7/31/2011

Multilevel Modeling (Quantitative Applications in the Social Sciences) Review

Multilevel Modeling (Quantitative Applications in the Social Sciences)
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Sage university papers on quantitative applications are presented as brief and inexpensive treatments of specialized topics in statistics and data analysis. Some are well worth the price, while some leave you wishing you used the money towards acquiring a full-length treatise or textbook. If you need to learn about multilevel modeling on your own, Douglas Luke's Multilevel Modeling is worth much more than its price, especially if you buy it from Amazon.com, because it is a model of compositional economy in addressing a complex idea, and of what a truly introductory textbook should be. Luke maintains focus, precision, and masterful clarity in a fashion that is rarely encountered among books which claim to be "An Introduction to ... " a topic as specialized, intricate, and novel as is multilevel statistical modeling. Luke defines the terms more lucidly than some of the most popular full-sized books which aim to introduce multilevel analysis (and which still leave the reader mired in ambiguity). The author does not attempt to impart any gratuitous complexity to his exposition and manages to integrate textual clarity with statistical notation and equations, figures, and tables which are equally clear for someone who, while familiar with concepts beyond one-variable statistics and simple linear regression and ANOVA, has never studied or engaged in this type of data analysis or research design before. You may need to proceed to thicker treatises to make a thorough analysis and find out how to use your favorite software, but if you begin with one or more of those and find the topic still unclear in its elements - either the big picture or the basic details - you will find Luke's 78 pages (including reference to data online) enlightening.

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Taking a practical, hands-on approach to multilevel modeling, this book provides readers with an accessible and concise introduction to HLM and how to use the technique to build models for hierarchical and longitudinal data. Each section of the book answers a basic question about multilevel modeling, such as, "How do you determine how well the model fits the data?" After reading this book, readers will understand research design issues associated with multilevel models, be able to accurately interpret the results of multilevel analyses, and build simple cross-sectional and longitudinal multilevel models.

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Stop Staring: Facial Modeling and Animation Done Right Review

Stop Staring: Facial Modeling and Animation Done Right
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Brilliant concepts and discussion of details, but somewhat slow in painting the big picture. He never really comes out and says it, so I will. The end result is a control rig for 40 blend shapes, each painstakingly hand drawn and tuned. The state of the art doesn't allow shortcuts; I don't think it ever can or will. If you can accept that all 40 shapes are needed to model the range of human facial expression, this book is for you. Osipa makes a compelling argument that each is necessary; guides you through the modeling to make it possible; and wraps up with an elegant rig to control and manage them all. The result is a talking head, simply amazing in its range and control of nuance. Still, 40 heads per character is a huge investment. Is it worth "Doing Right?" Or can you continue to fake it? Buy the book; play with the rig; and find out for yourself.

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7/30/2011

Next Generation Excel: Modeling in Excel for Analysts and MBAs (Wiley Finance) Review

Next Generation Excel: Modeling in Excel for Analysts and MBAs (Wiley Finance)
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I heartily recommend this book to anyone that uses Excel on a daily basis for business analysis or for MBA students. Early in the introduction, Dr. Gottlieb promises that if you use Excel for 10 hours a week or more, this book will save you hundreds of hours per year. He delivers!
You don't need to build an excel spreadsheet to calculate that this book is worth many times its cover price to users of excel. Even if you are a "power user" you will quiclky find tips that will make you more efficient.
I was fortunate enough to take an Excel class from Dr. Gottlieb a few years ago during the "crash math course" week while getting an MBA at Columbia University. I don't want to offend any of my esteemed professors, but those few hours with Dr. Gottlieb were probably more useful than several of my semester-long courses to me. I currently use Excel for 3-4 hours per day to analyze stocks at my hedge fund and his tips have saved me hours and helped to make my graphical representation of data look top-notch.
This book is not a basic "how-to" or "for dummies" book on Excel. It is the perfect book for you if you use Excel frequently, but are frustrated that you have to perform certain repetitive keystrokes or clicks to get it do what you want. Perhaps you want your charts to look better. Maybe you didn't even know that you could have custom lists built in, for example, instead of manually entering FQ01, FQ02, etc. You can add trend lines to graphs; you can format parts of graphs differently than other parts. You can name cells, groups of cells to make your work easier.
Dr. Gottlieb exposes the many keystroke shortcuts that can make your daily grind with Excel less laborious. His book is laid out in a very concise, neat organization. I think the best way to really benefit from it is to power through entire sections that apply to your work and try his examples. He provides some problems at the end of each chapter (he is in academia, after all) but mercifully; he provides the answers, too!
This book is only about 280 pages long, but don't let that fool you, if you compare it to some other Excel books with 800 pages. He has more time-saving information in it than books 2 or 3 times as long. The beauty of his book is everything he shows is something an analyst using Excel in the real world actually uses it for. He is not just running through every menu, detailing every useless capability of Excel, like the other books.
This is the key advantage to Dr. Gottlieb's book. He has a list of over 50,000 people that he sends his "tip of the month" to and they (like me) are not shy about emailing him questions. This gives him keen insight into what real Excel jockeys are interested in, and he addresses those issues in this book. Get it today and you will discover many things that Excel can do for you, in a much easier way than you are using it today!

