Microsoft Books - Page 4

Agile Project Management with Scrum (Microsoft Professional)

Ken Schwaber

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 33 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Our new project really benefited from this book 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I've been doing .NET programming for 5 and a half years now, and have practiced Agile in various degrees - all well short of what I believe Agile methodologies recommend. I have wanted to implement many more Agile methodologies, but not yet been in a manager/CTO position to ensure that these practices would be implemented.

Recently, I have been hired to do just that with a startup company. I turned to this book to help me understand the roles, meetings and project artifacts that I need to introduce to truly have an agile development environment (Scrum in particular) as our team grows.

This book really helped me to do just that, and also did it in a way that I found to be very intuitive. By relating past experiences, Ken showed me how using Scrum - in the various positions and responsibilites - moved projects forward in positive and very visible ways. I am still reading the later chapters, and still loving it.

Editorial Review:

Apply the principles of Scrum, one of the most popular agile programming methods, to software project management#151;and focus your team on delivering real business value. Author Ken Schwaber, a leader in the agile process movement and a co-creator of Scrum, brings his vast expertise to helping you guide the product and software development process more effectively and efficiently. Help eliminate the ambiguity into which so many software projects are borne, where vision and planning documents are essentially thrown over the wall to developers. This high-level reference describes how to use Scrum to manage complex technology projects in detail, combining expert insights with examples and case studies based on Scrum. Emphasizing practice over theory, this book explores every aspect of using Scrum, focusing on driving projects for maximum return on investment.

Word 2007 For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

Dan Gookin

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Microsoft -> Applications -> Word
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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Software -> Introductory Guides

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 13 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

It Helps to Know the Lingo 3 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I just switched to Word 2007. I found that the terms for commands had changed so that I had to read the whole book in order to find what I wanted because I could not always find the term I was familiar with in the index. The book does cover most of what is needed in order to use Word 2007. I can't fault the writers for the changes that Microsoft made in their belief that they were making the program simpler to use.

Word 2007 for Dummies 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This is a very straightforward book on Word 2007. Very easy to navigate and read. I learned a lot from it.

Editorial Review:

• Dan Gookin's For Dummies guides to Word have consistently led the pack, selling more than 1.7 million copies in previous editions
• The author's irreverent sense of humor and crystal-clear prose make getting up to speed on Word a snap
• Thoroughly updated to cover Word's new interface, new file format options, and new collaboration and connectivity features
• An essential resource for everyone who wants to hit the ground running with Word 2007 and make the most of all the new features

Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Unleashed

Ray Rankins, Paul Bertucci, Chris Gallelli, Alex T. Silverstein

Amazon Price: $37.79 List Price: $59.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Sams Amazon Marketplace: 44 new & used starting at $32.00

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Databases -> Relational Databases
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Databases -> SQL -> General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Databases -> Database Management Systems

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 13 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

<>Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Unleashed offers comprehensive coverage of SQL Server 2005 that goes beyond the basic syntax and information you’ll find in the product manuals, providing in-depth information derived from the authors’ real-world experience to help you build upon your working knowledge of the product and take your experience and knowledge to a higher level. This book focuses primarily on the information needed by system and database administrators, as well as for users with overlapping duties as both DBA and developer. Included is extensive coverage of the new features and upgraded tools and capabilities of SQL Server 2005, including .NET Framework integration, Integration Services, Service Broker, Database Mirroring and Snapshots, and Reporting Services.

Detailed information on…

• Installing, upgrading, and administering SQL Server 2005
• Database maintenance, backup, and recovery
• Creating and managing tables, views, stored procedures, triggers, and user-defined functions
• Database and index design
• SQL Server query optimization, and performance monitoring and tuning
• Transactions, transaction management, and distributed transactions
• SQL Server Management Studio—NEW!
• SQL Server Notification Services; Integration Services—NEW!; Analysis Services; Reporting Services—NEW!; Web Services—NEW!
• SQL Server Service Broker—NEW!
• SQL Server and Microsoft .NET Framework integration, including CLR-based stored procedures, functions, and triggers—NEW!
• SQL Server high availability and SQL Server clustering and replication
• Database Mirroring—NEW!
• Database Snapshots—NEW!
• Using XML in SQL Server 2005
• SQL Server tools and utilities

