Amazon.com: An Introduction to Computer Science Using Java: Samuel N. Kamin, M. Dennis Mickunas, Edward M. Reingold: Books

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Not merely an introductory Java text, this new book is truly an introductory computer science text. The authors have developed examples from the student viewpoint. They have also included examples that will give students a taste of more advanced areas of computer science. An Introduction to Computer Science Using Java covers all the essentials of programming, emphasizing the object-oriented paradigm. Emphasis is also placed on the use of classes and the construction of data structures using objects.

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Customer Reviews

13 Reviews

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Average Customer Review

2.4 out of 5 stars (13 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A good book for its purpose ... to teach you about CS, January 29, 1999

By A Customer

Don't be fooled by the Hawaiians ... this book is not as bad as the previous reviewers say it is, by any stretch of the imagination. Three professors from my school wrote this book (which, some would argue, biases me, but I've never met them...) and I must say, it is much better at teaching CS principles than the C++ book I had to read for my Intro to CS class at Eastern Illinois University. The author tries to make you think in a CS mindset, without going to fast or overloading you with Java particulars. Granted, I thought the book started out slowly, but as it got more advanced, it introduced topics at a good pace. Don't be mislead: This book is not for Java programming ... it's for introducing you to what a computer scientist does. And I think it does a great job at doing it.

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars If you're an instructor, please read this..., February 15, 1999

By	jeff@cc.gatech.edu (Atlanta, GA U.S.A) - See all my reviews

I'm an instructor at a small university and am teaching with the Kamin book. I have received several negative comments from my students about the quality of its instruction, and (now) tend to agree with them. Many of them have given up on Kamin and bought either the Deitel and Deitel book or the Lemay book in hopes to overcome the book's apparent lack of JAVA! instruction (and worry about the computer concepts later). This may seem the opposite approach of what the author took (computer science first, then JAVA!), but by doing this, students are less likely to become frustrated and will have some skills before tackling CS problems.

Students have said "the book is more confusing than enlightening", that the book "doesn't give enough examples" (when it does, the word 'wrong' is plastered behind them), and when they read the text they "feel like [they] have fallen off of a cliff". Others said things that should not be posted to a publicly readable web site.

If you intend to teach computer science using the JAVA! language (or any language), I recommend choosing a more user-friendly textbook that covers the language before the CS specifics. By doing this, I believe the students will be more capable of focusing on CS topics (by overcoming the syntax phobia - which most students worry about) and then naturally extending into more complex problems.

No flames, please..

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not such a bad book at all, December 17, 1999

By	martin (san jose, california) - See all my reviews

Of course, they talk about getting JDK from Sun website in the *preface*. If you want to start out on your own this book is a good place to do that. A page of minor errata is available from Kamin's website, which perhaps bothered previous readers. Good book with a conversational style.