5 comments about The Definitive Guide to symfony (Definitive Guide).

1. What separates symfony from the rest of the frameworks at the moment is the documentation. Every noteworthy feature and approach is documented in the book and the Askeet tutorial is great for real-life implementations. If you are serious about Symfony, get this book.



2. Symfony is one of the few well documented web application frameworks. Even so, the authors gave a great contribution to those willing to learn the basics as well as the complex aspects of Symfony in a clear, direct manner. Two thumbs up!



3. Well written and understandable for such a large chunk of software. You can be the judge yourself, of course, by reading it online before you buy the hard copy. I'd definitely recommend having the real thing if you're just starting with symfony though.. you can't dogear or bookmark the online version.



4. The books contains all the information you can find in the online manual on the website of the symfony project.
   If you know this before (and I did), the book has the same quality like the online manual, in my opinion a very good one.



5. I'm a freelancer that was in search of a framework that would allow me to expeditiously develop applications for my clients, without sacrificing reliability. After researching several PHP-based MVC frameworks, I landed on symnfony due to its comprehensive set of features, strong OOP support, PHP5 utilization, and (very importantly) the great documentation. Yes, this book is available in web format online - but I'm very glad I made the purchase so I could learn the framework as I traveled, and it's much easier to use as a reference (I have it sprawled across my desk as I type this review). If you're looking for a great framework, I'm convinced symfony is it. And if you're looking to learn symfony, and have a resource as you build your skills, this book is what you'll need. The only caviat is, if you have no Object-Oriented programming experience, I would recommend you pick up "Objects, Patterns, & Practice" by Apress before learning symfony.

5 comments about A Practitioner's Guide to Software Test Design.

1. The top two software testing books that I recommend are Systematic Software Testing (ISBN 1580535089), and this gem. Whereas the first book gives a complete process and accompanying practices, this one focuses on a collection of highly effective techniques that every test professional should have in his or her toolbox.

   Copeland starts off with an overview of testing as a process, followed by case studies. These lay the foundation for the techniques for which a chapter is devoted to each technique. The chapters on the techniques are divided into collections of techniques that are most effective for blackbox (seven) and whitebox (two) testing. The next chapters are devoted to scripted testing with an emphasis on IEEE 829, exploratory testing, and test planning. The book wraps up with an outstanding chapter on software defect taxonomies, advice on when to stop testing, and case studies.

   So why did I state this book is a page turner? Copeland has masterfully used humor, statements that catch you off guard, and a warm conversational style to hold your attention. Among the priceless gems of humor are the off-the-wall quotes that he uses in front of each chapter. One of many examples of how he holds your attention by catching you off guard is in Chapter 6 on pairwise testing: 'Why does pairwise testing work so well? I don't know', which he then follows up with one of the most cogent explanations of the technique I've had the pleasure of reading. As an aside, his treatment of pairwise testing - and the power of that technique - is reason enough to read this book.

   Another aspect of this book I like is the thoroughness with which he presents techniques. This includes citing the work of other well known practitioners, using case studies, summaries, practice scenarios, and additional references for each chapter. Copeland also has a talent for clearly articulating and conveying complex topics and concepts, adding to this book's value as both courseware and a working reference.

   If you are a software testing professional, or you are responsible for teaching this discipline this is one of the top books in my opinion. It is not as wide in scope as Software Testing: A Craftsman's Approach (ISBN: 0849308097), but it makes up for that by covering the essentials in the clearest possible manner.




2. Lee Copeland's book, "A Practitioner's Guide to Software Test Design" provides an easily read introduction into a critical but often ignored subject. As those familiar with the IEEE Standard for Software Test Documentation (IEEE-Std-829) know, Test Design is the first step in turning the "What" of the Test Plan into the "How" of test execution. The IEEE Test Documentation lifecycle is Test Plan - Test Design - Test Case Development - Test Procedure Development - (Test Execution) - Test Summary Report creation. Many test engineers proceed directly from Test Planning into Test Procedure creation, and do Test Design implicitly as opposed to explicitly. This can have a negative impact on an effective test program. This book clearly shows how to implement the test design process described in Drabick's book "Best Practices for the Formal Software Testing Process".
   
