1 comments about Beginning Python: From Novice to Professional, Second Edition (Beginning from Novice to Professional).

1. To summarize, too cumbersome and rather difficult to find the exact information you are looking for. Magnus Hetland tries to be funny and assumes that it makes the book more readable. Unfortunately, nothing could be further from the truth. I'd rather have a serious book with all the information accessible, rather than something which reads like a boring college lecture. This book does not address the needs of experienced programmers in other languages who want to shift to Python(like myself), and is way too advanced for a beginner. That said, the only interesting things in the book are the projects described at the end.
   In place of Hetland's book, I'd recommend other books like the freely downloadable Python programming book in the "Thinking like a Computer Scientist" series by Green Tea Press. Besides this, there are also many websites which teach Python programming for free. Why buy a bad book?

No comments about Head First PHP & MySQL.

5 comments about PHP Programming with MySQL.

1. This was one of the assigned books for a class of mine, but I quite liked it. As a teacher and a programmer of ~25 yrs, I like a book that I can not only read from front to back, but one in which I can easily 'look things up', since I often know how to do something in another language but want to see how it is done with this tool.
   
   This book is clear and concise and fills both needs. I liked the fact that it talks not only about the languages PHP and MySQL, but also how to get started with them (installation, configuration, and use with HTML). This book, along with the XAMPP/PHP/MySQL toolset made learning very easy and immediate.
   
   One suggestion I'd make, however, would be for the book to include the XAMPP/PDT-all-in-one eclipse/Zend Debugger toolchain. Particularly on Windows, this allows the student to do open-source-package command-line debugging that is painless and accurate. Once I figured out how to use these tools, creating and debugging the book examples was 'a breeze'. It could have saved a lot of time for DG to include this industry-standard toolset. Kudos to Gosselin, though, for a great book... jps



2. I'm almost through my introductory PHP class, and the bottom line is that I would absolutely avoid this book.
   
   
   A few caveats about online reviews: They are skewed b/c most people don't bother to write unless they are really mad or really happy about a given product. I'm obviously in the later category. Separate out my tone and emotion if you can. But here are the facts:
   
   1. The book is riddled with typos and straight up errors.
   2. The author never bothers to correct them. I still haven't found where errata are on his website.
   3. Gosselin uses terms that he never bothers to define first. Who's Gosselin? The author of the book. My point exactly.
   4. Some of the examples of the code just don't work. Because of the number of errors in the book, I can't be sure if it's just Gosselin's problem or my own. This can not be overstated b/c the last thing a student wants is to work for hours on a problem only to realize that it wasn't his/her problem to begin with.
   5. The writing style is extremely dry, dense, and ambiguous. Make no mistake, this is not a user-friendly book.
   6. The index is poor and there are no tables of commonly used functions/methods/ and other syntax that most textbooks have. It's hard to find anything.
   7. Price: too expensive, but that's par for the course with Thompson Technology books.



3. Very sloppy book with numerous typos (and inconsistencies!!) in code and elsewhere, about the worst offense committed by a beginner's book. Stay away at all cost.



4. I have spent $12.95 on better programming books than this one. We used this book in a class that I just finished up. The instructor had to retype many of the code examples so she could correct the code errors. The book is nothing more than a recipe book of php scripts without properly explaining the materials. I would love to see colleges move away from companies like Thomson and look elsewhere for teaching materials.



5. In the quest to learn PhP/MySQL, this book was the book used for a class. So far it seems ok but I just spent a few hours trying to figure out why I was getting errors only to realize the code in the book had typos in it.
   
   Page 172 in "Functions and Control Structures", the ScoreQuiz.php if statements have no closing brackets } in the code in the book. The same file is used for more exercises in the book so unless you spot this, subsequent exercises will give you errors too.
   
   Page 455 #7, the if statement is again missing the opening and closing brackets.
   
   Page 486 #6, #7 The closing paragraph tags are printed in the book as < / p ."); and should be < / p > . ); Amazon seems to have filters that make posting any code almost impossible so just take the spaces out of those examples if they show on the page.
   
