Good primer on Z
The author does a commendable job trying to convince the reader that formal methods lend value to software development. Anyone interested in the topic of formal specification techniques might benefit from reading this book, which focusses on realistic test cases of mission critical systems to present a tutorial on using Z. However, despite the best efforts of the author to drive home the usefulness of using Z as a FST, there is little mention of the disadvantages of using formal methods in industry. While Z is gaining promise as a formal methodology specification tool, it is not as easy as one might think to find a software tool that allows one to easily generate Z schemas and axioms using the Z symbology. For example, Z/Eves is available as a 16bit Windows application that is no longer being distributed or supported on modern systems yet many institutions of higher learning regard Z/Eves as the defacto tool for creating specifications in Z. Overall, The Way of Z is a good first primer on using Z. It is more of a broad overview than a specific text on Z. I reluctantly recommend it yet I walk away from this book with the feeling that I am not 100% convinced that Z is the FST that should gain widespread usage.