Customer Reviews

Head First Java, 2nd Edition

5 star:		(173)
4 star:		(46)
3 star:		(18)
2 star:		(17)
1 star:		(19)

 

 

I really wanted to like this book. I bought the Head First book on design patterns and love it. It was the right mix of irreverance and information. So, I bought this book even though I have been a Java developer for over 5 years. I was excited to see how the Head First authors handled a beginners book for Java.

Not too well, in my opinion. Chapter Three, in particular, was a mess. This chapter introduces the notion of variables yet never explains what an integer variable is. No explanation is given of the float type. We are told that a byte holds 8 bits...but not told what a bit is. We are not told how to assign a hexadecimal value to an int. We are not told that if we assign a numeric value with a leading zero...the compiler will assume that you meant to use octal values. The reader is not told that Strings are immutable. These are all things that will trip up a beginner (the target market for this book). The author of this chapter doesn't even bother to mention that a Java array uses a zero-based index.

Both primitives and the notion of classes are introduced in Chapter Three. Yet, the author doesn't mention that all primitives (except boolean) have wrapper classes. Strings are introduced...but, no mention is made of the StringBuffer or StringBuilder (very useful and often used classes). These items are included in the back of the book in Appendix B.

There are so many things left out that I wonder if the publisher actually had any beginners read this book. Readers of this book will finish this book still ignorant of many Java essentials.

Here is one of their dumbed-down explanations for an object reference:

"Think of a Dog reference variable as a Dog remote control. You use it to get the object to do something (invoke methods). An object reference is just another variable value. Something that goes in a cup. Only, this time, the value is a remote control."

Huh? Granted, they had been using the "cup" metaphor before...but, still I found this book confusing, superficial, and somewhat insulting. It felt like reading a children's Weekly Reader book. (It even has crossword puzzles)

I like the idea of making learning fun. However, in their attempt to make it fun they left out so much info which is pertinent to the beginning Java programmer. Apparently, another rule of the Head First series is that there MUST be a cute picture on every page. Many times, the logical flow of text is hindered because they had to fit a non-illuminating, unnecessary graphic on the page. Many of the pictures are unnecessary and do not help to explain the content at all. Many paragraphs are confusing, unclear, or simply badly structured. The editors were asleep on this one.

Many newbies are giving this book high marks. Unfortunately, they are woefully ignorant of the fact that this book left out a ton of info that is pertinent to actually coding Java well. One poster here raves that he was able to cover 60 pages in one day. In my opinion...ease of reading is not the only criteria for a good programming book.

My recommendations for Java beginners: Beginning Java by Ivor Horton or Core Java by Cay Horstmann.

I like writing reviews on technical books because I think they are of enormous value to those considering buying the book. I buy a lot of books online and the reviews that I read are by far the most important thing that influences my decision to buy. Or not.

I also like to read what others before me have written. In this case - and for all of the "Head First" books I have read - I heartily agree with what virtually all others have written: these books are a great way to learn complicated, and oftentimes boring, subject material.

So I won't rehash what others have already written, except to say that if what you read was good - believe it.

I think the most important thing I can say about this book is that I agree with what Hye Nyoun Eum Kim wrote: NOT for beginners. I remember thinking to myself throughout the book that a fair, or at least some, amount of Java knowledge would be necessary in order to understand what the authors were covering.

If you already know Java and want to know it better, buy this book. If you are new to Java, and especially if you are new to programming, I still recommend buying this book. But do yourself a favor - check out other introductory Java books and buy one of those as well. A good starting point? I have bought the "Just Java" (by Peter van der Linden) books ever since Java 1.0 came out.

I am only 12 years old, and struggled to find a java book that would teach me the language without assuming that I had previous experience with programming. This book was the answer. It was a quick read, and the pages flew by very quickly. The visually enhanced text made learning as close as possible to fun. I would reccommend this book to all who have little to no programming expierience, because it does cover some basic topics that are common to all languages.

That's my opinion in a nutshell about the Head First Series of computer books. I like this book, and the other 3 that I own, a lot. I didn't give it 5 stars because this review is for you. People learn differently and have expectations to meet their needs. This book is informative, interactive and upbeat. It provokes thought and problem-solving by continously prompting your brain to give input. When you're done - you know Java and a lot of subtle nuances.

I realize this is a "soft" review. There are some hardcore people who want to know "will it talk about this or that?" The simple answer is "yes." It begins by assuming you've done some programming, not just HTML. It's jammed tight with important information. So if you use a highlighter, put it down and get a paint brush. This is not a "linear" book written for the person who wants to read and memorize references. Java is a language and its taught by engaging the reader into a mental dialogue. It's fun. You won't fall asleep. You'll learn a lot. But more importantly, you'll remember even more.

How can you go wrong with a tech book that has code, ducks and Java crossword puzzles? Better know your stuff baby or read the book because it comes with a mantra, "Release Your Code." How did it work for me? Shh...5 stars!

This book, as well as series, goes a long way to helping you learn. The concepts may not always be well enough explained. However, this is understandable is it is apparent that the collaborative authors seem to do all that they can to make the teaching and learning of the concepts fun.

