Subject: le/irmheas [GE/] <book review [IG]>

From: Marion GUNN <[log in to unmask]>

Reply-To: GAELIC Language Bulletin Board <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Thu, 31 Dec 92 23:19:58 GMT
Content-Type: text/plain
Parts/Attachments: text/plain (139 lines)

Sinne a u/sa/ideann uirlisi/ cumhachtacha ar no/s BITNET,

JANET, ARPANET agus a leithe/id, dob e/ a/r leas seasamh
siar ar uairibh agus feidhmiu/ na ngre/asa/n sin agus na
mbunachar e/agsu/la sonrai/ a ghabhann leo a scru/du/. Is e/
ata/ in _Online Information Hunting_ leis an Dochtu/ir Nahum
Goldman -- cur in aithne gineara/lta don cho/ras casta ar
li/ne a choinni/onn ag imeacht sinn.

< We who who use the powerful tools we call BITNET, JANET, ARPANET, and
the like would do well to stand back now and again and take
a long hard look at how these networks and their associated
databases function. Dr Nahum Goldmann's book _Online
Information Hunting_ offers its readers a general
introduction to the complexities of the online
systems which support our electronic lives.>

Ta/ inne/acs maith i gcu/l an leabhair seo chun pe/ eolas a theastai/onn
o/n le/itheoir a aimsiu/ ar an dtoirt. Ag to/rai/ocht eolais maidir le
BITNET (no/ _Because itUs Time Network_, mar a deirtear i
lch. 217), a chuaigh mise i dtosach ama, agus ba mho/r an
faoiseamh dom a fha/il amach gur le/iriu/ brea/ simpli/ ar
fheidhmiu/ an ghre/asa/in sin a bhi/ i leabhar Gholdmann,
agus tagairti/ sa chaibidil che/anna do sheanchairde liom
mar List-of-Lists agus New-List, mar aon le cur si/os deas
simpli/ ar cad ata/ i gceist leo. An te/ nach bhfuil eolas ar
bith aige ar chu/rsai/ teicneolai/ochta, ni/ chuirfeadh se/
stro/ ar bith air an chuid sin de leabhar Gholdmann a le/amh.
 <This book comes with a good index in the back, to help the
reader locate the topics he wants without effort. I immediately
sought out BITNET, and was relieved to find Goldmann's
exposition of that mercifully simple and easy to read, with
reference being made to old friends of ours, such as List-
of-Lists and New-List, and an equally simple explanation to
those as well. However unaware of the workings of the net
the reader, he could not but find that part of GoldmannUs book
very accessible.>

Ta/ leabhar seo Nahum Goldmann _Online Information Hunting_

(Windcrest / Magraw-Hill 1992, 19.95 dollar a luach) breac
le samplai/ agus le le/ara/idi/ a mhi/ni/onn conas mar a
oibri/onn gre/asa/in ri/o/mhaireachta, agus conas eolas a
chuardach sna bunachair e/agsu/la sonrai/ a ghabhann leo. An
chuid is mo/ den me/id a thuig me/ den leabhar seo,
dUaontaigh me/ leis. An me/id na/r thuigeas, ta/im fo/s ag
foghlaim uaidh. Is leor de mholadh ar leabhar tagartha ar bith
an me/id sin, is do/igh liom, agus molaimse saothar Nahum
Goldmann. Gabhaim pardu/n aige, chomh maith, mar is fada o/
shin a chuir se/ co/ip den leabhar seo ag triall orm le go
scri/obhfainn le/irmheas ina thaobh. Is e/ an seanleisce/al
baili/ ata/ agam i gco/nai/ -- bru/ oibre agus easpa ama. Is
e/ seo an tri/u/ le/irmheas ata/ scri/ofa agam le linn saoire
seo na Nollag, ach ni/ miste dom a admha/il gur bhain me/
idir u/sa/id agus taitneamh as fo/mhar leabhar 1992.

