5 comments about REALbasic for Macintosh: Visual QuickStart Guide (Visual Quickstart Guides).

1. If REALbasic is to be your very first venture into the world of computer programming, and you don't even know what an IDE, a compiler or a stream is, this book could very possibly provide you just the orientation you need to start writing a simple application. In this sense, the book is true to the Visual QuickStart concept. However, so is REALSoftware's own Quickstart.pdf, and the latter is free and you probably already have it (if you already bought RB). Go through Real's quickstart tutorials, and if you're still not getting anywhere, consider this book.

   If you've programmed in any other environment at all, particularly any of the "visual" ones or even Flash, then you will find yourself quickly looking past the back cover of this book wondering where the in-depth content is. I'll tell you where it is, it's in Matt Neuburg's book, the REALbasic book that you should be purchasing if you already have ANY programming experience. Don't let the "Now covers version 3" on Matt's book fool you into thinking it's obsolete--far from it! Certainly parts of RB have been improved upon since V3 (it's at 5.2.1 as I write this), but the core language and concepts are all the same. Matt's book is also a good reference, which you'll consult regularly as you work. Example: wondering how to properly use a memoryBlock? You could read pages 186-191 in Matt's book and learn all you need to know, or you could consult Real's online Language Reference examples, or you could look in the index of this visual quickstart book and find that there isn't even an entry for memoryBlock. The proper choice should be clear.

   I give this 2 stars for its potential usefulness in orienting someone who knows literally nothing about any manner of programming.




2. I like this series of books, and its an admirable attempt in this case, but i was tearing my hair out because the several examples I tried failed to work. at various points there are key details left out, and a number of typos or incorrect diagrams. The author has a website with the errors, and seems to make a conscientioius effort to address the problems, but i think the truth of the matter, is that this book needs a re-write and re-release. I find it still useful to have to get another opinion after reading the real manuals. I have had some frustrating days with RB, but now that I am getting the hang of it, it can be quite fun. There does not seem to be a single good reference. The manuals are either too general (the users guide) or too sparse and lacking in detail (the reference manual). I suppose if you keep plugging along and look at the manuals AND the books, it will be come clearer and clearer.



3. Although the text is lightweight and friendly, I found the amount of information in "REALbasic for Macintosh" to be quite sparse considering the page count. Although the book is intended to have a limited (introductory) scope and is priced accordingly, there is a good deal of blank space at the end of most topic sections, and many common steps in the tutorials are repeated ad nauseum. I was left thinking that much more could be covered in the same amount of pages.

   I don't know if the Visual Quickstart format assumes that the reader needs to be told each and every step EACH and EVERY time, but I found the ongoing repetition to be tedious and a bit insulting. The text should provide shorthands to these common procedures after the reader has done them a few times.

   Worse than that are the numerous typos in both the examples and main text. I spent a good deal of my time being distracted by errors and emailing the author to request that he revise his erratum web page for this book.To his credit, Mr. Swaine did get back to me each time I emailed an new item. Needless to say, the book would benefit from more careful proof reading.

   I second the motion that a second edition should be aimed toward fixing these typos and providing more substance. Only then can "REALbasic for Macintosh" become the fine introductory guide that novice REALbasic programmers are looking for,




4. Book is currently out-of-date. After updating, it may become a good reference.



5. This was a good book. But it is way out of date. First off, it only covers the Macintosh version of REALbasic. Second, it only covers a very old version of REALbasic. So you will not learn anything about REALbasic 2006 from this book. Lastly, there is no coverage of Windows or Linux.
   
   Unless the publisher comes out with a new edition, I'd stay away from this one and go with one of the newer REALbasic books.

5 comments about Microsoft Office 2000/Visual Basic: Programmer's Guide (Microsoft Professional Editions).

1. This is a book designed for people that already know something about office and vba and who want to take custom development to the next level with more advanced techniques



2. The intro materials in this book reveal that the authors were working side-by-side with the office development team as this book was written. Such direct access to the people who know the most about the product is unusual and it shows in this book. A collection of truly "useful" information and sample code. This is not a rehash of online help or a collection of the "basic" programming info found in a lot of reference books. The discussion generally gives you useful information and, the part I like the most, gives you sample code that works just the way it is in my own programs. This is not sample code of the type "MyControl.Backcolor = Red" that I see so much of. It appears that a real effort was made to write code that not only illustrates a concept, but that is usable in other contexts without much, or any, modification.

   Thanks for the resource....check it out - you will not be disappointed.