   Lee's book provides a concise description based on excellent Case Studies of Black-Box (Requirements Focused) test techniques, moving from the simple (Equivalence Class and Boundary Value testing) to the more complex (Domain Analysis and Use Case testing). He provides the best description I've seen of test case development using orthogonal arrays. Lee then addresses White-Box (Structural Focused) testing, showing how to approach Control Flow and Data Flow testing. Again, he has the best description with illustrative examples of Data Flow testing that I've ever seen.
   
   Lee then describes two Test Paradigms: Scripted Testing and Exploratory Testing that appear to be significantly different, and shows how the two can be used together for even more effective testing. That's the way I've always done testing, by the way.
   
   His Defect Taxonomies chapter provides valuable insight on how to use such information in test design (I never thought of that), and he concludes with a short chapter that addresses the critical question When to Stop Testing.
   
   The Case Studies on "Brown & Donaldson" and "Stateless University Registration" are effectively used to provide valuable insight into the techniques.
   
   This book would be a good read in combination with the book from Rick Craig and Stefan Jaskiel, "Systematic Software Testing".
   
   In summary, this book is well done, is an easy read, and should be read by every test engineer.



3. Most texts on software testing have a chapter or two which describe test design techniques. This is the first text that is devoted exclusively to this subject. There is little in the way of theory. The text is practical and provides the software test professional with clear explanations and examples of test techniques that have been proven to be effective.
   
   Although Copeland covers both black box (behavioral) and white box (developer oriented) test techniques, the majority of the test design techniques described are black box. Each technique is explained along with its applicability, advantages/disadvantages, along with references for more information.
   
   For what can be a dry subject, Copeland effectively used humor to make this book very readable.
   
   I also appreciated the chapter summaries, key points in the margins, and a thorough works cited -- including several web articles. Highly recommended.



4. This information in this book is simply presented and very easy to apply.
   
   I think the price is a bit high compared to a related book (Systematic Software Testing by Rick D Craig and Stefan P Jaskeil). I managed to get the other book (536 pages) for about $40.00. While the other book represents much better value, I still bought this one and would do it again. If you can only buy one, I'd suggest getting Systematic Software Testing.



5. This is a great reference, giving a good overview of most common test methods. Good bases for in-depth study or to structure a class around.

5 comments about Learning MySQL (Learning).

1. The first twelve chapters of "Learning MySQL" appear to be a textbook written in the mid-1990s for teaching MySQL to college students. Chapter 13 appears to have been added in 1999, about using MySQL with PHP to build websites. The first twelve chapters require using a terminal or command line (shell) interface to MySQL. My hosting service no longer supports command line interfaces, you're required to use PHPmyAdmin, which is faster and easier. Without access to a command line interface I couldn't do the exercises in the first twelve chapters; without understanding the first twelve chapters you can't figure out chapter 13. Chapter 13 teaches the PHP mysql extensions, which were superseded in 2004 by the mysqli ("i" for "improved") extensions. So the book is two generations out of date. Chapter 14 is about using Perl with PHP -- has anyone built a website with Perl in the last five years? There are other annoyances, such as you're taught to read data out of your database before you're taught to insert data into your database. After flipping back and forth between sections trying to find missing information I gave up. It's hard to believe that O'Reilly published this dinosaur in 2006. I recommend instead "Beginning PHP and MySQL 5: From Novice to Professional," by W. Jason Gilmore.



2. This book is great. The text doesn't assume you have any advanced knowledge of anything. This is actually my second MySQL book. The first book didn't explain how to install and setup MySQL and then it didn't explain how to use the keyline MySQL monitor. So I was stuck after the first chapter.
   
   "Learning MySQL" was a real life saver. You're given actual examples to follow along with and they actually explain what's going on.
   Thank you sooooo much... I'm already using my new found MySQL knowledge at my job and now the book serves as a great resource for my new projects.



3. That's a good book, not for advanced SQL programmers though.
   Easy to understand with great examples. I would recommend this book if you are starting to learn MySQL or are a intermediate programmer and needs a good database like MySQL. This book can be a reference for your studies. If I had this book before I could spent less time learning MySQL. But I probably would not recommend for heavy advanced SQL users, since the book have an overall idea of the SQL commands and some linux/php/database coding. Digg in!



