The View from the Studio Door: How Artists Find Their Way in an Uncertain World

Book Description

In the perennial best-seller Art & Fear, Ted Orland (with David Bayles) examined the obstacles that artists encounter each time they enter their studio and stand before a new blank canvas. Now, in The View From The Studio Door, Orland turns his attention to broader issues that stand to either side of that artistic moment of truth.

In a text marked by grace, brevity and humor, Orland argues that when it comes to art making, theory and practice are always intertwined. There are timeless philosophical questions (How do we make sense of the world?) that address the very nature of art making, as well as gritty real-world questions (Is there art after graduation?) that artists encounter the moment they're off the starting blocks and producing work on a regular basis.

Simply put, this is a book of practical philosophy. As a teacher and working artist himself, Orland brings authentic insight and encouragement to all those who face the challenge of making art in an uncertain world. The breadth of material covered is reflected in chapters that include Making Sense of the World, Art & Society, The Education of the Artist, Surviving Graduation, Making Art That Matters, The Artistic Community, and more.

The View From The Studio Door is the perfect companion piece to Art & Fear, and will appeal to a similar (and already-established) audience of students, working artists, teachers and professionals. For students' benefit, The View is also modestly priced, with wide page margins for easy note-taking and annotation.

Customer Reviews:

Pretty good read, but nothing earth shattering.......2006-05-31

This book is a pretty good read in that it outlines some of the issues surrounding being an artist in today's society. It is more cursory than comprehensive. Basically it points out the issues but doesn't really delve into them very deeply. If you are already an artist it won't give you that much more insight than you probably already have, however it will serve to point you in thinking in the right direction.

For the price I guess it's worth reading. I cannot recommend it as a 'must buy' but I also cannot say stay away from it.

A must read for any artist or wannabe artist.......2006-04-26

This is a must read for any artist or aspiring artist. It will help you to understand yourself, your art, and your audience. The View From The Studio Door is part philosophy, part psychology, part history, and entirely authentic, entertaining and enlightening. The author is very articulate in a down-to-earth and entertaining way. Original insights are spread throughout the book and it's margins. On one page you will be in awe of the philosophical insights that are revealed and on the next page you will enjoy the author's delightful sense of humor. On the next page you may learn something about yourself and your art. Here is an excerpt from one of my favorite passages. " In 1927 a young Ansel Adams made one of his most famous photographs: Monolith-The Face of Half Dome. Or more accurately, he made a photograph that several of his friends thought was very nice....It appeared as a gritty halftone in a newsletter of the local chapter of the Sierra Club....Finally, a half-century after it's first appearance, Monolith appeared in a Time magazine cover story about Adams accompanied by the headline "Ansel Adams: GOD'S FIRST ART DIRECTOR.""

The author, Ted Orland, is co-author of the book Art and Fear that is also a wonderful read for artists in all disciplines.
Art and Fear is one of the top 4,209 best selling books on Amazon.com. Although we do not usually consider ranking #4,209 an badge of sucess, this is a remarkable accomplishment for a book that has artists as it's primary audience. The View From The Studio Door is a very worthy next read for any artist.

Book Description

From religious orders to the military, schools to fetish clubs, uniforms shape identities. What does it mean to wear one? Why do certain professions require them? Why are uniforms so alluring when they inspire so many ambivalent feelings? Craik debunks the myth that the meaning of uniforms is transparent. From nurses to brides, from athletes to police officers, uniforms express certain implicit (and sometimes explicit) codes about power, transgression, eroticism and masquerade. Uniforms Exposed investigates the social and cultural significance of these ordinary yet extraordinary garments. Craik demonstrates how uniforms go well beyond the standard definitions of order, discipline, conformity, pride and authority. Their meaning, she argues, is thoroughly context-dependent.

Book Description

One of today's most popular syndicated strips, FoxTrot now appears in more than 1,000 daily and Sunday newspapers. Whether working through the daily disorders of home, school, or office, the Fox family manages to put its special spin on the rigors of the world. Setting the comic tone are mom Andy, whose heroic efforts to make tofu into the fifth food group are legend, and dad Roger, who is a human hazard on the golf course and a threat to the workings of all technologically driven devices. Filling out the cast are the younger Foxes: the eldest and football star wanna-be Peter, shopping guru Paige, and last-but never least-Jason, the family brain trust and his trusty iguana friend, Quincy. Each sports his or her own eccentricities, from Jason's Internet stock, Jasonzonbayhoo dot com, to Peter's teeth-chattering coffee addiction to Paige's harrowing adventures in baby-sitting.This is the twentieth FoxTrot book.

