sitepoint.com aims to raise $50,000 for the Australian Bushfire Relief Fund

Update: 2009/02/11 Just found out that they've raised $90,000 and upped their goal to $100,000. I'm sure they'll be upping it again by tomorrow! Original Message: This isn't an original piece of content. I'm just passing it along for whoever is interested. I saw the message at The Linux Tutorial. Melbourne, Australia—February 10, 2009: SitePoint (sitepoint.com) one of the most visited sites in the world for Web Developers today announced it is donating 100% of the proceeds from a special 5 for the price of 1 book sale of its acclaimed books to the Australian bushfire relief fund. For the next three days, customers can select any five books in PDF format from the SitePoint book catalogue—valued at US$150 —for the special rate of only $29.95. Every dollar raised in this sale will be donated to the Australian bushfire relief fund. “The bushfires are a horrific tragedy that has hit very close to home,” said Mark Harbottle, co-founder of sitepoint.com and 99designs.com. “Our staff have rallied to help support those gravely affected by these devastating fires – it was their idea to run this promotion and I’m totally behind them. Our aim is to raise $50,000 before the end of this week.” To support the bushfire relief and find additional details on the sale, please see: http://sale.sitepoint.com SitePoint will donate ALL the proceeds from this sale directly to the Red Cross. About SitePoint sitepoint.com is a leading online destination for professional web developers, freelancers, and web design firms. The sitepoint.com web site reaches 3 million unique visitors per month. Contact: Shayne Tilley Shayne.Tilley at sitepoint.com

Review: Head First Web Design

Authors: Ethan Watrall and Jeff Siarto Format: Paperback, 495 pages Publisher: O'Reilly Media, Inc. (January 2, 2009) ISBN-10: 0596520301 ISBN-13: 978-0596520304 I recently reviewed Creating a Web Site: The Missing Manual and thought a review of this Head First book would be in order. While you might say that both of these books cater to beginners who don't have a history of creating and maintaining web site, you can also say that each book caters to its own special audience. Actually, these two books have two different audiences in more than one way. The Head First series, as I mentioned in my review of Head First Algebra, tends to be best used by younger people. A high school age audience is ideal and if you have been diagnosed with the dreaded initials "A-D-H-D", so much the better. All of the pictures, drawings, arrows, puzzles, and other input types are just great if you normally hate sitting still for more than a few minutes at a time reading straight text. However, as I glanced through the front matter of Watrall and Siarto's book, I got a mild shock. They didn't write this text for the "right-at-the-starting-gate" beginner. Specifically, the book assumes you have prior experience with XHTML (the most recent "buzzword" for HTML that conforms to the latest standards) and CSS, plus have some knowledge of PHP, .NET, and/or Ruby on Rails. If you don't fit this description, the publisher recommends picking up a copy of Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML to get started. So just what does this "web design" book teach? The book proposes to take up where designing a static HTML/CSS site leaves off. Specifically, to teach how to design and develop web sites for the professional or the wannebe-professional web designer. Your first clue that this Head First book is different from the rest of its siblings is that it's in color. I know it's an odd detail to mention, but all of the other Head First books I've seen to date have been strictly monochrome. It never occurred to me that color would be an option in this series (unless there's such a book as "Head First Color Digital Photography"). Relative to the audience-type I mentioned before, this isn't the easiest subject to teach, even in the Head First format. Action-oriented readers are doers, not necessarily planners, and designing professional web sites requires a lot of planning. Chapter 1 covers how to storyboard a proposed web site, which is a necessary first step in many artistic projects. This is contrary to the artist who, extending the metaphor, would rather grab a blank canvas and some paints and start spontaneously creating. Of course, using this approach, you don't always know what you'll end up with until it happens. With designing web sites, and particularly for people who are paying you, this isn't always the best option. While the web pages and some of the diagrams are better rendered in color for the sake of this book, I'm not sure that goes for the photos of the actual people (models). They tend to work better, at least for me, when they retain a more monochrome effect. It makes them easier to take, given their lack of surroundings. In fact, as I made my way through more of the book, I realized that I was having trouble shifting back and forth between the reality that color lends to screenshots of web sites and the more "cartoony" feel of the rest of the Head First format. I agree, it's better to "tell this