4. Learning MySQL (Learning)
   
   Get this book! This O'Reilly book "Learning MySQL" first appeared in the book stores at the beginning of the year 2007. The book is written by two PhD authors who seem to have thoroughly tried its contents on their students, at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia. You can buy this book and then create a splendid software career for yourself, programming Relational Databases. And live happily ever after.
   
   If you are a total SQL beginner, please also buy a more simple-minded introductory SQL text as well; make you favorite pick among the 20-odd SQL texts available in your local bookstore, or read Amazon's reviews associated with all the other SQL books.
   
   Now back to "Learning MySQL". I'm enjoying this book wherever I go, inserting my USB flash drive on any Windows machine I can lay my hands on. I have installed my free copy of MySQL on this low-cost device ($20 for a 4 GigB flash drive), together with Java, Apache Tomcat, FireFox, and other opensource goodies. My point is that this MySQL book covers Windows as well as it deals with Linux and Mac OS X, almost always in the same breath.
   
   I typically try out the book's examples at the mysql> command prompt, but my own final application right now happens to consist of Java servlets, talking to MySQL databases, and running in Tomcat under the Java Virtual Machine (JVM), all on the puny USB flash drive without disturbing the particular Windows machine I'm visiting.
   
   By following the book's examples I have built up a mental toolbox containing all the standard SQL techniques and all the helpful but proprietary MySQL extensions to SQL. Extensions which you might, or might not, want to assimilate, depending on your purity point of view.
   
   As you go through the book's examples on your own mysql> command line, you realize that each example probably in an explanation triggered by questions from the authors' bright MySQL students. It is like sitting in their classroom lapping up the authours' knowledge. And, these authors know their stuff, something that cannot always be said of other SQL books.
   
   One feature, among others in the book, is the authors' short but wonderful Chapter 4, where the reader is led by the hand through The Entity Relationship Model, and through the authors' database examples illustrating the super-important topic of How to map Entities and Relationships to Database Tables. There, the authors also point out existing tools to draw ER diagrams, such as the good free tool "Dia", or MySQL's own free "MySQL Workbench program" which is a very powerful visual database design tool, although still in the beta testing phase.
   
   One last, but not least, comment. It appears that the book is extremely well suited to those Perl or PHP lovers, who want to get their MySQL teeth sharpened. But this reviewer is not into Perl nor PHP, yet, so don't take my word for it.



5. this book is a very completed and updated quick look to database world and optimal reference book for sql/mySQL primer.
   Stefano Gallozzi

5 comments about Color Management in Digital Photography: Ten Easy Steps to True Colors in Photoshop.

1. Written by photographer, software designer and teacher Brad Hinkel, Color Management in Digital Photography: Ten Easy Steps to True Colors in Photoshop is a methodical, full-color guide to making the most of digital color photography using Photoshop software. Numerous computer screenshots illustrate the step-by-step instructions, and the straightforward text is written to be accessible to digital photography novices as well as seasoned digital photographers who are relatively unfamiliar with what Photoshop has to offer. Steps range from the most basic "Select a Color Space" (such as RGB or Adobe RGB) to "Profile Your Monitor" to "Advanced Printing" and "Adjusting Your Color for Printing". Enthusiastically recommended for any Photoshop user interested in improving the quality of their digital color photographs.



2. For years I struggled with how to deal with a simple problem of getting what I see on screen to be the same as what I print a photo lab. Color management shouldn't be such a difficult task though it usually is unless you know some preparation and steps you need to take. Most casual photographers don't give a thought, and photo ops do a pretty decent job producing printed photos that make us happy enough that we don't think color management is an issue. But if you're taking photos that include portraits, sunsets, landscapes or any situation where precise colors matter, you began thinking about color management.
   
   Brad Hinkel does a superb job explaining the reasoning and science behind color spaces and how it applies to digital workflow color management. From the beginning to end this relatively short and concise book takes the reader through 10 important steps of not only understanding but how to accurately reproduce your intended photos in all their vibrant color glory. From choosing a good monitor to converting your colors to the right color space for the intended output, when you read this book you will approach managing your photos with a new expert eye.
   
   Beginners might have a bit tougher time with the learning curve of understanding color management even with this well-written easy-to-read title, but an intermediate to advanced user would find it highly educational and a fast read. This one definitely falls in my highly recommended category.