   To someone who has done a lot of programming, these may seem like no big deal, but when trying to learn this stuff for the first time it is quite frustrating. It is just sloppy editing.
   
   If I come across more errors/typos that result in code that doesn't function, I'll post the issue and solution.
   
   If there is an errata section posted anywhere? If so I haven't found it.

5 comments about Expert One-on-One J2EE Design and Development (Programmer to Programmer).

1. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, particularly well-thought out design guidelines for developing J2EE application with or without EJB. The author introduced several best practices particularly the concepts and usage of Spring and Hibernate based j2ee development is quite helpful. In addition to this book, I find patterns and bestpractices from "Core J2EE Patterns /Deepak Alur", "Core Security Patterns /Christopher Steel" and "Enterprise Integration Patterns /Gregor Hohpe" would be helpful - especially if you are building a enterprise-class j2ee applications.
   Now the downside, the book needs a complete revision to include changes with J2EE 1.4. The CODE SAMPLES explained in this book does'nt work now - please update.



2. It is a great book. But I give it only 4 stars is because it is hard to read. English is my 2nd language. I cannot read this book quickly. I even need check dictionary at least 2 times per page. I do not have the same problem when read other tech books.
   "What is WebSphere" is another book I like. Also help me to learn system level stuff. It is much easier to read. Though it does not have so many stuff like Johnson's book.
   I would like to suggest the auther to consider many tech readers are not very good at English.



3. Frankly, this book has gotten a little long in the tooth. One might say that, from the products it mentions and evaluates, it is out of date. But never mind!
   
   Rod applies principles that never go out of date - only the examples do - or seem to. A product is stuck with its basic design forever. Thus a critique of the 2002 version of Struts is as valid as a critique of the 2007 version.
   
   Pros: Readable. Insightful. It will make you a better architect.
   
   Cons: Typos (how do chapters get mis-numbered in the ToC?!?) It really should be in a high-quality hard binding (though the binding is quite good for paper).
   
   Summary: 'J2EE Design...' is worth much more than its weight in gold. Buy it. READ IT!



4. I bought this book because I've read very good reviews. I found this book amazing. This books shows you how to make good designs and develop in J2EE, all the chapters with full of comments from Rod's experience. Many of the concepts of this book were later applied in Spring framework. I strongly recommend read this book for advanced Java developers.



5. This book gives the right approach to programming with J2EE tools. It explains when to use J2EE and when not to.
   It's not only useful for J2EE programming but also for non-J2EE enterprise projects as well. I STRONGLY recommend it. I have learnt so much from this book.

5 comments about C++ Coding Standards: 101 Rules, Guidelines, and Best Practices (C++ In-Depth Series).

1. This book is a very readable reference book. The authors have read several books and condensed the best coding rules to prevent many errors. If you code in any language other than C++, read this book because many of the hints are useful. (If you code C++, then all of the hints apply.) And if you don't like rules and guidelines, then just read the "exception" section provided in each entry to be sure that your code meets the exception.



2. It's Sutter! It's Alexandrescu! It's both of them together! And the dark lords of C++ have combined forces to produce... er, some coding standards.
   
   Yes, another book of best practices. Some readers may therefore be a tad disappointed that the combined fruits of the authors' labours will not be shattering their puny human minds with the sort of C++ that cause lesser compilers to accidentally create black holes that destroy the entire universe.
   
   But let's evaluate the book on what it sets out to do, which is to give 100 bite-sized pieces of advice on C++ coding. And it's very good. You might prefer to see it as an annotated guide to the state of the art in intermediate C++ programming, in particular to Sutter's Exceptional C++ trilogy, which has become sufficiently sprawling that a reorganisation of the material, plus pointers to which book said what, has become quite welcome.
   
   Yes, it's true that C++ is hardly short of books telling you when to pass by value. But take a look at the bibliography - it's a synthesis of all those other tomes (the Effective series, Sutter's own Exceptional series of course, and older books like C++ Strategy and Tactics) plus magazine articles, into a neat and compact whole.
   
