Internet Books

Great book! Many very practical advises on how to improve your performance and improve your life. I can recomend it to all office employees and entrapreneurs who want to improve their lives.

I've been teaching my students for years and years about the issues that Mr. Ferris explained in his book and I'm glad that I wasn't alone! The entire system of education in America (and in most countries for that matter), which is known as Prussian System, implies that the only option we have is to slave full time for somebody else for forty years and quietly die after that in poverty! That's how we are supposed to spend our lives! That it's perfectly normal to identify ourselves with how we make a living. It's unquestionable that it has to be a full time job to make money to survive in this world. It's normal to answer the question "What do you do?" with the explanation about where you spend most of your life trying to make money to survive. Isn't it humiliating! Is that what God planned for us? We stopped questioning it long time ago. Generations wasted their lives working. Just working! Do we even realize how huge it is? When a person can actually enjoy life, spend time helping others, learning something new, spending time with the family, actually doing what he or she enjoys, we somehow settled for forty years of hard work not even in order to achieve something in life, but just to survive, just not to starve to death! We can't even afford to stop working for a couple of month, because we are going to run out of money and become as poor as we are planning on being when we are retired.
The same thing with delegation. We don't know how to do it. We must make sure that we are busy 100% of the time and we can not delegate anything to anybody! If we get some free time it only means that we are lazy and we need to cure the situation by filling free time with more work!
The most ridiculous case of inability to delegate is our national crazy idea (I'm from Russia) that if you grow potatoes yourself - it's free! I still remember how pretty much everybody goes to plant potatoes in the spring. No matter how well off you are, you must do it yourself, because if you do it yourself - it's free! Can you believe it!
Anyway, this book is going to be called at least "controversial" or most likely will get one of those slap-on "get rich quick" or "it will never work" labels.
Our society is not ready for this.
But for a small business owner today it's one of the most comprehensive guides on today's business and a must-have.

Tim Ferris is part entrepreneur part action hero, all energy. I picked up the book having little in common with him other than a bald head and a desire to get control of my life and create time to do the things I've always dreamed of. I first picked up this book more than a year ago and have reread several parts of it since. Mr. Ferrris outlines both a plan and a philosophy which are mind opening to the average person. I ave adapted several of his tactics and a few of his philosophies in my own life and have found myself to be more efficient and productive in both my work and personal life. I have not yet gotten to a four hour week and don't expect I ever will but I've always felt that if you read a book like this and find one or two things to adapt into your own life you have made a great investment in both money and time.

This book has helped me to organize my life in such a way that I have completed two novels (not yet published) found time to help coach my son's soccer team and improved my relationship with my wife. These are priceless life improvements which may not have given me a nicely compartmentalized four hour work week, but have gien me a life balance that has changed my lfe.

The 4-Hour Work Week:
Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich
By Timothy Ferriss

Twenty-years ago a young psychologist named Marsha Sinetar helped jumpstart a revolutionary approach to work. With the publication of her best-selling book "Do What You Love, The Money will Follow," Sinetar liberated millions from the idea that working was necessary only to make a living so you could do what you loved.

Since that time, the ideas of discovering your right livelihood, balancing work and life and becoming rich enough to afford retirement have spawned thousands of self-help books. Among these are numerous sterile accounts of how to become a millionaire before you are 30.

Now, a 29-year old suggests what may become the next step in the work revolution. In his book, The 4-Hour Work Week: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich, Timothy Ferriss relays to us in his high speed text that change is long-overdue. Instead of the slave/save/retire mentality of most overworked employees today, there are new opportunities for workers that have never existed before.

But The 4-Hour Workweek is not another book on the work-life balance describing the problems we all face. It is about creating solutions by changing not just your workstyle, but your lifestyle. The new currencies, he says, are time and mobility. These should be used in the here and now to create a luxury lifestyle. The author assures us it is not difficult. It simply takes the courage to make a few uncommon decisions and follow them with equally uncommon actions.

