PDF CHM Books Catalogue
Posted: October 18th, 2008, 3:01pm CEST
I am very pleased to introduce this new edition of the Handbook. Formerly entitled Handbook of Special Librarianship and Information Work, this represents the eighth edition of what is generally regarded as Aslib’s ‘flagship’ reference work, the seminal text on modern information theories, procedures and practices since 1955.
The title has been changed to reflect a broader spectrum of managed information services and structures than merely the management of a physical collection of material. Although there are still many references to libraries and librarians throughout the book, by dropping the notorious ‘L’ word from the title, the intention is to emphasise the diverse nature of information work, in all its myriad forms. We are living and working at a time when 24/7 information availability across a variety of delivery channels is an accepted and routine part of everyday life. We are entering a new era of third generation computing where information will be accessible from multiple devices and electronic service delivery is becoming common place. Information professionals these days are as likely to be knowledge managers, web site editors or systems developers, with little or no responsibility for traditional library tasks.
The role of the information profession is very wide ranging and continues to defy hard and fast definitions. Information management is a complex set of activities involving the selection, organisation, analysis, evaluation and dissemination of information. The intention of the Handbook is to review and update these subjects, providing a comprehensive coverage of current best practice building on a corpus of knowledge and expertise spanning many decades of research, development and practice.
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Posted: October 18th, 2008, 7:36am CEST
This textbook is intended for use by SPI (Software Process Improvement) managers and researchers, quality managers, and experienced project and research managers. The papers constitute the research proceedings of the 15th EuroSPI (European Software Process Improvement, www.eurospi.net) conference in Dublin, Ireland, 3–5 September 2008.
Since the first conference, held in Dublin in 1994, EuroSPI conferences have been held in 1995 in Vienna (Austria), in 1997 in Budapest (Hungary), in 1998 in Gothenburg (Sweden), in 1999 in Pori (Finland), in 2000 in Copenhagen (Denmark), in 2001 in Limerick (Ireland), in 2002 in Nuremberg (Germany), in 2003 in Graz (Austria), in 2004 in Trondheim (Norway), in 2005 in Budapest (Hungary), in 2006 in Joensuu (Finland), and in 2007 in Potsdam (Germany).
EuroSPI has established an experience library (library.eurospi.net), which will be continuously extended over the next few years and was made available to all attendees.
EuroSPI has also started an umbrella initiative for establishing a European Qualification Network in which different SPINs and national ventures can join mutually beneficial collaborations (EQN - EU Leonardo da Vinci network project).
With a general assembly on 15.-16.10.2007 through EuroSPI partners and networks, in collaboration with the European Union (supported by the EU Leonardo da Vinci Programme), a European certification association has been created (www.eucertificates.org) for the IT and services sector to offer SPI knowledge and certificates to industry, establishing close knowledge transfer links between research and industry.
A general assembly of the ECQA (European Certification and Qualification Agency) took place as an associated event of EuroSPI 2008 on September 3, 2008.
The greatest value of EuroSPI lies in its function as a European knowledge and experience exchange mechanism for SPI know-how between research institutions and industry.
This book may appeal to anyone requiring an overview of the technological and cultural implications of adopting information and knowledge management solutions using Internet technologies.
The book examines the tactical issues addressed at a functional or departmental level and their impact upon the organisation as a whole from a strategic perspective. Due to the integral and pervasive nature of an Intranet throughout all areas and levels of an organisation, the content of this book may appeal to a range of employees, regardless of remit or seniority. The book is likely to be of interest to those making contributions to the infrastructure and content of an Intranet, as well as to those responsible for securing the funding and planning for the Intranet’s future development.
The broad overview of information systems and enabling technologies examined may also make useful reading for undergraduates and postgraduates of educational programmes that contain curriculum content such as information management and systems, ICT project management, strategic information management and knowledge management.
This second edition assists engineering and physical science students on fundamental proof techniques and learning to think and write mathematics
Constructing concise and correct proofs is one of the most challenging aspects of learning to work with advanced mathematics. Meeting this challenge is a defining moment for those considering a career in mathematics or related fields. Mathematical Thinking and Writing teaches readers to construct proofs and communicate with the precision necessary for working with abstraction. It is based on two premises: composing clear and accurate mathematical arguments is critical in abstract mathematics, and that this skill requires development and support. Abstraction is the destination, not the starting point.
