The first half was just not very well written, poorly edited. The second half was better! I'm reading this at the same time as reading The Power BrokeThe first half was just not very well written, poorly edited. The second half was better! I'm reading this at the same time as reading The Power Broker so it's surely making for an unfair comparison....more
A solid guide told from a unique perspective. It is clearly told from the perspective of Cassandra which is interesting since most of what I find onliA solid guide told from a unique perspective. It is clearly told from the perspective of Cassandra which is interesting since most of what I find online is from the perspective of OLTP databases. Of course this perspective makes sense since the author is a Cassandra contributor. This perspective, however, does not mean that the book does not do a good job covering aspects that are not specific, or not related at all, to Cassandra.
The second half was stronger than the first. My primary critique is that parts of the book could have been better edited for clarity. Some ideas were discussed in an order that was difficult to follow until reaching the end of a section. I can imagine the difficulty though of finding editors who can help make sense of such complicated topics.
All in all, a solid introduction to BTrees, LSM trees, replication, partitioning, and consensus. Partnered with a good editor, a future edition could be 5 stars....more
The 1800s are much easier to read about, feeling much more relevant, than previous centuries when countries barely existed as distinct entities.
This iThe 1800s are much easier to read about, feeling much more relevant, than previous centuries when countries barely existed as distinct entities.
This is one of the first books to mention that everyone actually *did* expect and want The Great War to happen. Today it's more common to hear that Europe "sleepwalked" into war. But this book makes the case that wasn't so.
A random, particular anecdote that also stood out was the atrocious, inhumane treatment of Congoans by the Belgians and French, as well as the Namibians by the Germans, among others. I'd heard of Heart of Darkness and King Leopold's Ghost and the Belgian crimes against humanity but not in this much detail, even though it was only covered for a few pages....more
Covers the development of Europe from Feudal to Class-based and somewhat capitalistic, at the beginnings of the industrial revolution which it clarifiCovers the development of Europe from Feudal to Class-based and somewhat capitalistic, at the beginnings of the industrial revolution which it clarifies was more evolution than revolution. And ends with the French Revolution and a chapter on Napoleon. Quite interesting....more
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