Customer Reviews

C++ for Java Programmers

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Although C++ is definitely on the decline, it will be a major force in the programming world for years to come. This book is an excellent intro to the language taught specifically for a person with some Java experience, and it does do an effective job of comparing and contrasting the two languages. The analogies, I feel are invaluable to understanding abstract concepts in C++, and the approach is better than starting from the ground up, if you understand Java at a fundamental level. I also have to disagree with the reviewer below: the writing is quite good, it's concise and not excessively technical. I suspect that that reviewer is unfamiliar with contemporary texts on computer science, because this is one of the more readable ones I know.

Although the latter few chapters were not, I feel, exceptionally helpful, the book is a much better and lighter (not to mention cheaper) alternative to others out there, and is quite worth it, in every way.

Very useful. It respects its contract: saving your time by progressively build on your Java background the core concepts necessary to understand the C++ language (instead of reading a 1000 pages reference book). Sometimes the comparison of design issues between JAVA and C++ (for instance about class immutability) suppose that the reader has already a solid knowledge about object oriented programming and/or design patterns, but not necessarily requires it (by the way, if you're a JAVA programmer and you didn't read Effective Java Programming Language Guide, you may have missed something). Along with a strong experience in C, this book allow you to become an intermediate C++ programmer in only few days !

And remember: "[...] it is certainly not true that Java is better than C++, neither would we say that C++ is better than Java. Instead, a modern programmer should be able to use both languages, as each language has applications that can make it the logical choice". I deeply agree with the author's opinion.

I used this book in an introductory C++ class in college. Being a senior in Computer Science who has only been taught with Java, this book is a great starter to get into the world of C++. Nearly everything that is explained in the book is given an equivalent example in Java.

Having never used C++ before, I can recommend this for those who are starting with C++, but have a strong Java background. I wouldn't recommend this as an introductory book for a beginner in the world of programming, as it delves into many advanced topics right away.

I'm not a student, but a professional developer and this book (or textbook) was my ticket to cross my mind from Java to C++. I used to program C++ thinking in Java. Professor Weiss described the differences of very similar topics of the languages. For example, Since Java constructors are very similar to the ones in C++, I felt that I new everything about constructors specifically single parameter constructors until I read about the keyword "explicit". Another "AHA" moment for me was object slicing. It also helped me to realize that C++ is not "just another language". You really have to spend a few years studying the language in order to master it.
Also, I submitted a small error and Professor Weiss updated the errata much faster that what I was expecting.

I bought this book due to the high reviews. I found this book lacking in answering any questions I had about C++. I was jumping into an existing C++ application and needed to know how to implement my ideas using C++ syntax, and understand the code I was expected to fix. It did not cover:
- parameter passing (reference, pointers, or value types)
- over-riding methods
- abstract class (virtual methods, pure virtual methods)
- how to create objects, variable name, class name. All new to Java developers that put everything on the heap.

It would be nice to cover project layout as well. Java has only a few structures and C++ seems to be the wild west. The fact that implementations can be in multiple source files and/or multiple libraries was not covered at all. This was a very new and confusing concept to a long time Java developer. Maybe this is more of a review for C++ developers coming back to the fold.

The book is logical and mostly clear. It has its weaknesses but for a Java programmer who wants to understand how the C++ sections of the project could possibly be taking so long and causing such problems, this probably the right book to start with (i.e. I haven't found a better one and am reasonably satisfied).

I read a lot of computer books and was more hopeful that this book would be easier to handle than what reality dished out. After the third chapter, I was totally lost, then I realized that the most applicable use of this book is as a FINE REFERENCE rather than a cover-to-cover type of read. So, whenever a C++ compilation fails, at least I know that this book will likely be helpful, but really with the mindset that a pinpointed problem needs to be solved. The author clearly knows his stuff. If you're looking for a guided tour of the transition from Java to C++ with the hope that you could accomplish it in one sweep through a book, then look elsewhere, if even such a book exists. Judge for yourself, but perhaps this goal is unreasonable. WELL DONE, Mr. Weiss.

Book was in great condition when it got here. Shipping container was a little flimsy, but this is probably the shipping companies fault and not the seller's.