There is already a fast-growing subculture who has abandoned the "deferred-life" plan and are now distributing retirement throughout life instead of saving it for the end, Ferriss says. He titles this group the New Rich (NR) and states their main goal is to escape the rat race entirely, not win it. The NR believe that traditional one office locations and 9 to 5 workdays are obsolete. Money alone rarely ever solves problems or gives enjoyment.

The desire for more money, the author argues, is often laziness. "If only I had more money is the easiest way to postpone the intense self-examination and decision-making necessary to create a life of enjoyment--now and not later," he says. "Busy yourself with the routine of the money wheel, pretend it's the fix-all, and you artfully create a constant distraction that prevents you from seeing just how pointless it is."

Ferriss is no poverty guru however. A few years ago, he was a poster boy for the extremely overworked and underpaid cubicle dweller. Using the insights he developed for this book, he went from $40,000 a year and 80 hours a week to $40,000 per month and four hours per week. In part because of his extensive world travel, he now speaks six languages. He is a national champion in Chinese kickboxing, an actor on a hit television series in Hong Kong and holds a world record in tango.

The author offers four steps and strategies to reinvent yourself, whether as an entrepreneur or in your current job. The first letters of each step form the acronym of "DEAL" The manifesto of the "dealmaker" is simple: Reality is negotiable. Outside of science and law, all rules can be bent or broken. Here's the four steps for reinventing yourself:

* Definition: Define what you want to be doing.
* Elimination: Ask yourself three times a day "am I being productive, or am I being busy?" Eliminate interruptions. Stop checking e-mail more than once a day.
* Automation: Delegate or automate the remaining tasks, even sending personal tasks overseas. If you're a writer, outsource your research the night before to a virtual assistant in India. Have it ready the next morning. Cost: $4. Per hour.
* Liberation: Enjoy your mobility and use the time you create. Surround yourself with positive people who have nothing to do with your work.

This is a book about challenging assumptions. For example, the New Rich credo is not to strive to buy all the things you want, but to do all the things you want to do. The NR goal is not to have more, but to have more quality and less clutter and of course, the time to do what matters.

Can you have it all--by working 4 hours a week? Tim Ferriss's belief-blasting, fast-paced, book makes you want to believe it. It's an exciting, mind-expanding declaration about how our lives don't have to be all about work. If Ferriss' book is the ticket to the workplace of the future, you definitely want to get on board.

While reading the 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss I kept asking myself: what world does this guy live in?

Then deja vu hit.

I've seen this world and actually lived in it for a few years. It was called a "bubble" and the year was 1999. Everyone was at the center of their own world of self-aggrandization chasing down pre-IPO stock, throwing lavish parties with chocolate fountains, and creating money losing companies at breakneck speed.

It's as if Ferriss had time traveled from 1999 or is some kind of fossil a book publisher dug up trying to cash-in on a perceived market for a 2.0 generation of greed seekers.

Yes, this book is that bad.

It seems like I'm a minority voice, as the average Amazon review is 4 out of 5 stars... if interested you can read entire review here:
[...]

This book was my first Kindle purchase, because I was looking for some info on how to use the device. Little did I know how this seemingly helpful chap would misuse my e-mail address to promote his political ideology!

The book is "OK" -- it covers the basics, and gets you to the point where you can use the fundamental features, but it does not go too much further. On the book's content alone, I would maybe give it 2-1/2 stars.

I then went on to follow his suggestion of adding my e-mail address to his list. He claimed that he would be sending alerts when his Kindle book was updated.

Surprised was my reaction this morning when I opened a lengthy e-mail from Stephen Windwalker (yes, it was a real e-mail from him) in which he wrote an extensive note about the importance of buying a Kindle book that paints a certain female candidate for VP in a very negative light.

