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JoelTOrr
Calcite | Level 5
Hi all,

It seems to me that someone, some where had put together a template for the Books by Users segments that our groups some times do.

Can someone please post it here for everyone to share?

Perhaps other templates could be posted here as well.

Something to think about.

-Joel
SAS OPUS
7 REPLIES 7
barheat
Fluorite | Level 6
Hi Joel:

Here is a modified set of guidelines that we received from Matt. With first time speakers we like to assign an executive member to review the presentation and mentor the speaker so that we get a valuable presentation.

Book Review Guidelines

The purpose of the book review is to encourage people who have never presented at a user group to do so. SAS will provide a book of choice from the SAS Publications page to any SAS user who would like to review a book and present it back to their local user group. The book choice will need to be approved by the local user group executive team. Here are some general guidelines for the book review:

• Must be a SAS book (no manuals, course notes, etc.)
• Reviewer must work with local executive team for presentation details (when to present, length of presentation, etc.)
• Reviewer is expected to present their finding to their local user group (10 minute PowerPoint presentation)
• Reviewer must provide a one page summary of the book they reviewed to be put up on the external user group website

PowerPoint Presentation Guidelines:

• Book title
• Author
• Reviewed by
• What is the purpose of this book?
• Why is this author qualified or not qualified to address this topic?
• What are the strengths or weaknesses of this book?
• Would you recommend this book? If so, who would you recommend it to and for what purpose? (ie, who would be the ideal reader) Does the book achieve its purpose?
• Did you learn something new from this book?
• What is the best tip or technique addressed in this book? Demonstrate with an example.
• What is one new thing you learned from this book? (be specific using an example)
• Are there other books (or sources of information) available with similar content? If so, how does this book compare?

We also have a companion PowerPoint template that I can send to you. I don't see a way to attach a file. Email me at byhong@uss.com if you would like a copy.

Barry
GHSUG
JoelTOrr
Calcite | Level 5
Thanks Barry!

That is exactly what I was looking for. These guidelines and a sample powerpoint presentation.

Much appreciated.

-Joel
MattMal
SAS Moderator
Hi Guys;

Thanks for passing that on, Barry, and I'll look to put some permanent templates and important docs up as well. I think I'm the only one who can post attachments, unfortunately...
deleted_user
Not applicable
Some learnings from TASS last year....

We found that ppl doing the reviews focussed too much on:

* What is the purpose of this book?
* Why is this author qualified or not qualified to address this topic?
* What are the strengths or weaknesses of this book?
* Would you recommend this book? If so, who would you recommend it to and for what purpose? (ie, who would be the ideal reader) Does the book achieve its purpose?
* Are there other books (or sources of information) available with similar content? If so, how does this book compare?

and not enough on:

* Did you learn something new from this book?
* What is the best tip or technique addressed in this book? Demonstrate with an example.
* What is one new thing you learned from this book? (be specific using an example)

Our audience was not finding it very useful. We switched up the format so that the presentation focussed more on something specific that the reviewer learned from the book (ex. a new proc or proc option) along with an illustrative example. We found that the audience responded a lot better to this format.

Rup
JoelTOrr
Calcite | Level 5
Thanks Rup!

You have raised some good points for the SAS OPUS group to consider. I think I'll add these points to change the focus of our template abit.

-Joel
MattMal
SAS Moderator
Great points, Rup... and Joel, I'm attaching an overview we've used of the Book Review Program. I think it could stand some edits...
JoelTOrr
Calcite | Level 5
Thanks Matt!

I'll massage all the input that I've received, into a template and then send it to you Matt for you to post here.

Thanks again. See most of you in Seattle I think.
-Joel

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