Book Description
"Sociologist Victor began his involvement with satanic-cult phenomena by investigating a local panic centered in southwestern New York state. After an introductory section, his book begins with a description of this research, then proceeds with an excellent general review of recent fear about satanic cults in the U.S. He concludes that there is no evidence for the actual existence of organized satanic cults". -- Choice
Customer Reviews:
Diabolically dull.......2006-01-06
The 1980s and 1990s were a frightening time in America. A seeming wave of child kidnappings had swept the land. Bizarre mutilations, in which all the blood had been drained from farm animals, made many newspapers. Drug use, pornography, marital breakdown and gender wars made it seem that the world was going to hell in a handbasket. Was it crazy to blame for this seemingly unconnected cauldron of woes on the Devil?
Jeffrey Victor trains a sociologist's spotlight on Satanic rumors and reports of Satanic Ritual Abuse (SRA) in the United States in the 1980s and 1990s. He meticulously (though not engagingly) lays out the reasons for American's susceptibility to such panics: economic and social stress and fear of the novelty that came with various youth movements like heavy metal music and punk styles of hair and clothing styles. He discusses the carriers of such panics, noting especially the importance of authority figures -- fundamentalist preachers, police and teachers -- in lending credence to otherwise bizarre conclusions.
Victor makes it very clear that there is next to no evidence for the supposed cannibalism, child kidnapping, sexual deviancy and ritual abuse that are the supposed hallmarks of Satanism. Cattle mutilations had prosaic explanations known to ranchers for decades. The rash of kidnappings and abductions were a myth -- most were (and are) the result of run-away children or parental kidnappings during divorces. Victor also discusses research that shows the complete benignity of fantasy games like Dungeons & Dragons and the relative harmlessness of heavy metal music. In spite of repeated alarmist rumors to the contrary, D&D and heavy metal do not cause teen suicide.
But since many people did not know the facts, "experts" rushed in to fill the knowledge vacuum. For reasons the author did not explore, a number of men and women made careers and reputations from explaining these events as the result of a new, immense and previously-unknown group of devil worshippers. It would have been interesting had Victor detailed whether these self-styled experts acted out of greed, a desire to bolster their own religious faith or an appalling lack of analytical skills. In any event, Victor quotes enough wild statistics from these people (there are 1-2 million Satanists in America!) to make me wonder about their sanity and that of their listeners.
Victor examines the link between reports of Satanism and SRA with Multiple Personality Disorder (MPD). One "expert" lecturer claimed that 40% of MPD patients had experienced SRA, implying that the abuse caused the disorder. Left unstated by the author was the perfectly logical (and more likely) scenario that the experts had the causality backwards: mentally ill people report SRA tyhat never occured. Victor also discusses the ritual behavior of some teens, who dabble in occult-oriented behavior as a rite of passage, or in the time-honored game of "Annoy the Parents."
"Satanic Panic" is timely. It is informative and accurate. Unfortunately, it is also a colossal bore. It is repetitive, it does not follow up on threads it takes up, and it as dry as a textbook. After 70 boring pages, I skimmed the rest of the book looking for nuggets of interest, most of which I have discussed here. A good editor or a ghost writer with a decent grasp of narrative would have made this book a better read.
Or did the devil make me say that?
A rational explanation.......2004-08-27
Jeffery Victor methodically dissects the overblown hysteria-ridden Satanic panic with clear writing, documented facts, and the right touch of humor. A must-read for anyone who's ever played D&D and been accused of being a Satanist, or for people who believe in SRA.
Sorry I didn't take your class.......2003-06-11
I was at SUNY JCC in 1996 and regret not taking Victor's sociology class. I refused to take this because I thought "Satanic Panic" was an attack on Christians. "Satanic Panic" should be required reading for Christians, and should serve as a wake up call. Christians need to refuse feeding the crazy rumors that often infect our circles. (M.M O'Hare and the FCC) I grew up believing in SRA and it was not until I read things from Christian Research Institute and Bob & Gretchen Pasatino and continued to see Dr. Victor being cited. Please accept my apology for refusing to think and refusing to take your class.