3. It's very hard to find a book on VBA that isn't based in one application, and doesn't begin at the 'Hello World' level. This book does neither. Instead it provides a good introduction to the object models of the Office applications, and includes well-written code examples. The breadth of content is impressive--from shared Office components to class modules. What a pity it's out of print!



4. I would agree with the review that states the authors were working side-by-side with the office development team as this book was written. However, I would disagree that such close input was entirely helpful. While the information contained in this book is a nice introduction to how things are "supposed" to work, as with so much of Microsoft's software, things never quite work the way they were designed, unless of course, you're doing exactly what the folks at Microsoft assumed you would do. Not only do some examples in this book fail to work, most examples are simple and obvious, the kind of thing a person might generate from looking at Microsoft's help information. Often they illustrate how the designers assumed their software would work. They often fail to demonstrate what the software can do--or much more important--how to get around the artificial limitations set by Microsoft. Some simple examples involve such basic building blocks as dialog boxes and menus (commandbars in Micro-speak). Some built-in dialog boxes have over a dozen arguments, but try finding out what those arguments do from either this book or from Microsoft's help information. As for the commandbars, even the examples from the book fail to work.

   My advice? If you want to know what Microsoft intended, get this book. If you want to use Microsoft Office in a real world situation, keep looking.




5. I would disagree with many people on this book due to the fact that this book is very helpful on using codes and debugging tools although its a definition guide on computer programming in windows 2000 it can teach you a lot of details on programming it is more like a beginners guide using many symbols and differnt codes this book is more of a book for people wanting to learn how to write files store files also deals with rewritting web pages or possibley a guide on how to develop folders spreadsheets graphs and many othe features i would say this book is really great for anyone wanting to learn c programming in windows environment as well as in the assembly language or DOS enviroment; although this book does not teach you assembly language programming it is a way to start learning assembly language programming1

5 comments about Murach's ASP.NET Web Programming with VB.NET.

1. I have never been so irritated and frustrated by a book in terms of its presentation and format. If any newcomer is able to follow along with the tutorial application and actually build it, I'd be very, very surprised.
   
   I just do not see the point of having the book's text on even pages and a bulleted review of that same text (along with code) on odd pages. There's no mention of how to code the HTML portions, you have to already know how by looking at some screen shots. There's just no follow-through from chapter to chapter as the author grows the application.
   
   I'm still searching for a book on ASP.NET that walks the reader through the construction of an actual, useful application from A to Z.



2. Simply said: One of the best books I have ever bought!
   
   I needed to dive into ASP.NET pretty fast because I had a project running to its deadline. I was a programmer who knew Visual Basic and Delphi pretty well. I did know the theory of ASP.NET but had no practical experience. This book teached me in a record time how to build and get my first web application up and running.
   
   The best starter's book you can imagine. The second book I bought on the subject was ASP.NET Unleashed, which is a marvellous book if you have some ASP.NET experience.
   
   For a beginner Murach's book is simply a dream, and although I have written a couple of web applications now, I still use it as a quick reference. WORTH EVERY PENNY IN GOLD.



3. I bought this book in hopes that the author would clearly explain building the halloween shop sample application from the ground up, but after chapter 1, the author totally loses you as far as next steps are concerned.
   The first chapter has actual "excercises" which get you started in building the sample application. After that, most chapters don't contain these exercises, therefore you have to build the rest of the application based on the screen shots/code snippet's in the chapter.



4. I recently got hold of a copy of this book (full title: "Murach's ASP.Net Web Programming with VB.Net") and it is terrific. In particular, it includes the best walkthrough and problem solver of using IIS I've yet seen - and I know from the Forums that this very early step causes a lot of people a heap of problems. (Me included at one time! )
   
   The book uses a technique of having the main narrative on the left hand page, backed up by important summaries and/or diagrams on the right hand page. This can be quite useful for reinforcing those particularly tricky areas and is handy for flipping back to when you need to recheck something. Overall, I think it works great.



5. Before purchasing this book, you should know that the author expects you to have been exposed to the skills taught in Murach's Beginning Visual Basic.Net.
   
   Having said that, this book is written in an easy-to-follow format that led me step-by-step toward the skills needed to become the most knowledgeable ASP.Net developer on my team. It hits every subject I've been exposed to at work, making it an excellent reference as well. This book also helped me to strengthen my object-oriented development knowledge.
   
   One of the biggest advantages of this book over others is that it taught me how to develop using Microsoft Visual Studio ("VS"). Unfortunately, learning ASP.Net using Notepad instead of VS is like learning to drive using a go-cart instead of a car. Almost all employers expect their .Net developers to know their way around VS. With this book, you're covered.

3 comments about Simply Visual Basic.NET 2003: An Application-Driven Tutorial Approach.