CD-ROM includes

• 8 bonus chapters covering topics such as Notification Services, Service Broker, and Full-Text Search
• Code samples, scripts, and sample databases
• A PDF version of the entire book

Introduction

Part I Welcome to Microsoft SQL Server

1 SQL Server 2005 Overview

2 What’s New in SQL Server 2005

Part II SQL Server Tools and Utilities

3 SQL Server Management Studio

4 SQL Server Command-Line Utilities

5 SQL Server Profiler

Part III SQL Server Administration

6 SQL Server System and Database Administration

7 Installing SQL Server 2005

8 Upgrading to SQL Server 2005

9 Client Installation and Configuration

10 Security and User Administration

11 Database Backup and Restore

12 Database Mail

13 SQL Server Scheduling and Notification

14 SQL Server High Availability.

15 Replication

16 Database Mirroring

17 SQL Server Clustering

Part IV Database Administration

18 Creating and Managing Databases

19 Creating and Managing Tables

20 Creating and Managing Indexes

21 Implementing Data Integrity

22 Creating and Managing Views in SQL Server

23 Creating and Managing Stored Procedures

24 Creating and Managing User-Defined Functions

25 Creating and Managing Triggers

26 Transaction Management and the Transaction Log

27 Database Snapshots

28 Database Maintenance

Part V SQL Server Performance and Optimization

29 Indexes and Performance

30 Understanding Query Optimization

31 Query Analysis

32 Locking and Performance

33 Database Design and Performance

34 Monitoring SQL Server Performance

Part VI SQL Server Application Development

35 What’s New for Transact-SQL in SQL Server 2005

36 SQL Server and the .NET Framework

37 Using XML in SQL Server 2005

38 SQL Server Web Services

Part VII SQL Server Business Intelligence Features

39 SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services

40 SQL Server Integration Services

41 SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services

Bonus Chapters on the CD

42 Managing Linked and Remote Servers

43 Configuring, Tuning, and Optimizing SQL Server Options

44 Administering Very Large SQL Server Databases

45 SQL Server Disaster Recovery Planning

46 Transact-SQL Programming Guidelines, Tips, and Tricks

47 SQL Server Notification Services

48 SQL Server Service Broker

49 SQL Server Full-Text Search

Index

Microsoft SharePoint 2007 For Dummies (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

Vanessa L. Williams

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Networking -> Intranets & Extranets
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Networking -> Networks, Protocols & APIs -> General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Software -> Business -> Accounting -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 12 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Don't Underestimate This Book 4 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Just because its title says, "For Dummies," does not mean you should avoid it. I've got over thirty years in Info Tech and bought this thinking it would be a quick easy read. Well, it is very well written, easy to understand and it is NOT underpowered.

The author knows her stuff and this book gives one a very good start understanding SharePoint so as to be able to approach the product.

Also, if you're really interested, Microsoft has an entire section of their site devoted to this product. You can download the actual product (need FAST connection), and should you choose not to do that, they've created a virtual environment that lets you learn and use the product without installing EVERYTHING (and I do mean everything) on your computer.

That said, this book is really well written, flows logically and will explain enough of SharePoint to give you a head start.

Editorial Review:

• Microsoft SharePoint now has a 10 percent share of the portal market, and the new release, which features enhanced integration with Office 2007, is sure to give SharePoint a boost
• Offers clear instructions and soup-to-nuts coverage of this complex product, focusing instead on practical solutions to real-world SharePoint challenges
• Features tips, tricks, and techniques for administrators who need to install and configure a SharePoint portal as well as ordinary users who need to populate and maintain the portal and use it for collaborative projects
• Topics covered include setting up a SharePoint portal, matching SharePoint to business needs, managing portal content, branding, collaborating on SharePoint sites, using a portal to improve employee relations and marketing, putting expense reports and other interactive forms on a portal, and monitoring and backing up SharePoint

Starting Out with Visual Basic 2008 (4th Edition) (Starting Out With...)