I would highly recommend this book to any one who is just getting started with programming. I tried to learn Java through a number of other teach myself methods. It was not until I read Head First Java that I actually got it. Since then, I have moved on to more advanced concepts and have had a lot of fun with coding. Unfortunately, most books that deal with teaching development read like someone's thesis. Bates and Sierra have provided a book that is not only a very effective teaching tool but also a whole lot of fun to read. I wish all cerebral subjects were taught this way. If you like fooling around in the library, then you will love Head First Java and the Head First series!

This book was written in an entertaining way using various tools (jokes, pictures, surprises, quizes, games, etc) keeping the reader's mind engage in learning difficult concepts.

This is in accordance of the Head First's learning principles which are:

1. Make it visual

2. Use conversational and personalized style

3. Get the learner to think more deeply

4. Get and keep the reader's attention

5. Touch their emotions

I teach Object Oriented Programming, and I use some of the illustrations from this book in my class. My students love it!

I've been a professional programmer for years and I had to learn Java fast to stay in my current engagement. The "Learn-Java-In-24-Hours" style books had appealing titles but instead I decided to try this weird, truly different approach to learning because O'Reilly published it. (I have been familiar with O'Reilly for years and always recognized them as a top-flight publisher, although their books often had a formal, college-textbookish tone that made them better reference books than read-thru books.) I was put off by the graphics-intensive comic book style when I paged through the sample on-line at Amazon but decided to give it a try.

I think they're really on to something here. I can only speak for myself, as someone who already has a background in programming, but I believe the book actually works. Over a couple weeks I read the book, did the little puzzles and exercises which the authors were so insistent that I do, and was really surprised at the depth of knowledge I came out with at the other end.

Sitting in a developer's meeting yesterday I was really surprised that, while I clearly didn't have the years of experience the other coders had, I had no problem keeping up and was even able to contribute. I'm now moving in to the new assignment fairly well and am confident that I'll be able to pick up the details of this language now that I've got such a good grounding from this book.

I've now ordered the companion O'Reilly volumes on Enterprise JavaBeans and Design Patterns and am curious to see if they can maintain the same level of quality. Those skills would really seem to set a programmer apart, a critical consideration in a world where the competition is getting better (and unfortunately cheaper) every day.

If you are not already familiar with the "Head First" series of books, they are technical books on various subjects that feature an unconventional method of learning. They usually include crossword puzzles, Q&A sessions, fake conversations between different pieces of code, and even cartoons so that the subject matter will stand out in the reader's mind versus the format of a standard textbook. If you like the more conventional approach, you might be advised to stick with the old standard tutorial on Java, "Core Java" by Cornell.

The book starts out talking about the history of Java, the various versions of Java, and what is different about each one. It then goes on to explain the very basics of writing a Java application and then illustrates with the book's first so-called "serious business application" - a Java version of the song "90 bottles of beer". Of course, as is typical in the head-first series, the book codes the application up somewhat incorrectly in its first attempt and asks you to find the problem. The second chapter is an introduction to objects, their value, and how they are implemented in Java. From that point forward, for the next eight chapters or so, you are not seeing content much different from what you would see in any thorough book on the Java programming language - just a difference in presentation.

Starting in chapter 11, the book takes a series of subjects that can get involved and, as a result, often lose the reader, and makes it interesting by building a Music Machine - specifically a BeatBox Drum Machine. By building this application piece by piece the reader learns about exception handling, Java GUIs, Java Swing, and the interaction involved in all three subjects. The final chapters in the book deal with object serialization, networking and threads, data collections and generics, and releasing your code through packages and jar files. When it is applicable the BeatBox Drum Machine is toyed with to expand its capabilities and demonstrate the new concepts, but the author also shows some simpler applications to get the point across too. There hasn't been a really good book on Java distributed computing written in about ten years, and the next chapter goes over the basics of the subject for beginners. It does a good job of explaining the purpose and use of RMI, servlets, Enterprise JavaBeans, and even some Jini at a basic level.

This is a good book for someone who is just starting to learn Java, and is very suitable for self-study. However, although most people really love the head-first series, there are a very few people that just hate this approach. Thus you might want to glance at any book in the head-first series and see if this style of learning appeals to you before purchasing this particular book.

This is an outstanding introduction to Java. I've done VERY basic programming in procedural languages but had a need to get some object-orientation. This book explained all the things that most other programming texts assume the reader knows and understands. To top it off, it did it in an entertaining manner.

The analogies are great and while the authors frequently repeat the same concepts several times, each time they do it from a slightly different angle. I need the repetition so this method saves me from having to read the book multiple times.

I first purchased the Head First EJB book but the authors clearly point out in the early chapters of that text that you really need this book first. They weren't kidding. If you need to get from a complete lack of Java knowledge to understanding EJBs, this book should come first, then the EJB book.

I can only hope the authors will release a book on XML and Web Services. That would complete me (for now).

I started reading this book about a week ago and am at chapter 9 now and still going. This book is great, super, well written. Plenty of funny illustrations to help the reader understand some complex topics. Covers a whole lot on object oriented programming and java (duh). My only problem with this book are the exercises at the end of the chapters. They are just too short and don;t help very much. I feel that the reader needs a lot more problems to work on, preferably ones in which he/she writes his/her own code. I have found that to be very helpful in previous C++ and UNIX textbooks. This is actually my only complaint, other than that i would highly recommend it but also recommend another book with more code as you will be done with this farily quickly (a good thing, they meke everything so understandable). Hope this helped.