Customer Reviews:

Clever, Funny and Priceless.......2007-02-17

I have been a faithful FoxTrot reader for years. Roger, Andy and their kids Peter, Paige and Jason are always good for a reality check with a large dose of laughter. I've got two girls and let me tell you, I see a lot of my kids in Paige with, I believe, even a healthy dose of Jason thrown in. And they have Peter's bottomless stomach. Of course, they're faithful FoxTrot readers too. I used to read the strip to them, explain what was going on, but now they get it just fine and we three all laugh together. Then my girls try and explain the strip to their dad, who pretends he doesn't get it.

The FoxTrot folks are a great family, one we sort of got used to checking up on every day, so we took the news that Mr. Amend was going to cease daily distribution of his wonderfully funny people and turn his strip to Sunday only, with a bit of sadness. Still, we have these terrific FoxTrot books to keep us going with our FoxTrot fix. Mr. Amend is to be commended for his great gift to our culture and his great gift to so many lives. I truly believe a laugh a day, helps keep the blues away and the FoxTrot gang are always good for a laugh. Heck there are a lot of laughs in the FoxTrot books. I know, I have them all and I am, along with my girls and my hubby dear, eagerly awaiting the next one.

Oh yes, I forgot to mention, we don't have an iguana, but my girls do have a pet gecko and, you guessed it, his name is Quincy.

Think iFruity. Foxtrot, All Great!.......2007-01-20

I've been a Foxtrot reader for a long time and personally I think there is something suspiciously wrong with people who don't find Bill Amend's characters funny as all get out. If you want a good laugh, check out Bill in your local newspaper, or better yet, get one of the Foxtrot books. They are all great, really, they are.

Like many of Mr. Amend's fans I'm a bit disappointed he's switching his strip to Sunday-only, but fortunately I can still read him daily in the Foxtrot books. Get them one and all and you can keep right on a laughing.

"These aren't Beanie Babies, Mom...!".......2004-04-11

The fun and hilarity never ends with the Fox Family. There's always some kind of chaos or mayhem going on--mainly created by the youngest, Jason Fox. If there hasn't been a problem that has confronted the Fox Family, just wait. They're always having to deal with a crisis that leads to hilarious results.

"Think iFruity" is yet another fabulous FoxTrot collection that is 127 pages of fun-filled comic antics from Roger (the father), Andy (the wife), Peter (the oldest son), Paige (the daughter), and Jason (the youngest son who has a pet iguana). One of the main story points that surrounds this collection is when the family must buy a new computer, and to Jason's absolute horror it is an "iFruity." How will the family cope with the change? Will Jason lose his mind and trash the computer himself? You'll have to wait and see what happens.

Other funny scenarios included in this fine collection:

*Roger's "Mobycom-2000"*
*Jasonezer Scrooge*
*Paige Defeats the Red Orb Guardian*
*Giving Up Coffee*
*Peter's Summer Gig ("Star Wars" Phobia)*
*The Paige Witch Project*
*Roger Quits Work (A Classic "Fox" Saga)*
...and more!

Bill Amend has never failed to get more than a few laughs out of me with his funny characters. The strips are topical, witty, clever and downright hilarious. He never runs out of ideas or storylines, and he always uses his characters to their full potential. This collection is just as funny as the previous ones, if not more. I am never bored when reading FoxTrot, and I was never bored during my reading of this particular collection. A job well done on all fronts.

"Think iFruity" is another hilarious FoxTrot chapter that definitely needs to be a part of your FoxTrot collection. And if you have not read FoxTrot, the more reason to check this out! If you're looking for an entertaining read that won't take up a lot of your time, this FoxTrot collection is just the fix for you. A great read that will have you laughing from the start. -Michael Crane

This Family is Definitely Fruity.......2002-11-14

Admit it. We all have one or more family members that resemble the characters in the FoxTrot comic strip. Whether it's the tofu cooking mom, the morning-coffee addicted dad, the hollow leg older son, the self-absorbed daughter, or the geeky younger son, every family can relate.

