P.S. Validate my existence at www.rickwagner.blogspot.com. If you're feeling especially generous, click one of my ad-sense links. Though I've never cashed in yet, I think I get something like a dime for every million clicks! Or something like that...
Gee, thanks. (I think.) No, seriously, I'm a real-life code slinger and have been doing it for over 20 years.
Am I an expert in every topic I write about? Sadly not. But if the topic is in the enterprise arena, there's a good chance I've got some hands-on experience there.
I always try to call 'em like I see 'em, whether I've been working with the tech stack 15 years or 15 days.
Thanks,
Rick
You are correct, my personal blog has been heavy on Packt titles. But if you check other sources online, you'll find other reviews for other publishers. The common theme? Tech topics... (Packt has nicely asked if I'd post on my blog, others have not.)
If you're really a glutton for research, hop out to Amazon where you can find "Data Engineering: Mining, Information and Intelligence". I actually got to write a few lines in that one!
Rick
A good checklist, but you're totally wrong on the last point.
I have never received a dime from Packt or any other publisher. (I did two reviews for Manning recently, for instance.) My total compensation? Sometimes a print copy of the book, sometimes an e-copy. I just like to keep current on tech topics, so I do a lot of reading.
Rick
Well, I guess you're right, I probably am a little heavy on '8's.
But there's a reason-- I get to pick the books I review, so I tend to pick ones that I'm going to like. (Why aren't there any 10s? I guess I haven't found the perfect book yet.)
I would say that if I do any reviews in the future I'll try to throw in more variety, but I really don't see it happening. (I'm going to pick books that I like....) so I'd say please just read the reviews (they're honest) and make your own numeric rating.
Rick
Thanks for reading my stuff. Especially the blog, please do visit that one often. (I use AdSense, if you visit my blog about a million times I'll make a dollar or so.);)
But do please note: I review tech books from other publishers, too. A few examples:
http://www.javalobby.org/articles/jboss-seam-rick/ (Apress)
http://www.javalobby.org/articles/beautiful-code/ (O Reilly)
http://rickwagner.blogspot.com/2010/11/book-review-spring-dynamic-modules-in.html (Manning)
Full disclosure: I always sign my real name to my reviews, I have never received payment of any kind from anyone, except for sometimes a copy of the book to be reviewed. My reviews tend to be honest but maybe a little on the kind side, as sometimes books appeal to some people but not all. I try to be as technically accurate as possible.
Watch for future reviews:
Erlang and OTP in Action (Manning)
JBoss AS 5 Performance Tuning (Packt)
Please do keep reading my reviews!
Thanks,
Rick
Yes, it's true I do a few book reviews. But there are a few things you should consider:
- I never accept any payment from Packt or any other publisher. My reviews are done purely for the joy of reading and learning.
- I always write what I honestly believe to be true. If a friend were to ask me what I thought of a book, I'd tell that friend just what you see in the review.
- I always post reviews under my real name. It's part of giving you my honest opinion.
So does that make me a shill? I don't think so, but it's in the eye of the beholder.
Rick
Yes, they do. (I've recently worked with that one a bit, too.) But at it's heart ILog (the IBM product) is still a Rete implementation, which means it conforms to the 'IF/THEN' or 'WHEN/THEN' advantage/disadvantage.
Interestingly enough, many vendors of BREs view their BRMS as the 'strategic advantage' that commands a higher price. The basic rule engine doesn't seem to be treated this way....
BR,
Rick
Hi PCM2.
The point I was making is that IF/THEN questions are very easily answered. (And verified by the reader above who mentioned the ease of using spreadsheets.)
But if you have a problem that isn't predicated on the attributes of a single object, things can get much trickier.
But don't take my word for it-- go download Drools (especially with the excellent Eclipse plug-in) and give it a shot. You'll soon see that there are questions that are easily answered, and questions that are not....
Best Regards,
Rick
Hi Kevin,
I am RickJWagner, your humble book reviewer. I too consider myself well-versed in tech (after 20 years as a professional developer), but am surprised very frequently by new topics that pop up.
In the old days, after I knew COBOL and a little Assembler, I thought mastering algorithms was all that was left (except for CICS and other mainframe stuff). Nowadays I am amazed at the number of languages/frameworks/technologies we have available. It's a much broader universe than I ever expected.
As for my motives, I just love to code. I do volunteer (never paid) reviews of tech books and post them on several sites.
I have a semi-popular blog, where I write on programming topics. (www.rickwagner.blogspot.com).
Thanks for reading, and I hope you find something you like in my writings.