tale" in color rather than monochrome, but it creates another problem. I found myself wondering if the reader, having become at least competent in basic XHTML/CSS and one or more programming languages, might be better served by "graduating" to a more standard web design/development text. I think of the Head First series as a single stepping stone for a person at a particular stage in their cognitive development (which is different than intelligence) that needs information served up in a particular format at this time in their life. Once they progress beyond that developmental milestone, they will be able to tolerate more "standard" information streams. This Head First book comes closer to the border between its realm and the realms covered by those other info streams than I would have expected. My basic assumption though, could be flawed. I have assumed that people "grow out of" needing to have all or most of their information provided the way the Head First series offers learning. On the other hand, how many people actually prefer the "video game" method of learning their entire lives? Is this also a generational difference in learning styles and that I'm on the wrong side of that particular line? No, otherwise, no one in their 20s could learn from any of O'Reilly's "The Definitive Guide" or "Cookbook" series, among others, and I know that's not true. The book might have been better titled "Head First Professional Web Design", since "web design" as a term, covers a wide field. Maybe that's what threw me off. While I, as an individual learner, am not often best served by this series (the Algebra book being the exception), this web design book seems to almost be pulling the audience away from a strict "Head First" learning model and encouraging them to take the next step. The "atypical-ness" of this one Head First book is being reflected in the difficulty I'm having in reviewing it. It's not that the book doesn't teach its subject well, it's just that the book has to bend it's own series format rules in order to do a good job. Could the audience have taken the next step on their own and just learned the same content from a different book? I'm not sure. Maybe the book serves those people who are used to and like the Head First format and don't feel ready to move away from it...even though they are. Is this book a good teacher for its audience? Probably. It just seems that, in order for the authors to teach this topic, they needed to appeal to the audience to stretch beyond what Head First normally offers. That may mean that Head First has an upper limit for what it can teach. As I review more in this series, I'll see if there's a point past which it cannot go.

Head First Algebra: A Learner's Guide to Algebra

Authors: Tracey Pilone and Dan Pilone Format: Paperback, 559 pages. Publisher: O'Reilly Media, Inc. (January 2, 2009) ISBN-10: 0596514867 ISBN-13: 978-0596514860 Update: I owe an apology to O'Reilly and anyone who has read this review so far. I rather consistently referred to the "Head First" series as the "Head Start" series. The mistake was completely mine and I apologize. No, this isn't a book that directly maps to FOSS or Linux or programming...exactly. On the other hand, the paths to programming in open and closed source usually move through this realm, so I think it is relevant. Picture yourself a would-be programmer who likes to code in your spare time, but you've got a problem. To really become any good at what you'd like to be your profession, there are math requirements, and you think math is almost as interesting as watching wind erode granite. Fortunately for you, O'Reilly and the Head First series has come to your rescue. They created "Head First Algebra". I agreed to have a look at this book first as a rough cut via Safari. Unfortunately, it presented me with a major drawback relative to my learning style; I could't write in the book. OK, I admit it. I really need to be able to write notes in my textbooks, highlight key sentences and paragraphs (which can include a sizable percentage of the book) and otherwise fold, spindle, and mutilate the thing. As hard as I tried, I just couldn't stick with it when the learning source was online. It doesn't help that I'm kind of "math-phobic" on top of everything else. Actually, that's not entirely true. I do just fine with standard math such as adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing. It's all that other pesky stuff, which includes "algebra", that sets off my panic attacks. I've actually taken and passed an algebra class in the dim past, but my grades weren't exactly stellar (compared to the much higher grades I got in all of my other classes), so when I saw that Head First was offering an algebra book, I figured I had a second chance. I hate admitting defeat or anything near it. This book seemed to be my way to victory. When the paperback version of the book arrived on my doorstep, I sharpened a brand new number 2 pencil, got out a fresh highlighter, and got to work. I had gone through the first chapter in Safari, so I knew that the material would lull me into a false sense of confidence. The authors present "solving for unknowns" as