A foreword is usually prepared by someone who knows the author or who knows enough to provide additional insight on the purpose of the work. When asked to write this foreword, I had no problem with what I wanted to say about the work or the author. I did, however, wonder why people read a foreword. It is probably of value to know the background of the writer of a book; it is probably also of value to know the background of the individual who is commenting on the work. I consider myself a good friend of the author, and when I was asked to write a few words I felt honored to provide my view of...

Surface Mount Technology is not a technology of tommorrow but a technology of today. It provides a quantum jump in the packaging tech- nology to produce state-of-the-art miniaturized electronic products. How- ever, in order to take advantage of this technology, a complete infrastruc- ture must be put in place. This requires considerable investment in human and capital resources. Intel corporation has made these investments to keep its customers for components and systems on the leading edge of technology. Based on the experience of putting this infrastructure in place for system products,...