43 of 44 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Rather vague (average work), October 28, 2005
This review is from: Working with Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team System (Pro-Developer) (Paperback)
If you are looking for a book that gives you the ins and outs of Team System, this is not the book. If, on the other hand, you would like to know what Team System is, then this book is fine.
I did not get a chance to get a PDC version of the book, so I am not sure exactly what was in that "beta" edition. I will take the other reviewers word that this book is very much the same edition. It is quite common for authors to simply fix chapters from beta to final release, so this is both a common and accepted practice. Given the advice, however, I would probably not own both.
I have been using VSTS since the first beta that had its bits. I am, overall, impressed with the tool, as well as the MSDN online articles on the product. I was looking for a book with a bit more depth on the subject and there are some notable portions in this book, although most of the book is far too simple for my tastes.
What do you get?
The first three chapters are an extremely high level overview of Team System, including the Team Foundation Server. They are useful for a foundation on the product, but anyone with any type of exposure will likely skim through these chapters.
The next four chapters deal with the four roles (Project Manager, Architect, Developer and Tester) across the products (Team Foundation Server and its hooks, Team System Architect, Team System Developer and Team System Tester). These chapters have a bit more meat than the first three chapters, but are stil fairly high level.
The next two chapters are a bit deeper. Chapter 8 deals with MSF (Microsoft Solutions Framework) and is a decent overview of how MSF works, for those with little or no exposure; It is not, by any means, a full featured tome on the subject. Chapter 9 focuses on extending Team System and has a few nice code samples; most of the work is far too simple to make up for the shortcomings of Team System (for example, the build engine has to be customized for Continuous Integration (like using Cruise Control with nAnt for a truly automated build on check in)).
The final chapter of section 3 deals with deployment and closing out a build cycle. There is not a great deal of detail here and it primarily focuses on the reports available in TFS.
Of the two appendices, the first is probably the most useful as it provides context for how Team System is used from end to end. It is fairly basic information, but does deal with how to recognize Release Candidate time. The second is not much more than a text only listing of some of the visual elements you can use in the designer.
Don't get me wrong, I am glad I have this book, as I have learned a bit more Team System through the book. I wish it was a bit deeper, but there is certainly a market for intro level material in this product.
My recommendation: If you are a beginner with Team System and want an overview with a bit of meat, this book will fill the need. If you are already familiar with the product and looking for a full meal, it would be best to wait for other books on the product.
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not what I expected, February 14, 2006
This review is from: Working with Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team System (Pro-Developer) (Paperback)
Working with Visual Studio 2005 Team System is less about working with it and more about what it is and what it can do, and even that is not more than a simple outline, just the top of the mountain. I guess I expected more How To's and less what it is. That information is everywhere on MS websites. So I am still looking for some details on how to get it done.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Wrong book title, May 14, 2007
This review is from: Working with Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team System (Pro-Developer) (Paperback)
I am going to give a short review for this MS Press book, because at 287 pages, it is way too thin for a mountainous product suite like Visual Studio Team System. The book's title "Working with" set a level of expectation that I can get walk out feeling confident in putting VSTS into good use. Unfortunately that is not the case. Going through the chapters only confirmed my fears - which I got with from the very first glance at the book's thickness - each chapter touches a feature set, and I really mean just "touch" and not "dig deep". Merely introducing and explaning the rationale behind them, the major capabilities are shown as "what they are" and not "how to do".
As briefing material, they are fine. As a practical guide book teaching how to expertly operate and work with VSTS, it carries little value. There are absolutely no tutorials. No source content to get the reader to exercise its features to learn and understand by practical experience. It does not cover the many common scenarios development teams and try to explain how to accomplish them in VSTS. VSTS is a monumental system that is not easy to learn and leverage, and this book has zero lessons of practicality.
Had this book been titled "Introducing Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team System", it would have received a much higher rating. Who will best benefit from this book? Project managers and CTOs who want a high-level feature overview. Hardcore development team members who want to learn how to use VSTS to its fullest potential have to look for another book.
Good: High-level briefing on VSTS features
Bad: Covers them briefly; no practical exercises
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