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Dr. Isaac Gottlieb personally trained 35 of our top analysts and finance professionals in a customized advanced Excel seminar. Many of the tools covered in this book were part of this well-received training. For the past five years, Isaac's monthly Excel-Tip-Of-The-Month newsletter has been a personal favorite of mine. In an age where email overload is common, I always look forward to his email and many of my associates and team members around the world are part of his over 50,000 monthly recipients. This compilation is a must-have for any finance professional who wants to be a better business partner and truly add value in a more efficient manner!
Anthony N. Caspio, CMAVice President - FinanceSealed Air Corporation
Excel has been one of the most powerful applications of recent times, but most users, unfortunately, only scratch its surface. Prof. Gottlieb's book leverages his years of Excel workshops in the US, Europe and Asia, and he unleashes the tremendous potential and power of Excel. His to-the-point explanations and his innovative screenshots bring Excel alive to readers who may just have a working knowledge of the software. This amazing volume is an application-oriented book for Excel users who want answers fast, and who need to maximize the application's awesome potential.
Prof. Farrokh Langdana, Ph.D.Director, Rutgers Executive MBAProfessor, Rutgers Business School
If I should thank Microsoft for inventing Excel, then I would like to thank Dr. Isaac Gottlieb more for teaching me how to use it to solve the real problems in my real work. Keep going Isaac!
Wu HaowenDirector of International ProgramsSchool of Management, Dalian University of Technology
Isaac Gottlieb's Next Generation Excel is an invaluable resource. The fruit of many years of teaching Excel to university business students, Gottlieb's book covers the topics that the Excel user needs to become more efficient and sophisticated. It is easy to read and follow. A wonderful book!
Simon BenningaProfessor of Finance, Faculty of Management, Tel Aviv UniversityAuthor of Principles of Finance with Excel
As an avid user of Excel, several years ago I came across Isaac's Excel-Tip-Of-The-Month newsletter. I quickly realized that Isaac exploits Excel to the "next usability level." Like his monthly newsletters, Isaac has composed a book that is clear and concise similarly reflecting his teaching methods. This book helps intermediate users to rapidly acquire Excel-pro skills, while allowing advanced users to grasp concepts in one single pass-through. Furthermore, Isaac takes day-to-day challenges and provides elegant ease of use solutions.
Moshe CastielManager, IT – Technology & OperationsTIAA-CREF
Next Generation Excel presents an interesting perspective on the resourcefulness of Microsoft Excel like never before. This book is an excellent and a much-needed resource to MBA students, educators and Excel enthusiasts. In reviewing this book, the principal criteria included content, organization and Excel add-on files. The book is neatly organized into sections; starting with basic Excel tools and functions, commonly used statistical tools, what-if-analysis and then moving on to advanced data features, solver-add ins and various other ToolPaks, nicely complemented with the Excel snapshots to provide a user friendly experience. As a result, one can jump directly to the relevant sections and use the Excel files provided to get a more hands-on experience. The right mix of theory and practice, is the unique selling point (USP) of this book!
Anirudha "Andy" Vaidya, MBACEOAVS System

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Modeling Structured Finance Cash Flows with Microsoft Excel: A Step-by-Step Guide.Book & CD-ROM Review

Modeling Structured Finance Cash Flows with Microsoft Excel: A Step-by-Step Guide.Book and CD-ROM
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In structured finance, there is a tremendous discrepancy between academic literature and practice. In purporting a generalizable, scientific approach, many textbooks avoid explaining the intracacies of actual structured finance deals. The fundamental issue is that the implicit value of deal transparency required for issuer and investor tends to be overlooked by authors approaching the field from an academic background. Technical pyrotechnics that suit liquid markets fail when fees, interest rates, and other deal specifics are malleable constructs negotiated among a handful of parties. At the same time, basic bond math on an unsegregated pool of loans cannot accurately describe how assets generate cash flows and the risks faced by investors.

