Reviews (2)

Penny Arcade = Great Web-Comic
Penny Arcade is a comic that has been around for almost a full decade now, so it is nice that this year they are finally releasing a series of books that bring the comics into our homes without the need for a computer and internet, excluding how you buy the book itself.
Good collection of a great Webcomic
Penny Arcade isn't my favorite webcomic (that honor goes to PVP), but it's up there, and I'm very happy that Dark Horse comics has begun reprinting the entire run of the series. This second volume collects all of the strips from 2001. Holkins and Krahulik don't use many long-running storylines or, for that matter, any continuity at all, so you can't really expound upon the stories here. Holkins also includes some of his vintage blog posts, detailing stories such as how a rat infestation led to his eviction and tne now-classic "Walnut Saga," which are amusing stories as their own right. The strips are as sharp and clever as ever, without any of the early strips where they were still trying to find their groove, such as those we found in volume one. The book is backed by images from the Penny Arcade card game and some unpublished concepts from Holkins and Krahulik to fill out the book. Some of the stuff at the end feels kind of like padding, but it's still a fun read. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Games    2. Form - Cartoons & Comics    3. Graphic Novels    4. Graphic Novels - General    5. Graphic Satire And Humor    6. Humor    7. Video & Electronic - General    8. Comics & Graphic Novels / General   

Reviews (4)

Best use of the term "private members" in a patterns book
OK, when I saw this under the tree I thought that the Gang had a new little workbook deal out or something, and then I saw that there was a silhouette of a naked woman on the front and that it was very very doubtful that this was going to help me figure out distributed programming. But at that point I didn't care anymore and it is now officially my favorite gift.Applies the rules of patterns (strategies, refactorings, all that) to dating and it's hilarious. Definitely a kick for anyone with even remotely geeky tendencies.

Way more fun than regular patterns
It's like the Gang of Four had a little too much to drink (or something) at a National Lampoon party and went home and wrote a sequel. I think my favorite pattern is goTo guy, which is prefaced with a note that the article "GoTo Considered Harmful" doesn't apply to dating patterns. Haven't tried any of the patterns since my SO disapproves strongly of multithreading.

This is hilarious
I don't know what kind of mind is so into patterns that they come out the other end with this book, but the result is very funny. You need to be a geek to get it, but if you do it's definitely worth it. It's a satire of patterns and of some fairly leading figures in the computer industry. Basically the authors say that the Gang of Four came up with these dating patterns in college: Trojan Proxy, Interested Listener, Half Bad Boy Plus Protocol, Unexpected Persistence, Container-Managed Relationships, etc. Christopher Alexander was in on it, too, starting off kind of geeky and playing Dungeons and Dragons and going on to be a dating machine. Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer programming    2. Dating (Social customs)    3. Family & Relationships    4. Family/Marriage    5. Form - Parodies    6. General    7. Humor    8. Humor / Parodies    9. Humor / Topic / Relationships    10. Man-woman relationships    11. Programming (Computers)    12. Satire    13. Topic - Adult    14. Topic - Relationships   

Reviews (1)

Sample files must be purchased
Here is one of those books that provide you with some creative ideas using Photoshop Elements but does not provide the sample files to follow along.Instead the author gives you a website where the files can be purchased.Although the book has some good ideas this fact alone gives it a low rating.
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Subjects:  1. Computer Graphics - Photoshop    2. Computers - Desktop Publishing    3. Desktop Publishing - General    4. Digital Image Processing    5. Photo Techniques    6. Photography    7. Techniques - Digital    8. BG-HUMOR/GAMES - BG-GAMES/PUZZLES    9. Photography / Techniques / Digital   

Reviews (6)

what about all the failed pranks?
Here is an informal romp through decades of MIT pranks. Reflecting well on the ingenuity and craziness of the undergrads who devoted so much time and sweat to making these happen. Most of the pranks revolve around some high tech gimmick. As you follow the narrative, you might admire the unorthodox nature to which technology has been applied.
^_^
Ok, originally I was trying to buy a book on Asian women in the work force for my Anthropology class. The frist part of the name of this book is the same as the other book so I quickly bought it before I finished reading the rest of the title, so it is all my fault for getting the wrong book. Either way, this book is alot better and more enertaining. Best mistake I ever made ^_^. The book was mailed to my house fast and in great condition.

