Components Books

This book provides an introduction to creating custom UI components using Java. First there's a guide to effective user interface design, including what to avoid, including examples of real software.

The book then goes through several example of custom UI components. The examples are done with the AWT instead of using Swing for better portability of the code. In the examples, the authors emphasis design principles along with the actual code. The examples are advanced and are written for experienced programmers. The authors then go through the design and development of the example, which is very helpful to understand their design consideration in coding the example. The book ends with an overall software development process and component maintenance.

This book is for Java developers seeking a detailed introduction to designing and implementing custom user-interface components and frameworks. After the user interface guide in the beginning, this book is a tutorial by example. I would recommend the book to anyone who needs to create a user interface beyond the components offered by the standard toolkit.

Professional Java Custom UI Components takes the reader through a planning, design, and implementation philosophy for creating custom user interface components. Hints and tips are discussed, giving important insight for creating components. The authors concentrated on the basic principles of design without creating another reference book. Also, rather than laying out all the nitty gritty code detail, the most interesting portions are highlighted and discussed. A handful of custom components are built to demonstrate these principles. Both the source code and documentation can be downloaded from WROX, and are copyrighted by Krutsch Associates, Inc.

The book tour starts with a discussion of the user interface design, the importance of a good interface that is intuitive to use, and the attention to detail required for a UI component. The authors take the reader through the planning and implementation of a toggle switch and LED component, implementing the event model, specifying the parent container interaction, and rendering strategy. Many tips are provided so that the reader may avoid common pit falls. More complex components are discussed and implemented.

The book ends with an overall software development process and component maintenance. Until this point, the focus has been the "how" of building custom components, now the discussion shifts into a larger context. The authors stress the importance of both before and after the initial implementation.

I recommend reading this book for anyone designing and implementing custom UI components. (September 2001)

At first I was really excited about reading this book. I have several books from the WROX publishers, and for the most part I have found them to be very high above average in their ability to explain their topics in a very deep manner. While I do not think that this book covers Swing very deeply, I still believe that it is a good book for learning the concepts of Swing. Since reading this book I have read other books on Swing (Java Swing by O'Reilly for instance), and I have found that most of them seem to go into a lot more detail than this book. Another thing that I would have liked to have seen in this book would have been more emphasis on different design paradigms (MVC, model-delegate, etc). Design was mentioned, but not as deeply as I was looking for. Overall though, I suppose that it can be difficult to get just the right mix of UI design and API coverage.

When developing client Java applets there is a problem which has no simple solution. The majority of browser installations support Java 1.1 only. If you intend to use Swing you will often have to force the user to download and install the upgrade. This can lose clients because it's too difficult, or limit the user base because 1.2 is unavailable for their platform, etc. In addition, Swing can run quite slow on older hardware. A large part of this book deals with providing equivalent functionality using AWT alone.
This book covers the design and implementation of several components using AWT and then covers what you would do given access to Swing. In the end you have several components that give a good foundation to an alternative library to Swing. You could use the design concepts in this book to develop your own complete library to use when Swing isn't available.
One thing to note when comparing the components in the book to Swing is that Swing was developed in a non-production environment. In a way they had to invent the problems and then create the solution. This code was developed as a result of real problems. As a byproduct the components run very fast compared to regular Swing components.
The chapter on UI design (Chapter 2) is a must for any developer. It details common UI design mistakes that developers make and give practical solutions. I would suggest requiring developers to read this chapter before allowing them to do any UI development of any kind (note I didn't say UI design - I recommend that you don't allow developers to DESIGN UI at all). The chapter on code maintenance (Chapter 11) is very useful and is a skill that many developers lack. Again, this could be required reading for developers.
There are several things about this book that make unique from any other book I've read. The code base is the result of a real, shipping system (used by StorageTek). It's the result of a real, organic development cycle that is also well tested. The code isn't small snippets that were hand built for the book, thus forgetting the interaction with a full application. The code is a full product standing on its own.
The code and topic is advanced and is not for beginning programmers (the name of the book is PROFESSIONAL Java Custom UI components). Bring your thinking cap.

This is for the 1986 2nd edition, Device Electronics for Integrated Circuits, ISBN: 0471887587. I have not looked at the recent 3ed. The fundamentals in this "1980's vintage" 2ed. text haven't changed, and therefore it is still relevant.