MFSC is the *only* book (afaik) that demonstrates how real structured finance pros bridge the void between these 2 common pitfalls made by other structured finance books. For one, the calculations that belie each component of a structured finance deal is integrated into a single model rather than considered separately. Other books may describe how cash flows pay out in a senior-sub structure, but they won't, for example, take the time to step through how funding costs and triggers affect the cash flows. The primary model also gives the user flexibility to stress the model and enables the user to treat the model as a base for all structured finance deals. Through a neatly organized inputs sheet, each component in the primary model described painstakingly anticipates the gamut of variations common to these types of deals.

All this in a book that's easy to follow and a delight to read. Five stars.


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A practical guide to building fully operational financial cash flow models for structured finance transactions
Structured finance and securitization deals are becoming more commonplace on Wall Street. Up until now, however, market participants have had to create their own models to analyze these deals, and new entrants have had to learn as they go. Modeling Structured Finance Cash Flows with Microsoft Excel provides readers with the information they need to build a cash flow model for structured finance and securitization deals. Financial professional Keith Allman explains individual functions and formulas, while also explaining the theory behind the spreadsheets. Each chapter begins with a discussion of theory, followed by a section called "Model Builder," in which Allman translates the theory into functions and formulas. In addition, the companion CD-ROM features all of the modeling exercises, as well as a final version of the model that is created in the text.
Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.

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7/29/2011

Mudworks: Creative Clay, Dough, and Modeling Experiences (Bright Ideas for Learning) Review

Mudworks: Creative Clay, Dough, and Modeling Experiences (Bright Ideas for Learning)
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This book is far better organized than some activity books by other authors. Every activity has a symbol in the corner of the page indicating the age range for each project. Additional symbols for cooking, no cooking, air dry, bake dry, edible, caution, and "adult supervision always necessary" are used when applicable. These symbols make it very easy to flip through the book to find a good project for your child(ren). It is especially useful when trying to find projects for children of mixed ages. The layout of the directions is excellent with one project per page, materials clearly listed, mixture process easily explained, and then many optional variations and ideas to further change or expand on the basic project.
Lots of dough's, modeling compounds, homemade beads, plaster and papier mache projects. A section with edible items such as dog biscuits, pie crust, gingerbread and pretzels. At 150 pages you can imagine there is a lot here to keep you busy for a long time. Many of the projects can be made with ingredients most people have on hand at home. Some projects are fast and easy and others are more complex.
I would highly recommend this for every parent, teachers of young children, and even babysitters. This would make a great birthday gift as an alternative to toys, for 2 year-olds and up. I have found this very helpful on days when my children seem bored with our usual daily routine and on rainy days. As a homeschooling mother I have a lot of projects to do with my children, many of which I know are usually done in preschool or kindergarten.
WONDERFUL!

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Categorized by art media, this book offers a delightfully messy range of creative activities for children to explore and experience.

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The Model Posing Guide For Fashion And Glamour Photography Review

The Model Posing Guide For Fashion And Glamour Photography
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A quick read for the photographer and model alike. The book hits all the points on preparing for a shoot from the Models perspective. As a photographer, I'm keeping a few on hand to give to newer models - as a way to help them get started. The book has groups and series of poses that the model can practice ahead of the shoot. (It always makes a shoot go smoother when a model can cycle through poses and you only have to help them make fine adjustments.) This book is a great reference for photographers, because you can visually breeze through similar poses to find one that fits what you are looking to capture. All in all, I'm glad someone finally came out with a book just like this! Kudos to the author!

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A posing guide for models interested in the Fashion and Glamour Photography Industry. Designed for Fashion and Glamour Models, it is about the rules for posing with sample poses and other tips, hints, and bits of information for models. A must have for Photographers too!