"Think iFruity" is a collection of daily and Sunday FoxTrot comic strips. It starts with the dad, Roger, buying a Mobycom-2000 cell phone (think Titanic), and ends with Peter being disappointed with his Physics Lab. In between, the family gets their new "iFruit" computer (mango-kiwi, thank you), Roger goes a day without coffee (not a pretty sight), Paige fills her aquarium before taking it upstairs, and Jason kills off the Internet (makes the "I Love You" virus look like the sniffles).

Is It Good? Duh!.......2002-10-24

You see the list on the side, and obviously, I am a FoxTrot fanatic & own all of the books. Just why would I own something that is dumb? Besides, if you haven't heard of FoxTrot, you either: don't look at the newspaper, or haven't visited the bookstore in about a year.

Among all of the halarious one-day strips, outrageous series include:
-Moby 2000
-Thanksgiving
-Jasoneezer Scrooge
-Christmas
-Jasonzonbayhoodotcom
-Paige vs. Red Orb Guardian
-Babysitting
-Baseball's suprising spectators
-Where's the coffee???
-Summer Dayz
-To Boonhurst...To the hospital...To Wall Street

Aren't intrigued yet to buy this book?

The Best Cat Ever/ The Cat Who Came For Christmas/ The Cat and the Curmudgeon
Average customer rating:

The Best Stories Ever!

A wonderful story for all whether you love cats or not.

The Best Cat Ever/ The Cat Who Came For Christmas/ The Cat and the Curmudgeon

Manufacturer: Little, Brown and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 0965027384

Customer Reviews:

The Best Stories Ever!.......2007-02-20

I have these three books on audio. We can all read and read and read till our eyes fall out - but no way can these stories be enjoyed to the fullest unless you hear them read by the author. Mr. Armory has the purrfect voice and inflections. You'll laugh, cry and sigh all the way through. The author claims to be a "curmudgeon" but has more heart and compassion that he wants us to see!

I gave a full "book report" to my sister the special ed teacher - and she wants hard covers to read to her "kids"; but I made her promise to listen to the audiobooks first so she can really give a first rate presentation to her classes. It's my great pleasure to send them to her. J

A wonderful story for all whether you love cats or not........2005-07-20

This is the true story of a little grey abandoned kitten who becomes the love of an old bachelors heart. It tells the story of their life together and gives insight into what happened after.

Keep the tissues handy

Average customer rating:

Dogs have masters, cats have servants
So touching yet entertaining book
one of the best cat biographies
Not as cute as the author thinks it is
Three Polar Bear books I say Read Reade Read

The Cat Who Came for Christmas
Cleveland Amory
Manufacturer: Back Bay Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Cats, Dogs & Animals | Humor | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0316058211

Book Description

Tis the night before Christmas when a self-described curmudgeon rescues a bedraggled feline from a snowy New York City alley. Thus begins this tale of a man and his cator, rather, of a cat and his mana touching, timeless, and inspiring story about the animal/human bond and the spirit of the holiday season.

Customer Reviews:

Dogs have masters, cats have servants.......2007-10-04

Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (9/07)

I like all animals, but consider myself to be a true dog lover. I especially love the big, ugly, slobbery ones. Cats don't quite fit into this category for me. When I read, "The Cat Who Came for Christmas," I developed a new appreciation for cats. Cleveland Amory has written a heartwarming story about his experience with a cat that he agreed to temporarily foster. For some reason, this strange creature managed to sink his claws into his heart - not literally, of course.

After cleaning up the dirty, not-yet-named feline, Cleveland discovered that the cat was actually white. He did some extensive debating about what to name this creature. He finally came up with Polar Bear and it seemed to fit. Cleveland still agreed to foster other animals, including a big rambunctious puppy, an overactive kitten, and a pigeon. Polar Bear was not very appreciative of them. These chapters were really fun to read.

In addition to Polar Bear's story, the author also throws in some facts about the history of cats and his experiences with the Fund for Animals. These sections were very interesting. Reading about the history of cats and how they were revered in ancient times gave me a better understanding of why they evolved to be so haughty. The parts about the Fund for Animals, which he founded in 1967, were extremely interesting. Cleveland got heavily involved with some very strong efforts to stopping the illegal slaughter of whales and the inane clubbing of seals.

"The Cat Who Came for Christmas," is a great book to curl up with. Even if you aren't a cat lover, I think you will enjoy it, I did. I also believe that it would make a great gift for a cat lover.