In recommending this text, I assume you have already briefly encountered device physics in a class or in a bit of self-study, that you have an elementary grasp of solid state, semiconductor statistics, and electrostatics, and that you understand how to do elementary differentiation and integration. I also assume you like a logical, systematic approach.

Successfully using this book reminds me of practice in (American) football: you must mix dedication, sweat, blood, and pain with ample time and passion to be prepared for victory on game day. In that vein, I spent about 90 hours of study (that I could spare) over a few months and studied EVERY page of this book, starting with the first page of the preface and page-by-page working my way to the last page in the last chapter, Ch. 10 (there are no appendices). (That's about 10 min per page, in case you're wondering.) I've looked at Sze, Tuar & Ning, Pierret, Neudeck, Wolf, and others. This book is superior for the prepared beginner. My undergraduate class used the Modular Series by Pierret and Neudeck, which in retrospect always leaves me with the same feeling watching someone trying to lose weight without working out and dieting; somewhere you have to struggle with the concepts and math. There is no other way.

M&K's book is logically laid out and mathematically systematic, with each chapter building on the previous. That can be a disadvantage if you impatiently just want to plunge in on a MOSFET for example. But, if you start at the beginning and work your way painstakingly page-by-page to the end, you WILL understand device physics. This disciplined approach will pay off huge dividends. Do it. Buy it. Study it.

I make no naive claim that a single text will get you to mastery. When finished with this book, I suggest next reading Sze's encyclopedic-like 1981 text as a good review of all types of devices, then going to a modern text like the one from Taur & Ning to get the latest updates. If you've done the preparation, reading Taur and Ning will be very insightful and enjoyable, as the pace is pretty quick. Finally, as a warmup before tackling M&K, you might consider "Intuitive Ic Electronics: A Sophisticated Primer for Engineers and Technicians" by Thomas M. Fredericksen.

Good luck.

I originally bought this book for a university course several years ago, and have now found myself referring to it again in my new job (my parents shipped it from Australia for me). Found it useful for explanations on various semiconductor processes, but is perhaps a bit dated now (quite a bit has changed since 1986!). A bit pricey.

Muller & Kamins have written a useful reference book, although as a textbook it leaves a bit to be desired. Few examples and circular references leave one always turning to the index. Not a good first introduction...but a very handy book to have around once you understand the material.

When I was in grad school I learned most of the basics from two books, Streetman and Muller and Kamins. I worked every problem in this book during that effort and I thought they were excellent. They had some challenge to them, introduced many good points not in the text, and were very relevant to real world practice. Despite the opinions of some other reviewers device physics hasnt really changed at the undergraduate level, hence this book is still a good choice. The book is restricted to silicon, which is still the dominant technology out there and really focuses on giving you a good basic background in devices used in today's IC chips. It is more focused in this sense than some other books, it does not deal with optoelectronic devices or MESFETs, but what it covers it covers very well, and does so in a very practical manner, reflecting the fact that Dr Muller is tightly tied into the Integrated circuit industry and his coauthor is in industry. Dr Muller has a reputation as an excellent instructor.

It is hard to find technical books on SOCs. This book is
one of the few that has good comprehensive examples on VOIP and set-top box SOC designs.

I like the chapters on physical design and low-power.
Specifically the design guides and tips.

Should be entitled ASIC to ASIC. Nothing to do with SoCs. Most ASIC design old tricks are listed and covered in a few lines. I can't imagine a SoC designer who could make use of this. Who cares saving a 100 gates in a multi-million gates project?

Good coverage on methodologies and design flows. A good book for engineers, project/program managers and technical marketing individuals dealing with ASICs and/or SOCs.

As the author, I wrote this book as an introduction for
someone who wanted to learn to use this design language. It is
not particulary suitable as a reference guide, but instead
is organized to help you grasp the fundamental relationships
and organization of the VHDL language. Even for experienced
programmers some of the concepts are a bit hard at first.
We try also to include the motivations and uses for various
features. There are a number of simple examples included.
I hope you enjoy and use this book.
stan mazor

I just borrowed the book from the library and I am reading through it to understand VHDL. It is good for my background: I know more than ten programming languages, know digital logic design, and is familiar with Verilog. I had read a few other VHDL books, but was kind of confused by their writing styles.

I like this book because it tells the rationals behind the VHDL design. It is focused on the design of the language itself. The other books I read tried to cover many things like microprocessor design or DSP design, but didn't clarify why VHDL uses concepts like entity, architecture, process, etc. For a professional, it is fast to learn VHDL from this book.