Great book, but with a caveat.
This is a terrific, fairly comprehensive book of the highlights from MIT's long tradition of pranks. However, if you have already read Journal of the Institute of Hacks, Tomfoolery, and Pranks, you'll find you've read most of this before, and in better detail, with better-reproduced photographs (in my opinion.) The good thing about Nightwork is that this is includes hacks from more recent years than the other book.
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Subjects:  1. Cambridge    2. College students    3. College wit and humor    4. Computer Center Management    5. Education    6. Education / Teaching    7. General    8. Higher    9. History    10. History Of Technology    11. Humor    12. Management Information Systems    13. Massachusetts    14. Massachusetts Institute of Tec    15. Student activities    16. Technology    17. Computer fraud & hacking    18. Humour   

Reviews (4)

this is why you need editors
In the voluminous and often self absorbed blogosphere, where can or should you start reading? This is similar to the pre-Web Usenet newsgroups. In both, it is easy to encounter poorly written or hastily composed screeds. A total waste of your time. But here Graham and Burton come to our rescue. They offer editorial choice. A nice filter. We see well chosen essays that are actually literate and interesting. (More so than my scribblings here.) The essays are fairly traditional in representation. None of the New Wave experimental fad of the late 60s. Possibly because once you've read hypertext in a browser, the traditional printed page can seem limited.
Introduction to Blogs for the Blogless
If you already read lots of blogs, this book may be redundant for you.I thought I knew what a blog was (some sort of Web journal logged in occasionally . . . almost like a personal diary), but had never read one.So I thought, well, why not read the best ones?That's what brought me to this book. Quirky and fun...
If you're a blogger and enjoy the act of expressing your views and emotions online, you'll enjoy Never Threaten To Eat Your Co-Workers - Best Of Blogs (Apress).This collection of blog entries edited by Alan Graham and Bonnie Burton is a fun look at various blogs and bloggers that range from the well-known to the obscure.On one end you have a few blog entries by Wil Wheaton (Wesley Crusher of Star Trek: TNG fame).On the other end might be Ali Davis, the writer for True Porn Clerk Stories (she is a clerk in a video porn shop and writes about her experiences).The format is pretty simple...random samplings of some of their blog entries, along with short interviews asking about their motivation behind blogging and their views on the concept.Read more

Subjects:  1. American - General    2. Computer - Internet    3. Computers    4. General    5. Humor    6. Internet - General    7. Computers / General   

Reviews (3)

Delete immediately to Recycle Bin then Empty Trash
Rich Tennant has created a Far Side type collection of cartoons set around an office especially computers.Although Tennant copied Larson's style he could not duplicate either his quality or humour.In fact I did not find one cartoon in this entire collection funny.Don't waste your money, buy a Far Side book instead.
Mixed
I bought this for my techie husband and he found some of the cartoons to be so-so and others he laughed hystericaly at.

Never make Santa cope with a 14.4 chimney
Ah, yes, cartoons with fantasy elements - testing a new network admin with a snakepit; preparing for the MSCE exam by working a Rubix cube underwater without an airhose; providing morphine drips for system upgrades. No relationship to reality at all. :)Read more

Subjects:  1. American wit and humor, Pictor    2. American wit and humor, Pictorial    3. Caricatures and cartoons    4. Comics & Cartoons    5. Comics & Graphic Novels    6. Computers    7. General    8. Humor    9. Humor / General   

Reviews (14)

Light reading and funny content
Be aware not to expect this book to be serious or to contain deep thougths; but instead, if you read it with an open mind, knowing that it tries to be humorous+smart more than it tries to be wise, you will find it a pleasant reading. Probably no experienced programmer will see anything he doesn't already know, but this won't prevent him from having a joyful reading - and a quick one, the book is very thin with just a few phrases per page.
listen to the master
This little book is full of things you either know because you are the master, or are figuring out because you are the novice. All presented in a tongue-in-cheek style that I found very funny (and enlightening).
Don't waste your money and time
I returned this book. It's a piece of junk to waste your time and money. I bought this and the Zen of programming. There is chinese words on one left page and the right is some annoying stories about things you already know. Nothing you won't know after doing just some programming in your lifetime. I give a bad review for the Zen of programming too. I returned this book and the Zen of programmming. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Anecdotes, facetiae, satire, e    2. Anecdotes, facetiae, satire, etc    3. Computer Programming    4. General    5. Humor    6. Programming Languages - General   

Reviews (14)

Funny funny funny
Ah, sweet revenge.His letters made me laugh so hard and I can't help but wonder what the person on the other end was thinking when they read them (if they did).Hilarious, a must read.

