IT programming books related reviews
Product: Book Paperback
Title: The Practical SQL Handbook: Using SQL Variants (4th Edition)
Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional
Authors: Judith S. Bowman, Sandra L. Emerson, Marcy Darnovsky
Rating: 5/5
Title: The Practical SQL Handbook: Using SQL Variants (4th Edition)
Publisher: Addison-Wesley Professional
Authors: Judith S. Bowman, Sandra L. Emerson, Marcy Darnovsky
Rating: 5/5
In our computer-obsessed society, we need not be stuck with the dry theoretical offerings of computer scientists. Walk into any bookstore and you'll find SQL tutorials. Sadly, due to structural problems in the trade computer book industry most of these books are written by authors who picked up SQL as they were writing. There are some good ones, however, our favorite being The Practical SQL Handbook (Bowman, Emerson, Darnovsky; Addison-Wesley). We truly do like this book so we can feel free to pick on it: * though it is 450 pages long, by straining to offer complete coverage of simple boring stuff the authors run out of space and energy to cover the interesting and sophisticated stuff * students have to learn SQL in the context of a data model; like its competitors The Practical SQL Handbook forces readers to live in the dessicated world of business data processing for several hundred pages. This is where the RDBMS started in the 1970s and if you want to get a job in a corporate IS department, this is not a bad place to live while learning SQL. However, we're trying to demonstrate how the concurrency control and transaction management capabilities of the RDBMS enable the construction of powerful reliable Web services. We can dazzle the students with much more interesting and relevant data models than Practical SQL's "bookbiz database about a fictitious publishing company".* the authors write with the assumption that the reader is unaccustomed to thinking formally and using formal languages * the authors avoid the ugly fact that SQL is not a standard. Most SQL queries involve dates and times. Yet there are only two pages out of 450 involving the date data type. Why? The authors don't explain but perhaps it is because they didn't want to say "here's what ANSI SQL date-time arithmetic looks like and, by the way, Oracle has completely different syntax and semantics." * the authors assume that the Web doesn't exist, i.e., that the physical book must be self-contained and comprehensive. Anyone actually using an RDBMS is going to have full documentation on the Web or at least (shudder) on CD-ROM. This book started on the Web and therefore we assume that we can cover the interesting and pedagogically valuable stuff then link students to the full documentation.Bashing other authors and publishers is fun but isn't pedagogically effective. Thus it is probably worth stating what this SQL tutorial tries to do.
Product: Book Hardcover
Title: Logging in Java with the JDK 1.4 Logging API and Apache log4j
Publisher: Apress
Authors: Samudra Gupta
Rating: 4/5
Title: Logging in Java with the JDK 1.4 Logging API and Apache log4j
Publisher: Apress
Authors: Samudra Gupta
Rating: 4/5
This book does an excellent job to readers like me at intermediate level of programming. Step by step guide on both the logging APIS was good although I settled for Log4j finally. I was a bit surprised to see this book got a one star review from someone. This book certainly does better than that. Ihave not read the complete log4j manual (it is out of stock mostly) but apart from that I could not find any other material which does a better job!! My thanks to the author.
The only reason it is a 4 star to me is that there can be more on practical application of logging such as in EJB and all.
Product: Book Paperback
Title: Optimizing Transact-SQL : Advanced Programming Techniques
Publisher: SQL Forum Press
Authors: David Rozenshtein, Anatoly Abramovich, Eugene Birger
Rating: 1/5
Title: Optimizing Transact-SQL : Advanced Programming Techniques
Publisher: SQL Forum Press
Authors: David Rozenshtein, Anatoly Abramovich, Eugene Birger
Rating: 1/5
You don't have to read the whole book, just first three chapters of this book will more than pay for itself. It seems complicated in the beginning with new notations, and their notations hide the simplicity and elegance of characteristic functions. However, once you get the concept of characteristic functions, it can help you enormously. I can't say enough about how good this is, it is such a simple and elegant idea for set-based db-engine, wonder why nobody else had thought of it sooner. I find myself deriving different characteristic functions for all kinds of tasks, and that in it of itself is fun. A must read for anybody using set-based db-engine such as Sybase and MS-SQL server ( despite their claims to the contrary for their latest versions ). Not much help in using this concept in ORACLE, since ORACLE seems to create implicit cursors anyway. I have improved speed in stored procedures by more than ten-fold by using the characteristic functions. Hooorrray!!!!