simple adding/subtracting/multiplying/dividing problems (which they are), which I can do. Of course, that's the point; to bring the reader in slowly and build up their confidence. After all, if you are going to use a Head First book to learn algebra, it means that the more standard (read: dry as Gobi desert sand) texts on the subject have not been entirely successful. Actually, I'm the perfect person to review this book. If I like it, then the target audience will adore it. If I were an algebra teacher or skilled at more advanced forms of math, I probably couldn't "reduce" my thinking down to who the book is written for. It would be like an Olympic swimmer trying to review a book written to teach pre-schoolers how to paddle in a kiddie pool. All that said, I had my usual "issues" with the Head First series. The series is written for people (young and old alike) who are just a tad bit ADHD (or more) and need to have a lot of stimulus coming in more or less constantly to stay engaged. If you could teach algebra from the perspective of a first-person shooter, that would be ideal for this population, but that's hard to do in a static book. The Head First series does its best to cater to this audience (and as an aside, I just sent my rather distractable son a copy of "Head First JavaScript", and I'm dying to see what he thinks of it) and I think high school students everywhere should pay homage to O'Reilly for creating Head First. By page 14, you can see where the book is going, even though the problems are still easy enough to do in your head, and for the math-phobic, that's when the sweat will start to form on your palms. Time to confront your fears and remember, this isn't an "ordinary" algebra book. You end up seeing a nice, neat example of "isolating the variable". Seems rather benign, actually. Why do I remember this stuff being hard? Oh wait! I'm still in the first chapter. By the end of the first chapter, the reader will start to get the feeling that they might really be successful at this stuff. Naturally, there's the spectre of more complicated problems to face, but the saving grace of the book isn't just the book. Unless your high school math teacher is using this as their official text book, you will probably use this book on its own. I'd really recommend it for a "summer reading book" you go through before formally taking algebra in the fall. The book (sans class) lets you do what the classroom experience doesn't allow. You can go at your own pace. Parents reading what I just wrote will shudder in fear, calculating that their child's voluntary "pace" at learning algebra will be slightly slower than the flow of the nearest glacier (although, with "global warming" effects, that could end up being a bad analogy). Fear not. I remember thinking to myself during my own rather painful "algebra experience" that I wished I had just a little more time to "get it". I was working my sorry tail off going to class, doing homework until the wee hours, and taking tutoring, both from the instructor (nice guy, really) and outside tutoring. If effort was the ultimate measure of how well I'd do in the class, I should have gotten an A+. Alas, things like aptitude and time have something to do with it as well. That means, the existence of this book in your room or on your bookshelf isn't enough to teach you algebra, but putting significant and regular effort into it, will. Without the artificial constraints of the classroom environment, learning algebra using this book is very "do-able", even if you don't like math. Is "Head First Algebra" a fool proof method of learning algebra for everyone? Depends. First off, you have to at least be able to tolerate the format of the Head First series (and if you already love the format, then no worries for you). Then, you have to use it. I found it a little easier to go through this book than others in the series for some reason. I think that I need to learn programming in a way that doesn't lend itself to how Head First teaches, but Head First is really the way I need to learn algebra. Will wonders never cease. I don't think I'd recommend this book to be the only exposure to algebra for you (or your kids). Almost nobody learns algebra because it's fun and entertaining (OK, there are a few people out there like that, but the rest of the "herd" thinks you're weird). We learn algebra, at least formally, because we have to. I can see the ideal use for this book as I described it a few paragraphs back. Take this book and work through it over the summer, before you have to actually take a "for real" algebra class, with a teacher, other students, homework, and (ugh) tests. Play with the book and the topic, but don't be lazy. Really use it regularly so the learning remains fresh. Then, after finishing the last pages and with all that dancing in your head, enter your high school or college algebra class. Your learning curve won't be nearly as steep and you'll be "desensitized" to the fear-inducing elements of algebra. You won't be fighting memory-destroying anxiety as you're working on learning. I hear that No Starch is coming out with The Manga Guide to Calculus next summer. I wonder...