But this book is possibly not a good book for a student because of its focus. It lacks detail (not a good reference book) and doesn't have many examples.

My major complaint against this book is that it is not useful as a reference. The index of only six pages is hopelessly devoid of useful information. Nearly all keywords listed in the index merely point to a table of keywords, with no explanation or further reference. Not in the index: "<=" (which has two meanings), "explicit literal", "aggregate", and "assignment statement", for example. Index often references wrong page. Typos ("discreet", "scaler") abound.

If you want to build a solid foundation in VHDL, this is the book to buy. I absolutely loved it.

This book is very good and easy to understand for beginers to learn how to build Custom-Made fishing rods and general repairs to any fishing rods I give it 10/10.

My husband has just started building fishing rods so he has really enjoyed this book. It has clear instructions along with pictures.

Thanks

very practical guideline for the beginner as well as the more advanced rod builder

This book is completly outdated and most of the info can be had with the purchase of a blank. I wasted my money and it is not even worth returning!

This book is well written even for a 12 year old. The math isn't too complex. I don't know if the previous reviewer has any formal electrical/electronics education; maybe that should be the place to start. I think this book does a better job than "The Art Of Electronics", in explaing how Op-Amps really work. But don't let this book be the end all to be all. Until an author writes a book that combines everything about Electronics, use as many books as possible. I have not found one book that can compare to 10 books on the same subject. Maybe the "Grey" book.

I'm a mechanical engineer that specializes in robotics and found this book very approachable. If you're looking for a solid "real world" book on op-amps and their applications, this is a great reference book. It contains useful examples that teach the underlying theory without being overly burdened with graduate level mathematics.

This is a rebuttal to Mr. Sanders review, which I found to be unfair and untrue. I have the second edition of this book which was used as the text for an undergrad course taken in 1988. I have found this text an invaluable resource. The equations are well derived and the examples provide a good foundation to op-amp circuit design. This text is a good reference for beginner and experienced engineers alike. I find it highly unlikely that the fourth edition would be a step backward from the second edition.

The prose explanations are short and stilted, offering a minimun of circuit operational explanation. When the author reaches what I entrepet as writer's block, he refers the reader to an equation which is lenghty and difficult to understand. The equations often lack explanations as to how they are derived. They also lack explanations of what the new symbols in them represent. They would be much easier to understand if there was more prose explanation of how the equations were created and then how the equations were changed into simpler equations for solving. This appears to be a good reference for experienced engineers. It is not a good study text for newly learning students.

This book is more like a summary of various IEEE papers in low voltage opamp design. It's a good book to learn low voltage opamp design if you already have enough background in classic opamp. The author lists the formula but doesn't give the derivation. There are lots of errors in the examples and problems. The price is too high for a book like this.

It is a very good book that gives detailed explainations for designing an opamp.

Dr. Johan H. Huijsing is the most famous expert on operational amplifiers. I had been waiting for quite long time since I knew he was going to publish this great book on OPAM last year.

I believe I am one of first several lucky guys who could read this masterpiece first. When I went to IEEE ISSCC 2001 conference at San Francisco in February 2001, I found Kluwer had .... I grabbed a book without any hesitation, and after I gave my credit card information to a Kluwer representative, all books were gone. It's so hot!

Dr. Huijsing has written several books on OPAM, and I think this book is the most comprehensive one. It addresses definitions of OPAMs, macromodels, applications, input and output stages, fully differential OPAMs and operational floating amplifiers, and shows some design examples. It presents nine design topologies to readers so you can pick up OPAM design very quickly and efficiently through different configurations. Dr. Huijsing also spends lots of efforts addressing low-power lower-voltage design techniques. Though CMOS technology is mainstream today, biploar and BiCMOS technologies are well elaborated in the book, and Dr. Huijsing makes very good comparisons among them, which could be particularly helpful to RF engineers.

Of course, one book cannot cover everything. I suggest you read some other good books from Dr. Huijsing, Dr. Razavi and Dr. David Johns etc. as well while you enjoying this wonderful book. ....

This is a good book to have if you are an opamp designer.
But, I expect the author can do a lot better job than this with this high price.
It skips lots of discussions, I feel like that he just wanted to finish write a book without too much attention.
I hope he can prepare a second edition with more detailed stuff.
For example, I wanted a details of nested miller compensation, but I could not understand it yet from this book.

