Showing posts with label reference. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reference. Show all posts

The Guitar Handbook Review

The Guitar Handbook
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The Guitar Handbook ReviewWhen I first started playing the guitar 2 decades ago, a friend had a copy of an earlier edition of this guide and he gave me the book to use while I was getting started. Using the book, and I mean really reading the book thru thoroughly, I learned a whole lot about the instrument itself and the music that could be produced from the guitar and that really helped my performance as I developed on the instrument.
The book begins with guitar innovators, those guitar players who have had a serious impact on the way the instrument is played, etc. This section was actually fun to read and was quite informative about several guitar players who had influenced my own playing.
The following two sections of the book cover acoustic and electric guitars. These sections detail how each instrument (acoustic and electric) are put together, how to set the action, the various types of each style of guitar, how pick-ups are put together, etc. This is a helpful and technical section which instructs the reader on the ins and outs of the make-up of his instrument.
From here, the book moves into actually playing the instrument. It begins with the beginner, teaching good practicing habits, what to practice, improving fingering, chord progressions, reading tablature, tuning, action, right and left-handed techniques, etc. Then this section moves into chords (with photos), three-chord theory, flatpicking and strumming and other various fingerstyles, barre chords, and even how to transpose songs. Inside this section there is also a sub-section on rhythm guitar, setting tempo, time signatures, using chord charts, time values, etc. Essentially everything you would need to know to be a well rounded guitar player is included (including slide guitar).
The final section deals with the maintenance of the guitar. This section teaches the reader/player all the things that are needed to know about the most difficult maintenance aspects such as how to customize an instrument, to the easiest such as changing your strings. For the electric guitarist, there is a guide to guitar electronics which includes pictures and lists of all the tools you will need, instructions on reading wiring diagrams, actual charts and photos of how an electric guitar is wired, pick-up circuits, etc.
Finally, at the back of the book is a fairly extensive chord dictionary with pictures of how each chord is fingered. This dictionary is very helpful to the player when trying to find the same chord but to know where it is elsewhere on the fret board. Overall, what can I say but that no guitar player, regardless of your experience should be without this definitive guidebook.The Guitar Handbook Overview

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Anatomy for the Artist Review

Anatomy for the Artist
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Anatomy for the Artist ReviewThis is an interesting book in that the photography is excellent. Do you like nude bodies that are in very good shape? This one has it in excess. As one who has studied artistic anatomy for over twenty years I own just about every book written on the subject. One of the things I appreciate are sources showing surface anatomy; with models that have muscle definition. The odd thing about this book is how much could have been done with it. There are about 7 or 8 transparencys that over lay the photos. All but one of these show the skeletal detail over a photo. When I am looking at the surface anatomy of a figure and trying to determine which muscles are which, I would rather have an overlay of the muscles than of the skeleton. This must have been the decision of an editor. The drawings depicting the muscles are good, no better than what has been done. Goldfinger's Human Anatomy for Artists or Richer's Artistic Anatomy are very hard to beat. The other odd note about this book is the bibliography. It's as though the items chosen were selected for their quirky nature and not their value as a source of information. Five stars for the photography, negative two stars for the anatomical content.Anatomy for the Artist Overview

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20 Master Plots: And How to Build Them Review

20 Master Plots: And How to Build Them
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20 Master Plots: And How to Build Them ReviewIf you've looked inside the book yet then you've noted the twenty master plots that are exposed in this book. So I won't list them here.
For each one there is an example, an analysis of the example and a three-act structure for using the plot. There is also a checklist at the end of each plot so you have some idea what you should be doing to develop this plot in a successful manner.
eg plot 3 the pursuit: the checklist is
* the chase is more important than the people who take part in it
* Make sure there's a real danger of the pursued getting caught
* your pursuer should have a reasonable chance of catching the pursued; they may even catch them momentarily
* rely heavily on physical action
* Your story and your characters should be stimulating, engaging and unique
* Develop your characters and situations against type to avoid cliches
* keep your situations as geographically confined as possible; the smaller the area the greater the tension
* The first dramatic phase should have 3 stages. a) establish the ground rules for the chase b) establish the stakes and c)start the race with a motivating incident
okay this book does a slightly cookbook feel about plot developement, but for those new to the game, what's wrong with getting a little support and help? Consider it a training manual for plotting! And sure you might not agree with the checklists and the manner...but don't you see, that it's getting you thinking about it too! So even if you hate it, you still gain because it pushes you to refute or accept or partially accept what it presents, and this requires effort. Effort creates thought, which leads to understanding and the development of your own ideas! So where's the problem! The only problem is if you're looking for a 'do-it-for-me'...sorry you miss out here.
Apart from the exposition of each of the 20 plots there are chapters (as listed in the table of contents) involving triangular relationships, structure, motivations, the basics of plotting: the things that are always the same.
Seriously for $10 you get a lot of book. It has some really useful content here. I am an engineer and have written two fictional novels (neither published, since I never realy tried to get them published). Yeah scary huh? A literate engineer! That aside, it appeals to my 'generalize the solution space' nature and make a solution that is readily acceptable, decipherable and accessible (there was once a british engineer who went to the local library, found out the most popular childrens books, analyzed them for the common characteristics and plots and then wrote his own...hey it's ugly but it worked!)
Just remember that there is no substitute for actually writing. Nothing will write for you. It is not a panacea. It won't give you ideas nor will it make you a good wordsmith. It will guide and help you to develop one of the major stumbling blocks in writing: having a story that actually goes somewhere (you just have to be sure you avoid being 'formulaic' and applying a given plot too rigidly- remember it's a guide, not a blueprint!). Great characters doing nothing don't interest too many poeple outside of the literary criticism clique. I'm sure it makes them cringe because one doesn't do these things...circumventing the process of suffering for ones art.
Great value for money, well written, using examples we all know and it's cheap. What more could you want? Definitely 5 stars!20 Master Plots: And How to Build Them Overview

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Social Networking for Genealogists Review

Social Networking for Genealogists
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Social Networking for Genealogists ReviewSocial Networking for Genealogists could also have been featured in our 'Computer Shelf' section, but is reviewed here for its fine guide to applying social network services to genealogical searching. It describes the social networks available on line, considers how they can be used by genealogists, and tells how to share information, photos and videos with family and friends. From blogs and wikis to Facebook, this shows how to use these social networking tools for family history research and is a key acquisition for any genealogist's collection!
Social Networking for Genealogists Overview

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Wikis For Dummies Review

Wikis For Dummies
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Wikis For Dummies ReviewThis provides a solid overview of the history, general functions, and common uses of Wikis, and for that I am glad that I read it. One thing that I didn't consider until after I bought it -- and was using a few wikis already -- was that a great deal of the information was engine-specific. PBWiki was a common example throughout the book, but I don't use PBWiki, and I don't like the interface (I guess I got used to Wikispaces, which works perfectly for me). So although there was a great deal of good information about what I can do with a wiki, so much of the how wasn't useful to me, since I'll have to go learn the particulars of my engine of choice, rather than the ones in the book.Wikis For Dummies Overview

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