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The Information Diet
by Clay A. JohnsonThe modern human animal spends upwards of 11 hours out of every 24 in a state of constant consumption. Not eating, but gorging on information ceaselessly spewed from the screens and speakers we hold dear. Just as we have grown morbidly obese on sugar, fat, and flour--so, too, have we become gluttons for texts, instant messages, emails, RSS feeds, downloads, videos, status updates, and tweets. We're all battling a storm of distractions, buffeted with notifications and tempted by tasty tidbits of information. And just as too much junk food can lead to obesity, too much junk information can lead to cluelessness. The Information Diet shows you how to thrive in this information glut--what to look for, what to avoid, and how to be selective. In the process, author Clay Johnson explains the role information has played throughout history, and why following his prescribed diet is essential for everyone who strives to be smart, productive, and sane. In The Information Diet, you will: Discover why eminent scholars are worried about our state of attention and general intelligence Examine how today's media--Big Info--give us exactly what we want: content that confirms our beliefs Learn to take steps to develop data literacy, attention fitness, and a healthy sense of humor Become engaged in the economics of information by learning how to reward good information providers Just like a normal, healthy food diet, The Information Diet is not about consuming less--it's about finding a healthy balance that works for you
The Information Diet: A Case for Conscious Comsumption
by Clay A. JohnsonThis is a softcover version of the title released in 2011; there is no new material.The modern human animal spends upwards of 11 hours out of every 24 in a state of constant consumption. Not eating, but gorging on information ceaselessly spewed from the screens and speakers we hold dear. Just as we have grown morbidly obese on sugar, fat, and flour—so, too, have we become gluttons for texts, instant messages, emails, RSS feeds, downloads, videos, status updates, and tweets.We're all battling a storm of distractions, buffeted with notifications and tempted by tasty tidbits of information. And just as too much junk food can lead to obesity, too much junk information can lead to cluelessness. The Information Diet shows you how to thrive in this information glut—what to look for, what to avoid, and how to be selective. In the process, author Clay Johnson explains the role information has played throughout history, and why following his prescribed diet is essential for everyone who strives to be smart, productive, and sane.In The Information Diet, you will:Discover why eminent scholars are worried about our state of attention and general intelligenceExamine how today’s media—Big Info—give us exactly what we want: content that confirms our beliefsLearn to take steps to develop data literacy, attention fitness, and a healthy sense of humorBecome engaged in the economics of information by learning how to reward good information providersJust like a normal, healthy food diet, The Information Diet is not about consuming less—it’s about finding a healthy balance that works for you
The Information Revolution in Asia
by Nina Hachigian Lily WuThis report discusses the information revolution in the Asia-Pacific region and its likely course over the next five to ten years. Key questions addressed in this report include the extent to which the information revolution has taken hold of markets in this region, the political implications of the information revolution for Asian governments, the variations between individual countries, and the prospects for further information-technology-related developments in the region.
The Information System Consultant's Handbook: Systems Analysis and Design
by William S. Davis David C. YenThe Information System Consultant's Handbook familiarizes systems analysts, systems designers, and information systems consultants with underlying principles, specific documentation, and methodologies.Corresponding to the primary stages in the systems development life cycle, the book divides into eight sections:PrinciplesInformation Gathering and Problem DefinitionProject Planning and Project ManagementSystems AnalysisIdentifying AlternativesComponent DesignTesting and ImplementationOperation and MaintenanceEighty-two chapters comprise the book, and each chapter covers a single tool, technique, set of principles, or methodology. The clear, concise narrative, supplemented with numerous illustrations and diagrams, makes the material accessible for readers - effectively outlining new and unfamiliar analysis and design topics.