1. This book takes beginners by the hands, from installing and configuring Visual Basic.NET to actually coding, running and debugging the sample applications, which is precisely what beginners need. There are many exercises at the end of each chapter, always relying on complete applications instead of just code samples. You also learn how to use pseudocode to visualize what your application needs to do and the steps needed to make it functional.

   You won't master OOP,ASP.NET, ADO.NET, etc., but you'll acquire a solid understanding of programming and VB.NET, and after finishing the book, will know whether or not you really want to pursue programming further, before buying dozens of books on advanced / specialized topics. This book is expensive but it probably does the job of two or three books(basics, practical applications, Visual Studio IDE), so the price isn't outrageous. This book serves as both a tutorial as well as a reference guide.

   If you decide to pursue .NET programming further, read the Listmania pages, as well as the customer reviews and visit sites such as programmersheaven.com for advice on buying good books.

   Learn by doing!




2. The Deitel & Deitel books are very colorful and very heavy to carry in your backpack.

   They do have a lot of material in them, but the material basically going into excrutiating detail about each subject with tons and tons of code snippets and complete code examples. If you like details, then this book is for you.

   Unfortunately, while the size of the book is big, the range of topics is limited. ADO.NET, OOP, .NET Framework concepts are glossed over. OK, you can buy other books to supplement this one and the book may make a good textbook for a first semeter college course (in a multi-semester, multi-course program). All the same, for such a high price and a heavy carrying weight, I wish more topics were covered.




3. I am just beginning to learn programming. This book starts out well with easy tutorials that you work through, and then gives exercises at the end of each tutorial. The only problem is that there are no answers to the exercises, so if you get stuck or just want to check your solutions, you are SOL. So, if you are a beginner like me, the book is worthless.

5 comments about Programming Microsoft SQL Server(TM) 2000 with Microsoft Visual Basic .NET (Microsoft Programming).

1. Like most people, I appreciate humor. But when I'm pressed for time and need to learn the nuts and bolts of a programming language, I'd rather an author save his chuckles for his own time. Or her own time. Whatever. Dobson's book is right up my alley. It's serious, but not complicated. The pages are filled with good, technical information, supported by concise examples and efficient diagrams. No wasted space, no wasted words.In contrast, Karl Moore's book (VB .Net: The Tutorials), though quite informative, was annoying in its silliness. This tome served as a refreshing antidote. Of course reasonable people can disagree on the humor thing--the disagreeable can go to Moore's work. In this book, multiple topics are covered well: SQL programming, including the all-powerful stored procedure, Windows application programming, XML programming and ASP.Net programming. Dobson's treatment of SQL in concert with VB .Net should help anyone get up to speed writing DB applications in no time. It is a wonderful text that successfully paints with a broad and serious stroke.



2. Be warned that the "Programming Windows Solutions with ADO.Net" chapter (chapter 10) presents only toy applications.

   Developers looking for real-world solutions will need to look elsewhere..




3. Rick's book is the best one I read on VB.NET with SQL Server. The flow of the book is unbeatable. Every chapter is clearly written and well planned to backup the chapters that will follow it. Executing stored procedures from VB.NET is the best part of the book because when I ran the code it worked. Other books I bought (too many of them!!!) do not compare to this book.
   The other thing about the author is that he replied to my email about an issue not mentioned in the book as soon as he received it. I strongly recommend this book.



4. I have read this book about SQL2000 and VB.NET. (Spanish Version)
   I don't have words to say the wonderful that it's this book.
   It' s the best programming book that I have never read.
   Thank you to write it.
   I wait a new version soon.
   Best regards from Canary Island, Spain.



5. This book is a solid introduction to SQL Server 2000 & VB.NET. I found this book to be both informative and easy to understand. That is missing in numerous books I have bought and found difficult to read and understand. The one item I had some problem with, Rick Dobson pointed me to the correct page in the book and that solved the issue. Great work Rick.

No comments about TRS-80 Colour BASIC (Self-teaching Guides).

5 comments about Beginning SQL Server 2000 for Visual Basic Developers.

1. This is an excellent introduction to SQL Server 2000 for Visual Basic 6.0 developers. I used this book and Robert Vieira's Professional SQL Server 2000 Programming (Also by Wrox) to study for the Designing and Implementing Databases using Microsoft SQL Server 2000 exam (70-229). The 2 chapters on XML were especially good. Thearon does his best work when he works solo and this book is one of his best. I have his SQL Server 7 book and both books are well-written. I really like the "Hardware Tracking" tutorial that he follows for most of the book. This tutorial will also help with your Visual Basic skills. I have learned several new VB tricks just by following along. I hope that Thearon writes a Beginning SQL Server 2000 for Visual Basic.Net Developers.



