>No problem. I wasn't trying to talk you into taking on a project you don't want. You are clear eyed enough to be skeptical about the +/- of investing your time in a book. All I meant was you can write a book if you want to. Your technical writing is better than a high 90s percentage of what is out there on the market. (Selling, making money).
>
>And with that I will shut up.

Mike,

I like writing. And technical writing is fun. Actually, so is tech-editing. About 5 years ago, Gary had been thinking about writing a second book (this was when we were first exploring .NET). The tendency for people to only remember the good stuff is why women have second pregnancies and why authors write a second book. 'Nuff said! <g> He started doing a few chapters on his own. He was under no pressure because there were no publishers or contracts to worry about yet at that point. I was tech-editing it for him (my first chance at fame to get my name on a book!! <g>). But, as we all know, sh*t happens ... after maybe 4 chapters, things in our life changed to the point where writing a book was just not gonna happen (I no longer remember every single detail of why we dropped the project ... but it had something to do with our starting up a new company and all the extra work that entails ... there was no time for writing). Now, if Gary had already lined up a publisher and had signed a contract, he would have been SOL and would have *had* to continue writing at the expense of both his sanity and mine. See what I mean?

This is why I like answering questions on this and other forums. There is no pressure to write. If I'm too busy, or if I'm on vacation or if I just don't feel like it, I don't have to do anything. I don't feel like I'm under any pressure to write ... I write when I feel like it (or when I pressure myself <g>). The questions won't go un-answered ... there are plenty of other people answering questions besides me.

Yeah, I could write a book if I wanted to. And, to be honest, since I was a kid I've always wanted to write a book ... not necessarily a technical book, but maybe a fictional novel. I used to love to write short stories in high school. <g> So, who knows ... maybe one of these days. But now is not the time.

And Mike ... don't ever shut up! We wouldn't recognize you then! <g>

~~Bonnie