Inside COM+: Base Services (Microsoft Programming Series) [Paperback]

Guy Eddon (Author), Henry Eddon (Author), Jeffrey Richter (Foreword)

Book Description

Series: Microsoft Programming Series | Publication Date: September 1, 1999

An in-depth architectural overview of COM+ component technologies for enterprise developers, this book offers a detailed look by providing implementation details and sample code. Content includes scalability, queued components and MSMQ, the in-memory database, and role-based security.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Inside COM+ Base Services examines many aspects of Microsoft's Component Object Model+ in depth. The book provides a great deal of information well-suited to experienced C++ programmers, as well as thorough explanations and useful code examples.

As with most books from Microsoft Press, this volume comes with a well-organized CD-ROM that contains complete source code for the examples presented in the book. (Most of the examples are actually code fragments, but the CD-ROM contains the code in its entirety.) One very nice feature of the CD-ROM is that it includes the contents of the book in Microsoft Electronic Book format, which makes searching for passages and copying code fragments very easy. Not limited to the C++ audience only, the book presents COM+ implementations in Visual Basic and J++ too.

It should be mentioned that this book targets a lot of information at those who know C++ and have some background with the Windows API (and preferably some with OLE or COM.) For those with only a Visual Basic background or who want an overview, this book is probably too C++-specific. Also keep in mind that this book is an update of Inside Distributed COM. Several topics that are new to COM+, such as message queuing and transactions, are not covered in this book (the next book in the series, Inside COM+ Component Services, due out in spring 2000, might cover these topics).

Overall, if you are a C++ programmer, are using the Windows API, and are interested in learning about DCOM and COM+, this book provides clear explanations, useful programs and code fragments, and a lot of detailed examples. --John Keogh

Topics covered: Introduction to component software; interfaces; CLSIDs; GUIDs; registering components; templates; interfaces; references and reference counting; v-tables; implementing COM+ with Java and Visual Basic; type libraries; threads and apartments; automation; errors, exceptions, and error handling; connection points; type information; persistence and structured storage; naming and monikers; DLL surrogates; location transparency; DCOM; standard and custom marshalling; executable components and in-process components; interprocess communication; Interface Definition Language; asynchronous calls; COM+ security, including the COM+ security model, platform-independent security, and configuring security; cloaking; COM+ networking; remote activation; object references; and RPCs.

About the Author

Jeffrey Richter is a cofounder of Wintellect (www.wintellect.com)-a training, debugging, and consulting firm dedicated to helping companies build better software faster. He is the author of the previous editions of this book, Windows via C/C++, and several other Windows-related programming books. Jeffrey has been consulting with the Microsoft .NET Framework team since October 1999.

Product Details

• Paperback: 660 pages
• Publisher: Microsoft Press (September 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0735607281
• ISBN-13: 978-0735607286
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.4 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,805,477 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

66 of 67 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best book about the topic, February 16, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Inside COM+: Base Services (Microsoft Programming Series) (Paperback)

I have a lot of books about COM and ActiveX, including "Essential COM", "Inside COM", "ATL internals", "Professional ATL Programming", "Inside OLE", "Essential COM and ActiveX". This is by far the best. It has explained the concept of COM very clearly, with very good examples. As someone say it has many topics similar to the author's "Inside Distributed COM", I think it is because COM+ is based on DCOM concept and Microsoft often change the words.

51 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 20th Century Award Winner, March 19, 2000

By 

Michael Wong (Reston, VA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Inside COM+: Base Services (Microsoft Programming Series) (Paperback)

This book presents the complexities of COM(+) with exceptional clarity. This book deals with COM deepest internals and key concepts are presented in a clear and understandable way. This is "The Book" about COM(+) and I was not suprised that it was the top choice of the: http://www.aw.com/cseng/20thcentbookwinners.shtml

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best way to learn COM/COM+, March 15, 2001

By 

David Kerr (Calgary AB Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Inside COM+: Base Services (Microsoft Programming Series) (Paperback)

As people have stated below, this is an updated "Inside DCOM" book. Why are they complaining though? It states that on the back cover!! It's true, this book does not go into the nitty gritty of anything specific to COM+. But if you want to know the "Base"-ics then get this book. After looking through many many COM+ books this is easily the winner. No BS. But you need to be a C++ programmer to understand a good deal of it.