So touching yet entertaining book.......2007-03-19

I love the book so much...It is great for everyone who has a gentle heart, no matter if you have had cats. I did not know the author until I read the book, then I feel so sad that he already died, otherwise he would be the person that I want to speak with in person. I'm going to buy all of his books.

one of the best cat biographies.......2007-03-08

Touching, amusing, and educational book from the sometimes caustic pen of the late, witty and steadfast Cleveland Amory, writer and animal activist. Polar Bear, a large, white tom, whom Mr.Amory rescued at Christmas, will always remian in my heart. My own involvement with animal causes began with this book. Even my friends who are not prone to animal stories liked this one. Enjoy and rejoice; there are sequels!

Not as cute as the author thinks it is.......2006-11-29

This is not a terrible book, but it does get old in a hurry. The main narrative about the rescue of a stray cat, who the author adopts and eventually calls Polar Bear is entertaining, but too much has been done to make it "cute", like pages of imagined conversation between the author and the cat. There are also tons of digressions, about animal cruelty, historic views of cats and so on. It is also very dated in its discussion of the animal rights movement. I think there are a lot of better books in the "beloved pet" genre.

Three Polar Bear books I say Read Reade Read.......2006-11-03

Excellent I have all three book about Polar Bear

The Best Cat Ever, the Cat Who Came for Christmas, the Cat and the Curmudgeon,

Average customer rating:

The Best Cat Ever, the Cat Who Came for Christmas, the Cat and the Curmudgeon,
Cleveland Amory
Manufacturer: Quality
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000K2I6SQ

Average customer rating:

THE CAT WHO CAME FOR CHRISTMAS

Manufacturer: Penguin Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000H3A74Y

Average customer rating:

The Cat Who Came For Christmas
Cleveland Amory
Manufacturer: Bantam Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Average customer rating:

THE CAT WHO CAME FOR CHRISTMAS
Cleveland Amory
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OJ3M3E

Average customer rating:

The Cat Who Came for Christmas
Cleveland Amory
Manufacturer: Bantam Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000HNXRZA

Average customer rating:

The Cat Who Came for Christmas
Amory Cleveland
Manufacturer: Little Brown
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000L0X1M8

Average customer rating:

Cat Who Came for Christmas
Dalton
Manufacturer: Penguin Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 5550037920

Average customer rating:

The cat Who Came for Christmas
Cleveland amory
Manufacturer: Little Brown and Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NP4GVQ

Book Description

As the Charmed Ones know, it's difficult to adjust to the ideas of having powers and saving innocents -- that's one of the reasons that their Grams bound their powers until the sisters were ready to receive them. In fact, many witch clans keep the powers of their young dormant until the recipient of the power reaches a certain age.

In Juliana O'Farrell's clan, that age is thirteen -- the exact age of her daughter, Lily. By the day after her thirteenth birthday, though, Lily's powers haven't manifested, and Juliana's worried that a demon may have stripped her daughter's magic. Enter the Halliwell sisters. But Lily's too much of a typical teen to welcome witch chaperones. She'd much rather sneak out to hang with her rebellious friend, Drew. Could Drew's bad behavior be related to Lily's missing magic? It's going to take the Power of Three to get to the bottom of this adolescent angst!

Customer Reviews:

Best book ever!.......2006-01-31

This must have been the best book ever. Truely something you should buy if you are a true Charmed fan. Don't be fooled by the ugly cover. You will get hypnotized from the first page. Absolutely worth the money! What are you waiting for? Go buy it!

Is Lily really Juliana's daughter? .......2005-11-23

Juliana and Lily visit the Halliwells to see if they can staighten out what happened to Lily's powers.Drews parents are demons and Drew gets the supposed power,she was in Lily's room and said it along with Lily and her mom. Gortag, a demon who looks like a little devil and has killed Julianas clan of witches.If you kill him he'll come back again and again. Lily's supposed power is to change into aminals. It does that with your emotions.Will Gortag prevail and kill the last of the o'farrell witches? Read and fid out.

best book ever.......2005-06-23

this is definately the best charmed book by far! it is so descriptive you get the picture instantly in your head especially if you know the characters well.

Okay book.......2005-01-06

The summary of the book sound like the story would be really good. Theres a witch who should recieve her powers when she turns 13, but by a twisted fate they don't turn up. Now the Charmed ones have to solve this problem and a red faced demon.