Maddox methodically builds toward a thorough understanding of the proof process, demonstrating and encouraging mathematical thinking along the way. Skillful use of analogy clarifies abstract ideas. Clearly presented methods of mathematical precision provide an understanding of the nature of mathematics and its defining structure.
After mastering the art of the proof process, the reader may pursue two independent paths. The latter parts are purposefully designed to rest on the foundation of the first, and climb quickly into analysis or algebra. Maddox addresses fundamental principles in these two areas, so that readers can apply their mathematical thinking and writing skills to these new concepts. From this exposure, readers experience the beauty of the mathematical landscape and further develop their ability to work with abstract ideas.
* Covers the full range of techniques used in proofs, including contrapositive, induction, and proof by contradiction
* Explains identification of techniques and how they are applied in the specific problem
* Illustrates how to read written proofs with many step by step examples
* Includes 20% more exercises than the first edition that are integrated into the material instead of end of chapter
* The Instructors Guide and Solutions Manual points out which exercises simply must be either assigned or at least discussed because they undergird later results
The teaching of appliedprobability needs a fresh approach. The fieldof applied probability has changedprofound ly in the past twenty years andyet the textbooks in use today do not fully reflect the changes. The development of computational methods has greatly contributed to a better understanding of the theory. It is my conviction that theory is better understood when the algorithms that solve the problems the theory addresses are presented at the same time. This textbook tries to recognize what the computer can do without letting the theory be dominated by the computational tools. In some ways, the book is a successor of my earlier book Stochastic Modeling and Analysis. However, the set-up of the present text is completely different. The theory has a more central place and provides a framework in which the applications fit. Without a solidbasis in theory, no applications can be solved. The book is intended as a first introduction to stochastic models for senior undergraduate students in computer science, engineering, statistics and operations research, among others. Readers of this book are assumed to be familiar with the elementary theory of probability.
I am grateful to my academic colleagues Richard Boucherie, Avi Mandelbaum, Rein Nobel andRien van Veldhuizen for their helpful comments, andto my students Gaya Branderhorst, Ton Dieker, Borus Jungbacker and Sanne Zwart for their detailed checking of substantial sections of the manuscript. Julian Rampelmann andGloria Wirz-Wagenaar were helpful in transcribing my handwritten notes into a nice Latex manuscript.
Finally, users of the book can findsupporting educational software for Markov chains andqueues on my website http://staff.feweb.vu.nl/tijms.
The principal message of this book is that thermodynamics and statistical mechanics will benefit from replacing the unfortunate, misleading and mysterious term entropy with a more familiar, meaningful and appropriate term such as information, missing information or uncertainty. This replacement would facilitate the interpretation of the driving force of many processes in terms of informational changes and dispel the mystery that has always enshrouded entropy.
It has been 140 years since Clausius coined the term entropy ; almost 50 years since Shannon developed the mathematical theory of information subsequently renamed entropy. In this book, the author advocates replacing entropy by information, a term that has become widely used in many branches of science.
The author also takes a new and bold approach to thermodynamics and statistical mechanics. Information is used not only as a tool for predicting distributions but as the fundamental cornerstone concept of thermodynamics, held until now by the term entropy.
The topics covered include the fundamentals of probability and information theory; the general concept of information as well as the particular concept of information as applied in thermodynamics; the re-derivation of the Sackur Tetrode equation for the entropy of an ideal gas from purely informational arguments; the fundamental formalism of statistical mechanics; and many examples of simple processes the driving force for which is analyzed in terms of information.
Contents:
- Elements of Probability Theory;
- Elements of Information Theory;
- Transition from the General MI to the Thermodynamic MI;
- The Structure of the Foundations of Statistical Thermodynamics;
- Some Simple Applications.