Product: Book Paperback
Title: Pete Cassidy's Cookbook for Oracle SQL*Plus
Publisher: Chef Pierre
Authors: Pete W. Cassidy, Carole B. Cassidy
Rating: 5/5
Title: Pete Cassidy's Cookbook for Oracle SQL*Plus
Publisher: Chef Pierre
Authors: Pete W. Cassidy, Carole B. Cassidy
Rating: 5/5
Very well written book with lots of real world examples
Product: Book Paperback
Title: SQL Server 2000 XML Distilled
Publisher: Curlingstone
Authors: Kevin Williams, Bryant Likes, Andrew Novick, Daryl Barnes, Paul Morris, Simon Sabin, Steve Mohr, Andrew Polshaw, Jeni Tennison
Rating: 4/5
Title: SQL Server 2000 XML Distilled
Publisher: Curlingstone
Authors: Kevin Williams, Bryant Likes, Andrew Novick, Daryl Barnes, Paul Morris, Simon Sabin, Steve Mohr, Andrew Polshaw, Jeni Tennison
Rating: 4/5
The recent breed of book on XML technology put database applications on its target. However most developments are far from being suitable to daily programming tasks.This book's approach is refreshing for any programmer working with Microsoft SQL 2000. It shows uses of xml technology with this relational database but spares the reader the frustrating "some day you be able" prehamble usually found in texts about recent technology.Each topic is followed by ready-to-run samples. Of course XML technology is a bit foreign for relational database administrators, and these topics demand a fair degree of explanation. Anyway the book balances appropriately the theory/samples ratio.
Product: Book Paperback
Title: Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 with ASP, ColdFusion, and PHP : Training from the Source
Publisher: Macromedia Press
Authors: Jeffrey Bardzell
Rating: 5/5
Title: Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 with ASP, ColdFusion, and PHP : Training from the Source
Publisher: Macromedia Press
Authors: Jeffrey Bardzell
Rating: 5/5
The purpose of this book (in my opinion) is to teach you how to use Dreamweaver MX 2004 to create dynamic (database-driven) web sites. It doesn't teach you all there is to know about Dreamweaver, about scripting languages, or about databases. Rather, it shows you how they all tie together. Yes, it will teach you a little about Dreamweaver, because you will be using it for all the lessons. Yes, it will teach you a little about scripting languages, and yes it will teach you a little about databases. You don't need to already know these things to do the exercises or understand the lessons, because the author clearly explains everything you do. However, these topics are covered more completely in more specialized books.
What this book does is show you how you can use Dreamweaver to accomplish a complete database-driven web site. Keeping this in mind, I thought the book was excellent.
The book takes you through the complete process of starting with a simple static site and converting it to a dynamic site (a challenge many web developers face). The first half of the book introduces you to the site and has you converting it from HTML to XHTML. This is a simple task, and Dreamweaver has a function to do that automatically, but the author here shows you exactly what needs to be done and how to do it manually by using search and replace. He then shows how to convert the site to use a simple CSS file. He shows how to use forms, how to pass data between pages, and how to use scripting languages to build a simple calculator.
Okay, you say, that's pretty basic stuff, and I may skip those chapters. That's what I said, but I decided to read every word and do every exercise anyway. I'm glad I did, because there are many gems buried there. Dreamweaver can make even simple tasks more efficient with its built-in capabilities that I didn't know existed even though I've been using Dreamweaver for years. So, skip the first few lessons if you want, but I suggest you do it all.
The last half of the book has you working with database functions and learning how Dreamweaver ties these together with forms and GET/POST value passing. Dreamweaver really has some fantastic capabilities in this area and it seems that you can create complete database-driven pages with just a few clicks of the mouse. Okay, that may be an exaggeration, but Dreamweaver does easily generate complex code and puts it into your page for you. The author shows you how to use those capabilities.