Once I started reading the story it was slow. The plot was thin. I almost just stopped reading it. I have to say that the ending was predictable, but it was enjoyable. I just don't think I'll read the book again anytime soon.

not the greatest.......2004-08-27

Parts of the book annnoyed me soo much that I just wanted to put it down and never look at it again. I felt like just skipping to the end to spare me the pain of reading it. Why did I read it, you ask? Mainly because I'm a huge fan of Charmed so supporting it helps the show. Other then that...Inherit the Witch is not the best book to read.

Average customer rating:

Inherit the Witch (Charmed)
Constance M. Burge
Manufacturer: Pocket Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0743489586

Book Description

"A drug counselor and the author of In Cold Blood (Johnny Thunders biography) Antonia is the ideal chronicler of Perrett 's rise and fall. From his time as drug dealer, to the smack sojourn in British punk band The Only Ones, Perrett's tale is one of self-abuse and staggering selfishness. Antonia's interviews reveal an individual in a twilight of sex, drugs and narcissism."-Select Magazine

Customer Reviews:

In My Basement Room With A Needle And A Spoon..........2004-04-20

Mix in equal parts Syd Barrett, Julian Cope, and Johnny Thunders and what you're left with is ex-Only One Peter Perrett, another one of the "fatally famous" (read "misguided, yet talented, lacking-in-common-sense doofus who threw it all away to chase the dragon") Nina Antonia seems to be building a career on, whose "Special View" album remains one of this scribe's all-timers (gotta upgrade it to CD, though!).

The Only Ones are, of course, best remembered for their only "hit," 1978's "Another Girl, Another Planet," on the back of which the band strove to rise above the London punk ragtag rabble in which they plied their craft. By 1981, it was all over, with Perrett coming out of a nod long enough to briefly consider going it alone. Truncated as their brief moment in the spotlight was, it's no real surprise that morbid curiosity is the real attraction of "The One And Only: Peter Perrett - Homme Fatale," like rubbernecking a freeway smash-up, looking for body parts. Call it fate, but Perrett forged a friendship with Thunders, inevitably based as much on drugs as it was on music, when the Heartbreakers first travelled to England to join Malcolm McLaren's ill-fated Anarchy tour. Ex-Dolls Thunders and Jerry Nolan have historically taken the heat for introducing London punters to heroin (easy targets, eh?) but as far as I know, they never had to put a gun to anyone's head. To Perrett's credit, he admits to dabbling in the drug long before meeting Thunders.

Aside from a few inspired moments early on, Perrett seemed content with drifting through life minus any personal or professional agenda other than selling and ingesting dope with long-suffering wife Zena, getting busted several times along the way but through plain, dumb luck avoiding any incarceration. Keith Richards was keen on producing the band but the only real highlight of his time in the studio with them was a coke-hoovering duel between he and Perrett with the outcome lost in the ether somewhere. The nadir of Perrett's season in Hell was spending most of the 80's in a bedroom he rarely left, heroin his only companion, physically deteriorating into a scuzzy, unkempt mess, sinking so low that Thunders himself felt obligated to give him a pep talk (imagine!). Finally, on the cusp of the 90's, due to some rather vaguely explained combination of drugs, detox, love, and poverty, Perrett started to snap out of it, deciding maybe music still meant something to him. Since then, his attempts to gig and record again, with a new group christened The One, have been patchy at best. Strangely, Antonia's epilogue doesn't go far in convincing anyone that this fragile soul is still straight. Stranger yet, perhaps unconfident of her talent as a writer, Antonia is training to be a drug counselor. Go figure...

The Immortal Story.......2002-01-25

If you've taken the time to seek this book out, I don't need to waste my breath telling you how great The Only Ones were. If you blinked in the late 70's, you missed them. I heard them for the first time on tour in the mid-90's and knew nothing about them. Aside from the lyrics and a few liner notes, all I knew about Peter Perrett was that he dropped out of sight. I didn't have to read to deeply between the lines to figure out the guy had a major heroin habit.

Around the time of my initial interest, WOKE UP STICKY came out and it sounded like the past 18 years never happened. He seemed to pick up right where he left off, totally unphazed by a decade and a half of ever changing musical fads and trends. Though loathe to read books of this nature, my curiousity got the best of me.

I have to say the squalid details are here for you to peruse. The facts are none too far from the world Perrett's depicted in his lyrics. But what Nina Antonia does, is give you a candid portrait behind all the lurid rumors. The whole story for better or worse. From the decadant hopeful to the years of doped out anonymity.