The Information Technology Fix for Health
by Andy OramNew information technologies (IT) hold the promise of better health in a world increasingly coping with chronic illness. The miniaturization of ever-more powerful sensing devices, along with the collection, analysis, and sharing of data, support activities in homes and clinics that let patients have a greater role in their own health care.This article takes you on a tour of specific technologies, tools, and trends to help you understand what’s been accomplished, what’s feasible in the near future, and why some technologies seem to languish despite their apparent advantages. You’ll also discover how these groundbreaking approaches can help lower the enormous health care costs in the US.Learn how devices and sensors are transforming medical equipment and helping self-monitoring go mainstreamUnderstand how data is gathered, stored, and analyzed, as well as the role shared data plays in clinical researchExplore the way IT helps medical teams coordinate, and how "telehealth" enables better patient treatment at homeLearn how health IT helps empower patients by providing more transparency in the systemExamine the standards in data storage and electronic health records, and weaknesses that need to be addressed in current systems
The Information Trade: How Big Tech Conquers Countries, Challenges Our Rights, and Transforms Our World
by Alexis Wichowski"A timely, compelling, and expertly researched passport to the tech companies that rule today's digital landscape."—Blake Harris, bestselling author of Console Wars and The History of the Future.In this provocative book about our new tech-based reality, political insider and tech expert Alexis Wichowski considers the unchecked rise of tech giants like Facebook, Google, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Tesla—what she calls “net states”— and their unavoidable influence in our lives. Rivaling nation states in power and capital, today’s net states are reaching into our physical world, inserting digital services into our lived environments in ways both unseen and, at times, unknown to us. They are transforming the way the world works, putting our rights up for grabs, from personal privacy to national security. Combining original reporting and insights drawn from more than 100 interviews with technology and government insiders, including Microsoft president Brad Smith, Google CEO Eric Schmidt, the former Federal Trade Commission chair under President Obama, and the managing director of Jigsaw—Google’s Department of Counter-terrorism against extremism and cyber-attacks—The Information Trade explores what happens we give up our personal freedom and individual autonomy in exchange for an easy, plugged-in existence, and shows what we can do to control our relationship with net states before they irreversibly change our future.
The Inmates are Running the Asylum
by Alan CooperImagine, at a terrifyingly aggressive rate, everything you regularly use is being equipped with computer technology. Think about your phone, cameras, cars-everything-being automated and programmed by people who in their rush to accept the many benefits of the silicon chip, have abdicated their responsibility to make these products easy to use. The Inmates Are Running the Asylum argues that the business executives who make the decisions to develop these products are not the ones in control of the technology used to create them. Insightful and entertaining, The Inmates Are Running the Asylum uses the author's experiences in corporate America to illustrate how talented people continuously design bad software-based products and why we need technology to work the way average people think. Somewhere out there is a happy medium that makes these types of products both user and bottom-line friendly; this book discusses why we need to quickly find that medium.
The Inner Workings of Life
by Eberhard O. VoitLiving systems are dynamic and extremely complex and their behaviour is often hard to predict by studying their individual parts. Systems biology promises to reveal and analyse these highly connected, regulated and adaptable systems, using mathematical modelling and computational analysis. This new systems approach is already having a broad impact on biological research and has potentially far-reaching implications for our understanding of life. Written in an informal and non-technical style, this book provides an accessible introduction to systems biology. Self-contained vignettes each convey a key theme and are intended to enlighten, provoke and interest readers of different academic disciplines, but also to offer new insight to those working in the field. Using a minimum amount of jargon and no mathematics, Voit manages to convey complex ideas and give the reader a genuine sense of the excitement that systems biology brings with it, as well as the current challenges and opportunities.
