Programming Books

You can't learn to swim by reading about it and the same goes for Visual Basic. In the end, you have to write some code. And that's often the rub. What can you develop if you have no clue about how to start? Hergert gives interesting, small apps to practice on that become increasingly more complex. My approach is to type in his code, watch the results and learn to understand the how-to's and the why's. Then I do the whole thing all over, solo. That's how I find the gaps in my understanding of the project and the language. This book is ideal. Thanks Doug!

Calvin Trillin once warned against eating at any deli with New York in its name; I've learned not to buy any programing language books with "days" in its title. This book employs a teaching technique I consider ideal: assume the reader knows nothing. In the hands of a clear and thoughtful writer such as Hergert, even advanced learners, who may space out occasionally, never feel talked down to. I've skimmed the sections I feel competent in and pored over the areas in which I have difficulty. In both cases, I've obtained the security of knowing that what I've learned I know thoroughly. The index is skimpy and keyword list incomplete; though you can make do with VB help, I recommend a reference book as a supplement. I use the VB Superbible (only because I bought it to use it as an instruction manual first). But as an instruction manual, I consider the VB Bible unsurpassable.

The book is one of the most clear, comprehensive, and practical programming language books that I have read in my twenty years in the industry. This book is especially ideal (but not exclusive) to people making the transition from other programming languages.

This is an excellent book whether you are an absoloute beginer or you just want a reference book for the things you don't yet know. A recommended buy.

This is a very good book. There's something the author could improve on in the next version. Examples in the book don't seem to encourage good programming practice. E.g., two consecutive if-blocks should be combined into one if-elseif-block for performance reason because only one IF is valid judging from the context. Some identical processing is done on the WHILE line rather than before the loop. Performance shouldn't be a concern for a beginning programmer but if it doesn't take much to teach, why not? Other than this, this is a very well written book.

This book is awesome. It is exactly what I have been looking for.

I have been coding in VB.Net for a couple years now and I'm comfortable with the standard features of VB.Net and Visual Studio.Net. I needed a book that would take my skills to the next level and help me take full advantage of the more powerful capabilites of the .Net programming environment.

Make no mistake, this is not a beginner's book. It does not rehash the same old instructions on how to do the basics. What it does, and does very well, is take you straight into the advanced topics of interfaces, delegates, reflection, attributes, multithreading, COM Interop, remoting, custom components, smart clients, web services, and much more. I can see how this information will help me build awesome applications that I would not have otherwise been able to do.

Paul Kimmel's writing style is concise yet friendly. The examples truly help clarify the lesson at hand. The size of the book is small enough, 700 pages, that you can take your time to understand the material and still expect to complete the book in a reasonable amount of time.

I know that I will be writing and delivering better software as a result of reading this book. It is exactly what I was looking for in a "Level 2" book. I don't know if there is a "Level 3" book or not, but I can only hope that if there isn't one, that Paul Kimmel is in the processing of writing it.

This book covers a grab bag of topics around the .NET platform. Topics range in obscurity from reflection (which it starts with) to just above basic, using ADO.NET with stored procedures. Threading, which is always a difficult topic to explain, was covered in a well written fashion, but lacked illustrations, which I think would have brought a lot of clarity to the subject. Other topics were given some illustrations, but overall the book used screenshots for most of the graphics. Remoting was another area that could have used illustrations.

Overall well written, but could have been better organized and illustrated. Definitely worth a look over if you find that it covers topics of interest.

To start this book review I can only say one thing ... this book is AWESOME! I actually sat
down and read the whole book in just over a week. I couldn't put it down. The way Mr. Kimmel
writes will keep your attention GLUED to each page as you read and learn about Visual Basic
.NET programming advanced topics. His sense of humor comes shining through in his examples and
writing. It is a book that I could just not put down. I'd come home from work, grab a bite to
eat and it was off to the reading room for me. I spent many a night this past week staying up
late because I didn't want to close the book for another night.

Mr. Kimmel did what a lot of books have tried to do, but in my opinion have come up short on
all too many occasions. He started out in Chapter 1 explaining the differences between Visual
Basic 6.0 and the new, improved Visual Basic .NET programming languages. He drilled down into
the changes more than any other book I have read and made it so easy to understand the
differences. This is also something that he did throughout the text. This was to give the
reader a look back at the Visual Basic 6.0 language and then explain how it works now in the
.NET world. That is something that many books have tried to do, but in my opinion, Mr. Kimmel
NAILED the explanations to the barn door. He made is so easy to understand the VB.NET language
now and the advanced features that are available to us as developers.

I have spent the past three years teaching at the Community College of Aurora as an Adjunct
Instructor in the Computer Sciences Division. I have had the opportunity to teach Visual Basic
6.0, Advanced Visual Basic 6.0, and Java programming languages. I have read and used many
different textbooks in my tenure. Going forward, I'm going to be telling my Visual Basic .NET
programming class students that this is the book they need to read after they have finished
their Advanced VB.NET book. The textbooks that are available for instructors are all fine, but
I believe that Mr. Kimmel's book will be a much higher benefit to my students who are serious
about learning VB.NET and the power that it now has. I have already contacted some of my
previous students who are Visual Basic .NET developers and have advised them to get their own
copy of this book.

