but in my experience this "problem" is blown way out of proportion with reality. The only people I know who couldn't figure out how to program their VCRs were people who did not try for more than 5 minutes. Read the instructions, both in the book and onscreen, and VCR programming is a snap, from the earliest models to today.

I think the real question should be: Why are so many users so lazy? This is more of a social problem than a technological one. Some think that if any effort is required to learn how to use a new device then it's poorly designed. Poppycock!

History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)

Average customer rating:

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed.
Very Interesting
History as Science Fiction
Provocative, appealing and controversial
pharaohs lived in the 3rd century AD

History: Fiction or Science? (Chronology, No. 1)
Anatoly Fomenko
Manufacturer: Mithec
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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History: Fiction or Science? Chronology 2 (Chronology)
Discovering the Mysteries of Ancient America: Lost History And Legends, Unearthed And Explored
Before the Pharaohs: Egypt's Mysterious Prehistory
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They Cast No Shadows: A Collection of Essays on the Illuminati, Revisionist History, and Suppressed Technologies

ASIN: 2913621058

Book Description

Recorded history is a finely-woven magic fabric of intricate lies about events predating the sixteenth century. There is not a single piece of evidence that can be reliably and independently traced back earlier than the eleventh century. This book details events that are substantiated by hard facts and logic, and validated by new astronomical research and statistical analysis of ancient sources.

Customer Reviews:

Accepted History & Chronology Must Be Changed. .......2007-04-09

There is no doubt that history as most know it is a sham, & institution's version of History both University & Church is fradulent & inaccurate. Everything was established with an agenda, The real "Dark Ages" are now when we have access to incredible amounts of information past authorities & more important 'common folk' didn't have but our institutions & educators are slow to evolve because of what has ignorantly & arrogantly been taught for too long. This is on many subjects not just Chronology.

For anyone to question "Why would a Mathematician have anything credible to say of History?" The answer is from Dr. Fomenko's preface in the book: "It would be worthwhile to remind the reader that in the XVI-XVII century Chronology was considered to be a subdivision of Mathematics." These volumes could possibly be some of the most important works to date & should be read by everyone with an interest in History, especially professors & educators who have a duty to the public. I have read both books & must say that 'Chronology 1' has some very eye opening & revolutionary information. Even if these volumes are part true the implications are profound & opens the doors to further investigations & questions which must be done. I speak several different lanquages & must say the logic Dr. Fomenko uses with "inflection" of words & words being read from left to right in one region & right to left in another then written backwards, the removal of vowels & get down to basics of words, or different cities & locations having the same name etc. is correct. Vowel usage has always been optional & varied, actually complicating linquistics & study. The first thing one has to understand is that words never had a fixed spelling in history like we do now, the spelling of words was mutable & regional, as well as names & titles of people were vast, varied & changed, NOTHING WAS FIXED or understood linear. Matters of Life & Death as well as financial profiteering yesterday & today were & are made with ignorant, illogical & conspiratorial views of history & reality, it's time people get closer to the Truth & society collectively grow up.

Very Interesting.......2007-03-07

It is a good proposal and I believe it will mature into something even better in the future. I think it deserves to be read.

History as Science Fiction.......2007-01-10

Anatoly Fomenko has written a very intriguing book, full of pictures, charts, and computer 'proof' of his thesis: backwards of AD900 we don't really know what happened or when. Between AD900 and AD1600 there is more certainty, but there is still a lot of fuzzy ground, and things don't get reliable until we get past the 1600's where the printing press made it very difficult for the perpetrators of this timeline manipulation to change anything that had been committed to print. The Dark Ages did not happen. Books were burned for a reason. One organization has doubled the actual length of its existence by expanding the real chronology. Read why.

I had always wondered why Christ died about AD33 and yet men waited until the 11th century to form the Knights Templar, the Cathars, etc and go after the Holy Land by force. Why the 1000 year gap? Turns out there wasn't more than a 10-12 year gap and he proves it using astronomy. This also implies that the planet is not as old as we have been told, and current Christian and other creationist scientists are already championing that idea without being aware of Fomenko's book. The two groups, creationist scientists and the Russian mathematical analysts corroborate each other. Fascinating.

Of course, all this flies in the face of what we have been told traditionally is the 'proper' chronology of western civilization, and most readers will experience 'cognitive dissonance' in reading this book. It means that our history going backwards from AD1600 becomes progressively more incorrect and unreliable until it cannot be trusted at all... in the space of 700-800 years.

Naturally, the curious, open-minded reader will want to know WHO did this, WHY, and did any of the events we think of as really ancient ever happen?
Dr. Fomenko is a respected scientist/mathematician at Moscow State University who has already answered these questions to the satisfaction of his initially skeptical colleagues. Most of them are now believers, a few still refuse to believe (the usual diehards), and of course the western press has ignored Fomenko's work -- for obvious reasons when you read the book. The ones who perpetrated this chronology ruse have a lot to answer for. They are still with us. That's why this book is a well-kept secret.

I gave the book a 4-star rating because I was unable to check out some of his claims; those I checked were as he said. But if even 1/3 of his claims are true, this punches a big hole in what we think is our history, the meaning of western civilization, our educational process (for repeating the ruse as gospel), and the trustworthiness of the organization that perpetrated this ruse, well-intentioned or not.

This book relates to current research into a Young Earth paradigm, to John Keel's discoveries about our planet, and Fr Malachi Martin's insights (in his now out-of-print books). We are indeed sheep who are manipulated and kept ignorant -- for a reason. While knowing what these men have to say may be the "booby prize" (as in: 'what can you do with this knowledge?'), it will provide interesting reading. Didn't someone say: "...and the Truth will set you free."?? For you to judge if this book contains the truth.

