Rating: 
Summary: To put it simply, User Friendly rocks!
Review: User Friendly has to be one of the best achievements of the open source world. It's hilarious. Buy the book, you won't be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: Horrible, just horrible
Review: User Friendly is a horrible comic that depends on name drops and stolen jokes from "Worst Tech Support calls" pages for its humor. It tries to be Dilbert but fails horribly. If you want a good humor book, keep looking.
Rating:
Summary: Hilarious
Review: User Friendly is hilarious. As a long time computer programmer who has spent most of his time dealing with bureaucracies and users, this cartoon strip really hit on target. Techies who have never done anything but program and mess with the operating system may not understand the strip at all. Genuine techies who have to deal with the real world, as well, will be bowled over by it. And those of us who remember punch cards will be even more amused. I don't know how long the author has been around, but I can say that if he's not an old timer, he has at least paid attention to one. An he's pegged the younger techies as well (and they're not all exactly alike), and is on-target for the execs (some good, many not), the administrative staff (have their own world and concerns), the marketing force (I'm sure that somewhere in the world there are decent, competent salesmen; I've just never met one and neither has anyone I know), and the users (I happen to know there are smart, competent users; but tech support almost never hears from them). Additionally, the author nails the noncomputer interests of techies pretty well; Cthulhu, wild science, movies, music, and world domination. The Microsoft bashing is there, but mild compared to many cartoons and correctly represents the view of most techies. Linux tries to please everyone and fails; Microsoft tries to please no one and succeeds. And this cartoon notes both.
Rating:
Summary: Hilarious
Review: User Friendly is hilarious. As a long time computer programmer who has spent most of his time dealing with bureaucracies and users, this cartoon strip really hit on target. Techies who have never done anything but program and mess with the operating system may not understand the strip at all. Genuine techies who have to deal with the real world, as well, will be bowled over by it. And those of us who remember punch cards will be even more amused. I don't know how long the author has been around, but I can say that if he's not an old timer, he has at least paid attention to one. An he's pegged the younger techies as well (and they're not all exactly alike), and is on-target for the execs (some good, many not), the administrative staff (have their own world and concerns), the marketing force (I'm sure that somewhere in the world there are decent, competent salesmen; I've just never met one and neither has anyone I know), and the users (I happen to know there are smart, competent users; but tech support almost never hears from them). Additionally, the author nails the noncomputer interests of techies pretty well; Cthulhu, wild science, movies, music, and world domination. The Microsoft bashing is there, but mild compared to many cartoons and correctly represents the view of most techies. Linux tries to please everyone and fails; Microsoft tries to please no one and succeeds. And this cartoon notes both.
Rating:
Summary: Illiad really knows how to connect with his audience!
Review: What a great book for the Internet/gaming community! Illiad's strip touches on all of the joys and frustrations of being a techie in the Internet Age! His gags can be bit cliche' at times, but that is not a criticism of User Friendly. It simply speaks to Illiad's rare ability to connect with his readers by recalling familiar anecdotes in the way his audience wants them to be told. I highly recommend this book!
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