Tony Gaddis, Kip Irvine

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Software -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 3.0 of 5

Form First, Late Objects :( 3 out of 5 stars.
4 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I have mixed feelings about this book. I do like the clear writing style, the step by step tutorial approach which is at the right pace for a beginner, never too terse , never too boring. I can also easily see the author is an experienced teacher, and for patience and dedication he reminds me of the best in the field, like Ivor Horton. But I do think the general organization of the book, the "teaching plan" is horribly flawed.
I know VB has a long history of being used to let unskilled programmers mindlessly spit out little boring administrative programs that help your local gym owner to calculate your annual fee, but does it always be like that? I don;t think so, especially now that VB is no longer just a RAD program but a full featured programming language on the same level as C#.
Then why can't it be taught like any other decent programming language?
This book does a great job to teach the student how to produce decent windows forms without having as little knowledge as possible of what is actually going on. Believe or not, classes and objects are given a skimpy treatment in the last (yeah last) chapter of the book. For events, no mention whatsoever. Now, even if you really want to cover windows forms, how can the students understand what they are without knowing what objects and events are? They end up thinking that an instance variable is some kind of global variable since it can be seen by all methods in a class. And then you have to make gigantic efforts to make them understand what object oriented programming is all about. Also, since this title is about VB 2008 it shouldn't talk about windows form anyway, but WPF, and how about a little LINQ? Otherwise why do you need a new edition? (apart form having students shell more bucks having to buy a new edition of course..)
But more importantly, is the heart of programming about producing textboxes and dropdown lists? In a first course of programming I call this killing the passion for programming. Or growing code monkeys. Look at Francesco Balena's book on VB. A through coverage of the language, and hardly a windows form to be seen. Granted, Balena's book might be a bit too dense and not engaging enough for the total beginner, but at least its true to its mission. The ideal book would have the clarity and gentleness of Gaddis combined with the soundness and choice of material of Balena. So my advice to the author is on the next edition he will use his teaching talents to write a book that will challenge the beginner and show him the wonders of object oriented programming in a true, gentle but engaging introduction to computer science.

SPSS Survival Manual

Julie Pallant

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Software -> Business -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 23 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Praise for previous editions:

"This book really is a life saver … If the mere thought of statistics gives you a headache, then this is the book for you." - Statistics student, UK

"I just wanted to say how much I value Julie Pallant's SPSS Survival Manual. It’s quite the best text in SPSS I’ve encountered and I recommend it to anyone who’s listening!" - Professor Carolyn Hicks, Birmingham University, UK

"… one of the most useful functional pieces of instruction I have seen. So, gold star and thanks." - Instructional designer, USA

"There are several SPSS manuals published and this one really does 'do what it says on the tin' ... Whether you are a beginner doing your BSc or struggling with your PhD research (or beyond!), I wholeheartedly recommend this book." - British Journal of Occupational Therapy, UK

Praise for the new edition:

"An excellent introduction to using SPSS for data analysis ... It provides a self-contained resource itself, with more than simply (detailed and clear) step-by-step descriptions of statistical procedures in SPSS. There is also a wealth of tips and advice, and for each statistical technique a brief, but consistently reliable, explanation is provided." - Associate Professor George Dunbar, Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, UK

In this fully revised edition of her bestselling text, Julie Pallant guides you through the entire research process, helping you choose the right data analysis technique for your project. From the formulation of research questions, to the design of the study and analysis of data, to reporting the results, Julie discusses basic and advanced statistical techniques. She outlines each technique clearly, with step-by-step procedures for performing the analysis, a detailed guide to interpreting SPSS output and an example of how to present the results in a report.

For both beginners and experienced SPSS users in psychology, sociology, health sciences, medicine, education, business and related disciplines, the SPSS Survival Manual is an essential guide. Illustrated with screen grabs, examples of output and tips, it is supported by a website with sample data and guidelines on report writing.

