tomcook.net » Books http://tomcook.net/wp The Cook Family Blog Mon, 23 Sep 2019 01:51:30 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 How to not loose a bookmark http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2011/04/22/how-to-not-loose-a-bookmark/ http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2011/04/22/how-to-not-loose-a-bookmark/#comments Sat, 23 Apr 2011 00:35:20 +0000 Thomas Cook http://tomcook.net/wp/?p=1812 Continue reading →]]> I downloaded a book on our new iPad to read. I figure I will give this new-fangled eBook thing a try. It has been a  fine experience so far with only one big surprise. I put the book on my old iPhone as well as the iPad. I really don’t carry the iPad around too much, and thought it would be nice to have it on my phone for when I have to wait in line, at the doctors office etc.

The one thing that was bugging me was how to remember where I left off.

With a real book it’s easy: use a bookmark. eBooks can use bookmarks, but how am I going to keep them synced? Imagine having two copies of a book and when you put one down moving the bookmark in the other. Last night I remembered what chapter I was on, but ebooks don’t have fixed pages. Page-count  varies based on what font size and layout you use, so I thought I would have to skim around to find my spot. It turns out it was all in vain. iBooks (the Apple book app) will wirelessly sync your bookmarks, spot, notes, and highlights. Awesome.

Also I actually highlighted something yesterday. I never highlight anything, ever. I think this ebook thing might work out after all.

]]> http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2011/04/22/how-to-not-loose-a-bookmark/feed/ 0 The Riddle of the Compass http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2009/03/20/the-riddle-of-the-compass-2/ http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2009/03/20/the-riddle-of-the-compass-2/#comments Fri, 20 Mar 2009 16:41:00 +0000 admin http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2009/03/20/the-riddle-of-the-compass-2/ Continue reading →]]> I heard an interview with the author a while back on NPR. The book had some interesting bits in it. The author tried to make it exciting and put too much story into it. I enjoyed the history of the compass and how navigation changed as a result. Also cool was how that navigation was then applied to discovery. I was really impressed that the ancient Chinese who used the compass as a diving tool knew about declination. The compass had to travel to the Mediterranean though to find use for navigation.

The Riddle of the Compass

I also found this way cool chart showing the variation of declination over time (1590-1990).

]]> http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2009/03/20/the-riddle-of-the-compass-2/feed/ 0 A Splintered History of Wood http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2009/03/20/a-splintered-history-of-wood-2/ http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2009/03/20/a-splintered-history-of-wood-2/#comments Fri, 20 Mar 2009 16:11:00 +0000 admin http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2009/03/20/a-splintered-history-of-wood-2/ Continue reading →]]> Bridgit got me this for Christmas and I have been meaning to do a writeup on it for a while. The book is somewhat lacking in some aspects, its not the best writing or anything. It is interesting and full of interesting stuff. Wood is used for so many things. The author covers uses for wood in golf clubs, baseball bats, Steinway pianos, houses, and more. Economic and management were really interesting. I learned all about ship building and that during the Revolutionary War we choked England of good stock for ship masts.

Overall the book was good and interesting to read. I have passed it on to others to read.

A Splintered History of Wood

]]> http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2009/03/20/a-splintered-history-of-wood-2/feed/ 0 One Good Turn http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/10/09/one-good-turn-2/ http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/10/09/one-good-turn-2/#comments Tue, 09 Oct 2007 17:06:00 +0000 admin http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/10/09/one-good-turn-2/ This was a quick and interesting read. The book started as an article about the tool of the millennium. Al about how and when screws and screwdrivers came about.

]]> http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/10/09/one-good-turn-2/feed/ 0 A Walk in the Woods http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/10/09/a-walk-in-the-woods-2/ http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/10/09/a-walk-in-the-woods-2/#comments Tue, 09 Oct 2007 16:52:00 +0000 admin http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/10/09/a-walk-in-the-woods-2/ Continue reading →]]> It seems like all of a sudden in the past few months I have had way more time to read. The Kid is older now and we are all sleeping more. Plus we moved the TV upstairs so we watch much less TV.