   Few of the items are longer than one or two pages. This is good because the advice stays simple, clear and direct. On the other hand, some of the items feel a bit squeezed into the available space, with discussion deferred to the books in the references, which is a little frustrating on occasion. After all, a lot of the best parts of the Exceptional C++ and Effective C++ series and their ilk is not so much what to do (or not to do), but the why behind it. There's plenty of the former, but not so much of the latter.
   
   If you've read any other coding convention books (like those in Steve McConnell's Code Complete) then the first quarter of the book may feel like the same old same old. And of course with there being exactly 100 items, some are more heavyweight than others. But there's definite C++ meat here, in particular with the items on Exceptions and the STL.
   
   C++ Coding Standards is as well-written as you'd expect from the authors - their friendly, slightly conversational writing styles mesh nicely and I couldn't tell who wrote which bits. And it's a great summary and unification of C++ best practices that someone just starting out could easily refer to in their initial forays. Perhaps even more experienced hands will discover a few tips, implications or issues that they hadn't considered before. It could also be a good way to ensure that a team are all up to date on best practices.
   
   Essential for those with a large C++ library? Probably not, but it does the job it sets out to do very well.



3. If you own the 3 "Exception C++" books, do not buy this book. It is just a mirror copy of those. And the explanation in this book is brief. Typically, if you are familiar with the content of this book, it works as a quick reference manual or pocket book.



4. I had high expectations about the fruit of the association of 2 authors that I appreciate but the result did not meet these expectations. Basically this book provides 101 rules or guidelines that you can get for free by looking at the table of content. Each of these rules is then followed by a very short explanation (1 or 2 pages usually). In my opinion, most of them are common wisdom that you can get from other sources. This is it. That is all you will get from this book. For that reason, I recommend to skip this one except if a convenient and compact collection of common knowledge is something that you are looking for.



5. I think this is one of the most useful C++ books one could have if working in a team. Most companies don't have a very large set of coding standards, and every now and then there will be a discussion about which is the best way to implement something. That is the time to when this book shines:
   
   1) You can show your co-workers the page for the related item, and the explanation for the underlying rationale will be so concise, they can read it while standing.
   2) Every item is backed with heavy references to standard works by the top names in C++.
   
   Basically it is a tool for effectively ending discussions in the most constructive way possible.
   
   It's the supreme index into the world of collected C++ knowledge.

5 comments about SAS Certification Prep Guide: Base Programming for SAS 9.

1. For novice and experienced programmers who wants to write certification exam its a good reference book. I recommend to buy this book.



2. The most notable attribute of the SAS Prep Guide is that it contains a lot of information not included in the two programming classes that I've taken from the SAS Institute (Base Programming I and II). The classes were great, but the book adds even more material (and if it's on the test, I want to know about it!). The book is thorough, over 750 pages of material and includes about 10 questions at the end of each chapter as a test (answers and explanations in the back of the book). Also, the book doubles as a reference guide in case you're stumped and need a resource. I have not used the CDROM at all and thus have no comments in regards to it. Overall, I suggest it, especially if you can get your company to pay for it!



3. I bought this book and read it many times before the exam. Took notes for concepts that are confusing or may be tricky(like Do while/Until, Length etc.). Passed the test (90% questions correct!) and now preparing for the advanced test. The quizes on the back are good but a bit easier than the test. I also referred the e-planetlabs study guide which had better quizes. Then I reviewd this book again to clear some concepts. Overall, SAS base test is pretty easy if you have these two reference materials. Answering 45 correct questions out of 70 is not that tough. Also SAS website has a mock test which might help practice, but i suggest the e-planet. Good luck.



4. Buying this book from Amazon saved me time and money. I was worried about the cd not being included with the book at the time of purchase. However, the book was brand new with cd wrapped in a plastic wrap. I am very pleased to order this book from Amazon.



5. This is a great book if you are preparing to take the SAS Exam. It covers everything you need to know for the exam and it is very easy to understand. I was able to pass the exam after studying with this book.

5 comments about The Ultimate HTML Reference.

