Issue Number 28 - July 1999

Oxford Guide to Writing & Speaking
This is a writing guide that puts its emphasis on a wide range of communication. It deals with everyday life in the form of letters, CVs, faxes and email messages, interviews, and even organizing meetings. Another section covers the various forms in which messages can be communicated. That is - via narratives, diaries, conversation, written reports, and even media broadcasts. There's a section on the basics of grammar, spelling, and punctuation, and the final section goes into more detail on writing for academic purposes. There's also an A to Z explanation of terms, and each chapter contains exercises, answers, and advice on what to do next.

http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/oxf-wsp.htm

Cascading Style Sheets
If you have ever written a web page in HTML, you'll know that it's impossible to control in detail the appearance of text on screen. That's because HTML was invented to describe the content and structure of documents. Cascading Style Sheets now give you the chance to control the appearance of the page too. Fonts, page colour, margins, line spacing, and even three-dimensional 'layers' can be manipulated using a (relatively) simple code. Eric Meyer's 'The Definitive Guide' is yet another in O'Reilly's series of comprehensive and superbly elegant publications. If you want to take the next step beyond HTML have a look at -

http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/meyer.htm

'Save As' - without filetype
In general, you shouldn't type a filename extension - a file type - when you save a file from a Windows program. Most programs automatically append a filename extension for the appropriate type. If you save a file as 'File.txt', typing the .txt, the chances are it will actually be named 'File.txt.txt' because the program will go ahead and add its three-letters worth. To see the full name of a file, use the Windows Explorer.

Palm Pilots - another prizewinner
Congratulations to David Pogue! The Computer Press Association has just awarded his book, 'PalmPilot: The Ultimate Guide (2nd Edition)', the best How-To Book for 2000. CPA says the book "earns the title 'ultimate guide' by its comprehensive approach to the total Palm environment." If you're a Palm user, this book offers a truly in-depth guide to what they can do - as well as a CD-ROM with 3,000+ programs. See our review at --

http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviiews/pogue.htm

Books and their Enemies
In 1915, Methuen, the publishers of D.H. Lawrence's 'The Rainbow', were hauled into court and, as they offered no defence to an obscenity charge, the book was destroyed. No one bothered to notify Lawrence of the case. An underlying motive for the attack in this case may have been Lawrence's denunciation of World War I.

Oxford English Dictionary on CD-ROM
Well - it's still widely considered the world's greatest dictionary, representing decades of in-depth linguistic scholarship. At the same time as putting the work on line, Oxford University Press have issued their masterpiece on CD-ROM. Tom Norton, one of the runners-up in our 'write a review' competition, writes about the advantages (and problems) of using the dictionary in his recent M.A. studies with the Open University.

http://www.mantex.co.uk/reviews/oxf-cdr2.htm