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7/28/2011

Management Science: The Art of Modeling with Spreadsheets Review

Management Science: The Art of Modeling with Spreadsheets
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This book takes time to adjust to the crowded typesetting first. Then it gets more interesting as you read more of it. The authors know the subject in depth as well as breath. One problem I have with my students is that many of them do not have the quantitative background required of the book, but the level of the book is what we should aim for in the future. We have to raise the level of our education. The book is well written except for some expected typos for a new edition.

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Now in its third edition, Management Science helps business professionals gain the essential skills needed to develop real expertise in business modeling. The biggest change in the text is the conversion of software from Crystal Ball to Risk Solver to reflect changes in the field. More coverage of management science topics has been added. Broader coverage of Excel demonstrates how to create models. Additional open-ended case studies that are less structured have also been included along with new exercises. These changes will help business professionals learn how to apply the information in the field.

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Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modeling, Third Edition (Methodology In The Social Sciences) Review

Principles and Practice of Structural Equation Modeling, Third Edition (Methodology In The Social Sciences)
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We use this book in my the SEM class in my doctoral program and my professor has used it for years. Great book, easy to follow and understand!

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This bestselling text provides a balance between the technical and practical aspects of structural equation modeling (SEM). Using clear and accessible language, Rex B. Kline covers core techniques, potential pitfalls, and applications across the behavioral and social sciences. Some more advanced topics are also covered, including estimation of interactive effects of latent variables and multilevel SEM. The companion Web page offers downloadable syntax, data, and output files for each detailed example for EQS, LISREL, and Mplus, allowing readers to view the results of the same analysis generated by three different computer tools.

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7/27/2011

The Art of Modeling Dynamic Systems: Forecasting for Chaos, Randomness and Determinism (Dover Books on Mathematics) Review

The Art of Modeling Dynamic Systems: Forecasting for Chaos, Randomness and Determinism (Dover Books on Mathematics)
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I find myself agreeing with all the comments made so far.
It's not too common to find a book that is able to describe in simple terms, such a large and diverse range of mathematical tools.
The author uses a framework - to tie together tools used in describing and handling deterministic, semi deterministic, and stochastic systems. For an example of Deterministic, try ODE's (ordinary differential equations), for semi deterministic - try Periodic but noisy wave-forms (some stock prices), and finally Stochastic - Random looking waveforms that have underlying patterns that can be described using either using Chaotic indicators (Hurst, Liapunov ) or probability type descriptors.
This book is the kind of thing you needed to help steer you through those dry mathematical books that are divorced from reality - A sort of classification system for deciphering what kind of gunpowder was used in those display's of intellectual fireworks from the tops of ivory towers. Kinda "So thats what all that maths means, but in plain english".
A depth of understanding, for practical application, without intellectual egotism and opaqueness. (But then maybe I'm just a bit thick ... :)
I'd tend to call this book as an equivalent to the Rosetta Stone for the maths of dynamical systems.
You may not use it directly - but you will benefit and grow in understanding from its' plain and simple sign posts along your journey.
It has its place on my book shelf.

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This text demonstrates the roles of statistical methods, coordinate transformations, and mathematical analysis in mapping complex, unpredictable dynamical systems. Written by a well-known authority in the field, it employs practical examples and analogies, rather than theorems and proofs, to characterize the benefits and limitations of modeling tools. 1991 edition.

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The Data Warehouse Toolkit: The Complete Guide to Dimensional Modeling (Second Edition) Review