1. 'The Ultimate HTML Reference' is exactly what it says it is. Detailing every HTML tag which is part of the WWW standard, this simple to the point text explains what tags are available and what they do. Detailing out browser compatibility, if its deprecated or not and a little text (a lot for some tags) get the user informed and on their way. Topics are broken up into 10 chapters: 1. HTML Concepts 2. Structural Elements 3. Head Elements 4. List Elements 5. Text Formatting Elements 6. Form Elements 7. Image and Media Elements 8. Table Elements 9. Frame and Window Elements 10. Common Attributes. For any web developer that still finds themselves turning to books wondering what something does, this is a great guide to have by your side.
   
   My only two qualms about this book are #1 the design. sitepoint books have a great layout which is easy to read but the coloring in this book was a little drab. The blues are great but some orange (blue and orange are the official line colors) would have been nice to separate out concepts and points. Using grey and/or lightest blue looks alright but it doesn't have the WOW! factor that other sitepoint books do. #2 is I don't know if this needed to be a hardcover. It's a nice touch but no doubt one that raised the production costs of this book.
   
   Overall a great addition for any and all web developers out there.
   
   ***** HIGHLY RECOMMENDED



2. I'm a old fan of the Sitepoint books (and sitepoint web site). Generally speaking, the books of Sitepoint are truly "delicatessen" books because the quality of illustrations, typography and richest content. This book is the best fully reference about HTML and XHTML that I know. I believe that is an indispensable book for anything interested in web standards.



3. HTML is the root and powerhouse of every site, and the only language key to every web site's existence. So THE ULTIMATE HTML REFERENCE is also a key source for any who would master HTML programming. One of the world's experts in HTML produces a comprehensive reference on the topic, packing scripting notes with explanations and examples. Any library catering to programmers - and any working Web programmer - as well as many seeking a clear reference introduction need THE ULTIMATE HTML REFERENCE.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



4. For over ten years, I have enthusiastically promoted Dave Taylor's "Creating Cool HTML 4 Web Pages" book as my favorite HTML reference book. Its organization, code examples, and writing style are first-rate. I think I may have found a worthy replacement in Ian Lloyd's new "The Ultimate HTML Reference", though I say this with the understanding that this book is really intended for the hard-core HTML coder who needs a handy reference for one of those weird commands that didn't come immediately to mind. This can be a really useful reference for the super-advanced coder, though beginners can get a lot out of this book, too.
   
   Unlike Taylor's book which was laid out in a format that permitted the user to start with simple tasks and build on them, The Ultimate HTML Reference is organized by HTML elements (Structural Elements, Head Elements, List Elements, Text Formatting Elements, Form Elements, Image and Media Elements, Table Elements, Frame and Window Elements, and Common Attributes) and the attributes within the elements (for example, Chapter 4, List Elements, is divided into the various attributes like dl, dd, dt, dir, li, menu, ol, and ul). It even provides a little instruction for basic Javascript commands like onkeydown, onmousedown, ondblclick, and others.
   
   One of the appendices covers deprecated elements - that is, those elements and attributes that are no longer supported by the newest HTML and XHTML standards (but most browsers still permit their use, just the same). Another covers some of those special (read that annoying) proprietary and nonstandard elements (remember the "blink" command in Netscape--that only worked in Netscape?).
   
   The organization of the book makes it very easy for individuals with at least some HTML coding experience to locate the elements and attributes they need, and describes in just enough detail how to apply them. While there aren't as many examples as I might like, there seem to be enough for most users. What I do like is the compatibility chart that goes with each attribute. The chart displays compatibility (Full, Partial, and None) of the attribute against several versions of the most currently popular browsers: Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, and Opera.
   
   Within the book's first 25 pages, readers receive preparation for upcoming changes to the HTML standards, as XHTML (eXtensible HyperText Markup Language, a hybrid of HTML and XML--eXtensible Markup Language--a highly structured, rules-based markup language) begins to take over. XHTML tightens up some of the structuring that was missing in HTML, which makes the code much more readable and easier to modify as needed, and if you need to transition to full XML (for things like content management systems), much of the work has already been done. HTML 4.0 and earlier code, in comparison, can be really sloppy, but it still renders just fine in most browsers. For example, in HTML 4.0, capitalization is optional, and line endings don't need to be terminated in a formatting attribute, like "".
   