Fun reading, some much better than others
The curse of the electronic age, SPAM eventually forces its way into the life of anyone with an email address.While there are many books and articles about how to reduce this problem, Jonathan Lund has taken his own personal war back to the spammers.Instead of just deleting the emails he responds to them.Of course he doesn't respond quite the way the spammers expect.His responses are an attempt at humor and wit that often falls short of the mark, but then again at times is absolutely hysterical.
Experience a vicarious victory!
Have you ever wanted to "strike back" at the spammers and the con artists?If so, you'll enjoy The Spam Letters by Jonathan Land (No Starch Press).This is a funny read...
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Subjects:  1. Business & Economics    2. Business/Economics    3. Electronic mail systems    4. Form - Essays    5. Humor    6. Internet    7. Internet - General    8. Letters    9. Marketing - Telemarketing    10. Spam (Electronic mail)    11. Telemarketing    12. Topic - Business and Professional    13. Unsolicited electronic mail me    14. Computers / Social Aspects / General    15. Electronic mail (email)    16. Humor / Essays    17. Literary Collections/Letters    18. spam, junk e-mail, junk email,   

Features

• Illustrated

Reviews (2)

For computer geeks only, but in that niche excellent
You have to be a computer geek to understand the humor. If you are, and especially if you have a unix/linux background and/or have worked with internet or other computer support you will find this one of the most hysterical comics around.

Comic for Geeks
The characters fight to stay awake with the geek drink of choice, prepare for covert operations at Columbia Internet, obsess over Quake, and live in cramped quarters called cubicles. Read more

Subjects:  1. Comic books, strips, etc    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computers    4. Computers - General Information    5. Humor    6. Social Aspects - General    7. Cartoons & comic strips    8. Computers / Entertainment & Games / General    9. Computers / General Information    10. Computers / Social Aspects / General    11. Internet    12. Unix, Unix Linux & Unix TCL/TK    13. user friendly, cartoon, comic strip, geek humor, illiad, star trek   

Reviews (6)

"Warning!This is not serious!"--Kurt Harland
Cyberpunk really is dead..the appearance of the official handbook clinched it.If you want to learn how to hack, don't buy this book.If you want to become a phone phreak, don't buy this book.If you want to become a cypherpunk or a coder, don't buy this book.If you're familiar with the genre of cyberpunk as literature or have had contact with subcultures that could be considered cyberpunk, get this book if you want to get a chuckle or two, or try to recognise some of the folks who posed for this book.If you're looking for net.culture to be lampooned nine ways from Sunday, get this book.

just for newbies
when i first started to learn hacking a close haxor friend of mine (grimreaper) gave me this book iv had it ever since and read it everyday it is a great book and u should buy it right now!

good book
I am a hacker..A hacker gave me this book...I read it.. loved it....good informational book....also trySecrets of a super hacker by the knightmare ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Anthropology - Cultural    2. Computer hackers    3. Computers and civilization    4. General    5. Humor    6. General Theory of Computing    7. Humour    8. Non-Classifiable   

Reviews (66)

Easy read....interesting look at the .COM world (and all the promises it offered for a "different economy"
I guess my interest in this book was to take a look into the heart of a .COM business to see if the people inside actually beleived some of the crap they were trying to sell people outside. What I mean is that this was a "new economy", and that profits were not what it was about. (god knows how many stocks went over $100 without a single profit in sight!)
WITLESS DRIVEL...
I bought this book, thinking that it would offer some insight into Amazon.com in terms of what it was like to work there during its halcyon days.Touted as a funny memoir, among other things, I was to discover that it was none of what was promised. In fact, the book was painfully difficult to read, as it was very poorly written, decidedly not funny, and offered little insight into what it really was like to work at Amazon. It was totally sophomoric in terms of what it did say.
21 dig years