Provocative, appealing and controversial.......2006-08-02

Fomenko has succeeded to convincingly demonstrate the misconception about what "history" factually is... It is fiction and -like we can read and judge for ourselves- no science. It indeed is "make belief" only. I "discovered" Fomenko while studying the "old" history of Al Andaluz, Spain. Having found too many contradictions in available data, having seen too many forgeries as to pretend the importance of christianity for its decline, I ventured out to find Fomenko, who convinced me that we know little if anything for sure of the epoch before the XI-century. However, the integration of the Arabic-Islamic cultural history into the heavily distorted Western fails... There are some attempts to fit "the budding new religion" (Islam) into Fomenko's scheme, but they are too weak to be taken seriously and too often focussing on Turkey as the region where things started to influence the West, which is untrue at all.
Islam certainly was no "new religion" in the X-century. That the highly cultivated Al Andaluz ruler Mohammed-I could have been "mirrored" down in time into some myth about the "illiterate" founder of Islam itself is highly speculative. Nevertheless, Fomenko convinces me about the processes that were involved in forging a christian history. Intriguing and controversial as his books are, I recommend them as to rethink our current position in time and space and simply verify what was claimed. It is a "good" book, but not for bedtime reading... Mundus vult decipi, the world wants to be cheated. Fomenko's readers will understand why.

pharaohs lived in the 3rd century AD.......2006-02-16

Traces of white wine were found in Tutankhamen's tomb however there were no record of white wine in Egypt until the 3rd century AD, 1600 years after the young pharaoh died according to the traditional chronology. http://www.newscientist.com/channel/being-human/mg18925395.400
It can be interpreted as a contribution towards New Chronology theory that pharaohs lived in the 3rd century AD.

Well Bred and Dead: A High Society Mystery

Average customer rating:

Poorly edited
Truman Capote meets Dominick Dunne
Well Bred And Dead
well bread & dead
A fun take on socieety

Well Bred and Dead: A High Society Mystery
Catherine O'Connell
Manufacturer: Harper Paperbacks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0061122157
Release Date: 2007-01-23

Book Description

Newly widowed Pauline Cook was once the toast of the Windy City elite—but now she's practically broke. At least she's in better shape than her dear departed friend Ethan Campbell, whose corpse Pauline has had the misfortune to discover. A writer who chronicled the lives, loves, and ensembles of the Gold Coast's most elegant ladies, Ethan apparently took his own life—while inelegantly clad in old boxers, no less. And since no relatives are coming forward to claim Ethan's remains, it falls to Pauline to settle his final affairs . . . with her own dwindling funds.

However, there are things about Ethan's suicide that don't seem to add up: the ratty undergarments he "chose" to die in, for example . . . and the multiple birth certificates the police turn up in his apartment. Before she can truly lay her friend to rest, plucky Pauline's determined to get to the bottom of his increasingly suspicious death.

Customer Reviews:

Poorly edited.......2007-06-25

The narrator, Pauline, equates nonstandard grammar with lack of breeding. At first, I thought her own frequent grammar errors were a subtly ironic comment on her hypocrisy. These errors include "lay" for "lie" (at least six times), numerous dangling modifiers, and incorrect pronoun case. However, the use of "reigning" for "reining" and "while" for "wile" made it clear that the errors were unintentional. Errors such as these can slip into anyone's writing, but a published work should have been more carefully edited.

A sparkling plot could have overcome the language problems, but the story is ponderous and unengaging. Had I not been reading the novel for a book club, I could have put it down at any pooint with no sense of loss. On the other hand, the characters are interesting and complex. They deserve a better story.

Truman Capote meets Dominick Dunne.......2007-03-03

This book reminds me of Dominick Dunne's take on NY's 'Fifth Avenue Society' but with a sense of humor that's triple sec. O'Connell really captures the Gold Coast of Chicago, and her wry sense of humor and unique observations are a delight to read. She's created a really unique kind of narrator - this wealthy socialite, who pays as much attention to the kind of linen she's bound and gagged on, as to what the murder weapon might be. Very clever, very funny, a truly different voice. I highly recommend this book, and I totally agree with Frank McCourt's assessment on the book cover; "O'Connell is a hell of a storyteller, and a tart observer." Can't wait to read her next tart.

Well Bred And Dead.......2007-02-20

My only caveat to anyone purchasing this book is that, once opened, you will not be able to set it down. I didn't particulalrly like author O'Connell's main character, Pauline Cook, (she doesn't do much for the image of weathy, high society women, I'm afraid) but I certainly enjoyed the twists and turns in her life as she metamorphed into Jessica Fletcher (aka Angela Lansbury) and tried to uncover/solve her best friend Ethan's secrets/murder. I also enjoyed the perils of Pauline as she traveled. The author caught the flavor of each city, whether it be London, Chicago, or, yes, even Rochester. This is just a darn good read and a well-written mystery that gave me too many hours (this week-end) of enjoyment, giggles and laughs-out-loud.

well bread & dead.......2007-02-14

I loved this book; it was like a breath of fresh air in the cozy world. Hey, even Frank McCourt endorsed this book :) I really hope there is a sequel. The plot was convoluted, but one could still follow along pretty easily. I loved Pauline. She was shallow yet likeable, and the book contained some great moments where she learned that the poor and rich have more in common than she once thought.

The book was humorous in its take on the wealthy, but I think, at times, there was too much observation and not enough action. It's a hard line to toe from mystery to social critique, but the book did a great job overall.

A fun take on socieety.......2007-02-02

A High Society Mystery

Chicago's society landscape is littered with new money, old money, and the "I have no money, but I have the pedigree.' Newly widowed Pauline Cook loves her position in Chicago's high-society, but she is pretty well near the bottom of the 'cash barrel.' And that's a problem. She may not have money, but she's beautiful in that 40-ish sort of way, and she has her best friend and writer, Ethan Campbell to keep her company.

When Ethan appears to have taken his own life, it is up to cash-strapped Pauline to give him the proper burial (one fitting her station in life). But Pauline questions Ethan's suicide. It really appears more like murder. And when she discovers several birth certificates in Ethan's possession, she embarks on a quest to discover the truth about her best friend. Her investigation just might get her murdered.