3. What you see is seldom what you get when you make the arduous journey from digital image file to hard copy. It's a royal pain in the ASCII.
   
   Most of us pass off the color difference between what we see on our monitor and what we get in our prints with a shrug of the shoulders. It's just one of those vagaries of computing, right?
   
   Generally, that's a healthy attitude for the casual computer user/digital photographer. There are enough hassles in life without looking for new ones. On the other hand, if you're trying to make a living in graphic arts/photography, color management looms large in your professional life.
   
   Some days, when I'm working on several computers, each with it's own color quirks, it gets frustrating. The book nicely bridges the color management gap with thorough explanations of color space and how to calibrate and profile your monitor.
   
   Obviously, a good monitor is going to be an important component of the management process. Hinckel covers the related subjects as well as making some specific recommendations. He also looks beyond the monitor and discusses a good work environment.
   
   There are specific software packages like Monaco OPTIC and Monaco EZcolor that are more powerful than the color management programs that come with printers and photo/graphic editing software. There is a good explanation of how these work.
   
   Hinkel explorers numerous printing option, tells how to test your system, and then he moves into Advanced Printing.
   
   This book presents a comprehensive, easy-to-understand overview of color management. Hallelujah. This book may actually inspire all of us color-management-procrastinators to jump in and get this vital area of graphic arts under control.



4. My color experience is from being a long time film photographer. Digital color management principals were new to me before this book. Having completed it, I feel that I understand the fundamentals and have made some excellent color prints using Photoshop CS3 on my Intel MacMini printing to my HP B9180 archival printer. These prints are as good or slightly better than any I've made using traditional chemical color printing processes. If you want to make better prints on any inkjet printer, this is a great handbook!



5. I found this book well written ,easy to read and helpfull in a general way ,the information was organized and presented a logical manner .However the subject matter seems somewhat dated and lacking in the depth that I was looking for

5 comments about Foundation Flash Cartoon Animation (Foundation).

1. Since there was no review posted of this book I figured I'd add my bit. This is an independent review - but it isn't entirely impartial. I work at Animax and have had the opportunity to read several of the chapters as part of my training, to work with the authors in a production environment and to see this book in action everyday - these are real world procedures used in a dynamic, award winning and fast growing studio.
   
   The chapters on character setup alone are worth the price of the book in my opinion. Learning these techniques you can maximize usability -and re-usability- of your art assets. You'll find the time spent upfront, preparing characters the Animax way, will speed up your animation production which is a real boon to small independent studios with limited resources, and larger studios looking to better structure their pipeline.
   
   Amazon has an excerpt from the beginning of the book, and the publisher -FriendsofED- has a sample chapter posted on their website. You can use these to get a sense of the quality and depth of coverage of this excellent book.



2. This book is probably best for the reader who has some drawing experience, and preferably, a grasp of animation principlals as well as some Flash experience.
   
   It should be noted, there isn't an over-arching animation project created in this book; However, readers could certainly follow along with their own project as the process is fairly linear, from the planning stages, through effectively using Flash's library and a host of useful plug-in for tasks such as timing and motion tweening. There is a fair bit of coverage of Adobe's After Effects, and the book discuses the pros and cons of doing various tasks in either software.
   
   For Flash animators, two chapters stand out in the 300 pages: There is one chapter on how to properly use Flash's tweening tools so as to avoid the overly-precise look common with generated animations. A second is on 2D effects, covering common special effects like smoke, fire and water.



3. not only did i read the book cover to cover i went back into the book and downloaded the source files and worked through the tutorials. this book is perfect for organizing and creating flash animation at a professional level which is a key foundation for any up and coming flash animator. this book teaches you industry secrets that are priceless if you are pursuing a flash animation career. thanks guys. the best flash book i have come acrossed in a long time.
   josh johnson



4. There are many books about cartoon animation in Flash. What sets this book apart from the rest is the approach the authors have taken to make this book much more than just another step-by-step book about drawing and animating characters. Foundation Flash Cartoon Animation is for the animator who needs to stretch beyond the mechanics of the Flash tools and perfect the decision-making process necessary to become a productive animator. One of the biggest questions that is answered in this book is when to use Flash and how to use it most efficiently. The next question is what tasks are beyond Flash's capabilities and when to turn to another software such as After Effects.
   
