Codes have decided the fates of empires, countries, and monarchies throughout recorded history. Mary, Queen of Scots was put to death by her cousin, Queen Elizabeth, for the high crime of treason after spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham cracked the secret code she used to communicate with her conspirators. And thus the course of British history was altered by a few sheets of cryptic prose. This is just one link in humankind's evolutionary chain of secret communication, and just one of the fascinating incidents recounted in The Code Book, written by bestselling author Simon Singh.Combining a superb storyteller's sense of drama and a scientist's appreciation for technical perfection, Singh traces the evolution of secret writing from ancient Greek military espionage to the frontiers of computer science. The result is an epic tale of human ingenuity, with examples that range from the poignant to the peculiar to the world-historical.There is the case of the Beale ciphers, which involves Wild West escapades, a cowboy who amassed a vast fortune, a buried treasure worth $20 million, and a mysterious set of encrypted papers describing its whereabouts--papers that have baffled generations of cryptanalysts and captivated hundreds of treasure hunters.A speedier end to a bloody war was the only reward that could be promised to the Allied code breakers of World Wars I and II, whose selfless contributions altered the course of history; but few of them lived to receive any credit for their top-secret accomplishments. Among the most moving of these stories is that of the World War II British code breaker Alan Turing, who gave up a brilliant career in mathematics to devote himself to the Allied cause, only to end his years punished by the state for his homosexuality, while his heroism was ignored. No less heroic were the Navajo code talkers, who volunteered without hesitation to risk their lives for the Allied forces in the Japanese theater, where they were routinely mistaken for the enemy.Interspersed with these gripping stories are clear mathematical, linguistic, and technological demonstrations of codes, as well as illustrations of the remarkable personalities--many courageous, some villainous, and all obsessive--who wrote and broke them.All roads lead to the present day, in which the possibility of a truly unbreakable code looms large. Singh explores this possibility, and the ramifications of our increasing need for privacy, even as it begins to chafe against the stated mission of the powerful and deeply secretive National Security Agency. Entertaining, compelling, and remarkably far-reaching, this is a book that will forever alter your view of history, what drives it, and how private that e-mail you just sent really is.Included in the book is a worldwide Cipher Challenge--a $15,000 award will be given by the author to the first reader who cracks the code successfully. Progress toward the solution will be tracked on The Code Book website.

An administrative professional's job requires a diverse range of abilities. From managing schedules, coordinating meetings, and fielding calls to planning events, deciphering legal documents, and creating PowerPoint presentations, today's administrative assistants are expected to effortlessly and efficiently juggle it all. Professionals looking to improve their performance-and enhance their value to employers-should turn to the fourth edition of "Administrative Assistant's and Secretary's Handbook". This invaluable 500-plus page reference book includes over 250 pages of new or completely revised material. It provides thorough, practical instruction on: Web conferencing; creating graphics, charts, and presentations; Microsoft Office 2010; business math; managing e-mail and schedules with Outlook; organizing computer files; research skills; time management; customer service skills; troubleshooting computer problems; event planning; and much more. Administrative jobs are constantly changing, but with the latest edition of this best-selling guide, professionals everywhere can stay ahead of the curve.

Pssst! Inside these TOP SECRET files is everything sneaky young agents need to know about making-and breaking-their own secret codes.Do you know the difference between a code and a cipher? Can you tell a St. Cyr slide from a Cardano grille? Did you know that a substitution cipher caused Mary Queen of Scots to lose her head? Don’t look now, but packed into this practical field guide is everything a young person needs to know about the art of concealment — making and breaking codes, mastering cipher systems, and experimenting with secret writing. Offering plenty of hands-on practice sessions, tips for creating a code-making kit, sidebars on secret codes in history, and an amusing pair of spies to illustrate techniques, Paul B. Janeczko’s tantalizing TOP SECRET won’t stay a secret for long.