Anna passed this book along to me. It was good, the book kept me going along as they went along the trail.

]]> http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/10/09/a-walk-in-the-woods-2/feed/ 0 Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/02/09/guns-germs-and-steel-the-fates-of-human-societies-2/ http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/02/09/guns-germs-and-steel-the-fates-of-human-societies-2/#comments Fri, 09 Feb 2007 16:36:00 +0000 admin http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/02/09/guns-germs-and-steel-the-fates-of-human-societies-2/ Continue reading →]]> My father-in-law lent me this book and so far it is right up my alley. It is anthropology based and I am loving it. I haven't really read anything about anthro since college and its nice to get thinking again. With a kid I just get to read it in 5 minute chunks.

]]> http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2007/02/09/guns-germs-and-steel-the-fates-of-human-societies-2/feed/ 0 Books, Check em out….er…..mail them out http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/08/08/books-check-em-out-er-mail-them-out-2/ http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/08/08/books-check-em-out-er-mail-them-out-2/#comments Tue, 08 Aug 2006 16:09:00 +0000 admin http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/08/08/books-check-em-out-er-mail-them-out-2/ Continue reading →]]> We have those piles of books that you read once and then they sit on a shelf. Why not give them to someone who wants to read them! All you book reading people out there should check out http://bookmooch.com/. It's a cool book sharing site. Kinda like an opensource-inter-library-loan. It is all based on a point system and you pay the shipping when you send a book, they pay it when they send it to you. I haven't signed up yet, but I plan on doing it.

]]> http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/08/08/books-check-em-out-er-mail-them-out-2/feed/ 0 The Professor and the Madman http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/06/22/the-professor-and-the-madman-2/ http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/06/22/the-professor-and-the-madman-2/#comments Thu, 22 Jun 2006 16:14:00 +0000 admin http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/06/22/the-professor-and-the-madman-2/ Continue reading →]]> This past week/weekend we went to Minneapolis-St.Paul for a wedding reception. For trips we have been getting books on CD from the library. They are great for those long hours in the car. We got a couple and decided on The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester. It is a non-fiction book about the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary. The OED was compiled in a manner that would almost be considered Open Source by todays standards. The book ties in the history of English dictionaries, but focuses on a man who submitted over 10,000 entries and most were included. The kicker is that the submitter lives in an asylum.

It was a very educational and entertaining book. Randomly full definitions are thrown in which makes for a fun listen, but I imagine is something that a reader would just skim over.

]]> http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/06/22/the-professor-and-the-madman-2/feed/ 0 From a Wooden Canoe http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/06/21/from-a-wooden-canoe-2/ http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/06/21/from-a-wooden-canoe-2/#comments Wed, 21 Jun 2006 18:03:44 +0000 admin http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/06/21/from-a-wooden-canoe-2/ Continue reading →]]> Dan and Betsy got me From a Wooden Canoe for my birthday. Its a fantastic book that is a collection of ramblings about canoeing and the outdoors. Each chapter contains information about the author, his love of the outdoors, as well as the subject matter. There is much to be learned in this book there is a chapter on tumplines one on knives, and many others.

A great book to pull down on a rainy day and read a bit of.

]]> http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2006/06/21/from-a-wooden-canoe-2/feed/ 0 Pride and Hatred http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2005/11/11/pride-and-hatred-2/ http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2005/11/11/pride-and-hatred-2/#comments Fri, 11 Nov 2005 19:02:22 +0000 admin http://tomcook.net/wp/blog/2005/11/11/pride-and-hatred-2/ Continue reading →]]> So today the new Pride and Prejudice movie comes out. This reminds me of one of my favorite quotes:

“Every time I read Pride and Prejudice I want to dig Jane Austin's body and beat her over the skull with her own shinbone.” -Mark Twain

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