Acknowledgments
This book has been a real challenge to produce, yet an incredible joy to deliver. Three co-authors worked together on this text, to produce this unique book—a book that is intended to teach almost anyone how to think like an inventor. We have even attempted to "give away" valid new inventions, as we lead you through simple inventing exercises. Our hope is that you will utilize this book as a "guide book," while continuing to develop your own invention ideas. We hope that you will see these inventions, yet unclaimed, and file them as patents.
Jaclyn Vassallo and Rachel Ralston are two very bright young people, who worked in collaboration to deliver, as my co-authors, this book. Both of these young people were also recent participants of an innovative U.S. educational program, entitled "Information Technology Leadership Academy (ITLA)," which among several things, teaches young people how to develop businesses through the utilization of IT. The ITLA does this all, while at the same time teaches high school-age students how to think as business leaders and inventors. I commend Jaclyn and Rachel on a job well done, both as co-inventors and co-authors on this book.
I, along with my co-authors, would like to take this opportunity to collectively thank several working colleagues for their support, professional guidance, advice and counsel in bringing together some of the complex topics addressed in this book. We would like to thank Albert Schneider, CIO of the IBM T.J. Watson Research Center, for a very special support role he has served to more than 200 young inventors in the public high school system. Ed Kelley and Rick Hamilton, both Master Inventors for the IBM Corporation, we thank you for providing us with valuable insights in several topic areas. Michael Mino, the Founder of the ITLA, we thank you for your leadership and expertise in inspiring so many young people in the areas of business leadership, information technology, and inventions.
Thanks to attorney David Mims, whom for years has provided professional support and encouragement as we continue to serve as inventors in our professional careers. We would like to thank the reviewers of this book, Ashley Gillespie, Michael Mino, Edward Kelley, and Rick Hamilton, for their expert attention to details and content, as this book was being prepared.
We would like to especially thank Joshy Joseph, a co-author on Grid Computing,[1] a book released earlier in 2004. Mr. Joseph helps in many invention areas related to our professional responsibilities, and he is also an Assistant Editor-in-Chief for the IBM On Demand Business, Industry Book Series. We would like to thank Susan Visser of IBM Press, for her ongoing encouragement and mentoring guidance in my publication activities. Ashley Gillespie is another student of the ITLA, and she spent many long hours reading this content, helping us to deliver the content. Thank you, Ashley, for all of your hard work on this book.
[1] For information on Grid Computing, please reference http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/0131456601/qid=1088124390/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-7981399-5750431?glance&s=books.
A very special thank you is due to my Pearson Acquisitions Editor, Jeffrey Pepper and Senior Project Editor, Kristy Hart—a great team to work with on a book development effort. This team provided excellent support and endless patience in the many activities encountered throughout the entire development and production of this book. Without all these individuals, this book would not have been produced in its timeframe, depth, breadth, and quality. We would also like to extend a special thank you to Jim Keogh for his outstanding developmental editorial skills.
Finally, we would like to thank all the creative men and women who have contributed to the disciplines of invention development all around the world. It was all these brilliant minds that made this book so rewarding and enjoyable to produce.
Craig Fellenstein
Jaclyn Vassallo
Rachel Ralston