Computer Science Handbook, Second Edition

Features

• Cover Type: Hard Cover with 2752 pages
• Published by: Chapman & Hall/CRC
• Edition: 2nd Edition June 28, 2004
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 158488360X
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-1584883609
• Book Dimensions: 10.1 x 7.4 x 3 inches
• Weighs: 5.8 pounds

Product Review
Due to the great response to the famous 'Computer science handbook' edited by Allen B. Tucker in 1997, …in 2004 Chapman & Hall/CRC published a second edition of this comprehensive reference book. Within more than seventy chapters, every one new or significantly revised, one can find any kind of information and references about computer science one can imagine. …All in all, there is absolute nothing about Computer Science that can not be found in the 2.5 kilogram-encydopaedia with its 110 survey articles, each survey for about 1 dollar, a perfect deal!
-Zentralblatt MATH, Christoph Meinel

Due to the great response to the famous 'Computer science handbook' edited by Allen B. Tucker in 1997, …in 2004 Chapman & Hall/CRC published a second edition of this comprehensive reference book. Within more than seventy chapters, every one new or significantly revised, one can find any kind of information and references about computer science one can imagine. …All in all, there is absolute nothing about Computer Science that can not be found in the 2.5 kilogram-encydopaedia with its 110 survey articles, each survey for about 1 dollar, a perfect deal!
-Zentralblatt MATH, Christoph Meinel

Product Description
When you think about how far and fast computer science has progressed in recent years, it's not hard to conclude that a seven-year old handbook may fall a little short of the kind of reference today's computer scientists, software engineers, and IT professionals need. With a broadened scope, more emphasis on applied computing, and more than seventy chapters either new or significantly revised, the Computer Science Handbook, Second Edition is exactly the kind of reference you need. This rich collection of theory and practice fully characterizes the current state of the field and conveys the modern spirit, accomplishments, and direction of computer science. Highlights of the Second Edition: ? Coverage that reaches across all 11 subject areas of the discipline as defined in Computing Curricula 2001, now the standard taxonomy ? More than seventy chapters revised or replaced ? Emphasis on a more practical/applied approach to IT topics such as information management, net-centric computing, and human computer interaction ? More than 150 contributing authors--all recognized experts in their respective specialties ? New chapters on: cryptography computational chemistry computational astrophysics human-centered software development cognitive modeling transaction processing data compression scripting languages event-driven programming software architecture PAGE TWO-THREE

Reader Reviews
This review is from: The Computer Science and Engineering Handbook (Hardcover) I'm using this book to relearn core CS material in preparation for the CS GRE after several years in the industry. I can't recommend it highly enough. This is not a book from which to learn concepts for the first time. If you've never heard of (e.g.) "undecidability", don't get this book intending to learn about it. However, if you know enough to know what you don't know, this book will efficiently fill in the gaps. The book consists of over 100 chapters covering material across nearly major area of computer science. Each chapter is 20-30 pages long and is geared to someone who has seen the material before but is in need of a review and summary of core terminology and historical context. Someone experienced in one field who wants to be able to read current technical material in another field will also find it useful. Most of the authors are academics; the remainder are members of major research labs. Some of their chapters, like James Feldman's piece on Digital Logic, are truly extraordinary. Most others range from solid to exceptional. The material isn't just that of concern to traditional academic CS; I was pleasantly surprised to see an entire section (8 chapters worth) on practical software engineering topics (development process and lifecycle models, requirements and specification, design, validation, tools, testing, project management, etc). The material was authored around 1995 or 1996, and nearly all of it is still relevant and as up-to-date as is appropriate for this sort of collection. One minor weakness is there's no cross-chapter index or glossary. The book is organized as a collection of papers, and each paper includes its own index, bibliography, and glossary. To find material about the web, for instance, you have to hunt through the (excellent) 20-page table of contents for the relevant subsections scattered throughout. This weakness is far from fatal, however. Should the next edition add an index, it will only add value to an already exceptional collection, by making it easier to locate references to material that spans subfields. Again, highly recommended for targeted learning.