With the massive amount of data produced and stored each year, reliable storage and retrieval of information is more crucial than ever. Robust coding and decoding techniques are critical for correcting errors and maintaining data integrity. Comprising chapters thoughtfully selected from the highly popular Coding and Signal Processing for Magnetic Recording Systems, Advanced Error Control Techniques for Data Storage Systems is a finely focused reference to the state-of-the-art error control and modulation techniques used in storage devices. The book begins with an introduction to error control codes, explaining the theory and basic concepts underlying the codes. Building on these concepts, the discussion turns to modulation codes, paying special attention to run-length limited sequences, followed by maximum transition run (MTR) and spectrum shaping codes. It examines the relationship between constrained codes and error control and correction systems from both code-design and architectural perspectives as well as techniques based on convolution codes. With a focus on increasing data density, the book also explores multi-track systems, soft decision decoding, and iteratively decodable codes such as Low-Density Parity-Check (LDPC) Codes, Turbo codes, and Turbo Product Codes. Advanced Error Control Techniques for Data Storage Systems offers a comprehensive collection of theory and techniques that is ideal for specialists working in the field of data storage systems.
This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Rough Sets, Fuzzy Sets, Data Mining, and Granular Computing, RSFDGrC 2007, held in Toronto, Canada in May 2007 in conjunction with the Second International Conference on Rough Sets and Knowledge Technology, RSKT 2007, both as part of the Joint Rough Set Symposium, JRS 2007.
The 65 revised full papers presented together with 4 invited papers were carefully reviewed and selected from a total of 319 general submissions to the JRS 2007 symposium. The papers are organized in topical sections on fuzzy-rough hybridization, fuzzy sets, soft computing in medical image processing, soft computing in information retrieval, clustering, text and Web mining, learning, data mining and rough classifiers, granular computing, soft computing in multimedia processing, soft computing applications, and rough and complex concepts.
This book focuses on the efficient performance of mobile robots through the use of multi-hierarchical symbolic representations of the environment.
A mobile robot intended to perform deliberative actions must possess some symbolic representation of its workspace, but such representations of real environments usually become so large that should be conveniently arranged in order to facilitate and, in some cases, make possible their use.
Apart from the drawback of dealing with large amounts of information, other problems stand out when using symbolic representations. One is keeping the model properly optimized with respect to the robot tasks while maintaining it coherent with reality. Another one is the creation (or modification) of symbols from sensorial data.
This book addresses all these issues considering symbolic multi-hierarchical structures. Such structures, based on the concept of abstraction, allow a robot to speed up its operation in large environments. Practical solutions tested on real robots (for instance, a robotic wheelchair for elder people) are provided.
The book is intended for PhD students and in general for robotics, computer science, and artificial intelligence researchers.
Wireless home networks are better than ever! The emergence of new industry standards has made them easier, more convenient, less expensive to own and operate. Still, you need to know what to look for (and look out for), and the expert guidance you’ll find in Wireless Home Networks For Dummies, 3
rd Edition helps you ensure that your wire-free life is also a hassle-free life!
This user-friendly, plain-English guide delivers all of the tips, tricks, and knowledge you need to plan your wireless home network, evaluate and select the equipment that will work best for you, install and configure your wireless network, and much more. You’ll find out how to share your Internet connection over your network, as well as files, printers, and other peripherals. And, you’ll learn how to avoid the “gotchas” that can creep in when you least expect them. Discover how to:
- Choose the right networking equipment
- Install and configure your wireless network
- Integrate Bluetooth into your network
- Work with servers, gateways, routers, and switches
- Connect audiovisual equipment to your wireless network
- Play wireless, multiuser computer games
- Establish and maintain your network’s security
- Troubleshoot networking problems
- Improve network performance
- Understand 802.11n
Whether you’re working with Windows PCs, Mac OS X machines, or both
Wireless Home Networking For Dummies, 3rd Edition, makes it fast and easy to get your wireless network up and running—and keep it that way!
