Ottmar Mergenthaler: The Man and His Machine : A Biographical Appreciation of the Inventor on His Centennial

Book Description

Ottmar Mergenthaler is considered one of America's greatest inventors. The German immigrant revolutionized the printing and publishing industry with the invention of an automatic typesetting machine which became known as the Linotype. This remarkable machine made it possible to eliminate the laborious hand setting of lead type by allowing one Linotype operator to do the work of a half-dozen typographers.

This compelling work chronicles Mergenthaler's struggles to get his invention accepted, and his battles with the typographical unions and with his financiers.

Book Description

Questioning the assumptions that govern our culture, this book focuses on one medium-the movies. In particular, it examines how movies are packaged, distributed, and promoted, exposing industry secrets such as how Miramax often buys distribution rights to movies it then fails to distribute, presumably to make sure its competitors don't get them. The book shows, for the first time, how the corporate ownership of movie theaters defies antitrust laws and precedents stretching back over 50 years. While the average American can usually find a book or record that has not been endorsed by the mainstream media, when it comes to movies, consumers are powerless against what Rosenbaum calls "the media-industrial complex."

Customer Reviews:

must have if you are passionate about film.......2004-07-28

Rosenbaum's book is simply a great introductory read into the failures of how the American audience, and the distributors of cinema in the States are leading to a 'possible' decline in quality of film being seen in the United States. Rosenbuam points to America as being the leader and champion of exported culture (regardless if this a good thing or not is not the point), and the cause of a dumbing down of cinema all over the world, as great works get pushed to the side seemingly never meant to be appreciated.

One of the best things that comes across in the book is Rosenbaum's passion. Simply put he waxes poeticaly talking back to the days of his past and finding films on his own, be it an odd trek to see John Carpenters 'The Thing', or about his education with film in his years in Paris, or his insight about how the festival of Cannes has chaned, to his reaction of a critic during the first hour of a seven hour film masterpiece (the name right now escapes me and I don't have the book with me to quote the name it starts with an 'S'). The other side is filled with not so much venom as 'concern' if I could say with the concept of how America is not getting the film education and greatness it deserves.

He highlights this in several ways, such as his dicussions about Miramax (He points out that if Miramax gets a film chances of you seeing it are even LESS than if they didn't, and if you do chances are it's going to be chopped/altered in someway), the myth of independent film (he points out that Sundance and Telluride is just a cover and is in no way an independent showcase), and how most film critics are more in-debt to their papers and editors who call the shots (he highlights that with one critic as his popularity grew his word count and column got less real-estate space).

It's an absolutlely FASCINATING look at cinema and the state that it is heading in. This is a MUST have film book if you are passionate about film.

Some criticism's of the book though come from some of Rosenbaums overly-long wordy sentences, and his use of examples with films that can be for the most part with many first time readers, unknown. When he starts using films that he has seen for his arguments chances are you are not going to guess where he is coming from due to the fact you haven't seen the films yourself. But he certainly does point you in some interesting directions. However, with the films he does point out that you may know you get exactly where he is coming from.

Secondly, even though the book is merely only 4 years old, it is a little dated. Rosenbaum likes to bring up the obscurity of director Ozu (one of my personal favs) as a problem, however there has lately been a renaisance of his work and he is already starting to become quite a well known name (Criterion DVD releases are already proving that, and a recent tribute festival that I saw that came through DC).

Even with all that said, the book is a fascinating insight into the realm of how cinema is marketed and distributed to the mass American public. Rosenbaum throws in examples of dumbed down culture, coroporate marketing, distributor strangleholding and numerous other things that will keep you intrigued about the workings of the film process.

Great book, ecspecialy if you are a film nut like myself.