   The authors assume that the reader has a basic knowledge of Flash and the principles of animation. Because of this, you will find only a few step-by-step examples. What they do cover thoroughly is every phase of the production process for cartoon animation from planning, storyboards and animatics to post-production and delivery. The approach for this book is to examine working examples which can be downloaded from the publisher's website.
   
   If you have ever created a complex character animation including lip synching and facial expressions, then you know that your character must be divided into a large number of individual animated parts. This is why the authors dedicate a whole chapter to organization and using the Flash library system to build character libraries. As you progress through the process from head comps and onward, the authors show when it is best to draw from scratch and when to use Flash symbols. Storyboards and animatics are next in the production process and the book covers several decisions that must be made such as choosing between traditional, hand-drawn storyboards and the digital method in Flash.
   
   Moving from the planning stages to character creation, the authors discuss the technical and organizational issues such as Flash file structures and project architecture. They take a look at several working examples to give the reader a comprehensive overview of this topic. One of the most helpful aspects of this book is how the authors help you decide when Flash is not enough to get the job done and how to expand Flash's capabilities with plug-ins. They discuss several of their favorites, how to find more on the web and when to make your own.
   
   One of the most important decisions that an animator will need to make is the choice between traditional frame by frame animation and tweening. The authors share their four step process for frame by frame animation and then discuss tweening and how to avoid common mistakes.
   
   I mentioned earlier that the authors discuss the use of a dedicated motion graphic software such as After Effects to take your Flash project to a higher level of quality and sophistication. They discuss some of the advantages to using After Effects for editing and composition such as complex camera movements and 3D effects.
   
   Flash has been plagued by one major drawback since its conception a decade ago and that is the extreme "digital" look of the vector artwork created in Flash. The authors share several tips and suggestions for enhancing your Flash project to achieve a more "hand-drawn" appearance to your animation including line styles and color choices. They also cover the digital equivalents for traditionally hand-drawn special effects such as distortion, drag, fade in/out and blurs.
   
   This book was a joint effort of several authors. Tim Jones is an Emmy Award-winning producer and writer and head of production at ANIMAX Entertainment. Barry J. Kelly is an Emmy Award-winning editor and artist and is also a member of ANIMAX Entertainment. Allan S. Rosson is animation director at ANIMAX Entertainment and has over twenty years experience as an animator. David Wolfe was an animator at ANIMAX Entertainment and is now with Cartoon Network Studios.



5. This book is a must for everyone who is tired of animating on paper and wishes to ditigalize their work completely in Flash or After Effects. The book covers many great aspects including; making shortcuts of your workflow with user made extensions, brilliant tips & tricks and personal advices how to make life easier for the animators.
   
   This book is also amazing for those who already have knowledge of Flash or After Effects, but wish to enhance their skills or take their production to the next level.
   
   After reading this book, my animation workflow and quality improved.
   
   Best recommendations from here.
   
   
   -Alex Volkov (Flash Animator)

2 comments about Foundations of SQL Server 2005 Business Intelligence.

1. This book is indispensable. It will help expand my limited knowledge in the business intelligence space from FICO scoring and SAS programs to a wider universe.



2. I am new to BI. I needed a book to explain BI and the toolset in the SQL Server 2005. As I have been developing applciations for the last 8 years using Microsoft only technologies therefore I wanted to use SQL Server 2005 for BI path. I found this book very valuable for a new commer to BI like me.
   
   I have gone through only some of the chapters but it has started to make sense. The explanation is very clear and it shows that the writer knows the subject very well. Good arrangement of chapters. Not a boring book. I think after reading this book and going through all the excercises one would have a very good understanding of the subject and how to use to SQL server 2005 BI toolset.
   
   I would say this book puts you above the intermediate level from where you can understand the more complex books. Essential for someone wanting to choose BI as career path. Top work Lynn.

5 comments about C++ All-in-One Desk Reference for Dummies.

1. This book is all you need to get through C++ and MFC. It is fun to read because it feels like the author is really talking to you as he uses humor and gives some background info. I enjoyed reading this book and gained a true understanding of C++ and a few interesting facts about it like why it is C++, not just C+ (++ actually means +1 in equations for this language). this is a must-have C++ book.



