5 comments about Beginning Object-Oriented Programming with VB 2005: From Novice to Professional (Beginning: from Novice to Professional).

1. This book is an excellent resource for anyone new to vb.net, or anyone transitioning from vb6 to vb.net. It covers the foundation of object oriented programming neccessary to successfully code in the .net environment.
   
   There are samples and a case study, which help cement the concepts covered.
   
   I recommend using this book as a foundation before moving on to more advanced material.



2. I have to admit, has some interesting stuff and information on how to make the theory of Classes to Programs, but I can not agree that is novice to professional, in my opinion I would say just novice.
   
   Leaves many un-answered questions.
   
   But can work as a reference.



3. I performed some programming in Visual Basic 6 a few years ago and then my job was changed so that I was maintaining a Unix program for a few years, which entailed putting fires out each day and very little programming of any type. A few months ago I was fortunate enough to get transferred to a great job programming web sites and some Windows applications. I've been able to write some fairly complex programs, but I knew I was missing some large piece of the puzzle. I'm really a novice programmer. I wasn't creating classes and I wasn't doing a lot of things that were efficient. If my programs needed to do more or scale, they were very difficult to adjust. During these months I've purchased a lot of books, and they had good stuff in them, but I still wasn't able to put things together. I would see things like "WithEvents" and ask what was that for. I had to do some threading and succeeded, but only by trial and error and I didn't understand the "why" of why it worked. For that matter, there was a lot that I didn't understand the "why" about.
   
   I then thought that, even though I was using objects, that I didn't really understand object-orientated programming enough. I looked on some User Group sites and saw this book listed as a good one.
   
   I held high hopes for this book. It's my first book from Apress. I started reading the first 4 chapters, which were on how to design and plan an OOP program. I'm convinced his information is important but ugh! It was horribly boring! I was mostly through the 2nd chapter when I thought I'd committ suicide . I had to quit reading chapters 2-4 and tell myself I'll get back to that later. Yes, it's that boring. It's worse than hearing your girlfriend talk for hours about makeup and dresses! So I skipped to Chapter 5 which gave basic instructions on using Visual Studio. I thought, "Why put this beginner's crap in this book". If you need to know the basics of VS, then get a beginner's book on VS. It shouldn't have been here.
   By this time I'm thinking I bought a book of garbage. But I went on to Chapter 6, and I'm glad I did. It finally got to the point and started talking about OOP and classes, constructors, overloading - and I was getting some of the elusive "why" explained! Chapter 7 got into inheritance, derived classes, overriding and overloading, etc with more of the "why". Chapter 8 got into the stuff like "WithEvents" and delegates, and how delegates work with threading. You will need to use threading and you will see "why". In geekspeak, threading is cool! Chapter 9 shows how to work with Collections (arrays, dictionaries, etc). This chapter didn't explain much "why" but when I need Collections there is enough to be able to implement them. Chapter 10 starts explaining some "why" regarding databases, such as connected versus disconnected data access. The examples use SQL Server. Chapter 11 looks at forms in a different light from other books, looking at them as objects instead of just sticking controls on them, and works with using databases more.
   
   Now I feel better about going back to the first 4 boring chapters as I will now have something to build with.
   
   To a complete beginner, I would say to first get a basic VB.NET beginner's book and get familair with VB and Visual Studio. If this is your very first book you will be very lost. The book is made for a novice.
   
   This book is one of the most important I have read. I am making progress very quickly over the last week or two, while previously I sputtered for several months. I've tried to convey how I felt, and if you feel similar, you must get this book.



4. This book is in very good condition. Shipping very fast. Overall I'm very satisfied with my purchase.



5. I thought the first 4 chapters were boring, but in fact the idea was to build your skill before you code the application! This book was written in a way that readers should already be familiar with OOP terminologies because it does not go into detailed explanation like those for dummies books do.Instead, it shows you how to analyze a problem, draw the diagrams and design the application! This is so far the best book i've read about object-oriented programming using VB, toppling Deb Kurata's or Alistaire Mcmonnies' books on my list. This book will teach you how to do UML/USE CASE so you can design a robust application. This is not a beginner's book on object oriented VB. I've had some knowledge in Java object programming and I know a little of object programming, but reading this book the first time has confused me as the author seemed to have tried to squeeze the discussions in short chapters and programming codes are not explained well, delving right into OOP design and techniques. As the author mentioned in the book, he doesn't know the skill level of a 'beginner', so he added some short intro to programming at the back of the book (Appendix A), so I believe the audience of this book are those 'beginners' to OOP but not to programming. I applaud Dan Clark for the way he laid out the teaching concept of this book, and how I wish he would follow this up with an advanced book with lots of case studies and applications starting from analysis to coding again. Highly recommended!