The Innovation Factory
by Gilles Garel Elmar MockThe Innovation Factory takes a fresh look at the fine art of breakthrough innovation. What makes it unique is that it brings together an experienced scholar and a serial entrepreneur who share the same passion for understanding the processes and theories needed to innovate over and over again. The book marries theory with practical examples focusin
The Innovation Mode: How to Transform Your Organization into an Innovation Powerhouse
by George KrasadakisThis book presents unique insights and advice on defining and managing the innovation transformation journey. Using novel ideas, examples and best practices, it empowers management executives at all levels to drive cultural, technological and organizational changes toward innovation. Covering modern innovation techniques, tools, programs and strategies, it focuses on the role of the latest technologies (e.g., artificial intelligence to discover, handle and manage ideas), methodologies (including Agile Engineering and Rapid Prototyping) and combinations of these (like hackathons or gamification). At the same time, it highlights the importance of culture and provides suggestions on how to build it. In the era of AI and the unprecedented pace of technology evolution, companies need to become truly innovative in order to survive. The transformation toward an innovation-led company is difficult – it requires a strong leadership and culture, advanced technologies and well-designed programs. The book is based on the author’s long-term experience and novel ideas, and reflects two decades of startup, consulting and corporate leadership experience. It is intended for business, technology, and innovation leaders.
The Innovation Ultimatum: How six strategic technologies will reshape every business in the 2020s
by Steve BrownPrepares leaders for the 2020s—an accessible guide to the key technologies that will reshape business in the coming decade Most businesses identify six key digital technologies—artificial intelligence (AI), distributed ledgers and blockchain, the Internet of Things (IoT), autonomous machines, virtual and augmented reality, and 5G communication—as critical to their relevance and growth over the coming ten years. These new disruptive technologies present significant opportunity for businesses in every industry. The first businesses to understand automation and these transformative technologies will be the ones to reap the greatest rewards in the marketplace. The Innovation Ultimatum helps leaders understand the key technologies poised to reshape business in the next decade and prepare their organizations for technology-enabled change. Using straightforward, jargon-free language, this important resource provides a set of strategic questions every leader will need to ask and answer in order to prepare for the impending changes to the business landscape. Author Steve Brown shares his insights to help leaders take full advantage of the next wave of digital transformation and describes compelling examples of how businesses are already embracing new technologies to optimize operations, create new value, and serve customers in new ways. Written for anyone that wants to understand how automation and new technology will fundamentally restructure business, this book enables readers to: Understand the implications of technology-driven change across industrial sectors Apply important insights to their own business Gain competitive advantage by implementing new technologies Prepare for the future of work and understand the skills needed to thrive in a post-automation economy Adopt critical digital technologies in any organization Providing invaluable cutting-edge content, The Innovation Ultimatum is a much-needed source of guidance and inspiration for business leaders, board members, C-suite executives, and senior managers who need to prepare their businesses for the future.
The Innovation in Computing Companion: A Compendium of Select, Pivotal Inventions
by Gerard O’ReganThis encyclopedic reference provides a concise and engaging overview of the groundbreaking inventions and conceptual innovations that have shaped the field of computing, and the technology that runs the modern world. Each alphabetically-ordered entry presents a brief account of a pivotal innovation and the great minds behind it, selected from a wide range of diverse topics.Topics and features:Describes the development of Babbage’s computing machines, Leibniz’s binary arithmetic, Boole’s symbolic logic, and Von Neumann architectureReviews a range of historical analog and digital computers, significant mainframes and minicomputers, and pioneering home and personal computersDiscusses a selection of programming languages and operating systems, along with key concepts in software engineering and commercial computingExamines the invention of the transistor, the integrated circuit, and the microprocessorRelates the history of such developments in personal computing as the mouse, the GUI, Atari video games, and Microsoft OfficeSurveys innovations in communications, covering mobile phones, WiFi, the Internet and World Wide Web, e-commerce, smartphones, social media, and GPSPresents coverage of topics on artificial intelligence, the ATM, digital photography and digital music, robotics, and WikipediaContains self-test quizzes and a helpful glossaryThis enjoyable compendium will appeal to the general reader curious about the intellectual milestones that led to the digital age, as well as to the student of computer science seeking a primer on the history of their field.Dr. Gerard O'Regan is a CMMI software process improvement consultant with research interests including software quality and software process improvement, mathematical approaches to software quality, and the history of computing. He is the author of such Springer titles as World of Computing, Concise Guide to Formal Methods, Concise Guide to Software Engineering, and Guide to Discrete Mathematics.
