Indie – Page 2 – Scott J. Pearson’s Book Review

Software Architecture for Developers: Designing Scalable & Maintainable Systems for the Real World

By Scott J. Pearson | July 9, 2025July 9, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

This book provides a succinct overview of the subjects a software architect interacts with on a regular basis in today’s world. That is, it portrays a high-level snapshot of the field in 2024. It summarizes what the current technologies are and lists the different conceptual frameworks software technology uses. Microservices, cloud computing, software as a function, and the packages that oversee it fill the lists that Steve Abrams provides. Its main weakness, however, is that…

Advanced JavaScript Unleashed: Master Advanced JavaScript Concepts like Prototypes, Symbols, Generators & More

By Scott J. Pearson | June 4, 2025June 4, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

Like many web developers, I learned about modern JavaScript/ECMAScript soon after it came out in 2015. JavaScript is the programming language that has powered interactive webpages since Netscape Navigator was a thing. Now, it’s the world’s most used programming language for all sorts of non-browser-based applications, including mobile apps, web servers, and full-stack development. Therefore, understanding how it works and why it works becomes a priority for most software engineers. Grasping the implementation details can…

Indie Presentation Visualization

Seeing with Fresh Eyes: Meaning, Space, Data, Truth

By Scott J. Pearson | May 6, 2025May 6, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

I read anything that Edward Tufte writes. This “father of data visualization” has taught classes at Yale on the subject for decades. His books have also taught the reading public how to present data more effectively in the digital age. This work represents his fifth book. While his other books focus on getting the data right, this one’s subject meanders around transforming presentations into a form of art that provokes an audience response. I enjoyed…

Indie Presentation Visualization

Visual Explanations: Images & Quantities, Evidence & Narrative

By Scott J. Pearson | January 19, 2025May 6, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

“A picture is worth a thousand words,” so the saying goes. Thus, an effective visualization, enriched by information, must count for so much more. But a misconstrued visualization, unfortunately, can lead to horrific outcomes from misinterpretations. How can we refine our visual thinking so that we can infer correct deductions while ignoring misplaced sketches? Visualization guru Edward Tufte teaches us how to reason about our world through informative displays in this helpful guide, replete with…

Indie Presentation Visualization

Envisioning Information by Edward Tufte

By Scott J. Pearson | January 12, 2025May 6, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

All the way back to Galileo sharing about Jupiter’s moons, science has relied upon visualizations to communicate its findings. Some things are just better depicted visually instead of through words. In contemporary society, information graphics have played an increasingly larger role as computers quickly translate data into a more accessible format. Newspapers and Internet websites have made them commonplace. Even though this book was written in 1990, before ubiquitous computing, it identifies the philosophical and…

Indie Presentation Visualization

Beautiful Evidence by Edward Tufte

By Scott J. Pearson | December 30, 2024May 6, 2025 by Scott J. Pearson

Edward Tufte’s books on data visualization are nothing short of legend among us information geeks. A political scientist by training, he demonstrates how well-conceived visualizations can effectively communicate insights and how shortcomings can create catastrophes. He continues his famous series on visual imagination with this book on the intersection of data and art. He shows how displays of evidence can move readers much like art and how poorly constructed displays can inhibit good judgment. Tufte’s…

Indie Management-Business Program Management

Practical Project Stakeholder Management: Methods, Tools & Templates for Comprehensive Stakeholder Management

By Scott J. Pearson | November 2, 2024November 2, 2024 by Scott J. Pearson

There aren’t a ton of books available on coaching how to manage stakeholders while managing a project towards success. This independently published book attempts to fill that gap by providing a series of methods and tools to those new to the practice. First the strengths: The book indeed delivers as advertised by including most common practices for managing stakeholders. It explains them well and provides examples of documentation. It reads like an internal training document…

Indie Management-Business Science

NeuroSelling: Mastering the Customer Conversation Using the Surprising Science of Decision Making

By Scott J. Pearson | September 29, 2024September 29, 2024 by Scott J. Pearson

This book is directed to help sales professionals excel at their job, and it takes an unusual perspective to get there. It teaches modern neuroscience from knowledge emerging from scientific labs and applies it to the art of a customer relationship. …And it does a surprisingly effective job in my estimation. In my scientific education, I know that the brain has been a moving frontier for the first quarter of this century, and research is…

Indie Management-Business Software-Technology

Intellectual Property: A Handbook for Startups

By Scott J. Pearson | June 27, 2024June 27, 2024 by Scott J. Pearson

New businesses, especially in technology, are often driven by new inventions. Thus, they require an inordinate amount of attention to intellectual property (IP) issues. However, being a new business, these companies are often the ones least able to afford the advice of an IP expert or a patent attorney. Groups that identify a stated IP strategy are shown to be much more likely to attract investors’ interest. So IP is more about getting a business’…

Indie Kids Psychology

It’s About You Too: Reducing the Overwhelm for Parents of LGBTQ+ Kids

By Scott J. Pearson | June 23, 2024June 23, 2024 by Scott J. Pearson

As LGBTQ+ people recently have gained increased societal acceptance, more children become “out” and self-aware of themselves, often at a young age. This effect is a good thing because it prevents youth from feeling oppressed for who they are. The social support for those “coming out” is increasing, but support for parents of those children is presently lacking. Mostly, parents are admonished to be supportive, but they usually lack a safe space to sort out…