English is arguably the nearest thing we have to a world language, and yet it is a language with a wealth of varieties, dialects, and traditions, all developing in different ways and at different speeds. This book is a superbly written and illustrated exploration of the history, structure, and use of English throughout the world. World-renowned linguist and author, David Crystal, explores the many facets and varieties of the English language, bringing life to this large and complex subject. He begins with the origins of English in Anglo-Saxon times and follows the growth of the language to the present. Every major English-speaking country is included, and the book abounds with insights into how English evolved and how it works. The author pays particular attention to the use of language in literature and how it permeates humor. He allows language to "speak for itself" by using quotations, photographs, newspaper clippings, poems, advertisements, cartoons, and many other types of illustrative material that vividly complement his narrative. Author Crystal systematically covers the structural features of English, and includes a complete description of grammar, a summary of pronunciation and writing systems, and a thorough treatment of the size and complexity of vocabulary. He explains technical aspects in simple and accessible terms and includes a glossary to assist the reader with unclear language terminology. Highly visual with striking color illustrations, panels and boxed features throughout, this book is fascinating reading for the widest possible audience. David Crystal is the author of The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language (CUP, 1987) and the editor of The Cambridge Encyclopedia (CUP, 1990, 1994).
Superbly illustrated in colour throughout, this is the most comprehensive survey of the history, structure and worldwide use of English ever written. Clear and accessible, the book abounds with insights into how the language evolved and how it works. All aspects of English are systematically covered.
About the Author
David Crystal is one of the world's foremost authorities on language
The idea for this book came out of a need to find a text for a unit in Information Warfare given to Doctor of Business Administration students. Most of the existing texts had a military flavour and so did not suit our task. Others concentrated on security aspects and assumed some level of knowledge in this area. What we wanted was a text that illustrated the uses and abuses of information and its power in the civilian world. Hence, this text was born.
Both authors have a background in information warfare but from different directions. Mat Warren has an interest in security and terrorism, whilst my background is in intelligence systems and management of information and its associated systems. Hopefully, the combination has made for an interesting book.
Another limitation of other texts was the absence of a simple, non-military paradigm for information warfare. Whilst the metaphor ‘warfare’ will always give the subject a military bias, the revolution in the types of conflict in the contemporary world often makes the purely military context not as useful as it could be.
Civilians are fighting this war and they live in a different world with different paradigms and rules. Therefore, this text is geared for those with a management interest in the topic, although those with a general interest will also find it helpful. It is assumed the main audience will also be working in or around conventional information technology departments. There is a need in this fast, networked world to understand the concepts outlined.
"Just working through some of the 25 tests included here will improve your vocabulary, develop your powers of calculations and help logical reasoning... highly addictive."
The Ultimate IQ Test Book is the biggest book of IQ practice tests available. Written and compiled by IQ-test experts, it contains 1000 practice questions organized into 25 tests, with a simple guide to assessing individual performance. The questions themselves are very similar to those faced by candidates in actual IQ tests. They are multi-discipline and include verbal, numerical, and diagrammatic reasoning questions, so that readers can practice on all the different types of questions they are likely to encounter. Working through the questions can help anyone improve their vocabulary and develop powers of calculation and logical reasoning. By studying the different types of test and recognizing the different types of questions, readers can improve their test scores and increase their IQ rating. The Ultimate IQ Test Book is valuable to those who have to take an IQ test, but it's also great fun for anyone who likes to stretch their mind for their own entertainment.
About the Author
Philip Carter is an IQ test expert and author of over 60 books covering tests, puzzles, crosswords, and reasoning.
The discipline of pattern recognition has seen enormous progress since its beginnings more than four decades ago. Over the years various approaches have emerged, based on statistical decision theory, structural matching and parsing, neural networks, fuzzy logic, artificial intelligence, evolutionary computing, and others. Obviously, these approaches are characterized by a high degree of diversity. In order to combine their strengths and avoid their weaknesses, hybrid pattern recognition schemes have been proposed, combining several techniques into a single pattern recognition system. Hybrid methods have been known about for a long time, but they have gained new interest only recently. An example is the area of classifier combination, which has attracted enormous attention over the past few years.
The contributions included in this volume cover recent advances in hybrid pattern recognition. In the first chapter by H. Ishibuchi and M. Nii, a novel type of neural network architecture is introduced, which can process fuzzy input data. This type of neural net is quite powerful because it can simultaneously deal with different data formats, such as real or fuzzy numbers and intervals, as well as linguistic variables.
The following two chapters deal with hybrid systems that aim at the application of neural networks in the domain of structural pattern recognition. In the second chapter by G. Adorni et al., an extension of the classical backpropagation algorithm that can be applied in the graph domain is proposed. This extension allows us to apply multilayer perceptron neural networks not only to feature vectors, but also to patterns represented by means of graphs. A generalization of self-organizing maps from n-dimensional real space to the domain of graphs is proposed in Chap. 3, by S. Giinter and H. Bunke. In particular, the problem of finding the optimal number of clusters in a graph clustering task is addressed.