Movie Wars.......2004-01-11

Rosenbaum's book is an incisive critique of the social and industrial forces that circumscribe the American movie landscape. In his view, the major (and major "independent") studios, film festivals, and the US critical establishment are all part of a terrible process that relegates exciting new films (esp foreign films) to virtual non-existence, while lavishing attention on big budget, heavily-promoted American films of (often) dubious artistry. There is nothing at all surprising about this insight; what makes "Movie Wars" compelling is less the sophistication of his analysis (although his chapter on Orson Welles as "ideological challenge" is eloquent and credible), than the depth of his anger (at lazy critics, at cowardly and/or sinister studio execs, at compliant festival promoters, etc.) and the strength of his commitment to movies as art. Rosenbaum's book is full of outrage--which might partly account for the other Amazon reviewer's wariness about his critical tone--but, truly, the book is anything but cynical. Its polemic is distinctly at the service of promoting a kind of open-mindedness about the cinema and its contemporary achievements and possibilities. It is easy, Rosenbaum suggests, to claim (as many critics do, year after year) that movies are terrible these days, if your only experience of the state of the art is what is playing at the multi-plex. Rosenbaum's excitement about Taiwanese, African, and Iranian directors, his celebration of overlooked or misunderstood American auteurs like Joe Dante and Orson Welles, and his provocative alternate list of the Top 100 films of All Time--a withering riposte to AFI's blandly conservative choices--give the book a kind of moral center (while also offering the reader copious numbers of lesser-known films to look out for). While Rosenbaum's jibes at Miramax seemed to me almost de rigeur (whether or not warranted), there were many other moments in the book when I felt almost exhultant that a critic operating more or less in the mainstream of American film journalism would take such risks with what is usually perceived as "consensus" public opinion--e.g., in the aforementioned assault on AFI. Although his writing never achieves the buoyancy of Pauline Kael's at her best, he has her verve and frequently her insight, and this volume can hold its own with her similar, epochal rants for the New Yorker ("Why are movies so bad? The Numbers," "Are Movies Falling to Pieces," etc.).

I'm biased, but hear me out.......2003-10-29

I don't understand critics. I understand people getting on to websites like these and briefly stating their opinions on art, but I have trouble understanding how having an opinion could be a paying job. Maybe I'm condemning too quickly, but I just don't have any respect for self appointed defenders of good taste. This book is great for the facts, horrible for the overall attitude. I was assigned the book as required reading for a movie class, otherwise I never would have touched it. There a lot of interesting facts and bits of history in the book, like which companies own which studios and some lovely dirt on the MPAA and blacklisting. It was great to see some good old muckracking about one of the filthiest industries around. What I didn't like was the incredibbly arrogant attitudes of the author, a film critic. You can't dictate people's taste. Exposure to new ideas can definately expand your tastes but you aren't guranteed to like it. There are plenty of people who can be exposed to foreign movies and underground cinema and will still regard it as crap and go see the latest Spielberg movie. I would personally regard these people with fear and suspicion, but I wouldn't write a book telling them how ignorant they are. Honestly, in this day and age, if you want to improve the state of cinema, its quite possible for you to make a movie on your own. We have digital cameras, editing software and no real need for a huge budget. It is always better to do something your own way than to complain about how other people run their lives and make their art. My advice is skim through the facts, and tune out the author.

Thank God for Jonathan Rosenbaum.......2002-10-21

I'm going to be short because others have done him justice already. At last someone has put together a thorough, cogent, and richly illustrated argument explaining why Hollywood studios have been so bad for the movies in recent years.

One of Rosenbaum's main themes is that Hollywood isn't even "giving the people what they want." The hare-brained garbage the big studios regularly produce is the product of a completely self-contained, self-referential industry that is driven by marketing ("push" in business terminology) far more than it is driven by customer demand (i.e., "pull."). One of my favorite examples is Rosenbaum's discussion of the extraordinary success of Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, a massive box office success that many, if not most, people thought was just extraordinarily bad. Rosenbaum goes into great detail about how marketing deals ensured the extraordinary financial success and long movie house runs of this almost complete loser.

In a wonderfully ironic support of Rosenbaum's thesis, try typing "movie wars" into [a bookeseller's] search engine. At least when I tried it (10/20/02), the first roughly 50 books the search engine returns are collateral materials for Star Wars, none of whose titles contain the phrase "movie wars." Hollywood marketing strikes again as thoughtful criticism is, as usual, pushed into obscurity.