5 comments about Mastering Microsoft Visual Basic 2005 (Mastering).

1. This book provided good entry level coverage of the VB2005 language. I found it a little on the elementary side as I am a very experienced programmer in VC++. If you are just learning to program in VB or are just beginning to code in an Object Oriented environment than this books would be an OK book to buy. However, for beginning programmers I always reccommend "Deietl" books for the very structured system of teaching you programming concepts.
   
   If you are an experience OO programmer in another language (VC++ or Java) looking to bring those skills into the VB2005 language then I don't reccommend this book. I highly reccommend "Visual Basic 2005 : The Language" as it covers the more advanced features and methods available and is a great reference to learn VB.



2. I purchased this book to learn programming in a visual environment. I have not programmed since I took some courses back in college programming on a main frame. There are many typos in this book and the code Does not work in many of sections. I am trying to learn by following along with the code in the book and get hit with many errors. When you look at the code from the web site it is completely different from what he has in the book which is taking huge amounts of time to figure out what he has done. I would not refer this book to anyone trying to learn the language.



3. While I bought this book for reference it appears to be a very good book.
   
   If you do buy the book...check for pages 963-994. My copy has excluded these pages and were only found while attempting to use it as a reference.
   
   I've contacted the publisher and at this point it does not look good for correction since my purchase is over 90 days. My purchase was 6 months ago and I've sent them the receipt.



4. I borrowed this first from the public library, then I recommended it to my boss and we ordered several copies. Covers a vast scope of applications. I haven't been thru the complete book (almost 1400 pages) but every time I have looked up topics, it has been helpful. It stays off the shelf and on my desk most of the time.



5. This book saved me! After looking through several other books and numerous web researches I was about to jump out of the window, but thank God this book came along. It answered my questions relating to the use of collections which many other books simply touch upon without sufficient explanations and examples because it's considered an "advanced" topic. Well, I am working on my first real world web application and I need to use collections! So skip those beginner books (because their life on your shelf will be short) and buy this one because it covers a lot more and yet still present topics in a way that a biginner like me can follow!

5 comments about Programming in Visual Basic 6.0 Update Edition with CD.

1. I was lucky to stumble across this book in Amazon.com and didn't really know what I was getting. Once reading through the first chapters and trying some of the exercises I realize this is great. The book teaches you the correct way to program in simple descriptive language. I have now leant what I need to start my own small projects and have ordered the Advanced VB6 from the same authors, looking forward to getting it. The book also comes with the learning VB6.0 CD which gets you started.



2. Concise, precise and with hands-on examples of entire projects. This book is scattered with coloured screenshots to illustrate their instructions so you never have to guess what the authors mean. Targetted at the absolute beginner (in programming) but as it is a breeze to read, the more advanced reader is sure to pick up a few VB gems on his stroll through it.



3. the book was received in a good, timely manner at a cheap price
   at a fraction of the cost of a new book, i am doing all my assignments and learning more about vb
   the only thing that would need improvement is packaging
   a cd came along with this book but since the packaging was done in an envelope it was broken in half which has prevented me from doing work at home
   otherwise, this is a good seller and would deal with them again if they improve their packaging
   thanks



4. I NEVER ordered this book but you sent it and charged me for it anyway. I returned it upon its arrival but had to go to extreme hastles to communicate with you people. Have you re-embursed my account yet? That's the first time I've ever had a problem with Amazon, but I still love you.



5. good book as a classroom study, not so good as a self learner. lot's of info missing that you would get in an interactive environment, such as the exercise answers. and no website available for more info as many others provide. as a class text this is understandable as the students normally wouldn't have all the answers available to them except thru the teacher.

5 comments about Expert VB 2005 Business Objects, Second Edition (Expert).

1. If you are looking for a great deal of practical advice and a working sample on how to build a framework for your application I think you will get a great deal out of this book & the CSLA framework that it explains. I was really pleased with how this framework solves many of the problems that our company wants to solve in our new software design. Having read several articles and "patterns and practices" papers I still had more questions than answers until I read this book. I finally feel like I'm confident enough in a framework that our company can begin writing our new version.



2. Muy buen libro avanzado sobre el manejo de arquitecturas, le dedica bastante a la teoria. A mi criterio le faltaria mas ejemplos, pero sin lugar a duda es una lectura obligada para quien apunte a realizar aplicaciones escalables.