“At Starbucks, the coffee has to be excellent, from the sourcing and growing to the roasting and brewing. The vision has to be inspiring and meaningful. Our finances have to be in order. But without people, we have nothing. With people, we have something even bigger than coffee.” During his many years as a senior executive at Starbucks, Howard Behar helped establish the Starbucks culture, which stresses the importance of people over profits. He coached hundreds of leaders at every level and helped the company grow into a world- renowned brand. Now he reveals the ten principles that guided his leadership—and not one of them is about coffee. Behar starts with the idea that if you regard employees and customers as human beings, everything else will take care of itself. If you think of your staff as people (not labor costs) they will achieve results beyond what is thought possible. And if you think of your customers as people you serve (not sources of revenue) you’ll make a deep connection with them, and they’ll come back over and over. This approach has been integral to Starbucks from the start, and remains so today. Behar shares inside stories of turning points in the company’s history as it fought to hang on to this culture while growing exponentially. He discusses the importance of building trust, facing challenges, daring to dream, and other key principles, such as: • Know Who You Are: Wear One Hat When organizations are clear about their values, purpose, and goals, they find the energy and passion to do great things. • Think Independently: The Person Who Sweeps the Floor Should Choose the Broom We need to get rid of rules—real and imagined—and encourage the independent thinking of others and ourselves. • Be Accountable: Only the Truth Sounds Like the Truth No secrets, no lies of omission, no hedging and dodging. Take responsibility and say what needs to be said, with care and respect. • Take Action: Think Like a Person of Action and Act Like a Person of Thought Find the sweet spot of passion, purpose, and persistence. “It’s all about the people” isn’t an idea, it’s an action. Feel, do, think. Find the balance, but act. Behar believes that as work becomes less hierarchical and as the world economy becomes more and more about relationships and connecting, the principles of personal leadership are more important than ever. This book will show you the way.

Finally! A book for executive assistants written by executive assistants! Overflowing with secrets, tips, and tools of the profession, this book is a ready resource created by those who walk the walk and talk the talk of the complex administrative professional role. They really get it. Inspired by the Office Dynamics 18th Annual Conference for Administrative Excellence, themed The Path Forward: Adding Value Every Day, the authors drew on the attendees' knowledge as well as their own years of experience to develop the content for this book. Who Took My Pen ... Again? offers practical, creative strategies for achieving success and building leadership attributes, compiled from the diverse experiences of high-achieving administrative professionals in a wide variety of businesses and industries. Are you ready to rise to the top of your game and become your very best, gaining new insights and reaching the highest heights? Whether you've been in the field for twenty minutes or twenty years, this book is a must resource you will refer to again and again!

This best-selling book shows you the essentials of record keeping for a small business and shows why it?s necessary to track information. The book will give you a greater understanding of the purpose and process of record keeping and a deeper understanding of your business and how it works. Prepare financial statements crucial to business success. Set up efficient bookkeeping systems to save time. Maintain proper records to keep your business running smoothly.

A shortand outline for almost every word in the English language. The GREGG Shorthand Dictionary Simplified is divided into two parts: Part I contains 26,098 words most commonly used in notation with their official shorthand outlines. Also included are words that are frequently used in such fields as medicine, law, engineering, chemistry, and many others. These words represent a large range of vocabulary, omitting derivites that are not needed in shorthand. Part II contains 2,604 proper names and geographic expressions including a list of 72 commonly used abbreviations. This valuable reference should be part of the library of every shorthand writer.

The Definitive Personal Assistant and Secretarial Handbook is the ultimate guide for all administrative professionals, PAs, secretaries and executive assistants. Written by an award-winning personal assistant, it deals with various aspects of these administrative roles and the skills required by them, including: relationship management, communication, confidence, the secrets of body language, listening and questioning skills, coping with pressure and stress, dealing with difficult people, time management and personal organization.

The best way to make your computer more efficient is to touch-type – to type without looking at the keyboard – and this book can teach you how to do just that. Mastering Computer Typing has been completely updated with all-new exercises and material on resumés, cover letters, email, blogs, instant messaging, and texting. Designed for self-instruction or classroom use, this book is the ideal choice for beginners who want to move from hunting-and-pecking to typing with ease, and for experienced typists who want to break bad habits and improve their accuracy. Practice exercises focus on subjects pertinent to today’s business professional, so keyboarders gain business-writing know-how as they learn to type with maximum speed and efficiency. Users begin by typing simple words and proceed through a wide array of practical applications, including charts, tables, and columns; business letters, cover letters, and resumés; reports and manuscripts; and timely new sections on electronic messaging. Embedded in the user-friendly exercises are helpful tips on email etiquette, eight ways to get the results you want from your writing, and a section on “punctuation made easy.” There is also an updated glossary of computer terms and advice on how to avoid “thumbitis” when typing on a PDA. Spiral-bound at the top for ease of use, Mastering Computer Typing is complete, comprehensive, and current and the only resource you’ll need to perfect your typing skills.