The Key to the Badge

Book Description

David Bray's The Key To The Badge: A Guide To Firefighter Employment In The Commonwealth Of Massachusetts is the book firefighter candidates need to navigate the complex hiring and testing practices of over 340 fire departments in Massachusetts. This book is about becoming a firefighter, and empowering those who are most qualified for the job. Bray has tackled the aspects of getting hired and distills down the most important tips and strategies. Readers will learn detailed information on which departments have Residency Requirements, Preferences and who will be hiring. The Key To The Badge is a necessity for those who will be taking the State's Firefighter Exam.

Pennant key-indexed study guide to Stephen Crane's The red badge of courage

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Pennant key-indexed study guide to Stephen Crane's The red badge of courage
David Leeb
Manufacturer: Educational Research Associates, Ind. of America
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B0007EFKBI

The Red Badge of Courage (Thornes Classic Novels)

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The Red Badge of Courage
The War in the Eyes of the Union
Red Badge of Courage
The Red Badge of Manhood
Black and Blue Badge

The Red Badge of Courage (Thornes Classic Novels)
Stephen Crane
Manufacturer: Trans-Atlantic Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0748724230

Book Description

This classic novel of the American Civil War evokes the horrors of battle and the psychology of fear as it recounts the experience of a young, untried Union Army volunteer. Henry Fleming longs to prove himself by winning the "red badge beyond all doubt. But when he finally does come under fire, he learns the grim truth about war's "glory" and the real meaning of bravery.

Although he now makes his home in Memphis, Tennessee, Shelby Foote comes from a long line of Mississippians. He is the author of six novels -- Tournament; Follow Me Down; Love in a Dry Season; Shiloh; Jordan County; and September, September -- and a three-volume narrative of the Civil War. He has been awarded three Guggenheim fellowships.

The Red Badge of Courage is also available from Random House as an unabridged Modern Library book.

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First published in 1895, America's greatest novel of the Civil War was written before 21-year-old Stephen Crane had "smelled even the powder of a sham battle." But this powerful psychological study of a young soldier's struggle with the horrors, both within and without, that war strikes the reader with its undeniable realism and with its masterful descriptions of the moment-by-moment riot of emotions felt by me under fire. Ernest Hemingway called the novel an American classic, and Crane's genius is as much apparent in his sharp, colorful prose as in his ironic portrayal of an episode of war so intense, so immediate, so real that the terror of battle becomes our own ... in a masterpiece so unique that many believe modern American fiction began with Stephen Crane.

Customer Reviews:

The Red Badge of Courage.......2007-08-25

I am very satisfied with the Book and it's condition. Excellent price. The order was processed quickly and delivered fast. I was kept informed of the Status of the order and shipment. Excellent Seller and smooth transaction.

The War in the Eyes of the Union.......2007-03-28

The Red Badge of courage is a book that actually tells about how people felt about the Civil war.It tells of their family's discomfort of their decision. It is a book that tells a how a young soldeir fights in the war. Many die around this young boy as he goes through the heart of battle. The book has many exiting twists that mostly are not predictible from the start of the page. Will the young soldier die, or will he live? You will only know if you read the exiting story of Henry Flemming in The Red Badge of Courage.

Red Badge of Courage.......2007-01-13

Got the book quickly - and in good shape - Thank you

The Red Badge of Manhood.......2007-01-08

The Red Badge of Courage is a classic American novel about a boy, who is changed into a man during his experiences in the Civil War. The book does a good job of showing this progression from start to end. In the beginning the protagonist, Henry Fleming, is a scared, young, and inexperienced soldier, who fears that he will run from his first battle. However, at the end of the novel, Henry and his friend Wilson lead the regiment to victory over the rebels.

The thing that Crane does very well in his book is to make a very realistic environment. The story is set in the country, which has many forests, rivers, and fields. The soldiers in the story must overcome these obstacles as they fight the enemy. Also, Crane uses rural dialect to add more depth to conversations that the soldiers have amongst themselves. Flashbacks are used in this novel to recall experiences in Henry's past. For example, Henry has a flashback in the beginning chapter of the novel that tells readers why Henry has enlisted in the army.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good war novel, and is in high school, or older. However, even if you don't like war stories, you might still enjoy this book.