I have read several books and articles about that particular candidate -- enough to realize what is agenda-driven and what is detached accounting of the facts. The rag this Windwalker guy is pushing is something that clearly advances one particular political opinion.

Whether you agree with Windwalker's viewpoint or not, how dare he mis-use my e-mail address to send me his thinly-veiled political opinions!

I would therefore recommend find an alternative source of Kindle information, and definitely not providing your e-mail address to this guy. The "sheep in wolves' clothing" image comes to mind.

Very user friendly and easy to read. I wouldn't be using my Kindle without it.

I loved the Kindle from the moment I took off the wrappings, but had no idea what else it could do beside being a book until I read Stephen's book. And, he means it when he says "if you get stuck, send me an email." He responded to my pleas for help within minutes, and he got me 'un-stuck' more than once.

Walt K - Fort Myers, FL

Seems people either love this material or hate it. When I buy something new I try and find something to use besides what the owners' guide. The Kindle is a remarkable piece of hardware, and the author has listed a lot of things it can do not mentioned in the materials that Amazon makes available, which is quite good. The reason I decided to spend the money for the Kindle was to read, not trying to figure out all the side goodies in it. It is worth far more than the cost.

Author provides simple instructions which will help you learn all that our mighty Kindle can do. Since I am far from being a computer guru the book has been just what I needed to learn to get the most from Kindle, without talking down to the reader.

Great book that appears simple but really is a great foundation of web principles that you can always go back and refer to. It's a pretty quick read and is actually fun to go through if you're in this line of work.

The concepts in this book are a bit elementary, but they are true and good. I like books with richer content, so minus one star for that. Overall, a good buy for the Amazon discount price.

If you're a digital media professional, there probably isn't anything here you didn't already know. But it's the kind of book that keeps you nodding your head with it in unison page after page. It's also very well written--Steve is the kind of guy you'd like to have a beer with. His takeaways are straightforward, painless, and evergreen. Should be required reading for every design and production person joining your team.

This book is fabulous. It is very clear and easy to read, it points out how far you can get by just using common sense (and how you can develop it if you haven't got it), includes basic design principles and human psychology as well as some pretty strong examples. It shows you how a usability test can be performed and talks about what you should focus on. I very much like the approach that there is no average user and not just one correct way to design a site. This book is of great value, a true classic and I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in the topic. It is so well layouted and designed that I don't need a marker to highlight anything!

If you are looking for a book with the main principles about web usability do not hesitate and buy this book. It might be a little bit outdated but 90% of the book is still totally true. Don't miss it!!

Great book to get started for beginners (and possibly for the beginner-mid level) for getting your feet wet.

This was an excellent summary of how to get involved with electronic marketing. I recommend it for anyone who is starting out.

I have over 40 years marketing experience and now find myself needing to utilize the resources of current technology to effectively market products and services.

This book is providing me , at the age of 74, with the tools that I need. It's very informative.

W. Willard
San Clemente CA

The author, David Meerman Scott, does a superb job on creating an easy read full of terrific ideas to improve the visibility of your business to the masses using WEB 2.0 (social sites on the web) technologies.

I loved the book and will refer back to it often! Highly recommend it!

I have working in marketing for years and have even dabbled in new marketing, social media and the like. The New Rules of Marketing and PR just takes it to a whole new level where it just makes sense!

After reading I have an entirely new focus around our day to day activities as well as our overall marketing strategy. I keep it on my desk and am constantly referring to it or the thousands of notes I took while reading it.

HKM
Director of Marketing at a Software Start-up

This is a thick, heavy book, hard to hold, worth the trouble. It doesn't solve every problem but it comes close, and offers links for more insight and details. If you are looking for a way to understand what you are working on, for a foundation from which to be creative, good book.

For those that are just starting out with Dreamweaver CS3 this is a complete breakdown of all the technical stuff but in a non-technical language. The tutorials are easy to follow and give you a good basis for creating your own website. It is rather lengthy but not every word needs to be read to follow along. As your skills increase there is information that will allow you to learn at your own pace.