The Innovative CIO
by Peter Matthews Andi Mann George WattRobotized Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation describes the methods needed to develop a robotic system that is clinically applicable for the application of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Chapter 1 introduces the basic principles of TMS and discusses current developments towards robotized TMS. Part I (Chapters 2 and 3) systematically analyzes and clinically evaluates robotized TMS. More specifically, it presents the impact of head motion on the induced electric field. In Part II (Chapters 3 to 8), a new method for a robust robot/camera calibration, a sophisticated force-torque control with hand-assisted positioning, a novel FTA-sensor for system safety, and techniques for direct head tracking, are described and evaluated. Part III discusses these developments in the context of safety and clinical applicability of robotized TMS and presents future prospects of robotized TMS. Robotized Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation is intended for researchers as a guide for developing effective robotized TMS solutions. Professionals and practitioners may also find the book valuable.
The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution
by Walter IsaacsonFollowing his blockbuster biography of Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson&’s New York Times bestselling and critically acclaimed The Innovators is a &“riveting, propulsive, and at times deeply moving&” (The Atlantic) story of the people who created the computer and the internet.What were the talents that allowed certain inventors and entrepreneurs to turn their visionary ideas into disruptive realities? What led to their creative leaps? Why did some succeed and others fail? The Innovators is a masterly saga of collaborative genius destined to be the standard history of the digital revolution—and an indispensable guide to how innovation really happens. Isaacson begins the adventure with Ada Lovelace, Lord Byron’s daughter, who pioneered computer programming in the 1840s. He explores the fascinating personalities that created our current digital revolution, such as Vannevar Bush, Alan Turing, John von Neumann, J.C.R. Licklider, Doug Engelbart, Robert Noyce, Bill Gates, Steve Wozniak, Steve Jobs, Tim Berners-Lee, and Larry Page. This is the story of how their minds worked and what made them so inventive. It’s also a narrative of how their ability to collaborate and master the art of teamwork made them even more creative. For an era that seeks to foster innovation, creativity, and teamwork, The Innovators is “a sweeping and surprisingly tenderhearted history of the digital age” (The New York Times).
The Innovator’s Imperative: Rapid Technology Adoption for Digital Transformation
by Stephen J Andriole Thomas Cox Kaung M. KhinThe pace of technological change is accelerating, hyper competition is growing, opportunities for business model disruption are exploding, and comprehensive cloud delivery is readily available. These factors challenge every aspect of business technology strategy. The Innovator’s Imperative: Rapid Technology Adoption for Digital Transformation prepares twenty-first century businesses leaders for competing and leading in this disruptive digital environment. Five years of research conducted by the authors suggests that leading companies have all but abandoned the requirements analysis and modeling best practices of the twentieth century. Accordingly, the authors put forth the innovator’s imperative that contends: All companies wanting to be competitive should adopt emerging and disruptive technologies as quickly as possible, and in many cases, immediately. Technology is driving business strategy, and companies are rethinking their technology strategy, especially the governance that determines how and why technology investments are made. Based on their research the authors have developed a five-step framework for digital transformation: Model and simulate Identify high-leverage opportunities Prioritize transformational targets Identify digital opportunities Find courageous leaders The book explains each of these steps to guide business leaders in architecting digital transformation projects according to their organization’s market positions, budgets, objectives, and corporate culture. Hyper-competitive, disruptive companies are jumping across technology adoption phases without regard to any phasing whatsoever. Companies focused on digital transformation often adopt emerging technologies immediately. They have become early adopters of technologies that can impact existing—and create whole new—business models and processes. This book examines this jump into new technologies, processes, and business models to prepare twenty-first century business leaders to make that leap.