The agony of a real movie critic.......2002-04-22

Most movies out on the market are made for people who don't watch a lot of movies. Jonathan Rosenbaum's book is his frustration over two things; the lack of foreign films in the United States and the anti-intellectualism of this culture. He is a critic for the Chicago Reader who writes the longest, most complicated reviews for movies that you'll ever see. This is both a positive and a negative style. Positive in a sense it shows he cares for films and works hard to find the overall truth in them. Negative in a sense that very few people would care for what he has to say. Movies, for the most part, are an escape for most people. A chance to forget about life for a little while. That is why awful action movies are constantly on top of the box office. Films are an artform, but for the most part, they are an industry, a business. Mr. Rosenbaum feels there is a lack of foreign films in the United States. This is very true, but it is a problem a very small minority care about. Exposing the American public to more foreign movies might be good, but who will ulitmately watch them and take them seriously? Another segment of the book deals with his attack on the AFI and their '100 Greatest Movies'. This "chapter" can also be found on his website. Once again, only a real movie critic could argue with such a list. How many people have enough time on their hands to evaluate a 2 dozen or even a dozen movies, let alone 100!! He makes his own seperate lists of '100 Greatest'. The big problem with this list is that most people have never even heard of most of these titles. And I'll guarantee most people will have a hard time finding them. Mr. Rosenbaum has made some strong points, and this is a very enjoyable book that won't take long to read. But ultimately, Mr. Rosenbaum is shaking his fists into the wind. The problem he is concerned with is a luxury problem. Most people don't have that luxury to begin with.

Movie Wars: How Hollywood and the Media Conspire to Limit What Films We Can See.(Review): An article from: Cineaste

Average customer rating:

Movie Wars: How Hollywood and the Media Conspire to Limit What Films We Can See.(Review): An article from: Cineaste
James Monaco
Manufacturer: Cineaste Publishers, Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Performing Arts | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0008IECY4
Release Date: 2005-07-28

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Cineaste, published by Cineaste Publishers, Inc. on September 22, 2001. The length of the article is 1379 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Movie Wars: How Hollywood and the Media Conspire to Limit What Films We Can See.(Review)
Author: James Monaco
Publication: Cineaste (Magazine/Journal)
Date: September 22, 2001
Publisher: Cineaste Publishers, Inc.
Volume: 26 Issue: 4 Page: 90

Article Type: Book Review

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

Offers a full-bodied approach to the study of culture in which each sense serves as a potent register of meaning

Customer Reviews:

A little small.......2000-04-30

A rather thin book with a lot of repeating of information. This sourcebook could have been written into a section of another sourcebook (it was that lacking in information). It would have been better to buy on of the larger (better written) Clan book. Too late.

These books are great!.......1998-07-15

This is an excelent book for information on clan Jade Falcon. But I'm more of a Wolf person so I gave it 4 stars.

Definitely a requirement for learning about the Jade Falcons.......1996-12-28

It is an excellent book, providing detailed information an all major aspects of Clan Jade Falcon. Any player interested in the Clans, particularly Clan Jade Falcon, should get this book to enrich the gameplay experience

Book Description

The official self-study test preparation guide for the Cisco CCNA ICND exam 640-811

Master CCNA ICND exam topics, including:

LAN switching concepts
STP, VLANs, and trunking
IP addressing and subnetting
RIP, IGRP, EIGRP, OSPF, and static route configuration
VLSM support and route summarization
CIDR and NAT
Point-to-point leased line implementation
ISDN and Dial-on-Demand Routing (DDR)
Frame Relay configuration
IP Access Control List (ACL) security

CCNA ICND Exam Certification Guide is a best-of-breed Cisco® exam study guide that has been completely updated to focus specifically on the objectives for the CCNA ICND exam. Senior instructor and best-selling author Wendell Odom shares preparation hints and test-taking tips to help you identify areas of weakness and improve both your conceptual and hands-on knowledge. This new edition is organized in a modular fashion, segmenting larger chapters into smaller, more easily digestible components. Material is presented in a concise manner, focusing on increasing your retention of exam topics.

CCNA ICND Exam Certification Guide presents you with an organized test preparation routine through the use of proven series elements and techniques. “Do I Know This Already?” quizzes open each chapter and allow you to decide how much time you need to spend on each section. Chapter subject lists and Foundation Summary tables make referencing easy and give you a quick refresher whenever you need it. Challenging chapter-ending review questions help you assess your knowledge and reinforce key concepts. Scenario-based exercises help you think about exam objectives in real-world situations, thus increasing recall during exam time.

The companion CD-ROM contains a powerful new testing engine that allows you to focus on individual topic areas or take complete, timed exams from ICND and unified CCNA test banks. The assessment engine also tracks your performance and provides feedback on a module-by-module basis, presenting question-by-question remediation to the text and laying out a complete study plan for review. The CD-ROM also includes a wealth of hands-on practice exercises and a copy of the Boson NetSim™ for CCNA ICND, Learning Edition, network simulation software that allows you to practice your hands-on skills in a virtual lab environment that has been customized for the labs in the book. The supporting website keeps you fully informed of any exam changes.

