Most Helpful Customer Reviews
29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Be Careful What You Wish For..., October 31, 2002
This review is from: Java in a Nutshell, Fourth Edition (Paperback)
Nothing makes the importance of understanding exactly what you are looking for as obvious as the travail of picking the right technical book from the usual host on a particular subject. And no subject seems to underscore this more than that of the Java language. I can limp along adequately in Java, after several corporate efforts to get it drilled into my skull, but I'm past the age where perfect recall is anything else but wishful thinking. And Java, which is more an architecture than it is a language, puts high demand on knowledge retention abilities. Thus, I recently found myself searching for a language/object/method reference that is useful when reading and writing code, but does not require two briefcases to carry around. In those circumstances anything that says 'nutshell' is going to get my attention. Since I wasn't looking for long, flowing dissertations on syntax or object use, this book seemed exactly what I wanted. And it is, for the most part. There are about 300 pages of tiny print on Java, its syntax, environment, and tools. Then comes 600 pages of reference on objects and methods, organized (somewhat) by package. In general, if you can find it, and you already have a clue of why you should look for it, the book does just what I wanted. The flaw, however, is in the finding. Indexing and organization is best described as adequate. But browsing is a literal impossibility. Under no circumstances should you buy this book if you are looking for a learning tool. It is at its best when you need to be reminded about something, not when you are looking for a way to actually do something. I didn't expect to find anything on J2EE in the book, and sure enough, there isn't. But I found the lack of information on the AWT and Swing irritating. I admit that it says right on the back cover (in tiny print) that I need 'Java Foundation Classes in a Nutshell' if those are also of interest. Of course they are if you are writing an application that needs more than a command line interface. Left up to me I would have sacrificed some of the more obscure information for 50 or so pages on the AWT. Or even put up with a book with 100 extra pages. As it is I still need ten pounds of paperbacks to feel like I have sufficient reference material. Still, the book of professionally done, brooks no nonsense, and does precisely what it says it does. Which is a small miracle in today's technology business. I certain bear a certain amount of responsibility for not getting something that is precisely what I wanted, but I use this every day, and generally, I get exactly what I need.
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31 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Ruined a great reference, September 26, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: Java in a Nutshell, Fourth Edition (Paperback)
The java in a nutshell series was the most often used book in my arsenal off reference books. That was until now. Many of the most useful features of the previous three editions have been removed. First the "tabs" printed on the edge of the book which would help you quickly find a package are now gone... so now I have to flip through MANY pages just tho find tha package I want... From there I now have to find the class I am looking for, but the are not necessarily listed alphabetically anymore either. For example java.util.prefs.Preferences is on page 710, and java.util.Set on 677... ordered by package, leaving you with more to page through. Not exactly intuitive. And the package heirarchy diagrams are gone now as well. Its a reference book, but certinaly not a "quick" reference. I highly reccomend buying the third edition, but stay away from this one, at least untill they put the tabs back!
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29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Cracks appear in Nutshell, April 11, 2002
This review is from: Java in a Nutshell, Fourth Edition (Paperback)
I've owned every edition of this book. As an instructor and occassional consultant I've found the ability to thumb quickly to details of the increasing numbers of classes invaluable. I've also found the introductory summaries useful as a refresher to parts of java I have not visited for a while, and in this edition they provide a quick overview of the new features of J2SE 1.4. This was never designed as a book for beginners, and to date has done what it does well. Unfortunately two things have been changed with this new edition. Firstly, the ability to quickly thumb to the classes I want to know about has gone because the visible page-edge marks have GONE making the entire reference section one white blur of almost 600 pages. It now takes me roughly 5 times as long to locate a desired package. Secondly, the diagrams illustrating the class/interface hierachy for an entire package have gone. These were excellent overviews and are sorely missed. Finally, the book can no longer keep to it's 'NutShell' title weighing in at almost 1000 pages. I will make a lot of use of this book as there is nothing I know of in paper form that contains all the information, but I believe the nutshell market has unfortunatley been cracked.
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