3. I think the book means well, but it needs a lot of editting. The problem? Bad grammar. I'll make up an example of bad grammar: Horses eat apples from trees so that their population can grow. Which population? Apples? Trees? Horses? Two of three? All of them? This type of poor grammar exists so much with this author.



4. This book seemed to jump around too much and did not flow with what he was talking about. Also, there are not really any good examples until the last couple chapters so it is difficult to follow what the auther is trying to get across.



5. I an experienced .NET developer looking to take my skills to the next level through use of design patterns, and perhaps even more importantly, good ways to code business objects that use relational data. Since the title is "Expert VB 2005 Business Objects", I thought I'd hit the jackpot by finding this book... but it has just turned out to be mediocre so far.
   
   I'm on page 113 and I probably won't finish reading this book. Instead of a methodology for the creation of business objects, including creating a business object interface structure, hints on how to reuse as much code as possible within a business object hierarchy while allowing to remain flexible and extensible, and pointers on how to effectively retrieve and store data, I basically got a 600-page long book on how to use a class library that someone else has already created, called CSLA.NET.
   
   Don't get me wrong, the author is obviously highly skilled, and I saw some interesting things in this book, but I want to write my own code - I just needed some help learning how to code business objects like an "expert" and this book isn't fitting the bill like I'd hoped.

1 comments about Visual Basic Express in Easy Steps (In Easy Steps).

1. Used to do VB in the past but got away from it. This is a great book to get back into the swing of things. Good examples and clear.

5 comments about MCAD/MCSD Self-Paced Training Kit: Developing XML Web Services and Server Components with Microsoft® Visual Basic® .NET and Microsoft Visual C#(TM) .N (MCSD Self-Paced Training Kit).

1. It is at a very basic level. It can be useful for starting in XML webservices, but not enough for the exam.
   Some information is outdated.
   It has errors. So does the practice test.
   Doesn't cover at least one topic which is in the practice test.
   The practice test doesn't tell you what is considered the correct answer.
   If you find this book useful, you're not yet prepared for the exam.



2. Judging by the positive reviews, this book must have some merit but it is certainly not in the quality of its writing or its accuracy. Perhaps the editor was reassigned to Longhorn duties. Here are some examples of what you can expect in the first two chapters:
   
   "A COM+ component exists in three states: exists and activated, exists and not activated, and nonexistent."
   
   "The pool objects are not destroyed even after their release from the client application. COM+ retains the destroyed object in the pool for recycling..."
   
   " If the value of the CanStop property is set to False, the SCM does not pass the Stop command to the service application."
   
   It's main value to me is as a syllabus. You can use it to direct your search for better explanations on MSDN and, of course, everyone should have Troelsen's "C# and the .NET Platform" which is the best textbook I have read. Ever.



3. I was reading it as first book for most of the topics, It was total waste of time to read it.
   
   Might help if you are already well expreinced with .NET but not for beginner



4. I have found "Developing XML Web Services and Server Components with Microsoft VB.NET" an invaluable tool in XML editor development. It is quite detailed about accessing and manipulating XML data.



5. Messy. I have been reading lessons; I haven't got any big picture. I did not know why it worked like that. The only place I could look for "big picture" was usually lab, at the end of each chapter. This book also lacks reference to ADO.NET object and interface model which is essential in multi-database engine applications. The most disappointing part is so-called "advanced" web service programming. What author thought was advanced level was really a basic level...

5 comments about Oracle9i PL/SQL Programming.

1. I must say it is not what I expected. Basically, if you know nothing about PL/SQL, that is, the Oracle extension of the SQL, and you need to grasp its general concept in a very short time, this is the book for you.

   But the subtittle of the book is definitely misleading. When it comes to advanced topics, the book simply copies from the online documentation from Oracle, but only the brief summery. Say, function DECODE, one of the most powful feature in PL/SQL, is covered in half a page! Just the official definition. Nothing to read about. If you bought Oracle 9i The Complete Reference, you'd find a whole chapter devoted to that function.

   The author didn't do much work with this book. If you're a serious programmer, don't bother with this book.




2. This is a well written, fast reading book that provides the reader with the information needed but not with the fluff that we do not need. I used this book to pass the Oracle Certification Exan 1Z0-147 : Oracle9i: Program with PL/SQL. If you own this book and 'Oracle PL/SQL' by Steven Feuerstein and Bill Pribyl (published by O'reily), you probably have what you need (for understanding PL/SQL) ... enjoy



3. This is, indeed, a great book to pass this exam(1Z0-147). Actually, there is no prescribed book(as of now!!), for this exam. This book fairly covers most of the topics that are specified in the official exam syllabus. However, topics on Large objects are not covered in this book extensively. I suggest to search on google for LOBS(This is how i got some notes on LOBS). This book is good to study functions, procedures, packages, triggers, and some DBMS packages, but it doesn't cover LOBS, managing dependencies. Overall, I can give 4 stars to this book, as it helped me to pass the exam.



