While it would be entertaining (for me, but maybe less for you) to write a more academic book tracing the historical aspects and trends in Facebookland, that will have to wait. Here, my primary aim was to provide an overview of Facebook-related issues that will be of more use to the everyday Facebook user than to academics and security mavens. However, there are links in the Appendix to articles covering issues such as the Cambridge Analytica shambles. Perhaps these may be useful to researchers with a historical bent wanting to go deeper into those issues that I haven’t covered in-depth in the book.
Genre:
Non Fiction, Security, Social Media
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Defend your system against the real threat of computer viruses with help from this comprehensive resource. Up-do-date and informative, this book presents a full-scale analysis on computer virus protection. Through use of case studies depicting actual virus infestations, this guide provides both the technical knowledge and practical solutions necessary to guard against the increasing threat of virus attacks.
NB: this book was published in 2001, so it’s absolutely not up-to-date. It’s still informative, though, within the limitations of its timeframe.
Genre:
Non Fiction, Security, Technology
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Genre:
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AVIEN (the Anti-Virus Information Exchange Network) is no longer active, but this book, featuring contributions from several of its members, was groundbreaking at the time (2007). While much of its technical content is now outdated, it’s certainly at least of historical interest. Though not worth the £152 that one supplier is quoting…
* “Customer Power takes up the theme of the sometimes stormy relationship between the antivirus industry and its customers, and tries to dispel some common myths. It then considers the roles of the independent researcher, the vendor-employed specialist, and the corporate security specialist.
* “Stalkers on Your Desktop considers the thorny issue of malware nomenclature and then takes a brief historical look at how we got here, before expanding on some of the malware-related problems we face today.
* “A Tangled Web discusses threats and countermeasures in the context of the World Wide Web.
* “Big Bad Bots tackles bots and botnets, arguably Public Cyber-Enemy Number One.
* “Crème de la CyberCrime takes readers into the underworld of old-school virus writing, criminal business models, and predicting future malware hotspots.
* “Defense in Depth takes a broad look at DiD in the enterprise, and looks at some specific tools and technologies.
* “Perilous Outsorcery offers sound advice on how to avoid the perils and pitfalls of outsourcing, incorporating a few horrible examples of how not to do it.
* “Education in Education offers some insights into user education from an educationalist’s perspective, and looks at various aspects of security in schools and other educational establishments.
* “DIY Malware Analysis is a hands-on, hands-dirty approach to security management, considering malware analysis and forensics techniques and tools.
* “Antivirus Evaluation & Testing continues the D-I-Y theme, discussing at length some of the thorny issues around the evaluation and testing of antimalware software.
* “AVIEN & AVIEWS: the Future looks at future developments in AVIEN and AVIEWS.
* Unique, knowledgeable, unbiased and hype-free commentary.
* Written by members of the anti-malware community; most malware books are written by outsiders.
* Combines the expertise of truly knowledgeable systems administrators and managers, with that of the researchers who are most experienced in the analysis of malicious code, and the development and maintenance of defensive programs.
This is a short textbook on an alternative technique for stringing and tuning a guitar to get a very bright, treble-y sound that can be used to create some very unusual effects. It may at least interest some of the people who’ve asked me questions about Nashville stringing/tuning when I’ve used it in performance. It includes information on more-or-less related tunings, and the factors that need to be taken into account when considering setting up an electric or acoustic Nashville-strung guitar. It also includes links to a number of sample sound files illustrating the technique and ways in which it can be used to emulate other instruments.
Genre:
Music, Non Fiction
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My uncle Eddie Parker, though he worked in engineering for most of his life, was a talented amateur artist with a keen interest in Shropshire history. After his death, his daughter Eve and I agreed to publish a book featuring his drawings of old Shrewsbury buildings, with historical background and some photographs, where appropriate, of the same sites as they are today.
This is very different to my previous technical books. The historical span of the topics covered ranges from Saxon times to the 21st century, with the dramatis personae including saints and kings, poets and playwrights, patriots and rebels. The settings ranging from medievel churches to battlefields, from pubs to castles, from abbeys to museums, from Bronze Age circles to fairs and markets. It even includes short diversions into etymology and blockchain technology.
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