Calculus Refresher

Rating:
Summary: A great book , and cheap as well!
Review: and perhaps add a level of understanding not achieved originally.

The difficulty of the problems presented are not as great as in the undergrad levels of a high quality university, but too often we professionals turn away from the fundamentals of the math we use and operate at the advanced levels so long that the basic methodologies become ghost like memories. We begin to use the high powered tools of computer software with as little understanding as most business/marketing people.

This is the best book I've encountered to refresh that understanding of the foundation of our professions.

Tim Niles

Rating:
Summary: A great book , and cheap as well!
Review: I learned my calculus many years ago and found it hard. By using this book I have not only revived what I knew, and more, but have found it much easier than I expected! The text manages to combine brevity with great clarity, and the exercises are (usually) well graded.

The book is an excellent refresher but beginners would probably find it too terse.

Be warned that Klaf supplies answers to only the odd-numbered questions in the exercises. If you're working without a teacher, this is a pain, and if it weren't for this (IMHO) defect I'd give the book 5 stars without any doubt.

Be warned also that the book was written over 50 years ago and that consequently the applied calculus examples (which are relatively few) are given using imperial units.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent book to review but lacks...
Review: This book is great for review of calculus. The method of solving arbitrary problems is really helpful because of the generalities that they encompass. I like using this book as my reference and integral book because it has a great appendix. I've added my own little tidbits here and there too.

The only thing that makes this lack 5 stars is the fact that there is a little too much attention given to engineering. If things were phrased from a physics standpoint then carry-over to engineering would be implicit.

Also, it is not really organized by what you encounter chronologically in the study of calculus. The contents page is more like a one-liner to get you where you need to be then you do the digging.

All in all....worth it.

Rating:
Summary: Its okay but there are better books out there
Review: This book is pretty old, that doesn't make it bad but I think that The Complete Idiots Guide to Calculus or How to Ace Calculus: The Streetwise Guide are better for modern audiences. But its all up to what you like if you like the old Dover books then this is a good one, if you prefer something written for a modern audience then look elsewhere.