Like any good photographer, she hits all possible angles: The whining brat, the soulful artist, the scrutinizing drug dealer, the doting father. What she doesn't do is judge her subject, or offer any 2-bit psychoanalysis. Nor does she morbidly romanticize the more sordid aspects of her "homme fatale".

Needless to say, I didn't walk away with another sad luck story about wasted talent. It's there on his albums for all to hear. Though the facts behind it all seem less enigmatic, the man behind it all remains ever more so. In short, this biography takes no prisoners and makes no apologies.

One hit wonder (but what a hit!).......2002-01-12

Back in the late-70s, the punk explosion spawned a ton of great singles, but perhaps the best one belonged to Peter Perrett's Only Ones with "Another Girl, Another Planet." A sweeping guitar intro snaked around Perrett's Lou Reed-in-outer-space vocals, and a true classic was born. Even The Replacements found a place for this tune in their sets towards the end of their career.

Since those heady days, however, Perrett has been one of rock's least-celebrated casualties. Virtually unknown in the U.S. and pretty much forgotten in his home country, Perrett has spent the past twenty-odd years in a drug-induced haze, although there does seem to be times when he's gotten it together enough to write and play, most notably from 1994-'96 with The One. Since then, it's been pretty quiet on his end, with one of his sons periodically updating the family web site with news of his dad's latest ventures (as well as pretty depressing info on the state of the Perrett family finances...).

As with her past bios of the Dolls and Johnny Thunders, Nina Antonia has once again done a bang-up job of relating the horrors of a rock 'n' roll life reduced to drugged-out drudgery. Perrett comes across as a severly depressed, yet childlike, individual, a man who's been so pampered throughout his life, that he whines if his toast isn't buttered in a certain way. Indeed, Perrett has lived a rock 'n' roll life without ever actually became a full-fledged rock star.

Like her Thunders bio, Antonia makes a convincing case for Perrett's place in rock history, as well as making one aware that this guy was one messed-up and truly wasted talent. Here's hoping that some enterprising movie-maker can find a place for "Another Girl..." in a summer blockbuster or even a car commercial - it's a true classic that deserves to be heard by all. And if that puts a few pounds in the pocket of its' creator, then more's the better.

The myth behind the man........2000-11-27

Peter Perrett and The Only Ones pushed the boundaries of pop/rock out of the punk/new wave scene and into realms of poetry, brilliance, dark emotion and painful love. The spearhead of this push was Peter Perrett, and the life that powered these songs and his music is interpreted here by Ms. Antonia, who has also brought Johnny Thunders under her magnifying glass recently. Her personal contact with Perrett and others in the band has brought out the poignant facts about his love life with women and narcotics that forge the essence of The Only Ones songs. A must for fans of Pop Culture and anyone who wants to know why the single "Another girl, another Planet" is the best pop song of all time.

Everquest Player's Guide: Prima's Official Strategy Guide
Average customer rating:

Certainly Worth The Price:)

Great Book for beginners only

Guide is useless, I know as i am a veteran player

Good for Everquest Newbies

Everquest Player's Guide: Prima's Official Strategy Guide
Prima Development , and Prima Development
Manufacturer: Prima Games
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Strategy Guides | Games & Strategy Guides | Computers & Internet | Subjects | Books
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Everquest Companion: The Inside Lore of a Gameworld

ASIN: 0761537627
Release Date: 2001-10-09

Book Description

Welcome back to the world of Everquest, a multi-player fantasy role-playing game capable of supporting more than 1,000 online players per server. Prepare to enter an enormous virtual environment - an entire world with its own diverse species, economic systems, alliances, and politics. Choose from a variety of races and classes, and begin your quest in any number of cities or villages throughout several continents. Everquest: Trilogy--Getting Started includes everything new players need to enter this mysterious world.

Customer Reviews:

Certainly Worth The Price:).......2002-11-14

This book is a plus for a newbie on EQ and will easily aid the player on his quest and answer all question you have at the beginning.I was lost without it.I am certain in the future i will still refer to this book for the maps.

Great Book for beginners only.......2002-08-18

This book says it is intended for beginners only, so that's what it is for. It gives you a lot of info, tips, and things you need to know as a new person playing this game without overwhelming you with hundreds and hundreds of pages.

The layout of this book basically covers what you need to know from levels 1 - 10, after that, you will need to get another source of information.

