I'd like to begin by thanking the people who made this book what it is. Writing a book is not a single person's work, and help from experienced people that guide you along the path is crucial. Many thanks to Larissa, Kirti, Ankur, and Vikrant for supporting me in this process.

I am also grateful to the technical reviewers of the book, Ahmad Maher Abdelwhab, Markus Klose, Puneet Singh Ludu, and Julian Lam, for carefully reading my drafts and spotting (hopefully) most of my mistakes. This book would not have been so good without their help and input.

In general, I want to thank everyone who directly or indirectly helped me in creating this book, except for a long-sighted teacher who once told me when I was in university, "Hey, guy with all those earrings! You won't go anywhere!"

Finally, a special thought to my family; to my girls, the actual supporters of the book; my wonderful wife, Nicoletta (to whom I promise not to write another book), my pride and joy, Sofia and Caterina, and my first actual teacher—my mom, Lina. They are the people who really made sacrifices while I was writing and who definitely deserve the credits for the book.

Once again, thank you!