Customer Reviews

Java: An Introduction to Problem Solving and Programming (4th Edition)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have just completed (i need only two more chapters) the first of edition of this book. While not as exhaustive as the the edition for sale here I can tell you the author is good at what he does. I haven't decided if I am going to purchase this edition but let me say that the author's prose style reminds me of the best computer programming books I read while I was an undergraduate at the University of Florida in the early 90's. This book is suitable for teaching a first or second year class of computer science students at a university. Unlike those silly "Teach yourself Java programming in 24 hours" this is the kind of programming book that really teaches you something.

This book was written by someone who truly knows how to teach and not merely transmit knowledge from brain to paper. His treatment of object oriented programming concepts in chapters 4 and 5 is FLAWLESS. No other author does such a thorough job (this includes Deitel, Horton, Schildt, Cadenhead, etc) and I speak as the owner of these (and other texts). Let this book be your first stop towards obtaining the Sun Java Programmer and Developer Certifications as well as IBM's Websphere Certifications. But don't forget to purchase the Java Language Specification as well.

This book is excellent. The author writes about programming in a clear and concise way that makes Java make sense. While Java may not be the simplest language to start with, it is widely used throughout the industry and provides a solid stepping stone to other languages. Savitch provides many examples of code and explains how it works, step by step. Too many programming books assume the reader will fill in missing pieces. Finally, an author who fills them in for us!

But buyer beware: the access code to the website that the book promotes as free is missing. If you go to the website you will find that you actually have to pay for the privilege. Sounds like the classic bait and switch to me, and in a book this price, it's a real disappointment.

I exchanged many emails with the publisher, Pearson. Finally they admitted that some booksellers do not include the access code in their books. Well, why can't they make this clear in the book and on the website, instead of luring people to spend money for what is supposed to be free access?

So it's the same old story: the author is excellent but the publisher, Pearson, is unethical.

The author, Savitch, writes some of the best-written, easy-to-read computer language books. The fourth edition is a concisely-written, enjoyable book with excellent examples and coverage of Java 5.0, which is the newest, latest revision as of January '06.

I used this book to supplement a Java course on Game Programming and got an A in the class.

The "Absolute Java" book, also written by Savitch, is a bigger book and probably more comprehensive. However, I enjoy reading this one more.

and I've seen a lot of programming books(Computer Science student)This book will have you learning Java almost effortlessly. I'm the kind of person that needs to read something several times to fully understand it, but with this book, I immediately understood the material. The author's writing stlye and simple explanations of complex problems make this book a pleasure to read. Also, you not only understand what the author says, you remeber it as well, unlike other textbooks, where you've forgotten the material 2 seconds after you close the book.

He makes the subject matter so simple and easily understood, you will know how to write Java programs after only an hour of reading. They'll be small, simple programs, but you'll be a programmer. And when you do get to more complex topics, you'll breeze through those as well.

I wish there had been a Java compiler( a compiler is what you use to write programs) included with the book, but a Google search will give you some sources for free Java compilers you can download, so no big deal.

Positive: the overall organization, presentation, and explanation of the Java language is done quite well. Examples are to the point and not overly complicated.

Negative: with the book being close to $100 and in its 6th edition, you would think that the editing department would have done a better job on this. I understand errors occur, especially in technical textbooks. But c'mon, I found myself constantly telling my students "this error on page ###" and "that error on page ###". While programming is partly about finding errors, I shouldn't be doing that within the textbook content that is supposed to be correct especially when attempting to teach first-semester computer students.

Seeing as most of the reviews are from some older revision I thought I'd post one, I just bought the latest edition and this is a great book! The author is amazing and explaining and the programming exercises in this book are actually fun and useful programs. Great book if you are new to programming and want to learn java, or if you know another language and want to learn java you can just read the summary of each chapter to get the just of the information.

I have been using Walter Savitch textbooks since the early 1980's. Yes, I am old. He is a great writer for programmers and his book chapters flow beautifully. I would highly recommend this text. I use it for my IB Computer Science class.