4. The book is good and is recommended for someone new to PL/SQL. For someone who is already familiar to PL/SQL, you can save money by going through the Oracle Online Manual to read about the new features of PL/SQL in Oracle 9i. Since I already had a previous version (Oracle 8) of this book, I consider buying this book as waste of money. But if you are just getting into the world of oracle and you want to learn PL/SQL, this book is for you. One nice thing about the book is it comes with a CD that has some trial version of some development environments. Nice to explore those.
   I give 4 stars.



5. Its a very good book. covers all the finincial modules very well. Gives the whole flow of data in them. but the newer edition is even better it covers extra modules as well. wil help u in getting a wider view. So i would recomend u to go for the newer edition if u need a wider idea of diff modules

5 comments about Beginning ASP.NET 2.0 in VB 2005: From Novice to Professional (Beginning: from Novice to Professional).

1. This book was not helpful it does not give any exercises it jumps from one topic to another. The book is suppose to be for beginners not advanced.



2. I teach a web application development course for experienced MIS undergraduate students at a huge southern university. This is the second edition of MadDonald's in VB I have used and will continue to use it as long as he keeps publishing them. My students will have had two programming courses in which they use VB and are very experienced with database design, SQL, and stored procedures.
   
   The book provides superb coverage of the development and execution environment, the fundamentals of coding and contols, data connectivity, security, and performance issues. Unlike most other references (at least for VB 2003) MacDonald focuses exclusively on the code-behind pages and doesn't try to mix up the VB code in the HTML pages.
   
   The book contains a superb brief overview of web services--definitely enough for my students to create and field their own.
   
   The explanations and examples are well written and easy to follow for this audience.



3. Sylvia B. Gonzalez, ASP.NET is really not a beginning subject. I have been in the business for more than 40 years, it is not an easy business. That is the reason they pay us well.
   
   Just keep reading, find a book that is best for the way you learn.



4. Another excellent book. The writter not only presents the subeject very well but his was way of presenting the information and samples are well choreographed. No time wasted, to the point. Hope that he writes other books.



5. Of all of the books I have purchased for ASP.NET (VB) so far, this book is the best. It covers most if not all topics needed for the intermediate ASP.NET developer. Good writing style with clear ideas and examples. The book is organized well and it is easy to find the particular topic you are looking for.
   I think it may be the best ASP.NET book for the price and would recommend to anybody who needs a reference manual for their web development in ASP.NET.

5 comments about Introduction to Programming with Visual Basic 6.0, Update Edition, An (4th Edition).

1. Most of the reviewers for this book seem to have had some previous programming experience, and thus, armed with an understanding of programming generally, i.e. the jargon, the logic, and general concepts, this book might well deserve a good wrap. However, it has been my first exposure to programming and I am finding that it is not a great help to a raw beginner.

   This is the prescribed text for a uni subject I am doing, and I know of other students who have been very critical of the book also. In fact, the lecturer recommended that those with no prior experience refer to other books for a better explanation of the concepts!

   I do not want to be a programmer - and I am not someone who enjoys spending every spare moment experimenting with code - my interests lie in other areas of IT. Having said that, I have put as much effort into this subject as any other that I have done.

   Specifically, I have found that the book skips over the basics, and makes a lot of assumptions about the reader's prior knowledge. I often find myself leafing backwards and forwards through the book looking for information that I know I have previously read, but cannot find again without wasting a great deal of time because of its poor layout. There is a dearth of explanation - I know that the best way to learn programming is to do it, but if what you're doing isn't working you need to understand why and be able to fix it without wanting to throw the computer out of the window ;-)

   I am searching now for some books that will help me to finish the subject. I don't want to go into the exam on a wing and a prayer, I'd actually like to do well. This book on its own is not going to get me there.

   Perhaps, it's different these days, as kids leaving school may have already studied computing subjects before going to uni, but for mature age students new to programming, there is a lot of catching up to do before this book would be helpful. I hope this has been of assistance to anyone else in the same boat.




2. I had to use this book for a VB programming class. I really like the style. Instead of laboring the point, Schneider briefly presents information on a topic, then uses examples to explain the details. If you are learner by tutorial, then this book is NOT for you because it is not a lot of hand-holding. But if you can read something, see an example, then grasp the concept, then you will enjoy reading this text and find it very beneficial.