This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Developments in Language Theory, DLT 2008, held in Kyoto, Japan, September 2008.
The 36 revised full papers presented together with 6 invited papers were carefully reviewed and selected from 102 submissions. All important issues in language theory are addressed including grammars, acceptors and transducers for words, trees and graphs; algebraic theories of automata; algorithmic, combinatorial and algebraic properties of words and languages; variable length codes; symbolic dynamics; cellular automata; polyominoes and multidimensional patterns; decidability questions; image manipulation and compression; efficient text algorithms; relationships to cryptography, concurrency, complexity theory and logic; bio-inspired computing; quantum computing.
Do big math on small machines Write fast and accurate library functions Master analytical and numerical calculus Perform numerical integration to any order Implement z-transform formulas Need to learn the ins and outs of the fundamental math functions in
Master analytical and numerical calculus with this solid course in applied math from the renowned columnist of Embedded Systems Programming magazine. You will learn how to do big math on small machines with fast and accurate library functions, numerical integration to any order and z-transform formulas. Features never-before-published methods and a versatile set of algorithms to use in your own projects.
About the Author
Jack Crenshaw holds a Ph.D. in physics from Auburn University (specialties in math, electronics, and advanced dynamics). He wrote his first computer program in 1956 and his first microcomputer software a real-time, floating-point, Kalman filter-driven controller in 1976. He has been working with real-time software for embedded systems ever since, and thinks he might be beginning to get the hang of it. He is currently a senior principal design engineer for Alliant TechSystems, Inc., a contributing editor for Embedded Systems Programming magazine, and author of the popular 'Programmer's Toolbox' column. In his spare time, he likes to dabble in compiler theory, guidance and control theory, and help rehabilitate orphaned and injured wildlife.
The COST 719 European research program (“The use of GIS in climatology and meteorology”) began in 2001 and ended in 2006. 20 European countries participated. Its main objective was to establish interfaces between GIS and data in climatology and meteorology and in order to reach this objective, three working groups were defined:
– working group 1 on “Data access and data availability”;
– working group 2 on “Spatial interpolation”;
– working group 3 on “GIS applications”.
Most of the applications have focused on three climate parameters: temperature, precipitation and energy balance in the fields of climatology, meteorology and environmental sciences.
This book is the proceedings of most of the presentations made during the final conference of the COST 719 action (Grenoble, July 2006). It comprises four parts, each one introduced by a keynote speaker.
This compilation of papers—presented during the COST European program entitled “The Use of GIS in Climatology and Meteorology”—focuses on the applications of geographic software and data to interpolate climate and meteorology parameters. Issues such as spatial interpolation of climate parameters, environmental problems, and national meteorology institutes’ current demo projects are detailed and supplemented by practical application illustrations.
Reuse Methodology Manual for System-on-a-Chip Designs, Third Edition outlines a set of best practices for creating reusable designs for use in an SoC design methodology. These practices are based on the authors' experience in developing reusable designs, as well as the experience of design teams in many companies around the world. Silicon and tool technologies move so quickly that many of the details of design-for-reuse will undoubtedly continue to evolve over time. But the fundamental aspects of the methodology described in this book have become widely adopted and are likely to form the foundation of chip design for some time to come.
Development methodology necessarily differs between system designers and processor designers, as well as between DSP developers and chipset developers. However, there is a common set of problems facing everyone who is designing complex chips.
In response to these problems, design teams have adopted a block-based design approach that emphasizes design reuse. Reusing macros (sometimes called "cores") that have already been designed and verified helps to address all of the problems above. However, in adopting reuse-based design, design teams have run into a significant problem. Reusing blocks that have not been explicitly designed for reuse has often provided little or no benefit to the team. The effort to integrate a pre-existing block into new designs can become prohibitively high, if the block does not provide the right views, the right documentation, and the right functionality.