The Ins and Outs of Azure VMware Solution: Deploy, configure, and manage an Azure VMware Solution environment
by D.H.L. (h.c.) JellowManage VMware workloads in Azure VMware Solution and enable hybrid connectivity between on-premises datacenters and Azure with this extensive guide focusing on best practices and use casesKey FeaturesExtend or migrate your existing VMware environment to Azure VMware Solution smoothlyDiscover best practices that are based on real customer experiencesJoin the cloud revolution by conducting the most suitable migration for your workloadsBook DescriptionOrganizations over the world are migrating partially or fully to the cloud, but with the whole slew of providers, tools, and platforms available, knowing where to start can be quite challenging. If you know Microsoft Azure VMware Solution, you know it is the quickest way to migrate to the cloud without needing application modernization or rework. You can retain the same VMware tools to manage your environment while moving to Azure. But how does it work? The Ins and Outs of Azure VMware Solution has the answer.This high-level, comprehensive yet concise guide to Azure VMware Solution starts by taking you through the architecture and its applicable use cases. It will help you hit the ground running by getting straight to the important steps: planning, deploying, configuring, and managing your Azure VMware Solution instance. You'll be able to extend your existing knowledge of Azure and VMware by covering advanced topics such as SRM and governance, setting up a hybrid connection to your on-premises datacenter, and scaling up using disk pools.By the end of the VMware book, you'll have gone over everything you need to transition to the cloud with ease using Azure VMware Solution.What you will learnGet to grips with the overall architecture of Azure VMware SolutionDiscover Enterprise-scale for Azure VMware SolutionDeploy an Azure VMware private cloud successfullyDeploy and configure HCX in Azure VMware SolutionConfigure NSX-T network segments with the NSX-T ManagerConfigure internet access, traffic inspection, and storage for AVSIntegrate Azure VMware Solution with Azure-native servicesUse governance to improve your cloud portfolioWho this book is forThis book is for VMware administrators, cloud solutions architects, and anyone interested in learning how to deploy and configure an AVS environment in Azure. Technology leaders who want to get out of the datacenter business or expand their on-premises datacenter into Microsoft Azure will also find this book useful. Familiarity with VMware solutions and a basic understanding of Azure networking is necessary to get started with this book.
The Inside Guide to the Federal IT Market
by David Perera Steve CharlesUnlock the Door to the Federal IT MarketplaceHere's your key to selling IT goods and services to the government. David Perera and Steve Charles present the ins and outs of successfully competing for—and winning—a share of the tens of billions of dollars the federal government spends each year on IT. Getting a piece of that business is not easy—it takes accurate knowledge of systems and procedures, as well as sharp insight into the structure and details of government procurement.The Inside Guide to the Federal IT Market penetrates the haze of jargon and apparent complexity to reveal the inner workings of the IT contracting process. Whether you're just setting out or seek a bigger share, this comprehensive book provides valuable information you can put to immediate use. The Inside Guide to the Federal IT Market covers:• Technology standards• Basic contracting concepts• Advanced contracting concepts, such as getting on and staying on the GSA schedules• The effect of the federal budget process on the sales cycle• What you need to know about ethics to earn business fairly, without avoidable delays and hassleThis book's focus on the IT market makes it a unique reference on federal procurement for private companies. Government procurement personnel will also find the depth and breadth of coverage useful in reviewing and evaluating IT offerings.