The Data Warehouse Toolkit: The Complete Guide to Dimensional Modeling (Second Edition)
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There are a lot of data warehousing books out there that try to answer the question: 'Why'? Why data warehouses are needed to help businesses make better decisions - why the OLTP systems that run the business can't do this - and sometimes even why businesses ought to invest in data warehouses. These books were terrifically useful to us years ago, when we needed help (and scholarly footnotes) in our data warehouse project proposals. This book is not one of those - it is all about:
How
How to actually design and build a repository that will deliver real value to real people. In this reviewer's opinion, Ralph Kimball's many contributions related to the 'how' of data warehousing stand alone.
An engineer wishing to jump-start his or her data warehouse education would need to read Ralph's Data Warehouse Toolkit first edition, his Data Webhouse Toolkit... a bunch of "Data Warehouse Designer" Intelligence Enterprise magazine articles... AND lurk on the Data Warehousing List Server...for a few years (all terrific resources - by the way) - in order to stockpile the knowledge that is crisply presented here.
No shortcuts taken by the authors that I can spot: all of the toughest dimensional design issues that I've tripped on - and that I can remember surfacing on in discussion groups over the past few years - are addressed in this significantly updated text. Not all of the solutions are 'pretty' - but it is clear that they thoughtfully address the problem. This approach, in my opinion, instills student confidence - and lets us know that we are getting sound instruction - not dogma.
The authors have been listening to and addressing the data warehouse community's 'pain' through periodicals and posts for years - but this book pulls these point solutions together very nicely. I learned a surprising number of really useful new techniques, and was genuinely enlightened by the 'Present Imperatives and Future Outlook' section.
As in the first edition, there is minimal philosophical lecturing, and zero religion. Instead, we get generous helpings of real-world case studies - aptly applied to progressively more advanced series of design concepts.
This style absolutely works for me. And I suspect that engineering mindsets typical of the folks that build these things will likely agree. In short, the Data Warehouse Toolkit Second Edition will significantly lighten the load of books that I carry between data warehouse engagements.
Jim Stagnitto
Llumino, Inc.
www.llumino.com

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The latest edition of the single most authoritative guide on dimensional modeling for data warehousing!
Dimensional modeling has become the most widely accepted approach for data warehouse design. Here is a complete library of dimensional modeling techniques-- the most comprehensive collection ever written. Greatly expanded to cover both basic and advanced techniques for optimizing data warehouse design, this second edition to Ralph Kimball's classic guide is more than sixty percent updated.
The authors begin with fundamental design recommendations and gradually progress step-by-step through increasingly complex scenarios. Clear-cut guidelines for designing dimensional models are illustrated using real-world data warehouse case studies drawn from a variety of business application areas and industries, including:
* Retail sales and e-commerce
* Inventory management
* Procurement
* Order management
* Customer relationship management (CRM)
* Human resources management
* Accounting
* Financial services
* Telecommunications and utilities
* Education
* Transportation
* Health care and insurance
By the end of the book, you will have mastered the full range of powerful techniques for designing dimensional databases that are easy to understand and provide fast query response. You will also learn how to create an architected framework that integrates the distributed data warehouse using standardized dimensions and facts.
This book is also available as part of the Kimball's Data Warehouse Toolkit Classics Box Set (ISBN: 9780470479575) with the following 3 books:

The Data Warehouse Toolkit, 2nd Edition (9780471200246)
The Data Warehouse Lifecycle Toolkit, 2nd Edition (9780470149775)
The Data Warehouse ETL Toolkit (9780764567575)

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7/26/2011

Spreadsheet Modeling & Decision Analysis: A Practical Introduction to Management Science (with Printed Access Card) Review

Spreadsheet Modeling and Decision Analysis: A Practical Introduction to Management Science (with Printed Access Card)
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Since Lotus 1-2-3 burst onto the scene almost thirty years ago, spreadsheet software has been a vital tool in aiding business decision-making. There are many books offering instruction in learning to use a spreadsheet. Some books promise to teach business processes but end up delivering a course on basic spreadsheeting with only a passing nod to the business processes the student was expecting to learn.
This fine book actually delivers the goods. First and foremost, it is a solid text on decision analysis in business management. It teaches the student on how to model optimization problems and solve them using linear programming. It covers sensitivity analysis and the simplex method, network modeling, integer linear programming, goal programming and multiple objective optimization, non-linear programming and evolutionary optimization, regression analysis, discriminant analysis, time series forecasting, introduces simulation, queuing theory, project management, and concludes with a chapter devoted to decision analysis. This final chapter covers both probabilistic and non-probabilistic methods, the expected value of imperfect information, decision trees, analyzing risk in a decision tree, computing conditional probabilities, and finally, utility theory.
What is wonderfully useful about this book is that it teaches these important principles of business decision making by turning them into practical tools using Excel spreadsheets. It not only shows the reader (student) how to build the spreadsheet, it also does the important task of teaching the WHY of the tool, not just the how.
It is clearly written, is laid out logically, and comes across as supportive of the student trying to learn this material.
Included in this book are 2 CDs. Included are: an advanced Solver, a 140 day trial of the Crystal Ball software, which will limit your use of it to the term you first study the material, but won't be of use to you unless you buy the software. The same goes for the 120-day trial of Microsoft Project. It is great to be introduced to these tools, but once you have invested time learning them, you will need to make other investments to keep using them. This is OK with me; I just think you ought to know that up front.
I think this is a fine text and could be the foundation of a very useful course.