O'Connell writes a fun (and stereotypical) take on society and the people who inhabit the small world the rest of us only view through photographs and gossip items. This has the markings of a series.

Armchair Interviews says: If you like cozy, amateur sleuth mysteries, you might enjoy Well Bred and Dead.

She Said Yes: The Unlikely Martyrdom of Cassie Bernall

Average customer rating:

Important book..
She Said Yes
She Said Yes
She Said Yes
She Said Yes

She Said Yes: The Unlikely Martyrdom of Cassie Bernall
Misty Bernall
Manufacturer: Pocket
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0743400526
Release Date: 2000-08-29

Amazon.com

In the aftermath of the Columbine High School tragedy, a story came out about Cassie Bernall, a young woman who allegedly professed her belief in God in the moments before she was shot dead. Hailed a modern-day martyr by Christian groups and the media, detectives revealed months later that she may never have had such an exchange with her killer. Bernall's parents responded to the news with a statement:

"Our intent was to share Cassie's story in an effort to encourage parents and teenagers. If any of our actions have hurt or offended anyone, we sincerely apologize."

In She Said Yes, a moving memoir written by Cassie's mother, Misty Bernall, we meet the real Cassie, a typical adolescent who struggles with peer pressure and her relationship with her parents. Once headed down the common teenage path of self-loathing and depression, Cassie turned her life around through her faith and the support of a group of people who helped her find peace and purpose--her youth group at church. Though Cassie was far from the perfect child, She Said Yes tells the story of how Cassie's faith gave her the strength to overcome the obstacles she faced in her young life. Regardless of what happened at Columbine, She Said Yes is a moving tribute to an extraordinary young woman and a lesson for both parents and teenagers alike.

Book Description

"One of the most gripping stories to come out of the shooting at Columbine High School"

is told in the acclaimed national bestseller that illuminates the most remarkable aspect of 17-year-old Cassie Bernall's tragic death: her life.

She Said Yes is an "intense and fascinating memoir" (Publishers Weekly) of an ordinary teenager growing up in suburban Colorado, and faced -- as all teenagers are -- with difficult choices and pressures. It is only now, when the world knows Cassie Bernall as one of the Columbine High students killed by two rampaging schoolmates, that the choices she made offer a profound relevance for us all. Once a rage-filled young woman who walked a path similar to that of her killers, Cassie found a way out of her personal snares and, through her faith and a family's love, chose to embrace life with courage and conviction.

Told with unflinching honesty by her mother, Misty Bernall, Cassie's story is "a profoundly human story that should be read by every parent and every teenager" (New York Post).

Customer Reviews:

Important book.........2007-06-12

I feel that even if it wasn't actually Cassie that said I believe this is still so important to show the humanity of the people that were killed. I definately would NOT say it's a Christian myth that the shootings were at least partly blamed on religion. The boys did ask the girl beside her if she believed in God. And what about Rachel Scott. She was shot after confessing her faith. This was not just about trying to kill jocks or popular kids. These boys hated religion and mocked God and basically were saying if you believe in God let him save you. By letting the other girl survive it's almost their sick game of playing God and deciding who lives and dies. It's a terrorist scare tactic. But Cassie did believe in God and right before she was shot she was praying to God out loud to just let her go home. Then one of the boys pounded on the table she was under said peek a boo and shot her. If you don't believe her killing was motivated by her beliefs read Rachel's Tears and be assured it played a big part in who they killed.

She Said Yes.......2007-05-07

In this book, a girl named Cassie Bernall had got shot at her very own school. But she was only one of the many who were killed . Her mom ,Misty Bernall, wrote this book in memory of her loving daughter. In this book, it tells how Cassie grew up and what memories she has left of her daughter. Her mom also interviewed Cassie's friends and put what memories they had left of her, too. Cassie was always writing notes to her friends about how bad her life was and how she wanted to run away. In this book, she shows the notes she had writen them. But in the last note she ever wrote, she gave to her friend right before she died. It had said that she had belived in God. Right before she got shot, she said the same thing. I look up to Cassie Bernall because she is a strong person who sticks up for what she belives in. I know that if I were in her situation, and they had asked me if I belived in God, I probably would have said, "I don't know" and just cooperated with them. But then again, everything does happen for a reason. So maybe she was meant to go. If I had to rate this book out of 10, it would be a 10. I think this book should be required to read because it is a true life story, and it could happen to anybody. I would also love to see the movie.

She Said Yes.......2007-05-07

This heartbreaking book is really sad. This book talks about an innocent girl who is shot during the Columbine shooting in Colorado. Her name was Cassie Bernall.It explains how one day started off fairly good and then the next few days were filled with curiosity and tears. Parents wondering where their children are and when their coming home. Well in this book Cassie doesn't make it home. She was shot by one of the shooters from Columbine just from one word, YES .She was the type of girl who wanted to fit in with the cool groups and just dropped all of her other friends.I really liked this book. It was the most sad and heartbreaking story I have ever read.I rate this book with 5 stars.

The Martyrs of Columbine: Faith and the Politics of Tragedy

Average customer rating:

disrespectful to the parents of the victims...
Telling Book
Big disapointment
A Thoughtful Examination of the Columbine Martyr Stories
Great Book That Looks Into The Controversies Of Columbine

The Martyrs of Columbine: Faith and the Politics of Tragedy
Justin Watson
Manufacturer: Palgrave Macmillan
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

No Easy Answers: The Truth Behind Death at Columbine
Rachel's Tears: The Spiritual Journey of Columbine Martyr Rachel Scott
She Said Yes: The Unlikely Martyrdom of Cassie Bernall
A Columbine Survivor's Story
The Journals Of Rachel Scott A Journey Of Faith At Columbine High

ASIN: 0312239572

Book Description

Cassie Bernall and Rachel Scott, two victims of the April 20, 1999, Columbine massacre, were reportedly asked by the two teen gunmen if they believed in God. Both allegedly answered Yes and were killed. This popular story has made Cassie and Rachel into modern-day Christian martyrs, but Watson uncovers a startling fact: Theres simply no evidence this event ever occurred. Meticulously exploring the religious and political use of Cassie and Rachel by Bill Graham and others in the Christian right, Watso demonstrates how this myth has infiltrated into the very culture of evangelical Christianity. Ultimately, Watson brilliantly illustrates that the politics of martyrdom is still politics.

