We would like to thank our technical reviewers, Martin Fowler, Lee Holmes, and Eric Gunnerson. The feedback and guidance that they provided during the writing process was invaluable. In addition to the technical reviews, we also received much needed feedback and criticism from the following individuals: Charlie Poole, Paul Karsten, Peter Provost, Gregor Hohpe, Dragos Manolescu, Michael Two, Kent Beck, Ron Jeffries, Jonathan Wanagel, Scott Densmore, Naveen Yajaman, David Astels, Ward Cunningham, Benjamin Mitchell, Chris Colleran, David Trowbridge, Srinath Vasireddy, and Andrew Slocum. Their input has greatly influenced the content of the book. It is a pleasure for us to acknowledge their contributions and express our appreciation for their efforts. We would also like to thank the following people at Microsoft Press: Linda Engelman for her help getting us started and everything she did to get the book completed as soon as possible; Robin Van Steenburgh for taking over Linda’s big job; Devon Musgrave for his advice on the first draft; Kathleen Atkins for her help in getting the book completed; and Nancy Sixsmith for converting what we wrote into English.

Every book is an activity that always takes more time than you think. I (James) need to thank my wife, Beth, and my children, Erin and Grant, for allowing me the time that I needed to work on the book. In fact, I owe them for all the nights and weekends that they have given up while I worked on my latest "scheme." Thank you. In addition, I would like to thank my coauthor Alexei. I thoroughly enjoyed the many hours we worked together trying to cobble together the thoughts and ideas first into a sample program and then into the text that became this book.

Writing this book took a great deal more time than can be explained, justified, or even be considered reasonable, but, without a doubt, it has been the most rewarding experience for me. I (Alexei) owe James a great deal of gratitude for giving me this opportunity. I have learned much in the process of working on the book. I would also like to thank my mentor and manager, Regan Stern, for recognizing the importance of my working on this book and supporting me in this effort.