MUST read for all, including believers in SRA.......2003-01-20
This is one of the few books published that deals honestly with the whole satanic ritual abuse/cult crime hysteria, and does so in some detail. There are books written by biased people claiming a satanic cult conspiracy but this book lays out the details and seems to leave nothing out. I reccomend this book for those who believe the satanic cult crime/ child sacrifice claims of certain self-proclaimed experts ( biased and geared to promote a certian religious view and not the simple truth) because ignorance of the facts harms themselves. Another good author is Debbie Nathan. The hysteria from SRA did a lot of damage to many people. While I would have mentioned details of the hysteria culprits, the author did a good job. My copy is dog eared.
Panic usually is about nothing substantial...........2002-03-31
In the late 1970's and early 1980's there arose in the USA the widespread belief that a Satanic underground cult was systematically kidnapping people, abusing children, and sacrificing human beings and animals. Rumours of dead people hung from streetlights, fields littered with the dead bodies of sacrificed babies, and Satanists cooking children in microwaves were accepted without any criticism and, more importantly, any scrap of corroborating evidence. How could this happen?
"Satanic Panic" is an important work that explores this. Sociologists, journalists, psychologists, law enforcers, and religious leaders should read it. Victor shows that Satanic panic practically is a sociological phenomenon; his investigations lead to several important discoveries, for example:
- Rumours of organised Satanism are most explicit in suburban and country areas, and virtually absent in cities. The 'victims' of Satanists also tend to be white, blond, blue-eyed virgins.
- The belief in organised Satanism is typical of white middle class Christians and blue-collars; there's a clear link between low education and belief in Satanism.
- Rumours of organised Satanism are lead back to and are firmly rooted in historical uprisings of anti-Semitism, xenophobia, and ethnic hatred.
- Rumours of organised Satanism are fuelled by Born Again Christian organisations that push forward 'experts' on Satanic, who earn big money by organising seminars.
- The rise of Satanic panic (around the 1970's) occurred through evangelical Christian publications ("Michelle Remembers") and Christian psychologists who believe that mental disorders are manifestations of demonic forces.
- The 'victims' who 'remembered' are by and large suffering from posttraumatic stress or multiple personality disorder, and treated by Evangelical psychologists or 'believers' using suggestive regression methods.
- Satanic panic has been taken up and spread by paparazzi and sensational journalism.
- The majority of secular persons (journalists, psychiatrists, and law enforcers) that vouched for the truth of Satanic sects have admitted the error of their ways.
"Satanic Panic" is not only an informative work, but also a constructive guide to people and organisations that can be contacted when Satanic panic arises, and how to deal with a wildfire rumour. Many innocents in the USA and Great Britain have been accused and sometimes even convicted without any scrap of evidence, resulting in Evangelical communities 'rescuing victims' from 'satanist families'; to this day, these issues remain largely unresolved due to some people too embarrassed to admit they were wrong.
"Satanic Panic" deals mainly with the USA, but for the UK there's the interesting pamphlet 'Burn, Witch, Burn', by Lesley Wilkinson from Wyrd Press.
Customer Reviews:
Big Disappointment.......2006-09-09
I bought this book along with Davies' "Dynamic Reti", and after trying the "Easy Guide" out in some games I proceeded to play, I was quite dismayed at the lack of guidance I was given by the different chapters in the book. Either I already knew what he was telling me or I couldn't understand why he was suggesting what he was because some moves didn't make sense to me. The other problem I had was trying to keep up with the progression of his games in between his notes and bold print. My suggestion is to skip this book and get Nigel Davies "Dynamic Reti". There is much more unique information and insight offered there in greater clarity.
Easy Guide to some of the Reti Opening.......2004-05-24
The books in the 'Easy Guide' series differ a lot in how introductory or analytic they are. This one is introductory, but is much more thorough in its treatment of some Black choices than others. Dunnington chooses exactly the right balance in describing the Reti Gambit declined. (1 Nf3 d5 2 c4 d4/c6/e6), with several alternatives given for White. However, in the case of the Accepted line (2...dc4) he analyzes only one repertoire choice: 3 Na3. He rejects 3 Qa4 out of hand, and although it's dead level at grandmaster level, it has a lot in common thematically with other flank openings, so I'd expect a class player to get a lot out of an analysis of it. There's also a good chapter on playing against Dutch Defense formations while avoiding d4.
