Understanding Surveillance Technologies: Spy Devices, Their Origins & Applications

Rating:
Summary: The target audience for the surveillance book
Review: In light of the previous review, I thought it would be useful to clarify the audience for people considering buying this book. Understanding Surveillance Technologies wasn't written for hands-on hobbyists or electronics buffs. There are some really good books out there with detailed schematics on designing cameras, audio devices, and more. Instead, this book was written to fill a glaring need for a comprehensive text introducing and explaining the scope of surveillance technologies and the many fields in which it is being used, including traffic and community safety, DNA testing, corporate and retail surveillance, and much more.
In a sense it is a "surveillance studies" text that describes the technologies and the ethical considerations concerning their use. This information is useful to newscasters, journalists, politicians making executive decisions about allocating public funds for surveillance technologies, corporations, legal assistants, post-secondary instructors, and students and beginning professionals in law enforcement, forensics, and military surveillance. If you need to know what surveillance encompasses, how it came about, how it's being used, and how and why we need to take a good hard look at how it's implemented, this book rounds out the picture more thoroughly than any other text on the subject at the present time.<BR....

Rating:
Summary: The target audience for the surveillance book
Review: In light of the previous review, I thought it would be useful to clarify the audience for people considering buying this book. Understanding Surveillance Technologies wasn't written for hands-on hobbyists or electronics buffs. There are some really good books out there with detailed schematics on designing cameras, audio devices, and more. Instead, this book was written to fill a glaring need for a comprehensive text introducing and explaining the scope of surveillance technologies and the many fields in which it is being used, including traffic and community safety, DNA testing, corporate and retail surveillance, and much more.
In a sense it is a "surveillance studies" text that describes the technologies and the ethical considerations concerning their use. This information is useful to newscasters, journalists, politicians making executive decisions about allocating public funds for surveillance technologies, corporations, legal assistants, post-secondary instructors, and students and beginning professionals in law enforcement, forensics, and military surveillance. If you need to know what surveillance encompasses, how it came about, how it's being used, and how and why we need to take a good hard look at how it's implemented, this book rounds out the picture more thoroughly than any other text on the subject at the present time.
Rating:
Summary: Practically useless
Review: To read this book is a complete waste of time, at least if you are interested in technical information.
Hundreds of pages dedicated to description of problems starting almost from the Creation, when there was a vague similarity to what present technology can do, but no really good information for users or hobbysts.
Go to other books and save a lot of money!

Rating:
Summary: "Industry standard introductory text" well-deserved
Review: While those interested in specific cutting edge surveillance technologies per se will not find much of value here, those who want a sweeping reference to EVERYTHING (well, almost) in the field definitely need this book. The meticulous research on historical development of the various technologies is evident, and though technical detail is absent, readers are still given a good ideal of how things work. A mind-boggling array of available applications is presented, together with societal and legislative concerns. The modular structure of the chapters and the many references to resources elsewhere make this book a convenient starting point for both readers who want only an overview, and those who need to delve deeper into a particular technology.

I can only say that I am impressed by the effort taken to collect all the information in this understandably thick volume.

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