Customer Reviews:

disrespectful to the parents of the victims..........2006-02-23

I can not comprehend Mr. Watson's intentions in writing this book. Although I disagree with the parents of the Columbine victims who believe that more gun laws will prevent further school violence, I respect their opinion and would not dare insult them in a way that this author insults those parents with Christian beliefs.

Not once does this author offer solid evidence that the Rachel and Cassie accounts never happened. He even goes so far as to quote law that a jury must follow in defining "proof" because it is so lacking in this book that the author can only be too aware of it. He insults the victims and their families by calling into question their stories, essentially calling them liars, based only on his own speculation. With the mass of confusion in the library that day, the Cassie story will always be debated, yet again, Mr. Watson offers no new evidence. As for Rachel Scott's story: the following text is an excerpt from page 151 of No Easy Answers, The Truth Behind Death At Columbine by Brooks Brown and Rob Merritt. "After he got the breathing tube out, he (Castaldo) was crying and upset, telling me through sobs how they taunted her (Rachel Scott) and teased her about God," Castaldo's mother Connie Michalek, told the Denver Rocky Mountain News on April 21, 2000. Mr. Watson actually explores the idea that she was being less than truthful with what Richard said in the hospital that day!

It is the opinion of this reader that if an author wishes to make the accusations that he does, he should bring new and compelling evidence to the table. This book offers no new insight into the Columbine tragedy. The information he cites as evidence has been around for years, and is available to anyone with internet access or a library card.

Telling Book.......2006-01-04

I read this book after reading "She Said Yes," by the Bernall family. I simply cannot see how the public will accept much of the information that the Bernall family provides for Cassie's death. What I feel is that a religious community has entangled this issue with a social agenda. Justin Watson flatly disproves or casts doubt on claims that the media takes for granted. For that, you should read his book.

As a book, Martyrs of Columbine is very readable and thorough. Although at times, Justin Watson seems to insert his personal opinion (especially in a chapter about the media's treatment of the event), his commentary is logical and is usually quite revealing of the politics in the American religious movement.

Big disapointment.......2004-07-04

I was very disapointed in the book.Basicly the writer took bits and pieces from books written by others,twisted their words and put his own spin on it.It repeats itself over and over being so repetative I had to put it down.There are good books out there written by people who were there.I suggest you take a look at those.I read many good one's but this book wasnt in that catagory.

A Thoughtful Examination of the Columbine Martyr Stories.......2003-01-27

Watson's book belongs in the collection of anyone interested in what happened at Columbine and why it happened. Rather than trying to discuss all of the issues that swirl around this event, the author concentrates on the "Do you believe in God?" stories associated with victims Cassie Bernall and Rachel Scott. More than simply trying to determine whether these stories are true - he doesn't think they are -- he examines how and why these stories took on a wider cultural and political significance. Particularly interesting is how these "martyrs" got used to advance some of the pet causes of the Religious Right, such as getting prayer back in public schools. While those who continue to believe Cassie and Rachel really were martyred will dislike Watson's conclusions, it is hard to see how they could argue with his thorough and thoughtful discussion.

Great Book That Looks Into The Controversies Of Columbine.......2003-01-16

I read this book not too long ago and I think that it's a great book that looks into some of the controversies of Columbine(i.e. whether Rachel Scott was mentioned in the "Basement Tapes" or not, whether Cassie Bernall was asked whether she believed in God or wehther it was another person[who survived]).

From all I've learned about what happened, I'm very skeptical that the Rachel and Cassie stories are true.

I think that it's a rush to judgement to say that certain stroies are true(especially when there is evidence that suggest otherwise)and I think that the main lesson of this book is that "don't take things at face value".

Warp-Speed Branding: The Impact of Technology on Marketing

Average customer rating:

Disappointing advice
Weak thinking
Very Disappointing
Insightful!
Not very useful information

Warp-Speed Branding: The Impact of Technology on Marketing
Agnieszka Winkler
Manufacturer: Wiley
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0471295558

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Technology has changed everything. Product life cycles are shorter. Consumers are more informed, demanding, elusive. And brands can no longer afford to be crafted over lengthy periods of time. Instead, writes advertising guru Agnieszka Winkler, a brand can--and must--be built at warp speed. She continues:

With the advent of new communications technologies, it is now possible to spread the word, like a village drumbeat, to all corners of the world in months, weeks, or even days. The drumbeat is often carried by the users themselves--a more believable source of information in our jaded, skeptical society.

By profiling agile companies such as Apple, America Online, and Amazon.com, Winkler exposes the first myth of branding: "A brand is built over a long time." Another myth: "A brand is precisely crafted for a tightly defined target." Reality: "A brand is expansive." Myth: "Brand the product." Reality: "Brand a bigger idea." Myth: "The brand is a marketing concept." Reality: "The brand is a financial concept." But the most important industry trend may be the role of the Internet, which has become an integral link between producer and consumer. Winkler's "Just Do It" Internet approach isn't groundbreaking, but the online opportunities are made quite clear. The Internet also pops up in the 31-question "Warp-Speed Branding Quiz," which measures a company's readiness to tackle branding with warp speed. Marketers and advertisers who fail this test are well advised to get up to speed. --Rob McDonald

Book Description

"Time to market" is now the operative phrase for companies around the globe. Consumer and employee are simultaneously shaped by and shaping the new knowledge economy. We are no longer the linear, process-oriented rational world of the industrial revolution, and the traditional Procter & Gamble formulas for brand building are becoming increasingly obsolete.

