Customer Reviews

Java How to Program (6th Edition) (How to Program (Deitel))

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

I think I have bought just about every 'learning Java' book out there, with limited exuberunce, until this book. The advantage this text has over others is to successfully 'weave' the learning of Java as the chapters progress. Other texts do accomplish this to some extent, but I've never seen this achieved to this degree of balance. This book is a heads down, hands on learning device.

Many books provide a single example that gets more and more complex as the chapters, and (hopefully) your skills, progress. Deitel certainly does this (via an Elevator simulation), but also accomplishes this on many different levels with plenty of smaller programs. Each example is explained *line by line* without exception. Additionally, you are provided with example program output right on the page.

I've noticed many 'learning Java' books show you code snippets and little output if any (e.g. Eckel's book, which I love for other reasons), leaving it up to your imagination to put it all together in the context of a complete program.

This text appears to be prepared for the classroom, from its thorough content (25 chapters, 7 appendices, 1400+ pages, cdrom) and available lab and instructor companion books. There is a nice, effective use of color without being distractive like some other texts I've seen.

The negatives are the length, cost and (ouch) the weight. It is one of the heavier books in my collection, for sure!

To summarize, if you are a C programmer looking to quickly jump into Java, or perhaps a genius with a photographic memory, this may not be your first purchase. If you are a newbie, have limited experience with Java, or have been disappointed with other texts, I think you may find this to be the most complete book out there.

I am a programming newb with a geek streak a lifetime wide. I took a Java class this summer hoping to begin groking the one final frontier of computing that has always eluded me. We used this as the text. As somebody who teaches postsecondary courses in an entirely separate field, I feel this book is not a good first choice for an instructor in comp sci, especially for courses for nonmajors or beginners. The prose is exceedingly dry and longwinded *without real purpose*, and tests even my attention span... which is ordinarily sufficient for a continuous performance of the Ring Cycle. What really hacked me off is the way that the book handles terminology and syntax-- from the very beginning, the code examples often use parallel terms within the code in a way that makes it utterly unclear to the newbie whether they're staring down the barrel of a method name, a parameter/argument, what-have-you, which makes it very difficult to trace the logic of the code and get a good handle on the syntax. I have had far better luck grasping the concepts of Java and programming generally with Beginning Java for Dummies, believe it or not. I am a mature and educated adult actually INTERESTED in this topic and this book was absolutely dreadful to me-- instructors, please do not think you're going to choose this text for the present generation of undergrads and have it be anything but an utter waste of a hundred bucks for them.

The Deitels approach the subject of learning to program in the Java language with all the joy of learning typewriter repair and maintenance. The book reads like a volume on appliance repair with tiny font and cookbook instructions. It is unfortunate that because of its title "How to Program" that instructors choose this thing as a textbook for their courses. If you have to use this book as a textbook for a class, the instructions will correctly tell you how to write programs, but you will get no feel for the language or its possibilities. In the end, this book will turn you into someone who programs by rote memory versus someone who programs with any insight into what you are doing. Might I suggest you supplement this book with the Core Java books by Horstmann and Cornell. Their books are far more readable and instructive, and might I add far cheaper. "Head First Java" is another excellent choice, especially for absolute beginners. I fear that some books by the Deitels, and this one in particular, remind me of an old saying "You might not get what you pay for but you will never get what you don't pay for." This book is an illustration of the first part of that old saying.

Im a tutor of Java students and a Java instructor at a community college (tutoring on this edition, instructed 3 courses using 3rd edition) with a Sun Java certification and Computer Engineering degree. With all the introductory Java books available, this book (and preceeding edition(s)) is garbage. Im truly surprised that it hasn't improved in any of the newer editions.

My consistent complaint is the meaning or point the author(s) are trying to present in the paragraphs throughout the books. The author(s) make valient attempts to cover the language in detail by drowning the reader in examples and stories. Examples are good (how, what), but you have to explain why (where and when can be inferred if not explained). On numerous occassions, the author(s) dives into the architecture of the computer to explain how the data bits work together in the CPU to try to relate it to Java. Huh??? Java is a high level language! Keep computer architecture with low-level assembly languages, guys. This may be the author(s) way of explaining why. This absolutely doesn't work with people who are expected to learn Java as their first programming language.

It seems this book tries to make this introduction to Java more than just an introduction to Java. Many important concepts are presented in the Table of Contents - kudos! But the read is frightful and endured. The beginner reader essentially walks away exposed to Java, without ever understanding it. For introducing Java, it is way too much to read for the average student!!

For example, 6th edition Deitel, take the Java reserved word "return". Covered in roughly 5 pages without ever explaining what it is for, how it works, and usages that vary. The book index references several different sections where it is used, but none of these sections actually explain what it does. "Head First Java": 1 page and very clear what 'return' does; 2-3 pages if you want to explore more complex situations (various data types, overriding methods, etc) that use "return" in the language.

The 3rd edition was horrendously difficult to teach from, it hasn't changed much in the 6th.

If your instructor has issued you this book or a previous edition for an introductory course on programming using Java, save your GPA and grade and go pick up "Head First Java" - Head First Java, 2nd Edition. You'll spend weeks reading the Deitel book on this page to gain the same knowledge you could achieve through any other introductory Java book but in a vastly shorter amount of time.