<_Online Information Hunting (Windcrest / Magraw-Hill 1992,

price 19.95 dollars) is packed with examples and with
diagrams showing how computer networks operate, and how
to handle the various databases associated with them. I
approve most of the contents of those chapters of the book
which I understood, and I am still learning something from
those parts of Nahum Goldmann's work I did not understand
on first coming across them. That is praise indeed for any
book of reference! I also owe the author an apology for the
length of time which has passed since his publishers sent me
this book for review. I can only offer the old, still valid
excuse, of pressure of work and shortage of time. This is the
third book review I have written this Christmas vacation, but
I have to admit 1992Us harvest of books brough with them
lots of pleasure and fresh insights.>

Ma/s mall fe/in an le/irmheas seo, is mithid a scri/obh. Ta/

leagan amach soile/ir sa leabhar seo, agus gach ranno/g da/
bhfuil ann di/rithe ar cheisteanna teoranta a fhreagairt.
Eolas bunu/sach do dhaoine nach bhfuil mo/ra/n taithi/ acu
ar oibriu/ gre/asa/n ata/ i leathanaigh 1-136 den leabhar
seo. An te/ a bhfuil eolas a/irithe aige cheana fe/in ar
fheidhmiu/ gre/asa/n, ba mhaith ab fhiu/ do/ tosnu/ ar
leathanach 137 (_A search strategy and its objectives_) agus
oibriu/ leis as sin amach tri/d na leibhe/il chuartaithe a
shonrai/tear (_The name search_, _The citation search_,
agus mar sin de), go dti/ caibidli/ deiridh an leabhar, a/it a
bple/itear te/amai/ ni/os casta, arb iad na te/amai/ is
simpli/ domsa iad, aisteach go leor(_The emergence of the
net_) a bhaineann le stair (_The emergence of the net_) no/
le la/imhsea/il na huirlise seo (_The net as a working tool_).
Agus tagairti/ a/irithe faoi _The dynamics of group
interaction_ a/ le/amh agam, rith smaointe liom nach
ceadmhach a lua anseo. Ba cheart gur leor mar nod dUaon
u/ine/ir gre/asa/in abairt seo Gholdmann: _The new
electronic medium is by its nature very confilictive, as it
thrives on controversy and does not easily accept the status quo._

<Although long-delayed, I'm glad I had the chance to review

this book, which has a good clear layout, each section in it
dedicated to answering a few well-defined questions. Pages
1-136 mostly contain very basic information for people new
to networking and accessing databases. The more advanced
reader might do well to begin on page 137 (_A search
strategy and its objectives_) and work on from there through
the various search levels considered (_The name search_,
_The citation search_, and so forth), to the latter chapters
of the book, which although dealing with advanced use of
systems, make paradoxically -- at least for me -- the
easiest reading (_The emergence of the net_), possibly
because it reads as straight history, and on to handling
today's practicalities (_The net as a working tool_). On
reading the chapter _The dynamics of group interaction_,
certain thoughts best not repeated here occurred to me.:-)
Enough for any list owner this hint from Goldmann: _The new
electronic medium is by its nature very conflictive, as it
thrives on controversy and does not easily accept the status quo._>

M'anam gur fi/or an me/id sin! Go dti/ gur tha/inig GAELIC-L ar

an saol La/ Bealtaine na bliana 1989, is Be/arla ar fad a bhi/
sna dteachtaireachtai/ ar line poibli/ ar fad. Go pri/obha/ideach
a bhi/odh mo leithe/id agus Caoimhi/n O/ Donnai/le ag caint lena
che/ile. Fe/ach anois mar ata/, o/ tharla an t-athru/
re/abhlo/ideach sin sa saol leictreonach - ta/ tri/
teangacha na nGael a/ labhairt ar an ngre/asa/n
poibli/ seo, agus ta/ muintir na Breataine Bige
ag labhairt amach chomh fileanta ce/anna ar
WELSH-L! (Ydych chi'n siarad Cymraeg?)

<How true that statement is! Until [log in to unmask] first saw
the light on Mayh Day of 1989, English was the language of public
exchanges throughout net, with people like Kevin Donnelly and
yours truly speaking to each other only privately in Gaelic.
The change since then has indeed been revolutionary -- with
speakers of all three Gaelic languages communing together in
public, and recently, speakers of a FOURTH Celtic language
exercising the right to do the same thing for themselves
on [log in to unmask] Ydych chi'n siarad Cymraeg?>

Bliain u/r faoi mhaise dhaoibh!

Bliadhna mhath u\r dhuibh!
Blien vah noo diu!
Marion Gunn