Well-regarded for its level of detail, assessment features, and challenging review questions and hands-on exercises, this book helps you master the concepts and techniques that will enable you to succeed on the exam the first time.

CCNA ICND Exam Certification Guide is part of a recommended study program from Cisco Systems® that includes simulation and hands-on training from authorized Cisco Learning Partners and self-study products from Cisco Press. To find out more about instructor-led, e-learning, and hands-on instruction offered by authorized Cisco Learning Partners worldwide, please visit www.cisco.com/go/authorizedtraining.

Companion CD-ROM

The CD-ROM contains more than 400 practice questions for the ICND, INTRO, and CCNA exams, including simulation-based questions. Also contains hands-on exercises and a customized copy of the NetSim LE network simulation software.

CD-ROM test engine powered by www.boson.com. Boson Software is a Cisco Learning Partner.

This volume is part of the Exam Certification Guide Series from Cisco Press®. Books in this series provide officially developed exam preparation materials that offer assessment, review, and practice to help Cisco Career Certification candidates identify weaknesses, concentrate their study efforts, and enhance their confidence as exam day nears.

Customer Reviews:

Great study tool for the ICND.......2007-05-31

I purchased this book after failing the ICND when I studied with the Sybex CCNA guide. I highly recommend the Sybex book if you are a networking newcomer. It explains everything in easier terms and does a great job of prepping for the INTRO. I would follow up Sybex with this study guide. After hitting the highlights of this book and using the priorities it sets I passed the ICND.

Also, I wouldn't study ISDN as heavily. I wasn't asked a single ISDN question on either ICND exam. I might have been lucky or Cisco is phasing ISDN out of the exam because it is going out of date.

Overall, this is a good way to pass the ICND.

PERFECT TO DO DE CCNA CERTIFICATION EXAM.......2007-01-20

IT IS THE GOODEST BUY I DID FOR MY PROFESSION. IT'S HELPING ME TO STUDY FOR THE CCNA CERTIFICATION EXAM

Fantastic book for CCNA preparation.......2006-12-14

Wendell Odom did a fantastic job explaining the various aspects of Cisco networking. The book was easy to read and he produced some very creative ideas to clarify some of the tougher material. This book is an excellent source on OSPF, especially the commands. When I took the CCNA exam, I was shocked at how inline the material was compared to the actual exam. The test questions in the book are an excellent source to judge your understanding of the material; however, the exam questions you receive on test day will be much more difficult. If you are able to fully understand what was discussed in the book, you will have no trouble passing the exam. Therefore, I strongly believe that this book provides more than enough information to pass the exam.

Good Resource.......2006-11-29

I think the author did a good job of explaining the topics at the basic level, and he gave just enough information to make a successful CCNA. I liked how he goes over how Cisco devices do different things. If you want to get CCNA, this book is probably the best. I looked at a number of books and frankly the ones that give you a summary do not do justice to candidate, the material, and they are not even good for just passing the exam. You need to understand this stuff and the author does a good job. He highlighed the important sections of the show commands and configurations and he explained them in the following text. Something that you can not find on the Cisco documents ( as much as I like the way they documented everything. )

More than Enough covered to pass CCNA.......2006-11-09

First of all, I assume you want to opt for the single CCNA test instead of taking the separete INTRO/ICND tests (And I certainly encourage you to do so!). This assumption is important because in the single CCNA test you will NEVER need to memorize useless tiny details (e.g., "What is the RFC# defining ICMP?") that might appear in the INTRO test; instead, you definitely have to be able to tell what the right implementation is in a given scenario where something is not working right. This book does have all you need - Yes, read this book and you are exposed to everything you need! Someone who mentioned poor OSPF coverage by the book is definitely wrong. Please make sure you get a copy that says "2005 update included." For some reason, I still see the outdated copies of Cisco press books out there.

[PROS]
Excellent coverage of all major topics, especially (1) frame relay, (2) NAT, (3) Different behaviors of default routing depending on classfull/classless routings, (4) supernetting, etc.
[CONS]
Too much coverage in fact - you will never see RSTP in the actual exam, for example, so skip it completely. Also don't bother memorizing RFC#s, ITU#s, etc. even when Odom says you should memorize them (Such a comment in the book is for those who take the separate exams - certainly not for the single CCNA test).