My favorite chapters are 10 & 11, ADO.NET and Advanced ADO.NET. In my years of developing
projects I have done A LOT of database programming, as most of us have. I found that ADO.NET
is a subject that has MANY, MANY different books written about it. Most are very intricate and
very technical, which is good for some people. For the rest of the folks out there, it's best
to get a GOOD grounding in the basics before moving on to the heavy technical stuff. I believe
that Mr. Kimmel found the secret of how to give us that understanding of ADO.NET that we can
now go forth and build upon.

That is how I feel about the entire book. There is enough technical expertise to keep the hard
core developers interested, but at the same time there is a good balance of information for
folks who are just stepping out of a college level advanced VB.NET course who are looking for
a good reference book to help them get a better understanding of VB.NET. Mr. Kimmel covers
Visual Basic .NET like no other author I have found yet. Very concise information is shared in
the pages of his book. There is no "fluff" that you find in some books. No, not in this book.
He drills into Visual Basic .NET like no other author that I've read thus far. I feel very
enriched by having had the opportunity to read this book and plan on having this located on my
bookshelf within EASY reach while I'm developing projects.

I feel fortunate in that I have been extended a hand by what I believe to be that of a
gentleman who is a person I consider to be extremely knowledgeable in both the technologies
and helping others understand the technologies. I received an e-mail from Mr. Kimmel just a
short time after sending a thank you note to the publisher's representative who donated this
book to the Denver Visual Studio User Group, Denver, Colorado, where I selected this book for
a review. I was shocked when I opened my e-mail and I saw the address being Mr. Kimmel's. When
I opened the e-mail what I found was a gentleman who can only be described as an individual
that I hope to keep in contact for years to come. He had a genuine interest in me as a person
and a developer. We have shared a few e-mails since then and I sincerely hope that he will
consider revising his book and writing a 2nd Edition for Visual Basic 2005. I know that there
are going to be many upgrades, changes, additions, subtractions, etc. that are accomplished by
Microsoft and I would really appreciate it if Mr. Kimmel could be the one to lead the charge
as the new technologies are released. He has such a tremendous understanding of the
technologies and how to put them into words that makes it easier for us developers to
understand and then use the knowledge that he shares with us to help build our foundation on
which we build our empires of knowledge.

Thank you to Mr. Paul Kimmel for writing such a true work of art for those of us who are mere
students of Visual Basic .NET and who seek the wisdom of the Masters! I truly believe that
this book could be considered a book written by a Master of Visual Basic for the Ages!

As a professional programmer with almost 2 years experience with the .NET framework, this book is a breath of fresh air. Finally, a book on .NET that goes beyond the basics and shows some of the more advanced and interesting capabilities of the framework.

Highlights for me include a discussion on value and reference types, delegates for multithreading, reflection, attributes, COM interop, remoting, custom components (including UITypeEditor) and implementing Extender Provider controls (like the ToolTip control).

I discovered many details of the framework that had eluded me. For example, did you know that all value types inherit from the ValueType class? how to add custom properties to all controls on a form? or how to use COM interop to provide a smooth path for the migration of VB6 application to .NET?

On the down side, the chapters dealing with the subject of ADO.NET, which is itself in need of a few advanced books, only describe the more basics aspects of the technology. Also, there is no chapter on XML.

Overall though, Kimmel does an excellent job of putting together a wealth of advanced subjects in a compact package.

There are endless books for beginners trying to learn .NET. This book is for people yearning for more. His discussing on Asynchronous operations is worth the price of the book alone. So is his discussion on No touch deployment. If you want to take your VB.NET knowledge up a level, this is the book for you.

This is one of my favorite VC++ books. It has great examples and easy to follow explanations of the subject being covered. I have really learned from this book. Excellent.

The book is full of skills that helps programmers solve common problems when programming in MFC. Some problems exist: I found one "How-to" appeared twice in different parts of the book. Also, some programs on "Toolbars and Status Bars" have bugs. For example, the "ProgressMeter" application should derive CMeterBar from CStatusBar instead of CStatusBarCtrl. These are minor problems that can be easily corrected - I hope the authors have already done that. Besides all these problems, I still think this is a very good book on MFC programming. It prevents you from reinventing the wheel (many times).

If you have to code in MFC you need this book in addition to the Microsoft documentation and at least one other VC++ book. Scott's book uncovers techniques that are well hidden in the MFC documentation and not covered in other books but necessary in real applications. Usually if I am trying to do something slightly different from the standard look I find the answer in Scott's book or it gives me enough hints to figure out a solution. Many are not covered in the other VC++ books. Some important examples show how to change some properties in forms using MFC that are simple to change in VB but would be almost impossible to find in the MFC documentation or figure out by yourself.

An amazing amount of topics covered. Very thorough, and concise. No fluff. I constantly refering to it. One bad point: The index is not tabulated correctly, it can be difficult to find subjects. Overall the best book on Visual C++ I've seen yet.

Almost all of the programming books I have ever bought that are specific to a particular language product are worthless. They spend 550 of 600 pages describing the product's menu options and toolbar buttons then 40 pages of trivial worthless sample programs and 10 pages of index. This is not one of those books.