In this third edition all chapters have been updated to accommodate changes to SPSS procedures, screens and output in version 15. A new flowchart is included for SPSS procedures, and factor analysis procedures have been streamlined. It also includes more examples and material on syntax. Additional data files are available on the book's supporting website.

Statistics for Managers Using Microsoft Excel and Student CD Package (5th Edition)

David M. Levine, David F. Stephan, Timothy C. Krehbiel, Mark L. Berenson

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Subjects -> Business & Investing -> Economics -> Statistics
Subjects -> Business & Investing -> General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Microsoft -> Applications -> Excel

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 3.0 of 5

Not for Undergrad 1 out of 5 stars.
2 of 4 people found this review helpful.

I had this book for an undergraduate Introduction to Statistics class and it was absolutely horrible.
The book was written by statistician for statistician, not for an undergrad who just started studying Statistics.

My class studied only 10 chapters out of 18. Each chapter has about 10 parts but most of the time we read only the first 3-4 parts.

The formulas in the book were very hard to look up because there was no legend next to them. The legends are only available at the first part of the chapter, next to the first 1-2 formulas in that chapter.

The examples in the book didn't appear very appealing and practical and were difficult to understand.

In chapter 9, there was a typo with Excel, where the Excel table says Null Hypothesis p = when p should be pi (the Greek letter) but overall, Excel was very well used.

I recommend using Statistical Analysis For Dummies and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Statistics as reference if you have no previous knowledge of Statistics, a very confusing professor, and this textbook.

Editorial Review:

This book was the first to thoroughly integrate the use of Microsoft Excel as a tool for statistical analysis. The book focuses on the concepts of statistics with applications to the functional areas of business. It is rich in applications from accounting, finance, marketing, management and economics, covering data collection, tables and charts, probability, estimation, and more. For professionals, particularly managers, making financial analyses and decisions.

MCSE Self-Paced Training Kit (Exams 70-290, 70-291, 70-293, 70-294): Microsoft® Windows Server(TM) 2003 Core Requirements, Second Edition

Dan Holme, Orin Thomas, J.C. Mackin, Ian McLean, Craig Zacker

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Certification Central -> Exams -> MCSE
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Certification Central -> Publisher -> Microsoft Press
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Certification Central -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 24 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Not what was ordered and no replacement availiable... 2 out of 5 stars.
2 of 9 people found this review helpful.

I ordered this book set and another book at the same time, from Amazon, and got free shipping. This book set came NEW as advertised. However it came with (1) 290 book, (1) 291 book (0) 293 books, and (2) 294 books. A mis-packaged set. I returned it only to find out I couldn't get a replacement - Amazon is out of stock. Now I can place a new order, from someone else, and pay $14.00 more for the same item. Not the bargain I was looking for. Amazon's response was in effect 'Oh well.' Even though I assume the mis-packaged set was not on purpose, the outcome is the same as the old 'bait and switch.' It would have been acceptable to say they would ship it when they received new stock, but that wasn't even offered.

Editorial Review:

Get in-depth training and practice with the skills measured by the core exams for MCSE certification for Windows Server 2003all in one box! Covering Exams 70-290, 70-291, 70-293, and 70-294, these four, all-new Microsoft study guides pack the tools and features that exam candidates want mostincluding in-depth, self-paced training based on final exam content; rigorous, objective-by-objective reviews; exam tips from expert, exam-certified authors; and a robust testing suite. They also provide real-world scenarios, case study examples, and troubleshooting labs for skills and experience that you can apply to the job.

Professional ASP.NET 3.5: In C# and VB (Programmer to Programmer)

Bill Evjen, Scott Hanselman, Devin Rader

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Software Design, Testing & Engineering -> Software Development
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Programming -> Languages & Tools -> C#

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 23 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Building on the revolutionary ASP.NET 2.0 release, ASP.NET 3.5 adds several key new developer features including AJAX, LINQ, and a new CSS designer in Visual Web Developer 2008. The dramatic reduction in code that developers realized from the more than 50 new server controls in ASP.NET 2.0 now allows developers the time to make their applications more interactive with AJAX, to work with data in their preferred language with LINQ, and to build visually attractive and consistent standards-based sites with CSS.