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Subjects:  1. Biography / Autobiography    2. Business    3. Business/Economics    4. Computer Industry (Economic Aspects)    5. Corporate & Business History - General    6. E-Commerce - General    7. General    8. Humor    9. Topic - Business and Professional    10. Biography & Autobiography / Business    11. Business & Economics-Corporate & Business History - General    12. Business & Economics-E-Commerce - General    13. Humor / General   

Editorial Review

Trust Dave Barry, middle-class America's chronicler of the absurdities and inanities of daily life, to provide the authoritative funnyman's guide to life with computers. Barry is sometimes insightful, as when he notes the ridiculous number of keystrokes needed to actually write something, often hilarious, as in his sendup of technological support hotlines, and occasionally genuinely indignant. This book is the perfect gift for anyone who, like many of us, can't live with computers and can't live without them. ... Read more

Reviews (54)

Better than you'd expect
This fine humorist tackled a subject that's been done to death and probably sold a whole lot of books doing it because he happens to be Dave Barry. A readable effort, but not a lot of belly laughs. However, there are two chapters where he decided to abandon the humor and go for realism. The result was some surprisingly moving fiction that mirrors life, quite unlike anything else I've read by Dave Barry. I haven't checked the timeline, but this is the guy who abandoned his humor column to be a novelist, and who improves which each novel. I got this at a book swap in Hangzhou, so for me it was definitely worth it. For the book-buying American, I have no idea.

Entertaining even when a decade old!
A.You have to like Dave Barry's style of humor.
My two cents
Well, everybody and his dog has already reviewed Dave Barry in Cyberspace, but I had to throw my two cents in: Thanks, Dave, for coining the term "WGU" (Whirring Grinding Unit). Now everybody I know who uses a computer uses that term. Congratulations on making the already over-wordy English language one word wordier - it's a word we desperately needed. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Abridged Audio - Humor    2. Audio - Humor    3. Audio Adult: Books On Tape    4. Audiobooks    5. Computers    6. Electronic data processing    7. Form - Essays    8. Humor    9. Internet - General   

Subjects:  1. American - General    2. Computer - Internet    3. Computer Bks - Internet    4. Computer Books: General    5. Computers    6. Electronic mail systems    7. General    8. Humor    9. Internet    10. Internet - General    11. Quotations, maxims, etc    12. Humor / General    13. Humour    14. Wide area networks (WANs)   

Subjects:  1. Antiques / Collectibles    2. Business & Economics    3. Business/Economics    4. Computer network resources    5. E-Commerce - General    6. Electronic Commerce    7. General    8. Internet auctions    9. Internet marketing    10. Reference - General    11. Selling    12. ANTIQUES & COLLECTIB - ANTIQUE/COLLT TRD PB    13. Antiques & Collectibles / General    14. BG-HUMOR/GAMES - BG-GAMES/PUZZLES    15. Business & Economics / E-Commerce / General   

Reviews (3)

Unless you're totally inept, don't bother.
I thought I'd be able to find some sophisticated ways to get revenge on the internet--mail bombing, sending pages to thousands of people with my target's phone number, et cetera.Better still, I thought, maybe I'd learn some low-level cracking stuff: the kind of stuff you could use to wreak some serious havoc. yeah
Although it had some interesting information, it fell short because most of the computer revenge techniques in the book were common sense (unless you knew nothing about computers that is). so in all, it was pretty much a waste of time for me but i did gain some very interesting ways for revenge. hehe

Wish it had more material
Byte Me! has some interesting tips. However, it would be much better if had at least twice as much content. It also has a veryRead more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computers    3. Cybernetics    4. Form - Parodies    5. Humor    6. Revenge    7. Humor / Parodies    8. Internet    9. Parodies & spoofs   

Editorial Review

This third edition of the tremendously popular Hacker's Dictionary adds 100 new entries and updates 200 entries. In case you aren't familiar with it, this is no snoozer dictionary of technical terms, although you'll certainly find accurate definitions for most techie jargon. It's the slang and secret language among computer jocks that offers the most fun. Don't know what the Infinite-Monkey Theorem is? Or the meaning of "rat dance?" It's all here. Most people don't sit down to read dictionaries for entertainment, but this is surely an exception. ... Read more

Reviews (29)

Understand Your Fellow Hackers
"The New Hacker's Dictionary" is not an ordinary dictionary.Instead of a regular English dictionary, you get one that is the hacker's dream: a dictionary full of terms used by hackers all over the globe. Then you can really talk with your fellow geeks. A Slice Of Hacker History Hidden Inside A Dictionary
This isn't a dictionary, it's a thousand slices of hacker history, folklore, and culture aranged in alphabetical order.I've kept this book by my desk for the past decade and I still turn to it for a refreshing mind-spritz when the code is starting to look blurry...