This book is 650 pages of pertinent and valuable examples and I have used it many times to help me solve many real world problems. I specifically liked that fact that it is the first book I have ever read that described the WM_GETMINMAXINFO message as a method of making CFormView based applications look the way they should. For the record, every other programming book I have that relates to MFC in any way gives naive CFormView examples that look stupid when running and behave stupidly when used.

As a very amateur web builder, I find this to be an excellent reference tool. Concise, to the point explanations are provided and I found the answer to my problem right away. Cuts to the chase without all the fluff.

I read this book in about three days. It is so clear and concise and packed with simple yet extensible examples to do just about anything a designer would want to do on a web page. It is also full of practical, pragmatic pointers that really get you to think about the goal of your site and how to acheive that goal. I was thoroughly impressed with this book - worth the money, a great reference, and a nice-paced read. You want to design web sites? No experience? Pick up this book. You been dabbling and want to improve? Pick up this book. Do you finally want to see what all the to do is with CSS? Want to stop using html the wrong way? You want to make your sites more accessible for the impaired and do it the right way? Pick up this book.

I've been doing HTML work for almost 10 years now. I currently own or manage four different web sites. Because of always changing standards regarding HTML and more recently CSS, trying to keep a web site compliant with these standards is not an easy thing. One of the more problematic issues is how certain functions are employed that seem to work on every browser out there, but suddenly a standards verification says that what is being used doesn't comply with official standards. Grrr...

Another problem is trying to get information that the average Joe can understand. More often than not, web sites that are dedicated to providing HTML and CSS information are very poorly done because they look like someone with no taste or style just threw the page together. (I'm sure that we've all seen the pathetic web sites with huge, dark letters on a black background, centered throughout the page, with needless graphics scattered about.) Other sites regarding HTML and CSS are far too technical and give a lot of details but no practical instructions, examples, or usage. The only thing to do at that point is to find a web site that does what you want to do and try to figure out what was done through that page's source code. Sometimes that alone is enough to make you want to give up.

Web Design Garage is one of the few books about HTML and CSS that actually is written for the starting web author who doesn't know where to start as well as the intermediate author who is looking to fine tune his (or, of course, her) web design skill and perhaps clean up the site a bit.

This book is divided into eighty-six separate chapters with each chapter covering a very specific topic, such as image maps, text elements, paths, forms, and so forth. This is very beneficial because you know that the whole topic deals with one subject, rather than have one larger chapter that deals with a number of topics for which you have to go searching. What's also very nice about the chapter design is that for appropriate topics the HTML chapter is followed by the equivalent chapter to do the same thing through CSS. This is a great way of letting the reader compare the two formats back-to-back for the specific goal that the reader wants to reach. This certainly beats the more commonly used method of having a larger topic dealing with a lot of HTML topics followed by another large chapter of the same number of topics in CSS, forcing to you to hunting through the chapters for comparisons or differences.

This book also contains hundreds of images, screen shots, and code examples. In a visually oriented world like the Web, being able to see how each bit of code works as well as a graphical example of the theories behind that bit of code make it easier to understand exactly what that chapter is attempting to accomplish.

The book also covers some functions that might not appeal to the beginner but would likely be considered to be of value for intermediate HTML/CSS designers. Such topics include blogs, forms, form validation, some Javascript, and even how to validate so that the code is up to W3C standards.

What's really great about this book is not that it's written in layman's terms. It's not that this book keeps the specific topics relegated to their own, individual chapters. It's not that this book contains lots of information that even experienced HTML coders might find of value. What's great about this book is that is does all of this for a list price of US$29.99, so you know that it will be available for less than that in most bookstores. This is not a large book (roughly 530 pages) but the information that it gives for the price make is a great value.

I've been doing web pages for many years and have gotten many rave reviews on their designs, non-bloated implementations, and compatibility across almost all browsers. And even I found things in this book that I've been thinking of implementing but thought that they'd be too difficult to implement. Web Design Garage has proved me to be wrong. And if I can get value out of this book, I know that just about all beginner and intermediate HTML/CSS coders will be able to get value out of it as well.

If you're looking to impress people with fancy Flash animations or other such multimedia overload, this isn't the book for you. But if you're thinking of starting your own web page or you already have a basic web page and would like to spice it up, buy this book.

marc campbell shows one the things everyone know in their subconscience about a well designed site, but does realize when designing a site.

"Web Design Garage" is a remarkably clear-headed, concisely-written and feature-rich book about contemporary web design topics. It is part of a "Garage" series of hip-looking, style-laden books published by Prentice Hall (Prentice Hall Professional Technical Reference -PH PTR) and is targeted at the "garage" level designer - small business professionals, hobbyists, and technophiles. It assumes some modest familiarity of HTML and working with Javascripts.

This is not a primer, tutorial, or concept-bound book. It is meant to provide practical guidance and solutions to the most common web design issues dealt with by web designers. Author, Marc Campbell, offers a set of 86 topics about web design problems and solutions. The format for nearly all of the 86 topics is to highlight a design issue and offer solutions using pictures, examples, and code snippets. Although a good and quick read from beginning to end, the book can be read piecemeal for information and guidance on a specific issue. One can pick and chose topics depending on interest or need.

