NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #23/NN_1992_23.iso/spool/bit/listserv/edtech/2133

Text File | 1992-10-15 | 5.4 KB | 122 lines

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Date:         Fri, 16 Oct 1992 00:27:50 EDT
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From:         Gleason Sackman <[e-mail]>
Subject:      REVIEW: Tennant, Ober & Lipow,
              "Crossing the Internet Threshold" (fwd)
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---------- Text of forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 15 Oct 1992 15:35:00 CST
From: "James Milles, SLU Law Library" <[e-mail]>
To: Multiple recipients of list NETTRAIN <[e-mail]>
Subject: REVIEW: Tennant, Ober & Lipow, "Crossing the Internet Threshold"

REVIEW OF:     Tennant, Roy, John Ober, and Anne G. Lipow.
               _Crossing the Internet Threshold_: _An
               Instructional Handbook_.  Berkeley: Library
               Solutions Press, 1993.

               ISBN 1-882208-01-3

               $40 until November 1, 1992; $45 thereafter

               Sales office:  1100 Industrial Road, Suite 9,
                              San Carlos  CA  94070

REVIEWED BY:   Martin Raish
               Coordinator for Information Management Education
               Binghamton University Library
               Box 6012
               Binghamton  NY  13902-6012

TARGET AUDIENCE:    Beginning users; network trainers

RATING:             **** (essential reading)

LENGTH OF REVIEW:   60 lines

SUMMARY:       A well-written introduction to networking for the
               beginner, but also an excellent model for the
               network trainer.  Both the text and the physical
               arrangement make it a valuable tool.

THE REVIEW:

I like this book.  In fact, the day after I received it, and
before I had even finished reading it, I used it as a resource
for a training session.  It's that good.

_Crossing_the_Internet_Threshold_ is an excellent overview of
networking.  The authors begin with a cogent, understandable
explanation of what the Internet is, from the technical,
social/political, and functional perspectives.  They continue
with the basics of understanding network addresses, of getting
connected, and of keeping current, and they include all the
normal information about e-mail, remote login, and file transfer.
Their style is appropriate to new network users; their sentences
are simple and direct, and they avoid technical terms whenever
possible.

They also provide an informative glossary, useful command
summaries for the various processes, and several "fact sheets" on
topics ranging from Archie to Gopher to Z39.50.  And for the
chapters on e-mail, telnet, and ftp, they furnish exercises for
novice, intermediate and advanced users.  These features make the
book useful both for self-learning and workshop situations.  (And
for network trainers, there are several "trainers' aids" such as
diagrams for overheads, training suggestions, and even a workshop
evaluation form.)

Throughout all this it is most satisfying to see that the authors
approach things from the viewpoint of people in the trenches --
both learners and trainers.  They offer numerous hints and tips
that clearly derive from personal experience.  For example,
regarding e-mail they say: "Think before you send," "Think twice
before you reply," "Think thrice before you forward," and "Think
overnight before you flame."  And for trainers they remind us to
test our teaching station prior to the session, and to paginate
our handouts.

At the same time I very much appreciate the format of this book.
It is spiral bound, so can lie flat on the table next to a
terminal, where folks need it.  The text is in large, legible
type, while the pages have wide margins and lots of blank space
for scribbling notes.  Also, each page has boldface sub-titles
that help readers scan for information.

There are, of course, a few things that I find less than perfect
in this work, but they are of minor concern.  And on occasion the
authors stumble over the old bugaboo of dealing with different
kinds of equipment (i.e., UNIX commands that permit operations
not available on the machines we are stuck with).  But these
cases are handled as well as can be expected in an introductory
work, and we as trainers have all learned to cope with them.

And I do appreciate the fact that the authors chose not to try to
explain EVERYthing about the Internet.  They deal very well with
the basics, provide a peek at other aspects (such as WAIS), and
offer trainers solid support for individual sessions.  These were
their goals in creating this work, and they met their goals quite
admirably.

So my overall rating is two thumbs up.  The retail price is a bit
steep -- $45 for a soft-cover book only 130 pages long ($40 until
the end of October).  But it is worth it.  In fact you might want
two copies in your library -- one for the patrons to fight over,
and one for your office.

-- Martin Raish

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