First Encounter with a Duppy is the first in a series of children’s books titled Memories of Poppy’s Childhood in Rural Jamaica. It is the real story, as Vincent remembers it, of the occasion when he and his older sister encountered a duppy when they were sent on an errand by their mother. Vincent was 8 years old at the time and his sister was 12. Duppy is the Jamaican Patois word for ghost or spirit. It is of African origin and common in folklore throughout the Caribbean. Duppies are gene...

While using a Time Rewinder, Charlie Cosmos and his friends make an exciting discovery. A time capsule is hidden somewhere in city hall! Can they track it down in time for their presentation at the Banneker City Festival? Young readers will find out in this fun and funny sci-fi adventure! With easy-to-read text and art that pops off the page, every early chapter book in The Cosmos Family series takes readers on a joyous journey into the future.

"Immensely talented… Christy’s muscular, vivid writing and John le Carré-esque talent for thrusting us deep into unfamiliar territory ensure that what could lapse into cliché instead sounds fresh and exciting… Klay is a great, flawed hero, in the vein of the classic hard-drinking, hard-living, hard-loving loner.”--New York Times Book ReviewIn this intricate and propulsive thriller--from National Geographic's founder of Special Investigations--Tom ...

When his dad forgets his CubeKey at home, Charlie Cosmos sets out to deliver it to him at work. Along the way, Charlie tests out a new solarball with his friends and loses track of his dad’s device. Will Charlie find the CubeKey in time or will his solarball slip-up land him in hot water? Young readers will find out in this fun and funny sci-fi adventure! With easy-to-read text and art that pops off the page, every early chapter book in The Cosmos Family series takes readers on a joyous jo...

While Jacob Cosmos is using his home’s virtual library, a Meeboll escapes from a book. Now the messy monster is loose and causing chaos in every room it enters! Can Jacob and his brother, Charlie, catch the Meeboll before it destroys the whole house? Young readers will find out in this fun and funny sci-fi adventure! With easy-to-read text and art that pops off the page, every early chapter book in The Cosmos Family series takes readers on a joyous journey into the future.

Security Smarts for the Self-Guided IT Professional“Get to know the hackers—or plan on getting hacked. Sullivan and Liu have created a savvy, essentials-based approach to web app security packed with immediately applicable tools for any information security practitioner sharpening his or her tools or just starting out.”—Ryan McGeehan, Security Manager, Facebook, Inc.Secure web applications from today's most devious hackers. Web Application Security: A Beginner's Guide...

While Julie Cosmos works on a 3D painting, the family dog, Zeeka, rolls in it. Now the silly dog has a mashed-up masterpiece sticking to her body! Even worse, Zeeka has a vet checkup in just one hour! Can Julie and her brother Jacob get Zeeka cleaned up before their mom discovers the painted pooch? Young readers will find out in this fun and funny sci-fi adventure! With easy-to-read text and art that pops off the page, every early chapter book in The Cosmos Family series takes readers on a...

We’re thrilled to share another free ebook with you: Introducing Microsoft Azure HDInsight, by Avkash Chauhan, Valentine Fontama, Michele Hart, Wee Hyong Tok, and Buck Woody. Here are the download links: Download the PDF (6.37 MB; 130 pages) from http://aka.ms/IntroHDInsight/PDF Download the EPUB (8.46 MB) from http://aka.ms/IntroHDInsight/EPUB Download the MOBI (12.8 MB) from http://aka.ms/IntroHDInsight/MOBI Download the ...

Why don't typical enterprise projects go as smoothly as projects you develop for the Web? Does the REST architectural style really present a viable alternative for building distributed systems and enterprise-class applications?In this insightful book, three SOA experts provide a down-to-earth explanation of REST and demonstrate how you can develop simple and elegant distributed hypermedia systems by applying the Web's guiding principles to common enterprise computing problems. You'...

The real challenge of programming isn't learning a language's syntax—it's learning to creatively solve problems so you can build something great. In this one-of-a-kind text, author V. Anton Spraul breaks down the ways that programmers solve problems and teaches you what other introductory books often ignore: how to Think Like a Programmer. Each chapter tackles a single programming concept, like classes, pointers, and recursion, and open-ended exercises throughout challenge you to ...

Whether you’re building a social media site or an internal-use enterprise application, this hands-on guide shows you the connection between MongoDB and the business problems it’s designed to solve. You’ll learn how to apply MongoDB design patterns to several challenging domains, such as ecommerce, content management, and online gaming. Using Python and JavaScript code examples, you’ll discover how MongoDB lets you scale your data model while simplifying the development process.Many...

Improving database performance requires an equal mix of understanding theoretical concepts and working through hands-on examples. You'll find both here. Many of the examples given will be immediately useful for monitoring and improving your PostgreSQL deployments, providing insight into hard-to-obtain information about your database. This book is aimed at intermediate to advanced database administrators using or planning to use PostgreSQL. Portions will also interest systems administrators...