A must-have for wanabees and the curious alike
This is one of my favorites: both informative and highly entertaining (perhaps more the latter).Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computer Science    3. Computers    4. Computers - General Information    5. Dictionaries    6. Electronic data processing    7. Humor    8. Machine Theory    9. Reference - Dictionaries    10. Slang    11. Terminology    12. Computers / Computer Science    13. Data security & data encryption    14. Reference works   

Reviews (11)

Great sites, but...
I wish Crowley would just list the sites, give a brief description and leave it at that. The "comments" are awful - I don't even know the guy and I seriously dislike him because his comments bug me THAT much. I have hisother book, 505 Weirdest OnLine Stores. You know, both of his books are a good resource for when you're bored and want something funny to look up while you're in front of the computer, but Mr. Crowley, seriously, your attempts at humor and being "cool" have failed miserably. Stick to just listing stuff. trust me.

Give Crowley A Chance, You Might Be Surprised
Some reviewers have essentially remarked that Dan Crowley is immature in his approach to dealing with his subject matter. I am certainly not defending this book as a piece of high literature, but I am willing to wager that not too many of these critics wrote a book at age 17. For the record, I think Crowley is occasionally tedious (the word "stupid" must be the most common adjective in the book, and the Homer Simpson references are irritating after a while, as is his hatred for cats), but I don't think he is particularly mean spirited (he thanks the creators of all these sites for providing him with material, after all). As the author he gets to define his subject, he chose the 505 stupidest sites on the web, and some of the ones he chose really do deserve to be singled out for special condemnation. Examples of humorous senselessness abound: www.cheeseracing.org (a site dedicated to incinerating wrapped cheese slices on a grill); a site dedicated to the church of William Shatner; a site devoted to the "Sounds of Pasta" (different types of pasta being poured into a pan sound files), and of course, Britney's Guide to Semiconductor Physics, with features involving Britney Spears and advanced physics (including explanations of vertical cavity surface emitting lasers which you can read while looking at your Britney wallpaper.)
Good for internet newbies
My mother bought this book, and I thought that it was a bad idea to purchase it, because websites (especially the more useless ones) are ephemeral.However, most of the sites are still online as of November 2004.I have been using the internet for many years, and a large number of these sites were ones I was already aware of.My mother, though, is sort of a newbie, and she really enjoyed visiting these sites; she has gotten some great laughs out of them.This book would make a great gift for your internet-newbie relatives -- those who have a sense of humor, anyway! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer network resources    2. Computers - General Information    3. Curiosities and wonders    4. Directories    5. General    6. Humor    7. Information Storage & Retrieval    8. Internet - General    9. Internet addresses    10. Web sites   

Subjects:  1. Computer Literacy    2. English Satire And Humor    3. Geeks (Computer enthusiasts)    4. General    5. Humor    6. Humor / General   

Reviews (3)

Grains of truth in mountains of humor
I really enjoyed this book. It's far more insightful and biting than Dilbert. And the tech is spot on which just adds to the enjoyment. Definitely a must read for any professional programmer. You will laugh your ass off at some of the sections, and then cry woefully in others. I know it's an article book, and I generally don't like them. But it works here. Really.

Veteran developers will find this all too familiar...
OK...this was a fun read...The Best of Verity Stob by Verity Stob (Apress).
a British experience
What is a Verity?
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Subjects:  1. Computer Books: Languages    2. Computers    3. Computers - General Information    4. General    5. Humor    6. Information Technology    7. Programming - General    8. Social aspects    9. Computers / Programming / General   

Reviews (1)

Brillant and witty -- the must read Bill Gates book of 1998
You would be crazy to buy any other Bill Gates book. This is an insightfullook at the world's richest man -- from the days of his youth, the bigbattles with Apple and IBM, and revealing insights into the big anti-trustcase. Read more

Subjects:  1. Businessmen    2. Computer software industry    3. General    4. Humor    5. Rich & Famous    6. United States    7. Humor / General    8. Humour    9. Service industries