Black and Blue Badge .......2006-12-21

Stephen Crane's Red Badge of Courage is considered an epic American novel. I for one, am not really sure why. It is OK, but compared to the best of Hemingway, Roth, Heller, etc. it is like comparing backyard badmitton with your nephew to the NFL.

What is most interesting is how literature has changed in 100+ years. Crane wrote this thing as a magazine serialization, which does not exist anymore to my knowledge. Red Badge is also full of wind-bag characters who never get to the point, and the ending is rather ambivalent. The protagonist does not really have a name, he is a coward, and there is no love interest except his mother, who only appears on the first 10 pages.

Other than that, this thing is OK. Crane was too young to have been in the Civil War, so to his credit he did impeccable and thorough research with veterans, mostly conducted in saloons. Crane personally was a disaster, his life was not much longer than this novel.

But seriously, read the Red Badge if you did not do so in high school. The descriptions of the battles, especially the confusion, chaos, inability to establish objectives, focus, or leadership, is not what is portrayed in John Wayne movies. The protagonist is very unsure about his future and his role in the war; this is a great theme that Crane did not develop fully in this tiny book. But there is great insight into why the men fought, what motivated them, and how they were inspired to take on impossible, dangerous, and mindless tasks.

Stephen Crane, "Red Badge of Courage" (York Notes)

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Stephen Crane, "Red Badge of Courage" (York Notes)
Wilson F. Engel
Manufacturer: Longman
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0582782570

You've come a long way, badges. (Cards: The Key to the Future; special access control supplement): An article from: Security Management

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You've come a long way, badges. (Cards: The Key to the Future; special access control supplement): An article from: Security Management
Linda Verretto
Manufacturer: American Society for Industrial Security
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B00091WNIM
Release Date: 2005-07-28

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Security Management, published by American Society for Industrial Security on November 1, 1990. The length of the article is 1858 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: You've come a long way, badges. (Cards: The Key to the Future; special access control supplement)
Author: Linda Verretto
Publication: Security Management (Refereed)
Date: November 1, 1990
Publisher: American Society for Industrial Security
Volume: v34 Issue: n11 Page: p32A(2)

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Book Description

"Fascinating, lively, well-documented, and challenging....Both timely and necessary....An ideal resource for professionals who work with delayed children. It is so readable, it will also be valued by parents of these children." --Lee Combrinck-Graham, M.D.
In matters of education, are all children created equal? Despite reforms that champion the rights of handicapped youngsters, are we really punishing such children with the very systems that are supposed to help them?
Joan Goodman's bold and controversial book asks what we are accomplishing in early intervention programs that attempt to accelerate development in delayed young children. She questions the value of such programs on educational, psychological, and moral grounds, suggesting that in pressuring these children to perform more, and sooner, we undermine their capacity for independent development and deprive them of the freedom we insist upon for the nondelayed. Goodman argues that we need a more tolerant, less directive model of instruction in which the aim is to support the child's natural and spontaneous, albeit slow, development and to stimulate individual processes of discovery and self-expression. The elements of this more supportive model are then described in detail.
Raising fundamental questions about our ambitions for children and how we fulfill them, this lively and provocative book is bound to stir controversy. It is especially timely as early intervention programs rapidly gear up to serve all handicapped children from ages 0 to 5.

Customer Reviews:

Excellent Book in the right hands........2006-08-23

And *parents* are the right hands. We have to live with and support our children, and in the cases of the developmental disabled, we are talking about a lifetime. Parents get the final say because we love our children and see them in the real world daily.
As Ms. Goodman notes, 'only an extraordinarily ingeneous teacher can be child-directed and flexible, yet conform to an IEP law.' She also notes that The 'cultivated eye' of educationists is trained by a schoolish set of standards about what is 'good.' It is not surprising that parents would approve of this book.

