Contacting the Author Regarding this Book

I am delighted that you are using this book in your study of, or involvement with, optimization. I would very much welcome your comments, particularly regarding this first edition, and any suggestions that you might have for the next edition. For your comments regarding this book, I will be happy to receive your direct email at OptimizationInPracticeMessac@google.com.

Book Website

The website www.cambridge.org/Messac will be maintained for this book. Information for instructors and students will be separately provided. Software for various problems will be provided in this website. I expect it to be a dynamic website, where the information available will evolve over time to be responsive to readers’ requests and feedback.

Book Organization

This book is intended to be used by undergraduate and graduate students in the classroom, or by industry practitioners learning independently. Its organization suits these objectives. Following are messages specifically tailored for students, for industry practitioners and for instructors. The book has five parts:

Part I has two chapters that present prerequisite material explaining how to use Matlab and some useful mathematical information. Most of this book assumes knowledge of undergraduate calculus and elementary linear algebra. The second chapter provides a brief review of the math needed. In Part II, three chapters introduce the world of optimization in the form of a road map. This part provides the basics of what should be known about optimization before attempting to use it. In Part III, there are five chapters that teach the basic use of optimization. In fact, learning the material up to Part III provides the practitioner with sufficient information for solving practical problems. In doing so, student users will not be experts on how optimization works under the hood, so to speak, but will have the ability to use optimization in general practical contexts.