Warp-Speed Branding will challenge your current thinking and launch you into the new and creative ways today's hottest technology companies are tackling branding, leaving traditional ways of building brands far behind. These companies represent the meteoric rise of the technology culture and how it is moving through the worlds of marketing and advertising, transforming businesses in the blink of an eye and the click of a mouse.

In this groundbreaking book, expert Agnieszka Winkler's compelling insight clearly shows how technology's presence in every business environment has already changed the role of the brand builder. Winkler's perspective reconsiders some of the standard marketing truths learned at the knee of consumer product giants like Procter & Gamble, Unilever, and Colgate-Palmolive. Now technology companies such as Microsoft, Intel, and AOL embody innovation and change and are rewriting the rules of brand creation. With Warp-Speed Branding, you'll see how to apply some of their lessons.

The book exposes six myths of branding and replaces them with new truths in a "warp-speed world." Fascinating case studies detail the branding success stories behind Sony, Intel, Amazon.com, Dell, and others, out of which emerge principles, guidelines, and action steps. You'll learn: The new branding skills, attitudes, and processes companies need to make it in a warp-speed world; How advertising agencies can adjust their processes and mindsets to help clients achieve faster time to market; How to identify and manage your company's Brand Ecosystem; How to take advantage of the extraordinary branding opportunities presented by the Internet

With passion and incisive thinking, Agnieszka Winkler gives you the new marketing lessons to be learned from today's technology leaders--and how to apply them to your own brand of success.

Praise for Warp-Speed Branding

"We have all experienced the acceleration of our lives and our work towards Internet speed. Ms. Winkler has given us anecdotes, tem-plates and commonsense advice, all focused on teaching us how to use the acceleration of technology to build better brands, products, and organizations." -- Paul Otellini, Executive Vice President, Intel Corporation

"This book is an engaging must-read for all brand shepherds, young and old. The rapid speed of global technological change has dramatically redefined all traditional concepts of consumers, stakeholders, marketing, and branding. Attitude, capability, and mass customization are now king." -- Carl James Yankowski, President & CEO, Reebok Brands

"For marketers who are charged with retaining or creating brand advantage in the future, this is a must read. You'll find a refreshing challenge to the status quo and new ideas to consider." -- Jan Soderstrom, EVP International Marketing, Visa International

"In the tradition of marketing classics, Winkler redefines what it takes to win at marketing in today's frenzied, everything-changing-at-once product development cycles." -- Steve Weiss, Founding Partner, Product Management Group

"Traveling with Agnieszka Winkler through Warp-Speed Branding is a thrill ride. . . . Her rich examples and colorful illustrations make Warp-Speed Branding essential reading for all who aspire to lead their organizations to unique and distinctive places in the millennium marketplace." -- Jim Kouzes, coauthor, The Leadership Challenge and Encouraging the HeartChairman, Tom Peters Group/Learning Systems

"A thought-provoking view of the huge impact of the Web lifestyle on brands and branding." -- Robert Herbold, EVP & COO, Microsoft Corporation.

Customer Reviews:

Disappointing advice.......2005-02-21

Perhaps with the benefit of hindsight, we can see the flaws in this book more clearly: far too many technology companies attempted to build their "brand" overnight and could not survive the dot-com crash.

Winkler's advice appears more suited to the internal efficiency processes of ad agencies than it does to the strategic guidance such agencies could provide their clients. If I were a technology advertiser, I would be very wary of taking the advice of this book. Given that Winkler Advertising no longer exists should be cause for concern for anyone considering her as an advisor.

There are many credible marketing/brand-building books on the market today, most of which can be found on Amazon. If you want to get solid advice you can trust from an ad agency, read Truth Lies & Advertising from Jon Steel, Eating the Big Fish and The Pirate Inside from Adam Morgan, or Under the Radar from Kirschenbaum & Bond.

Weak thinking.......2004-08-04

This book suggests that effective brands can be built overnight. It is very presumptuous, and also draws too heavily on the author's personal experiences. I don't know how many of her clients survived the dot-com crash on this thinking, but I would not bet my business on it. There are lots of brand-building books available on amazon.com (anything by David Aaker is a good bet) and you would be better served by more responsible advice from other sources.

Very Disappointing.......2001-12-21

I am involved and interested in marketing for high-tech companies and start-ups as a career and purchased this book to help me do very fast "branding" for a start-up. I was greatly disappointed to find most of the information relating to what is possible with technology such as fast information dissemination, and online collaboration, etc. That is good information for people who don't know this stuff is possible, but is not very useful for people looking for a marketing book that will tell you how to "brand" a product any faster than you would normally be able to do it.

I would label the book a "how to work more efficiently" type book for the advertising industry. Not at all useful given its title.

Insightful!.......2001-06-02

Advertising expert Agnieszka M. Winkler offers an insider’s perspective on how technology has changed marketing and advertising. Writing with clarity and confidence, she outlines the steps advertisers and marketers must take to keep pace. She cites high-profile companies like Dell Computers and Amazon as examples of brands that were built in months, not years. These examples illustrate her sometimes complex concepts, and make them more accessible. Unfortunately, she also devotes a large amount of space to what amounts to a commercial for an adverting software application that she’s trying to sell. But for readers who can stomach the pitch, we recommend this book to those who work in marketing, advertising, or related industries, and to those who are making the transition to technology-driven brand building. (Editor’s note: TeamToolz, one of the major resources covered in this book, is a pay-for-use service sold by the author.)

Not very useful information.......2000-09-28

The book assume and reader have a certain level of knowledge branding. It does not tell you how and why rather state only the what. The examples and case studies in this book is really pathetic. I feel that half of the book is certainly advertisement for the author's company. In conclusion, this book is definitely not worth reading if you do not have much time to spare.If you are serious about branding look somewhere else.