Until we adopted her, our own disabled child was in just such a program and interventionist system such as Ms. Goodman describes unfavourably- they thought it more important that she do tasks that were to her both useless and meaningless- count by rote, do a simple puzzle, sort objects by shape, identify pictures of matching socks.

The retarded, especially the severely retarded, as our daughter, do not transfer what they learn in one arena to another- matching photographs of socks means little to my daughter, and it doesn't help her figure out how to match real socks. She can't talk and she is developmentally about two- counting by rote was not only inappropriate for her developmentally, it is meaningless to a child who will never be able to live without constant care. Setting the table (which we taught her), dressing herself, choosing matching shoes, playing pat-a-cake, singing simple songs, these were things that meant more to her and had more value to her.

This book, along with Jane Healy's book about your child's developing mind, is an excellent guide to natural learning that respect the child as a person.

Dangerous Information in the Wrong Hands.......2001-06-03

This book was brought to my attention by a parent of a young child with significant special needs. As the Early Childhood Coordinator responsible for making recommendations to parents, I was eager to acquire this book. I read it with many mis-givings. Yes, there are some accuracies regarding our current programming options for serving these young children. However, in my set of circumstances, this book led to a family rejecting all services for a very needy young lady. This book must be read in context with others. A balanced view needs to be presented.

Essential reading.......1999-08-31

Goodman's detailed observations of "early intervention" projects and her thoughtful and historically-informed analysis suggest powerfully that the current policy of trying to accelerate "delayed" children in order to keep up with their non-disabled peers, in fact prevents them from learning and exploring at their own pace. She painstakingly documents the way in which unrealistic expectations and demands lead to a situation in which almost continual prompting, directing, "cheating" on behalf of children, and even straightfoward physical manipulation are used to get children to "go through the motions" of a "normal" schedule, regardless of their incomprehension or lack of interest in it. A subtle, restrained book which quietly demolishes educational orthodoxy on this topic.

the best philosophy i've read on this subject.......1999-01-24

The book contends that the current process of force feeding specific developemental goals into children who are already having a hard time meshing into our fast paced society, may do more harm than good. I agree with the general theory that true learning can only be acquired through individual discovery, trail and error, rather than repeated drilling and very little if any chance for exploration. My only question is WHERE does this scenario exist for our handicapped children???

Book Description

The definitive guide to ISO 9000 implementation. At last: the ISO 9000 quality standards, what they mean and how to use them--all in one complete, authoritative guide! The Third Edition of the ISO 9000 Handbook gives you everything you need to know about the ISO 9000 series of international standards, implementation and quality systems registration. Robert W. Peach and a team of top experts walk you step-by-step through such issues as product liability, conformity assessment, registrar accrediation, auditing--all the critical information you need to know to implement and profit from ISO 9000. You also get up-to-the minute details on emerging standards for EMS--an in-depth comparison of ISO 9000 quality requirements, Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award Guidelines and Deming/SPC-based TQM practice--detailed case studies of ISO 9000 initiatives in chemical, computer, steel, auto and other industries--and much, much more.

Customer Reviews:

Terrific Resource!.......2002-12-17

This wonderful fourth edition of this classic ISO 9000 resource was released in late 2002. The ISO 9000 Handbook Fourth Edition from Robert Peach contains all new content on the most recent revisions to ISO 9000 and includes a bonus CD-ROM containing transition guidance from each of QSU Publishing's Big Ten Registrars of North America along with the verbatim text of ISO 9000:2000, ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 9004:2000. This is a very good deal considering that the standards alone, if purchased separately, cost more than the price of the fourth edition Handbook. It is also important to specify that you want The ISO 9000 Handbook Fourth Edition Edited by Robert Peach as there are several similar-sounding titles out there.

Great Desktop Aid for Implementors.......1999-10-31

Immensely useful to me as a implementor, thanks to the various subject matter experts that have contributed their knowledge. Gave me a good perspective on QS 9000.

