A lucid, informal, useful guide from a passionate user.
Blogger and former Apple chief evangelist Kawasaki (Enchantment: The Art of Changing Hearts, Minds, and Actions, 2011, etc.) enthusiastically charts Google’s answer to Facebook and Twitter.
In this bright, comprehensive guide, the author argues that Google+, created by a company with money, talent and proven track record, is the “better social network.” He goes on to tell readers how they can become satisfied users of its “powerful and sophisticated features.” Brimming with tips for optimizing the Google+ experience, the author explains how to get started, find people, search by interests, manage circles (segmented relationships with family, colleagues, etc.) and streams (the flow of posts that you see), and hang out in groups for classes, press conferences and other purposes. In each instance, Kawasaki compares how the Google+ features work in comparison with those of Facebook and Twitter. He notes how Google’s integration of the Google+ social networking features and tools into its existing online services like Search and YouTube will draw many social networkers. Guest authors contribute several chapters—e.g., a photographer with tips on sharing photos—and many sections offer advice applicable to any social networker: how to write an attractive profile, demonstrate trustworthiness, leave a comment, gain more followers and so on, all served up in Kawasaki’s authoritative, winning fashion. In the end, the author finds much more potential for community at Google+ and urges everyone to join for the joy and value. “There are few if any rules,” writes Kawasaki, who spends two hours per day on Google+. “The number one rule is ‘Do what works for you.’ ”
A lucid, informal, useful guide from a passionate user.Pub Date: Sept. 14, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-07-181010-4
Page Count: 208
Publisher: McGraw-Hill
Review Posted Online: Aug. 29, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2012
An accessible interpretive briefing on currency exchange rates and why they matter to a host of constituencies ranging from...
Though best known in recent years as the author of fiscal entertainments (Zero Coupon, 1993, etc.), the Canadian-born Erdman is a bona fide economist and former Swiss banker.
If not invariably prophetic, his periodic observations on the Global Village's monetary systems are always worth attention for their lucid explications of a complex subject. The semi-sensational subtitle accurately reflects Erdman's focus on the long-range implications of the recent run on the US dollar, precipitated largely by the collapse of the Mexican peso and accompanied by a sharp rise in the value of the Japanese yen. Having outlined the major events of what he dubs the currency crisis of 1995, the author sorts through the conflicting claims as to who or what was to blame, subsequently ticking off winners (US exporters) and losers (mainly Japanese investors who had acquired American assets at inflated prices). Moving on to an after-the-fall audit of money markets, Erdman assesses the roles played by so- called speculators (commercial banks as well as hedge funds) and trade blocs (the EU, NAFTA, et al.). Offered as well are worst-case scenarios for an appreciably more competitive but debt-burdened US and a recession-ridden, deflation-afflicted Japan. That, however, is unlikely to happen, according to Erdman. He reminds us that Japan's much-vaunted economy is but one-half to three-fifths the size of America's in terms of purchase power parity, and notes as well that America retains comparative advantages in entrepreneurship, availability of venture capital, and minimal regulatory constraints. Erdman suggests that America (in partnership with a more open, less mercantile Japan) will provide the responsible leadership that ensures a prosperous tomorrow for the wider world.
An accessible interpretive briefing on currency exchange rates and why they matter to a host of constituencies ranging from policy makers to consumers.Pub Date: Sept. 30, 1996
ISBN: 0-312-15899-8
Page Count: 176
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1996
Allowed complete access to GM's top-secret electric-car project, Shnayerson tells the story of the assorted VPs and engineers as if this were a thriller. Vanity Fair contributing editor Shnayerson (Irwin Shaw, 1989) does a masterful job of presenting a seemingly hopeless situation: building a more energy-efficient mousetrap. Shnayerson's explanations of the technical terms are clear and concise, and his understanding of the machinations of the GM behemoth is remarkable. The book begins with Ken Baker, a GM exec who'd failed at one electric-car project already but was willing to try another. Baker, whose interaction with other managers provides a terrific bird's-eye view of GM, is a sweet, hard-working leader who battles his weight along with the strict hierarchy. Engineer Alan Cocconi, a shy, sardine-popping genius, headed the ``Sunraycer'' team in its quest to build a cleaner, cheaper car and created a teardrop-shaped design so streamlined it was able to cross Australia with the energy equivalent of five gallons of gas. GM head Roger Smith (unwilling star of the film Roger & Me) became enamored with their first prototype, hideously renamed Impact, and previewed it at a 1990 auto show. CARB, the California group that regulates car pollution, took note and immediately raised its emissions standards. Car makers spotted a trend as well; Ford began to test its own electric vehicle, the Ecostar. But industrywide problems with batteries were persistent and absurdly costly—estimates to develop a new type of battery ran as high as $1 billion—and GM itself faced a tumultuous financial situation. Shnayerson's account of what happens next—to big Ken Baker, to the Impact, and to GM— is fun and beautifully written. Although it's not clear whether the electric car is the real thing, this business adventure story has heroes, a villain or two, and genuine hope for the future. (16 pages b&w photos, not seen)
Pub Date: Sept. 1, 1996
ISBN: 0-679-42105-X
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Random House
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1996
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