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Rating: 
Summary: ......
Review: ... This book is a "mess". If you are a beginner and want to learn Coldfusion - DON'T WAST YOUR MONEY! No supporting database samples to download, code has typo, the author said he can't find the database for Chapter 4-7. What a waste of money.....
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent resource for starting application developers
Review: Having no prior programming experience (sans some Basic on my C64 when I was about 8 years old); diving right into Coldfusion seemed like quite the daunting task. However, after working thru the first 3 chapters in a matter of an hour, the tone of the book and inferred concepts just starting clicking, and within the span of 2 days, I was able to walk away with pretty much all the knowledge I needed to start immediatly on my intended projects. I was simply blown away.Eric Ladd does a fine job of working you thru the various functions and tags; and although actually "trying" all the examples given may teeter on excess, they do a great job in the capacity that as you follow along, your able to pop the lightbulb above your head continuously, and get that reassuring sense of "Yeah...I get this." That's not to say that you don't have to do your fair share of actual, eh, "learning". There were several occasions where I found myself needing to get up and take a break from it all, only to return with a fresh outlook and a bit more caffeine in the bloodstream. It's a very well written book, but it's also quite concise. It doesn't waste time with redundant examples, and re-iteration. It's a book that NEEDS to be re-read, and something you'll find yourself returning to as you develop. That said, it is a very quick read, and most should be able to get thru within the span of 2-3 days. I opted not to complete the tutorials at the end, but giving them a read thru will confirm if you "know your stuff". This is a beginners book, but creates a great foundation to build upon, and enough knowledge to start utilizing all of the CF resources out there. It's a great place to start, and a very rewarding read.
Rating:
Summary: Great book for the classroom
Review: My students and I have found this to be an excellent, well-paced book for ColdFusion classroom instruction. Definitely superior to Macromedia training products in which the examples are somewhat canned. I had very favorable email interactions with the author, who also teaches ColdFusion at the university level. I don't know what the last reviewers problem was, but if you can't find the databases on the Que Web site, you should contact Que as they ultimately own the book and its contents and are responsible for its support. The author provided me with a number of Zip files with code and databases. The databases for chapters 4 and 5 are so simplistic, anyone should be able to recreate them with the most basic MS Access skills. Again, great book for classroom use, though that is admittedly a niche market. Even so, the inviting style and tutorial exposition still make this a good starter book for the newbie.
Rating:
Summary: Great book for the classroom
Review: My students and I have found this to be an excellent, well-paced book for ColdFusion classroom instruction. Definitely superior to Macromedia training products in which the examples are somewhat canned. I had very favorable email interactions with the author, who also teaches ColdFusion at the university level. I don't know what the last reviewers problem was, but if you can't find the databases on the Que Web site, you should contact Que as they ultimately own the book and its contents and are responsible for its support. The author provided me with a number of Zip files with code and databases. The databases for chapters 4 and 5 are so simplistic, anyone should be able to recreate them with the most basic MS Access skills. Again, great book for classroom use, though that is admittedly a niche market. Even so, the inviting style and tutorial exposition still make this a good starter book for the newbie.
Rating:
Summary: A Mess
Review: This is book is a mess.
As a person who read more than a couple of computer books in his time, I was shocked to see how disorganized this book was topically. It starts out of nowhere and attempts to cover subjects, but instead dribbles tidbits of information with the shallowest possible coverage.
To make matters worse, the examples given in the book are long, tedious and confusing - especially for people who try to tackle programming for the first time - the intended audience of the book. The only salvation for this book is that the technology it describes is so simple to begin with.
The most disappointing part though, is the book's index. Most people look there to find quick references and answers. This book's index will drive you straight to the web. The index is disorganized and for even a simple issue like file uploads, I had to research the web before finding information in the book about it.
Although reasonably price, it is not a great choice. It is another example of a lazy publisher who scrambles to get a book out as fast as possible without any serious proofing. Stay away.
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