Customer Reviews

Poor Richard's Home and Small Office Networking: Room-to-Room or Around the World

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Nothing on routers,switches,broadband. Although the ccopyright
is 2001, this book could have been written 10 years ago.
HOWEVER, if all you have is a dial-up modem, this book will help you.

I own a small business. Every networking book that I bought before this one insisted that I must be a large corporation and that I was a computer major as well. All I ever wanted was a book that explained how to put a network together in terms that I could understand. This book does all that and more.

Some consultant came in, charged me lots of money, and then didn't get a network set up. This book showed me how to avoid consulting fees and still save money putting a network together. I was able to put something together in just about a week and it cost less than half what the consultant said it would. Better still, this book gave me the confidence to install everything myself.

I don't know if this book will help everyone, but I consider it an essential book if you own a small business. I'm just sorry that I didn't find it earlier.

If you are computer literate yet lack the fundamentals on assembling a small to medium size network, then this is the book for you. It is a very readable source of information that helps you determine your needs and then presents a variety of options--from common to sometimes bizarre. There is a lot of good advice on conserving costs while optimizing performance and chapters that explore the basics of network security, software, first aid and performance issues. The text has appropriately necessary diagrams & illustrations, an excellent glossary & appendix of tips, and generous references to online sources for further information. This is probably the best beginner to intermediate level book on the subjects covered, at a reasonable price.

Although this book is a great publication for the SOHO (Small Office Home Office) user community, it's a even greater buy for companies with any amount of remote workforce. I would go as saying that it should be recommended reading for remote workers or even giving it out as a part of the orientation package for new employees that will be working remotely. The book is easy to read and provides practical information for the novice and even the expert to polish on his/her skills.

John Mueller's Poor Richard's Home And Small Office Networking is written with a jargon-free, "reader friendly" style and specifically designed to provide the small business entrepreneur with the benefits of networking. Mueller cogently explains all aspects of sharing information and collaboration in an age of home offices, a mobile workforce, and telecommuting. Of special interest are the low-cost techniques and technologies of alternative networks (including house-wiring systems); the use of the Internet for remote communication and file sharing (including conferencing tools); the administration and maintenance of networks with minimal time and effort; and the necessity and practices of locating and plugging holes in a network's security (including the use of firewalls). Poor Richard's Home And Small Office Networking is ideal for the novice entrepreneur and a "must" for small business managers in this age of the computer and rapidly advancing telecommunications technologies.

I run a small business and don't have the largest bank account. When I read other books and starting applying their advise, I figured it would cost thousands of dollars to get my network setup and ready for use. This book saved me a substantial amount of money, made it easy for me to build a network from scratch, and helped me create a networking environment that really works for my business. No, it doesn't contain a lot of fancy solutions that cost a lot to implement, but that's the point, isn't it? If you want a no-nonsense book that tells you how to build a network without all of the expense, then this is the book to buy.

If you want to connect two or more pc's to share a broadband internet connection or printer, or need to set up a small office network, this is the book for you. Covers a multitude of topics, including wireless, phoneline, 10BaseT Ethernet, etc. Written for the not-too-technical reader.