There are no traditional chapters, but only a set of design topics of relatively short length organized into 8 general categories. Those categories include design and usability topics, layout, images, text, links, forms, and two others, - one of miscellaneous items and the last being an explanation of basic web design material. There is also an index and a short glossary of HTML, CSS, web, and graphics-related terms.

The fundamental theme of the book is that design and usability are, or should be, the same thing. Usability is paramount, of course, but the author's approach to web design emphasizes creating a "sense of place" so that good design unites pages so that they look like they belong together.

This is not an earth-shattering idea, but like most of all of the design treatments, the goal is to design pages which make it easy for visitors to use the site. Many good design virtues are virtually invisible to the casual user. There is a blend of design and usability. It's only when a design element doesn't work well that it comes to the attention of the user, and that occurrence is meant to be avoided. The author shows by example how design and usability are intertwined.

There are a handful of themes which guide the book. Admirably, the author emphasizes for every design element, a concern for accessibility. Many of the design guides refer to accessibility by screen-readers and non-graphic browsers. A second major concern is for compliance with contemporary web design standards as promulgated by the World Wide Web Consortium. Consequently, there is much emphasis on the separation of page structure from content where HTML is used for structure and CSS is used for content. A contrast of HTML and CSS formatting is highlighted in many of the chapters.

There is a large handful of sections which express HTML and CSS formatting differences on page layout, text and image positioning, and other web design elements. There is clear discussion on how to work with Javascripts and stylesheets. The emphasis is on "forward-looking" coding, i.e., clean, standards compliant, and accessibility conscious. Campbell offers an experienced designer's insights on choices to be made in design components. There is much value for both inexperienced and seasoned designers.

Each topic is richly expressed with clear and straightforward text, illustrations, screenshots, and sidebars on a variety of related matters. Throughout there are sidebars titled "FAQS" and "Geekspeak" explaining concepts or terminology for the less-knowledgable reader. Then there are those called "Tips" which usually offer an insight to practical problems, especially dealing with browser compatibility issues. There are many useful tables and charts indexing specific tag attributes, with examples. In addition and most useful are the "Toolkits" which are sample code snippets. It would have been nice to have the code snippets available for downloading from the publisher's web site (www.phptr.com/garageseries).

This is a dense volume containing all sorts of information useful for the "garage" web designer. For some reason, the depth and weight of the content is reflected in the book itself, which is remarkably heavy, weighing in at a well-produced 29 ounces.

There are many books available on basic web design, but this one is unusually clear and well-expressed. This is the type of book one keeps handy in the bookshelf next to the computer to access for quick solutions to everyday web design problems.

This author's approach to the Web is one of encouraging a transfer of power; instead of following a traditional top-down business structure (i.e. in a business telling its customer base what it wants them to hear), it encourages listening to what customers want and providing that to them. On its most basic level, it is about the nuts and bolts of how to create web sites in bottom-up fashion.

Upon reading this book, I was struck by similarities between the author's propositions on web design and the economic history that is my field. Economic development has also been associated with a transfer of power away from kings, emperors, shoguns, and the church, and into the hands of merchants, farmers, and producers.

As the author proposes User's Spectacles in modules 2-3, or seeing matters from the other person's point of view, I thought of how this message is repeated in the historical movement from confrontation to negotiation and compromise. Where she calls on the designer to know the web better than the user, I recall the entrepreneurs of the Industrial Revolution in England, who had to know their customers. In module 7, where she writes of gaining the user's trust, I thought of how trade engendered trust during the period of the Enlightenment in Europe - and still does. In module 8, where she suggests organizing information from the user's point of view, I thought of how economic innovations depend on the needs of customers, not of despotic rulers. Where she speaks of the Internet as a web, I thought of the world economy as a web.

Having been surprised to find a book on web design that had so much interconnection with economic history, my mind wandered into other areas of interconnection among human beings in our vast worldwide web.

Finally, the author's conversational writing makes this book extremely easy to read.

John P. Powelson
Professor of Economics, Emeritus
University of Colorado

Many high profile commercial sites, let alone those not informed by "professional" designers, would benefit from the clarity of purpose and practical methods presented in this book. In fact, the fundamentals of user-centered design put forward so clearly here are pertinent in many other fields, too. To top it off I found the writing style clear, informative and enjoyable.
I recommend it for individual designers as well as for schools, libraries and design shops.

Finally! Someone has translated the tangled World Wide Web into something even I can understand!

Ms. Holmes has created a book that is useful, well organized, pertinent, well written, and even pleasurable to read! So many of the internet books on the market today -- even those allegedly designed for beginners -- are of little use to anyone
but the seasoned professional. The Internet is a tool everyone can use and Web Usability & Navigation gives its readers the background they need to make the most of the Web.

I loved all of the examples -- I'm the type of person who learns best by seeing others' experiences. A good story will go a lot further with me than a bunch of technical jargon and Ms. Holmes has mastered the art of telling a good story with a purpose.

When I started reading Web Usability & Navigation, I had several
preconceived ideas about what I wanted in a web page. Ms. Holmes gently guided me through a variety of other options. This book is really useful for beginners and more advanced Web site creators as well.

