Book Review: Gamification by Design

Book Review: Gamification by Design: Implementing Game Mechanics in Web and Mobile Apps by Gabe Zichermann and Christopher Cunningham: Publisher- O’Reilly: ISBN- 13: 978-1-4493-9767-8

Gamification is latest buzzword in It industry, particularly in product designing. Gamification by design book attracted me because it talks about the though process of gaming of business applications not of gaming systems.

Gamification is well written and easy to understand. It covers gamification from product design perspective not from developer perspective.

The book consists of eight chapters. Chapter one and two cover foundations and motivation part of gamification. Chapter three, four, and five cover game mechanics and dynamics. Chapter six is full of gamification case studies. Chapter seven talks of some coding about gamification and lastly chapter eight is tutorial on gamification.

Though book present the gamification in very lucid manner but nothing is perfect. It might have better if chapter seven has covered the logic of coding in terms of flow charts.

Nevertheless, book is excellent read and must be on my shelf for long time.

Disclaimer: I did not get paid to review this book, and I do not stand to gain anything if you buy the book. I have no relationship with the publisher or the author.

Further reading: Following books gives further insigh into gamification:
1. Game-Based Marketing: Inspire Customer Loyalty Through Rewards, Challenges, and Contests (http://www.amazon.com/Game-Based-Marketing-Customer-Challenges-Contests/dp/0470562234)
2. Total Engagement: Using Games and Virtual Worlds to Change the Way People Work and Businesses Compete (http://www.amazon.com/Total-Engagement-Virtual-Businesses-Compete/dp/142214657X)
3. Game On: Energize Your Business with Social Media Games (http://www.amazon.com/Game-Energize-Business-Social-Media/dp/0470936266)
4. Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rulebreakers, and Changemakers (http://www.amazon.com/Gamestorming-Playbook-Innovators-Rulebreakers-Changemakers/dp/0596804172)

One can get more information about book and related topics from:

1. Book’s web presence http://gamificationu.com
2. Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Gamification-Design-Implementing-Mechanics-Mobile/dp/1449397670
3. Publisher – O’reilly http://oreilly.com/catalog/0636920014614
4. Author’s blog: http://gamification.co/
5. Review: http://www.rojotek.com/blog/2011/05/03/gamification-by-design-by-gabe-zichermann-and-christopher-cunningham/

Book Review: Securing the Cloud: Cloud Computer Security Techniques and Tactics

Book Review: Securing the Cloud: Cloud Computer Security
Techniques and Tactics by Vic (J.R.) Winkler: Publisher- Syngress: ISBN- 13: 978-1-59749-592-9

Securing the Cloud ion one more me too book on cloud computing. It is heavy on theory but light on practical. It covers cloud from beginners perspective and more interested in making checklist.

The book is divided into the following 10 chapters:

1. Introduction to Cloud Computing and Security
2. Cloud Computing Architecture
3. Security Concerns, Risk Issues, and Legal Aspects
4. Securing the Cloud: Architecture
5. Securing the Cloud: Data Security
6. Securing the Cloud: Key Strategies and Best Practices
7. Security Criteria: Building an Internal Cloud
8. Security Criteria: Selecting an External Cloud Provider
9. Evaluating Cloud Security: An Information Security Framework
10. Operating a Cloud

I do not find anything interesting in this book.

Disclaimer: I did not get paid to review this book, and I do not stand to gain anything if you buy the book. I have no relationship with the publisher or the author.

Further reading: Few of the competing book are Cloud Security and Privacy: An Enterprise Perspective on Risks and Compliance (http://www.amazon.com/Cloud-Security-Privacy-Enterprise-Perspective/dp/0596802765), Cloud Computing Explained: Implementation Handbook for Enterprises (http://www.amazon.com/Cloud-Computing-Explained-Implementation-Enterprises/dp/0956355609), and many more.

One can get more information about book and related topics from:

1. Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Securing-Cloud-Computer-Security-Techniques/dp/1597495921
2. Review: http://www.hostreview.com/news/110531-research-and-markets-securing-the-cloud-cloud-computer-security-techniques-and-tactics
3. Itroduction: http://www.channelprosmb.com/article/24318/Cloud-Computing-Key-Security-Concerns-in-Cloud-Computing/

Single point of failure: Partial Remedies

This post is in continuation of earlier blog. Here I have listed few of strategies and techniques which can be utilized to minimize the impact of single point of failures:

1. SSO: Application users (for example users used for integration) should not pass through SSO mechanism.
2. MDM: Employ distributed and segregated MDM on the basis of business objects. It means Customer Master and Partner Master should be running on two different MDMs.
3. Use separate servers to preserve audit, log and error data. These servers must be separate from business servers. This technique is pretty good while employing in Integration (EAI and B2B) and BPM.

Reference: http://architecture-soa-bpm-eai.blogspot.com/2011/07/single-point-of-failure-in-enterprise.html

Limitations of Relational Database Systems

1. Relational databases are based on relational algebra, which requires data to be stored must be modeled as relational only. This also means that, data read from RDBMS modeled back in its original model (say tree, graph, key value, or any other). This requires significant stress on computing resources.
2. Columns of tables can only store similar data.
3. Document storage (images, multimedia, business documents, XML, etc) is big sore point for RDBMS
4. RDBMS is not real time system. It is poll based.

Software Architecture Metrics

Software Architecture Metrics

Mind Map: Security Guidance for Critical Areas of Focus in Cloud Computing V2.1

Information Lifecycle for Data Security in Cloud

Security Guidance for Critical Areas of Focus in Cloud Computing V2.1, Chapter on Information Lifecycle Management assumes very simplistic view on Data Security Lifecycle.

This view hides subtle lifecycle stages. Typically, Information follows following lifecycle:

 

In my view CSA should revise ILM and so the recommendations.

IT involvement