   My class project was to build a conctacts database, and this book has some great examples of how to build a database application both in the front end (forms and controls) and back end (coding SQL and VB data-handling commands).




3. I have my VB final due tommorrow. I have to agree with another reviewer. The examples don't explain what you need to know for the projects. My teacher is very smart but she grades hard. Between that and this difficult to learn from book our class has gone from 22 students to get this 4. There are 4 of us left in what should have been a beginner type programming class.
   I am going to buy a Thompson Learning VB book instead. I am sure it will be better.
   The only guy who did well with this book already had C++ I and II.



4. I've always been interrested by the computer world and one day decided to teach myself programming. I picked up this book and started to read. At that moment, I didn't even know what a programming language was. I read it from cover to cover and didn't have the impression to learn something but suddenly I found myself programming small applications. I read other books then and today I'm a MCSD (Microsoft Certified Solution Developer). During my whole journey on the learning of programming, this one was the clearest book I've read. So, if you're a complete beginner in programming, get this book fast ! I would even recommend you to read it BEFORE moving to .NET books. If you already are a programmer coming from another language, it may not be the right choice.



5. Just like the subject says: "I'm impressed". I was someone who had absolutely NO IDEA of how to begin with VB (I didn't even know what VB was for anyways!). But now I know, and trust me, I'm good at it (I do have to spend time reading it :P). I love the fact that it has practice exercises which leaves you in an analytical environment (very good help for future programmers who are independent enough).
   
   Anyways, if you're into VB, then this is the best selection out there. Hope this helps.

3 comments about Word 2003 Document Automation with VBA, XML, XSLT, and Smart Documents (Wordware Applications Library).

1. Quite often you see book titles that unfortunately do not match the subject content. This one certainly does! The back cover states that it sets out to explain how to:
   
   - Automate documents with a minimum of programming by using Word's native functionality
   - Use VBA to create document automation solutions
   - Record macros, create automated templates, format and manipulate files using Word and build documents dynamically
   - Create, edit and format XML documets
   - Develop smart documents solutions to guide users through a variety of repetitive tasks
   - Transform XML using WordprocessingML, XSLT, XPath, smart documents and web services technologies
   
   Ok, to be fair I didn't find anything on web services explicitly but it still gets us over 99% of the way through delivering on its expectations.
   
   This book has hit a niche area for word users wanting to create smarter documents with no other book providing coverage of this subject matter as intimately or in a way as easy to follow as this book. It is perfect for people who routinely have to write legal contracts, functional specifications and general technical documentation as it allows you to fully leverage off Word's capabilities in letting you work smarter.
   
   I did not own any other books by Wordware and this seemed to be a bit out there in their list of publications so I was initially a bit hesitant about buying this book. As it turns out I shouldn't have been! Scott Driza presents the subject matter well and in a very succint way - this book has just over 400 pages in which it manages to cover quite a lot of ground!
   
   I bought this book primarily to concentrate on the XML, XSLT and Smart Documents features, but have found that I even picked up a trick or two in relation to VBA-based templates. For those who like using shortcut keys, Appendix A will be a God send as it has the most exhaustive list of Word commands and shortcut keys I have ever seen!
   
   The book devotes approximately half of its pages to VBA and assumes no prior knowledge of VBA, XML, XSLT or Smart Documents. It doesn't cover all subject areas exhaustively but it gets you started and tells you where to get additional materials.
   
   I would have liked to have seen a bit more detail on XML schemas although the the book does show you how to get Word to automatically generate an inferred schema based on XML mark-up. That is pretty much the only reason why I didn't give it a 5-star rating.
   
   If you are an IT professional, engineer, lawyer, technical writer or any other type of knowledge worker; do yourself a favour - stop creating your documents the hard way and buy this book. It will more than pay for itself the first time you start applying the concepts, techniques and technologies it refers to.



2. This is one of the least useful books I have read in my 10+ years in the IT business. Written from an academic standpoint, there were few useful examples offered and no subject was discussed in enough detail to be useful. Examples were vauge at best.
   
   While this book got me excited about the topic of document automation, I am unable to create a custom Smart Document solution from scratch after reading this book from cover to cover.
   
   Buyer beware: This is a "What Is" book, not a "How To" book.



3. I've read the majority of the content of this book and I have found it to be very useful. The author's coverage of the basic of WordProcessML is excellent. The first seven chapters contain good examples of how to automate Word.