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SPREADSHEET MODELING AND DECISION ANALYSIS, Sixth Edition, provides instruction in the most commonly used management science techniques and shows how these tools can be implemented using Microsoft Office Excel 2010.

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Microsoft® Office Excel® 2007: Data Analysis and Business Modeling (Bpg -- Other) Review

Microsoft® Office Excel® 2007: Data Analysis and Business Modeling (Bpg -- Other)
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Microsoft® Office Excel® 2007: Data Analysis and Business Modeling (Bpg -- Other)
This book should be on the desk of anyone analyzing data. It IS NOT for someone who doesn't know Excel 2007 and the basics of analyzing or working with data.
However, I've gone through Chapter 39 and have found this book is filled with all kinds of errors. I couldn't find any place on the internet that addresses these errors. Files missing or wrong (ie. Chapter 9 solution file problem numbers are incorrect), examples not matching my Office, Home, Student 2007 version (ie. pg. 43 references a DATEIF function that doesn't exist), plus many more.
The author or Microsoft needs to do a better job of proofreading or at least have a website where readers can post the errors they find so everybody using this book doesn't spend their time refinding the same errors.

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Master the analysis and business modeling techniques that help you transform your data into bottom-line results. Award-winning business professor and corporate consultant Wayne Winston shares the best of his real-world experience in this practical guide—now updated for Excel 2007. Use Wayne's proven practices and hands-on exercises to help you work smarter, make better decisions, and gain the competitive edge.

Solve real-world business problems with Excel 2007!

Maximize profits—determine NPV, optimize your product mix, calculate ROI
Create best, worst, and most-likely case scenarios for sales
Analyze investment performance and help minimize risk
Track your personal finances, calculate loan terms, and plan for retirement
Use trend and seasonality to forecast revenue
Estimate a product's demand curve and manage inventory with precision Interpret the effects of price and advertising on sales
Assign a dollar value to customer loyalty
Solve work scheduling problems and shorten wait times for customer service queues
PLUS—predict outcomes of sporting events, presidential elections, and more!

CD Includes:

Sample files from each chapter
Problem-and-solution sets—build your expertise!
Fully searchable eBook

A Note Regarding the CD or DVD

The print version of this book ships with a CD or DVD. For those customers purchasing one of the digital formats in which this book is available, we are pleased to offer the CD/DVD content as a free download via OReilly Medias Digital Distribution services. To download this content, please visit OReillys web site, search for the title of this book to find its catalog page, and click on the link below the cover image (Examples, Companion Content, or Practice Files). Note that while we provide as much of the media content as we are able via free download, we are sometimes limited by licensing restrictions. Please direct any questions or concerns to booktech@oreilly.com.


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7/25/2011

Stats: Modeling the World (3rd Edition) Review

Stats: Modeling the World (3rd Edition)
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I have taught AP Stats for several years suffering through with a book I really hated. I felt that perhaps it was the subject though I continued to think Stats was really an awesome course. Now that I have my hands on this book, I have read every word on every page (the humor is most appreciated), truly reviewing the book to determine if I wanted to adopt it for my school. Not only am I planning on using it for my AP Stats class, I am going to use it in my regular class as well. It just makes such sense--and when it doesn't (because Stats is notoriously vague on some concepts--like why we divide by n-1 for s) the authors admit that though many have offered explanations, the reason is more likely just to drive you crazy. I've honestly never actually read a text and enjoyed it so thoroughly--now my husband REALLY thinks I'm a math nerd. I love, love, love this book. If it had a facebook page, I'd be a fan.

