Acknowledgments

First, I want to say that many people helped me during the writing of this book (too many to list here). Everyone I have dealt with has been very supportive and cooperative. There are, however, several people who I think deserve special recognition.

I want to thank Jeanne Jackson (the Cisco IPS course developer) and everyone else who contributed to the course's development. The course material provided me with the foundation on which to develop this book. The technical editors, Marcus Sitzman, Shawn Merdinger, and Jerry Lathem supplied me with their excellent insight and greatly improved the accuracy and clarity of the text.

Finally, I want to thank Jesus Christ for gracing me with numerous gifts throughout my life, such as my understanding family members, who have helped me through the many long hours (and late nights) writing this book.