2. In the first section, I found TOO MANY geeky jokes and I found that very annoying. I know I read Sams teach yourself C++ in 21 days a few years back, and I felt at that time I got a pretty decent understanding. Now, even though I'm just trying to refresh my memory on C++, I feel the book does not do a good job of teaching me...
   
   That said, I like that the book has lots of topics, if I get only a general idea of stuff.
   
   I would recommend, though, to check out other books and get a glance through this book to see if you can follow it before buying this one...



3. The Title of this book is "C++ All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies".
   However after reading this book it is quite obviously aimed at users of Microsoft products on Microsft systems. C++ is a multi-system language and any book calling itself a "C++ All-in-One Desk Reference" should be demonstrating the language in a pure form, such as the excellent "C All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies" book by Dan Gookin.
   This book either needs to be rewritten to accurately reflect the title or the title needs to be changed to accurately reflect the content, maybe "C++ on Microsoft All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies".
   If you need to learn C++ in a pure form then find another title.



4. The very first program in this book fails in XCode on OS X for it uses a Windows-specific subroutine: system("PAUSE"); will not work on a Mac since this subroutine does not adhere to ANSI C++. The worst part is that the routine is being used in several other programs in the book. If you're thinking of learning C++ on a Mac, this is not your book. I don't understand how the author can claim the book teaches ANSI C++ when its first few programs clearly show it doesn't.



5. This book is a great book for begginers as it teaches many of the begginer topics. I think he writes easy to understand language and teaches you well. If you are just begging programming i highly recommend this book although a 2nd edition is going to be needed soon as some of the software may be getting dated. anyways excellect book i recommend it for new comers. ( also note i code as a hobby so im no expert)

5 comments about Foundations of Python Network Programming (Foundations).

1. This book is offers very broad and detailed information about python's network features. It is very good written with many source examples. The only thing with this book (like many other python books) is, that this book was published early 2003. So things lik "SOAP" or "Twisted" are only scratched. This book really shows the fundamental features of python networking.



2. Apress has two books on Python that I really like. This one and "Dive Into Python". The thing I like about this book is it delves into some deep concepts, like client/server code, but does so in such a way that even people new to Python should have no problem understanding it.
   
   I have been a programmer for about 15 years, and made heavy use of Python for the last 5 or 6 years. My brother is new to programming. Both of us found this book to be very useful and easy to understand. I recommend it to programmers of all levels.



3. This is a well presented, well paced introduction to network programming in Python. He presents programs both as interactive sessions (follow along in the comfort of home) and as scripts (programs) available to download from his web site at Apress.
   
   It serves as a good, general purpose, introduction to network programming as wall as a Python-specific network programming tutorial.
   
   I do, however, have some complaints. Although the author attempts to present information in a platform-neutral manner, it is obvious that he is much more familiar with *nixes than with Windows. There are several minor factual errors in the Windows information he presents. [I have submitted these as error reports on the Apress web site.]
   
   Fortunately none of these disrupt the actual presentation. Experienced Windows programmers will be able to correct the mistakes on-the fly. As a minor example, Windows programmers know they can type "script.py" to run a python program even though Windows doesn't honor the #! line at the beginning of the script.
   
   My other complaint has to do with the use of PyDNS to discuss DNS issues. As far as I can tell PyDNS is dead, or at least it is dying. dnspython would have been a much better choice. However given that the book is three years old, I can't really fault the author for picking the wrong package -- it's happened to all of us at some point in our careers.
   
   And a truly minor quibble: he starts with an example of downloading a file using the gopher protocol. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a gopher server now days



4. It has everything you need to know about Networking Programming in Python. Easy to understand also. It can be made more detail and more advance for profesional use.



5. I'm giving this book 5 stars because I found it more useful than many books. There are some flaws, but overall I am happy that I own this book.
   
   This book uses a teach by example technique as discussed in other chapters. It is oriented towards application developers that find themselves in need of python networking rather than networking people that need python.
   
   The book is overall clearly written and the examples are generally interesting. The author shows an advanced understanding of most of the subject matter. Chapter strength is fairly variant. On the other hand, it's pretty likely that you do not have knowledge of all the topics in this book and will learn something interesting by reading it.
   