The exclusive recommendation against the King's-Indian formation (1...Nf6 2 g3 g6 3 b4) is bizarre -- not bad, just a little extravagant for a single line. It effectively transposes later into the English Opening with 1...e5 and 3...g6 with White expanding on the queenside and Black on the kingside -- pretty much as recommended in Donaldson's Strategic Opening Repertoire book several years ago. These positions don't play themselves, and players of the White pieces will get into them very often given that the King's-Indian is so popular at club level.
This chapter is too short: some of the Reversed Benoni material could have been cut in favor of more explanation and examples (and alternative move orders) here.
With the publication of Davies' 'Dynamic Reti', this book may seem to have been superseded. Yet Dunnington stays truer to the hypermodern spirit of the opening -- Nowhere in Davies, I think, will you find the White queen on a1 -- so this book still has legs. In fact, the two books nicely complement each other.
Is Dunnington starting to write too many books too quickly? This one suffers in comparison to his excellent introduction to the Catalan, which also deals with a tricky flank opening with many move order subtleties and affiliated lines in other openings. That that effort was so well executed underscores the patchiness of this one. I also don't see why Dunnington shies away from pointing out where transpositions to the KIA (d3/e4) might work better than the Reti c4/b3 (or b4) treatment -- since he has written a good book, now in its second edition, about the KIA. In the King's-Indian chapter, especially, White could delay this choice to good effect. I'm not saying he should have written a different book by including KIA material, just cross-reference it where it's relevant.
GOOD - BETTER AS A STUDY MANUAL THAN OPENING REPERTOIRE.......2000-09-23
I bought this book after I decided to drop e4, but I couldn't get my hands on Kosten's repertoire book for the English.
I liked this book and it is one that can improve your chess if it is studied properly, and not just your opening play either. I did have a few quibbles with the book.
The author remained true to his favored double fianchetto piece set up in as many lines as he could. Since I like to compare the similarity of plans emanating out of pawn structures, I really enjoyed seeing the subtle differences in the plans in those pawn structures. The author did a great job in making the themes from game to game really consistent - you see why in this line, he recommends this move - it aims for a type of position he has explained earlier. He discusses the alternatives, but explains that the move he presents/prefers is more in line with the rest of the repertoire he is teaching. The quality of the material in the book itself is in my opinion deserving of a 5 star rating if one is over 1600 USCF and this goes as high as GM. There are variations here as well as lots of words. There are also improvements on assessments on evaluations offered.
You could play this opening comfortably if you studied the relevant line in this book. OFten, move order is not a problem and the critical play begins after a variety of typical set ups have been established. THe pawn structure play that characterises this opening suits players who are not fond of sharp opening complications. The danger of course is that you learn to play formations and not thinking chess, but I think the author presetns so many plans in this book that if you play lazy chess, he is not to be blamed. He definitely does not espouse a cookbook approach. However, he does produce positions with recurring themes.
What do I think could be better about the book? Well, skipping defences like 1.. c5 and 1 ... g6 really hurt. Those moves are commonly played vs Nf3. While a good study of the book might still allow you to transpose into a line given in the book, I would still have liked to see Dunnington present plans which he liked.
I think this is a great book. But the c5 omission weighs heavily against it becos it invites a Siclian transposition and is the choice of most players. As a game collection to be studied, it would improve your chess greatly - just comparing the lines and games in similar pawn structures would greatly increase your chess knowledge. If I Reviewed it solely on that criteria, it is a 5 star book.
Not complete enough !.......2000-07-05
The Reti lines are well covered but against the KI the lines recomended doesn't seem right. Black seems to be better.
Besides the book does not cover lines where black replies 1.~c5. `1.~d6 and 1.~g6.
Well its not a complete guide.......2000-04-04
But if you really want to learn the reti opening it is a good source, and an adequate guide. it is well written in many aspects. but it can leave one with more questions then answers. it delves deeply into some concepts and leaves others often the featured game concepts almost completly alone. I do think Dunnington could have done better. with an opening as sharp and complex as the reti I feel that 128 pages of material just isn't enough. but don't get me wrong here the 128 pages that are presented are packed with plenty of good examples of good reti play. course that really just boils down to more stuff I get to figure out myself. all in all I feel that a good openings book should provide a good foundation. Dunningtons easy guide to the reti opening provides about 3\4 of a good foundation. but looking at the introduction think this exactly what Dunnington had in mind. mabey I should give it a four star rating.