This manual reads so easily, works great as a reference and has a tutorial to follow after most of the key chapters. This is by far the easiest method I've found for learning this complex program. The author also speaks to mac and pc specifically if there are any differences. Great product!

The book is clear and provides good "learn by doing" exercises to reinforce the explanations. It also serves as a good reference. I was immediately able to create a website for a non-profit that I am a member of. Highly recommended.

David McFarland's guide answers most, but not my any means all, of the questions, a beginner or intermediate user might ask about Adobe Dreamweaver, the absolute best commercial program for web design. It's a good start and McFarland writes clearly and accurately but doesn't always follow through to the depth that some users nned. That said, it's still probably the best book yet published on Dreamweaver, useful and easy-to use.
JoeGraphics, Memphis, TN

This is the required reading for my course. It has been helpful and informative in areas of Microsoft that I never knew existed. . .just when you thought you knew the program. . .=)

When I received this book, which I thought took too long, I found the bottom right of the cover was ripped off leaving a small gap. Then the next 20 pages or so, same corner, were all folded up. Actually I am very disappointed and will probably see if I can sell it at my campus's bookstore,where they will buy back books, and pay full price for it on my campus.

I had to purchase this book for an introductory/orientation computer application class for an online program for Nichols College. I have concidered myself very computer literate, and was affraid this class would be boring and a waste. However, I am finding with this book working through the walk-through exercises and labs that I didn't know everything. I have discovered many short cuts and easier ways to perform tasks I have previously labored to do like letter formatting. I have also learned many new keyboard shortcuts that help alot. Not having to switch back and forth to the mouse and back to the keyboard as much is a bonus.

Don't get me wrong though, it is still broken down painstakenly into every individual step and keystroke, so for me, that is overkill. However, someone who has never laid eyes on any of these programs before, this book can take them a long ways in learning how to navigate the office suite, make striking letters, charts, and leaflets.

I purchased this book for my CIS 120 class (that is intro to micro-computers). This book is an excellent teaching guide to learn everything there is to know about Microsoft Office software. It is very detailed and it gives you examples and you will learn hands on. This is an excellent book for anyone that need to learn or even need a refresher course. This book have step-by-step instructions. I highly recommend this book.

I was on crunch time at Northeastern Illinois University and was really in a bind with books, expecially the prices. So of course, Amazon had a great price for this book and I was saved by it. The book is EXCELLENT and I think even after the class I will keep it because it has a plethera of information. Thank you.

Clay Shirky provides insightful and well-developed analysis of today's new technology and its possible impact on politics and other areas of society, such as journalism. This is interspersed with stories to keep the reader interested. All in all, I am very glad I purchased this book.

I had to purchase this book for an online college-credit class and I really enjoyed the book! The class was Writing for the Digital Age and Shirky's book talked a lot about present and future times of texting and new media! It is an easy read and very informational. I actually looked forward to reading it!

Definitely worth its price.
Most basic concepts are repeated often and it may be annoying, but then probably they are so new, that the author felt the need to hammer them home.
A good eye opener.

Citing scientific theory and narrative accounts, Clay Shirky, in Here Comes Everybody, engagingly distills the impact of new communication tools on both life and business in modern society. As he notes: "when we change the way we communicate, we change society."

With the advent of the Internet, and tools like wikis, blogs, and Twitter, the way we communicate is clearly changing, and changing quickly. Our ability to share and cooperate with one another has dramatically increased, while the cost of doing so has dropped to zero.

Many of the examples highlighted in the book center around grassroots efforts, enabled and supported by these new tools. The effect of these movements on traditional societal organizations, including governments and corporations, is markedly different today than it has been in the past.

Here Comes Everybody is recommended reading if you want to understand the context of these changes, both now and in the future.