Review: The Manga Guide to Databases

Authors: Mana Takahashi (Author) and Shoko Azuma (Illustrator) Format: Paperback, 224 pages Publisher: No Starch Press; Ill edition (January 28, 2009) ISBN-10: 1593271905 ISBN-13: 978-1593271909 Even though I specifically requested this book from No Starch for review, I never really expected it to be a...comic book. OK, that's not quite right, as purists will no doubt remind me. Manga isn't quite the same thing as an American comic book, but it's close enough from my point of view. I rather had expected the book to work along the lines of O'Reilly's Head First series, where technical topics are presented in text but with lots of "hyperactive" photos, graphics, arrows, and the like. The Databases book is presented as a straight manga publication and was originally published as part of a Manga Guide series in Japan in 2004. To clarify my perceptions, I actually emailed Bill Pollock at No Starch to get a clearer understanding of how this book and book series is supposed to work. Once Bill straightened me out, I was ready to proceed. Like any other manga, this one tells a story, and the story has an underlying theme. Historically, "children's" entertainment in Japan has carried a moral or ethical message, with the main characters sometimes appearing to give small lessons in cooperation, listening to parents, and so on. This manga's message isn't a moral one so much as an educational one. The underlying message is what databases are, how they're designed and how they work. The book addresses the reader who has never been exposed to any information about databases before. In fact, the first chapter is "What is a Database?" Poor Princess Ruruna has quite a problem, you see. Her parents, the King and Queen, are away and have left her in charge of the kingdom's massive fruit selling business. Unfortunately, the system she's using to keep track of her data is woefully inadequate to the task. Enter Tico the Database Fairy. I know it sounds silly, at least the way I'm describing it, but that's how the story opens. Pretty much up until page 10, the tale is presented in a typical manga fashion. The "problem" in terms of why Princess Ruruna and the Kingdom of Kod (I don't make these names up) need a database, starts to become apparent on page 11. The actual lesson in Chapter 1 starts on page 16, and that's where the book becomes more like I had originally expected. The main characters are used as "props" or "actors" to present the lesson of the chapter, in this case, what the basic problem is and how a database can be applied to create a solution. There's a short summary at the end of the chapter, then it's on to "What is a Relational Database". Subsequent chapters present a series of exercises after the main content with the answer key at the end, so this is very much a teaching book. But who does it teach and what can the students expect to learn? The intended audience (I checked, because it doesn't explicitly state this in the book's front matter) is likely high school and early university students (not exactly a shock, given the book's format). The book isn't a detailed text but rather a ground level introductory guide into the care and feeding of databases. You won't learn the SQL language, though there is a chapter in the book devoted to SQL. The idea of the book is to teach someone who knows nothing about what a database is and to give them a clue; a relatively detailed clue. The manga presentation will make it more appealing to a younger reader, or someone older who enjoys the novelty, to learn topics that can otherwise be pretty dry. If you are a "serious" student, you'll either think the book is frivolous or cute (or both), but will balk at being seen reading it in public. If you're the target audience, you won't give a rip and will probably brag about it. In fact, you're friends will probably think it's incredibly cool. Don't laugh (OK, laugh...there are funny bits in the book). This series is hugely popular in Japan, and No Starch is planning on marketing this as a series. While the books have already been authored in Japanese and been translated, No Starch is doing some re-translation and a technical review to verify that the content will really teach what it's supposed to. I mentioned the young and young-at-heart as far as the book's audience before, but it is suitable for the straight up adult who secretly likes manga and anime, and needs to get a primer on a topic that they may never have really understood before. Even people that manage databases for a living sometimes have a hard time explaining to the uninitiated exactly what a "relational database" is. Oh, this isn't just a textbook disguised as manga. Just for giggles, a bit of drama has been offered in the form of a romantic triangle. Not to worry. There's not too much "mushy stuff" there to get in the way of the book's main focus, but