Database Programming with JDBC and Java (The Java Series) [Paperback]

George Reese (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1565922700 | ISBN-13: 978-1565922709 | Publication Date: June 8, 1997 | Edition: 1

Java and databases make a powerful combination. Getting the two sides to work together, however, takes some effort--largely because Java deals in objects while most databases do not.

This book describes the standard Java interfaces that make portable object-oriented access to relational databases possible and offers a robust model for writing applications that are easy to maintain. It introduces the JDBC and RMI packages and uses them to develop three-tier applications (applications divided into a user interface, an object-oriented logic component, and an information store). This book is the key to becoming a more effective application developer for Java database programs. It includes reference listings for JDBC and the most important RMI classes and covers Java 1.1.

The book begins with a quick overview of SQL for developers who may be asked to handle a database for the first time. It then explains how to issue database queries and updates through SQL and JDBC. It also covers the use of stored procedures and other measures to improve efficiency, where these are available.

But the book's key contribution is a set of patterns that separate the various functions of the Java application and facilitate the growth and maintenance of an application. Patterns allow isolation of critical tasks like object creation, information storage and retrieval, and the committing or aborting of transactions. The book also introduces RMI as a way to distribute objects among systems. All techniques are illustrated with working examples.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

O'Reilly & Associates has made its name publishing gritty documentation of Unix innards, especially application programming interface (API) references. Database Programming with JDBC and Java follows this heritage in the excellent roadmap of the java.sql.* package, which fills a solid quarter of this thin book. All the variables and methods have clear annotations that will help you solve problems. The rest of the book is a mixed bag.

Reese opens with a discussion of SQL, then proceeds to explain client-server architecture and three-tier database access. In describing JDBC, he provides clear program listings on how to connect to a database, get information from it, add information to it, and delete parts of it. While Reese does a fine job of explaining these critical tasks, the book doesn't come with a disc to save you from typing them manually (though you can get them by FTP from the O'Reilly site). This book continues to guide the reader through query optimization and interface design. The book focuses a lot of attention on Remote Method Invocation (RMI), walking the reader through the creation of a "banking" application that illustrates all the important JDBC operations. This book has the best JDBC application programming interface (API) reference around, which alone is worth the price of the book. However, you will probably want to supplement this book with a better JDBC tutorial.

From Library Journal

O'Reilly books are rarely for neophytes, but advanced users swear by them, and these will be no exception. Englander covers a hot Java subtopic for students, programmers, and professionals already familar with Java and object-oriented programming. He discusses events, event adapters, properties, persistence, java archive files, the BeanBox tool, property editors, ActiveX, and the java.beans Package. Flanagan's work is the book Java programmers want nearby when they are at the keyboard. A complete ready-reference work, this belongs in all collections supporting programmers. Java is a constantly changing language so Nutshell will be coming out often with new editions; always have the newest one on hand. Reese goes beyond simple applet design to relational databases, SQL, object-oriented database applications, application servers, and remote object manipulation. The examples used throughout the book are based on a banking application designed in Java.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 237 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; 1 edition (June 8, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565922700
• ISBN-13: 978-1565922709
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (42 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #193,752 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I am the President and CEO of Valtira Corporation (http://www.valtira.com) in Minneapolis, MN. Valtira develops a Marketing Dashboard that enables marketing departments to send a consistent message across multiple channels and measure the results. The core of the Simplicis Marketing Dashboard is a content management system, Simplicis CMS.

My professional career began in Hollywood working on TV shows like the People's Court and ESPN Up Close, but my "Internet Career" started in 1991 developing Open Source online gaming software, specifically the Nightmare and Dead Souls mud libraries. I got involved with Java in 1995 and wrote my first book, Database Programming with JDBC and Java in 1996. I spent the Internet bubble writing books and only recently (in 2003) tried my hand and starting my own company with Valtira.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good quality second edition, September 12, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Database Programming with JDBC and Java (Paperback)

The author does a good job of covering new concepts as relevant to Java 2 platform and JDBC 2.0. This book is vastly revamped and is better than the first edition.

Though the author rightly says in the preface that this may not be the book for the beginners, I feel it may not be an ideal JDBC reference book either. The emphasis of this book is on how to build a robust middle tier that interacts with a relational database using JDBC.

Though several examples appear in the book, they could be categorized as relevant for developing a framework than useful for learning by example. Many books that cover EJB, Servlets and JSP now a days provide excellent stand-alone examples of using JDBC.

If you are looking for a book that gives sample "design patterns" for building a middle tier, then this one is for you. If you want to learn JDBC by example, this may not be the book you would want to buy.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good book worth reading, the unexpected is cool., September 12, 1997

By 

John Taylor - See all my reviews

This review is from: Database Programming with JDBC and Java (The Java Series) (Paperback)

The best part of this book is in discussing the process of designing a distributed 3-tier application using Java. The writing is clear and elegant. Figures are impressive. Maybe JDBC itself does not have enough interesting content, the author spent much effort to explore the multiple tier computing model and RMI instead. So, the inside is not exactly what you expected from the book title. It should be, as Reese commented, Distributed 3-tier Client/Server with RMI and JDBC.

I think many people come to this book for detailed JDBC programming information. Anyone who programmed non-trivial JDBC would know that there are a lot bolts and nuts to tackle. To this effect, the book is quite thin. You should not expect this book to help you much in JDBC trouble-shootings. Nevertheless, it is a good guide to teach you design and deploy your JDBC programs on the Internet. As another comment said, I found this book a pleasant surprise, too.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mistitled, though nonetheless excellent book., October 27, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Database Programming with JDBC and Java (The Java Series) (Paperback)

As many have noted, the title of this book is probably a misnomer. It does cover JDBC to a reasonable depth in a very well executed fashion, but it does not go in depth enough to be the standard reference on the subject. However, don't let this keep you from reading this book! It's a panacea for distributed application development, object persistence, and even a dash of design patterns. RMI and JDBC are the technologies used to illustrate the excellent thought process that went into this book, and it is much more valuable than any Teach Yourself JDBC in 21 Days sort of book will ever be. You may need a more complete reference book if you will be doing a lot of JDBC programming, but this book will teach you how JDBC is best used, which in the end is much more valuable.

Once you know what you are getting into, you will find that this book meets your needs rather well.