The Economic Impact of Knowledge (Resources for the Knowledge-Based Economy)

Average customer rating:

The Economic Impact of Knowledge (Resources for the Knowledge-Based Economy)
Dale Neef , Tony Siesfeld , and Jacquelyn Cefola
Manufacturer: Butterworth-Heinemann
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0750670096

Book Description

Series: Resources for the Knowledge-Based Economy

What happens to our understanding of economics when the vast majority of people within our economy are employed to create ideas, solve problems, or market and sell services rather than to produce tangible goods? How do we measure non-financial "intangibles" such as human capital or the effect of R&D? This anthology explores how economists and public policy makers are re-thinking the way in which governments measure, monitor, and influence an economy in an unbounded global environment where output is largely intangible and organizations are becoming increasingly "non-national" in scope.

Through a collection of seminal articles written by prominent business people, academics, and public policy makers, this three-part anthology examines the key issues surrounding the economic impact of knowledge-based growth, including:

* preparing for the effects of technological change
* understanding the change in traditional economic theory
* how Research and Development will be affected
* who will be the global "knowledge police"?

Most business people think of economics in terms of growth, interest rates, and inflation. This book is unique in that it focuses on the economic impact of knowledge-based growth in order to provide business people with a bigger picture of the knowledge management case for action with their organizations.

The most up-to-date and most relevant articles on the subject
Unique focus on the theme of knowledge
Organized logically, with a foreword to introduce each section

An Elegant Madness: High Society in Regency England

Average customer rating:

Delightful Overview for the Uninitiated
the perfect title for this bit of self-indulgent madness
Fun and Light Reading
Try it for yourself
Gossipy account of high society in the Regency era.

An Elegant Madness: High Society in Regency England
Venetia Murray
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Everyday Life in the 1800s: A Guide for Writers, Students & Historians (Writer's Guides to Everyday Life)
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ASIN: 0140282963
Release Date: 2000-02-28

Amazon.com

Regency England was, according to Venetia Murray, a "glorious paradox": High society placed a premium on civilized living, yet vulgarity, gluttony, and moral vicissitude were considered fashionable--and socially acceptable--vices. In An Elegant Madness, Murray examines this polarity, providing readers with an accurate, entertaining, easy-to-read portrayal that conveys the mood of the period, focusing primarily on the oft-paradoxical social practices and attitudes of the English aristocracy.

Generally understood as a 50-year period beginning, as with the French Revolution, just before the dawn of the 19th century, Regency England (or, more precisely, its uppermost stata) remained, in many ways, oblivious to and safely distanced from the ravages of the Napoleonic Wars consuming the continent. The tone of society, according to Murray, tends to be set by its titular head; thus, the paradox and political detachment of the Regency Period emanated primarily from its leader, the Prince Regent. The carefree Regent, who would reign as King George IV from 1820 to 1830, was known not only as "The First Gentleman of Europe," but also as a dedicated hedonist, drunkard, and lecher. Elegance and vulgarity characterized the rest of the English aristocracy, as well, and Murray's chapters clearly illustrate how Regency high society appropriated for itself the same duality as their leader's. Her chapters, each a freestanding study of its own, examine fashions of the period, the (exorbitant) cost of living, London high society, clubs and taverns, the common practice of taking a mistress, the country home, and the seaside resort. She embellishes her study with cartoons, prints, and caricatures of the period, all of which contribute to our understanding of this unique period of English history. --Bertina Loeffler Sedlack

Book Description

Rakes and dandies, duchesses and courtesans, pugilists and patrons, whirl through this dazzling and definitive history of Great Britain's most decadent era.

The Regency period was one of the most turbulent ages in British history, one that spanned the French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars, that witnessed unprecedented industrial progress, artistic accomplishment, and violent social unrest and--paradoxically-- the most sparkling social scene English high society has ever enjoyed. Under the influence of the obese, loose-moraled Prince of Wales (to whom Jane Austen dedicated Emma), the Regency was the apex of British decadence, an era of lavish parties and relentless bed-hopping that set a standard for elegance and vulgarity. With wit and lively style, Venetia Murray chronicles the scandals, courtships, and daily life of these aristocrats, and evokes the tempestuous times of the early industrial and French revolutions. Sumptuously illustrated with rare contemporary cartoons, prints, diaries, and caricatures, An Elegant Madness is a book readers of social history and historical romance alike will devour.

"Glittering and gossipy, an extravagant panorama of the 'Age of Scandal' . . . frivolously entertaining and assiduously researched."-- Kirkus Reviews

"A delightful book, well researched and highly entertaining."--Christopher Hibbert, author of George III: A Personal History

"A treat. . . . Murray's gusto is giddily infectious. . . . She writes in the amused style that would easily have befit that Regency scribe Jane Austen herself."-- Mary Elizabeth Williams, Salon Magazine

Customer Reviews:

Delightful Overview for the Uninitiated.......2006-03-28

I found the writing very engaging and thoroughly enjoyed myself while reading it. While there are a few problems with sources I think this is an excellent introduction to the period. It's not a textbook, though; you don't quote from a book like this, you use it as a starting point to track down original sources in the specific area of interest to you. There is also a marvelous sense of humor about it.

the perfect title for this bit of self-indulgent madness.......2005-07-21

If one reads this, they might do it with one of those foam collars about their necks that people use for whiplash, because that is precisely how you will feel when you finish this work. It's not bad enough the writer gets SO many facts wrong, out of order or does about faces on her own statement - it's a marathon of WRONG - she actually and consistently contradicts herself! One can write a small book on the errors this author carelessly makes.

Take this as TOTAL FICTION and you MIGHT enjoy it. If you are looking for a feel for the period, look elsewhere. Save your money - and the headache! To see a writer do so much research and get it ALL so wrong, jumping around in chronological order with the consistency of a ping pong ball, had to be a fine madness.

I don't think someone could deliberately set out to get something so wrong and do half a thorough job as Murray did.

