Using Google AdWords and AdSense
Author: Michael Miller
Publisher: Que, 2010
Pages: 336
ISBN: 978-0789743954
Aimed at: Website owners
Rating: 3
Pros: A multi-media introduction for beginners
Cons: Superficial and doesn't  confront the issue of potential income 
Reviewed by: David Conrad

Google Adwords are what you pay for and Adsense pays out to you. Why put them together in a single book when they are opposite sides of the coin?

The answer is that many website owners think of using Adwords to publicise their sites and Adsense to earn some money from them.This means that the typical reader will be interested in both topics, but perhaps not at quite the same time.

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This book takes you through using Adsense to make some money. It is basically a description of how Adsense works based around screen dumps of the various forms you have to fill in. Not much of this is rocket science and if it is rocket science to you then you probably aren't going to cope with putting Javascript in a web page - which is what you have to do to display the ads.

It is also cagey about how much cash you can expect to get from adwords - the answer is that unless your website is unusually successful not a lot. The most common payouts from Adsense is in the less than $10 per month area as Google keeps most of the cash. There are some useful but fairly obvious hints and tips on increasing your earnings - and perhaps even how to do this dishonestly - but the book also warns against the dire consequences of doing anything underhanded, i.e. being banned from Google Adsense and perhaps, but not likely, a jail sentence.

From here the book moves on to consider Adwords as a way of marketing your product or site. This is something meatier to get the teeth into because the whole problem of picking key words and working out what to bid is more intricate and potentially complex. This is, of course, where Google will get more than 100 times the money out of you than they might pay you for your Adsense efforts. This makes it all the more important that you get it right.

This is a very low-level introduction to these two topics but to be honest there isn't much more to say. The whole book is dotted with invitations to view video or listen to audio comments. The few I looked at weren't really worth the effort - but if you are particularly dumb or just can't be bothered to read they might be an attraction.

Not a bad book on the topic of Adwords and Adsense but you should be able to find as much information as it contains just from reading the provided documentation. Despite there being lots of hints and tips they don't really add up to a book's worth.

The final verdict has to be that this is an OK book but no more. If you really want something to read on Adwords and Adsense then it will teach you the basics.

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Android Programming: The Big Nerd Ranch Guide (5e)

Authors: Bryan Sills, Brian Gardner, Brian Hardy and Kristin Marsicano
Publisher: Addison-Wesley
Pages: 688
ISBN: 978-0137645541
Print: 0137645546
Kindle: B09WLF84W7
Audience: Kotlin programmers
Rating: 4.5
Reviewer: Mike James  

The Big Nerd Ranch Guide to Android is bac [ ... ]



Python Programming and Visualization for Scientists 2nd Ed

Author: Alex DeCaria and Grant Petty
Publisher: Sundog Publishing
Pages: 372
ISBN: 978-0972903356
Print: 0972903356
Audience: Scientists wanting to use Python
Rating: 2
Reviewer: Mike James
Visualization - a difficult topic and difficult to see how to explain the ideas in a book.


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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 22 September 2010 )