Caroline Thomas-Jenson, CFRE
President / CEO
United Charity Services

I think this book is "required reading" for anyone serious about designing usable websites.

I am the lead web developer for my department in an academic/scientific institution. Our scientists here have embraced the value of the Internet to market themselves and their research. Consequently, there is an effort to publish more and more of their scientific research material in an online environment as "web publications" instead of traditional hardcopy publications. But the scientists taking an active role in developing their own web pages realize that it is more to it than just knowing HTML. They have asked for books/resources to instruct them.

This book will be such a VALUABLE addition to our library!

Information is presented in a clear and straightforward manner with good writing style that does not overwhelm the beginner with technical jargon. This is a particularly poignant topic for me... I think any web developer can appreciate Holmes' observations on the "information anxiety" of website (and software) users.

I am impressed with Holmes' ability to present the "hot topics" (such as frames, plug-ins, etc.) and remain neutral. (It's so hard to find someone WITHOUT an opinion these days.) She offers a spectrum of examples with their pros and cons - allowing the reader to determine what would work best in his/her environment.

Some great features of the book:

Numerous examples!! A lot of people are visual learners (myself included) - it is easier for them to process new material if they can see the content "in action." The examples provided in the book are a refreshing break from the endless dry reading found in the typical web development book.

I really liked the Ask the Expert sidebars - I think the novice would find these sections extremely valuable. "Ask the Expert" exposes the reader to the ins and outs of professional website design: Practical solutions are offered for common and vexing usability issues by web professionals. (Why reinvent the wheel?)

I also recommend that readers spend the time doing the exercises provided in the book: the exercises will arm him/her with a good set of skills to develop usable websites.

More great features of the book:

Web Usability and Navigation: A Beginner's Guide is not just for beginners. Experienced website designers can benefit from the knowledge presented in this book as well.

Holmes has done her homework researching and collecting website usability facts and tips. Web professionals who lack the time or resources to research website usability in-depth (like me), will appreciate Web Usability and Navigation: A Beginner's Guide as a "usability cookbook."

For example: A usability checklist is provided to help novice and experienced web designers alike in making sure the most fundamental usability and navigation features are built in, or at least considered, during the design of a website.

The best thing I liked about this book: THOROUGHNESS!

Web Usability and Navigation: A Beginner's Guide is as comprehensive as it gets. Holmes takes the time to address important, yet often overlooked usability issues other web development books and guides fail to mention.

For instance, the affect different fonts (I.e., sans serif vs. serif) can make on the presentation/readability of a webpage. (Believe it or not, this has been a "hot topic" in my department for quite some time - right up there with frames and flash: that controversial!)

I think this book is "required reading" for anyone serious about designing usable websites. I am buying a copy of this book for my department.

I'll admit it, I didn't expect to learn too many new ideas from reading this book, but I was pleasantly surprised. Unlike other books I've read on web usability, Web Usability & Navigation: A Beginner's Guide actively encourages you to develop an eye for usability through the use of various projects designed to give you the opportunity to practice what you've just learnt.

As you might expect, the usual topic of web site navigation and usability are covered... but before reading, I never really considered the problems surrounding the actual use of the web. I knew about the problems of browser compatibility and I am always curious as to how my site looks on other operating systems. Until now however, the difficulties and information overload experienced by the novice Internet user were long forgotten, and I'd never even considered how I could build my site to accommodate for different learning styles.

Like other usability books, Web Usability & Navigation: A Beginner's Guide does not go into the detail of exactly how you should implement what you've just learnt, rather it gives ideas on what to look for. So if you are expecting examples of code, there aren't any. One nice addition to the book is the case studies. Sure, other books have case studies, but rather than tell you from the outset what problems there are, you are encouraged to list any usability problems for yourself.

I particularly enjoyed the module on getting traffic to a site, it provided me with some fresh insight into just how closely linked web site usability and promotion usually are. After all, part of the experience of using a site is getting to it as quickly as possible, whether you type a name in the browser or search for it in the search engines.

Overall, this is a good introduction to web usability that is very easy to read, but as with other usability books, the nature of the information makes it difficult to use as a quick reference. For those who aren't new to the topic, there are quite a few things you could learn from reading this book, although perhaps the only way you'll find gaps in your knowledge is to read the book from cover to cover.

I stumbled on this book and gave it a read. I was surprised that to find it a great intro to HTML. It's balanced between discussion and examples.

The book is a little dated. The HTML tag section references 3.2 Some of the software links no longer work, but that happens with time.

However, the examples are simple and easy to understand.

The chapters are: Introduction, tools of the trade, HTML Standard, the Next plane, Frames and forms, advanced webbing, upload, wrap-up.

The appendixes give you a Tag Compendium, Color names and Hex equivalents and the ever present Glossary.

Some of the stuff can be "glanced" as there is a small discussion about CGI, DHTML, XML, and java.

Probably the only concern is there are a few references to Matt's script archive and I have heard many people say "it's good to find out who not to do things."

Overall, this is a decent introduction for people how haven't done HTML before. The book doesn't patronize and it doesn't bury with detail as with the dummies HTML book.