Nice printing but the Publisher skimped on bookbinding.......1999-09-29

The Publisher chose a hardbound book with gold foil stamping on the spine only with a nice UV coated dust jacket. The paper is a nice 90 lb enamel stock. But the publisher skimped on the book binding. On a two and 1/4 inch thick book the Publisher chose not to sew the binding. The Publisher chose not to burst-bind either. The binding is milled clean then a perfect bound notch was used with PUR glue. The book doesn't even have headbands which would have cost 1/10th of a cent per book! Why choose such nice printing and then skimp on the most important part, the binding? The binding is all right. The problem is that the price is not commensurate with the quality of the binding. McGraw-Hill priced this book like a text book where there is only a limited market and a limited time window the Publisher can sell the book. This is not the case with this title. The Publisher should engage in market segmentation pricing tactics that doesn't consider it's customers merely students with no choice in the purchase. I have only read the first 30 pages. I will review content when I'm done. Thanks Dave C.

It doesn't provide me much help in understanding this topic........1999-09-15

Initially I didn't have any understanding on ISO 9000 and looking for a reference. I purchased this book and realized that it didn't provide much in understanding the core of this topic. However, it does mention clearly the histroy and development of this quality standard.

A one stop ISO 9000 education!.......1998-07-03

Before reading this book I literally knew nothing about ISO 9000. The book takes you through the ISO process step by step from the history of ISO 9000 to registration. Robert Peach teaches you how to intergrate the ISO system into your various processes and create a quality management system.

A must read for all Management Representatives charged with implementing the ISO 9000 Quality Standard.

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Strategic Management: A Focus on Process
Samuel C. Certo , and J. Paul Peter
Manufacturer: Irwin Professional Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0256141207

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Strategic Management: A Focus on Process
Samuel C.; Peter, J. Paul Certo
Manufacturer: Irwin Professional Publishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OQ4VK0

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Strategic Management: A Focus on Process (Mcgraw Hill Series in Management)
Samuel C.; Peter, J. Paul Certo
Manufacturer: Mcgraw-Hill College
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OFSA1W

Book Description

“West's Encyclopedia of American Law” is 13 volumes and 5,000 entries of comprehensive information on the fascinating American Legal System and its components. Covering historical and current terms, concepts, events, movements, cases, and persons significant to U.S law, West’s has been written, updated, and reviewed by lawyers and professors with the everyday user in mind. Everyone from the layperson hooked on the weekly TV courtroom procedural to the serious student can find such valuable information as brief definitions of legal jargon, exhaustive examinations of courtroom procedure, explanations of complex topics such as civil rights, biographies of standout attorneys, analyses of controversial issues, and transcripts of crucial Supreme Court decisions.

WILSON, THOMAS WOODROW: An entry from Thomson Gale's
<i>West's Encyclopedia of American Law</i>

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WILSON, THOMAS WOODROW: An entry from Thomson Gale's West's Encyclopedia of American Law

Manufacturer: Thomson Gale
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

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Book Description

This is the first book to examine the developing relationship between American business and the U.S. Navy in the mid- to late-nineteenth century. Kurt Hackemer argues that the historical antecedents of the military-industrial complex arose much earlier than once thought, taking shape decades before the development of the new steel navy of the 1880s and adapting as needed to the realities and limitations of the time. Suggesting that the special relationship between the government and the nation's larger steel companies did not suddenly materialize out of thin air, he explains that the Navy saw the need to draw upon prior experience and looked back to its earlier interactions with private contractors and other sophisticated technologies. As the Navy struggled with steam engines in the 1850s, ironclad vessels in the 1860s, the more powerful engines in the 1870s, and steel warships in the 1880s, it found that each technology exceeded the capabilities of its physical plant. As this study indicates, in each case the Navy turned to private contractors out of necessity. Hackemer further argues that although technologies have changed over time, the procedures for dealing with contractors and the relationships that developed between the Navy and private firms show remarkable continuity and a clear evolutionary path.