Unless you've been living under a rock over the past few years, you would have noticed an explosion in ways that people interact, collaborate and exchange information online. We are probably undergoing the greatest technological shift since the advent of e-mail, and it'd probably hard to grasp all the ramifications that profound new change is heralding. Every year now, or sometimes every month, several new information terms and products enter our collective consciousness, terms like blog, Twitter, Digg, Facebook, MySpace, collaborative filtering, crowdsourcing, online social networking, and many, many others. It becomes harder and harder to keep track of what each one of them means, little less of how to use it or whether to use it at all. Many of them may just be passing fads, but it is hard to deny that put together they are part of some larger trend. However, it may not be so obvious what this trend is all about and one often can't see the forest from all the trees. From that point, Clay Shirky's book "Here Comes Everybody" can be best understood as a field guide that will take you on a guided tour of this new forest and explain its immediate implications for how we live our lives, work or play. It is a very well written book, written in an easy-going journalistic style. It brings forth many real-life stories and case analyses that help with explaining these recent trends. The book is informative without being bogged down in technical jargon. It is also a very gripping read, and once one starts reading it is hard to put down. I would recommend it to everyone who is interested in getting a big picture of where we are headed in terms of collaborative technologies.

I knew this would be good, and it was great. If you have extra time, read it.

This book followed Albom's Tuesdays With Morrie, and is "only a guess, a wish," of his view of heaven. READ CAREFULLY: Albom is not saying this story is what heaven will be like. It is only a story, a way to convey his view that all people are important and affect everyone they meet in some way.

As far as the literary content goes, this book is fair. The writing isn't generic, but it won't wow you, either. The story moves along nicely, and Albom is careful not to reveal the characters himself, but rather allow them to tell their stories. I appreciated that aspect.

If you are looking for any theological content about heaven in this book, please turn elsewhere. That was not Albom's intention, and there is a lot of New Age rhetoric in this book. But if you keep in mind that this is just a story, then it's a good way to pass time when you're not seeking too much intellectual stimulation. (That's a compliment, I promise)

The lessons from this book can help us to live our life with more connection to self and others. We don't have to wait until we die to recognize that we can live with meaning in the here and now.

Why you SHOULD read this book:
- Sense of harmony and balance with life and death
- The acknowledgment that you have a God-given purpose
- Simple and quick read
- The flashback to the past references keeps you entertained and cleverly unfolds the present
- Mental picture is easy to orchestrate
- The epilogue!

Why you SHOULD NOT read this book:
- If you cannot let go of your own view of heaven
- You can't read in pictures
- Or you over-analyse

**This is the first story-telling book I've read in about 10 years! This isn't a book about death, nor is it a book about heaven; this is a book about LIFE here...right this very moment! I couldn't have been happier with reading this. If you don't get teary-eyed, you don't have a pulse! It's good enough for Oprah!**

Sidenote to those criticizing:
Shut up.

So I guess I'm a sucker for the cheesy. The fact is that this book made an emotional impact on me with the idea that we are all connected in ways we will never fully understand, for good and for bad.

An elderly man is killed in a tragic fairgrounds accident. When he reaches the other side, he learns that before he can be fully at peace he must meet five different people who have either affected his life or visa versa. It's touching and powerful and an intriguing idea.

Some people might gag at the symbolism and obvious heartstrings, but the right sentimental crowd will appreciate the great lessons.

My only issue is that the book doesn't address how to use google analytics more. He gives a lot of suggestions, but there isn't enough guidance in actually how to use GA to pull the data he recommends.

This book is fantastic. Not only does it cover everything, but it does it in a simple way, an hour a day!

I reckon once you have finished this book you will be a head of the majority.

Must get for analytics.

This book is amazing. If you think you knew everything or are in an analysis slump, just flip through this book and you'll find something new to analyze.

I have used Web Side Story...moved to Omniture....also work with Google Analytics.....This book does a good job of getting away from the mountains of data, to provide a clear cut "THINK ABOUT WHAT THE ANALYTICS MEAN" on a business basis- definitely worth the time investment.

