Mastering Delphi 3

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Summary: Best Introduction to Delphi I've found yet
Review: Having dredged through the stylistic (and error-riddled) nightmare of Delphi 2 Unleashed and a handful of other mediocre tomes, each roughly the size of Titanic, this volume was a joy. Cantu writes succintly and eloquently (insofar as one can expect given the subject matter), organizes his material smoothly (assuming you are a proficient programmer of some computer language to begin with), and presents excellent examples. I particularly liked the manner in which he guides the reader step-by-step through overcoming minor (but annoying) limitations in Delphi by use of Win32 API calls and messages. And unlike the loose, circuitous, and highly repetitive text of Delphi Unleashed, Cantu's writing is crisp and to the point. Which says a great deal about how much is covered in this book, given that it, like its lesser kindred, weighs enough to give your typical sedentary computer scientist a serious pectoral workout if she chooses to read it while lying down. Strap your other gargantuan introductory Delphi books to your arch-nemesis' legs and sink him in the Hudson, but keep this one.

Rating:
Summary: Start here first
Review: I bought this book after trying to make do with 'Special Edition: Using Delphi 3'. I found the Pascal language coverage extensive. This book on the whole, is excellent for beginners. Its OK as reference. The Index is kind of inadequate but you can manage.

Rating:
Summary: Good Book for beginners. Ok as reference ...
Review: I bought this book after trying to make do with 'Special Edition: Using Delphi 3'. I found the Pascal language coverage extensive. This book on the whole, is excellent for beginners. Its OK as reference. The Index is kind of inadequate but you can manage.

Rating:
Summary: The Best Book for Beginning/Intermediate Delphi Programmers.
Review: I came to Delphi from C/C++ and VB3,4,5. Having seen what my friends can do in Delphi in a short period of time convinced me to learn Delphi. I bought a lot of Delphi books. This one is the best. The author built up a firm foundation about OOP, Object Pascal, VCL, Components, and Basic COM/OLE. Quite straightforward prose and examples. Easy to follow. I also like the binding of the book--despite its considerable thickness, I can lay it down relatively flat without destroying it.

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Summary: THE book to begin with!
Review: I have taken a major part in the translation of this book to Hungarian, and I really liked its friendly and comprehensive language. Of course, the book does not reveal all the in-depth secrets of Delphi, but gives a perfect overall view, and makes you ready for furter exploring (on your own, or with the help of other books).

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Summary: The best $39.99 I've ever spent?
Review: I loved Mastering Delphi 3, I loved all the sample code and other extras on the CD, My only gripe, I just wish Cantu spent a few more pages on each topic, got my feet wet, but left me at that. Add another couple hundered pages and it would be a five star book

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Summary: A catch-all book for creating wonderful programs with Delphi
Review: I resisted buying the two previous editions of this book and am now sorry that I did. Mr. Cantu's treatment of new features in Delphi 3 are a wonderful addition to my growing collection of Delphi Books. The examples used in this book are consise and get the author's point across. Many authors list the full source of the example programs, however, Mr. Cantu's uses the code snippetts to assembly a working program, over the course of the section and topic he is concentrating on. The CD included with the text has all the examples in executable form, so if you don't yet have this newest version of the product, a potential buyer can understand the topics presented, and see the code from the book in action. He makes clear notes through-out the text to the different versions available of this product. All in all this text and CD combination presents Borland's Delphi 3 in a convient easy to understand format that can make the beginning Delphi programmers and the advanced Delphi programmers equally comfortable in the new environment. I highly recommend this book.

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Summary: Excellent!! Simply Excellent!!!
Review: I think that other authors should copy the excellence of this book! It just contains all in one book!! Incredible! Congratulations Marco!

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Summary: ...it really depends which level you already have
Review: if you are new to delphi but have experience on programming concepts I really can recommend this one. after reading this book you know the basics and are prepared buying a book specialiced on databases or internet programming or client server programming (whatever you are interested in) because this advanced topics are not really coverd in detail. for a beginner on delphi (NOT on programming) it is a good introduction to delphi .......says Major Tom

Rating:
Summary: One of the best books to get you started with DELPHI
Review: If you buy only one book on DELPHI this is the book you must have. It starts you out explaining the basics, in an simple easily understandable format. All the examples show you exactly what to do, and explain each subject in detail. It covers simple topics and advanced features with the same thorough and easy to follow format. Of the 12 books I have on DELPHI, this is my favorite and most useful, along with DELPHI UNLEASHED by Charles Calvert.