2. I had to learn SQL programming with Visual Basic 6 in about a month's time for a project. This book taught me everything I needed to know to deliver the application. Everytime I came across a stumbling block in my code or in SQL Server 2000 I found the answer in this book.

   This book will make you feel that you not only know how to make Visual Basic talk to SQL Server, it will make you feel you know more than the basics of SQL Server itself. Previous to reading this book I had no idea what a stored procedure was, or how a query works in SQL Server (I had worked extensively with Microsoft Access, and these skills were not necessarily transferable to SQL Server, though many of the concepts are similar). Now I know my way around SQL Server 2000. This book fulfilled a dual purpose.

   There are chapters on Database design, SQL Server installation, SQL Server security, Querying, Stored Procedures, the SQL language, IIS, and XML. Most of the book is taken up with what developers do everyday: the storage and manipulation of data. Over 300 pages of the book is dedicated to data in general, and how to get the most out of it using VB and SQL Server.

   If you need to create a VB6 (there is no discussion of VB.NET since the book predates it) database application using SQL Server, this is the book to start with. Its bulk pays off.




3. It's very good Books with good Price and (Wrox Press)



4. OK for beginners who want to know some of the innards of SQL server, but there are two major faults. One is that newbies to networkable machines will find themselves crushed under the weight of networking and communications jargon that the author never explains, and Win98 machines can't handle half of the book. Second, the last third of the book for some 200 pages has nothing to do with VB: the samples are written entirely in XML, DHTML, and a mere snippet of VBScript. There are better VB tools for creating Web apps that can handle big datasets and ActiveX, whereas XML has enfuriatingly slow performance and an unattractive and inflexible interface that looks like something pounded out on a typewriter (remember those?). 5 stars for the first two-thirds, zilch for the remainder.



5. I have used this book and it has proven to be a highly resourceful Visual Basic and SQL Server book, that I am anxiously waiting for the release of Beginning VB.NET Databases by the same author!!!.

5 comments about Windows Script Host (Circle).

1. I am currently reading this book and have found it to be very helpful so far. I have already read Tim's NT Shell scripting book and loved it.
   The main reason for writing this review is to tell users that YOU CAN DOWNLOAD SOURCE CODE but not from the link listed in the book. You must go to new riders website and do a search on the book. Once you find the book there is a link to download the source code.



2. As one of the other reviewers here, Ales from Slovenia, pointed out, this book is not for experienced VBscript developers! Because most of the content is not about WSH, but about VBscript. If you are an experienced developer looking for an in depth and detailed discussion of WSH, you are going to be very disappointed with this book. It's WSH coverage doesn't even surpass MSDN's. This books assumes little to no scripting experience, and as a result, the bulk of the book is an effort in teaching scripting, not WSH as the title suggests. It's also a bad reference, not that it matters, since it doesn't cover what I wanted. I'll return my copy.



3. This book was ok but was very limited in scope.

   The IIS section is incomplete and is missing scripting for a few technologies.

   IMO, this book seems to focus on scriptable methods of common GUI admin tasks. I was expecting more coverage of how to script admin tasks that are not available in the Operating System.

   A book with a reference section of common or admin related commands (or reference info like in his basic shell scripting book execellent reference by the way!) would needs to be added. Sometimes admins need to create custom solutions not available in the Operating System and this subject would be an excellent addition to this book.

   This Book is a good reference to see how the flow of given code examples are written but falls way short in the overall administration field. I'd see if there was another book on the market.




4. After scripting in Linux for some time, I have realized that I should go Windows as well, for all of our commercial servers are Windows based. So I have blindly purchased this book and it came out to be a great purchase.
   
   I'm not creating any elaborate scripts, but I have successfully created many of them that run every day without a hickup. And I took this book as my reference book. But please note, that this is no reference book, one has to find the topic and read it through in order to get some answers... But since I didn't have any WSH experience before, it was great.



5. As other reviewers have noted, this book almost exclusively focuses on using WSH with VBScript rather than a more general tour of WSH and other scripting languages (as perhaps implied by the title). Fortunately, this is exactly what I was looking for and, as a newcomer to VB, I found the book provided a good, thorough tutorial on VBScript with plenty of inline examples on the various language features and built-in WSH and VBScript objects.
   
   The book is well organized, starting with the basics(sic) and steadily working through to more advanced concepts. As a software developer, I found the book more "readable" than average for computer books and worked through most of it in a day (except for the examples in the final section, which I mostly skipped).