Amazon.com

"Birthing a book is a lot like birthing a baby," say Kathleen Brehony and Karen Jones. "You've suffered through a long gestation process [but] ...your work, in many ways, has just begun." Their book, Up the Bestseller Lists!, is a basic guide to book promotion. The title may be a bit fantastic (unless you're selected for Oprah's Book Club), but there are many fine ideas for newly (and soon-to-be) published writers here. Brehony and Jones guide you through the entire book-promotion process: selecting titles and cover designs, garnering blurbs, getting your book into stores (and strategically placed once it's there), finding alternative outlets, conducting signings and interviews, having your friends run a guerrilla marketing campaign. There's not a lot new here, but the information is clearly and amiably presented. And there is some gold to be mined. For instance, don't sign your books on the first blank page. "When you're a famous writer," the authors explain, "your autographed copy will be worth a great deal more when it is signed on the page that includes your title and publisher." --Jane Steinberg

Book Description

Most books for potential authors show how to pick subjects, find agents, and connect with a publisher. Veteran authors Kathleen Brehony & Karen Jones explain that writers also need to lead the promotion of their book-either working with a publisher or on their own-to determine whether it will be a bestseller or a bust.

They offer a step-by-step introduction to the fundamentals of book promotion-from getting reviews to setting up bookstore events-with plenty of practical advice and examples of what to expect. It also includes an emphasis on the creative strategies authors can use to make their book a commercial success.

Their unique new approach focuses on the exciting side of getting published-showing authors how to be published both happily and successfully-and have a ton of fun while promoting themselves and their work.

Customer Reviews:

Packed with Information.......2006-05-07

Good chapter on the media. Make sure to update the addresses, phone numbers and contact names. All around full of useable information. Should be a part of the library of do-it-yourself book promoters.
Rene' Jackson RN BSN MS
Co-author with Alberto Righi MD of Death of Mammography
Caveat Press 2006

An enthusiastic, upbeat, and information-packed primer.......2002-01-06

Up the Bestseller Lists!: A Hands-On Guide to Successful Book Promotion is an enthusiastic, upbeat, and information-packed primer for any aspiring author looking to earn a niche on the coveted bestseller lists. Chapters cover everything from getting your book into the bookstore, cyberspace publicity, self-promotion, book signings, print media, contract negotiations, and much, much more. A superbly presented, down-to-earth, "user friendly", basic reference easily accessible to the lay reader, Up the Bestseller Lists! is a "must" for anyone looking to turn a profit on the words they have labored so long and hard to get published.

ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL!!!.......2001-11-12

As a novice writer, but a serious one, I've found and purchased dozens of books on writing. This one, so much more than any of the others, gives the reader (the budding author as well as those who have been successfully published) the nuts and bolts of marketing tactics and promotion....methods to get your published book flying off the shelves and creative ways to make certain it continues to do so.

I think every writer needs to read and refer to this book often. It should be on your shelf next to your basic reference books, your Thesaurus and your best Dictionary.

Its written with a delightful sense of humor - Jones and Brehony are rib-tickling, belly laughing funny in their approach - and it's obvious that their love of writing and support of others is sincere. Casual and "living-room-put-your-feet-up-and-stay a while" friendly, their writing style is warm and easy to understand...but completely thorough and jammed with necessary information you'll need if you follow their down-to-earth advice, including names and addresses of suggested "contacts"

Book Description

Extreme Project Management is an entertaining yet functional look at Project Management. The system is screaming for managers that meet the profile of an Extreme Project Manager (EPM). Extreme Project Management is a methodology, bordering on tactical operations of an ongoing project, which results in the completion of the project ahead of a normal timeline, at the same time adorning and embellishing the status of the Project Manager, in the eyes of the project owner. Truly a win-win situation, where the client gets a tremendous package for the money, and the Project Manager keeps soaring upwards on the career ladder. Shaun Ajani has used the traditional methodology oldies like the Work Breakdown Structure (WBS), Critical Path Method (CPM), and Project Evaluation Review Technique (PERT), and has sprinkled his unique and enjoyable blend of alternative methodology, such as the Enterprise Task Model (ETM), the two-sided meeting, Time/Importance Framing (TIF), Expectation Escalation, Trifold Defect Tracking (TDT), Review and Appraisal Based on Human Attributes (RABOHA), and many other novel ideas, designed to help the Project Manager.