Average customer rating:
- Good book
- Great insight for PSPE 4, but a little light
- Dont think - Just buy it!!
- Elements 4 for Digital Photographers
- Keep this by your computer.
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The Photoshop Elements 4 Book for Digital Photographers
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ASIN: 0321384830 |
Book Description
Are you ready for an Elements book that breaks all the rules–again?
Like the best-selling former edition, The Photoshop Elements 4 Book for Digital Photographers breaks new ground by doing something for digital photographers that’s rarely done–it cuts through the bull and shows you exactly "how to do it." It’s not a bunch of theory; it doesn’t challenge you to come up with your own settings or figure things out on your own. Instead, it does something that virtually no other Elements book has ever done–it tells you flat-out which settings to use, when to use them, and why.
If you’re looking for one of those "tell-me-everything-about-the-Unsharp-Mask-filter" books, this isn’t it. You can grab any other Elements book on the shelf, because they all do that. Instead, this book gives you the inside tips and tricks of the trade for correcting, editing, sharpening, retouching, and presenting your photos like a pro. You’ll be absolutely amazed at how easy and effective these techniques are–once you know the secrets.
Newly updated to cover Photoshop Elements 4, this full-color, easy-to-follow guide includes new tips that take advantage of Elements 4's hottest new features, including the Magic Selection Brush, which offers a quick way to make accurate selections in your photos; Magic Extractor, which lets you select an image and instantly remove the background; Auto Red Eye and Auto Skin tone tools; cool slideshow effects (text, graphics, narration, pans and zooms, and more); online sharing service; and more!
This book is for Windows users only.
Customer Reviews:
Good book.......2007-05-13
I enjoyed reading the book and use it extensively.
I thought the book could have had less "corn" dialogue.
The book did not address how to remove flash reflections off of eye glasses.
Great insight for PSPE 4, but a little light.......2007-02-09
Excellent layout and easy to read.
Kelby has a great instructional, yet whimsical style.
Very good for the layman; would be digital photo manipulator.
The only demerit I would note is the lack of more indepth instructions for uses of "layers".
Layers are my weakest area for this software, but the rest of the info was great and very useful with great illustrations.
Dont think - Just buy it!!.......2007-01-29
I have the same review title for all Scott's books. I did a panorama in 5 minutes...what more can I say? Dont think - Scott's books are awesome.
Elements 4 for Digital Photographers.......2007-01-15
Excellent workbook to learn how to use a great photo editing program. The photographs used in the book can be downloaded from Scott Kelby's web site and you can perform photo editing just like in the book. Our club has made a series of workshops out of this book to improve the skills of members and the book is recommended for everyone.
Keep this by your computer........2007-01-11
This book is so helpful that I also keep a handwritten tip sheet for portability in addition to having the book by my computer. I use post-it notes with written tabs to access often-used techniques. Great exercises and tips!
Product Description
If you are just starting to work with digital images and want to gain great results fast, Advanced Photoshop Elements 4.0 for Digital Photographers is the book for you. Completely revised and updated for Photoshop Elements 4.0, Philip Andrews clear introduction is packed with step-by-step tutorials, visual examples and tips, equipping you with the knowledge and skills you need to get the most out of this best-selling software.
Customer Reviews:
Exceptional Step-By-Step Guide for Photoshop Elements.......2007-01-18
The author has done an excellent job of leading you through different processes to fully use Photoshop Elements. You'll be able to understand "layers" and how to apply them without disturbing the original picture. By following the instructions, you will be surprised how adept you can be in giving photos new life (and some pretty nifty effects). After reading this book, I became a real pro with Photoshop Elements 4.0 (the version I use currently). If you buy one book to learn Elements, this is it!
Simply the Best book on the subject.......2006-05-09
There are a lot of books out there that claim to be for photographers or digital photographers but Phiiip Andrews' approach to his latest book focus on the Photoshop Elements as an extension of your digital camera experence. Missing are endless pages of running reharsh of material that is well covered in the user manual. In its place you will discover well laid out explainations of the essential features in Elements that can transform interesting photos into prize winners. He could have devoted more space to Raw conversion but as a Photoshop Elements author I am aware of the cold hard facts that exteremely few Elements users actually use Raw format so any additional coverage of the topic would have been a waste of ink and paper. If you are a digital photographer that wants to move beyond the point-and-shoot world of vacation photos this is the perfect guidebook. I would be remiss if I failed to point out one major flaw in the book. While the photos in the book are beautiful, the author insists that the photos are colour. If you can overlook the fact that the author has a misguided devotion to the UK spelling of color you won't find a better book on this topic.