   XHTML also imposes more stringent rules on quoting. Every attribute value must be quoted. For example, quoted attributes like class="gallery" are mandatory in HTML 5.0 and newer. HTML 4.0 code permits code like class=gallery.
   
   The author takes pains to differentiate the older HTML vs the new XHTML, and if you haven't started coding in XHTML, be prepared to break newer browsers on their way to a computer near you. Not today, but maybe a year or two (or three) from now, the older HTML formats will begin to disappear as XHTML becomes the new standard. If you want to read more about the differences between HTML and XHTML, check this page out. But I digress...
   
   What surprised me were the number of new attributes and elements that I had not used before that are a part of XHTML as well as newer releases of the HTML specification. It turned out to be very useful in a recent office project where we converted one of our product manuals to HTML--a project that had plenty of tricky points to deal with.
   
   What this book only briefly touches is Cascading StyleSheets (CSS), which are used to apply more advanced and creative formatting to web pages. That said, CSS is completely out of scope to this discussion, though it may be good to know that the same publisher, Sitepoint, has a companion volume, "The Ultimate CSS Reference", by Tommy Olsson and Paul O'Brien, also $44.95. I was so impressed, I bought a copy for myself. I've already discovered that The Ultimate CSS Reference is equally valuable to a web programmer's arsenal of reference materials. A Javascript book from Sitepoint is also in the works.
   
   A companion website contains everything in the book, fully hyperlinked and searchable, as an additional valuable resource. It's free, to boot. The free companion site to the CSS reference book can be accessed at http://reference.sitepoint.com/css.
   
   What can I say? This book replaced Taylor's book as my primary HTML reference at home and at the office. It's well worth the 45 dollar price-tag. I can only find fault with the fact that it doesn't have enough chunks of sample HTML and illustrations of how the HTML will render. Most of my loyal readers (?) know that I'm pretty tough with my ratings, but taking that really small negative into account, I give this book the MyMac Magazine rating of 4.5 out of 5.



5. Great reference as I'm using HTML on our website and with job postings. I needed something a little more in depth so that I can do fun things with them and this has been great. Some of it's a little over my head which is why I purchased a second reference. What can I say, I'm kind of a techie, office geek and I like to learn. :^)

5 comments about The Ultimate CSS Reference.

1. Every part of CSS is covered. The browser support and compatibility is given for every property. The layout is extremely well thought out and makes finding information incredibly easy. And to top it all off, Sitepoint makes the book available on-line as well, for free. It is fully searchable. This is just a great tool for anyone working on site design.
   
   As others have mentioned, if one is looking for lots of tutorials or help in learning how to do CSS, they may want to supplement this with something else. This is mostly just reference with brief introductory information. But that is what makes it great. A person who already knows what they are doing does not have to wade through a bunch of explanation and teaching. This is just the facts.
   
   I highly recommend this to any serious web developer or designer.



2. §
   
   In the ancient days of early 1999 I had to put together my own CSS reference. I had to figure out by trial and error what parts of CSS were implemented and which were most useful and least buggy. Back then it seemed most Web experts / lecturers were very wary of CSS because the leading browser company, Netscape, did not see the transformative potential of HTML stylesheets.
   
   I uploaded my "Cascading Style Cheatsheet" (http://home.tampabay.rr.com/bmerkey/cheatsheet.htm) and over the years it has become a popular link. We really don't need attempts of that sort anymore when we have books like this one.
   
   Like its companion volume (The Ultimate HTML Reference) this book is simply but elegantly laid out in a way that makes it easy to use. The language is clear and the examples are directed to the most useful aspects of serious Web page and Web application implementations.
   
   Because I make my living designing Web applications based upon the Internet Explorer browser, I was pleased to see excellent coverage of the proprietary (but very useful) CSS properties and values. Many books do not mention these because they are not part of the W3C specification. For good measure, a sprinkling of the -moz extensions of Firefox are also covered.
   
   This book, sitting alongside its HTML companion, should be a solid (hard-backed!) addition to your technical library.
   
   §



3. Any computer collection catering to programmers and covering CSS will find "The Ultimate CSS Refrence" to be the definitive work for mastering CSS, the building block of nearly every web site today. Written by two of the world's most renowned CSS experts, "The Ultimate CSS Reference" features extensive tips, facts, and detail. A perfect for college-level or advanced computer libraries.