Excellent book for everyone who needs to understand principles of RF and its problems. Minor missprinting errors will not deminish the value of book. Just read lines and between and an answer will come.

I am on chapter two of this book. I have found it to be informative and not overly quantitative. However, a number of typos have contributed to some aggravation. Some additional proof reading and corrections are in order. These errors might be confusing to the student and/or novice.

Along with Chris Bowick's book, this manual belongs in the library of any engineer or technician who wants to gain an understanding of RF amplifiers, filters and impedance-matching networks. Gottlieb's style makes for enjoyable reading and easy comprehension; and, along with solid-state, he covers vacuum tube technology. That's a real plus, in my opinion. Highly recommended to engineers, students, technicians and hobbyists.

I am an EE, but not an RF expert. The book may have a lot of useful information, but I can't tell what is correct and what isn't. Even with my limited RF knowledge, I found a huge number of typos, especially in the last couple of chapters, some questionable math, a severe lack of math and theory to back up the "practical" hints, and a frustrating inability by the author to express himself clearly. For example, he discusses electrical line length for many pages, but never defines it. He provides many anecdotes about VSWR, but does not provide enough math or theory to tie them all together into a useful picture. It seems to me that the content is much too spotty to be useful to a designer; it might be more helpful to an RF equipment operator with very limited technical and math skills.

This book was a good introduction for someone completely unfamiliar with PCB's. The other reviewers are very correct that it is out of date by at least 10 years, but it is a good book.

There are plenty of PCB books out there, but Flatt's Printed Circuit Board Basics seems to be the only one that brings it all together in a basic, short, orderly format. If you don't mind searching through four or five hundred pages for basic info on PCBs then the other books are fine. But why do that, when Flatt's book does it for you.

He gives you a good idea of the steps of how a standard PCB is manufactured. Although a few steps maybe outdated (ex. punch cards). There are even some IPC and Mil-Spec standards given, but here again some standards maybe outdated (but you can find the latest versions on the web).

The title of the book says it all. Get the book if you want a basic foundation on PCBs.

PCB Basics is just as it says--basic. It gives you a very brief overview of what PCBs are and how they are manufactured. It goes into some amount of detail in how a "typical" PCB is constructed, but that is about all. For someone with almost no knowledge about PCBs specifically, it gives a nice overview of some basic vocabulary.

My biggest complaint about this book is that it seemed outdated, despite the most recent edition of it being published at the very end of 1997. The technology it discusses is typically mid-1980s or very early 1990s. I don't know if the PCB manufactures are that behind the times, but I find it hard to believe that the current drilling machines are still communicated to via punch tapes and that customers are still sending their CAD files via data tapes.

Fortunately, the technology being a little outdated doesn't affect the primary discussion much--how a PCB is manufactured. While the tools may be a little more sophisticated the basic process is still the same.

This is a decent book if you want a basic introduction to PCBs, but don't count on it for a large amount of detail or any design help.

I want to learn more advanced information on PCB

Don't spend your money on this book, there is a lot of repetive stuff in it. Also, if you already work in the field of ASIC design, you will not learn much in this book, trust me.

I really liked this book and found its rules and guidelines very useful. Many of the guidelines are common sense, but it is still very appropriate to have them codified in a single textbook. Practitioners of full-custom approaches to IC design will complain that this is an "ASIC" book. It does have some rules that folks from that background will find hard to swallow (eg, no latches, no gated clocks). But 70% of the book is still applicable to full custom design and will result in faster re-use of full custom cores. The book gets off to a fairly wooly start but becomes substantial with the RTL Coding Guidelines chapter. From then on, its really solid stuff. This is a good book for the times. With much discussion of design re-use and transferable intelectual property in the chip industry, it has all the hallmarks of becoming a 'bible' book for IC designers of all stripes.

This book pointed out many design problems that I just met before. Designer could avoid many of them by following the guidelines in this book. I think it would help me a lot in my design work. Thanks to the authors.

The guidelines are not difficult to understand, and you may have the pieces here and there. But this book has a broad coverage. I got this book by luck draw at SNUG. Didn't pay attention at first until I read it. Very well organized, very accurate description of the real feelings of doing a real chip. The methodology it talks about is not limited to "reuse". I suggest the auther change the title for next edition.