Technologies evolve, but the PROCESS by which we should collect and analyze online data in order to gain solid, actionable insights will remain constant for the foreseeable future.

I have been fortunate enough to work with some of the smartest online marketers in the business, and, to say the very least, most of these people -- especially those in the analytics community -- seem content to share their expertise in the most confusing and theoretical manner possible. But not Avinash Kaushik. And in "An Hour a Day," Avinash proves why he is the world's most trusted name in analytics: he brings us up to his level without unnecessary jargon, so we can actually understand how to do this stuff!

Without question, this book is required reading for ANY online marketer, business owner, or anyone currently outsourcing their web analytics. (Warning: You may become better at this than the people you're paying to do it for you!)

Have a website you're not properly tracking? You're not alone! Less than a third of e-commerce and B2B sites have sufficient web analytics tracking -- let alone a process by which to glean insight from it -- and it's not the technology's fault. The problem is that most people don't understand the VALUE and NECESSITY of web analytics. They don't realize it's the difference between sink or swim. For most organizations, web analytics is an afterthought; something pawned off to those with technical knowledge when it should really be understood by those who need to use this data to make serious business decisions. Well, folks, those days are over. If all you know about your site is how many page views, uniques, or (*yikes*) "hits" it's getting, you're in much worse shape than you currently realize, simply because you have no idea how much money and attention you're missing out on if you have no clear goals in mind or a system by which to quantify it.

If you're not measuring it properly, how can you ever claim to have an online strategy that's working? How else will you know how successful your campaign is? How else will you know which elements to test and optimize?

Whether you're a beginner or you know just enough about web analytics to be dangerous, you should absolutely buy this book today. The book pays for itself a hundred fold in the very first hour of the very first day.

Even the least experienced web layout designer could learn a lot from this book. The font is large, the layout is easy to read and understand. The book goes into GREAT depth in each field. I recommend this book. I am using it for a class, but will hold onto this book for ever. Great transaction as well, here in about a week.
-Thanks, Amazon!

This book is A-ma-ZING...... It teaches you everything that you need to know to get started building, the whole process. It just breaks everything down into smaller bits of information. I know that with time, because of this book, my Web site skills will be all that I hoped for. It's definitely a go-to book for how to do anything.

If you're looking to teach yourself HTML/CSS, I would NOT suggest this book.

This book has a great deal of information, but very poorly put together when it comes to teaching the code. There is far too much of "type this:" with no immediate explanation of exactly what's going on. Throughout this book I have constantly had to "reverse engineer" what the book had just told me to type, essentially teaching MYSELF rather then having the book teach me. I should have read some of the other negative review before buying this because now after getting the book they make a lot of very good points. I could see this book working well when used with a classroom setting, where someone is there to bridge the gaps it leaves, but it is simply TERRIBLE for trying to teach yourself HTML. Not knocking the content, but just the way it's put together. I have a high knowledge of pc's, along with some programming skills, but I found this book unacceptable when the cover says "learn the quick and easy way!" Not even remotely close. One star.

When I got this book I was looking for a short indept introduction to HTML & CSS. That is not what this book is. If your looking for brief example then this is your book but if you looking to want to really learn HTML & CSS then you might want to look at another book.

HTML, XHTML & CSS, Sixth Edition is a Visual QuickStart Guide, written by Elizabeth Castro , this book is simply the great HTML and CSS book. It has basically everything you need to know, with easy-to-find what you want, easy-to-understand, and clear descriptions.
Covers HTML layout, forms, controls, text, graphics manipulation, style sheets, and basic Javascript. this is a very useful book. It is full of great tips about each subject, including how different browsers react to different HTML details, bugs in browsers, tips, tricks, and workarounds.
If you are beginner at coding HTML, you`ll find valuable info in this book . If you are interested in XHTML and have HTML this is the best resource .