I particularly enjoyed the detailed info on characters, spells, tips, the Jargon Glossary (which is very good so you can understand the many many abbreviations used in the game), commands , emotes, and detailed maps. Well, That means I particularly enjoyed the whole book then.

I recommend this book for someone who wants to learn, but not have a huge 300 - 400 page book to have to sort through. This book about 160 pages, very illustrated, and easy to understand. I am happy i bought it!

Guide is useless, I know as i am a veteran player.......2002-05-21

The guide is worthless, guides do not , will not, work for online games, heck i looked at my friends guide at "online prices of items" that doesnt work, you see, EQ has an economy, Items raise and drop in prices, like for instance the fungul regrowth tunic, used to be 20 k, now 40k as its price raised, finding the right spells is not hard, right click spell and it wsill tell you, its VERY easy to get the hang of the game if you just read the manual. If you need maps look for them online, need quests you can also find them online, this strategy guide all in all is not worth your money

Good for Everquest Newbies.......2002-03-19

Everquest is so huge and complex that getting started with only the game provided quide is very frustrating. Before I got this book I spent hours buying spells only to find I couldn't use them on my particular character. The book itemizes and describes the spells and who can use them at what level up to level 10. It has maps, character creation guides, handy references for commands and emotes. It helped make the game much more enjoyable.

Why only 3 stars? Despite being 166 pages, it is still very thin on coverage of the game. Fortunately it does provide links to websites that literally have thousands of pages of info. You could simply search the web and get the info contained in this book there, but the book does compile the most critical starter info into a neat organized book.

As far as I can tell there are no other Everquest strategy guides (except the Luclin one) in print.

Worth getting unless you are on a really tight budget and prefer to spend your time hacking away at learning the basics or have the time to research on the web.

Book Description

From Enron and WorldCom to the Catholic Church and Major League Baseball, reputation crises have never been more widespread. Now Ronald J. Alsop, a veteran Wall Street Journal authority on branding and reputation management, explains the dangers -- and gives organizations the eighteen crucial laws to follow in developing and protecting their reputations.

Consider this example of a simple decision made by a low-ranking employee: When rescue workers at the site of the World Trade Center disaster sought bottled water from a nearby Starbucks outlet, they complained that an employee charged them for it. In a matter of hours, the Internet had picked up the story and Starbucks' carefully cultivated worldwide reputation was quickly besmirched.

This is just one instance among many of how the business world, ever more global and competitive, has become increasingly difficult to navigate. Studies have demonstrated the powerful impact of reputation on profits and stock prices, and yet less than half of all companies have a formal system for measuring reputation. Clearly, companies in every industry -- from Dow Chemical to Disney to DaimlerChrystler -- have much more to learn.

It is still the rare company that realizes the full value of its reputation: how corporate reputation can enhance business in good times, become a protective halo in turbulent times, and be destroyed in an instant by people at the lowest or highest levels of the corporate ladder. Mr. Alsop provides eighteen thoroughly documented lessons based on years of experience covering every aspect of corporate reputation, with a clear distillation of the complex principles at the heart of a reputation. He explains:

• How to protect your reputation when the inevitable crisis hits
• How to cope with the many hazards in cyberspace
• How to create a reputation for vision and industry leadership
• How to establish a culture of ethical behavior
• How to measure and monitor your ever-changing public image
• How to make employees your reputation champions
• How to decide when it's time to change your name

The result is a book that is important not only for business executives, consultants, and advertising, public relations, and marketing professionals but also for anyone eager to learn more about the companies they work for, buy from, and invest in.

Customer Reviews:

Good layout of a problem, but few solutions........2005-02-11

This book is worth reading just to get a sense of the way the American public views business today. The stories of businesses told in this book are one-sided and even irrational, but without a doubt, they reflect the way American business is seen by the public right now.

The problem with the book is that it offers very few ideas on how a business can successfully navigate today's minefield of public perception. As a reader hoping to come away with ideas on how to nurture the public's perception of my business, I instead finished the book feeling that businesses are largely at the mercy of dumb luck and circumstance when it comes to perception. Further, the author admits that businesses are in a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation when attempting to let the public know about any acts of goodwill.

This book is well-timed to take advantage of today's anti-business climate, but not of much help for those seeking to find their way through it.

The Limits of Journalism.......2004-08-06

Ronald Alsop's book is pretty much the product of what one would expect from an author with a background as a newspaper journalist. The book reads like a collection of articles on the subject. Corporate reputation-building is, of course, a very important subject these days. So one would benefit from some original thinking and deep analysis on the subject. Not much of that here, however. You could get the level of treatment the book offers from a perusal of newspaper and magazine articles over the past couple of years.

