Stop! Books don’t write themselves and there are many people responsible for what you hold in your hands. I want you to take a moment and join me in thanking them for their hard work, late nights, and tenacious effort to make this book possible.
To the entire staff at Manning Publications—from the editors, the copyeditors, the technical reviewers, the graphics guys and gals—thank you for hard work. Special thanks to my development editors Renae E. Gregoire and Susanna Kline. Renae, you started me down the path, you taught me how to write better, when to ask myself the right questions, and to keep the reader in mind. The knowledge you taught me will serve me well for the rest of my writing career. Susanna, you took me to the end of the process with an extremely high level of professionalism and poise. Thanks to your encouragement and focus, the book is a better product. Both of you should be coauthors because of all your hard work. Thank you!
To the folks from the Author Online forum who took the time to point out my mistakes, both in grammar and missing information—you made me think and try to improve the book. This book is a product of your help, so pat yourselves on the back.