Acknowledgments

[Previous] [Next]

Two years in the making! A cast of thousands!

Only a little bit of an exaggeration when describing this book, because so many people made contributions both concrete and theoretical to its composition and construction. To begin at the beginning:

Thanks to acquisitions editor David Clark and our agent, David Rogelberg, for their unflagging work and support throughout this project. From the earliest discussions through the last desperate hours, they were there. We are truly grateful. Thanks also to Anne Hamilton, acquisitions manager, who rode to the rescue more than once.

We owe a debt of gratitude to the team at Microsoft Press—especially project editor Barbara Moreland, who has astounding patience and managed to maintain her composure and professionalism even in the midst of the editorial equivalent of the Great Flood. Thanks also to copy editors Rebecca Pepper and Chrisa Hotchkiss and to technical editors Jim Johnson and Nick Cavalancia. It was their task to read and correct nearly 2000 pages of manuscript while retaining both a broad overview and their sanity. They achieved the former, and we can t speak to the latter.

We also appreciate the contributions made by other talented members of the Press production team: Elizabeth Hansford, desktop publisher; Cheryl Penner, senior proofreader/copy editor; Joel Panchot, senior electronic artist; Bill Teel, publishing support specialist; and Julie Kawabata, indexer.

Thanks to all the participants in the Microsoft Windows 2000 beta newsgroups from whom we garnered essential information, tips, and insights. Both beta testers and Microsoft representatives were often extraordinarily helpful, far above and beyond the call of duty.

On a personal level, we d like to express our appreciation to Madeline Selig of Spear Technologies for being both understanding and flexible in allowing Charlie the time to complete the book.

As always, we thank Dianne King and the late Dr. Rudolph S. Langer, who first placed our feet on the writing road and nudged us along the way.