Mr. Howard outdid himself with this one. I cant say that I've ever read a better text on the subject of HTML. THe approach is subtle yet engaging on the most intellectual levels.

This book is a conversation between two users (one novice, one expert) and this gives us a great perspective. Howard proves that programmers shouldn't be writing books anymore than mechanics should be selling cars. There's only room for one more HTML book and this is it.

Mr. Howard and his sidekick Kate provide an introduction to HTML unlike any I've seen. Through common sense examples and real world techniques that will have the reader coding pages in hours instead of days, they use the Teacher/Student metaphor to guide the reader through the lessons. Mr. Howard never talks down to the reader or assumes too much, and the casual, conversational banter between he and Kate fosters a comfortable environment for learning about HTML. Highly recommended!

...second only to Catcher In The Rye is Todd M. Howard's funny yet poignant book about life and love in the world of HTML. This book moved me in ways I can only attempt to describe, it's protagonist was familiar yet distant, a recluse iconoclast, a stranger in a strange land, always pursued by the wolves in his own mind, whilst wrangling with the predators in his own, very real existence. As the book progressed, and I learned better how to spell URL and FTP, I immersed myself deeper into the mind of this terrifyingly sublime character. Would he ever tear his gaze away from Windows 98 to the windows right behind him, would he ever be free of those shackles of conformity that held him captive? Would the tender succubus of his own youth and naivate consume him whole? Would I ever figure out how to plug in a table to my homepage? Link up to this classic, folks, our boy Howard has talent, charm, charisma... he is a credit to our race. He is a force to be reckoned with in a galaxy of wolves and sheep. He weaves the written word with the skill of a surgeon and implements lines of code like a crazed Kabuki chef on New Year's Eve at BeniHana's. I only pray that, unlike Salinger, Howard lives to put pen to paper once again. They say lightning only strikes once, but baby, I'm praying for rain. Until then, I remain his loyal subject, like a master to an apprentice.

Excellent choice of topics (kernel objects, processes, threads, jobs, fibers, memory management, DLL et SEH)and a good compromise between the depth of analysis and an easy reading.
The book is very attractive visually; the bold fonts are really used at right places and numerous examples (as a matter of fact quite serious in itself) are very, very readable.
A must for a serious programmer.

This is an excellent book on the fundamentals of Microsoft Windows Operating Systems up to vista. The author definitely is an authority on the subject, and the book is pretty easy to follow with the C/C++ samples.

Particularly I like the chapters about the workings of DLLs. And the explanation of Windows memory management is also very clear.

Perhaps the book can be made a little thinner or use somewhat lightweight paper as I found it is pretty heavy to carry around.

In all, this is a very good desktop reference book if you are windows developer. Even though those RAD platform such as .NET make our life easier and enable us to make a good-looking app quickly, still, from time to time, you'll find a some level of understanding of how windows works help you write better code.

I am very satisfied with this book.

This is a comprehensive source for learning the inner working of the Windows. If you say i know Windows programming, i want to hear it from you again after reading it. Excellent. Must have in a bookshelf...

I have been programming for over 10 years, but my Windows specific C++ programming is relatively weak due to inexperience with it. Note that if you are in the same boat, you will need additional resources (web based, help files, other books) on top of this book as this book assumes you are already proficient in creating Windows apps.
They make no attempt to tell you otherwise, it is an expert level book - but even if you already know C++ well, there is much Windows specific details that this assumes you know.

Great book and very useful, just not entry level, so know that going in.

I'm a beginner in Windows programming and I'm glad I've found this book. I like how it focuses on "whys" and the correct usage of the described system elements. The authors also give enough details about specific APIs so, if reading for an intro, it's possible to follow without having MSDN handy. The code samples are very helpful, especially the mini-applications. The book doesn't concentrate on diagnostics/debugging though, you'd need some other volume for that.

Very easy to understand. Mr Liming provides all the tools (or lets you know where they can be procured) that you need. This book fulfilled my needs perfectly where I am developing an embedded processor on a device with flash memory as the boot and disk drive.

This book, along with the online documentation at MSDN will get you up and running with your Windows XP Embedded image. And the book is applicable as a first book also. The author is a very responsive contributor on the MSDN (and, I think, other) web forums. Since the book was written the practice of importing your .pmq file into Component Designer instead of Target Designer has become the preferred practice as the author, himself, has stated in the web forums.

The CD material is now available through the author's website.

I have been asked a few times already about this book and support for XPE SP2. Windows XP Embedded advanced is still a good starting point for those getting started with XP Embedded SP2. All the XPe development basics are in this book, and the steps are good for SP1 and SP2. There is a new toolkit (Windows XP Embedded Supplemental Toolkit) available that covers the new SP2 features and other topics such as EWF API .NET programming, USB Flash boot, security, HORM, etc. There are a few new tools that also help with development. See my websites for more information: www.seanliming.com or www.sjjmicro.com

Sean Liming

I purchased this book after spending days trying to find information about Embedded XP on the web, before reading this book I was struggling to get a working XPe image. The book arrived and by the next day I had the image booting and running.

If you need to create images as I did that run on Flash memory then this book is a requirement. Everything is explained in a detailed way and the common error message section has saved me hours of work trying to find out what is wrong.

