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Information theorists have long struggled with the problem of establishing a mechanism for the valuation of the enigmatic substance of data. With the relatively recent advent of electronic databases, on-line access, and the importance of telecommunications, this question has received growing attention. This article reviews, from the perspective of a computer scientist, commonly accepted notions of information value, before rejecting them and insisting upon the importance of using an economic commodity value approach as the most meaningful way to establish information value.

Review of "The Rails Way by Obie Fernandez," Addison-Wesley Professional, 2007, $49.99, ISBN: 9780321445612

The specific needs of the smaller computer user for software maintenance are discussed. Implementation problems and third party support are considered. The major areas of concern are seen to be preventative maintenance, system backup and recovery, application enhancement, and use of third party expertise. Several actual case histories are discussed, and the cost of failure is addressed.

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