4. The ultimate CSS reference by Tommy Olsson and Paul O'Brien is exactly what it says, a reference guide. As with all books however I've read this one cover to cover. The book covers every single CSS keyword, selector, pseudo-class and corresponding attribute known (including some that aren't even in the official ratified W3C standard but are supported by certain browsers and some that are currently in the standard but aren't supported by any of the major browsers) from CSS version 1 right through to the latest CSS 3.
   
   The book is very well laid out and easy to look up as a reference with chapters on layout, list styles, box properties etc. Next to this is a quick reference stating whether or not the attribute is inherited, it's initial value, which version of the official W3C specification it comes from and a quick browser support reference stating whether it's fully supported by the browser, partially supported, not supported at all or whether the implementation is buggy for a particular browser. This is followed by a description of what the attribute does, any values that it takes followed by a more complete browser compatibility list. The list covers the major browsers that are currently out from IE5.5 through IE7, Firefox 1.0 through 2.0, Safari 1.3 through 3.0 and Opera 9.2. Following this is a brief description of any compatibility issues as listed .
   
   As with any book of this nature, basically it is out of date virtually as it's printed. With Firefox 3.0 and Opera 9.5 just being released and Internet Explorer 8.0 just around the corner. However this and it's companion Ultimate HTML reference are definitely two books that I'd love to see updated once the new set of browsers are out.
   
   Scattered throughout the book are numerous references to W3C RFCs, web sites showing compatibility issues and differences between the way various browsers handle the CSS etc. that are very useful.
   
   This book is a must for any web developer no matter which programming language you use to build your web sites. Combine it's sister book with this one and you really do have the ultimate web reference sitting at your fingertips. No more looking through obscure RFC's. When you're designing a web site and come across a quirk in how you thought something should have been laid out, or a CSS selector then simply reach for this book and it will tell you if indeed it is a bug or whether you are just implementing incorrectly.
   Tommy and Paul should be proud of what they have produced and this book should grace every web developers desk and be within fingertip reach.



5. Overall I give this book four stars. This is a REFERENCE book; not really intended for beginners. However, I read about some properties I did not know existed previously, so I learned a lot in addition to having one place to look up everything. I do like that it's hardcover--though I wish one of these days Sitepoint could make books that are able to lay flat!
   
   I also like the fact that after every property, there is a little box that explains which browsers are compatible with it. The book even explains if the property is buggy (looking at you, IE), and then delves into why and if there is a fix. Unfortunately, this list will soon need additions to them, with the coming of IE8, Chrome, etc, etc. Still, very useful.
   
   It doesn't receive a perfect five because I wish more example pictures could be displayed. I don't mean for the very basic things (like the height property). In some of the explanations, I was only 80 to 90% sure of what the paragraph was talking about, and with web I am very visual. I know this would have taken up more space, but I felt it was needed (but only for certain sections). I also didn't like how the "index" is set up. I think there should have been another index (keywords) in addition to the current, property-only one. For instance, div isn't even mentioned there. I know that's an HTML tag but it would have been nice to see all the keywords throughout the book regarding it, considering its interaction with CSS. I guess I'm not used to that sort of index, which is basically the Table of Contents but at the end of the book.
   
   So yes, I would say if you want one book to look up all the different properties of CSS, this is it. Again, this is a reference, not a book with tutorials and explanations on how to create something specific (recommend the anthology book for that).

5 comments about Java(TM) Puzzlers: Traps, Pitfalls, and Corner Cases.

1. You really have to be a language weenie to care about many of these. If you're looking to become a better programmer, or simply to be entertained, this probably isn't the right book.



2. This book was so much fun to read but more importantly it surprised me a couple of times ... which is what i expected when i got it ...
   
   Cutting it short, if you are looking for some puzzlers ( some real ones ) get this book, at least you'll have some fun ...
   
   Regards
   Vyas, Anirudh



3. Completing the puzzles in this book will increase your knowledge of the Java language spec. This book was written by 2 of the world's foremost Java experts.