   Cons: The chapter on HTML tag matching felt really weak. They tried to treat HTML as a regular language by using state machines to match it, when it's clearly context-free, then he started to add a stack but he had already lost my interest as the examples got fairly unwieldy.

5 comments about Java Examples in a Nutshell, 3rd Edition.

1. Just type these in and learn, learn, learn. Good examples across the board.



2. While writing this I can already imagine the shock and dismay of the Fan crowd with my review. I don't have much time so let me get to the point.
   The 1 star I've given it (bcs I had to, preferable I'd rate it 0 stars) mostly pertains to the GUI section of the book. Instead of providing the reader with abundant and clear examples, this author wants to impress the Java geeks by writing an 'smart' generic class that shows all the different aspects of the java GUI elements. Aside from just lame, this is also done most likely because of laziness. I can imagine it's not very exciting to write up the core program structure for every GUI example. But that's just the way a decent author would go about. No need to waste pages by explicitly mentioning everything more then once. Such things can be saved for the example source right ? But mr Flanagan does not share that view. He sits back with his (admittedly entertaining) 'showcomponent' program that loads in all the gui program code (classes) and displays the material. So, again, his 'Java examples' are merely small files with therein declared a certain class without any(!) surrounding program code. (basically similar to what you'd see in the Swing lang spec). All these compiled examples need to be read in (from the command line no less, by his showcomponent class which then actually does all the work of creating the frame, displaying it etc etc etc.
   
   And then cometh the reader, . . . . The moment you have to incorporate some of these lay-out en control components in you're own program this entire structure is obviously useless. Hence you have to struggle to get every component to work after all. The exact thing one is trying to avoid by buying a book. (No, you can't just copy & paste several separate sources together :) ). Basically you end up doing all the work yourself in the end anyway. Henceforth this book, particularly the part of GUI's , dialog's and event handling is of little practical use. I guess it would qualify as some sort of java coffee table book. Interesting functions, a clever introspective class here and there, things you can sit back and debate about with you're friends.
   Not with you're collegue(s) when you fighting the deadlines.
   While I'm not very proficient in Java, I've coded in c/c++ for far too long. Hence I don't need trivial lectures on what a ip port is. I just need to see some _completed_ (as in finished) programs, to get up and running with particular Java idiosyncrasies & components. If you are in a hurry, and simply have to get something up and running, keep running. Away from this piece of trash.
   Go with "Core Java" or some of the Swing books. it'll get you there much much faster.
   
   Edit: Took the flames out of the review. I was rather disappointed with this title at first. (now it's just collecting dust, but at least it doesn't aggravate me either).
   If you're a programmer, (like me) you can read the spec by yourself. It's the little things on the outside of the program (event & message que's ,window trickery etc.) that differ from platform to platform. Those are the exact things the author glosses over with this text.



3. This book should not be expected to substitute as a tutorial for people looking to learn the Java language. Instead, it is a book full of short programs that each illustrate specific concepts in the Java language. If you are needing a tutorial on the Java language in general, I suggest "Head First Java", which is also published by O'Reilly and Associates. You can either read the appropriate chapters of this book in parallel with that one, or look through this book after you finish the Head First Java book. If you already know Java, keeping an updated edition of this book around as a reference is a great idea.
   The first four chapters of this book cover the basics of Java, objects, classes, interfaces, input/output, and threads. Thus these chapters remain largely unchanged from the previous edition. Chapter 5, on networking, has been updated to reflect the changes in the language since the last edition, and contains examples of a simple network client, an HTTP client, and a POP client in addition to the programs of the previous edition. Chapter six is a new chapter on The new I/O (NIO) APIs introduced in version 1.4. These provide new features and improved performance in the areas of buffer management, scalable network and file I/O, character-set support, and regular-expression matching. The NIO APIs supplement the I/O facilities in the java.io package, and this chapter does a good job of demonstrating the APIs in action. The next chapter that has had a major overhaul is the chapter on printing. Printing in JDK1.4 was updated considerably and allows you to list specific printers with specific capabilities, query printer status, spool text or image files directly to a printer, and convert image files to Postscript files. There are examples of all of these upgrades in this chapter. The chapter on data transfer has largely been rewritten to reflect that Swing has added support for data transfer between applications. When adding data transfer support to Swing, the goal was to make it easy for developers using Swing components to add clipboard transfer as well as drag and drop to an application. The examples in this chapter demonstrate these concepts very well. There is a completely new chapter on the Java Sound API reflecting the capabilities of that API. In addition to simply playing sounds and sequences, the chapter demonstrates synthesizing MIDI and also real-time MIDI. Finally, the last part of the book on the Enterprise API's has been completely rewritten to reflect all of the changes that have taken place in those API's since the last edition due to the popularity of the Java language in enterprise applications.
   Currently, this book is two years old, which is getting a bit long in the tooth for a computer book. This is especially true if you consider the fact that JDK 1.5 has been released since this book was published with its own set of upgrades and nuances, and that JDK 1.6 is scheduled for release in the fall of 2006. I don't know if a fourth edition is planned for the immediate future, so if you can get the 3rd edition used for a low price it might still be worth the investment. If you are a Java novice, it is definitely worth your time and money.



