I would like to thank Packt for giving me the opportunity to write this book. Their patience, understanding, and support as I wrote, rewrote, revised, and improved upon the content of this book was massive in ensuring that the book remained current with the rapidly evolving versions of Spark.

 I would especially like to thank Larissa Pinto, the acquisition editor (who first contacted me to write this book over a year ago) and Arun Nadar, the content development editor, who continuously, and patiently, worked with me to bring this book to a conclusion.

I would also like to thank my friends and colleagues who encouraged me throughout the journey.

Most of all, I want to thank my wife, Nitya, and kids, Somnath, Ravishankar, and Nandini, who understood, encouraged, and supported me, and sacrificed many family moments for me to be able to complete this book successfully. This one is for them…