This text contains ten chapters dealing with contemporary programming paradigms such as Java, web server, and database workloads. It should be of interest to those in industry and academia whose work involves estimating workloads for system design. The coverage includes: two chapters on Java; one chapter on database workload benchmarks; two chapters on web server workloads; one chapter on natural I/O applications; one chapter on network interface workloads; one chapter on control independence in programs; two chapters on system-level characterization of two- and three-dimensional graphics applications on personal PCs.