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Books 171 The book’s Introduction ignores history in claiming that Geddes ‘originated the field of industrial design’, yet he did popularize it. Through Horizons the reader has access to an alternateviewofthe 1930sintheU.S.A.,one notcharacterizedby John Steinbeck, the Dust Bowl and Walker Evans’photographs. One will be reminded of fashionable interiors from films of the 1930s, H. G. Wells’ novel The Shape of Things ro Come and, perhaps too, of Frank Capra’s early films, in which bright and restless young dreamers attack the status quo, bureaucracy and conventional thinking. Electric Music: A Practical Manual. John Jenkins and John Smith. Indiana University Press, Bloomington, Indiana, 1975. 168 pp.. illus. Paper, $2.95. Reviewed by F. Brown* This is a basic manual intended for beginners wishing to become familiar with the electrictechniques for producing and recording sound. Technical terms mentioned are defined in detail, and the book, with its many diagrams and photographs, is essentially a glossary. Explanations on sound processing are too simplistic,and they do not pertain to the real phenomenon of sound. Information on new methods for synthesizing sound is not provided. The authors’ desire to provide an easy book at a technical and scientificlevelhas limited itsvalue for those who are interested in electric music. Software Engineering: An Advanced Course. F. L. Bauer, ed. Springer, New York, 1976.159pp., illus. Paper, $9.80. Reviewed by Steve Scrivener** The objectiveof this advanced course, as Bauer says, is ‘to cover as much as we can of all aspects of the theme, and contribute further to the systemization of the field’. I should point out that there are those who assert that computer software engineering is largely an art that is not based on sound principles. The book takes the form of a series of lecture notes prepared by various authors for a course sponsored by the European Economic Community (EEC) at Garmisch, Fed. Rep. Germany, in February-March 1972. Unlike many books published to accompany a course, which appear disjointed, Software Engineering does succeed in presenting a coherent whole, which for the most part is clearly and concisely written. No one in the computer world would argue against the need for a more systematic approach to the design of computer software. The inefficiencyand unreliability of existing software, its lack of clarity, portability and adaptability contribute to a desire to achieve a situation where software is produced economically, and which is reliable and works efficiently. This general concern is reflected in the contents of the book, .which tackles the issues of project management, product definition, design and implementation, problem-oriented languages, testing , performance measurement, maintenance and enhancement. The book is pitched at a high level and would seem to be most appropriate for post-graduate computer science students or experienced software engineers. A substantial knowledge of computing is assumed and, thus, the book addresses itself to a restricted audience. At firstsight then, this book seemsto have very little to offer to artist-programmers. Yet, the topics discussed in the book, such as modularity, portability, adaptability, testing and debugging, are of interest to them. The way in which artists work tends to be characteristically unpredictable and ill-defined. Consequently, the programs they write are frequently in need of modification and revision in response to changing objectives. In this case, the ability to re-organize and extend programs (adaptability) and to build software from existing software modules (modularity) is desirable. Although the book deals more with the problems confronting software system,designers, the same concepts and techniques may be applied usefully by artist-programmers. *15, rue de la Lancette, 75012 Paris, France. **Department of Mathematics, Statistics and Computing, Leicester Polytechnic, Leicester LEI 9BH. England. In summary, Sqffware Engineering is a book for professional programmers and software system designers, who should find it a valuable and instructive text. Whilst the concepts and techniques discussed are of interest to artist-programmers, they will find the context in which these appear not directly relevant. Unique Art Lessons and Special Projects for the Elementary Classroom. 1st ed. Candy Cook. Parker, West Nyack, N.Y., 1977. 240 pp., illus. Reviewed by Jan J. Valtr: Cook’s book contains a series of approximately 130art lessons that could...

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