Finally, in the last lesson, you generate the pages that update the database by just using the scripting language functions, and not using the Dreamweaver capabilities. Whatever you do, be sure to do this lesson, as it shows you all the work Dreamweaver is doing in the background for you.
Armed with the knowledge from this book, and the books I already have on Dreamweaver, HTML, CSS, PHP and MySQL, I feel I can now attack a dynamic site. When I get in trouble, I can refer to the snippets of code in the book to help me get on track.
Product: Book Paperback
Title: PHP Black Book
Publisher: Coriolis Group Books
Authors: Peter Moulding
Rating: 5/5
Title: PHP Black Book
Publisher: Coriolis Group Books
Authors: Peter Moulding
Rating: 5/5
I have studied php black book after i covered several other php books, extensive articles, tutorials etc. best of all? no doubt php black book is the best among what i saw about php. it goes into every details your emagination can think of while always concluding everything in immediate solution sections found in every chapter, gives extended examples and addresses real world issues. In addition, i had a problem with one of my php aplications and after posting the issue at several of the best known php forums decided to write to Peter; the author of php black book though it was not really his issue. the answer arrived within hours. Peter complitly anwered to all of my question writing more than 10 emails back to me, described the issues i was encounting, came up with solutions and much more. i strongly suggest php black book as your study source in php universe. With Regards
Arman Galstyan
eNotalone.com inc.
Product: Book Paperback
Title: Advanced Transact-SQL for SQL Server 2000
Publisher: Apress
Authors: Itzik Ben-Gan, Tom Moreau
Rating: 5/5
Title: Advanced Transact-SQL for SQL Server 2000
Publisher: Apress
Authors: Itzik Ben-Gan, Tom Moreau
Rating: 5/5
Simply, One of the best T-SQL Books I've ever read. lots of good example and explanation. I like those SQL puzzles...
Product: Book Hardcover
Title: MCSE: SQL Server 7 Administration Study Guide
Publisher:
Authors: Lance Mortensen, Rick Sawtell
Rating: 4/5
Title: MCSE: SQL Server 7 Administration Study Guide
Publisher:
Authors: Lance Mortensen, Rick Sawtell
Rating: 4/5
I have read this book from cover to cover and performed all the exercises in it. Found the usual amount of errors: exercises that fail, wrong figures, etc. It is still better than most. You will learn a great deal about SQL Server 7. The one error most annoying is the fact the authors wrote the book with SQL installed on a domain controller, not on a member server per Microsoft's installation instructions/recommendations. Once I figured out what they had done then Chapter 5 and parts of Chapter 8 worked since my install was on a member server. Remember the SAM on the member server never receives a copy of the SAM on the PDC so you have to tell the member server about domain accounts by logging onto the member server itself and placing them there via user manager. However this book does not do much for the test. I have taken both the Beta Exam and the Live Exam and passed. The chapter review questions are extremely easy. Compared to the real exam this book lacks the scenario type questions you will see that are given to you from the perspective of "you're the consultant on site. How would you do this...". While this book did cover traces and replaying them it was a very light run. It did not cover how to modify them and then replay them. Also not covered were issues with NT that could cause SQL to halt/fail.If you plan on taking the test I recommend the following strategy:Use this book Use Transcender (I was a Beta tester and it is excellent)Use Books Online or better yet buy the actual documentation set.Good LuckSteven C. Grigsby, MCSE, MCT, MCP+I
Product: Book Paperback
Title: Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 with ASP, ColdFusion, and PHP : Training from the Source
Publisher: Macromedia Press
Authors: Jeffrey Bardzell
Rating: 5/5
Title: Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 with ASP, ColdFusion, and PHP : Training from the Source
Publisher: Macromedia Press
Authors: Jeffrey Bardzell
Rating: 5/5
Simply put, this is the best book available to begin your quest into dynamic web sites via Dreamweaver. You won't be disappointed. Easy to understand, easy to follow, and amazingly thorough in its step by step process.