4. Great overall summary of Java with examples. Replaces short surveys, tutorials and cookbooks of Java.



5. This book rocks. I started learning Java about 2 months ago with the Head First Java book, which is AMAZINGLY helpful (even if you know absolutely nothing beforehand). Once I got through that all that I began writing small apps on my own, but found in many cases that the API (Javadoc) was hard to understand because my limited Java knowledge leaves me with no context in many cases. I would think, "ok, it says this class can do this using these methods, and that's what I want, but how exactly do I put this into practice." Java Examples in a Nutshell fills this need perfectly with excellent examples(!), explanations, and clarifications. There's only so much that it can cover, but what it does cover, it covers really well.
   
   I might also add that I bought this book after *returning* Java In A Nutshell because for me it really just seemed like a $50 printout of the API you can read for free at [....].
   
   What I want to say is that, from my own experience, if you are pretty new to Java, and you are clicking well with it, and want a boost to propel you forward even faster, this is an excellent book to buy.

5 comments about Digital Image Processing Using MATLAB(R).

1. If you want to get up to speed on Matlab and plan to use it for image processing, this book is a must.
   
   I have lots of experience in computer graphics and in programming languages like C++ and C#, but prior to reading this book I had never really used Matlab nor implemented complicated image processing algorithms. This book is a great introduction to both.
   
   The book is divided in twelve chapters touching both low-level image processing (e.g. spatial filtering) and higher-level concepts required for computer vision, like image registration and segmentation. Gonzalez et al are talented writers, explaining relatively complicated concepts clearly and concisely, without getting lost in the mathematical details. People interested in the more theoretical aspects should (and probably already have) check their other book.
   
   The only potential downside of this book is that it's definitely designed to be read sequentially, one chapter at a time. The matlab concepts are introduced piece by piece. For example, if you skip Chapter 5 (on image restoration, i.e. getting rid of noise) you may not realize that you missed the introduction to the image registration functions. Personally I liked this style (it added variety to a potentially dry subject), but a reader with less time to cover all of the matter may find this to be a problem.



2. This book educates the reader in image processing and MATLAB. While I am experienced in both, I found the book to be an extrememly useful reference book for projects involving image compression and image representation. The book offered practical descriptions and useful code for computing the fast wavelet transform. It was especially useful in describing how the edges should treated. This is a big issue that other textbooks gloss over. I had never seen it described in a textbook, and it was described so well.
   
   The color image processing chapter is excellent, and the image processing chapter is pretty good. Lots of explanation and code.
   
   While the book stands alone, it can also be seen as a useful companion book to the more theoretical "Digital Imaging Processing" by Gonzalez and Woods (2nd edition). This is a different book even though it has close to the same name.



3. I bought this book for two reasons (a) I needed an overview of IP and (b) I wanted to examine different pattern analysis algorithms with a practical twist. On both counts, as an non-IP researcher, I was very satisfied. The book is very well laid out, so well in fact that it would put to shame many of its rivals. It served my needs. I can't comment on whether it will meet the needs of a broader community. I would certainly recommend it based on my experience.



4. Great text for learning image processing and using it with MATLAB. Hopefully the instructor also uses its mathematical insight as well.



5. This book has been really helpful to write my own tools for image analysis, such as leaf area index estimations from digital images and microscopy imaging analysis.
   
   I think that for people involved in image processing and analyisis, this book is a must.