What's amazing is that none of Alsop's sources are disclosed. There is no bibliography, no footnotes disclosing where often highly specific results of corporate rankings and opinion polls should be backed up with authorities. What about the question of the reputation of an author, and his publisher, for solid research and scholarship?

About time someone spoke about reputation!!!.......2004-06-09

Alsop is a senior reporter for the Wall Street Journal and I have read many of his stories over the years. I am glad that someone of his caliber has addressed the issue of corporate reputaion at a time when big business ranks about equal to politicians in public perception. Even the mafia is thought to be less sleazy!!

Alsop starts with a basic, uncontestable premise: A corporation's reputation is one of its most valuable assets. This determines how much slack a cynical public will cut it when things start to go wrong. Other assets - such as those that show up on the balance sheet - are carefully measured, tracked and managed. Reputations are not. Not even by so-called excellently managed companies.

Next Alsop lays out various 'laws' to help a company manage its reputation. The first two just talk about how important it is and how important it is to measure it. Then he becomes much more interesting as he starts laying out what a company should do build and maintain a sterling reputation.

He stresses how important it is for a company to 'live' its values and ethics and why being defensive is actually offensive. These could be bromides. What gives them value are Alsop's anecdotes drawn from a lifetime of reporting on business. These well selected stories not only illustrate his points, they also show the reader how to implement his ideas in their own situation. And there are hundreds os such stories.

For example, Alsop talks about how being socially responsible can be an important component of a sterling reputation. And he relates how Timberland does it with a range of initiatives from monitoring labor practices at its contractors' overseas factories to giving its employess the opportunity to do community service on company time. And he doesn't stop there. He tells what dozens of other companies do from Johnson & Johnson to Paul Newman's food company.

These stories and examples are, by far, the best part of the book. This is where the value resides and it is not at all difficult to take each of these examples and suitably modify it to use in your situation.

An excellent book. My one quibble is a philosophical one. I think Alsop is too easy on companies like Altria - the former Phillip Morris. Does having an exemplary ethics code with lots of employee input compensate for the fact that its core product kills when used as intended? You make up your mind on that one. Alsop shows how Altria does a lot of things right in terms of global cultural sensitivity but I would simply not have used such an example.

Stategic Insight into Managing Corporate Reputation.......2004-06-03

"The 18 Immutable Laws of Corporate Reputation" (18 Laws) draws an up-to-date roadmap for (1)establishing a good corporate reputation, (2)maintaining that reputation and (3)repairing a damaged corporate reputation. Starting with the premise that a good reputation is a corporation's most priceless asset, writer Ronald Alsop presents mini case-studies of "lessons learned" from the crises faced by companies and organizations such as Johnson & Johnson, Merrill Lynch, Philip Morris (Altria), and the Roman Catholic Church to explore the benefits of a good reputation, the consequences of a bad reputation and ways to protect good reputations and fix bad ones.

While sticking mostly to the main highways of stategy development and avoiding the gritty back roads of tactical decision making, 18 Laws provides important insights into key principles and strategies for building, maintaining, and fixing corporate reputations. Though it lacks turn-by-turn directions and employs clichés with surprising frequency, this well-researched, well-organized and clearly-written business book is a worthwhile addition to the personal, corporate or PR agency library. C-level executives and corporate communications professionals can benefit in perusing the 18 laws in preparation for the next inevitable corporate crisis or as a strategic reference manual for use as the crisis unfolds.

A Textbook for Communications Professionals.......2004-05-03

I found this book highly readable, balanced and full of useful information. It should become a textbook for people in the communications field and for senior executives.

The book is structured so well, with the best practices of companies clearly explained. The author is feisty in his assessment of reputation blunders and shortcomings, but he always turns them into instructive lessons.

Mr. Alsop vividly illustrates each law with detailed examples. I especially enjoyed learning about companies' tactics for dealing with Internet rumors, Merrill Lynch's crisis-management strategies, and the inside story of Philip Morris's name change.

There are also many rankings of companies with the best and worst reputations. And the author has written entertaining short pieces for some of the chapters about famous corporate apologies, the IBM Hall of Shame, and a corporate name change quiz.

Given the state of corporate America's reputation, this book should have a long shelf life.

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