Great Book

Having been a programmer for 20 years or so, I have a solid background regarding computers, and computing systems. However when faced with using XPe, it was a matter of learning the development studio and tools ASAP. This book did just that. Within 6 hours of recieving the book, I had my first XPe OS in the target system running. This book is a "hands-on" adventure that reads well; it's not too simple that it doesn't get you where you need to be, yet not so techi intense that it puts your to sleep. My complements to Mr. Liming on a job well done!

Print! Damnit, print! I don't have the money for a Kindle, I don't have my own computer with internet access, and this book has been 'out' (no pun intended) for ages! I want to read more than just a stupid excerpt, I want to read this book! I know it's more environmentally-friendly...for at least a decade or so...and better for the economy not to put so many books in print, to have them on a Kindle instead, but I NEED this book in print. Am I the only bookleech who thinks like this?

In this new installment of the With or without series our focus is on Remi, Chayton's friend the gorgeous half Native American guy who was attacked and then turned into a werewolf. The last time we see Remi we learn that Jake is his mate. I was really happy that With Caution came out and it was only going to be based on Remi and Jake's relationship. I really loved this book, though I have to admit I was a little put off of the fact that the story strayed a bit from the original characters at times focusing more on Sterling, Remi's younger brother. It should also be noted that Remi is submissive in this story a really big change in his personality when he was really dominating in the last. There also a few surprises and secrets that we learn about Remi that come from long suppressed memories and powers with him becoming a werewolf. Its a good read with lot's of foreplay and sex so for all m/m fans enjoy!

A J.L. Langley's book is a sure reading. You will find a good story, hot sex, a lot of humor and romance for your heart. Yesterday I bought three books, but when I had to choose from what book start my reading, I had no doubt: J.L. Langely will not deceive me

With Caution is the third in the With or Without series, even if it is strict connected only with Without Reservation. Remi was turned in werewolf by Jake in the first enstallment in the series, and he has now to learn how to live like a werewolf and in a pack. In the Chay and Keaton's story, Remi had expressed a lot of doubts and a lit of homophobic behaviour, and so when Jake had turned him and discovered that Remi was his mate, he was worried that Remi couldn't accept it.

But Remi is very attracted from Jake, all in Jake appeals him, scent, body and mind. Even the protective attitude of Jake is something that Remi finds reassuring and for the first time he thinks to be able to share with someone else his problems. Remi is out from an abusive father who now treats Remi's brother, Sterling, who is only 14 years old.

Remi is a brave character, but he has not the force to face his father's brutality alone. He is for attitude and nature, a submissive: he needs the help, but over all the added force of his mate, Jake. And Jake is an alpha male, and a dominant character both in life then in sex. So he is the right mate for Remi.

I have the strong feeling that Remi's character is changed a lot from the previous enstallment. In Without Reservation he is an interesting supporting character, but apart the physical beauty and a cocky attitude, no more else gave you the real impression of him. Instead he is a complex character, with a secret past which is a real twist in the actual story (no want to give off the story, so no hints on it).

As always the sex is a main aspect of the story and a strong point of force of it. It's masterly written, very arousing but not crude: J.L. Langley has the ability to get you excited (yes for real) without being graphic. Reading her sex scenes you have not the feeling to read an "hot to do" guide, and despite it, you are reading a good and explicit sex scene.

Like in the other books in the series, the family (in the case of werewolf, the pack) is a main value: old good feelings and the idea that you are stronger if you lean on your pack. And they are also a great source for other stories in the series (I will look forward for Sterling and Rhys's story, and who will be Matt's mate?)

With Caution is a long book, more than 200 pages, but sure when you will arrive to the epilogue, you'd like to have more.

Remington Lassiter has suffered at the hands of his abusive father
Dirk his entire life. Remi's younger brother Sterling is still under
Dirk's roof and therefore in constant danger.

Jake Romero has been waiting for Remi to admit his feelings for him.
He can smell and sense Remi's attraction to him, but Remi is not ready
to admit that he is in love with a man, so Jake waits.

While Remi struggles to come to terms with being a newly changed
werewolf, his feeling for Jake, and keeping his brother safe, he
discovers something amazing about himself that will change everything
for him and those around him.

With Caution is a gay paranormal romance that has elements of BDSM,
aspects of physical abuse and murder and mystery. It's a fantastic
story. It's well written and very engaging. Remi's submissiveness is
sexy and Jake's desire and concern for Remi is endearing. I love them
together. With Caution is another great story by J.L. Langley. I am
absolutely dying for Sterling's story!


Nannette
Reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

This werewolf romance series by Langley gets better with each offering! In Without Reservations, we met Chay's slightly homophobic friend, Remi. He was made a werewolf by Jake, who is also his mate but hesitant to reveal the fact. But, the real reason behind Remi's attitude is heartbreaking and shocking. Physical abuse from his father was hinted at in the previous installment, but now the truth is fully revealed.