The Inside Track to Excelling As a Business Analyst: Soft Skills That Can Accelerate Your Career
by Roni LubwamaThe role of the business analyst sits at the intersection of business operations, technology, and change management. The job requires a plethora of both soft skills and technical skills, as it must translate the needs of business users into action items for functional applications. On top of this, in-demand technologies have caused tectonic shifts in the way companies operate today, and business analysts must be prepared to adapt.The Inside Track to Excelling as a Business Analyst teaches you how to effectively harness skills, techniques, and hacks to grow your career. Author Roni Lubwama expertly walks you through case studies that illustrate how to diffuse the challenges and bottlenecks that business analysts commonly encounter. He provides you with digestible answers to the complexities faced when delivering digital transformation projects to end users. This book is not a self-help guide rife with corporate buzzwords, but a practical handbook with immediate applications from a true insider. Equip yourself with vital soft skills, ask the right questions, manage your stakeholders, and bring your projects to a successful close with The Inside Track to Excelling as a Business Analyst. Whether you are new to the role and want a leg up, or a veteran business operator looking to infuse new strategies into your work, this book instills lessons that will assist you throughout your entire career. In this time of rapid change in the digital space, business analysts are asked for more adaptability than ever before, and The Inside Track to Excelling as a Business Analyst is your ideal starting point.What You Will LearnDeploy a non-technical skills toolkit to resolve a wide array of bottlenecks particular to the business analyst practice.Defuse the many intractable and common scenarios you will encounter as a business analyst by the application of soft skills.Understand the difference between the theory and the actual practice of the business analyst role. Who This Book Is For Newbie and experienced business analysts who are looking to understand and contextualize their role; managers; other tech professionals looking to understand the business analyst role; and curious lay readers.
The Insider Guide to Careers in Information Technology (2005 Edition)
by WetFeetDespite the technology sector downturn and the outsourcing trend, IT professions are among the fastest-growing and highest-paying jobs in the economy. This WetFeet Insider Guide explores current industry trends, where IT professionals commonly find work, major IT job functions, and what industry professionals like and dislike about the work.
The Insider Threat: Assessment and Mitigation of Risks
by Eleanor E. ThompsonThis book provides emergent knowledge relating to physical, cyber, and human risk mitigation in a practical and readable approach for the corporate environment. It presents and discusses practical applications of risk management techniques along with useable practical policy change options. This practical organizational security management approach examines multiple aspects of security to protect against physical, cyber, and human risk. A practical more tactical focus includes managing vulnerabilities and applying countermeasures. The book guides readers to a greater depth of understanding and action-oriented options.
The Insider Threat: Combatting the Enemy Within
by Clive BlackwellData Loss Prevention is easier and cheaper than cure - the insider threat poses a significant and increasing problem for organisations. The use of highly connected computers makes controlling information much more difficult than in the past. This new pocket guide intends to shed light on the key security issues facing organisations from insiders to get them up to speed quickly. It is written by Clive Blackwell who is a researcher at Royal Holloway, University of London, where his main field is security architecture. He has developed a practical three-layer security architecture to model computer networks such as the Internet and other complex systems such as critical infrastructure. He is currently applying the model to the insider threat within different business sectors, which has resulted in several academic papers. Clive is a regular speaker on security at both academic and business conferences in the US and Europe as well as the UK. He has recently been invited to give talks on the insider threat at two major business conferences. He has about 20 publications to his name within the last two years, so he is aware of the security issues facing business.
The Insider's Guide to Arm Cortex-M Development: Leverage embedded software development tools and examples to become an efficient Cortex-M developer
by Zachary Lasiuk Pareena Verma Jason AndrewsLearn and implement the latest Arm Cortex-M microcontroller development concepts such as performance optimization, security, software reuse, machine learning, continuous integration, and cloud-based development from industry expertsKey FeaturesLearn how to select the best Cortex-M hardware, software, and tools for your projectUnderstand the use of key software components and how to optimize and develop modern applicationsGet hands-on experience implementing quality software using example code provided in the bookPurchase of the print or Kindle book includes a free eBook in the PDF formatBook DescriptionCortex-M has been around since 2004, so why a new book now? With new microcontrollers based on the Cortex-M55 and Cortex-M85 being introduced this year, Cortex-M continues to expand. New software concepts, such as standardized software reuse, have