The MASTER author strikes again.......2006-04-24
I find myself wondering why manuals and 'textbooks' can't be written in this same easy-to-read style.
Philip Andrews has now become my 'author of choice' in regards to all things photographic or digital, or a combination of the two.
This latest book is done in his easy style - whether you're 'novice' or 'advanced' (or somewhere in between), he 'talks' to us all.
The added advantage of 'Advanced Photoshop Elements 4' is that it also gives you tips for earlier versions of Elements - and a 'novice' need not be afraid to read through it. So, whether you're just starting with Elements 4 - or still using version 2 - you're bound to pick up some time-saving (and / or creative) tips.
The big plus with Philip Andrews' style is that he caters to photographers (who create 'visually' - that is, they like to look at photographs, and photographic styles, and create graphic images). So his books are filled with photographs - and COLOUR photos at that (which is how most of us like to view images). But for the Black & White purists, there are B & W techniques, as well.
Whether you're involved with web pages - or puzzling through the 'mysteries' of printing - or pining for a great panorama (it explains about 'Nodal Points' - but simplifies the explanation if you DON'T want to know about technical details) - or correcting, or making, distortions - being more creative - or just finding out HOW all those tools in Elements work - this is THE 'textbook' or 'Bible' for Elements-users to have in their library.
Well rounded coverage.......2006-02-05
This book is more than just a Photoshop Elements software manual, it includes chapters on scanner and camera techniques and printing tips. Other chapters cover both basic and advanced tasks. Throughout there are sidebars with step-by-step workflows. The book is filled with color illustrations and screen shots. All versions of Elements are covered here but I'm not sure why this might be needed in an advanced book.
The arrangement of articles makes some things harder to find - for example the section about tinkering with the depth of field is in the chapter on Panoramas. Each section includes an indication of related techniques and difficulty level.
This book has to be compared to Scott Kelby's Elements 4 book. In general the Kelby book is more advanced - it includes a chapter on RAW processing for example where this Andrews book only has 2 pages. The Kelby book is better organized but it is limited to just advanced Elements procedures. If you are an intermediate user this Andrews book is probably the one you want.
Book Description
This updated, up-to-the minute manual on Photoshop Elements includes information on the fourth and latest version of this extremely popular software program—just released this very season. All the new features are thoroughly covered with visuals such as brand-new screenshots and toolboxes. With hundreds of images and hands-on projects, the guide walks digital camera enthusiasts through all the ins and outs of the hardware and software, including cameras, computers, storage, printers, and scanners. Find out about image film formats, and how to save pictures on the Web and improve the composition and quality of a photo by cropping, rotating, flipping, or resizing the image. Even simulate traditional darkroom procedures. Every digital photographer who owns Photoshop Elements will want this.
Customer Reviews:
Using a surprisingly complete software package........2006-12-07
There is no question that Photoshop is the professional's choice when it comes to digital photograph manipulation. But along the way it has gotten very big, very expensive. Each new edition has hundreds of new features. But when you look at the new features, there aren't very many that you're likely to find useful.
So Adobe decides to made a de-featured version of the software. They call it Photoshop Elements. Time goes on, and with each new edition of the Elements it gets more and more features. It's almost the equivalent of the Photoshop of just a few years ago. And at Amazon Elements is $79.99 full Photoshop is $579.99, a flat $500 more.
Look pretty carefully at Photoshop Elements if you're thinking of this kind of software. It just might do everything you need to do.
How to look at what Elements does, this book will tell you. It's a complete guide to using Elements. So learn Elements to use, or study it just to see if it will do your job requires, here's the place to start.
Sample files must be purchased.......2006-10-21
Here is one of those books that provide you with some creative ideas using Photoshop Elements but does not provide the sample files to follow along. Instead the author gives you a website where the files can be purchased. Although the book has some good ideas this fact alone gives it a low rating.
My suggestion is to make sure sample fiels are included in any book that gives tutorials on how to create new creations.. A Thing I overlooked.
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