About the Author
John Mueller is a freelance author and technical editor. He has writing in his blood, having produced 95 books and more than 300 articles to date. The topics range from networking to artificial intelligence and from database management to heads-down programming. Some of his current books include a Windows command-line reference, books on VBA and Visio 2007, a C# design and development manual, and an IronPython programmer’s guide. His technical editing skills have helped more than 63 authors refine the content of their manuscripts. John has provided technical editing services to both Data Based Advisor and Coast Compute magazines. He has also contributed articles to magazines such as Software Quality Connection, DevSource, InformIT, SQL Server Professional, Visual C++ Developer, Hard Core Visual Basic, asp.netPRO, Software Test and Performance, and Visual Basic Developer. Be sure to read John’s blog at http://blog.johnmuellerbooks.com/.
When John isn’t working at the computer, you can find him outside in the garden, cutting wood, or generally enjoying nature. John also likes making wine, baking cookies, and knitting. When not occupied with anything else, he makes glycerin soap and candles, which come in handy for gift baskets. You can reach John on the Internet at [email protected]. John is also setting up a website at http://www.johnmuellerbooks.com/. Feel free to take a look and make suggestions on how he can improve it.
Dedication
Some people are simply there in your life — as reliable as the day is long. Scott and Pegg Conderman are two such people — they have helped me through an extremely hard time simply by being themselves and knowing just what to do to make the day a little better.
Author’s Acknowledgments
Thanks to my wife, Rebecca. Even though she is gone now, her spirit is in every book I write, in every word that appears on the page. She believed in me when no one else would.
Russ Mullen deserves thanks for his technical edit of this book. He greatly added to the accuracy and depth of the material you see here. Russ is always providing me with great URLs for new products and ideas. However, it’s the testing that Russ does that helps most. He’s the sanity check for my work. Russ also has different computer equipment from mine, so he’s able to point out flaws that I might not otherwise notice.
Matt Wagner, my agent, deserves credit for helping me get the contract in the first place and taking care of all the details that most authors don’t really consider. I always appreciate his assistance. It’s good to know that someone wants to help.
A number of people read all or part of this book to help me refine the approach, test the coding examples, and generally provide input that all readers wish they could have. These unpaid volunteers helped in ways too numerous to mention here. I especially appreciate the efforts of Eva Beattie, Glenn A. Russell, Emanuel Jonas, and Michael Sasseen, who provided general input, read the entire book, and selflessly devoted themselves to this project.
Finally, I would like to thank Kyle Looper, Susan Christophersen, and the rest of the editorial and production staff.
Publisher’s Acknowledgments
Senior Acquisitions Editor: Kyle Looper
Project and Copy Editor: Susan Christophersen
Technical Editor: Russ Mullen
Editorial Assistant: Claire Johnson
Sr. Editorial Assistant: Cherie Case
Project Coordinator: Patrick Redmond
Cover Image: © iStock.com / Glam-Y