Customer Reviews:

EXtremely bad .......2006-08-17

This book has little to do with Project Management and nothing to do with extreme project management. It is full of cliche ideas and not very useful banter.

Save your money it is not worth it

Even Arrogant Project Managers can learn.......2006-06-22

I think if you consider the iconoclastic style, quirky writing, and isightful thoughts, you don't have to compare the book to anything, just learn from it. Try keeping PERT and CPM simple... read and learn.

Do not waste your time.......2006-04-25

This is a complete waste of money and time. This guy has no credible recommendations. He hasn't a clue as to what xtreme PM is.

This book isn't enough to undertand the subject.......2006-02-22

This book isn't enough to undertand the subject. I recommend try to find the more complete book.

WAAAAY OUT THERE.......2004-04-21

I read the book with a skeptic's eye, based on the mixed review this book has been getting from all around the world. I did pick up some interesting points. Although, the meshed-in look of the book, with the absurd "ideas" for Project Manager is not very realistic, I think the book has a solid ground on theoritical aspects.

I liked very much the Review Techniques, as I can completely relate to it, and it is nice to have some advice on the "people" perspective.

All in all, I can;t say that this is the best book on Project Management, but if you lay your prejudjments aside, it can be a very very interesting read.

Patrick J.
London 2004

Book Description

A guide to mastering one of the most strategically critical aspects of any telecommunications, ISP, or ASP business
Operational Support Systems (OSS) refers to the technical infrastructure that enables telecommunications companies, ISPs, ASPs, and CLECs to provide services directly to customers. In this important book, author Kornel Terplan draws upon his 25 years of experience as a top global telecommunications consultant to provide telecom operations managers and developers with the expert information and guidance they need to make strategic decisions about OSS in their companies. He reviews protocols and technology for service support, explores best practices for service development and provisioning, and provides expert guidance on tools and human resources for the technical service provider. Throughout, Terplan's approach to teaching OSS principles and practices is to present a real business problem and then walk you through the best solution.

Customer Reviews:

Essentials of the BSS/OSS industry.......2002-06-07

It's the only public published book on BSS/OSS industry i can find. Reading all TMF's documents is a big challenge, and reading this book is easier. It tells almost every key concepts about TMF's NGOSS program. I strongly recommend this book to everyone seting his/her career on OSS industry.

A timely and invaluable piece of work.......2002-02-05

Dr. Terplan has written a book (only one of the two available in thisarea) that will be invaluable for any person involved in either development or implementation of supports systems. The author obviously expects the reader to have a high level understanding of OSS related areas to appreciate and make the most this book. This book is a "must have" for all managers and consultants in the OSS segment.

Has potential to be great - lacks coherency & focus.......2001-07-10

This could have been *the* definitive reference on operational support systems. The author's uneven treatment of the subject and tendency to frequently go off topic or emphasize peripheral systems while leaving large gaps in the main subject have reduced this book to merely mediocre.

The strong points: the chapter on customer care and billing processes is remarkable. Here is a list of things that caught my attention and make this chapter so valuable: (1) the customer care maturity model is well thought out and serves as an excellent benchmarking tool, (2) the customer analysis and acquisition is on the mark, and (3) the customer interface management process and associated diagram comprise an excellent model for OSS processes. I also thought the way the author covered the problem handling process represents best practices, as does the section on SLA management. This is the stuff OSS is made of and it's covered both well and contains ideas and models in which service providers will be interested. The chapter provisioning and order processing is also strong and filled with excellent information for those who are seeking OSS-specific knowledge.