Fun and Light Reading.......2003-08-07

I loved this book. A perfect "lightweight" history book for reading on the subway or at the beach. It is very fun to read, and it focuses on the nobility instead of the general culture at large, which I liked very much. Most of her conclusions are drawn from primary sources, so although the historiography may be heavily weighted on a few select sources, there is no reason why other reviewers should attack the book by claiming it is innacurate. History is an interperative discipline, and Ms. Murray's book is one more interpretation of the Regency Period. If you enjoy English History you will probably enjoy this book.

Try it for yourself.......2003-04-02

I've been curious about this book ever since reading all these hot-tempered reviews on Amazon. I'm a university student with a researching streak, and found an older copy of this book in the stacks. Finals, you know -- what better time to research something completely unrelated to your work. Now:

The Good: witty, anecdotal, and really brings across a real love of the period.

The Bad: the schizophrenic indexing, the unprofessional mistakes.

Now, you have to ask yourself, what's more important to you: accuracy or readability? I've read any Regency England history book I can get my hands on at my university library. Many of them, quite frankly, are written in a torpid, dull manner that completely fails to do homage to the spirit of the Regency period.

This book has been criticized for being inaccurate. True. Now get over it. It has also been criticized for depicting unpleasant people. Because apparently the Regency was a time of sweetness and light? Because those were the Good Olde Days? Please. The sinners at least have more fun, and had better clothes.

Murray's book is bright, sharp, smart, effervescent, and ironic, just like the period it depicts. I'm usually a stickler for accuracy in historical novels, but Murray's voice makes up for it. She comes across as an intelligent witness, winking at the reader before she dashes off to relate another wonderfully gossipy tale.

This book is not 100% correct, yes, but any true afficionado would probably read other books in the same vein as well as go over some primary resources. And for the novice or visitor, they are still going to come away with a clear understanding of the era and a small percentage of its people.

In the end, you'll enjoy and you'll learn, and if you want more (and it's hard to imagine anyone not wanting more), you can go read the very accurate, very dry stuff and derive the gossip on your own. All in all an interesting work. Don't let the critics get ya down.

Gossipy account of high society in the Regency era........2001-05-13

Serious historians won't find much to peak their interest in this gossip-ladden review of the Regency period, but lay readers will find it an interesting and entertaining read. The research supposedly comes from original sources, including newspaper columns about the foibles and follies of the haute ton. Admist the many amusing anecdotes, the author tries to cover all aspects of daily living in England at the time. Unfortunately, the structure of the book is such that there is a lot of repetition and I had trouble keeping track of (and interested in) the various many members of society that kept reappearing. An amusing read, but not a definitive look at the era.

High Tech/High Touch: Technology and Our Accelerated Search for Meaning

Average customer rating:

"The railroad rides Mankind"
Deceptive and Disjointed
You could drive a mac truck through the logical gaps
Highly Recommended!
Enlightening, entertaining, and fascinating

High Tech/High Touch: Technology and Our Accelerated Search for Meaning
John Naisbitt
Manufacturer: Nicholas Brealey Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 1857882601

Amazon.com

The great irony of the high-tech age is that we've become enslaved to devices that were supposed to give us freedom. That's why in High Tech/High Touch, John Naisbitt decided to revisit a chapter from Megatrends, his 1982 bestseller, in which he discussed the split between high tech and what he dubbed "high touch."

We all know what high tech is--these are the technologies that "make us available 24 hours a day, like a convenience store," Naisbitt writes. He says we live in a "technologically intoxicated zone," the symptoms of which include a continual search for quick fixes and lives that are "distanced and distracted." High touch, on the other hand, is the stuff we give up when we're tuned in to the technological world: hope and fear and longing, love and forgiveness, nature and spirituality. To discover where the twain shall meet, Naisbitt takes us on a journey that includes Celebration, Florida, the Disney-created community that was fully wired from the get-go; Martha Stewart, who shows people with complicated lives how to enjoy simple tasks like gardening; extreme sports and adventure travel, in which ordinary people expose themselves to the full fury of nature and gravity. And that's all just the first quarter of the book; Naisbitt goes on to look at how video games desensitize children to violence; the challenges the human genome project presents to religion and spirituality; and, finally, "specimen art," in which artists create disturbing images of life, death and human sexuality.

There's no conclusion, in the traditional sense, only a look at what's happening in our world. But the reader will probably take some sort of action after finishing High Tech/High Touch: switching off the cell phone for a few hours a day; permanently locking away the children's violent Nintendo games; maybe even booking a vacation at the most remote location possible. Anything to get away from the constant buzz of a wired world. --Lou Schuler

Book Description

Naisbitt now sharpens his focus on the one great megatrend of the new millennium: the impact of technology--genetic technologies being the most influential of all--on society, our culture, our personal lives and the lives of our children.

Customer Reviews:

"The railroad rides Mankind" .......2006-01-25

I must agree with a number of other reviewers about this book. It promises a lot more than it gives. It too it seems to me beats a pretty dead horse, when coming down as major point on media violence as major abuse of technology. It is not that this is wrong, but rather that it is such a glaring and commonplace truth that one does not need it to be banged into one's head over and over again.
About the basic idea of a split between the high tech material world and the 'high touch' inner world, this too has a certain feeling of the commonplace. I also do not believe it accurate , if only because the technical obviously works on our feelings, and our feelings transform the world of the technical.
I suppose the main conclusion of this work is that we have to be careful, use technology wisely, not become its slaves. A lot of people for a long time in the Western world have become making this point. Consider Thoreau " The railroad rides mankind" .
There is however information in this book on new developments in various areas of scientific and technical work. This can be valuable.
But on the whole one must look elsewhere for true wisdom on the subject.

Deceptive and Disjointed.......2004-11-16

One of the most misleading titles I have ever read. Although purporting to cover issues regarding society's relationship to technology, the authors present a short and poorly reasoned discussion of media violence, followed up with much fluff regarding gene therapy and genetic manipulation.

