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I have a hard time reading technical books. I'll be the
first to admit that I buy technical books based on how good their
index is, because quite frankly, when I need something from a book
that's the first place I go.
With that being said, there are a number of books on my shelf
that deserve the cover-to-cover treatment. If you are a security
freak like myself, and you find yourself looking for something to
read, check these gems out:
TCP/IP Illustrated, Volume 1
,
by Richard Stevens. This is the
undisputed bible of the TCP/IP protocol. If you can read this
book cover to cover, and digest it, you will know more about the
TCP/IP protocol than 99% of the human race. And then you can
tell me how it ends.
Network Intrusion Detection,
by Steven Northcutt and Judy Novak. The
first book ever to seriously address the art of intrusion detection,
by one of the guys who pioneered the science. I had the
distinct pleasure of attending a week-long seminar on intrusion
detection given by both of these folks at Cyber Defense Initiative
West in San Fran a couple years back, and *my* copy is signed.
So NO YOU CANNOT BORROW IT! Ask Steven about his time as the
Chief of Information Warfare for the gubment (did you know such a
post existed? I didn't!) and you'll hear some crazy stuff...
probably. You should do that and let me know what you find
out.
Know Your Enemy, by The
HoneyNet Project. Ah, honeynets, the bleeding edge of
intrusion detection. If you want to watch a hacker work, this
is how you do it. And after reading the last few chapters of
intercepted script kiddie IRC banter, you'll never be able to look
at a "3" the same way again. Written by Lance Spitzner, one of
my personal role models, who proves (yet again!) that the transition
from M1A1 tank commander to intrusion detection is as natural as a
caterpillar to a butterfly. Or something.
Caught in the Net, by Dr. Kimberly Young. This is
supposedly a book about recognizing and recovering from Internet
Addiction. But to be honest with you, I only made it about
halfway through. The book was really cutting into my
Everquest time, and I had to
finally give it up. But hey, I'll get right back to it once I
win this damn game...
I'm Just Here For the Food, by
Alton Brown, host of one of
my favorite Food Network shows:
Good Eats (my girlfriend bought me the entire DVD collection of
Good Eats for my birthday, and now I'm marrying the woman.
It's THAT GOOD). This book should be in every cook's kitchen.
He goes into detail the various cooking methods, what hardware is
required, and when each is most appropriate. He doesn't waste
your time with hundreds of recipes, either. This is a book
that teaches you how to cook, and at the end of each chapter
he gives you 1 or 2 recipes that demonstrate the just-learned
method. I bet he could kick
Bobby Flay's
ass too.
Iron Chef, The Official Book. Any self-respecting person
who has ever put flame to food owns a copy of this book, I'm
certain. I laughed. I cried. I made some Broth of
Vigor. If by some freak cosmic catastrophe you don't actually
own a copy of this book (and NO YOU CANNOT BORROW MINE, DAMMIT, STOP
ASKING!), you're really missing out on some juicy behind-the-scenes
dirt from the best Japanese TV show ever brought to America.
Like did you know that Chairman Kaga is.... Nah, read
the book, you hosers!
The rest of my library is mostly reference material, and books
that I reach for when I run into a specific problem. Also a
number of real classics I keep around in case the power goes out in
the middle of winter and I need something to cook my Broth of Vigor
over (that Visual Basic 4.0 book is going to save my life one day).