there is enough to keep it lightly entertaining. There is also a happy ending, which is to be expected. The book has a small appendix, which is unexpected, presenting "Frequently Used SQL Statements" as well as an index, so you can actually use it somewhat as a reference. Speaking of which, there is also a references page citing no less than nine sources, so the authors didn't whip this book up out of their heads. The primary author Mana Takahashi, is a university graduate and a technical writer on the subjects of Java, C, and XML (non-manga books), so she has the background to be authoritative. Back in the day, I used to collect comic books, though more in the vein of Spider-Man and Green Lantern, and when my kids were young, we watched the more popular anime series on Cartoon Network. I've even seen the occasional manga in my time, so I'm not completely unfamiliar with the art form. I've seen comic books, both mainstream and speciality publications, that have educated as well as entertained, but I must admit, I was taken a bit by surprise by this one. I don't know if it's really right for me, but I think it's right for the aforementioned young/young-at-heart audience, who has a need to understand the very basics of databases as concept and design. It won't do more than that, but it doesn't have to. There are plenty of books available that can carry on after this book's last page has been read. The book is written as a fantasy (Princesses, Kingdoms, Fairies), which isn't exactly what I'd go for, but it does the job it's supposed to do. Personally though, I would have preferred a few space ships, a couple of aliens, and some super-powered fight scenes. Even a couple of explosions would have been welcome. But that's just me, of course.

Review: A Practical Guide to Ubuntu Linux (Versions 8.10 and 8.04) 2nd Ed

Author: Mark G Sobell Format: Paperback, 1272 pages Publisher: Prentice Hall PTR; 2nd edition (January 9, 2009) ISBN-10: 0137003889 ISBN-13: 978-0137003884 I upgraded my Ubuntu VM to 8.10 just for this review (well, not "just" for this review, but mostly). Of course, Sobell's second edition of this "I-weigh-a-ton" tome covers both 8.04 and 8.10, but I run 8.04 on my production machine, so I figure I've got the book covered. Judging by the size of the book though, I'd have to assume that Sobell has it covered as well. But does he? Unlike Godzilla, size doesn't always matter. Let's have a look. A casual viewing of the book's back cover tells the reader that they can expect to find out just about everything there is to know about anything they can do with Ubuntu. While most folks think of Ubuntu as the most "desktop user" friendly version of Linux, and the most likely contender to chip away at Microsoft Windows' death grip on the home desktop market, there's a lot more to consider. At least according to the blurb I read, the server aspects of Ubuntu are well covered here. The list includes Apache, DNS, LDAP, NIS, and Samba, and that's just for starters. This isn't a "switch from Windows to Ubuntu Linux" text written for the average home PC user. It's, at least in theory, an "all-in-one" guide for everything you ever wanted to know about Ubuntu (but were afraid to ask). The first edition of this book was well received, at least as far as the general body of reviews is concerned. To ask "what's new?" in the second edition is answered on the front cover, since the most current releases of Ubuntu are 8.04 (Hardy Heron) and 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex). Assume then, that the only changes you'll find in this book have to do with what changed in the most recent versions of Ubuntu. The intro to the book does present an "overlap" section, but it wasn't what I expected. The material didn't cover the "overlap" between the first and second editions of this book, but between this book and another of Sobell's books, A Practical Guide to Linux Commands, Editors, and Shell Programming. Guess there's no crime in leveraging material from one Linux book to another. Is anyone out there going to read a book like this cover-to-cover? Maybe a few fanatical souls, but most people are doing to pick out just the chapters that apply to their situation. The book is written for just about everybody, from students and home users to programmers and system admins. The book is roomy enough to where it doesn't have to skimp on any of the details for the various audiences it serves. Each major part of the book could function as a publication all its own. Given that the live CD/installation DVD for 8.10 is included in the book, Sobell apparently wrote it with the "fresh install" population in mind. So much for my efforts at upgrading my 8.04 VM to 8.10 (not that it was really difficult to do). I was happy to see that the book did contain a couple of pages about upgrading from one version to another. I don't recall the first edition