From this experience, design teams have realized that reuse-based design requires an explicit methodology for developing reusable macros that are easy to integrate into SoC designs. This manual focuses on describing these techniques. Features of the Third Edition:
- Up to date;
- State of the art;
- Reuse as a solution for circuit designers;
- A chronicle of "best practices";
- All chapters updated and revised;
- Generic guidelines - non tool specific;
- Emphasis on hard IP and physical design.
"Thought-provoking and far-sighted, this book provides a detailed analysis of the legal issues involved in on-line business and how a new generation of electronic agents can help. If you’re grappling with these issues today—or if you just want to see what’s coming tomorrow—this book is an excellent place to start." Thomas W. Malone, MIT Sloan School of Management
"Brian Subirana has written an excellent book addressing a topic which is becoming increasingly important in business today. As software, businesses and people become increasingly intertwined on-line, the legal ramifications of this emerging world will become a key area in the design of on-line systems and in public policy. The emergence and rapid adoption of RFID is making this topic even more pertinent, perhaps even urgent. This book is a visionary window into the future." Prof. Sanjay Sarma, MIT, Member of the Board of Governors of EPCglobal
Legal Programming: Designing Legally Compliant RFID and Software Agent Architectures for Retail Processes and Beyond provides a process-oriented discussion of the legal concerns presented by agent-based technologies, processes and programming. It offers a general outline of the potential legal difficulties that could arise in relation to them, focusing on the programming of negotiation and contracting processes in a privacy, consumer and commercial context. The authors will elucidate how it is possible to create form of legal framework and design methodology for transaction agents, applicable in any environment and not just in a specific proprietary framework, that provides the right level of compliance and trust. Key elements considered include the design and programming of legally compliant methods, the determination of rights in respect of objects and variables, and ontologies and programming frameworks for agent interactions. Examples are used to illustrate the points made and provide a practical perspective.
This book enlarges the discussion of mobility from tools and technologies to employees working in multiple places and between them Matti Vartiainen (Helsinki University of Technology, Finland)
Playing with Videogames documents the richly productive, playful and social cultures of videogaming that support, surround and sustain this most important of digital media forms and yet which remain largely invisible within existing studies. James Newman details the rich array of activities that surround game-playing, charting the vibrant and productive practices of the vast number of videogame players and the extensive 'shadow' economy of walkthroughs, FAQs, art, narratives, online discussion boards and fan games, as well as the cultures of cheating, copying and piracy that have emerged. Playing with Videogames offers the reader a comprehensive understanding of the meanings of videogames and videogaming within the contemporary media environment.
The ultimate guide to programming handheld and embedded devices
Can Java be used effectively on small computing devices? Absolutely, says expert Eric Giguère, as he introduces Java™ 2 Micro Edition (J2ME)–the new release from Sun Microsystems designed specifically to run on small computing devices like cellular telephones or personal digital assistants. Giguère goes on to provide an in-depth tutorial on how to program using this new platform, covering all the concepts, configurations, and implementations you’ll need to get started. He clearly explains how J2ME is different from standard Java, and he offers an unbiased view of the programming choices available for the rapidly exploding market of handheld and embedded devices.
You’ll find authoritative discussions on a host of highly relevant topics, including:
- Coding strategies for small devices and how J2ME lets you write Java programs that don’t take too much memory or processor power
- J2ME specifications, including the configurations and profiles that define the capabilities available to various devices
- KVM and the history of its development
- How to use various J2ME implementations
The CD-ROM contains:
- Java™ 2 Micro Edition specifications and reference implementations
- Early access versions of the Motorola J2ME SDK and the BlackBerry Java Development Environment
- JBuilder Foundation 3.5 and Handheld Express
- Programming samples and utilities
Professional Developer’s Guides
The Professional Developer’s Guide series provides the first in-depth look at recent or emerging programming technologies. Experienced programmers and developers will find comprehensive coverage of new programming standards as well as code, sample programs, developer’s tools, and applications that will make programming for a new technology much easier.
About the Author
ERIC GIGUÈRE is a software developer for iAnywhere Solutions, a subsidiary of Sybase, where he works on Java technologies for handheld and wireless computing. He has written for Dr. Dobb’s Journal and Software Development magazine and is the author of Palm Database Programming: The Complete Developer’s Guide (Wiley).
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