Looking for an advanced Java book? Read Sun's Java Language Specification and Java Virtual Machine Specification instead. For a moderate skill book and starting to get serious on Java? Hands down, Oreilly is the book publisher you need. To start, pick up "Java in a Nutshell," - Java In A Nutshell, 5th Edition a summary of most of the essential language information that will impact your moderate (how to write a 'for' loop, etc.) and advanced programming (e.g. performance and optimization) are in the first 8 chapters (depending on your skill, you may be able to skip the first few of these chapters). Heck, I'd even use the Nutshell book to get through an Introduction to Java college course (depending on skill).

This book is good for recycling only.

This book follows the Deitels' standard format and content used in the other two of their books I've read ("C++ How to Program (4th Edition)," and "C How to Program (Fourth Edition)"). As before, the teaching method, programming style, most of the examples used, and most of the problems presented are largely the same but have been rewritten to a Java perspective. If you've read and liked any of the Deitels' other books, this book will be fine for you and you'll know pretty much what to expect from it.

However, note that I'm rating this book slightly lower than those other two books: 3 stars out of 5 instead of 4 stars out of 5. This isn't really for any shortcoming of the book. Instead, it's because of the "accelerated" aspect of the book's structure. In this book, the Deitels push forward the use of Java GUI elements via optional sections. Theoretically, this should appease some of those who disparage similar books for not emphasizing the "flavor" of Java. Unfortunately, since the Deitels specify that the book is for anyone from absolute beginners to professionals, this can lead to confusion. Simply put, an absolute beginner to programming (and this book seems to emphasize that audience more than the other two books), will have a tough time understanding Java GUI methods even before they've been presented with the basics of all programming languages. The Deitels would have been better off ignoring that aspect of the language until at least after Chapter 7. Unfortunately, since a first course in programming would normally consist of just those first seven chapters, that would give students no exposure to the Java "flavor." Of course, I'm torn over whether or not that would be a good thing. Since the whole world is GUI now, I can see a reason for teaching it up front. But, since those first seven chapters cover the programming structures inherent in almost all high-level languages and are definitely for people who've never programmed before, focusing on good software engineering and structured coding techniques is probably much more important.

Anyway, in a nutshell, I think the accelerated GUI material violates the real intended audience of the book: beginners. So, overall, I rate this at 3 stars out of 5 and give the usual Deitel caveat that the book is more oriented towards beginners than professionals (though the book is extremely thorough by the end).

Last semester, I used this book for a Java Programming class. I commend the Deitel and Deitel to be one of the first authors to cover the many features of Java 1.5. And, believe me there are numerous enhancements that were added to Java 1.5.

You do want a book that starts off with the enhancements as opposed to one that mentions them in an appendix as an afterthought.

The students seem to like the fact that the authors thoroughly explain every line of every example.

I use the book mainly for quick references and sample code to supplement the online JavaDocs.

Pro:
+ Great index - best I've seen in programming books
+ Color - easier on the eyes
+ Compact - not a lot of wasted space and useless diagrams
+ Lots of Sample Code
+ Code on CD

Cons:
- Expensive
- Sometimes keywords are hard to find in text because they are not highlighted very well (in light blue)
- Printing might be off (some colors weren't aligned during printing)
- Ad pages in the back
- Softcover - gets damaged easily when carrying around


Overall:
+ Very good resource, better than the Head First Java book for people already accustomed to programming books.

I think some of the negative reviews for this book can be attributed to a person's preferrerd way of learning.

Those who like the whimsical and scatter-brained approach from a book like Head First Java probably hate this book. Those who thrive on a detailed, structured, no-nonsense approach to learning will love this book.

The content is very thorough. If you take the time to work through this book cover to cover (it may take me 6 months) you will come away a proficient programmer with a solid background for future learning.

Excellent job Deitel.

Brian Albin

Not only does this book teach the syntax and features of Java, it also teaches programming fundamentals. For example, there are chapters on arrays and control statements, but you're not left with just that information. Later chapters teach algorithms and ways to use what you've learned. Another thing I like is that this book begins with object oriented programming, instead of teaching procedural programming first. This way you learn the correct way to program Java from the beginning. At the end of each chapter you'll find numerous exercises to re-enforce what you've just learned. I found them interesting and extremely helpful in really furthering my understanding of Java and the nature of problem solving with programming. Many chapters also have optional GUI (Graphical User Interface) and software case studies at the end to start getting your feet wet in these more advanced, but important topics. Also, sprinkled throughout the text are programming tips that include, good programming practices, common programming errors, error prevention tips, look-and-feel observations (GUI), performance tips, portability tips, and software engineering observations. Another unusual thing about this book is the use of color. And while color isn't necessary, it's certainly welcome in a world of drab, gray programming books. Modern development environments make use of color syntax highlighting, so why shouldn't a programming book? Overall I'm very happy with the book. I found the code examples relevant and helpful. The topics begin at the absolute beginning and end with advanced topics such as writing Java applets, Java Server Pages, multi-threading, networking, accessing databases, and more. This one is going in my permanent collection.

I am a professor teaching Java in a state University. This is by far the best Java textbook I can find. Is it perfect? No. I can write a better one but it may take years of effort. The problem of this book is that it covers too many topics that cannot be comprehened by students. The audience of this book is college freshman. If you are a professional who already knows programming (with c or other language), I suggest you to buy Just Java 2 or Core Java 2 instead. If you know nothing about programming, this book is for you.

This book is just too expensive for poor college students. I would suggest the authors to divide it into too books, with one focusing on language and another one on advanced topics. The whole content cannot be taught in one semester. Yes the figures are color and look good, but you paid $$$ for that color!