5 comments about Visual Basic 6 for Dummies Deluxe Compiler Kit.

1. This product is learner's manual for VB6 combined with a cd-rom allegedly containing a learner's version of the software. Good idea, problematic execution. After a few chapters into the book, I am less than impressed. The accompanying cd-rom of Visual Basic is a scaled down version that does not have all the bells and whistles that are talked about in the book itself. For example, an early exercise directs the reader to put certain icons in a program. According to the book, these icons come loaded with Visual Basic 6. Maybe, but they don't come loaded on the scaled-down, companion CD version. Additionally, the book identifies a particular basic portion of the VB 6 interface called the Immediate Window, characterized as a debugging tool. This tool also does not come with the scaled down version. I am considering returning the product, purchasing the book alone for approx. half the price, and then getting a copy of the software.



2. They say it takes an honorable person to admit an error. I'm not necessarily honorable, but I was wrong about some facts in my previous review, and I'd like to correct the situation now. 1) I found the Icons folder I couldn't find earlier. It doesn't install automatically, but if you put the installation CD back in and search, you'll find it. 2) I found the portion of VB6 I couldn't find earlier -- it was just hidden from view. So the product isn't problematic, just the user. I'm still reading the book and using the application, and I am actually, in a truly basic sense, programming. And now, because I have not yet finshed the book, and becuase I don't want to have to apologize again, I resolve to say nothing more.



3. The title of this package is outright wrong. I've been programming for over ten years and when something says "COMPILER" I expect a compiler. The working model included in this package lets you build programs that run in the IDE but does not compile to EXE's. As for the book, no great shakes. It spends a great deal of time on the RAD but if you want to learn useful VB code, better look elsewhere.



4. While the book will get you started, alot is asummed. Previous programming experience is helpful.



5. If you are serious about learning V.B. 6.0, this book is not for you. The software that comes with the book contains no online help and does NOT compile. Spend a few extra dollars and buy "Visual Basic 6.0 Deluxe Learning Edition". It has the complete online MSDN library for all the help you need, and you can compile your projects into actual executable files.

5 comments about Waite Group's Visual Basic Source Code Library (The Waite Group).

1. For a beginner or a intermediate user this book is definitely a must have. It contains a lot of useful codes that are commented and easy to understand. For the advanced user there isn't much to get. If you consider the fact that there are 11 authors to this book then the book seems to be a bit thin. I had hoped for much more code. The language can sometimes be a bit confusing: The code analasys is sometimes more difficult to understand than the code itself.



2. While building my own comprehensive Visual Basic library (inproc DLL), I found that I had to browse the web for hours looking for a particular routine that I needed for my newest programming projects. I came across this book while browsing the VB library at a book store, and found that it contained a lot of the code I was looking for to complement my growing library.

   What really sold me was the ZIP compression code included with the book. The code as presented is based on the freeware Info-Zip DLL library, and the example was not done well. The author didn't spend any time developing the ZIP routines other than showing how to access the DLL. So I took the sample and built a wrapper for the code, which gave me access to individual files inside the ZIP. I can now add and delete any file stored in a ZIP using my new wrapper. But it was based on the code and hints included with this book.

   There are just TONS of routines in this book that I have found very useful, including a number of network API functions that are very difficult to come by without a reference like this.

   If you are building a Visual Basic library of your own, then this book is a great asset, and I believe provides more functionality than many of the "commercial" Visual Basic libraries out there. The benefit is that you can see the code for yourself and make use of it in any way you see fit.




3. I'm not going to babble on meaninglessly, I just want to say simply "Great Book" within 2 minutes of opening it I was able to look up a procedure as well as find several others of interest on the way to the page I wanted. Within 10 minutes I had the concise code typed into a program and succesfully ran it - that is what I got the book for! Money well spent!



4. I will say upfront that I have only just started using this book.
   But it doesn't take long to realise that at least some of the code has NOT been bug tested (or tested to see if it even works).
   Specifically (so far) the Thayer encryption routine (doesn't work - had to download an alternative) and the Getfile routine (locks up after multiple uses).
   Will post a further review if matters change for better (or worse).
   The book still has a good layout and has lots of useful routines for everyone just dont expect them to work without a little 'tweaking'.



5. There are some issues with the code in this book, and it is obvious that the files on the CD were NOT bug tested. For example, the Zip32.dll file is an outdated version and does not work with the code given and the website for the new .dll file is gone. Even though there are some issues I HIGHLY RECCOMEND THIS BOOK! It is the best resource out there for small problems that you would otherwise need to go to a forum and post a question. If you are new to VB or are semi-experienced, GET THIS BOOK!