This book does stand alone, but a reader will benefit from reading the previous ones. While I really enjoyed the last one, this book has more depth and much richer character development, especially in Remi. He is flawed, loving, vulnerable and in need of someone to care for him for a change. Jake is that person, but first they both must deal with the very real danger Remi's brother Sterling is in from their abusive father, Dirk. In their efforts to find evidence against Dirk so they can take Sterling away, Jake and Remi uncover a mystery revolving around an incident when Remi was a teen. And incident so horrifying, Remi's mind completely blocked it out - except for the dream he keeps having. There is a lot of action regarding the mystery, and plenty of Langley's trademark hot sex. Langley also expands on her werewolf mythos, with new insight into alpha and omega status within the pack. This was hinted at in the first short story, "With Love" in the anthology Hearts from the Ashes. There is a lot to enjoy here in addition to the romance.

My only disappointment with this novel, and it was a small one, was the very predictable storyline with Sterling. Warning, small SPOILER:


Sterling is beaten nearly to death and is saved by being made a werewolf by his mate. This is exactly what happened to Remi in the last book in order to segue into his story! So, the next book will likely be Sterling's romance. However, this was a minor hitch and doesn't make me want to read Sterling's story any less. I just wish it had been done differently, maybe as a choice this time. Langley did throw in a great surprise concerning Sterling that should make the next book more interesting.

Overall, this was a wonderful paranormal M/M romance. I will definitely be buying this in paperback come summer so I can re-read it. Highly recommended!

Absolutely essential source of information for those who are serious about using XSLT in general and 2.0 in particular.
Viktor Melekhine

This is the definitive work on XSLT & XPath, in a new format that will stand the test of time. The 4th edition contains new background material about the development and history of XSLT & XPath.

Some web content for the downloads was not present on the book download site, but this was addressed quickly when pointed out, by the author.

My only wish is that Michael Kay would write a book on XQuery now...

This is an excellent update. The writing has improved. And as a reference,
I am glad the previous 2 volumes are now compiled into this single volume.
Also, I appreciate the hard cover to help reduce wear and tear. And I appreciate the thinner paper to keep the thickness/weight down.

Everyone working seriously with XSLT will want this book. The fourth edition is newly updated and improved. Not only has it been corrected to reflect the design of the current XSLT and XPath specifications (which were not final when the 3rd edition went to press), but also it has been redesigned for usability, with much better indexes and navigation apparatus. No more casting about to find things (although you may still not resist a few post-it notes here and there). XSLT and XPath are now in one volume (a big plus); the lighter pages and hard cover make the book serviceable as a reference text in regular use. It sits open and will wear well (provided you use it for its intended purpose and not as a coaster for your drink, which will be tempting since the book will be there open on your desk).

But the book's strengths are unchanged. Complete and comprehensive, coherent, realistic, clear, with worked examples. No one knows this technology better than the author, who has served on the XSL Working Group and edited the XSLT 2.0 Recommendation. Long-time observers will also confirm that he is also one of the best in the business at explaining things.

The only thing less than positive to say about this book is that beginners may find it intimidating. Don't. Just supplement it with a treatment aimed at you such as XSLT 1.0 Pocket Reference (Pocket Reference (O'Reilly)) or anything by Jeni Tennison, and keep the Programmer's Reference ready for the summary comprehensive view, or when you need to go deep.

I have seen many decrepit copies of earlier editions of this book used by industry professionals. This one looks to be good for a long time to come.

You won't easily find any other book on XSLT 2.0 and XPath 2.0. The reason is very simple: Michael Kay is the expert on the subject, he has been publishing xslt references for almost a decade now. Currently he is the editor of the XSLT 2.0 specification at W3C. He is also involved the XQuery and the XML Schema Working Groups, also at W3C. He has developed the Saxon XSLT processor. This book (like its predecessors were and its future versions will be) is the definitive reference on XSLT.

The third edition was in two separate books, one on XSLT 2.0 (XSLT 2.0 Programmer's Reference (Programmer to Programmer)) and one on XPath 2.0 (XPath 2.0 Programmer's Reference (Programmer to Programmer)). If you are serious about XSLT 2.0, you also need the information on XPath 2.0, as it is a sub language of XSLT 2.0. So you would need both books at hand. The current book contains all of the material available in the two predecessors, and more.

I could have survived on the two books, but tired of taking them from my office to my home and vice versa, I ordered the new edition and I am enjoying it very much. After using the new edition for a week or so I have come upon quite a few improvements, for instance the chapter on regular expressions contains more information and is better structured. Examples have been updated and as have been the appendices covering the processors. There is a new appendix on the Altova processor.

I should also mention the quality of the paper, the binding and the price, they are much better than the two previous books together.

As a reference, the book is complete. It contains a clear description of all the elements of the standards and lots of (tested) examples. There is also much material about the design backgrounds of both standards (and of others like XML Schema and XQuery).

The book is extremely well written and a joy to read.

The book is aimed at developers and should not be used as a first introduction to XML transformation technology (unless you are an experienced programmer). If you need an introduction to XSLT (in its context) check out one of the other Wrox books like Beginning XML, 4th Edition (Programmer to Programmer) or Professional XML (Programmer to Programmer). One could also try Beginning XSLT 2.0: From Novice to Professional (Beginning: from Novice to Professional), it has good reviews. In any case if you are seriously interested (even as a newbie) don't buy anything from before 2004, it will not include the 2.0 functionalities. If you buy something published after 2004 check that they really updated the book and not only the title.