giving the topic that much attention. The most important piece of information that Sobell included was that certain features in the upgrade version may not be visible, as they would be on a fresh install (and I can attest to the truth of this). Since the book is written for everyone, Sobell included the very basics of installing Ubuntu, though the task of a basic install isn't particularly daunting with Ubuntu. Part II, "Getting Started with Ubuntu Linux" reads like a general primer on how to use Linux, with an emphasis on Ubuntu and the Gnome desktop (although there are instructions for installing KDE). After all, working in the bash shell and navigating the filesystem are pretty much the same across most Linux distros. Part III, "Digging into Ubuntu Linux" bores down into the X Windows System and presents more details about bash, as well as presenting an introduction to basic networking, while Part IV, "System Administration" introduces, well...system administration and Ubuntu (or Linux for the most part). Directories and the filesystem are covered again, but this time with a "management" emphasis, as well as working with the apt system and of course, CUPS printing. Part V, "Using Clients and Setting up Servers" presents Ubuntu as a server (which is a different installation path than the desktop install). This is where you'll find chapters on setting up FTP, Mail, LDAP, and DNS servers, among others. Programmers are served in Part VI, "Programming Tools", but only shell scripting and an introductory Perl programming guide are offered. Kind of a disappointment for those of us who prefer Python, but I guess you can't have everything. On the other hand, if you want to learn how to program, buy a programming book. If you find the idea of using Regular Expressions intimidating, Appendix A might offer you some comfort. Then again, it might not. While it describes what regular expressions are, I wouldn't depend on the scant ten pages here to teach you how to use them. The other four appendixes offer useful tips on how to get help in and out of Ubuntu, a brief security lesson, what FOSS is, and the 2.6 Linux kernel. I like the "Jumpstart" feature in the book, which provides the reader with an "in-a-nutshell" description on configuring various server roles, for those who just want to know "how do I do it". Each chapter is designed to teach the reader and an Exercises and Advanced Exercises list is presented to test the audience's knowledge. I would have preferred exercise questions that would have required the reader to do more "hands on" learning instead of just having to describe a process. You learn how to do something by doing it, not by talking about it. I guess in a book that's over 1200 pages long, you still can't have your cake and eat it, too. You can learn a lot from Sobell's book but you can't learn everything. To be fair, a book that could teach you everything about all of the topics this one contains, would require a forklift or Superman to lift off the floor. Some topics, such as the aforementioned Regular Expressions, are introduced in the most superficial of fashions. So are the various text editors available (vi, emacs, and so forth). Don't expect to really learn Perl programming in "Chapter 28: Perl". It'll take you more than 40 some odd pages to teach you anything practical about programming in general, let alone Perl. There's always a special challenge involved in writing a book that casts so wide a net, both in terms of audience and as far as the content it contains. Using the Perl chapter as an example, while the information is certainly valuable, there is just enough of it present to barely get you started. It could easily have been left out of the book, with no damage to those people who need to learn about Ubuntu and all its characteristics and roles. On the other hand, such a chapter could be used to guide the interested reader to other Prentice Hall books on the topic. This chapter doesn't do that, though there are a few URLs presented at the beginning of the chapter. I guess the publisher forgot that they also have Perl by Example, 4th Edition available, and the Ubuntu book's "Perl" chapter could have been used to link the reader to this more informative tome. Despite the "I-can't-cover-everything-no-matter-how-big-I am" issues with this book, it is still a worthy read for the person who wants to know about the roles Ubuntu serves and then a little more. As with the first edition, it serves as more than an Ubuntu book. It also introduces Linux and a bit on FOSS in general, as well and info on networking, Linux printing, Linux filesystems, and so on. The Sobell book will either be all that you need as far as Ubuntu is concerned, or it will inspire you to learn more about the topics of interest it just touches on. If you want to know more about the latter though, you'll just have to figure out where to look.