Professional ASP.NET 3.5 helps the experienced programmer put these new technologies into action. Greatly expanded from the original best-selling Professional ASP.NET 2.0, Professional ASP.NET 3.5 covers all the key technologies retained from 2.0 in new depth alongside the hundreds of pages of coverage of the important new 3.5 features. Written by 3 of the most well-known and influential ASP.NET developers who were highly praised by ASP.NET creator Scott Guthrie for their ASP.NET 2.0 books, Professional ASP.NET 3.5 is the book you’ll learn the language from and turn to day after day as you write web applications. And as always, Professional ASP.NET 3.5 features language examples in the book and in the code download in both C# and VB!

Key new coverage for ASP.NET 3.5 includes:

• Thorough coverage of how to implement ASP.NET 3.5 AJAX and the ASP.NET AJAX Toolkit
• An introduction to LINQ and many LINQ examples throughout the book side-by-side with the related SQL example to show you the differences between the two
• Enhanced coverage of XML use in ASP.NET including the new XML Schema Designer Add-on, LINQ to XML, LINQ for XML examples, and XSLTC.exe, a command-line XSLT compiler
• A new chapter on CSS design for ASP.NET and the Visual Web Developer CSS design tools
• A new chapter on the ASP.NET lifecycle and architecture best-practices
• Increased coverage of ASP.NET with SQL Server 2005 and Oracle as the databases
• Coverage of enhancing your ASP.NET applications with Microsoft’s new Silverlight for stunning video and animation uses
• Coverage of Scott Hanselman’s famous productivity tool picks for developers to help make you a more productive ASP.NET developer
• Updated coverage of migrating applications for previous ASP.NET versions

Key coverage retained and improved from the ASP.NET 2.0 book:

• The idea of the server control and its pivotal role in ASP.NET development
• How to create templated ASP.NET pages using the master page feature
• Techniques for debugging and handling errors
• Ways to package and deploy ASP.NET applications
• How to retrieve, update, and delete data quickly and logically
• How to implement the cultures and regions features to localize your web site into multiple languages for different visitors
• An understanding of how to use and extend the provider model for accessing data stores, processes, and more
• How to keep track of your application's performance and health with monitoring tools

Who this book is for

This book is for experienced programmers and developers who are looking to make the transition to ASP.NET 3.5.

Microsoft Office 2003: Introductory Concepts and Techniques, Premium Edition (Shelly Cashman)

Gary B. Shelly, Thomas J. Cashman, Misty E. Vermaat

Amazon Price: $79.65 List Price: $114.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Thomson Course Technology Amazon Marketplace: 126 new & used starting at $8.00

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Microsoft -> Operating Systems -> Windows - General
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Microsoft -> Accounting
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Software -> Business -> Accounting -> General

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 7 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

the book 3 out of 5 stars.
0 of 2 people found this review helpful.

it got in at a pretty good pace but it was in a rather ugly condition.

Office: Premium Edition will be the talk of the office! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Office: Premium Edition was purchased for a required graduate computer class. I'm pretty savvy with all the office products (so I thought) and know quite a few "tricks." When I started going through this book it was quite refreshing to have a "how to" book that is REALLY user friendly! This book caters from the Novice to the Experienced. Now I know why it is considered premium! Purchase of this book is really an investment as well as a time-saver.Microsoft Office 2003: Introductory Concepts and Techniques

ideal book for learning office 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I have this book and one other by shelly cashman on office also. Same book but a different edition ( has different exercises to work on). I liked this book. Very concise, with step by step instructions to show you how to complete a given project to complete. It was very helpful for my class and it taught me things I didn't even know you could do in excel and access. All pages are glossy with lots of screen shots. Very heavy book to lug around all day, but well worth the information.

Editorial Review:

This exciting Premium Edition includes sufficient material for a first course on Office 2003 applications. Train students with our Premium Edition SAM Training Companion CD and help students reinforce key skills with case studies and tools on the Online Companion.