I agree that violence in the media has a detrimental effect on society, however, I cannot stomach the idea that "the nihilistic music of a German rock band" contributed to the Littleton Colorado school shootings. Such tripe derails any rational discussion of the subject.

Regardless of the out of date information regarding genetic science, the heart of the book adds nothing to the premise. Had the authors actually spent time developing the idea of the "Technologically Intoxicated Zone" instead of presenting the ideas of religious scholars regarding gene therapy, the book may have had some value.

The original promise of the book is left entirely unfulfilled and the reader is left to fend for themselves regarding their own relationship, and that of their community, to technology.

I feel that the title is deceptive and the irrelevant arguments presented are disjointed.

You could drive a mac truck through the logical gaps.......2004-02-09

Don't read this book. It will confuse you into thinking that the world of technology is dangerous and emotionally painful, without every actually explaining to you how or why. The only reason I don't give it fewer stars is that it's real easy to read. The problem is, it doesn't actually say anything.
I'm doing my master's thesis on how technology effects human experience of meaning, and I was really looking forward to this book as a layman's thought-provoking look at the subject. By the time I was halfway through it, I was ready to bang my head against a wall. There's just no substance, no logical progression of thought-the whole thing is full of semi-neurotic, somewhat morbid emotional appeals (e.g. naming a section about video games "From Pingpong to Murder") and unsupported logical jumps. The author clearly passionately believes that using technology isn't "soul enriching," and that using it so much is driving us into the arms of numb, addictive distractions; he bases the whole book on those assumptions without ever making a case for why they're true.
High Tech, High Touch is constructed more like a repetitious epic poem of lamentation than it is any real discussion of anything. Long laundry lists of statements, both of facts and of melancholy poetic conjecture, which never build to any kind of analysis. Example, on p. 45:

"The most dangerous promise of technology is that it will make our children smarter. President Bill Clinton's 1996 State of the Union address proclaimed 'the Internet in every classroom' to be a noble goal. Access to information will not teach synthesis and analysis. School expenditures in information technology reached [a high number] in 1997, yet at the same time programs for music and the arts were defunded. [sic]" (p. 45)

That sounds pretty bad, right? Sure it does. But what does it actually say? It doesn't actually say that technology won't make children smarter, or what really does make them smarter. It doesn't explain why it's not noble to have the internet in classrooms. It implies that students don't analyze or synthesize information via the net, only access it, but it never supports or explains that idea (Online classes? Educational software? Email discussions with experts? Forums where other people are studying similar subjecs? How is net research different than library research r.e. analysis and synthesis?) It doesn't say how much, or where, the arts were defunded, and it implies that the arts are more "noble" than online networking but doesn't explain why. The entire book is like that.

This book is grounded in a concept that embodies an increasing psychological disconnect between two generations: those who grew up with networked technology, and those who didn't. The concept is: "If an event or interpersonal transaction doesn't take place in the physical world, it can't fundamentally benefit or fulfill you." This book assumes that and restates it dozens and dozens (and dozens) of times, but it never actually provides an argument for why we should believe it. To a lot of people who didn't grow up with technology, that statement is so intuitively, emotionally obvious that it doesn't need to be supported or explained. The problem is that, according to a great volume of current research being done with the "net generation," that concept is -not- intuitively obvious to -them-. They find personal significance, power, community, and existential meaning in the things they do online. These two different experiences of an emerging trend must -both- be acknowledged in any supposed assessment of technology's effects on human psychology or quality of life.
If you want to learn about what technology is doing to our minds, read Smartmobs or Growing Up Digital. If you want to learn about consumerism and overwork and meaning, read Your Money or Your Life. They'll show you more than poetry and fear.

Highly Recommended!.......2001-06-19

Megatrends author John Naisbitt's new book (co-written by daughter Nana Naisbitt and artist Douglas Philips) is a fat book of ideas that touches upon genetics, art, media violence, time sensibilities and even South Park. Unlike most futurists, the authors make judgment calls about future timelines and inclinations. However, they agree with other futurists that full immersion virtual reality is coming, although they add that it's probably not a good thing, especially for your kids. Their compelling discussion of the genetic revolution is wide-ranging and fair-handed. Their interesting take on media violence and video games seems more controversial, evidencing a distaste that echoes the genre's most hostile opponents. Their view of modern art, which touts body part art (i.e. Piss Christ and sliced cows) but ignores the computer-driven fruition of amateur filmmaking, also seems odd. You may find yourself arguing and fighting with this very stylish, well-written book, but we [...] promise you won't be bored.

Enlightening, entertaining, and fascinating.......2001-03-30

Are you a conscious consumer? Or do you passively accept every technology trend that comes your way, believing the promises you hope it delivers? This book covers several areas on how we are rapidly moving ahead with technology without much thought to the consequences it has on our humanity- whether it is violence on screens, quick health "solutions", or stressed out lifestyles with a half dozen different contact numbers.

After reading this book, I don't think I will ever be able to look at the media and technology the same ever again. While I think a few of the issues were oversimplified, this book was also well researched and most importantly- it makes you think. Whether you agree with some of the main points or not, you will be thinking about this book long after you have finished digesting it. Think of it as a bit of balance to your ideas, to counteract with all of those commercials you've been reading and hearing your whole life.

Average customer rating:

Interesting

Comprehending Columbine
Ralph W Larkin
Manufacturer: Temple University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Criminology | Crime & Criminals | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Children's Studies | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Violence in Society | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

High School | Education | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

No Easy Answers: The Truth Behind Death at Columbine
Nineteen Minutes: A Novel
Investigative Reports: Columbine: Understanding Why
The Shooting Game: The Making of School Shooters
School Violence: Fears Versus Facts (Landmark Essays)

ASIN: 1592134912

Customer Reviews:

Interesting.......2007-04-25

Very interesting exploration of the culture in that high school. From what I've read, it's a shame the boys weren't able to make a more lasting impression on that community.

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