Customer Reviews

Web Client Programming with Perl

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The book is a bit outdated now but still good for learning Perl and HTTP/web client programming that can be adapted for other languages as well. And since it's old, you can get it for cheap online and at used bookstores.

And for those stingy folks out there, you can read it online instead at the O'Reilly Open Book project:

http://oreilly.com/openbook/webclient/

Notice that the glowing reviews of this book date back to '98. The web has come a long way since then and this book just doesn't hold up well. Don't waste your money on this incomplete, poorly organized, obsolete book.

About 65 pages are dedicated for http details. This part is fairly well written. But then then you are hit by the reality. snippets just appear without much explanation....
LWP is also pathetic. I noticed that the people who gave good ratings for this book did so solely based on it s presentation of http. Not as a http client programming book of perl.

I see little that could improve upon this book. Its examples are awful and assume a knowledge of Perl not expected of similar entry-level texts.

Avoid this book unless you have a great solid background in Perl. But then again, if that's the case you probably wouldn't need this book.

I personally found this book much less informative than I was hoping.

Most of the book is dedicated to explaining the ins and outs of HTTP. There is not enough sample code, and the code that is given is pretty basic.

As far as information about programming web clients with perl, I have found that it is more helpful to just do web seraches, and read the examples available on various web sites.

The book does do a good job of explaining HTTP and the how web clients operate. I just wish there had been more information about Perl clients specifically.

I wouldn't pay [as much] for this book. Look for it used, it's not hard to find.

I really like the book and it is really easy to understand. However, the book repeats itself too often. The whole book can be condense to 100 pages and should cost around $20 at most.

Living in the Shenandoah Valley, the book made a lot of sense to me and provided information as to J. Hotchkiss' early life and his life after the war. I grew up in Roanoke, Va. which was the headquarters for the Norfolk & Western RR, and reading about how Hotchkiss helped the RR to expand into SW Va. and into W. Va. was interesting. Also about his desire to get a physical map of Va. published and how he worked with William B. Rogers the State Geologists (namesake for the highest mountain in Va.). The bottom line is this book is a history book and it follows the title in its content.

If you are looking for a book to explain what goes on behind-the-scenes on a web server or browser, this is a good book to get. Also, it covers the LWP Perl module very well. My only criticism is the price is a little high for 205 pages.

I really enjoyed this book. It made using the LWP libraries much easier. It is well written, though repetative in some places (my only major complaint).

I'd recommend this book to anyone who does Perl programming and wants to build quick, simple and easy web 'bots to scavange the net for information on your behalf.

When I found this book years ago, it opened up a new door for me. There was literally nothing out there on the subject, let alone one that addressed the needs of a novice like me. The writer clearly knew who his audience was. If you are the kind who has a firm grasp of GET, POST and so on, you probably don't need this book. Otherwise, if you want to DRIVE on the internet on your own, this book is the one. I'm sure it's still very relevant. It skips the stuff that might confuse you (and there is a lot more of that nowadays).