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KEY BENEFIT: By leading with practical data analysis and graphics, Stats: Modeling the World, Third Edition, engages students and gets them to do statistics and think statistically from the start. With the authors' signature Think, Show, Tell problem-solving method, students learn what we can find in data, why we find it interesting and how to report it to others. Instructors praise this text as clear and accessible, while students report that they actually enjoy reading the book while learning how to do statistics. Additional examples with updated data make this new edition even easier to read and use.

EXPLORING AND UNDERSTANDING DATA; Stats Start Here; Data; Displaying and Describing Categorical Data; Displaying and Comparing Qualitative Data; Understanding and Comparing Distributions; The Standard Deviation as a Ruler and the Normal Model; EXPLORING RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN VARIABLES; Scatterplots, Association, and Correlation; Linear Regression; Regression Wisdom; Re-expressing Data: Get it Straight!; GATHERING DATA; Understanding Randomness; Sample Surveys; Experiments and Observational Studies; RANDOMNESS AND PROBABILITY; From Randomness to Probability; Probability Rules!; Random Variables; Probability Models; FROM THE DATA AT HAND TO THE WORLD AT LARGE; Sampling Distribution Models; Confidence Intervals for Proportions; Testing Hypotheses About Proportions; More About Tests and Intervals; Comparing Two Proportions; LEARNING ABOUT THE WORLD; Inferences about Means; Comparing Means; Paired Samples and Blocks; INFERENCE WHEN VARIABLES ARE RELATED; Comparing Counts; Inferences for Regression; Analysis of Variance (on DVD); Multiple Regression (on DVD)

For all readers interested in introductory statistics.

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Professional Model Portfolios: A Step-by-Step Guide for Photographers Review

Professional Model Portfolios: A Step-by-Step Guide for Photographers
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This is not a bad book and I'm not going to trash it. It is, however, like many of the Amherst Media books, a little disappointing for anyone pretty far along in the business. I would consider it a complete beginner's guide to modeling and model photography. In that light, it's a useful and interesting book. I found the photos to be less than stellar and a bit dated, but this is totally subjective. (You can see a lot better by browsing the showcased photos on OneModelPlace.com.)The entire book left me wishing for more. With all this stated, I did learn some things from this book, which probably compensated for the cover price. In short, don't expect miracles from this book.

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This photographer's guide to creating successful model portfolios encourages a dynamic, diversified artistic approach and shares essential knowledge about the modeling industry, portfolio basics, and agency requirements. Photographers learn how to work with models for the best possible results, create and refine a standout portfolio, and sell that product to agents in the United States, England, and Asia. Three actual portfolios are included to help photographers conceptualize, sculpt, and refine their own portfolios to maximize their client's reach in the industry. Photographers learn why particular images were chosen for opening and closing shots, how to arrange the interior images, and what constitutes an appealing design. Featuring information on working with women, men, and children, this book will help new and experienced models and photographers alike in getting the results they desire.

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7/24/2011

Polygonal Modeling: Basic and Advanced Techniques (Worldwide Game and Graphics Library) (Wordware Game and Graphics Library) Review

Polygonal Modeling: Basic and Advanced Techniques (Worldwide Game and Graphics Library) (Wordware Game and Graphics Library)
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I was looking to learn Maya after years of using 3ds max, and this book's Maya Quick Start chapter got me right to the poly modeling tools and workflow without any detours. The tutorials have lots and lots of pictures--any semi-experienced modeler could work from the pictures alone. There is also a short, well-worded, to-the-point chapter on modeling for games, with the best explanation I've ever seen of poly arrangements and their importance. It's great to see a book with so little fluff and so much substance.

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Polygonal modeling is the process of creating objects in a 3D environment. It is the foundation for the creation of all 3D graphics and the essential building block of a career in computer graphics. Polygonal Modeling: Basic and Advanced Techniques provides in-depth coverage of polygonal modeling, including practical lessons on topology construction, a focus on the fundamentals of subdivision workflow, and a discussion of the technical aspects of modeling organic and inorganic objects. The book includes illustrated quick start modeling guides to 3ds max and Maya.Explore and evaluate a variety of subdivision techniques. Learn about polygonal objects and their most common properties. Discover how to use the tools and operations found in major 3D packages for polygonal modeling. Follow along with the step-by-step illustrated exercises that demonstrate the process of character modeling.