emerged alongside new topics including security and machine learning. Development methodologies have also significantly advanced, with more embedded development taking place in the cloud and increased levels of automation. Due to these advances, a single engineer can no longer understand an entire project and requires new skills to be successful.This book provides a unique view of how to navigate and apply the latest concepts in microcontroller development. The book is split into two parts. First, you'll be guided through how to select the ideal set of hardware, software, and tools for your specific project. Next, you'll explore how to implement essential topics for modern embedded developers. Throughout the book, there are examples for you to learn by working with real Cortex-M devices with all software available on GitHub. You will gain experience with the small Cortex-M0+, the powerful Cortex-M55, and more Cortex-M processors.By the end of this book, you'll be able to practically apply modern Cortex-M software development concepts.What you will learnFamiliarize yourself with heuristics to identify the right components for your Cortex-M projectBoot code to efficiently start up a Cortex-M deviceOptimize algorithms with compilers, middleware, and other meansGet to grips with machine learning frameworks and implementation techniquesUnderstand security in the embedded space with solutions like TrustZone and TF-MExplore cloud-based development methodologies to increase efficiencyDive into continuous integration frameworks and best practicesIdentify future trends that could impact Cortex-M software developmentWho this book is forThis book is for practicing engineers and students working with embedded and IoT systems who want to quickly learn how to develop quality software for Arm Cortex-M processors without reading long technical manuals. If you're looking for a book that explains C or assembly language programming for the purpose of creating a single application or mastering a type of programming such as digital signal processing algorithms, then this book is NOT for you. A basic understanding of embedded hardware and software, along with general C programming skills will assist with understanding the concepts covered in this book.
The Insider's Guide to Outsourcing Risks and Rewards
by Johann RostIt is essential for a corporation to not only survive but thrive in today's global outsourcing environment. The Insider's Guide to Outsourcing Risks and Rewards is a comprehensive and accessible resource that assists an organization in deciding whether it will benefit from pursuing-or not pursuing-such an endeavor. The author, an 18-year ve
The Insider's Guide to Technical Writing
by Krista Van LaanEvery complex product needs to be explained to its users, and technical writers, also known as technical communicators, are the ones who do that job. A growing field, technical writing requires multiple skills, including an understanding of technology, writing ability, and great people skills. Whether you're thinking of becoming a technical writer, just starting out, or you've been working for a while and feel the need to take your skills to the next level, The Insider's Guide to Technical Writing can help you be a successful technical writer and build a satisfying career. Inside the Book Is This Job for Me? What does it take to be a technical writer? Building the Foundation: What skills and tools do you need to get started? The Best Laid Plans: How do you create a schedule that won't make you go crazy? How do you manage different development processes, including Agile methodologies? On the Job: What does it take to walk into a job and be productive right away? The Tech Writer Toolkit: How do you create style guides, indexes, templates and layouts? How do you manage localization and translation and all the other non-writing parts of the job? I Love My Job: How do you handle the ups and downs of being a technical writer? Appendixes: References to websites, books, and other resources to keep you learning. Index
The Inspiration Machine: Computational Creativity in Poetry and Jazz
by Eitan Y. WilfExplores how creative digital technologies and artificial intelligence are embedded in culture and society. In The Inspiration Machine, Eitan Y. Wilf explores the transformative potentials that digital technology opens up for creative practice through three ethnographic cases, two with jazz musicians and one with a group of poets. At times dissatisfied with the limitations of human creativity, these artists do not turn to computerized algorithms merely to execute their preconceived ideas. Rather, they approach them as creative partners, delegating to them different degrees of agentive control and artistic decision-making in the hopes of finding inspiration in their output and thereby expanding their own creative horizons. The algorithms these artists develop and use, however, remain rooted in and haunted by the specific social predicaments and human shortfalls that they were intended to overcome. Experiments in the digital thus hold an important lesson: although Wilf’s interlocutors returned from their adventures with computational creativity with modified, novel, and enriched capacities and predilections, they also gained a renewed appreciation for, and at times a desire to re-inhabit, non-digital creativity. In examining the potentials and pitfalls of seemingly autonomous digital technologies in the realm of art, Wilf shows that computational solutions to the real or imagined insufficiencies of human practice are best developed in relation to, rather than away from, the social and cultural contexts that gave rise to those insufficiencies, in the first place.