Rating: 
Summary: This book is not a reference book, it's for learning.
Review:
It pays to read the notes to lecturers.
I can't wait for the 2nd edition. The approach used by Barnes was a refreshing change to the other Java books (there are few exceptions). This book is about learning to program using object oriented techniques, using Java is just the vehicle.
Rating:
Summary: Object-Oriented Programming Taught Correctly!
Review: Finally, a book that teaches objects and Java without any procedural programming baggage!Unlike other books that introduce objects in chapter 4 or 5 (almost as an afterthought!) and start out with the pre-object "Hello World" program, this book dives right into creating objects and manipulating them. "public static void main" doesn't even rear it's ugly head until half-way through the book, where it belongs. The included Bluej IDE ... is incredibly easy to use and it's very intuitive. I bought a copy of this for the library at work to help my team of procedural COBOL programmers understand objects and Java. It seems to be more valuable than the other books purchased and several thousand dollars of training. Another benefit is that the examples you write from the text are actually useful tools! Please, seriously consider getting this book if you are starting to learn Java or just don't quite understand objects. It will spare you a lot of frustration.
Rating:
Summary: Beginners, don't think twice !!!
Review: I didn't buy this book for an introductory course in college, I bought it cause I wanted to go through some topics that weren't that clear for me. I definitely have to say this is a great book for reading. As some others have said, this is no reference book, this one is for enjoying and learning basic concepts not nicely taught in college. Buy it if you are a newbie or a not so newbie who wants to review important things in OOP and Java. An important thing is that since this is not a reference book, you won't find many examples regarding a certain topic... for that you can use the internet
I haven't finished it yet, but so far so good !!
Rating:
Summary: Required reading
Review: I have been teaching programming to beginners for almost 20 years. I found leaning object oriented programming took me a long time, I believe it has taken most of the text book authors a long time also, many of them still don't get it. The authors of Objects First have taken a giant leap and provide an introduction to OOP (using Java) that is a must read for anyone wanting to learn to program with objects (even more experienced programmers). Do not read any OOP texts that refuse to start with a discussion of objects from the first page. This book simply gets it right! In addition to the great topic coverage, the authors use the BlueJ environment to demonstrate OOP concepts. This environment is unique (and free) and allows students to explore OOP in a way that other programming environments simple don't provide. Not only do the authors clearly discuss OOP but they also discuss important software engineering concepts along the way. Buy this book, work through the incremental exercises, and you will not be disappointed.
Rating: 
Summary: Used as a Textbook for an Introductory Course
Review: I have used this book as a textbook for an introductory Java course at a community college for the last 3 semesters. Of all of the textbooks I have looked over and used (and I've seen a lot of textbooks!), this one provides the very best introduction to object-oriented programming and Java. Java's basic syntax is deceptively easy, and it's really no trick to get even the most challenged student to follow directions and get an applet working. But, that approach has not produced students who have the least clue how to write their own applet or application outside of class. The syntax-first approach does no favors for folks who have a Cobol/mainframe background either. It's the objects part of Java that is the trick -- in addition to an understanding of how to use the API documentation. Some very good examples are used to introduce OOP/OOD concepts in an orderly fashion; syntax definitely is secondary in this approach. The BlueJ tool provides a "learning IDE", which is an important teaching aid. I have had excellent results with students of many differing backgrounds, and intend to continue using this text.
This innovative and remarkable book doesn't rate 5 stars because of a lack of basic textbook support features. Some rather below-average lecture slides are provided and about 1/2 the exercise solutions are available. Absolutely no test question bank is provided. This makes teaching from this text a far more time consuming exercise than using the average textbook for any instructor, and somewhat intimidating for an instructor who does not have an excellent industry background in Java and OOP/OOD. On the other hand, there is a mailing list for teachers using this text, and I have found David Barnes and Michael Kolling as well as other instructors to be very responsive to postings to this list.
The lack of solutions may prove somewhat frustrating to self-learners as well. But, I suspect that participation in the BlueJ mailing list should provide the support needed.
Rating: 
Summary: blueJ is ok, but this book isn't
Review: Reading this book is not a very pleasant experience. You can't quickly look up any little thing you might want to know about whithout beeing forced to work through lots of excercises, examplecodes etc. Every explanation seem to refere to other parts of the book, and other excercises. The right way, and only way to read this book is to read it from cover to cover, and work through every single excercise. I quess that if you have the time and patience to do so, you will learn(that is why I rated it 2 instead of 1).
Another thing that buggs me is the way the text in the book is formatted. Important words are written with a very thin font, and this really disturbs the flow of reading.
I recommend the BlueJ software, it's easy and helpful, but I don't recommend this book, it's frustrating and unhelpful.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely the best way for a beginner to learn OOP.
Review: Simply put, "Objects First" and BlueJ make learning painless and fun. The book is well written and is truly an excellent choice for beginners.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely the best way for a beginner to learn OOP.
Review: Simply put, "Objects First" and BlueJ make learning painless and fun. The book is well written and is truly an excellent choice for beginners.
Rating:
Summary: A fascinating and clever approach to teaching Java
Review: This book is intended to be a course text book for an introductory course in Java and Object Oriented Programming. The authors have made a conscious decision to cover the material in a different order to almost all other books on the subject. You won't find an initial chapter on classpaths, compilation and the main method, there's no pseudo-procedural "hello, world" example. The book leaps straight in to creating objects from classes, examining values and calling methods. There is a trick to all this, of course. The book is based on a kind of Java development environment optimised for teaching called "BlueJ". BlueJ is a free download, and a copy is included on a CD with the book, along with all the source code examples. I've had a play with BlueJ, and it certainly makes important things like the distinction between a class and an object, and the inheritance structure of the code, much clearer than traditional IDEs. If you are planning to teach a course on Java or OO, you should certainly take a look at this book. Even if you don't run the course exactly as presented, the approach is fascinating. If you are trying to pick up these tricky ideas on your own, this book might also be very useful. Even if none of those cases apply, the BlueJ software is still a really neat tool for prototyping.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome book for understanding OOP
Review: This book is what I've always looked for, it doesn't expect you to know anything about OOP or even programming. Step by step the author takes you into the concepts of OOP. There are no "hidden" steps, that you must understand without explanation, every construct that is used is explained when it's used, and the steps are small enought to give everyone the time to understand everything thoroughly. The book has always additional excercises for every chapter, that help you to retry the concepts you've learned. This is very helpful because you might have the feeling that you'd understand what you've read, but it might be that you just understood the example not the concept itself. So I can recommend this book to everyone who wants a real good start in Java and OOP. This book is not meant as a reference book, it's meant for teaching yourself and others in the basics of Java and OOP with the help of BlueJ.
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