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Financial Modeling Review

Financial Modeling
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Simon Benninga's 3rd Edition of Financial Modelling with Excel is the single most useful book for finance students and professionals ever published and continues to offer an outstanding reference and textbook for students and practitioners of applied finance.
For further information, please use the "Look Inside" feature and examine the Table of Contents carefully, because I will emphasize selected portions.
It is difficult to overstate how useful and practical and helpful this work is for a wide audience and Financial Modelling is the single finance book I recommend for everyone after they have taken (or read themselves) Introductory Finance.
For those looking for "one-stop-shopping" for models that resemble those of professional financial analysts then there is no better value than Benninga's FM3.
Benninga's FM3 is a coal-face work for those who must make financial decisions using models. There are further specialist texts in topics covered here (credit modelling, portfolio construction, option pricing), but the models in FM3 are the first advanced models applied to loans, bonds, options, and equity portfolios. Master these and then specialized texts are easier to digest.
"Cookbook" metaphors are too strong and do not do this work justice, for Financial Modelling 3rd (FM3) is not a mere collection of recipes but rather topical introduction, explanation, and then direct technique.
If we can make a comparison with a "cookbook" then FM3 falls somewhere between "The Joy of Cooking" and "Mastering the Art of French Cooking." "Joy" combines chapters on technique, ingredients, and tools with dense pages of endless recipes, whereas "Mastering" emphasises technique and a few well-selected recipes.
The welcome new chapters cover bank valuation, the Black-Litterman approach to portfolio optimization, and Monte Carlo methods and applications to option pricing, and the previous 2nd edition's small chapter on using array functions and formulas has been expanded. The chapter on data downloads from YAHOO is also welcome, especially for those on a budget.
There is a single significant flaw in the work, which is excusable and redeemable. Far too often the discounting in the chapters is done over a flat interest rate curve. While the term structure of interest rates is covered, and historical term structures and parallel shifts and steepening and flattening is covered in isolation in a thorough chapter and with wonderful data files, the necessity and explicit connection of discounting from an appropriate yield curve is left implied and only mentioned in a few exercises. I would have preferred a "round up" chapter where each of the subjects treated (bond discounting, portfolio expected returns, options, etc.) under a yield curve with advanced models. Sure BLOOMBERG and REUTERS have these sort of things (often incorrectly) programmed, but students need to learn explicitly about them and do the exercise themselves to comprehend the importance of curve discounting.
The CD attached in the back of the book is alone worth the price, with over two score of models that are practical and adaptable for students and professionals alike. The files are stored and separated according to chapters and subject matter. Each file has logical progression of the concepts advanced in the book, and each separate sheet either stands alone or appropriately links to data and models on other sheets, so editing for your own purposes is a breeze.
For those who want to train themselves in Finance (not "personal finance") then I suggest reading Copeland, Weston, & Shastri's Financial Theory and Corporate Policy (4th Edition) and Brealey, Myers, and Marcus's "Corporate Finance" and "Investments" followed by working through FM3. Such a course would give any self-disciplined person the equivalent of a Masters of Science in Finance.
Full disclosure: I am thanked in the "Acknowledgements" for providing a few helpful comments on the second edition.

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"The new edition of Simon Begginga's Financial Modeling is acomprehensive and effective learning-by-doing tool in motivating users and makingeasily accessible the concepts of modern corporate finance, investments, andderivatives. In the real world of finance, its clear step-by-step approach empowersthe practitioner to search the internet for financial data, build programs toanalyze them, and make sound financial decisions. I strongly recommend it to thefinance student and practitioner alike."--George Constantinides, Leo MelamedProfessor of Finance, The University of Chicago Graduate School ofBusiness (George M. Constantinides )

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7/23/2011

The Business of Professional Modeling Review

The Business of Professional Modeling
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I am really impressed with this book. There is no other book on the market today that gives a comprehensive overview of the business side of the modeling industry. In addition, the book is full of beautiful images that give the reader a real sense of what professional models and professional images look like. If you are an aspiring model, new to the industry or working in the industry but don't understand the business side of it, this is a must read. WELL DONE!

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Learn the facts about the Modeling business from industry professionals.Learn how to set yourself apart from all the other aspiring models who want the same success that you are seeking!This book features the work of more than 100 industry professionals and priceless advice from Professional Models, Photographers, Makeup Artists and more.Order your copy today and take your career to the next level!

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