Back in 1983 I was chatting with Dick Coleman, publisher of Traffic World magazine, when he unexpectedly proposed that I write a column for the magazine on computer applications in the transportation/physical distribution industry. "But, Dick, I don't know all that much about computers," I protested. "You use one, don't you?" he asked logically. Yes, I did; I'd been running my consulting business with it for two years. But that didn't, I explained, make me an expert. "Think about it," he said. That's typical Coleman; he drops these studiedly casual ideas and just lets them lay there until you pick them up and wind up doing just what he wanted you to do all along. Sure enough, the longer I pondered the notion the more it appealed to me. OK, I wasn't a computer expert (I'm still not). But I was a computer user, in the transportation/distribution field; maybe from that perspective I might have some useful things to say to other transportation/distribution users and would-be users of computers. Thus was born the "Computer Software for Transportation" column. The first one appeared in the April 11, 1983, issue of Traffic World, and it's been a once-a-month schedule ever since. And thus, too, was ultimately born this book.

In his book, Global Purchasing: Reaching/or the World, Victor Pooler has stripped the supposed maze of complexity and misunderstanding from international com merce. This book provides extensive background materials for both the purchas ing/materials practitioner and the academic who wishes to use it as a text. The author's extensive international experience lends credibility. Of special interest are the global supplier sourcing strategies. The basics of good offshore buying are universal and of great importance to America. There is a need to analyze and investigate global supplier capabilities. On-the-job buyers need global techniques they can apply. Import prices are destined to rise, and it will take better buying strategies to deal with the multi-bil lions of dollars of purchases made outside the United States. This book brings together in great detail the full spectrum of benefits available to the global buyer. He or she has an opportunity to view the global economy and understand its financial implications. It contains a working knowledge of import regulations, customs tariffs,_ currency translation issues, hedging, cultural aware ness applied to negotiations, and logistics-all covered in detail. During the 1990s, the world of the global buyer will become a reality. Long neglected is the American buyer's study of other cultures and the techniques of dealing with suppliers outside our national boundaries. This book goes a long way in filling that knowledge void.

The Practical Handbook of Internet Computing analyzes a broad array of technologies and concerns related to the Internet, including corporate intranets. Fresh and insightful articles by recognized experts address the key challenges facing Internet users, designers, integrators, and policymakers. In addition to discussing major applications, it also