4. This book presents several problems that maybe even expert Java developers never thougt about. Some of them are only curious corner cases, others present tricky behaviours of the language that every developer must be aware of to avoid unwanted behaviours. I warmly suggest this book as a complement to "Effective Java", by the same author.



5. This is an amusing and at the same time amazing book that helps avoiding some very dark corners you might not have been aware of when programming in Java. I used FindBugs to test for some of the pitfalls described in the book in some codebases we had and did I find errors! Go get yourself a copy.

5 comments about Java(TM) Programming Language, The (4th Edition) (Java Series).

1. This book presents the basics of the Java programming language. Java is an object-oriented programming language, with a syntax inspired from the C and C++ programming languages [1, 2]. An important distinction must be made between the different parts of what is traditionally referred to as Java. Java is made of four parts: Java the programming language [3], Java the virtual machine [4], Java the standard set of libraries [5], and Java the specifications [6, 7]. This book is about the programming language.
   
   The Java language basics covered in this book include classes and objects, fields, constants, constructors, methods, parameters, variables, arrays, strings, character sets, comments, garbage collection and memory management, inheritance, access controls, method overloading, interfaces, exceptions, packages, object cloning, primitive data types and their wrapper objects, type conversion, literals, arithmetic and conditional operators, statements and blocks, multithreading, file and network input/output streams, collections, observables, date and time, randomization, string tokenization, system properties, system calls, security, mathematics, and Java-to-C/C++ mapping. Additions to the fourth edition include the new J2SE 5.0 features, including generics, enums, annotations, assertions, and regular expressions. With so many bacics and the latest features, this book establishes as a comprehensive coverage of the Java programming language essentials, as for the 5.0 version of the Java 2 Standard Edition platform.
   
   The authors of this book are also the co-founders of the Java language. Therefore, their authorship makes the book a de facto reference. Nevertheless, the discourse register hesitates between authoritative descriptions and the will to explain. The latter inclination of the register makes the content easier to understand, although the book cannot be considered as a tutorial. Simple examples illustrate the concepts presented, and a few exercises are progressively proposed with the reading. This unexpected combination of authority and pedagogy makes the book a valuable contribution to any computer scientist willing to learn the Java language from an authoritative reference. Beginners should however consider reading a dedicated tutorial book [8].
   
   [1] L. H. Miller, A. E. Quilici, The Joy of C.
   [2] B. Stroustrup, The C++ Programming Language.
   [3] B. Joy et al., Java Language Specification.
   [4] T. Lindholm, F. Yellin, The Virtual Machine Specification.
   [5] P. Chan, The Java Developers Almanac.
   [6] Sun Microsystems, API Specifications, Sun Web site.
   [7] The Java Community Process Program, Java Specification Requests.
   [8] M. Campione, K. Walrath, The Java Tutorial.



2. I thought I have fine Java knowledge, actually I already knew most stuff in this book exception some new things from Java 5. But the way these authors present Java language in such a simple, clean way make me felt I was overconfident about my Java knowledge. I believe this book benefits more for experienced Java programmer than newbie. It's terrific for beginners too, save you lots of fluff.



3. every programming language supposedly has two books: one tutorial, and the other a reference manual. the tutorial's strength lies in illuminating examples and progressive organization of the materials, while the reference book should shine with conciseness and rigorousness.
   
   this book organizes the topics in a weird way, and the examples lack insights. one can judge this by looking at the "exception" chapter: verbose and not to the point.



4. and would like to learn Java, then this is the book for you. It provides a very good discussion on all important topics in Core Java at a level that would suit a person who understands the basics of object oriented programming and wants to learn Java. There is a nice discussion on threading and even the Reflection API which is not usually covered in introductory texts in Java finds a place here...furthermore it is written by the founder of Java and it shows..the text is lucid without running the risk of being terse, and there are enough examples to illustrate the key points. Overall I would highly recommend this book to any programmer wishing to learn Java.



5. I am very satisfied with this Java(TM) Programming Language, The (4th Edition) (The Java Series) book because it includes all necesary information to learn about the language and make exercises, It is great for me and I recomend it very much.