Rating: 
Summary: Get the 2nd edition!
Review: This is an absolutely amazing book for JFC. Its one heck of a reference-cum-tutorial, with detailed explanations for each class in the library. Suitable for anyone who can understand & use O'reilly's Java in a Nutshell (another brilliant book!) easily. However, a few years back, the author had previously covered the topic in two separate books. (Core Java Foundation Classes (1300pgs) & Core Swing: Advanced Features (998pgs) ). In 2001, the author combined both of the books to bring Core JFC (...)ISBN:013090581X. Its over 1600 pages of pure JFC and Swing goodness.I'd recommend you get Core JFC, rather than purchasing the other two books separately. Since, it certainly has everything you'd pretty much need for building an enterprise Swing/JFC app without any problems. PS.
I used this book and Java 2D API Graphics by Vincent J. Hardy to develop a client-server airline reservation application for my final year graduate project. Hope this helps!
Rating:
Summary: This book is a best-buy for the serious Java programmer
Review: There is a publisher of programming books (not Prentice Hall, the publisher of this book) that puts the solgan "100% comprehensive, authoritative, what you need" on its books. That pretty much sums up how I feel about this book. The book is very well written at every level from sentence to chapter. There are very few errors in the text and all the example code I have run has worked as advertised, which is not, sadly, something one can always expect from programming books. Further, although the book is more than 1000 pages, it is not padded out with extracts from Sun's documentation or other fluff. You will really want to read it all the way through. Although I was already using Java and the JFC before I started reading the book, by the end of Chapter 2 I had already learned enough which was new to me and which I could apply to my current work to justify my purchase. By the end of Chapter 4, I felt the book had paid for itself at least three times. And it gets better from there! One thing the book is not is a tutorial on the Java language. You should have some experience with Java before you tackle this book.
Rating:
Summary: Great book
Review: This is a great book for those who want to know Swing in depth. I just wish they had a new edition of the book covering JDK 1.3 and 1.4.
Rating:
Summary: Great JFC Book
Review: Outstanding. I was a beginner with Java & JFC. This book took me through intermediate & up to expert level. JFC underlying structure is explained early on. Each new component family is explained in great detail & lots of high-quality examples. I am a very tough critic when it comes to these sw books, and this was the first one I actually wanted to write the author & thank him/her for such a great job. I couldn't stop reading it! This book is true gold. Only negatives: some minor typos; covered beta of JFC (swing) so once in a while an api changed - this did not hinder the effectiveness of the book (just refer to the Java API when in doubt).
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, complete, well-written
Review: This may be the best technical book I've ever read on any topic. All aspects of Swing are covered in thorough and carefully explained detail. This excellent book promotes a deep understanding of what is going on in Swing, and despite its depth of treatment, it is so well-organized and well-written I believe it is suitable for beginners as well. The examples are numerous and highly instructive. The author keeps the material up to date with changes in Swing through addenda on his web site. One note of caution -- the book only covers Swing, not the entirety of JFC as the title suggests.
Rating:
Summary: Good Stuff, Lots of usable code
Review: It's like buying a years worth of experience for the price of a book. Lots of great code you can cut and paste into your applications. I've also got his Advanced Swing book.
Rating: 
Summary: I'm a C++ guy, not a Java guy...
Review: so I found it quite useful. If you are like some of the people I've hired in the last few years; you learned Java first...don't bother. Though easily dated, it is the kind of book I like to have on hand when I'm trying to meet a deadline and am working into the wee hours (with few people I'd feel comfortable calling to ask stupid, obvious questions.)
Rating:
Summary: Great book to learn JFC
Review: I have this book for a year already and I am very satisfied with it. I refer over and over at my work. I have found great tips and even code that can be used as a starting point. This book covers JFC comprenhesibly. It is pack with great examples. Each topic is accompanied with code that works. The CD has all the code you just install and play. I have many Java books and this one is one of the best. The author writes clearly and logically. It can be usefull for beginners as well as experts or just for reference.
Rating:
Summary: Best Swing book, the only Swing book that you need.
Review: I am a newbie in both java and Swing world, and have auctioned at least 10 Swing books, until I find this one... Topey UNDERSTANDS Swing very well and it makes difference. He also takes great care of writting this book, he provides clear building blocks to build a Swing application; and nothing is overlooked--e.g. what are RGB number and how to manipulate it....In the first few chapters, he provides many details about Swing which require time to digest before most reader can advance to the next. The book is printed on high quality paper and is inexpensive for its contents. It serves both as tutorial for novices and as reference for advanced programmer. I own many technical books in different fields, most of them are mediocre, some are good, few are great. Overall, This book is exceptional.
Rating:
Summary: Great for reading rather than reference
Review: This book shines with its extensive and exhaustive discussions of all the Swing components. No other author explains things with as much attention to detail and clarity as Topley. It is designed more for reading than for fast reference, and is meant for Swing newcomers with previous Java experience (and hopefully an appreciation for good technical writing). If I had to choose a Swing author that has inspired me most, it would be Topley.
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