Textbook writing must be one of the cruelest of self-inflicted tortures. - Carl Faith Math Reviews 54: 5281 So why didn't I heed the warning of a wise colleague, especially one who is a great expert in the subject of modules and rings? The answer is simple: I did not learn about it until it was too late My writing project in ring theory started in 1983 after I taught a year-long course in the subject at Berkeley. My original plan was to write up my lectures and publish them as a graduate text in a couple of years. My hopes of carrying out this plan on schedule were, however, quickly dashed...