We no longer need to talk about how important the Internet phenomenon has been, as it is now a natural part of our everyday lives, both at work and at home. The technology that summarizes the best thing about the Internet is grid technology, where the hardware resources of the users are shared (specifically, the time and power of the processors) to obtain results in the various fields of science and technology. The theoretical bases of this technology are seemingly simple, but putting them into practice has turned out to be an extraordinary exercise in coordination.

The way in which this technology works is superbly dealt with in this book. Although its structure is predominantly academic and caters mainly to university students, it can be read and used by anyone interested in grid computing.

The first chapter attempts to introduce us to this technology, but devotes far too much space to the history and organizations involved in various projects that are mentioned as examples. It takes for granted that the reader has some previous knowledge of grid computing.

Chapters 2 and 3 deal with essential aspects of grid computing, from the point of view of someone who has sent a job to the “grid cloud.” This process is divided into two phases, which are examined by each of the chapters: sending the job and planning it properly. Its vision is eminently practical. After a short theoretical introduction, the reader is soon practicing with examples taken from grid software. The excessive references to software programs are perhaps a weak point of the book; they could make the book obsolete as the versions of those programs change.

Obviously, security is a key aspect in the technology given that external resources--whose users take for granted that their security, as well as that of their own resources, is guaranteed--are accessed. This is what chapter 4 deals with, reminding us briefly, simply, and quite clearly of the basic concepts of security. Chapter 5 delves deeper into this topic, dealing with grid security.

Thus far, the book has provided us with the theory and practice needed to understand this technology. From here on in, it shows us how to implement it. This is what we find in chapters 6 and 7, which review the basic concepts of Web services and apply them to grid technology.

In chapter 8, various graphics tools and the design of Web portals for accessing grid resources are discussed. Examples of tools such as GridNexus and GridSphere appear in this chapter.

Not every kind of job can be sent to the grid cloud. A series of requirements must be met. Chapter 9 defines the applications that may be compatible with this technology, the parameters that must be sent, and how the data should be partitioned. This chapter is quite advanced and requires a profound knowledge of how an operating system works, specifically, how the processes intercommunicate.

The book also adds several appendices about such topics as networks, Extensible Markup Language (XML), and Linux. These are necessarily brief, but sufficient.

Each chapter provides an interesting bibliography, as well as a series of exercises meant for university students. The figures and diagrams are quite clear.

In summary, the most outstanding aspect of the book is its excellent structure: it is as though we have been given a map to help us move around this technology from the base to the summit. On the other hand, in some chapters, it seems to be more of a manual for using a software program than a university text. In any case, I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants an introduction to this technology.