I learnt Java by reading the 2nd edition (Java 1.1), but the newer versions focus more on what's new in Java and less on Java itself. It's no longer a good book to learn Java from. I'll go with the flow and suggest Eckel's Thinking in Java instead, or if you need to learn programming too, Deitel&Deitel seem's advised.
2/ The GoF book is also an easy target to knock off. Instead read Mark Grand's first volume, Patterns in Java. An easier read, and more relevant to someone who has just learnt Java. Eventually this should be a book to read through, but there are Java translations now so people can start on those.
For the rest of the list, Shirazi's Java Performance Tuning is the only one that leaps out for me as a definite on my top list. The rest of my list would take one from Kevin Taylor's list: Effective Java. I'd then add Elliot Rusty Harold's superb Java IO and Java Network Programming pair, and Scott Oak's Java Threads, all from O'Reilly (and representing the cream of O'Reilly's Java library with Shirazi's added in). Servlets/JSP are a tricky one, probably David Geary/Marty Hall's books on the subject.
I liked Geary's AWT/Swing pair too and would recommend them.
So:
Thinking in Java
Patterns in Java
Java IO
Java Network Programming
Java Threads
Effective Java
N books by Hall and Geary depending on how far you want to go wrt Servlets/JSP/JSTL/JSF etc
AWT and Swing volumes by Geary
Hatcher's Ant book (from your list)
A JUnit book
Then for higher level reading, I would add:
Java Native Interface, by Liang
Concurrent Programming in Java, by Doug Lea
Component Development for the Java Platform, by Stuart Halloway
At this point the reader will probably start to specialise a bit. Which database, will they do J2EE stuff or simpler, embedded, games etc.
re:
Posted by
ceperez
at
2004-11-30 02:43 PM
Anyone who recommends Mark Grand's Patterns books is clearly clueless.
Those books are simply garbage and that's where they belong. You don't even take it from me, just look at the reviews at amazon
Your saving grace was that you recommended the Geary books, which ranks up there in my list.
Just hitting the top two:
1/ When did you read Java in a Nutshell?
I learnt Java by reading the 2nd edition (Java 1.1), but the newer versions focus more on what's new in Java and less on Java itself. It's no longer a good book to learn Java from. I'll go with the flow and suggest Eckel's Thinking in Java instead, or if you need to learn programming too, Deitel&Deitel seem's advised.
2/ The GoF book is also an easy target to knock off. Instead read Mark Grand's first volume, Patterns in Java. An easier read, and more relevant to someone who has just learnt Java. Eventually this should be a book to read through, but there are Java translations now so people can start on those.
For the rest of the list, Shirazi's Java Performance Tuning is the only one that leaps out for me as a definite on my top list. The rest of my list would take one from Kevin Taylor's list: Effective Java. I'd then add Elliot Rusty Harold's superb Java IO and Java Network Programming pair, and Scott Oak's Java Threads, all from O'Reilly (and representing the cream of O'Reilly's Java library with Shirazi's added in). Servlets/JSP are a tricky one, probably David Geary/Marty Hall's books on the subject.
I liked Geary's AWT/Swing pair too and would recommend them.
So:
Thinking in Java Patterns in Java Java IO Java Network Programming Java Threads Effective Java N books by Hall and Geary depending on how far you want to go wrt Servlets/JSP/JSTL/JSF etc AWT and Swing volumes by Geary Hatcher's Ant book (from your list) A JUnit book
Then for higher level reading, I would add:
Java Native Interface, by Liang Concurrent Programming in Java, by Doug Lea Component Development for the Java Platform, by Stuart Halloway
At this point the reader will probably start to specialise a bit. Which database, will they do J2EE stuff or simpler, embedded, games etc.
Anyone who recommends Mark Grand's Patterns books is clearly clueless.
Those books are simply garbage and that's where they belong. You don't even take it from me, just look at the reviews at amazon
Your saving grace was that you recommended the Geary books, which ranks up there in my list.
Carlos