Rick
Slashdot Mirror
P.S. Validate my existence at www.rickwagner.blogspot.com. If you're feeling especially generous, click one of my ad-sense links. Though I've never cashed in yet, I think I get something like a dime for every million clicks! Or something like that...
Gee, thanks. (I think.) No, seriously, I'm a real-life code slinger and have been doing it for over 20 years. Am I an expert in every topic I write about? Sadly not. But if the topic is in the enterprise arena, there's a good chance I've got some hands-on experience there. I always try to call 'em like I see 'em, whether I've been working with the tech stack 15 years or 15 days. Thanks, Rick
You are correct, my personal blog has been heavy on Packt titles. But if you check other sources online, you'll find other reviews for other publishers. The common theme? Tech topics... (Packt has nicely asked if I'd post on my blog, others have not.) If you're really a glutton for research, hop out to Amazon where you can find "Data Engineering: Mining, Information and Intelligence". I actually got to write a few lines in that one! Rick
A good checklist, but you're totally wrong on the last point. I have never received a dime from Packt or any other publisher. (I did two reviews for Manning recently, for instance.) My total compensation? Sometimes a print copy of the book, sometimes an e-copy. I just like to keep current on tech topics, so I do a lot of reading. Rick
Well, I guess you're right, I probably am a little heavy on '8's. But there's a reason-- I get to pick the books I review, so I tend to pick ones that I'm going to like. (Why aren't there any 10s? I guess I haven't found the perfect book yet.) I would say that if I do any reviews in the future I'll try to throw in more variety, but I really don't see it happening. (I'm going to pick books that I like....) so I'd say please just read the reviews (they're honest) and make your own numeric rating. Rick
Thanks for reading my stuff. Especially the blog, please do visit that one often. (I use AdSense, if you visit my blog about a million times I'll make a dollar or so.) ;)
But do please note: I review tech books from other publishers, too. A few examples:
http://www.javalobby.org/articles/jboss-seam-rick/ (Apress)
http://www.javalobby.org/articles/beautiful-code/ (O Reilly)
http://rickwagner.blogspot.com/2010/11/book-review-spring-dynamic-modules-in.html (Manning)
Full disclosure: I always sign my real name to my reviews, I have never received payment of any kind from anyone, except for sometimes a copy of the book to be reviewed. My reviews tend to be honest but maybe a little on the kind side, as sometimes books appeal to some people but not all. I try to be as technically accurate as possible.
Watch for future reviews:
Erlang and OTP in Action (Manning)
JBoss AS 5 Performance Tuning (Packt)
Please do keep reading my reviews!
Thanks,
Rick
Yes, it's true I do a few book reviews. But there are a few things you should consider: - I never accept any payment from Packt or any other publisher. My reviews are done purely for the joy of reading and learning. - I always write what I honestly believe to be true. If a friend were to ask me what I thought of a book, I'd tell that friend just what you see in the review. - I always post reviews under my real name. It's part of giving you my honest opinion. So does that make me a shill? I don't think so, but it's in the eye of the beholder. Rick
Ah, I believe you are enlightened to 'the Rule Way'. Thank you for the comments, I believe we'd agree on many aspects of the topic. Best Regards, Rick
Yes, they do. (I've recently worked with that one a bit, too.) But at it's heart ILog (the IBM product) is still a Rete implementation, which means it conforms to the 'IF/THEN' or 'WHEN/THEN' advantage/disadvantage. Interestingly enough, many vendors of BREs view their BRMS as the 'strategic advantage' that commands a higher price. The basic rule engine doesn't seem to be treated this way.... BR, Rick
Hi PCM2. The point I was making is that IF/THEN questions are very easily answered. (And verified by the reader above who mentioned the ease of using spreadsheets.) But if you have a problem that isn't predicated on the attributes of a single object, things can get much trickier. But don't take my word for it-- go download Drools (especially with the excellent Eclipse plug-in) and give it a shot. You'll soon see that there are questions that are easily answered, and questions that are not.... Best Regards, Rick
Hi Kevin, I am RickJWagner, your humble book reviewer. I too consider myself well-versed in tech (after 20 years as a professional developer), but am surprised very frequently by new topics that pop up. In the old days, after I knew COBOL and a little Assembler, I thought mastering algorithms was all that was left (except for CICS and other mainframe stuff). Nowadays I am amazed at the number of languages/frameworks/technologies we have available. It's a much broader universe than I ever expected. As for my motives, I just love to code. I do volunteer (never paid) reviews of tech books and post them on several sites. I have a semi-popular blog, where I write on programming topics. (www.rickwagner.blogspot.com). Thanks for reading, and I hope you find something you like in my writings. Rick