Two pieces of advice that are probably the most important things of all: (1) No hands on experience? Definitely buy a simulator program! I recommend Bosom though it has some *obvious* bugs that won't slow you down. SemSim is a joke, fyi. (2) The only test engine you ever need is pass4sure (Don't even try one that comes with this book). Do some research online until you find it. Good luck!

CCNA ICND; Exam Certification Guide (Barnes

Average customer rating:

CCNA ICND; Exam Certification Guide (Barnes
n/a
Manufacturer: Cisco Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: 1587200961

Interconnecting Cisco Network Devices (ICND v2.1) -- CCNATM Certification Guide - - Includes Test Prep to develop your personal study plan. The insider's Guide to CCNA Certification Exams 640-801 & 640-811

Average customer rating:

Cisco

Interconnecting Cisco Network Devices (ICND v2.1) -- CCNATM Certification Guide - - Includes Test Prep to develop your personal study plan. The insider's Guide to CCNA Certification Exams 640-801 & 640-811

Manufacturer: Westnet Learning
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000FI7HPS

Product Description

This Cisco AUTHORIZED certification study guide helps you master all learning objective topics on the CCNA ICND exam 640-811, including: Switching concepts Spanning Tree Protocol (STP), VLANs, and trunking IP addressing and subnetting RIP, IGRP, EIGRP, OSPF, and static route configuration Variable-length subnet masking (VLSM) support and route summarization Classless Interdomain Routing (CIDR) and Network Address Translation (NAT) Point-to-point leased line implementation ISDN and Dial-on-Demand Routing (DDR) Frame Relay configuration IP Access Control List (ACL) security The WestNet CCNA ICND Exam Certification Guide is a best-of-breed Cisco-verified exam study guide that has been completely updated to focus specifically on the objectives for the new CCNA ICND exam. The WestNet CCNA ICND Exam Certification Guide presents you with an organized test preparation routine through the use of sound instructional design techniques. Activities and review questions close each module and help you focus on the areas where you may need to spend more time. Module overviews and summaries make referencing easy and give you a quick refresher whenever you need it. Challenging module-ending review questions help you assess your knowledge and reinforce key concepts. In addition, the eRouter, sold separately, is designed to reinforce and illustrate concepts presented throughout the textbook. Renowned for its level of detail, assessment features, and challenging review questions and hands-on exercises, this course helps you master the concepts and techniques that will enable you to succeed on the exam. This CCNA ICND Exam Certification Guide is part of a recommended study program that includes simulation and hands-on training from authorized Cisco Learning Partners and self-study products.

Customer Reviews:

Cisco.......2006-04-26

This Cisco AUTHORIZED certification study guide helps you master all learning objective topics on the CCNA ICND exam 640-811, including:
Switching concepts
Spanning Tree Protocol (STP), VLANs, and trunking
IP addressing and subnetting
RIP, IGRP, EIGRP, OSPF, and static route configuration
Variable-length subnet masking (VLSM) support and route summarization
Classless Interdomain Routing (CIDR) and Network Address Translation (NAT)
Point-to-point leased line implementation
ISDN and Dial-on-Demand Routing (DDR)
Frame Relay configuration
IP Access Control List (ACL) security
The WestNet CCNA ICND Exam Certification Guide is a best-of-breed Cisco-verified exam study guide that has been completely updated to focus specifically on the objectives for the new CCNA ICND exam.

The WestNet CCNA ICND Exam Certification Guide presents you with an organized test preparation routine through the use of sound instructional design techniques. Activities and review questions close each module and help you focus on the areas where you may need to spend more time. Module overviews and summaries make referencing easy and give you a quick refresher whenever you need it. Challenging module-ending review questions help you assess your knowledge and reinforce key concepts.

In addition, the eRouter, sold separately, is designed to reinforce and illustrate concepts presented throughout the textbook.

Renowned for its level of detail, assessment features, and challenging review questions and hands-on exercises, this course helps you master the concepts and techniques that will enable you to succeed on the exam.

This CCNA ICND Exam Certification Guide is part of a recommended study program that includes simulation and hands-on training from authorized Cisco Learning Partners and self-study products.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books