Weaknesses: Not only does this book overemphasize the network operations, which is important, but not central, but the author manages to drop this information into unexpected areas throughout the book. An example: Section 4.4 is an engrossing piece on the sales process that is succinct and filled with information, including tables and a diagram that reinforce the excellent information the author is imparting. Right in the middle of all this is a diagram that shows the use of a DMZ to separate intranets and extranets - not something anyone interested in sales processes cares about and is a big distraction. This happens throughout the book. Also, I agree with the comments made by a previous reviewer about wasting page count on product-specific information. This information needs to be moved to a web site where it can be maintained in an up-to-date fashion. Ironically, the publisher does this for other books. Finally, there are some major gaps: (1) no mention of the TeleManagement Forum, which is a global non-profit organization that is devoted to OSS. This organization has a technology integration map and numerous OSS-related processes that are De Facto standards in the OSS world, yet no mention of the organization and no mention of the wealth of material available that is directly related to OSS. (2) Section 7.4, which addresses migration from an existing to new billing system, misses some key considerations, which could have been developed into a discussion of strengths and weaknesses. For example, how do you segment and migrate subscribers? By CSA? Bill cycle? Region? Price plan? As the industry consolidates this particular issue keeps cropping up and a more in-depth treatment here is warranted. (3) No mention of TL 9000, which is an encompassing quality standard for telecommunications service providers. A portion of this standard applies directly to OSS.

Overall, this book contains some of the best information about OSS that has been collected and compiled into a single book. In fact, it's the only book on the subject. What is needed to make it great is a strong editor who understands OSS and who is not reticent about removing large pieces of superfluous material from this book. More information about standards that are directly related to OSS should also be included. If you work with operational support systems you really have no choice but to buy this book - I just hope that the next edition addresses the weaknesses.

Some excellent info, but wanders around in places.......2001-07-06

The eight chapters in this 610 page book tie together operational support systems and how they relate to network operations, business support systems and network management. In some respects this book is less about OSS than it is about the network, which is evidenced by the structure of the book and page count given to each topic.

It starts with an encompassing overview of operations, business and marketing support systems. This is entirely focused on OSS, and has one of the best descriptions of a service delivery cycle I've seen in print. This is followed by a chapter discussing a service provider's portfolio of products and services, which sets the context for OSS. Chapter 3, however, seems out of sequence, because it breaks the flow by addressing management protocols - a topic that is peripherally related to OSS, but is not central. The author gets back on track in chapter 4 with a solid, information-packed treatment of customer care and billing processes. Thi!s is the heart of OSS and the author provides some great information, which is continued in chapter 5's discussion of provisioning and order processing. Unfortunately, the author drifts off into network operations management, which is the topic of chapter 6. This is certainly related to OSS, but does not warrant the 74 pages this topic consumes. Chapter 7, covering support, documentation and management systems is really a catalog of products, which eats another 104 pages of peripherally related material that could have better been provided on a companion web site since product-specific information is a moving target and only renders a book prematurely obsolete. The final two chapters covering workforce management and trends for service providers were valuable, especially the comprehensive tables and lists devoted to job profiles and organizational structures.

Overall this book has a lot of excellent information, most of which is not available elsewhere. However, the aut!hor wanders and drifts into too much detail on topics that are not central to the theme of this book. Since it is the only book on the market on OSS and does provide a wealth of information I decided to be lenient and award it 4 stars. I hope the next edition benefits from some good editing and focuses on OSS, and the product-specific information is moved to a companion web site the way other publishers handle this time sensitive material.

OSS Essentials -- must have for managers / architects.......2001-04-30

I highly recommend OSS Essentials by Dr. Kornel Terplan. The book covers an immense array of topics, explaining how they relate to each other and offering editorial that encompasses the authors many years of real-world experience. Whether you are assessing various alternatives in designing applications, or are simply trying to understand what various technologies are and how they can be used, this book will save you many hours of research. Because the author has lived through design and implementation of many advanced OSS systems, his insight will serve to guide you toward success. Chuck Reid states: "In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice; In practice, there is." This book explains both so the differences are clear.

W. Nathaniel Mills, III Chief Architect, High Volume Web Site Research and Design, IBM Research

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